1944 Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears NFL FOOTBALL Program WWII

Description

CONDITION OF PROGRAM:
Cover and pages are tight and intact.  However, there is minor incidental wear to the surface and edges. A total of 36 pages--none missing.  Overall very good shape!
Own a piece of Packer Championship history.  The Packers were the 1944 Super Bowl Champs, and this game was a nail biter, the third game of the season against their neighbor, the Chicago Bears, the 1943 NFL Champs.  Here's a recap:
GAME RECAP (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE)
(GREEN BAY) - The Packers roared up and down the City stadium turf Sunday afternoon with as great a display of football power as they have shown in some seasons, scored six touchdowns and six points after to paste the Chicago Bears, defending world champions, by a 42 to 28 margin. A sellout of 25,000 got every bit of their money's worth and then some as they watched the Packer victory develop. For a while in the first and second quarters it looked as though the Green Bay eleven, without a victory over the Bears here since 1939, would make the ball game a runaway. But the Bears had something to say about that. They came roaring back in the third and last quarter to tie it up at 28-28. Then Green Bay put on the clinchers. The Packers, who now have a two-game margin over the Bears in the Western division race, desperately needed more points in the last minutes and they had the stuff to get them. Lou Brock, who has a field day, scored what amounted to the game-winning touchdown with a perfect 42-yard dash behind the beautiful blocking to make it 34 to 28. Don Hutson made it 35 with his fifth straight conversion.
FRITSCH RUNS 55 YARDS
Moments later, fullback Ted Fritsch sent the Bears into deeper mourning and the crowd into a greater frenzy when he raced in hard to intercept End. Sid Luckman's pass on his own 45-yard line and went the distance with a minute and a half left. The final six-pointer gave the Packers their largest margin over the Chicago eleven since 1929, when Green Bay won the season's third game by 25 to 0. Green Bay needed a victory and they set to work early to make sure of it. They scored four touchdowns before the Bears had a look-in. A pass, Irv Comp to Lou Brock, connected for 52 yards and the first touchdown when the quarter was half gone. Comp tallied the second on a nine-yard dash with three minutes left in the period. Fritsch bulled over from the one-yard stripe two minutes after the second period opened and the game began to look definitely one-sided. It appeared even more so three minutes later when a 26-yard aerial from Comp to Hutson scored the fourth touchdown to give the Packers a 28-0 lead as Hutson added each of the four extra points from placement unerringly. But the Bears were not out of it, far from it. Shortly after the fourth Packer score, the defending champs began to come back. They started a drive from their own 28 after the kickoff return from the 5. The payoff came on one of those typical Bear plays, a pass from Luckman to end George Wilson, who lateraled to halfback Ray McLean. The veteran halfback went 50 yards and Pete Gadauskas converted to make it 28 to 7 at halftime.
BEARS STILL DANGEROUS
The Bears showed they were still dangerous with their comeback. Two passes from Luckman to Wilson gave them a pair of touchdowns, the first in the third quarter from the seven-yard line and the second early in the fourth from the two. Gadauskas kicked both points after, the second from the 24-yard line after a holding penalty. The tying march of the Bears was for 83 yards with Magarita going over from the five and Gadauskas converting. At that point is where the Packers showed they had the stuff to come back, and how they came back! They rekindled the fire that had smoldered somewhat after they had 28 points. Actually, the Bears didn't have a look-in in the last five minutes, when Green Bay needed to play sharp, head-up football. At least five men went around with Lou Brock to clear the way for him to the goal. It was a payoff play, and was executed with a precision that left the huge throng howling, though weak from its effect. They had more to scream about no less than two minutes later when Fritsch spoiled Luckman's afternoon with his interception and 55-yard dash to the last line. Three plays later the game ended and it was a sad bunch of Bears that headed for the dressing rooms, there to ponder what had hit them so suddenly after things seemed so good at 28-28.
PACKER LINE SHINES
Except for a few instances, the game was clean and hard fought, in fact all the way through in contrast to the game against the Brooklyn Tigers a week ago yesterday. The Packer line should come in for its full share of praise along with the backs. The Bears, make no mistake about it, were not an easy touch. They did not become demoralized when behind by 28 points. On the other hand, the Packers didn't sit back and remain content with a tie score. Even considering the effectiveness of their offense in the first two periods, it was the Green Bay team's comeback which featured the battle. When Brock needed blocking on his second touchdown, he got it. Green Bay definitely was equal to the test with the result that they have a full two-game start for the divisional flag. For the second straight game, the Packers gained more yardage on the ground than through the air. Yardage from rushing was 214 and from passes 150, all compiled on heaves from the arm of Comp, who completed eight of 15 tosses. Luckman, on leave from the Merchant Marine for the game, also had a hot day with 15 completions on 33 attempts for 194 yards, all the Bears made through the air. They made 79 on the ground, indicating the effectiveness of the Packers' line play.
SHOW POWER EARLY
The Packers showed they meant business the first time they got the ball. After Fritsch returned the kickoff from the eight to the 31, the Packers rolled up three first downs in a row to the Bears' 16, a drive of 53 yards. A line buck failed to gain and two passes were incomplete to stop the sortie, but not for long. The Bears used three plays to lose a yard and then Doug McNulty kicked out of bounds to the Packers 39. Fritsch picked up nine yards with the aid of a rocking block by Lou Brock to the Packers 43. On second down Comp moved back and Brock moved down and over to make a perfect catch on the Bear 30. He broke fast for the goal for a few steps inside the sidelines to give the Packers their first touchdown. Hutson's 55th consecutive point after touchdown was just like the others he kicked, perfect, making it 7-0. The next Packer touchdown was set up by a mental lapse of the Bears. After the kickoff they moved from the 17 to the 26, moving a yard for the first down. On the fourth try, Gary Famiglietti lost a yard and the Packers were in position to count again. Comp picked up a yard and a half and then tossed to Harry Jacunski for a first down on the nine. Fritsch was stopped at right end on the first play.
COMP RUNS OVER
Comp moved back as though to pass as Hutson went into the end zone. But the pass never materialized and Comp ran to his right and over. Hutson again converted to make it 14 to 0 and the crowd began to sense that here was a Packer team that wouldn't be denied. The Bears had had just two chances to run the ball while Green Bay had three and counted twice. The third touchdown was set up just before the end of the quarter. Margarita returned guard Glenn Sorenson's kickoff from the 10 to his 41. He made no gain at the middle and then Luckman threw a lateral intended for Margarita but it never reached him. The ball went sailing over his head and the Bears had another mental lapse. Charley Brock recovered the ball on the Bears' 24. After a gain of one yard, Comp passed to Jacunski for a first down on the 11. The quarter ended after Don Perkins slammed over left guard to the three. Fritsch took the ball on four straight plays, going over on the last from the one-yard line 1 minute and 45 seconds after the quarter started. Hutson converted to make it 21 to 0. The Bears had one chance to advance the ball before Green Bay struck again and so fast it appeared impossible. Fritsch's towering kick was in the end zone. Three plays gained to the 27 and the Bears were forced to kick, Luckman's punt going to Joe Laws on the Packer 35. Laws returned to the 42. Paul Duhart, who replaced Comp, made a first down with a 16-yard jaunt to the Bear 42. Perkins and Duhart combined to compile another first down to the 26. A pass failed and then lightning hit again.
HUTSON SNAGS PASS
Comp returned to the game and on second down tossed a beauty to Hutson in the end zone. Hutson was all along as he caught the aerial and the Bears looked nonplussed to think that he had outguessed them again and got behind the secondary. He converted to run his consecutive points after to 58 and to bring his all-time scoring record to 659 points. The Bears then began their comeback with a drive that carried 72 yards after Margarita returned the kickoff from his five to the 28. The Bears got their first down when Green Bay was penalized 15 yards for unnecessary roughness to put the ball on the Chicago 40. Luckman then started the play that wound up in a touchdown. He threw to Wilson, who caught it on the 50 and then lateraled to McLean, who went over. Gadauskas converted to make it 28 to 7. Shortly after a short punt by Green Bay went out of bounds on their own 45 but the threat was nullified when Comp intercepted Luckman's pass on his 27 and ran it back to the 48, a 21-yard dash. After punts by each team, Abe Croft of the Bears gave his team another chance when he intercepted Comp's pass on the 50 and returned it to the 31. Luckman failed on two passes and then Fritsch intercepted a third and was downed on the 20 as the half ended.
BEARS WARM UP
Things began to pop early in the third quarter. First, Duhart intercepted Luckman's pass on the Bears' 45. Then McLean pounced on Hutson's fumble after he had snagged Comp's pass on the 22. The Bears went to work at that point though they were set back from the 28 to the 13 for holding. Luckman threw passes to McLean to the 22 and to Connie Berry to the 48 for a first down. A third Luckman pass was no good but the fourth to McLean again went 17 yards to the Packers' 35-yard stripe. Magarita skirted end to the 18. Three plays advanced the ball to the seven, where Luckman stepped back and heaved to Wilson in the end zone. Gadauskas converted to make it 28 to 14 with the quarter two-thirds gone. A Packer drive on the succeeding kickoff carried down to the Packer 44-yard line but was nullfied when Al Hoptowit, Bear tackle, recovered Duhart's fumble and raced to the Packers' 39 from the 42. On second down, Luckman's pass to Berry was ruled complete by interference on the Packer 30. A pass was no good and then McLean went five to the 25 as the third period ended. The Luckman-Wilson combination clicked once more for a first down on the 13. Famiglietti pounded through the middle for one and then Margarita got in the Packers' hair with a scamper down to the 2. Jim Fordham was stopped cold at the middle. Wilson then made a brilliant one-handed stab of Luckman's toss in the end zone. The first kick by Gadauskas was nullified by a 15-yard penalty on the Bears for holding but he placed his second try from the 24 right down the middle.
FANS GET JITTERY
At this stage, Packer fans began to get jittery. Green Bay's next threat was stopped when an offside penalty took away a 37-yard jaunt by Duhart to the Bears' 27 from his own 36. Two plays later the Bears got a clipping penalty which sent the Packers to their 48. Three plays failed to gain the necessary yardage and Brock punted to McLean, who returned from his own 10 to the 17. Three line plays gave Chicago a first down on their 31 and Luckman pitched for another to McLean on the Packer 48. A five-yard penalty on the Bays and a left end skirt by Magarita put the ball on the 39. Luckman threw another to McLean, who was downed on the 17 and then came back with a second to Wilson, who grabbed it on the 7. Fordham ripped through to the five and then Margarita piled over. Gadauskas' kick tied it up at 28-all and things looked gloomy indeed for the Packers. After that things happened rapidly. Fritsch made a beautiful return of the kickoff from his 12 to the Packer 48. Brock went through right guard to the Bears' 47 and then failed on a pass, which slithered off Comp's fingertips. Luckman intercepted Comp's pass on the 32 and returned it to the Packer 32 but the Bears were caught on defensive holding, putting the ball on their 42.
BROCK GETS BLOCKING
The rest is history but will bear retelling. On first down, Brock started to his left with half of his teammates ahead of him to clear the way. Like a couple of General Sherman tanks, the blockers knocked Bears right and left and Lou bowled over himself. Hutson kicked again with three and a half minutes left to make it 35-28. The Bears were desperate. McLean returned Sorenson's boot from his six to the 33. Luckman passed to Wilson for nine yards to the 41. Margarita slammed up the middle to midfield. Luckman's long pass down the field was no good but Sid came right back with another to put the finish on a Packer day. Fritsch came up fast, snagged the pass and went on his way to the sixth Green Bay touchdown. Hutson converted. The battle ended three plays later. Margarita returned the kick from the goal line to the 30, McLean was spilled for a one-yard loss and a pass from Luckman to Wilson was no good as the gun sounded.
CHI BEARS -   0   7   7  14  -  28
GREEN BAY -  14  14   0  14  -  42
1st - GB - Lou Brock, 52-yard pass from Irv Comp (Don Hutson kick) GREEN BAY 7-0
1st - GB - Comp, 9-yard run (Hutson kick) GREEN BAY 14-0
2nd - GB - Ted Fritsch, 1-yard run (Hutson kick) GREEN BAY 21-0
2nd - GB - Hutson, 26-yard pass from Comp (Hutson kick) GREEN BAY 28-0
2nd - CHI - Ray McLean, 50-yard lateral from George Wilson after a 10-yard pass from Sid Luckman (Pete Gudauskas kick) GREEN BAY 28-7
3rd - CHI - Wilson, 7-yard pass from Luckman (Gudauskas kick) GREEN BAY 28-14
4th - CHI - Wilson, 2-yard pass from Luckman (Gudauskas kick) GREEN BAY 28-21
4th - CHI - Bob Magarita, 5-yard run (Gudauskas kick) TIED 28-28
4th - GB - L. Brock, 42-yard run (Hutson kick) GREEN BAY 35-28
4th - GB - Fritsch, 55-yard interception return (Hutson kick) GREEN BAY 42-28