Playing Career
Friedman became the starting quarterback and placekicker midway through his sophomore year at Michigan (On defense, he played in the backfield). In 1925 and 1926, he led the Wolverines to consecutive 7–1 seasons and first place finishes in the Big Ten Conference. Against Indiana in 1925, Friedman accounted for 44 points, throwing for five touchdowns and kicking two field goals and eight extra points. The following year, he was a consensus first-team All-American and most valuable player of the Big Ten.
In 1927, Friedman joined his hometown Cleveland Bulldogs in the National Football League. After a successful rookie season in Cleveland, he had a spectacular second year playing for the Detroit Wolverines. In 1928, Friedman led the NFL in passing touchdowns, rushing touchdowns and scoring as well as extra points (He may have led in other categories, too, but the NFL did not record yardage stats in those days.)
Friedman's performance so impressed New York Giants owner Tim Mara that Mara bought the whole Wolverines team just so he could have the rights to the quarterback. With the Giants in 1929, Friedman led the league again with 20 touchdown passes. Friedman's passing proficiency was especially noteworthy considering that most teams rarely threw the ball in those days. The football used at the time was rounder and more difficult to throw. Friedman called plays at the line of scrimmage and threw on first and second down, when most teams waited until third down. "Benny revolutionized football. He forced the defenses out of the dark ages." George Halas later said. No NFL team would surpass 20 passing touchdowns in a season until 1942. Friedman often experienced media bias because of his Jewishness, being referred to in the press by names like "Jew boy" and "descendant of Palestine"
In 1931, Friedman suffered a knee injury that hampered the rest of his career. He moved to the Brooklyn football Dodgers in 1932 as a player-coach while simultaneously serving as an assistant coach at Yale University. He led the league in completion percentage in 1933 and retired after the 1934 season.
Read more about this topic: Benny Friedman
Famous quotes containing the words playing and/or career:
“Give me mine angle, we’ll to th’ river; there,
My music playing far off, I will betray
Tawny-finned fishes; my bended hook shall pierce
Their slimy jaws; and as I draw them up,
I’ll think them every one an Antony,
And say, “Ah, ha! y’ are caught.””
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“I began my editorial career with the presidency of Mr. Adams, and my principal object was to render his administration all the assistance in my power. I flattered myself with the hope of accompanying him through [his] voyage, and of partaking in a trifling degree, of the glory of the enterprise; but he suddenly tacked about, and I could follow him no longer. I therefore waited for the first opportunity to haul down my sails.”
—William Cobbett (1762–1835)