All-America Football Conference
Championship Game
1946
12-22-1946
The
first All-America Conference championship game took place at Municipal
Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio before 41,181 rabid Browns fans. Snow fell
for three days preceding the game and pelted the fans during it. It was
estimated that the attendance was down about 20,000 due to the weather.
The Cleveland Browns were the champions of the new league’s Western
Conference and they faced the Champions of the Eastern Conference, the
New York Yankees. The City of Cleveland had a NFL championship the
previous year when the Rams won the championship of the senior league.
But, the Rams had departed for Los Angeles, leaving Cleveland all to the
Browns. The Browns were coached by former high school coaching genius,
Paul Brown, who came to them after a stint at Ohio State. The Giants
were coached by Ray Flaherty, former coach of the Redskins of the NFL.
The Browns came out passing behind quarterback Otto Graham. He completed
his first pass to Dante Lavelli for 20 yards and drove the Browns to the
Yankees’ 31 yard line. But, Eddie Prokop picked off Graham’s next pass
and returned it 38 yards to the Browns’ 31. From there, New York’s Ace
Parker drove his team to the 12 yard line and Harvey Johnson booted a
field goal for a 3-0 lead. With just under ten minutes remaining in the
1st quarter, the Browns commenced an 80 yard drive to the New York
three, but the drive stalled with the Yanks pushing the Browns back and
holding them out of the end zone, taking over on downs. In the second
quarter, the Browns drove into Yankee territory again. Lou Groza’s 52
yard field goal attempt was well short. As the second half wound down,
the Browns started a drive from their own 30. Graham passed for 61 yards
on the drive with Marion Motley catching a thirteen yard touchdown pass
late in the half. The halftime score was 7-3.
In the third quarter, Groza missed his second field goal attempt, this
time from 42 yards. The Yankees responded by mounting a drive. Parker
drove the Yanks 80 yards in 10 plays with Spec Sanders carrying it in
from two yards out on second and goal. On the drive, Sanders carried for
40 yards. Johnson’s extra point was blocked by Lou Rymkus and the score
was 9-7 at the end of the third quarter. Early in the 4th quarter, Groza,
the AAFC’s leading scorer, missed his third field goal attempt of the
game from 20 yards out. The Yankees went three and out from their own 20
and were forced to punt. Cleveland’s Lou Saban partially blocked
Parker’s punt and the Browns got the ball at the Yankees’ 32. But,
Cleveland’s Chet Adams missed a field goal from 37 yards and the score
remained, 9-7. With eight minutes remaining, the Browns got the ball
back on their own 26. Motley carried for 9 yards on first down, then
Edgar (Special Delivery) Jones made a shoestring catch of a Graham pass
at the Yankees’ 42. On second down, Graham hit Dante Lavelli who
lateraled to Don Greenwood to take the ball to the 34. On third down,
Jones carried for 7 yards and a first down at the 27. Tom Collela
carried a pitch-out from Graham to the 16 on first down. From there,
Graham hit Lavelli for the touchdown along the right sideline for the go
ahead score. Groza’s extra point made it 14-9. In the final minute of
the game, the Yankees made one more drive. Spec Sanders returned the
kickoff to the Browns’ 45 and it looked like New York was in business.
But, Graham intercepted Parker’s third down pass from the 45 and
returned it to his own 34. Cleveland ran three plays and punted. The
Yankees ran two desperation plays from there and it was over.
It was the third victory for the Browns over the Yankees on the year.
Graham was 16 of 27 for 213 yards. Motley carried 13 times for 100
yards. As time expired, the Cleveland fans stormed the field and tore
down the goal posts.
