Professional Football Researchers Association
On the 22nd of June 1979, Bob Carroll stood in Canton, Ohio to establish a new organization for football historians. He gathered six other researchers to form what became known as the Professional Football Researchers Association. The group met to discuss how they could preserve and reconstruct professional American football history. Their mission was clear from the start: document every detail of the game's past before it disappeared. This small gathering laid the groundwork for decades of future research. Today, the PFRA operates out of Guilford, New York under an executive committee led by George Bozeka and Leon Elder.
The Coffin Corner magazine appears twice each month with articles written by PFRA members regardless of their prior writing experience. Editors assist newer authors anonymously when developing narratives for publication. An annual membership costs $35.00 and includes a subscription to six issues of the magazine plus access to the Members Only section of their website. That online area contains detailed research on various pro football subjects unavailable elsewhere. In cooperation with McFarland & Company, the association now works on the third installment of its Great Teams in Pro Football History series edited by George Bozeka. Individual members volunteer to author different chapters profiling players coaching staffs and all elements of a team season. The 1966 Green Bay Packers book released in 2016 followed by The 1958 Baltimore Colts book in 2018. Writing continues on chapters about the 1951 Los Angeles Rams season which will release in 2022.
Committees update records as information develops or is discovered during research processes. Select committees may disband once their work completes. Ken Crippen chairs the All-America Football Conference committee researching leagues before 1920 like the Ohio League and Western Pennsylvania Professional Football Circuit. Andy Piascik leads the Hall of Very Good Committee highlighting outstanding players not yet inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Greg Tranter Jeffrey J. Miller and George Bozeka chair the Biography Committee responsible for writing biographies of every NFL player. Gary Selby heads the Linescore Committee compiling linescores for all professional games played since 1920. Giovanni Malaty and Rupert Patrick co-chair the Gamebooks Committee collecting play-by-play accounts for all NFL history games. Roy Sye directs the Pre-NFL Pro Football Committee researching early leagues including the Chicago and Philadelphia circuits. Tim Brulia compiles uniform information from 1933 to present while Ken Crippen also oversees Oral History Chronicles interviewing former NFL players. Gary Najman-Vainer chairs the NFL Officials committee listing all officials positions and uniform numbers.
The Hall of Very Good project highlights best players coaches and contributors not yet inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. An asterisk indicates a person was later inducted after being named to this list. The 2003 class included Gino Cappelletti Carl Eller Pat Fischer Benny Friedman Gene Hickerson Jerry Kramer Johnny Robinson Mac Speedie Mick Tingelhoff and Al Wistert. Subsequent years added names like Maxie Baughan Jim Benton LaVern Dilweg Pat Harder Floyd Little Tommy Nobis Pete Retzlaff Tobin Rote Lou Rymkus and Del Shofner in 2005. By 2014 the list featured Larry Brown Nolan Cromwell Charlie Hennigan Harlon Hill Winston Hill George Kunz and Ken Stabler. Recent classes include Coy Bacon Ray Childress John David Crow Earl Faison Leon Gray Nick Lowery Michael Dean Perry Buck Shaw and Jeff Van Note in 2023. Henry Ellard Jim Lachey Albert Lewis Jerry Mays Lydell Mitchell Marvin Powell and Pat Swilling joined the 2024 roster.
The Ralph Hay Award recognizes lifetime achievement in pro football research and historiography. It is named after the Canton Bulldogs owner whose Hupmobile Automobile showroom hosted the NFL's first organizational meeting. Past winners include Joe Ziemba in 2021 and George Bozeka in 2022. The award has been given annually since 1988 to individuals who have made significant contributions to the field. Early recipients included Seymour Siwoff in 1998 and Bob Carroll in 2009. Other honorees span decades of service including Tod Maher Mel Buck Bashore Stan Grosshandler and Richard Cohen. The list continues through recent years with Rupert Patrick receiving it in 2019 and John Turney honored in 2018.
The Nelson Ross Award presents annual recognition for outstanding achievement in pro football research and historiography. Lee Elder won in 2022 for his book Coach George Allen: A Football Life while Jeffrey J. Miller and Greg Tranter shared the honor in 2021 for Relics: The History of the Buffalo Bills in Objects and Memorabilia. Previous winners include Richard Bak for When Lions Were Kings about the Detroit Lions and Chris Serb for War Football covering World War I and the birth of the NFL. Doug Farrar received the award in 2018 for The Genius of Desperation detailing schematic innovations that shaped the modern NFL. Ralph Hickok was honored in 2017 for Vagabond Halfback chronicling Johnny Blood McNally's saga. James C. Sulecki won in 2016 for The Cleveland Rams examining the team's championship run from 1936 to 1945. Ted Kluck received the award in 2015 for Three-Week Professionals analyzing the 1987 NFL Players Strike.
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Common questions
When was the Professional Football Researchers Association established and where is it located today?
The Professional Football Researchers Association was established on the 22nd of June 1979 in Canton, Ohio. The organization currently operates out of Guilford, New York under an executive committee led by George Bozeka and Leon Elder.
What are the costs and benefits of joining the Professional Football Researchers Association for members?
An annual membership to the Professional Football Researchers Association costs $35.00 and includes a subscription to six issues of Coffin Corner magazine plus access to the Members Only section of their website. This online area contains detailed research on various pro football subjects unavailable elsewhere.
Who chairs the Hall of Very Good Committee within the Professional Football Researchers Association and what does this group do?
Andy Piascik leads the Hall of Very Good Committee which highlights outstanding players not yet inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. An asterisk indicates a person was later inducted after being named to this list.
Which books have been published by the Professional Football Researchers Association regarding specific team seasons?
The association released The 1966 Green Bay Packers book in 2016 followed by The 1958 Baltimore Colts book in 2018. Writing continues on chapters about the 1951 Los Angeles Rams season which will release in 2022.
When did the Ralph Hay Award begin and who received it in 2022?
The Ralph Hay Award has been given annually since 1988 to individuals who have made significant contributions to the field. George Bozeka received the award in 2022 for his lifetime achievement in pro football research and historiography.