New York Brickley Giants

Defunct American football team

New York Brickley GiantsFounded| 1919 (Original)
1921

|

Folded| 1922
Based in| New York City, New York
League| APFA (National Football League)
Team history| New York Giants (1921)
Team colors| Black, orange, gold, cream

Nickname(s)| Brickley's Giants
Head coaches| Charles Brickley
Owner(s)| New York Giants (1919)
Billy Gibson (1921)
Named for| Charles Brickley, New York Giants baseball club
Home field(s)| Commercial Field (2 games)
Ebbets Field (1 game)
Polo Grounds (1 game)

The New York Giants (informally known as Brickley's Giants and Brickley's New York Giants) were a professional American football team with the American Professional Football Association (now the National Football League) whose only season played was in 1921. The team has also been referred to as the Brooklyn Giants and Brickley's Brooklyn Giants. The Brickley's Giants were the first of 17 professional football teams to represent New York City at one time or another. The team was founded in 1919 by Charles Brickley, who received All-American honors while at Harvard. Brickley's Giants played two games in their only season, losing to the Buffalo All-Americans, 55–0, and the Cleveland Tigers, 17–0.[1] It was the second-shortest-lived franchise in APFA/NFL history, behind only another former New York APFA team, the Tonawanda Kardex, who played only one game in the same 1921 season.

## History[edit]

### 1919 team[edit]

The team was sponsored by the New York Giants professional baseball team, and coached by Brickley, a halfback who was generally considered the finest kicker of his day. Home games were to be played at the baseball Giants' home field, the Polo Grounds.

The team was formed with the intent of competing in 1919.[2] However, after the team's first practice, the 1919 schedule, that began with an opening day game against the Massillon Tigers, was scratched because of conflict with New York's blue laws. In 1919 the city allowed professional baseball on Sunday and the Giants thought the law would also apply to football. However, it was ruled that professional football was still outlawed on Sundays, so the team disbanded.[3]

1921: Brickley's Brooklyn Giants vs. Harway Athletic Association

### 1921 team[edit]

The APFA had played a showcase game between the Canton Bulldogs and the Buffalo All-Americans at the Polo Grounds in December 1920; 20,000 spectators witnessed the contest, a strong crowd for the nascent league.

The success of that game prompted the league to seek a New York City-based team for the 1921 season. The Giants thus reformed with the financial backing from boxing promoter, Billy Gibson. Aside from Brickley, the team had no college stars. Joining Charles with the Giants was his brother George Brickley, who played baseball as an outfielder with the Philadelphia Athletics. The 1921 version of the team played several exhibition games, but only two league games, losing to the Buffalo All-Americans in October, and again to the Cleveland Tigers that December. The New York Times reported that the game against Jim Thorpe and his Cleveland Tigers, "was lopsided and had little to excite even the most rabid of rooters."[4] In between games between APFA clubs, the Giants played a number of non-league games against lesser teams. The franchise played two seasons as an independent and folded after the 1923 season. During their 1921 season, the Giants played their home games at Commercial Field and Ebbets Field, both located in Brooklyn, and the Polo Grounds, located in Manhattan.[3]

## Legacy[edit]

In 1925, with the NFL in need of a franchise in a large-city market that could be used to showcase the league, NFL President Joseph Carr traveled to New York City to offer Billy Gibson, the owner of the Brickley Giants, a new franchise.

Gibson declined Carr's offer for a new franchise, but instead referred Carr to a long-time friend of his, Tim Mara: Mara accepted the offer, and established the modern-day New York Giants franchise.

Other than the name, there is no relation between the Brickley Giants and the modern New York Giants franchise.[5]

## Season-by-season[edit]

Year | W | L | T | Finish | Coach

|
|
|
|
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1921 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 18th | Charles Brickley

## See also[edit]

* List of New York Brickley Giants players

## References[edit]

1. ^ Boland Jr., Ed (1 September 2002). "F.Y.I". The New York Times.
2. ^ "Giants in First Workout" (PDF). The New York Times. October 6, 1919.
3. ^ a b "The New York Giants, before they were giants". The Bowery Boys. January 10, 2012.
4. ^ "Thorpe's Pro Team Beats Giants". The New York Times. December 4, 1921.
5. ^ Pro Football Hall of Fame (1984). "Mr. Mara" (PDF). Coffin Corner. Professional Football Researchers Association. 6 (11 and 12): 1–2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-11-27.

## External links[edit]

* Team history
* Complete record

* v
* t
* e

New York Brickley Giants

* Defunct National Football League club in 1921
* Based in Brooklyn, New York

The Franchise|

* History
* Players

Head Coaches|

* Charles Brickley

Seasons|

* 1921

Stadium|

* Commercial Field
* Ebbets Field
* Polo Grounds

Lore|

* New York Baseball Giants
* New York Football Giants

Owners|

* Billy Gibson

* v
* t
* e

Defunct National Football League franchises

Charter
teams|

* Chicago Tigers (1920)
* Cleveland Tigers / Indians (1920–1921)
* Muncie Flyers (1920–1921)
* Rochester Jeffersons (1920–1925)
* Rock Island Independents (1920–1925)
* Akron Pros / Indians (1920–1926)
* Canton Bulldogs (1920–1926)
* Columbus Panhandles / Tigers (1920–1926)
* Hammond Pros (1920–1926)
* Detroit Heralds / Tigers / Panthers / Wolverines (1920–1928)
* Buffalo All-Americans / Bisons / Rangers (1920–1929)
* Dayton Triangles (1920–1929)

1920s|

* Cincinnati Celts (1921)
* New York Brickley Giants (1921)
* Tonawanda Kardex Lumbermen (1921)
* Washington Senators (1921)
* Evansville Crimson Giants (1921–1922)
* Louisville Breckenridges / Colonels (1921–1923, 1926)
* Minneapolis Marines / Red Jackets (1921–1924, 1929–1930)
* Youngstown Patricians (1922)
* Oorang Indians (1922–1923)
* Toledo Maroons (1922–1923)
* Racine Legion / Tornadoes (1922–1924, 1926)
* Milwaukee Badgers (1922–1926)
* St. Louis All-Stars (1923)
* Cleveland Indians / Bulldogs (1923–1927)
* Duluth Kelleys / Eskimos (1923–1927)
* Kenosha Maroons (1924)
* Kansas City Blues (1924)
* Kansas City Cowboys (1925–1926)
* Frankford Yellow Jackets (1924–1931)
* Pottsville Maroons / Boston Bulldogs (1925–1929)
* Providence Steam Roller (1925–1931)
* Brooklyn Lions (1926)
* Hartford Blues (1926)
* Los Angeles Buccaneers (1926)
* New York Yankees (1927–1928)
* Orange / Newark Tornadoes (1929–1930)
* Staten Island Stapletons (1929–1932)

1930s–50s|

* Brooklyn Dodgers / Tigers (1930–1944)
* Cleveland Indians (1931)
* Cincinnati Reds (1933–1934)
* St. Louis Gunners (1934)
* Boston Yanks (1944–1948)
* Baltimore Colts (1947–1950)
* New York Bulldogs / Yanks (1949–1951)
* Dallas Texans (1952)

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