Youngstrom entered Dartmouth College in 1914. He played every position on the line, but eventually made guard his specialty, where he gained notoriety for his aggressive style. He earned additional fame on the defensive side of the ball, where he was credited with blocking nine punts in his senior year, including no less than three blocks in the title game against Colgate, and earned a spot on Walter Camp’s elite squad--along with a dozen other lesser-known All-America teams--in 1919. After graduating, Swede was operating a candy store in Hanover, New Hampshire, with Dartmouth teammate Ed Healey when he was approached by representatives of the Buffalo team with an offer to play in the new American Professional Football Association starting play in the fall of 1920. (Note: Healey also entered the pro circuit, initially plying his craft with the Rock Island Independents for a couple of seasons before moving on to the Chicago Bears, where his stellar play earned him induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.)

Like Youngstrom, Oscar Carl "Ockie" Anderson was born to Swedish immigrants. His parents settled in Erie, Pennsylvania, where Ockie received his schooling. Anderson became a three-letter man at Colgate, starring in football, basketball, and track. It was said that had Ockie not damaged his knees playing footbal, he would easily have been a world class sprinter. But football was his best sport, a fact Walter Camp acknowledged in selecting Anderson as a first-team All-American in 1916. The following year, Anderson got caught up in the martial fervor sweeping the nation and enlisted in the Army. In 1917, Camp selected to his elite squad only players serving in the military, and Anderson once again made the team. He served two years in France during the first World War before returning to his native Erie, Pennsylvania. He took a job as a high school athletic director until signing on to play pro ball with Buffalo.

The Buffalo team also signed several stand-outs selected to various other All-America teams, including colorful tackle Lou Little (1916) and center Lud Wray (1917), both from the University of Pennsylvania, and Lafayette halfback John "Bodie" Weldon (1919). When it came time to give the team a nickname, it took little more than a passing glance at the depth chart for an apt moniker to emerge. The abundance of Walter Camp honorees gave Buffalo’s first professional football team perhaps the most fitting name in league history: The Buffalo All-Americans.

In addition to all of the famous collegians, Lepper and Hughitt mined the local fields for grid talent. Among the local behemoths signed were linemen John Rupp and George Voss. Rupp was a veteran sandlotter, well-known to local football followers from his days with the Prospects and other squads. Voss was a standout guard from the University of Buffalo. When not gnashing and smashing teeth on the football field, Voss was fixing them off it. During the week, Voss was a practicing dentist.

The uniforms were to be black with orange trim. The All-Americans contracted to play their home games at the Canisius College Villa, located at Main, Jefferson and Hughes streets, which had a seating capacity of 12,000. As Hughitt recollected some years later:

Players in 1920 were paid in much the same fashion as their counterparts in today’s game: the linemen and reserves received far less than the backs and big name stars. An average lineman might earn between $50 and $100 per game, while backs and star players could bring down as much as $100 to $175. Established stars, such as Jim Thorpe, could command $200 or more.

As the association did not control scheduling at that early date, each team was at liberty to make its own slate. Since cash was at a premium for the embryonic organization, teams did whatever they could to cut corners. Travel was costly, so teams played as many home games as possible, or scheduled road games in nearby cities to keep expenses low. While regional scheduling might have made good financial sense, it ran counter to the purposes of the association. Teams played games against semi-pro outfits and traditional regional rivals, which may or may not have been A.P.F.A. members, simply to cut down on traveling costs. While this might have made a good pro team’s record appear even more impressive, it created much confusion at the end of the year when it came time for the association to crown its champion. Since the league title was to be awarded to the team with the best record, as in the collegiate game, the league first had to decide which games would count in a team’s final record. For instance, the Buffalo franchise finished the 1920 season with an overall record of nine wins, one loss, and one tie. However, the league discredited five games the All-Americans played against non-association teams, leaving them with an official record of 4-1-1. In recent years, however, historians have restored the non-league games for all teams and Buffalo’s record officially stands at 9-1-1.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller lives in Springville, New York, with his wife, Cathaline, and their two cats. He is the author of The Icemen Cameth: The History of the Natural Ice Industry at Lime Lake, New York, 1880-1925 (published 1996). He is a member of the Professional Football Researchers Association, and his writing has appeared in Coffin Corner, the bi-monthly publication of the PFRA. Mr. Miller is also the writer and director of Theatrical Expressions, a sketch theatre troupe which performs throughout the Western New York area.

Introduction | Chapter 1