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Canton Bulldogs
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The Canton Bulldogs were the first professional American football team based in Canton, Ohio. They played in the Ohio League from 1903 to 1906 and 1911 to 1919, and in the National Football League from 1920 to 1923 and 1925 to 1926. The Bulldogs won the 1922 and 1923 NFL championships. In 1924, Sam Deutsch, the owner of the team in Cleveland called the Indians, bought the Canton Bulldogs and took the team nickname and players to his Cleveland franchise as the Cleveland Bulldogs.
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The Canton Bulldogs were the first professional American football team based in Canton, Ohio. They played in the Ohio League from 1903 to 1906 and 1911 to 1919, and in the National Football League from 1920 to 1923 and 1925 to 1926. The Bulldogs won the 1922 and 1923 NFL championships. In 1924, Sam Deutsch, the owner of the team in Cleveland called the Indians, bought the Canton Bulldogs and took the team nickname and players to his Cleveland franchise as the Cleveland Bulldogs. He offered to sell the Canton franchise back to Canton to play in the 1924 season, but there were no buyers so he "mothballed" the Canton club. The Canton team was re-established in 1925, and the NFL considers the 1925–1926 Canton Bulldogs to be the same team as the 1920–1923 incarnation.
Jim Thorpe was Canton's best player. In 1921–1923, the Bulldogs played 25 straight games without a defeat (including 3 ties), which as of 2008 remains an NFL record. As a result of the Bulldogs' early success along with the league being founded in the city, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is located in Canton.
History
Origin
The Canton Bulldogs began as the Canton Athletic Club a club designed to operate baseball and football teams. However the club placed emphasis on its football program. The team was given the goal of beating the rivial Massillon Tigers, who had won every Ohio League championships from 1902-1907.
Sometime during the 1906 season, the Canton team became known as the "Bulldogs" although no one is quite sure how it came to be affixed to the Canton team. They weren't called that in 1905 nor through most of the 1906 season. As late as November 4, R.C. Johnson, an editorial cartoonist with the Canton Repository, was only able to picture the Canton team as only a man with a club lying in wait for the Massillon Tiger. Most references to the team called it "Canton A.C.," "C.A.C.," "Canton eleven." "the Red and White" or "Wallace's Men." Suddenly, almost overnight, they became the "Bulldogs."
Blondy Wallace era
In 1905 Bulldogs coach, Blondy Wallace, signed an agreement with the Latrobe Athletic Association, led by quarterback John Brallier, to play in Canton on Thanksgiving. Latrobe had gone undefeated for three years. Led by the great quarterback John Brallier. Latrobe was nopt only the current Pennsylvania champions, but were undefeated for the last three season. They were also considered the only pro team capable of competing with Canton and Massillon. Cantons would go on to lose the game to Latrobe.
The addition of four former Massillon players, improved the team's chances for 1906. That year the Bulldogs was able to win their first game against Massillon, at Canton, however they lost the second game, and Massillon again claimed the Ohio championship. Shortly afterward that second game, a Massillon newspaper charged Canton coach Blondy Wallace with throwing the 1906 championship game. Canton denied the charges, maintaining that Massillon only wanted to ruin the club's reputation before their final game with Latrobe. Although Massillon could not prove that Canton had indeed thrown the game, it so tarnished Canton's name that virtually no one attended the Latrobe game. The scandal ruined professional football in Ohio until the mid 1910s. However some others argue that the expense of placing all-star teams on the field each week, also put a hamper on the sport. The Canton Morning News put a $20,000 price tag on the Massillon Tigers 1906 team, while many speculate that the Bulldogs probably cost even more. Stiil others contend that the games involving top teams like Canton and Massilon were too one-sided and lacked excitement.
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