A Texas-sized dose of NFL history

A Big Mess in Texas is almost an understatement. The 1952 Dallas Texans were a circus of a football team, and author David Fleming serves as ringmaster, spinning the tale of lovable losers and Texas-sized characters who burst like fireworks in the early days of the NFL.

The Texans were the dream of Giles Miller, the wheeler-dealer son of textile tycoon C.R. Miller. Giles had little to do except chase his dreams and spend his father's money. He fell in love with bringing an NFL team to Dallas after learning the New York Yanks were about to fold. Giles thought a franchise would be a big hit in football-obsessed Texas.

C.R. wasn't so sure. He thought Giles's can't miss deal would go wide of the mark.

Up to that point, 31 of 43 NFL teams had gone broke. The Yanks were a sad-sack team with only one win in the previous season. Worse yet, the team reportedly owed $200,000.

On top of that, the Yanks had three black players on their roster (two would eventually make the team). C.R. knew that might be the biggest hurdle to the team's success. In those days, Dallas was segregated with ironclad Jim Crow laws.

Still, Giles plowed ahead, managing to cobble together $100,000 for the franchise price tag and $200,000 to pay the Yanks' creditors.

Miller oozed confidence. He told one newspaper that he couldn't imagine how the NFL could fail in Dallas. To him, the team was a jigsaw puzzle. He had all the pieces. It was only a matter of putting them into place.

Unfortunately, Miller was overwhelmed by the size and complexity of the puzzle. His "hey, kids, let's put on a show" attitude was no match for reality.

Miller hired Jimmy Phelan as coach and general manager. A fun-loving character, Phelan liked everything about pro football except coaching. He had no interest in practice, designing plays, or game planning. Players often spent practice lolling in the shade or playing volleyball across the goalposts.

Predictably, Phelan’s hands-off approach left players out of shape and unprepared. The team paid the price in sprains, pulled muscles, and fractures. In those days, teams fielded with 33-player rosters. Every injury was huge.

A shortage of healthy players once forced future Hall of Fame player Art Donovan to play a game with a broken leg. Coach Phelan advised Donovan--whose nickname was Fatso--to hit the turf on each play, hoping his girth would slow down the opponent's offense. According to Donovan, he played a decent game that day.

Amazingly, the Texans sported some truly outstanding players. Besides Donovan, Gino Marchetti, another future Hall-of-Famer, was on the team. Running back George Taliaferro and guard John Wozniak earned Pro Bowl selections that season. But talent couldn’t overcome a lack of discipline. Most efforts were, at best, half-hearted.

Take quarterback Bob Celeri's philosophy about the forward pass. He simply put the ball in the air. If a teammate caught it, great. If it was intercepted, no big deal. It was just one play among dozens in the game.

Still, the play on the field didn't harm the team's success as much as the city's racial climate. C.R.'s initial fears were proven right. The Cotton Bowl, where the Texans played, did its best to discourage black fans from attending games. Investors were reluctant to support a team with black players. White fans also stayed away for the same reason. With no fans or financial support, the team was doomed.

Still, the team managed one brief shining moment. The Texans managed to edge the legendary Chicago Bears 27-23 in a game played in the Rubber Bowl in Akron, Ohio. As luck would have it, only 3,000 fans witnessed the miracle.

Not long after, the team folded before the season was over, the fastest failure in the history of major league professional sports.

While the Texans faded, the franchise was destined for greater things. Visionary owner Carroll Rosenbloom bought the outfit and relocated to Baltimore, where the Colts — aided by the talent of more than a dozen Dallas players — grew into one of the greatest franchises in NFL history. Giles Miller's big mess became a big success.

Fans of the NFL and cultural history will find the book insightful and captivating as Fleming deftly moves between the hilarity and heartbreak of the team's wild ride of a season.

Kudos to Fleming for unearthing this gem of NFL history.

I received an advance reading copy from NetGalley.com.