Curly Lambeau

Curly Lambeau
Lambeau during his college career at Notre Dame in 1918.
Date of birth	April 9, 1898(1898-04-09)
Place of birth	Green Bay, Wisconsin
Date of death	June 1, 1965 (aged 67)
Position(s)	Head Coach
College	Notre Dame
Honors	NFL 1920s All-Decade Team Green Bay Packers HOF Pro Football HOF Wisconsin Athletic HOF
Records	Green Bay Packers Career Wins (209)
Career record	229-134-22
Championships       won	1929 NFL Championship 1930 NFL Championship 1931 NFL Championship 1936 NFL Championship 1939 NFL Championship 1944 NFL Championship
Stats
Coaching stats	Pro Football Reference
Coaching stats	DatabaseFootball
Team(s) as a coach/administrator
1919-1949 1950-1951 1952-1953	Green Bay Packers Chicago Cardinals Washington Redskins
Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1963

Earl Louis "Curly" Lambeau (April 9, 1898 – June 1, 1965) was the founder, a player, and the first coach of the Green Bay Packers professional American football team. He holds the distinction of winning the most NFL championships with 6.

Biography

Founding of the Green Bay Packers

Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun formed the Packers in 1919 while Lambeau was working as a shipping clerk at the Indian Packing Company. Lambeau was in Green Bay because illness had forced him to miss a semester at Notre Dame where he played halfback for Knute Rockne.^[1] The Packers initially played teams from Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula; however, the success of the team quickly led to its joining of the National Football League in 1921.

Career as a coach

Green Bay Packers

Lambeau coached the Packers as an NFL team from 1921 to 1949. As head coach, he led the Packers to six NFL championships (1929, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1939, 1944). Lambeau's regular season record as head coach of the Packers was 209–104–21 (.626 winning percentage) with a playoff record of 3–2 (212–106–21 (.656) overall). These official records do not include the Packers' 19–2–1 record under Lambeau prior to joining the NFL.^[1]

In 1946, Lambeau purchased Rockwood Lodge, creating the first self-contained training facility in professional football. The purchase was controversial among the Packers' board of directors, and Lambeau's deteriorating relationship with the board was one of the factors that would lead to his departure in early 1950.^[2] In addition, Lambeau's record as a coach had dropped sharply after Hall of Fame receiver Don Hutson retired in 1945.

Chicago Cardinals and Washington Redskins

After Lambeau's career with the Packers came to an end, he went on to coach the Chicago Cardinals for the 1950 season and most of the 1951 season. His record with the Cardinals was 7–15 (.318 winning percentage). After leaving the Cardinals, Lambeau went on to coach the last two years of his career with the Washington Redskins for the 1952 and 1953 seasons. His record in Washington was a disappointing 10–13–1 (.417).

Career record

Lambeau completed his 33 year NFL coaching career with an official overall record of 229–134–22 (.595 winning percentage). He was a member of the inaugural class inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.

Career as a player

Lambeau was a standout player at Green Bay East High School before attending Notre Dame to play for the famous Knute Rockne. Lambeau made Notre Dame's varsity squad as a freshman.

Lambeau played for the Packers from 1919 to 1929. Although Lambeau played halfback, he was the player who took the snap from the center, as was common practice during that period. Lambeau threw the Packers' first official pass, first official touchdown pass, and kicked the Packers' first official field goal.^[1]

Personal life

Lambeau was married three times, first to Marguerite Van Kessel from 1919 ending in divorce with one son in 1934. His second wife Sue was a former Miss California. They were married from 1935 to 1940. He married Grace Nichols in 1945 and was divorced in 1955.

Lambeau died of a heart attack in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, while visiting a friend.^[3]

Legacy

A statue of Curly Lambeau stands near the main entrance to Lambeau Field

The Packers' stadium, Lambeau Field in Green Bay, is named after Curly Lambeau. The venue opened in 1957, called the new "City Stadium" for its first eight years. It was renamed "Lambeau Field" in September 1965, three months after Lambeau's death in June.

Among other things, Lambeau is credited with pioneering daily practices, forward pass in the NFL, and flying to road games.^[2]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} http://www.packers.com/history/hall_of_famers/lambeau_earl/
2. ^ ^{a b} http://www.packers.com/team/coaches/lambeau_earl/
3. ^ http://www2.jsonline.com/packer/sbxxxiii/news/lamb101798.asp

• "Green Bay Packers Coaches - Curly Lambeau". Packers.com. http://www.packers.com/team/coaches/lambeau_earl/. Retrieved 2008-03-22. 
• "Green Bay Packers History - Birth of a Team and a Legend". Packers.com. http://www.packers.com/history/birth_of_a_team_and_a_legend/. Retrieved 2008-03-22. 
• "Member - Pro Football Hall of Fame - Curly Lambeau". Profootballhof.com. http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=117. Retrieved 2008-03-22. 

External links

• Pro Football Hall of Fame
• Curly Lambeau at Find a Grave