Rock Island Independents
The rock Iceland Independents were an American football team that played in the National Football League ( NFL)
Team History
Prior to the NFL
The rock Iceland Independents were founded in 1907 as an independent league team in rock Iceland, Illinois. Since there was not a sponsor, the team name " Independents" is selected. The players came from the surrounding rock of Iceland. The team played at irregular intervals and won in the first five years, 19 of 26 games. In 1912, the police officer Walter Flanigan joined the team and ran on to the team as an end and defensive end. Flanigan bought the team in 1915 and served as of this year as the coach of the team. 1919 won the Indenpendents under coach Rube Ursella nine out of eleven games, where they suffered a defeat against the Hammond Pros. Flanigan offered the Canton Bulldogs, the reigning master of the " Ohio League " at $ 5,000 signing bonus for a play at the U.S. Championships. The Bulldogs to their top players and coach Jim Thorpe rejected the offer of the team of rock Iceland. They had already finished their season and the players were no longer available. However, Thorpe was also assumed that Flanigan the signing bonus would not be able to pay. The Independents had in their last game against the Akron Indians only 1,700 spectators, which would not cover the expenses in the opinion of Thorpe. However, two games previously visited 8,000 spectators a game of Independents against the Columbus panhandles. The cancellation of Thorpe was therefore in a questionable light. The Independents declared themselves to American-football champion.
Playing time in the NFL
In 1920, the " American Professional Football Association " ( APFA ) was founded in Canton. The APFA was renamed two years later in the National Football League ( NFL). Flanigan took part in the founding meeting and his team was inducted into the league. The rock Iceland wore on October 3, 1920 from the first ever played APFA / NFL game against the Muncie Flyers and won clearly with 45:0. The team wore in this year a total of six more games in the APFA, but also played three times against teams that did not belong to the League. Ultimately, the team finished in this game year in fifth place in the table.
After the 1922 season Flanigan sold the team and withdrew from the football sport. By 1925, the team remained in the NFL. A title failed the team. 1926 changed the Independents in the launched by Red Grange American Football League. The League presented after one year the operation of gambling. The Independents existed for another year as a semi- professional team in a division club league and then had to playing mode also set.