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Site
Purpose
wfl1974.com is a
tribute to the players, coaches, staff, and fans of the Birmingham Americans and
Vulcans of the World Football League of 1974-75. The site sprang out of research
into the old teams simply because, as a kid, I was a fan of the teams. I had the
pleasure of attending two games in person, watched some on TV, and heard a few
on radio. Unfortunately I did not keep all of the mementoes or articles I
accumulated as a youth. I can recall dutifully recording every score on my
homemade schedule each week. I also recall taking the incomplete schedule down
in 1975 upon the WFL's demise. I suppose the biggest thing that I remember was
the feeling that I had a pro football team to cheer for that belonged to my
friends and me. It was great being a devout Alabama Crimson Tide fan as well as
cheering for Birmingham. Unfortunately it was all too short lived.
As I grew up the Ams and
Vulcans were relegated to the archives of my “football mind” until I happened
upon a picture in an antique shop. I looked at it for a bit then realized it was
a color picture of The Americans vs. Florida Blazers in the World Bowl in 1974.
The picture was a large one, probably 16 x 20 or so, still framed and matted. I
inquired as to the price, only to find that the owner was not in. So I made an
offer and left my card. The owner called me that afternoon, we agreed on a
price, so I informed my wife that we were eating out that evening, then we made
the hour drive back to Birmingham to pick up the picture. I was gleeful that
night and it began a quest, of sorts, for more information, pictures, film
footage, etc. on the old team. This site is a culmination of 10 years of
looking, digging, sifting, begging, and calling. I have made new friends because
of this and that will endure much longer than this site will.
I have not attempted to
immortalize the players, but to perhaps bring some long overdue credit to them
and their accomplishments. Obviously I am not alone, as others have been digging
for similar info, as there seems to be a renewed interest in the old WFL. A task
that has, obviously, been made much easier thanks to the Internet. I can only
imaging how difficult this all would be without it. Even NFL Films got into the
action by producing a special on the WFL in their "Lost Treasures of the NFL"
series. I was fortunate enough to have a small part in the production and it was
quite enjoyable.
I hope this site brings back
fond memories and is informative as well as enlightening. The accounts that are
contained herein have been gleaned from old newspaper articles, film footage,
audio tracks, as well as personal interviews with numerous players, coaches, and
other staff associated with the team. I wish to extend my gratitude to all of
those who gave so willingly of their time and memory. I also used several books
for bits and pieces of information; The NFL Official Encyclopedia of Pro
Football, While The Getting’s Good, WFL Media Guides from 1974 & 1975, and
newspaper articles from the Birmingham News, Birmingham Post-Herald, Cullman
Times, & Gadsden Times.
As you will notice, there
are areas, mostly game reviews, in which there are differences in the quality of
photos. This, of course, is due to the fact that there is such a limited amount
of photos available. I have taken great pains to make sure that captions are
accurate with respect to player(s) and game action. When I have color shots
available I try to share them, but when black & white is all I have…well, its
all I have, but some of them are of good quality. I hope you enjoy looking at
them.
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