From NFL Legends to Canadian Coaches

Back in 1920, center, George Trafton of the Decatur Staleys was so despised, that the fans of the Rock Island Independents nearly caused a riot trying to crucify him after one game. The reason? Trafton had merely knocked three of the Rock Island players out of the game, cleverly rearranging the betting chances of those same excitable Independents’ followers.

And, many will recall that as the Staleys headed north in 1921 and eventually emerged as the Chicago Bears, Trafton was a fixture in the starting lineup for coach George Halas until 1932, missing only the 1922 season. He was later inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1964, but his reputation always loomed in the background. As one writer once noted: “Trafton was strongly disliked in every city in the NFL except Green Bay and Rock Island. In those places, he was hated!”

Despite his blurry reputation as an absolute monster on the field, Trafton is one of two former Chicago NFL professionals who actually became quite successful as head coaches in the Canadian professional ranks…and that will be our topic for this episode of “When Football Was Football” on the Sports History Network.

Our other coaching standout is Frank “Pop” Ivy, who made his name on the gridiron with the Chicago Cardinals, helping the team to the 1947 NFL championship despite an injured shoulder.

Like Trafton, Ivy worked his way north and compiled one of the more dominant records in Canadian history before returning to the NFL to head up the Cardinals. While Trafton may have earned more accolades on the field, it was Pop Ivy who secured more successful results as a coach.

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Trafton Played Under An Assumed Name

Let’s begin with Trafton, whose career began in college with an ill-fated stop at Notre Dame in 1919 under Knute Rockne. The Irish finished 9-0 that season with sophomore war veteran Trafton holding down the center spot. However, following the conclusion of the Notre Dame season, Trafton played two games as a professional gridder under an alias during the Christmas holidays in Chicago.

It took only a few days for Notre Dame to swiftly act on Trafton’s athletic future, according to the South Bend Tribune: “It has been satisfactorily proven to the local officials that Trafton played under an assumed name with the Calertons and Racine Cardinals, professional aggregations.”

If that information is accurate, then Trafton likely played in an indoor game with the Calertons on December 28 when that club lost the Chicago Football League championship to the Pullman Thorns, 7-0. Then, on January 4, 1920, the Cardinals met the local Tornadoes in another indoor clash. Trafton probably returned to campus on Monday, January 5, 1920, and immediately faced questions regarding his fun-filled holiday activities.

His loss was a huge one for the Irish since Trafton was also a shot putter on the track team and the center on the basketball squad. With his collegiate eligibility erased, Trafton quickly signed to play professional hoops with the Beloit Fairies in Wisconsin and later in the year began his pro grid career with the Decatur Staleys.

Furnished Trafton With Fistic Amusement!

Almost immediately, Trafton discovered new ways to use his bulk on the basketball court. In his first game with Beloit, the Fairies demolished Stoughton 39-10 and the Beloit News described the rough and tumble action: “The Fairies polished them off with basketball, fisticuffs, and other diversions as the evening was a full one. Brumm of Stoughton furnished Trafton with fistic amusement.”

Of course, Trafton’s reputation accelerated while with the Chicago Bears and he enjoyed being called “the toughest man in football.” Even his revered teammate Red Grange said of Trafton: “He was the toughest, meanest, most ornery critter alive.”

He ensured his legacy for all-time by being the first center to snap the football using just one hand, and on defense, he was the first center to drop back into pass coverage. At 6-2 and 235 pounds, Trafton was a big man for his era and was an all-NFL choice six times during his career. But how would that aggressiveness translate on the coaching side?

Initially, after his playing career concluded just prior to the 1933 season, Trafton remained with the Bears as an assistant coach and scout. He also operated a gym on Randolph Street in Chicago where he famously sold his “share” of heavyweight boxing champ Joe Louis’ contract before Louis hit the big time.

By chance, Trafton ran into head coach Curly Lambeau before the 1944 season and was not shy about his perception of the Packers. Trafton said: “What’s wrong with that club of yours? They don’t scrap back like that old Green Bay crowd. Why right now, in this dinner jacket, I could chase those mugs out of the park!” To which Lambeau replied: “You’ve got a job. Show up in Green Bay on August 20.”

I Made A Mistake Finishing In First Place!

The Packers grabbed the NFL title that year, but Trafton moved over to the Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams from 1945-1949 before he received his first head coaching opportunity in 1951 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Canada. In just three years, he managed to lead the Blue Bombers to the Grey Cup championship game, losing to Hamilton 12-6 on November 28, 1953.

Less than two weeks later, Trafton was fired after compiling a 28-17-1 record and commented: “I made a mistake finishing in first place in 1953. If I just had been content to make the western playoffs every year, in second or third place, I might have been coaching in Winnipeg until I was older than Amos Alonzo Stagg.”

At the time, Stagg was still coaching in the collegiate ranks in his early nineties. When asked again later about his departure from Winnipeg, Trafton’s comments were not so pleasant. Specifically, he was asked about the executives of the Winnipeg club and responded: “They’re OK in their way. The local situation could be improved by five or six fatal automobile accidents!” Sadly, or maybe not, George Trafton never coached football again. He passed away in 1971 at the age of 74.

Called "Pop" Due To Premature Hair Loss

Lee Frank “Pop” Ivy’s football career was not nearly as exciting or controversial as George Trafton’s, but Ivy certainly was a name to fear for his opponents in Canada. He earned the nickname “Pop” for his premature hair loss while playing at Oklahoma. Ivy secured All-American honors as an end during his senior year and was drafted in the fourth round of the 1940 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After being traded to the Chicago Cardinals, Ivy was a two-way performer on the field and was second in the league in receptions in 1942 with 27. He also made his only All-Pro team following the 1942 season. Like many of his generation, Ivy entered the military during World War II and missed the 1943 and 1944 seasons, as well as most of the 1945 campaign.

Won Three Straight Championships

He played with the Cardinals through 1947 and helped the club to its last NFL championship in 1947. Ivy returned to Oklahoma as an assistant from 1948 through 1953 before accepting the head coaching slot for the Edmonton Eskimos in 1954. And this is where Ivy became a phenomenal success!

The Eskimos snared three consecutive Grey Cup championships from 1954-1956, with Ivy leading his club through a combination of innovation, unusual techniques, and good old-fashioned football!

Ivy collected 50 wins over four seasons with just 14 losses, a winning percentage of 78%. Overall, with an 11-4 playoff mark, Ivy wrapped up his four-year stay in Canada with a 61-18 record.

Most importantly, Ivy dominated the league with gutsy formations and variations of traditional strategies. For example, he created what was known back then as the “lonesome quarterback” which has survived to this day through several evolutions as the “shotgun” offense. In addition, he took advantage of the larger field with short kickoffs and utilized the extra player allowed in Canada to initiate the “twin fullback” set.

With such an appealing record, Ivy was in demand from teams looking for an innovative coach in the National Football League. After a 14-2 campaign with the Eskimos in 1957, Ivy was persuaded by his old NFL team, the struggling Chicago Cardinals to take over the head coaching reins in 1958. His initial foray into the NFL ranks was not nearly as successful in Chicago as the Cardinals finished with a 2-9-1 mark in 1958.

The Jack and Jill Formation

But it wasn’t for lack of trying by their coach. Ivy was the subject of a lengthy feature article in Sports Illustrated, where Tex Maule praised Ivy’s unique approach to the game, including his inventive new formation. Maule wrote: “It’s an odd formation devised by Frank (Pop) Ivy, the Cardinals new head coach. Pop calls it the Jack and Jill formation.

Others call it anything from a spread T or a triple wing to less complimentary names when it breaks loose a Cardinal back or gets an end in the open. However, it is unlikely that the Ivy look will take over as quickly as did the T formation since the Cardinals are not likely to set the world on fire this year. Ivy’s unorthodox offense has put them in third place in the league in total offense, but a leaky defense has accounted for an anemic 2-3 record to date.” It would get no better…

Although Ivy was never able to duplicate his phenomenal Canadian record in the NFL, he did conclude his stint with the Cardinals after four seasons with a 15-31-2 ledger. Ivy resigned from that position on December 6, 1961, and quickly signed on as head coach with the Houston Oilers in the American Football League.

In Houston, Ivy regained some of his coaching magic and led the Oilers to an 11-3 mark before losing the 1962 AFL championship 20-17 in double overtime to the Dallas Texans. After slipping to a 6-8 finish in 1963, Ivy was relieved of his head coaching position but remained in the game as an assistant coach and scout with the New York Giants through 1984. The veteran coach passed away on May 17, 2003, at the age of 87.

And so, we conclude our journey into the lives of two intriguing NFL players who each left an impact both on the playing field and in the coaching ranks of the Canadian Football League, known then as the Western Interprovincial Football Union. Speaking of coaches, please join us next time on the Sports History Network as we answer the question: What happened to the Chicago Bears when George Halas went off to war? Thank you once again for listening to “When Football Was Football.”

Author and Host - Joe Ziemba

Joe Ziemba is the host of this show, and he is an author of early football history in the city of Chicago. Here, you can learn more about Joe and When Football Was Football, including all of the episodes of the podcast.