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Breaker Boys: The NFL's Greatest Team and the Stolen 1925 Championship
In 1925, the Pottsville Maroons, a football team from the heart of Pennsylvania coal country, joined the fledgling National Football League. Built by an eccentric owner, molded by a visionary coach and loaded with hardscrabble miners, college All Americans and the sky's the limit ethos of the Roaring Twentys, the Maroons did the unthinkable and dominated the NFL in their rookie season. (Their improbable rise was chronicled each week in the local paper by a rookie Pottsville sportswriter named John OOHara.)Little Pottsville outscored its first seven opponents 162-6. The boys so thoroughly pummeled one opponent, angry fans shot up their train car as the Maroons rode out of town. In the final game of that first season the Maroons traveled to the Midwest to face the league-leading Chicago Cardinals in what was viewed as the championship game for 1925. The Maroons overcame a Windy City snowstorm and an injury to their best player to defeat the Cardinals 21-7.
But the fans wanted more.
College ball was still king. And as news of PottsvilleOs success was splashed across the news reels and headlines throughout the country, a movement began to have the Maroons face a team of college All-Stars from the University of Notre Dame, featuring the legendary Four Horsemen, the finest collection of talent the game had ever known. Experts believed the NFL was still decades away from competing with college football. But on a neutral field in Philadelphia, in a battle described as The Greatest Football Game Ever Seen, the Maroons shocked the world and turned the football establishment upside-down, defeating Notre Dame 9-7 on a last-second field goal by their captain Charlie Berry who had his kicking cleat bronzed for eternity.
The championship was theirs. The NFL was finally on the map. The Maroons victory over Notre Dame had legitimized the league. It also destroyed the town and the team that made it all possible.
Claiming the upstart Maroons had violated the territory of another franchise by playing Notre Dame in Philadelphia, the NFL suspended Pottsville and awarded the 1925 NFL championship to the Chicago Cardinals. The Cardinals refused to accept the bogus title and the 1925 crown was never officially awarded. For more than 80 years, fans of the Pottsville MaroonsNthe team Red Grange said was the greatest he ever facedNhave fought to have the 1925 title returned to its rightful owners.
With Breaker Boys their remarkable story is told at last.
But the fans wanted more.
College ball was still king. And as news of PottsvilleOs success was splashed across the news reels and headlines throughout the country, a movement began to have the Maroons face a team of college All-Stars from the University of Notre Dame, featuring the legendary Four Horsemen, the finest collection of talent the game had ever known. Experts believed the NFL was still decades away from competing with college football. But on a neutral field in Philadelphia, in a battle described as The Greatest Football Game Ever Seen, the Maroons shocked the world and turned the football establishment upside-down, defeating Notre Dame 9-7 on a last-second field goal by their captain Charlie Berry who had his kicking cleat bronzed for eternity.
The championship was theirs. The NFL was finally on the map. The Maroons victory over Notre Dame had legitimized the league. It also destroyed the town and the team that made it all possible.
Claiming the upstart Maroons had violated the territory of another franchise by playing Notre Dame in Philadelphia, the NFL suspended Pottsville and awarded the 1925 NFL championship to the Chicago Cardinals. The Cardinals refused to accept the bogus title and the 1925 crown was never officially awarded. For more than 80 years, fans of the Pottsville MaroonsNthe team Red Grange said was the greatest he ever facedNhave fought to have the 1925 title returned to its rightful owners.
With Breaker Boys their remarkable story is told at last.
311 pages, Hardcover
First published October 9, 2007
18 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
November 10, 2019
A very good book on a topic I previously knew nothing about. This book is about the 1925 Pottsville Miners and the dawning of the NFL. It's about a great team full of players brought up in harsh realities and beating the odds to become great players. And it's about a team that had a championship absolutely stolen from them. I had no idea this story existed and you'll find yourself turning the pages quickly to find out what happens. Very well researched and written, this was a true gem of a book and a story more people should know about.
February 29, 2008
If you are an American football historian then this is a very good one. If you are not you still will get some insight of the 1920's small town versus big city mentality.
July 29, 2017
Loved the book from cover to cover! Perfect for a pre-football season read.
October 5, 2020
The story of the 1925 Pottsville Maroons who were a dominant team in the fledgling NFL. Considering I love football's ancient history, the book hit all the right notes though the author gets a bit too descriptive with his prose considering he never set foot in 1925 Pottsville--a small mining town in Pennsylvania--during its heyday. Historically, it's tight but when the author tries to steer it into higher forms of non-fiction, it becomes a made-for-TV movie which I'm sure ESPN will make considering they published the book.
EDIT: Second read impressions.
It's better the second time around, though it very well could be that the circumstances of a ragtag team of overpaid, but loveable players both inspired by a miner strike and well-meaning owner who overspends for a winner because it matters not only to his own vanity, but to the small coal town that has offered up a NFL team for a fleeting moment resonates so much nearly 100 years later. Shady characters stealing crumbs away from the poor, unfortunate, and misaligned in the name of big business and big cities (to come). There are still too many deviations into the minds of players without any overriding evidence, but there's no denying the chutzpah and innovation of a team of firecracker college lads and a few of the coal regions finest miners-cum-players.
EDIT: Second read impressions.
It's better the second time around, though it very well could be that the circumstances of a ragtag team of overpaid, but loveable players both inspired by a miner strike and well-meaning owner who overspends for a winner because it matters not only to his own vanity, but to the small coal town that has offered up a NFL team for a fleeting moment resonates so much nearly 100 years later. Shady characters stealing crumbs away from the poor, unfortunate, and misaligned in the name of big business and big cities (to come). There are still too many deviations into the minds of players without any overriding evidence, but there's no denying the chutzpah and innovation of a team of firecracker college lads and a few of the coal regions finest miners-cum-players.
June 21, 2013
A fascinating look at the early workings of the National Football League, at a time when it was nothing more than a loose federation of barnstorming semi-pro teams. This book features the missing 1925 championship of the Pottsville (PA) Maroons who have been forgotten over time but could have been the "Green Bay Packers of the East", a small town team from with a fanatical fan base.
This book describes the on field exploits that earned the Maroons the 1925 NFL Championship, and the underhanded backroom dealings between the NFL Commissioner, and the ownership of the rival Frankfort Yellow Jackets and Chicago Cardinals that ultimately robbed Pottsville of the title.
For a football fan, it's an engrossing look at a time before multi-million dollar contracts and corporate logos on stadiums.
This book describes the on field exploits that earned the Maroons the 1925 NFL Championship, and the underhanded backroom dealings between the NFL Commissioner, and the ownership of the rival Frankfort Yellow Jackets and Chicago Cardinals that ultimately robbed Pottsville of the title.
For a football fan, it's an engrossing look at a time before multi-million dollar contracts and corporate logos on stadiums.
November 14, 2008
Great Read, it gives you the feel of how pigskin was in its early days...it was the time of iron men and iron wills. The book shows the rise and fall of a franchise and the people that backed their team. This is definitely a must read book for any football fan
January 2, 2009
This is a great book about the history of the NFL and one of the ongoing travesty's of justice in the early NFL. The story is well-researched and well-written. At times one may forget what they're reading is non-fiction.
February 15, 2011
An amazing untold story about the Pottsville Maroons and early days of the NFL! A must read for anyone interested in football or history. I absolutely loved this book and after reading I wanted to write the NFL commissioner!
September 21, 2010
Really more like 3.5 stars. Very interesting early history of the NFL. You wouldn't need to be a football fan to find it interesting as it does a good job of portraying everyday life, the coal mining industry, and upcoming metropolitan areas in the 1920s.
June 3, 2008
Interesting subject, even if the prose is a little overblown.
February 11, 2009
I learned so much about Schuylkill County and have a new found appreciation for where I grew up.
February 18, 2009
Great story with a decent analysis of the cultural history of America in the 20s
April 19, 2024
I'm not a football fan, just a local history enthusiast, and I found this book very interesting. It was nice to get the details behind the local legend of the Maroons. It's hard to fathom how something that boiled down to a miscommunication ended up in a lost NFL championship title. And it's even more wild that decades afterwards, an obvious win of a fairly played game is discounted for a technicality involving a completely different game. These stories reminded me of the "coal region" football my dad described playing in the 1970s. He always complained the NFL was too soft. If any of the grit of the Maroons team carried into the decades of Schuylkill County playing that followed, I totally understand why he thought like that.
December 30, 2021
A must read for any football fan. What these men accomplished in professional football while simultaneously working as miners is extraordinary. A piece of professional football history all should know.
February 5, 2020
A fantastic, well-researched look at the 1925 Pottsville Maroons.
August 10, 2021
Great book!
For those that like sports books and those who don’t. The writer creates imagery of the town and people who lived this story where one can feel like they’re there.
For those that like sports books and those who don’t. The writer creates imagery of the town and people who lived this story where one can feel like they’re there.
September 19, 2022
Incredible, insightful and entertaining
July 30, 2024
Love this book.
October 8, 2025
Pretty terrible book. Slow. Has a short play by play of big games. Lacks character depth. It's about Paul Jelus' home town, Pottsville.
February 19, 2023
I had heard of the Pottsville Maroons. I knew there was a controversy that resulted in the NFL taking away the 1925 championship from the team. But that was all I knew. I won't say more about what I now know to avoid any spoilers.
I recommend this book to any NFL fan. It provides a good early history of the league and its battle to establish legitimacy in the 1920s sports world where college football was king. I also specifically recommend the book to fans of the Green Bay Packers as it tells the story of another small town team whose future was differentiated from the Packers' future by a decision or two back then.
I recommend this book to any NFL fan. It provides a good early history of the league and its battle to establish legitimacy in the 1920s sports world where college football was king. I also specifically recommend the book to fans of the Green Bay Packers as it tells the story of another small town team whose future was differentiated from the Packers' future by a decision or two back then.
July 11, 2014
Excellent book about the Pottsville Pa. Maroons and their record-breaking year in the nascent NFL. Fleming tells the history of this coal mining region and how a doctor of the town was able to gather a coach and players who were denied their rightful championship because of some miscommunications and the supposed breaking of a non-written league rule. Along with the development of the team, we learn lots of history about the beginning years of pro football and the NFL. I especially enjoyed the many flowery newspaper quotes from the time that were sprinkled throughout. This game was different than the money-dominated game of today. Hopefully the Maroons will some day soon be crowned the rightful NFL champions of 1925, more than 80 years after their achievement.
February 2, 2013
Un tuffo nel passato, quando il football era roba per uomini veri, ma anche terra di nessuno dove i piu' "furbi" avevano la meglio sui piu' onesti.
La storiografia ufficiale non ha gradito questo libro, n�� gradisce le ricorrenti campagne mediatiche per riportare ai Maroons il titolo del 1925. Questione di opinioni, ma non solo.
Molto istruttivo e ben scritto. Un piccolo gioiello, insomma, al di l�� delle personali convinzioni su chi abbia avuto ragione o meno.
La storiografia ufficiale non ha gradito questo libro, n�� gradisce le ricorrenti campagne mediatiche per riportare ai Maroons il titolo del 1925. Questione di opinioni, ma non solo.
Molto istruttivo e ben scritto. Un piccolo gioiello, insomma, al di l�� delle personali convinzioni su chi abbia avuto ragione o meno.
November 30, 2015
A fun interesting book on the Pottsville Maroons and the early NFL. The language used seemed, at times, superfluous and overly flowery, but I later realized that a lot of it was direct quotes from the time (early to mid Twenties) and I believe their style of language at the time was more superfluous and flowery. All in all, it was a very enjoyable book and I learned a lot about a time and an NFL that I didn't know much about. Very enlightening
November 27, 2016
A glimpse back into the wild early years of the NFL, the book details the unlikely rise of the Pottsville Maroons to the pinnacle of football greatness. Innovative coaching combined with amazing talent and the die-hard toughness of hard coal country made the Maroons one of the greatest teams to ever take the field. This is a must read for those who love the game and sports history.
February 25, 2019
Great read about the early days of the NFL
April 1, 2013
My favorite sports book.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews