1958 Retirements

1958 Retirements 

GM/HC Bobby Hooper - Buffalo, NY
Teams: Buffalo Blue Wings GM/HC (1949-1955), Buffalo Blue Wings GM (1956-1957)
Head Coach Record: 38-27-1
McCallister Cups: 2 (1952*as HC, 1957*as GM)
Awards: Coach of the Year (1952)
Bobby Hooper will have an everlasting legacy in Buffalo. He brought the team to its first championship in the 1952 season and then put together another winning team this season as the GM. Hooper took home a Coach of the Year award and was overall a strong coach throughout his time in the role. He decided after the second championship that it was time for him to step away from the team.  

RB Joel Bonner - Boston, MA
Teams: Boston Independents (1949-1957)McCallister Cups: 2 (1949,1951)
Awards: Offensive Player of the Year (1949)
All-Stars: 1 (1949)
Bonner will go down as one of those players that could’ve had an even better career. With a fantastic first couple of seasons in the NAAF where he took home an OPOTY award and his only All-Star nod in 1949. Unfortunately, his career took a turn with a major leg injury in week 1 of 1951. Since that injury, Bonner has still been a strong back for Boston, but he was not the same as his dominant 1940’s years. Bonner will still be remembered fondly by the Boston faithful and he is ready to watch the team moving forward.  

QB Maurice Norris - Montreal, QC
Teams: Montreal Rouge (1949-1950), Hartford Hawks (1951), Buffalo Blue Wings (1952-1957)
McCallister Cups: 2 (1952,1957)
Norris was strongly criticized in his early NAAF years in Montreal. He was able to get the team to the McCallister Cup in 1950, but failed to deliver in the big game and was traded to Hartford in the offseason. Norris would start for the Hawks and would end up holding the best starting QB for the franchise until Lyle Painter in 1955. Norris would ultimately join the Blue Wings as a backup and would get to win two championships with that team while getting several chances to play in games with Angelo Medina being hurt several times over the 6 seasons. Overall, Norris proved his worth throughout his career having quite a successful overall starting record in his career. 

WR Willard Brooks - Baltimore, MD
Teams: Ottawa Royals (1950-1955), Providence Gold Stars (1956-1957)
McCallister Cups: 2 (1954,1955)
Willard Brooks was a hotly contested free agent in the 1950 offseason between the Royals and Rouge. Brooks would end up playing for the Royals for 6 seasons and was a part of the first 2 seasons of their dynasty. He would join the Gold Stars for the final two seasons of his career. Unfortunately, he would suffer injuries during his final year which might have sped up the end of his career. Brooks was a real strong receiver throughout his career and will likely be remembered as Allen Atkin’s sidekick, but he was great on his own especially when Atkins would miss a game here or there.  

WR Samuel Floyd - Boston, MA
Teams: Boston Independents (1949-1954), Buffalo Blue Wings (1955,1956), Indiana Victors (1957)
McCallister Cups: 2 (1949,1950
)All-Stars: 2 (1949,1950)
Floyd was a speed demon in his career, often scoring 40+ yard touchdowns for Boston early in his career. He was at his best with QB Larry Larson throwing the ball his way helping him to 2 all-star nods. Both of those seasons would end with Boston winning the championship as well. With Larson retiring, Floyd would venture to Buffalo for a pair of injury-riddled seasons. Following that, he was selected by the Indiana Victors in the expansion draft, where he played another season full of injury. It wasn’t the best end to his career, but he was a strong player throughout his prime.

DL Craig Newman - Concord, NH
Teams: Boston Independents (1949-1957), Buffalo Blue Wings (1957)
McCallister Cups: 3 (1949,1950,1957)
All-Stars: 2 (1952,1954)
Newman was another long time Independent. He was strong during the team’s championship years but was noticed more in years after with a pair of all-star nods during the early ’50s. He would play out almost his entire career with Boston before he was traded to Buffalo during his final season. He would only play 2 games with Buffalo before being injured for the remainder of the season. He would still get to celebrate his 3rd career title with the team despite having played his last game several weeks earlier.

RB Gene Fischer - Providence, RI
Teams: Providence Gold Stars (1949-1953), Long Island Hawks/Raiders (1954-1955), Buffalo Blue Wings (1956), Montreal Rouge (1957)
Fischer was a running back with a bright future with the Gold Stars, but he was injured in 1949, which seemed to rock his confidence. The RB was still solid throughout his time, but he was never the piece to get them to the next level. He would swap spots with RB Johnnie Stafford in 1954. He would have a pair of strong seasons with the Hawks/Raiders, even getting to a McCallister Cup, before finishing his career in backup roles in Buffalo and Montreal.  

OL James Knowles - Oshawa, ON
Teams: Ottawa Royals (1949-1957)
McCallister Cups: 3 (1954,1955,1956)
All-Stars: 7 (1949-1955)
Knowles was a premier OL for most of his career. He played in Ottawa for its entirety and was a part of the 3 championship wins between 1954 and 1956. Knowles was an All-Star in each of the first 7 NAAF seasons, and the only reason he didn’t make it in the last two seasons was due to injuries that kept him out of the lineup.  

Other Notable Retirements
GM Kyle McCarty - Worcester, MA - GM WOR (1951-1957)
DC Kerry Miles - Rochester, NY - DC PRO (1951-1954), DC LI (1955-1957) 

WR Travis Gallagher - Buffalo, NY - BUF (1949-1954)*, LI (1955-1957)
DB Francis Veillette - Philadelphia, PA - BOS (1950-1954)*, LI (1955-1956), IND (1957)
RB Jacque Montier - Montreal, QC - MTL (1949-1950), WOR (1951-1954), OTT (1955-1956)**, ON (1957)
DB Eugene Christensen - Montreal, QC - MTL (1949-1950), HAR (1951-1953), BUF (1954), WOR (1955-1957)
OL John Richards - Springfield, MA - BOS (1949-1956)**, LOU (1957)
WR Ray Landry - Buffalo, NY - BUF (1949-1951,1954), BOS (1952-1953,1955), MTL (1956), IND (1957)
S Chester George - Boston, MA - BOS (1949-1951)**, MTL (1952-1955)*, LI (1956), IND (1957) 

* = McCallister Cup