When Football Is Football is part of the Sports History Network - The Headquarters For Your Favorite Sports' Yesteryear.

EPISODE SUMMARY

Sixty-one years ago this month the Chicago Cardinals, the NFL’s oldest franchise, suddenly pulled up its roots and left for St. Louis. Certainly, there had been rumors in the past that the team would leave the city at some time in the future. In fact, these rumors had swirled for decades, with possible destinations being Atlanta, Buffalo, Dallas, or even San Francisco. But fans of the team, located on the south side of the windy city, were always comforted by the reassuring words of its owners that such desertion would never, ever happen.

 That is why on March 9, 1960, Cardinals' fans were stunned by the rumors that the team would soon be departing for a new home in St. Louis. After being around the south side of Chicago since 1899, the team had established a solid presence in the National Football League. Despite a woeful 2-10 mark in 1959 which included a move of its home games to Soldier Field as well as a hosting a pair of "home" games in Minneapolis, supporters of the club were not overly concerned that a departure from the city would be imminent.

Read the entire episode blog post and check out some other cool info regarding this episode here.

WHEN FOOTBALL WAS FOOTBALL BACKGROUND

Each episode takes the listener back to the very early days of the National Football League. Author Joe Ziemba will share a forgotten or lost story from one of the NFL’s two oldest teams: The Bears and the Cardinals. Team championships, individual exploits, or long-buried items of interest from the earliest years of the NFL will be dusted off and resurrected for the listener. Not for the football faint-of-heart since these programs will document when the struggling Bears nearly went out of business or when Cardinals’ players earned $15 a game and were proud of it! It’s NFL history—with a twist!. See Joe's books below.

Cadets, Canons, and Legends: The Football History of Morgan Park Military Academy

When Football Was Football: The Chicago Cardinals and the Birth of the NFL