Red Grange was one of the best football players to ever play the game of football. His primary position was halfback, where he was nominated as a three-time All-American during the 1920s. Red Grange, or The Galloping Ghost, was an important influence in popularizing the game of football.
Red Grange displayed his talents at the University of Illinois during 1922. During this time Frederick Douglass “Fritz” Pollard and Paul Robeson were also college stars. Pollard was the first African American star in the APFA/NFL in 1919. He won a title with Akron in 1920, and became player-coach with Akron in 1921 and then in Hammond in 1925. He then coached the Chicago Black Hawks barnstorming team from 1928-32 and the NY Brown Bombers through 1935-37. Robeson …show more content…
As these other stars of the 1920s were performing, Grange was becoming an national idol for the game of football. In 1925, Grange signed with the Bears, promoting a controversial topic. When he signed with the Bears, he was still in-season with the University of Illinois. Because of this event, a policy was established that collegians were not eligible to sign until after their class had graduated, which was in effect until 1989. Despite this event, Red Grange started his rookie year for the Bears in 1925, earning $100,000, while the average ‘20s player made only $100 per game. This was the most ever a rookie was paid, until 1965 when Joe Namath entered the league. Not only did he have the largest salary as a rookie, he was the NFL’s first star to immediately impact the attendance of the Bears. Before Grange was signed, the Bears drew less than 7,000 fans per game. His first home game was a Bear, on Thursday, November 26, against the Chicago Cards, drew in 39,000 fans. Despite the cold weather, the highest attendance Grange drew as a rookie was on Sunday, December 6, at the New York Giants stadium. 68,000 fans came to watch Grange play on the gridiron that day. During his rookie season with the Chicago Bears, Grange …show more content…
By using “barnstorming” and his fame, he was able to successful attract college graduates into pro football. Grange’s impact towards pro football to show prestige and popularity still remains to this