Akron Pros
| Akron Pros | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Founded | 1908 |
| Folded | 1927 |
| Stadium | League Park |
| Headquartered | Akron, Ohio, United States |
| Colors | Blue, white |
| Personnel | |
| General manager | Art Ranney (1919–1927) |
| Head coach | Peggy Parratt (1912–1915) Ralph Waldsmith (1916) Suey Welch (1917–1918) Ralph Waldsmith (1919) Elgie Tobin (1920–1921) Fritz Pollard (1921) Untz Brewer (1922) Earl Cramer & Dutch Hendrian (1923) Jim Flower (1924) George Barry (1925) Rube Ursella & Al Nesser (1926) |
| Team history | |
Akron Indians (1908–1916) | |
| League / conference affiliations | |
| Ohio League (1908–1919) National Football League (1920–1926) | |
The Akron Pros were a professional football team that played in Akron, Ohio from 1908 to 1926. The team originated in 1908 as a semi-pro team named the Akron Indians, but later became Akron Pros in 1920 as the team set out to become a charter member of the American Professional Football Association (later renamed the National Football League (NFL) in 1922). Fritz Pollard, the first black head coach in the NFL, co-coached the Akron Pros in 1921. Paul Robeson played for the team in 1921 as well. He was among the earliest stars of professional football before football became segregated from 1934 to 1946. In 1926, the name was changed back to the Akron Indians, after the earlier semi-pro team. Due to financial problems, the team suspended operations in 1927 and surrendered its franchise the following year.