John McNally, NFL Star

John McNally was born on November 27, 1903. He played football under the name Johnny Blood. He began his career with the Packers under that alias so that he could keep playing college football at Notre Dame.

He was a charter member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963. He was known for his awesome speed and became one of the National Football League’s first grade pass receivers. McNally played star halfback at Notre Dame and St. Johns in Minnesota and then played for five NFL teams from 1925 until his retirement in 1928. He was most famous for his seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He lead them to three consecutive NFL championship from 1929-1931.

His reputation off the field matches his reputation on the field. There had been a number of documentaries written about him but it was the movie, Blood and Sand, in which the main character was modeled after him that brought out his character as a fun person. In a sense, he was full of mischief and looking for “fun” trouble. Some have said that it was this unpredictable style off the field that helped to increase his fame.

Art Daley, a New York Times sportswriter called him “The Magnificent Screwball.” In addition to his athletic ability he was also a writer and a recite of poetry. His book was on the Malthusiasn theory of economics. A book about McNally was done by Dennis Gullickson who did a carefully researched book on him titled “Vagabond Halfback: The Life and Times of Johnny Blood McNally.” The book includes a good description of the history of football and a description of sports heroes during the depression.