1949 NFL Draft: Oral history – George Taliaferro makes history

Packers team historian Cliff Christl has assembled an oral history series on the NFL Draft, highlighting significant and noteworthy years as a prelude to Green Bay hosting the 2025 draft in late April. New installments will be posted most weekdays. For access to the full series thus far, click here.

1949

The 14th annual NFL Draft was held at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia on Dec. 21, 1948. The selections started at 10 a.m. (EST) and ended shortly after 4 p.m.

The draft was reduced that year from 30 to 25 rounds for just one year. The apparent reason was a shortage of prospects due to the number of World War II vets whose rights were retained from previous drafts.

New York Giants coach Steve Owen (Washington, D.C., Evening Star, Dec. 22, 1948): "It's a waste of time to pick that many. The best men already are committed, and the others aren't worth fooling with."

The draft also started a day later than scheduled due to a 12-hour meeting between representatives of the NFL and All-America Football Conference, where they tried to hammer out a merger agreement and hold a common draft. Their attempt to make peace after three years of engaging in high-stakes bidding for draft picks failed over how many AAFC teams the NFL was willing to absorb.

George Taliaferro: First Black player selected in an NFL Draft

It would be another three years before Eddie Macon became the first Black player to perform for the Chicago Bears, but owner-coach George Halas at least broke new ground when he chose Indiana's triple-threat left halfback George Taliaferro in the 13th round of the 1949 draft.

Taliaferro (6-0, 190) was the first Black player ever chosen in an NFL Draft.

In 1946, the Cleveland Rams had signed halfback Kenny Washington and end Woody Strode, breaking a color barrier that had been in place in the NFL since 1933. In the AAFC, the Cleveland Browns also signed two Black players that year, Bill Willis and Marion Motley.

Both Washington and Strode had gone undrafted in 1940 following their senior seasons at UCLA. In Washington's case, he led the Bruins in rushing and passing for three straight years as a triple-threat halfback and might have been worthy of being the No. 1 overall pick that year if there hadn't been a ban against Black players.

When Washington was bypassed, it sparked considerable public criticism of the NFL's policy for the first time, at least as it related to the draft.

A year later, Jackie Robinson led UCLA in rushing and passing, while also leading the country in punt returns with a 21-yard average on 19 returns. Again, if Blacks had been allowed to play in the NFL at the time Robinson might have been that year's No. 1 pick. It's even conceivable that he might have broken the color barrier in pro football before doing so in Major League Baseball.

In January 1947, Buddy Young, a product of Chicago's Wendell Phillips High School, dropped out of the University Illinois following that year's draft, which had been held in late December 1946. However, he likely would have been eligible for an exemption to play in the NFL that year and a valuable gate attraction for the Bears.

A 5-foot-4, 175-pound halfback, Young placed fifth in Heisman Trophy voting in 1944 as a freshman at Illinois. His rushing average that season was 8.9 yards per carry. In track, Young won the NCAA 100-yard dash in 9.7 seconds.

Drafted into the Army in 1945, Young led Fleet City to a 48-25 victory over the El Toro Marines in what was billed as the national service football championship. He stole the show by returning a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown, a punt 88 yards for a touchdown and running 20 yards from scrimmage for a touchdown.

Young returned to Illinois and played there in 1946. After he dropped out of school, he signed with the New York Yankees and finished fifth in the AAFC in rushing, averaging 6.1 yards per carry, as a rookie. Apparently, the Bears were never in the picture.

Finally, two years later, Halas appeared ready to welcome his first Black player, only to have Taliaferro rebuff him.

In 1945, as a 17-year-old freshman, Taliaferro led Indiana University to a 9-0-1 record, to this day its only undefeated season in 125 years of football, and the championship of the Big Ten, one of only two conference titles the Hoosiers have won since 1900.

As a triple-threat left halfback in what coach Bo McMillan called his "cockeyed T" formation, Taliaferro finished seventh in the country in rushing with 728 yards and a 4.7 average per carry.

After starring for the Virginia-based Fort Lee Travelers the following fall, he returned to Indiana in 1947 and played two more seasons. Although he dealt with multiple injuries both years, he was named Associated Press All-Big Ten in 1947.

Despite growing up a Bears fan in Gary, Ind., Taliaferro signed with the Los Angeles Dons of the AAFC two weeks after the two league drafts. As a rookie, playing tailback in the Dons' single-wing offense, Taliaferro finished seventh in the AAFC in total yards.

Following what was the AAFC's final season, Taliaferro was drafted second by the New York Yanks in the NFL's 1950 allocation draft. Taliaferro then played six more years with the Yanks, Dallas Texans, Baltimore Colts and Philadelphia and was a three-time Pro Bowl pick.

McMillin, coach at Indiana from 1934-47, former Walter Camp All-American quarterback at Centre College and future coach of the Detroit Lions (Indianapolis News, Oct. 3, 1946): "Taliaferro is perhaps the best ball carrier I've seen in the Big Ten since I came to Indiana."

Dom Tomasi, captain of Michigan's 1948 AP mythical national champions, on Taliaferro (United Press, Dec. 3, 1948): "Greatest back I ever saw. Glenn Davis and Doc Blanchard of Army are the next best backs."

Columnist Al Vaughn of the short-lived Illinois Standard, a newspaper that tried to appeal to readers of all colors, all minority groups and all religions (Jan. 1, 1949): "George Halas fooled the sports world by drafting George Taliaferro. Nobody actually knows whether Halas intends to sign Taliaferro or to use him just for trading purposes. One thing is for sure if the great Indiana star ever gets behind the Bear line, he will do things never before seen in pro football. For our money, Taliaferro is the best back going in the business today and would make the Bears nigh on to unbeatable."

Vaughn (Illinois Standard, Jan. 15, 1949): "Those who were wondering whether or not George Halas would actually sign George Taliaferro need not wonder anymore. George has been signed by the Los Angeles Dons. We suspect Taliaferro didn't quite trust Mr. Halas, and you can't blame the guy when you consider that the owner of the Bears got around to drafting Taliaferro, the best halfback in the country, as his 17th choice."

With Taliaferro playing in the AAFC as a rookie, Wally Triplett earned the distinction of being the first draftee to play in the NFL. A halfback from Penn State, Triplett was selected by Detroit in the 19th round in 1949.

Grambling's Tank Younger puts Black colleges on the map

Despite scoring what was heralded as a collegiate career record 60 touchdowns, Paul "Tank" Younger of Grambling was not one of the 251 players chosen in the 1949 draft. At 6-2, 220 pounds, he certainly didn't lack size. With a 10-flat time in the 100-yard dash, he wasn't lacking for speed, either. His list of honors included being a two-time Pittsburgh Courier All-American.

The only item on Younger's resume that would have given pause to NFL teams was that he attended Grambling, a historically Black college. It had been only three years since the league had reintegrated and no player from the more than 100 Black colleges had ever been on an NFL roster.

Younger became the first.

Signed as a rookie free agent by the Los Angeles Rams on March 2, 1949, he reported to their training camp at Redlands College in late July, one of 19 halfbacks and fullbacks on their roster.

Two months later, he started in the Rams' opener at right halfback, joining two future Hall of Famers in the backfield, quarterback Bob Waterfield and left halfback Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch.

Younger would play 10 years, mostly at fullback and linebacker, rush for 3,640 yards and be named to four Pro Bowls. He gained 3,296 of those yards with the Rams and finished as their second-leading all-time rusher to "Deacon" Dan Towler.

Following his playing career, Younger spent nearly 40 years as a scout and executive with the Rams and San Diego Chargers.

Eddie Robinson, who won 408 games as Grambling's coach from 1941-97, other than two seasons during World War II (Christl interview, March 19, 1979): "We had an outstanding PR man, Collie Nicholson. He made such a noise with Younger, with the 60 touchdowns, that the pros had to come and look at him. It was unheard of then. Nobody thought any kids from our schools could play. That was the breakthrough. He paved the way for others. Today, (Younger) would have been the No. 1 player drafted."

Younger (Christl interview, Jan. 10, 1979): "I remember being scouted. A guy named Eddie Kotal when I was a junior. During the '48 season, my last in college, I received communications from the Rams and from Detroit. Those were the only teams I received any correspondence from. The old New York Yankees (of the AAFC) drafted me. To be perfectly frank, I never considered being drafted at all."

Younger on Kotal, the Rams' college scout at the time (Christl interview, Jan. 10, 1979): "He was a super guy, just a great guy. I always got the feeling – and he never told me this – that he felt his proudest moment, or one of his proudest signing athletes, came when he signed me and I made the big leagues."

Tex Schramm, publicity director of the Rams when Younger signed and future Hall of Fame general manager and president of the Dallas Cowboys (Christl and Don Langenkamp interview, circa late 1970s): "When we started out in LA, we were the only team that had Black players. We didn't have any qualms about them. So we went down and signed Tank Younger at Grambling."

NFL & AAFC: Guilty as charged of secret drafts

To get a jump on their competition, both the NFL and AAFC held early, secret drafts.

The NFL held its three-round clandestine session on Nov. 15, 1948, at the Hotel Schenley in Pittsburgh. At the start, the Eagles won the drawing for the bonus pick and selected University of Pennsylvania All-American center Chuck Bednarik (6-3, 233).

As background, Bednarik was the league's third bonus pick.

On Jan. 12, 1946, NFL owners voted unanimously to institute a bonus pick, which would be the first in the draft and determined by lottery, effective with the 1947 draft. The purpose behind it, according to reports, was that owners wanted to enhance their chances of signing the nation's top prospect in their competition with the AAFC.

Upon his return to Philadelphia, two days after the November 1948 selections, NFL commissioner Bert Bell shared the news of the coin flip and the Eagles' intention to select Bednarik with his hometown newspapers but said nothing about holding a secret draft.

George Munger, who compiled an 82-42-10 record as Penn's coach from 1938-53 (Associated Press, Dec. 2, 1948): "Bednarik is the finest player I have ever coached. He could play any position and do an outstanding job. You get only one like him in a lifetime."

Collier's Coaches All-America Team on Bednarik (Dec. 20, 1947, Joyce Sports Research Collection, University of Notre Dame): "Tremendous hands. He never makes a bad pass from center. Dangerous man with an intercepted pass. Played fullback in high school. Coach George Munger uses him as a punter. Occasionally throws a pass from punt formation. A great competitor."

It wasn't until Nov. 30 when word of the NFL's secret draft was exposed by the Milwaukee Journal. With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Journal reported that quarterback Stan Heath of the University of Nevada was the Green Bay Packers' first choice. Moreover, the paper said Heath already had been offered a two-year, $40,000 contract by the Yankees, despite not having been drafted by them in the AAFC's secret session.

At the time of the NFL secret draft, eight of its 10 teams had played eight of their 12 games, while the Boston Yanks and Packers had played nine. At that point, Detroit had a 1-7 record, the worst in the league, followed by the Yanks at 2-7. The Packers were 3-6, which was the fourth worst record.

Joel Bussert, the NFL's senior vice president of player personnel and football operations when he retired in 2015 after 40 years of work, said league records show that when the draft was resumed on Dec. 22, it was a continuation of the Nov. 15 selections, not a re-do.

But at least one team had a change of heart.

At the secret draft, the Lions chose Georgia's T-formation quarterback John Rauch (6-1, 195) with its No. 1 pick, the second overall after Bednarik. Boston followed and took Southern Methodist single-wing tailback Doak Walker (5-11, 168).

Five weeks later, Detroit (2-10) and Boston (3-9) still held the first two choices, but the Lions decided they wanted Walker instead. Thus, the two teams agreed to a Walker-for-Rauch swap with the Yanks throwing in a second player, who was waived before the season started. Walker, winner of the 1948 Heisman Trophy, had a season of college eligibility remaining, but the Lions were willing to wait on him.

Boston owner Ted Collins, explaining that Rauch would have been his first choice if the Lions hadn't taken him in the secret draft (New York Times, Dec. 22, 1948): "Last season, we were weakest at quarterback. We tried four. … Walker is a great runner, but we need a passer and Rauch may be the man."

Matty Bell, coach at SMU from 1935-41 and '45-49, on Walker (Collier's, Dec. 20, 1947): "Dangerous passer in the clutch. Not a long punter, but stays among nation's leaders by minimizing runbacks. Angles punts away from safety men – low, rolling kicks that usually die out of bounds. Great runner. Slides through tiniest holes and makes maximum use of blockers."

Dutch Meyer, coach at rival TCU (College Football U.S.A. 1869-1971: Official Book of the National Football Foundation, by John McCallum & Charles Pearson, 1972): "It was split vision. Doak had the greatest split vision I ever saw."

The AAFC had held a secret draft of two rounds in the summer of 1948 but many of the teams took different players in the December draft. Cleveland, for example, selected Walker first after reportedly selecting back Gene Derricotte of Michigan in August.

Walker signed with the Lions, played from 1950-55 and was named to five Pro Bowls. Rauch lasted three seasons and started only three games.

The sudden riches of T-formation quarterbacks

Among the passers who dominated pro football in the 1940s, some played in single-wing or Notre Dame Box systems just as they had in college. Green Bay's Cecil Isbell, Brooklyn's Ace Parker and Glenn Dobbs in the AAFC continued to operate from the left halfback or tailback positions in their pro attacks.

Others – most notably Washington's Sammy Baugh, the Chicago Bears' Sid Luckman and the AAFC Cleveland Browns' Otto Graham – were converted to T-formation quarterbacks. In Baugh's case, it was closer to the midway point of his pro career when he made the switch.

But by 1947, the United Press reported that close to 90 percent of colleges were using the T or at least some variation of it. In the NFL, half of the 10 teams were using it, while two others were running a variation.

Consequently, there suddenly was an influx of T-formation quarterbacks coming out of college – even if they had played the position only for a season – and the best of them were being swept up by the pros.

They included three future Pro Football Hall of Famers: UCLA's Bob Waterfield, who was drafted in 1944 with a year of college eligibility remaining; and Texas' Bobby Layne and Louisiana State's Y.A. Tittle in 1948.

In 1949, four of the NFL's 11 first-round picks were T quarterbacks: Rauch; Heath, drafted fifth by Green Bay; Virginia Military's Bobby Thomason, seventh by the Rams; and Notre Dame's Frank Tripucka, ninth by Philadelphia.

But the best of the T quarterbacks turned out to be Oregon's Norm Van Brocklin, who was drafted in the fourth round by the Rams.

Already blessed with Waterfield and having drafted Thomason No. 1, the Rams gambled on Van Brocklin (6-1, 190) despite his uncertain draft status.

The rule at the time was that a player couldn't sign a pro contract until his class graduated or he graduated.

In Van Brocklin's case, he was a member of the class of 1950 but was close to graduating in June 1949 after just three years in school. The risk for the Rams was that if he didn't receive his degree before the start of the 1949 season, the choice would have been voided, and Van Brocklin would have been available again in the 1950 draft.

New York Giants owner Wellington Mara (Christl interview, Jan. 10, 1979): "Van Brocklin needed a certain number of hours to graduate, and Dan (Reeves) drafted him for the Rams and then financed the institution for a course at Oregon, especially so Van Brocklin would get enough credits to graduate."

Oregon coach Jim Aiken, who was in his 13th season as a college head coach, on Van Brocklin (Austin American, Dec. 29, 1948): "He's the best passer I ever coached, and he's the best long passer I ever saw."

Graham, a rival and contemporary of Van Brocklin (College Football U.S.A 1869-1971): "Norm had a natural arm. He had a rubber arm, and after he became a star in the pros it seemed he would go on forever. Certainly, he was on par with (John) Unitas as a passer."

After playing sparingly as a rookie, Van Brocklin shared quarterback duties with Waterfield in 1950 and again in '51 when the Rams won the NFL championship. At the end of his career, Van Brocklin led Philadelphia to the 1960 NFL title. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1971.

Thomason also saw little action with the Rams as a rookie, spent the 1950 season with the Packers and then started 43 games for the Eagles from 1952-57. He was good enough to have been selected to three Pro Bowls.