9781422283066

bad. Money went a lot further back then, too: $135 in 1930 converts to almost $2,000 today. And that was per game. The Steam Roller played eleven games in 1931. Hein wrote back to the Steam Roller accepting their offer, and he dropped the signed contract in the mail. At a Washington State basket- ball game the next day, Hein ran into Ray Flaherty, an assistant coach with the New York Giants. Flaherty had played at and coached Gonzaga Uni- versity, which is not far from Washing- ton State. Flaherty asked Hein if he had heard back from the Giants. “No, I haven’t,” Hein said, “but it doesn’t matter, anyway.” Oh, but it did, Fla- herty said, because the Giants were willing to offer Hein $150 a game. Flaherty urged Hein to contact the postmaster in Providence. When

Delivered! Wide receiver Don Hutson, who played for the Green Bay Packers from 1935 to 1945, was the top pass catcher of his era. He revolu- tionized pro football by creating many of the standard routes still used today, and he made the forward pass a weapon. How Hutson joined the Packers is a classic story. After starring at Alabama, where he became known as the “Alabama Antelope,” Hutson signed contracts with both Green Bay and Brooklyn of the NFL. Both teams cried foul. NFL President Joe Carr settled the dispute. He decided that the contract with the earlier postmark would be honored. Both letters were postmarked on the same day…but the Packers got the future Hall of Famer—their letter was stamped 17 minutes earlier.

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