Bob Mann (American football)
Encyclopedia
Robert "Bob" Mann was an American football
end. A native of New Bern, North Carolina
, Mann played college football
at Hampton Institute
in 1942 and 1943 and at the University of Michigan
in 1944, 1946 and 1947. He broke the Big Ten Conference
record for receiving yardage in 1946 and again in 1947. Mann later played professional football in the NFL
for the Detroit Lions
(1948–1949) and Green Bay Packers
(1950–1954). He was the first African-American player for both teams.
Mann led the NFL in receiving yardage (1,014 yards) and yards per reception (15.4) in 1949. Mann was asked to take a pay cut after the 1949 season and became a "hold out" when the Lions opened practice in July 1950. He was traded to the New York Yankees
in August 1950 and released three weeks later. Mann charged that he had been "railroaded" out of professional football for refusing to take a pay cut. He signed with the Green Bay Packers
near the end of the 1950 NFL season
and was the Packers' leading receiver in 1951. He remained with the Packers through the 1954 season. He was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
in 1988.
Mann later became a lawyer and practiced law in Detroit.
, the county seat of Craven County, North Carolina
, in 1924. His father, Dr. William Mann, was a physician, and his mother, Clara Mann, was a supervisor of elementary schools in Craven County. Mann began his football career at West Street High School in New Bern.
(now known as Hampton University
), a historically black university
located in Hampton, Virginia
. He joined the school's football team, and as a sophomore, he scored 45 of Hampton's 99 points while playing at the left end position. He scored three touchdowns in Hampton's final game against Virginia Union
.
Mann later recalled that, upon his arrival in the fall of 1944, Ann Arbor
was "a conservative city," noting, "There were some places we (black students) couldn't go." Mann worked in a restaurant near campus to help pay his way through college. He joined the football team and was one of two African-American players (Gene Derricotte
was the other) on the 1944 Michigan Wolverines football team
. Mann took a year off for military service and returned to Michigan in 1946.
Mann became a starter at the left end position for Fritz Crisler
's 1946
and 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team
s. In a 2005 profile of Mann's role in integrating football, The Michigan Chronicle
wrote:
The contention that Mann was "routinely" kept out of the starting lineup for racial reasons, however, is not supported by University of Michigan records which show that an African-American started at the left end position in 6 of 9 games during the 1946 season, with Len Ford
(who was also African-American) starting 4 games and Mann starting 2 games. Further, Gene Derricotte
(who was also African-American) started 5 games for the 1946 team at the left halfback position. And in 1947, Mann was the starting left end in 8 of 10 games for the Wolverines. Derricotte and Ford also started games for the 1947 Michigan team.
In November 1946, Mann worked his way into the starting lineup and had big games against Wisconsin
, Minnesota
and Ohio State
. In a 28–6 win over Wisconsin, he caught two touchdown passes in the first quarter—a 13-yard pass from Bump Elliott
and a 27-yard pass from Bob Chappuis
. He also caught touchdown passes from Chappuis against Minnesota and Ohio State. Mann also made a diving catch on a 17-yard pass from Chappuis at the Ohio State 3-yard line to set up another Michigan touchdown. During the 1946 season, Mann set a new Big Ten Conference
record with 13 receptions for 284 yards.
As a senior in 1947, Mann starred on Crisler's undefeated national championship team. During the 1947 season, Mann caught 12 passes for 302 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for 129 yards on 15 end-around
plays. Against Stanford
, Mann caught a 61-yard touchdown pass from Chappuis on Michigan's second play from scrimmage. The Chicago Daily Tribune described the plays as follows: "Stanford today was like a boxer taking a Joe Louis
knockout punch before having a chance to get his hands up. On the second play after the opening kickoff, Bob Chappuis hurled a touchdown pass to dusky Bob Mann for 61 yards."
Against Pitt
, he scored Michigan's first touchdown on a 70-yard pass from Chappuis in the second quarter; he scored again in the second half against Pitt on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Jack Weisenburger.
After the 1947 season, Mann and fellow Michigan end, Len Ford
, played in the East-West college all-star game at Gilmore Stadium
in Los Angeles
; both caught touchdown passes in the game. Mann was also selected by the Associated Press as a first-team end for its All-Big Nine team. He was also selected as a second-team All-American
by the Associated Press
.
coach Ray Flaherty
. Mann said at the time that he would like to play for the Yankees, but was reluctant to agree to any terms as he was expecting to receive feelers from several other teams in the All-America Football Conference
and National Football League
. In April 1948, Mann signed with the Detroit Lions
of the NFL. Mann's first NFL contract was for $7,500 and a $2,500 bonus, considered to be "solid NFL money in those days." At the time, Detroit coach Bo McMillin
said, "We're tickled to get Mann. We've been after his name on a Detroit contract ever since I came here as a coach. We know he will be a valuable professional performer."
Mann was also hired as a spokesman for the Goebel Brewing Company
in Detroit's black community. The Lions' president, Edwin J. Anderson, was also president of Goebel, which sponsored Detroit Lions and Detroit Tigers
radio broadcasts.
In December 1948, Mann joined Jesse Owens
' Olympians professional basketball team in Cleveland. He had played two years of basketball at Hampton Institute but did not play basketball at Michigan.
, the Lions played an exhibition game against the Philadelphia Eagles
in New Orleans. Coach McMillin met with the Lions' three African-American players (Mann, Groomes and Wally Triplett) before the trip. He explained that there had never been an interracial game in New Orleans. McMillan said he did not think he should break the prohibition and that the three of them would also not be permitted to stay with the team at the hotel. McMillan offered to let the three attend the game and sit on the bench, but Mann declined. Interviewed in 2005, he recalled the incident:
In Mann's second season in the NFL, the Lions had a new quarterback in Frank Tripucka
. Following a team outing, Mann overheard Tripucka's wife complaining that too many receivers were dropping balls. Mann told Mrs. Tripucka to tell her husband to throw the ball to him, saying, "I don't drop passes." On December 11, 1949, Mann was credited with 8 catches for 182 yards and two touchdowns (including a 64-yard touchdown pass from Tripucka in the first quarter and a 41-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter) against the Green Bay Packers
. The mark tied his own single-game NFL record for receiving yardage. After the game, Mann's wife, described as "an ardent football fan," pointed out to statistician Nick Kerbawy that her tally sheet showed that her husband caught nine passes. Kerbawy ran back through the play-by-play account of the game and discovered she was right.
During the 1949 season, Mann led the NFL with 1,014 receiving yards and yards per catch (15.4). He also finished second in receptions with 66 (Tom Fears
set an NFL record in 1949 with 77 receptions). At the time, Mann's totals in receiving yards and receptions both ranked as the third-highest single-season totals in NFL history.
Despite leading the NFL in receiving yards, Mann was not selected by the United Press for either its first- or second-team All-NFL team. Instead, the UP named him to its "Honorable Mention" team.
in payment for quarterback Bobby Layne
. The Lions had previously traded fullback Camp Wilson for Layne, but Wilson refused to report to the Yankees. Mann later recalled that Yankees' coach Red Strader
was upset about the trade. Despite a good training camp, Mann received little playing time in exhibition games. John Rauch
, a rookie quarterback, told Mann that he had been ordered not to throw to him. The day after Rauch threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to Mann in a pre-season game against the Washington Redskins
, Mann was released by the Yankees. He was not picked up by any other team.
In the fall of 1950, the Michigan Chronicle
, an African-American newspaper in Detroit, also questioned the treatment of Mann. Bill Matney wrote in the Chronicle:
on November 25, 1950. On November 26, 1950, he appeared in the Packers' final home game against the San Francisco 49ers
, becoming the first African-American to play for the Packers. In 1951, Mann led the Packers with 50 catches, 696 receiving yards and eight touchdowns; he also ranked 4th in the NFL in both receptions and receiving yards in 1951. He caught three touchdown passes in an October 1951 game against the Philadelphia Eagles
.,
Mann remained with the Packers through the 1954 NFL season
. Lee Remmel
, who worked for the Packers in public relations and served as a team historian, described Mann as "on the small side" (5 feet 11 inches, 175 pounds), but a "nifty and productive wide receiver." Green Bay Gazette sports writer Art Daley recalled a story involving Mann and teammate Dick Afflis, who later became known in professional wrestling as "Dick the Bruiser." The Packers stayed at a Baltimore hotel that would not allow Mann to stay with the team on account of a policy against allowing African-American guests. When Mann left to go to another hotel, the 252-pound Afflis left with him. When a cab driver told Afflis that he would not drive Mann because of his race, Afflis grabbed the driver by the shirt and said, "You will take him wherever he wants to go." Daley also recalled how he had protested the hotel not accepting Mann and Mann calmed him down by saying with a shrug, "That's just politics."
In November 1955, Mann filed a $25,000 breach of contract suit against the Packers. Mann charged he was released illegally after sustaining a knee injury in an exhibition game against the Eagles.
Mann was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
in 1988. At the time of his death, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
recalled Mann as one of the players who undid "the myth of white superiority in football." The Journal Sentinel wrote:
. At the Lions' first regular season game at Ford Field on September 22, 2002, Mann was the Lions' honorary captain.
Mann died in October 2006 at age 82. Pro Football Hall of Fame
r Lem Barney
said of Mann, "Bob was a great example to everyone. He gave of himself to the city and the entire community."
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
end. A native of New Bern, North Carolina
New Bern, North Carolina
New Bern is a city in Craven County, North Carolina with a population of 29,524 as of the 2010 census.. It is located at the confluence of the Trent and the Neuse rivers...
, Mann played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at Hampton Institute
Hampton University
Hampton University is a historically black university located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It was founded by black and white leaders of the American Missionary Association after the American Civil War to provide education to freedmen.-History:...
in 1942 and 1943 and at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1944, 1946 and 1947. He broke the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
record for receiving yardage in 1946 and again in 1947. Mann later played professional football in the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
for the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
(1948–1949) and Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
(1950–1954). He was the first African-American player for both teams.
Mann led the NFL in receiving yardage (1,014 yards) and yards per reception (15.4) in 1949. Mann was asked to take a pay cut after the 1949 season and became a "hold out" when the Lions opened practice in July 1950. He was traded to the New York Yankees
New York Yankees (AAFC)
The New York Yankees were a professional American football team that played in the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1949. The team played in Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and often played in front of sold-out crowds . They were owned by Dan Topping, who brought many of his Brooklyn...
in August 1950 and released three weeks later. Mann charged that he had been "railroaded" out of professional football for refusing to take a pay cut. He signed with the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
near the end of the 1950 NFL season
1950 NFL season
The 1950 NFL season was the 31st regular season of the National Football League. The merger with the All-America Football Conference expanded the league to 13 teams. Meanwhile, television brought a new era to the game. The Los Angeles Rams became the first NFL team to have all of its games – both...
and was the Packers' leading receiver in 1951. He remained with the Packers through the 1954 season. He was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
The Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame was the first hall of fame built to honor a single professional American football team. After receiving approval from coach Vince Lombardi, William L. Brault, a Green Bay restaurateur and Packers fan, founded the Hall of Fame in 1966...
in 1988.
Mann later became a lawyer and practiced law in Detroit.
Early years
Mann was born in New BernNew Bern, North Carolina
New Bern is a city in Craven County, North Carolina with a population of 29,524 as of the 2010 census.. It is located at the confluence of the Trent and the Neuse rivers...
, the county seat of Craven County, North Carolina
Craven County, North Carolina
Craven County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The estimated population in 2006 was 94,875. Its county seat is New Bern.Craven County is part of the New Bern, North Carolina, Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, in 1924. His father, Dr. William Mann, was a physician, and his mother, Clara Mann, was a supervisor of elementary schools in Craven County. Mann began his football career at West Street High School in New Bern.
Hampton Institute
In 1941, Mann enrolled at Hampton InstituteHampton University
Hampton University is a historically black university located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It was founded by black and white leaders of the American Missionary Association after the American Civil War to provide education to freedmen.-History:...
(now known as Hampton University
Hampton University
Hampton University is a historically black university located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It was founded by black and white leaders of the American Missionary Association after the American Civil War to provide education to freedmen.-History:...
), a historically black university
Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Historically black colleges and universities are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before 1964 with the intention of serving the black community....
located in Hampton, Virginia
Hampton, Virginia
Hampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
. He joined the school's football team, and as a sophomore, he scored 45 of Hampton's 99 points while playing at the left end position. He scored three touchdowns in Hampton's final game against Virginia Union
Virginia Union University
Virginia Union University is a historically black university located in Richmond, Virginia, United States. It took its present name in 1899 upon the merger of two older schools, Richmond Theological Institute and Wayland Seminary, each founded after the end of American Civil War by the American...
.
University of Michigan
Mann transferred to Michigan in 1944. He later recalled that his transfer had more to do with academics than football. His father hoped his son would follow him into the medical profession and believed it would be easier to get into medical school if his son attended a university that had a medical school.Mann later recalled that, upon his arrival in the fall of 1944, Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
was "a conservative city," noting, "There were some places we (black students) couldn't go." Mann worked in a restaurant near campus to help pay his way through college. He joined the football team and was one of two African-American players (Gene Derricotte
Gene Derricotte
Eugene "Gene" Derricotte is a former American football player who played with the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1944 to 1948. He was one of the University's first African American athletes in the era when NCAA Division I college football was beginning to integrate...
was the other) on the 1944 Michigan Wolverines football team
1944 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1944 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1944 college football season. The team's head coach was Fritz Crisler. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium.-Schedule:-Starters:...
. Mann took a year off for military service and returned to Michigan in 1946.
Mann became a starter at the left end position for Fritz Crisler
Fritz Crisler
Herbert Orin "Fritz" Crisler was an American football coach who is best known as "the father of two-platoon football," an innovation in which separate units of players were used for offense and defense. Crisler developed two-platoon football while serving as head coach at the University of...
's 1946
1946 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1946 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1946 college football season. The team's head coach was Fritz Crisler...
and 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team
1947 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team, nicknamed the "Mad Magicians", represented the University of Michigan in the 1947 college football season. Coached by Fritz Crisler, the Wolverines finished undefeated and untied with a 10–0 record...
s. In a 2005 profile of Mann's role in integrating football, The Michigan Chronicle
Michigan Chronicle
The Michigan Chronicle is a weekly African-American run newspaper based in Detroit, Michigan. It was founded in 1936 by John Sengstacke, owner of the Chicago Defender. The first editor was Louis E. Martin, whom Sengestacke sent to Detroit on June 6, giving him a $5.00 raise above his $15-per-week...
wrote:
"Despite the fact that Mann was a standout receiver, earning second-team All-American honors, he was routinely kept on the bench for the first few plays of every game, some say, because there were those at Michigan who did not want to bear the stigma of including a Negro player in its starting lineup. Despite his two-play hiatus at the beginning of games, Bob Mann went on to become one of the University of Michigan's greatest receivers. "
The contention that Mann was "routinely" kept out of the starting lineup for racial reasons, however, is not supported by University of Michigan records which show that an African-American started at the left end position in 6 of 9 games during the 1946 season, with Len Ford
Len Ford
Leonard Guy Ford, Jr. was an American football defensive end. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976.He played two years for the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference...
(who was also African-American) starting 4 games and Mann starting 2 games. Further, Gene Derricotte
Gene Derricotte
Eugene "Gene" Derricotte is a former American football player who played with the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1944 to 1948. He was one of the University's first African American athletes in the era when NCAA Division I college football was beginning to integrate...
(who was also African-American) started 5 games for the 1946 team at the left halfback position. And in 1947, Mann was the starting left end in 8 of 10 games for the Wolverines. Derricotte and Ford also started games for the 1947 Michigan team.
In November 1946, Mann worked his way into the starting lineup and had big games against Wisconsin
Wisconsin Badgers football
The Wisconsin Badgers are a college football program that represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth-oldest stadium in college football...
, Minnesota
Minnesota Golden Gophers football
The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers are one of the oldest programs in college football history. They compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. The Golden Gophers have claimed six national championships and have an all time record of 646–481–44 as...
and Ohio State
1946 Ohio State Buckeyes football team
The 1946 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University in the college football season of 1946-1947. In Paul Bixler's first and last season, the Buckeyes compiled a 4–3–2 record and got outscored 166-170. Bixler lost to Michigan in this season .-Schedule:-1947...
. In a 28–6 win over Wisconsin, he caught two touchdown passes in the first quarter—a 13-yard pass from Bump Elliott
Bump Elliott
Chalmers W. "Bump" Elliott is a former American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He played halfback at Purdue University and the University of Michigan...
and a 27-yard pass from Bob Chappuis
Bob Chappuis
Robert Richard "Bob" Chappuis is a former American football player who played halfback and quarterback for the University of Michigan Wolverines in 1942, 1946, and 1947. His college years were interrupted by service in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II...
. He also caught touchdown passes from Chappuis against Minnesota and Ohio State. Mann also made a diving catch on a 17-yard pass from Chappuis at the Ohio State 3-yard line to set up another Michigan touchdown. During the 1946 season, Mann set a new Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
record with 13 receptions for 284 yards.
As a senior in 1947, Mann starred on Crisler's undefeated national championship team. During the 1947 season, Mann caught 12 passes for 302 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for 129 yards on 15 end-around
End-around
The end-around is a play in American football in which a wide receiver crosses the backfield towards the opposite end of the line and receives a handoff directly from the quarterback. The receiver then may proceed to do one of two things: he either runs the ball towards the line of scrimmage in...
plays. Against Stanford
Stanford Cardinal football
The Stanford Cardinal football program represents Stanford University in college football at the NCAA Division I FBS level and is a member of the Pac-12 Conference's North Division. Stanford, the top-ranked academic institution with an FBS program, has a highly successful football tradition. The...
, Mann caught a 61-yard touchdown pass from Chappuis on Michigan's second play from scrimmage. The Chicago Daily Tribune described the plays as follows: "Stanford today was like a boxer taking a Joe Louis
Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow , better known as Joe Louis, was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949. He is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time...
knockout punch before having a chance to get his hands up. On the second play after the opening kickoff, Bob Chappuis hurled a touchdown pass to dusky Bob Mann for 61 yards."
Against Pitt
Pittsburgh Panthers football
Pittsburgh Panthers football is the intercollegiate football team of the University of Pittsburgh, often referred to as "Pitt", located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Traditionally the most popular sport at the university, Pitt football has played at the highest level of American college football...
, he scored Michigan's first touchdown on a 70-yard pass from Chappuis in the second quarter; he scored again in the second half against Pitt on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Jack Weisenburger.
After the 1947 season, Mann and fellow Michigan end, Len Ford
Len Ford
Leonard Guy Ford, Jr. was an American football defensive end. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1976.He played two years for the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference...
, played in the East-West college all-star game at Gilmore Stadium
Gilmore Stadium
Gilmore Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Los Angeles, California. It was opened in May 1934 and demolished in 1952, when the land was used to build CBS Television City. The stadium held 18,000. It was located next to Gilmore Field...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
; both caught touchdown passes in the game. Mann was also selected by the Associated Press as a first-team end for its All-Big Nine team. He was also selected as a second-team All-American
1947 College Football All-America Team
The 1947 College Football All-America team was composed of college football players selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers. The organizations choosing the teams included: the United Press, the Associated Press, Collier's Weekly, the International News Service , and the...
by the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
.
Signing with the Lions
In February 1948, Mann traveled to New York and met with New York YankeesNew York Yankees (AAFC)
The New York Yankees were a professional American football team that played in the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1949. The team played in Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and often played in front of sold-out crowds . They were owned by Dan Topping, who brought many of his Brooklyn...
coach Ray Flaherty
Ray Flaherty
Raymond Paul Flaherty was a professional football player in the National Football League from 1926-1935. He was the head coach of the Boston/Washington Redskins from 1936–1942, where he won four division titles and two NFL Championships . Flaherty served in the United States Navy until 1945...
. Mann said at the time that he would like to play for the Yankees, but was reluctant to agree to any terms as he was expecting to receive feelers from several other teams in the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
and National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. In April 1948, Mann signed with the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
of the NFL. Mann's first NFL contract was for $7,500 and a $2,500 bonus, considered to be "solid NFL money in those days." At the time, Detroit coach Bo McMillin
Bo McMillin
Alvin Nugent "Bo" McMillin was an American football player and coach, who served at both the collegiate and professional levels. He played college football at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, where was a three-time All-American at quarterback, and led the Centre Praying Colonels to a...
said, "We're tickled to get Mann. We've been after his name on a Detroit contract ever since I came here as a coach. We know he will be a valuable professional performer."
Mann was also hired as a spokesman for the Goebel Brewing Company
Goebel Brewing Company
Goebel Brewing Company was a brewing company in Detroit, Michigan from 1873 to 1964 eventually acquired late in its existence by Stroh Brewery Company...
in Detroit's black community. The Lions' president, Edwin J. Anderson, was also president of Goebel, which sponsored Detroit Lions and Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
radio broadcasts.
1948 season
As a rookie in 1948, Mann became the first African-American to play for the Lions; halfback Mel Groomes also played for the Lions in 1948. He appeared in all 12 games for the Lions, but was not included in the starting lineup in any of the Lions' games in 1948. Despite his role as a "backup," Mann finished the season with 33 catches for 560 yards, ranking him 7th in the NFL in receiving yards and 4th in yards per reception.In December 1948, Mann joined Jesse Owens
Jesse Owens
James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens was an American track and field athlete who specialized in the sprints and the long jump. He participated in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, where he achieved international fame by winning four gold medals: one each in the 100 meters, the 200 meters, the...
' Olympians professional basketball team in Cleveland. He had played two years of basketball at Hampton Institute but did not play basketball at Michigan.
1949 season
In the pre-season prior to the 1949 NFL season1949 NFL season
The 1949 NFL season was the 30th regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, Boston Yanks owner Ted Collins asked the league to fold his team due to financial woes, and give him a new one in New York City...
, the Lions played an exhibition game against the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
in New Orleans. Coach McMillin met with the Lions' three African-American players (Mann, Groomes and Wally Triplett) before the trip. He explained that there had never been an interracial game in New Orleans. McMillan said he did not think he should break the prohibition and that the three of them would also not be permitted to stay with the team at the hotel. McMillan offered to let the three attend the game and sit on the bench, but Mann declined. Interviewed in 2005, he recalled the incident:
"I said if I can't play in the game I don't want to sit on the bench. ... Bo could've ended all that. He was supposed to be Mr. Great Liberal. But he didn't do it. He just passed it by. He could've been a big guy, a big fellow, but he didn't do it. I've never forgotten that. Don't tell me how liberal Bo was; he wasn't. He had a chance to be a hero, step up to the plate, but he didn't do it."
In Mann's second season in the NFL, the Lions had a new quarterback in Frank Tripucka
Frank Tripucka
Francis Joseph Tripucka is a former American collegiate and Professional Football quarterback, at Notre Dame, in the National Football League, in the Canadian Football League, and in the early American Football League.-Notre Dame Fighting Irish:Tripucka was backup quarterback to Heisman Trophy...
. Following a team outing, Mann overheard Tripucka's wife complaining that too many receivers were dropping balls. Mann told Mrs. Tripucka to tell her husband to throw the ball to him, saying, "I don't drop passes." On December 11, 1949, Mann was credited with 8 catches for 182 yards and two touchdowns (including a 64-yard touchdown pass from Tripucka in the first quarter and a 41-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter) against the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
. The mark tied his own single-game NFL record for receiving yardage. After the game, Mann's wife, described as "an ardent football fan," pointed out to statistician Nick Kerbawy that her tally sheet showed that her husband caught nine passes. Kerbawy ran back through the play-by-play account of the game and discovered she was right.
During the 1949 season, Mann led the NFL with 1,014 receiving yards and yards per catch (15.4). He also finished second in receptions with 66 (Tom Fears
Tom Fears
Thomas Jesse Fears was a Mexican-American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams in the National Football League, playing nine seasons from 1948 to 1956.-Early life:...
set an NFL record in 1949 with 77 receptions). At the time, Mann's totals in receiving yards and receptions both ranked as the third-highest single-season totals in NFL history.
Despite leading the NFL in receiving yards, Mann was not selected by the United Press for either its first- or second-team All-NFL team. Instead, the UP named him to its "Honorable Mention" team.
Salary dispute in 1950
During the off-season in 1950, the Lions asked Mann to take a $1,500 pay cut from $7,500 to $6,000. Mann objected and held out, refusing to sign a 1950 contract with the Lions. Adding fuel to the negotiations, the African-American community in Detroit had called for a boycott of Goebel beer, after a bid by an African-American group for a distributorship in Detroit's black community had been rejected. Mann recalled that Goebels/Lions president Anderson was under the mistaken impression that Mann had met with representatives of the losing bidder concerning the boycott. Mann recalled one meeting at which Anderson "left the room to run cool water on his wrists as a way to calm his anger."Trade to the New York Yankees
On July 31, 1950, Mann became a "hold out" when he failed to show up on the first day of practice for the Lions. that same day, his position as a spokesman for Goebel was terminated. Four days later, he was sent to the New York YankeesNew York Yankees (AAFC)
The New York Yankees were a professional American football team that played in the All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1949. The team played in Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and often played in front of sold-out crowds . They were owned by Dan Topping, who brought many of his Brooklyn...
in payment for quarterback Bobby Layne
Bobby Layne
Robert Lawrence "Bobby" Layne was an American football quarterback who played for 15 seasons in the National Football League. He played for the Chicago Bears in 1948, the New York Bulldogs in 1949, the Detroit Lions from 1950–1958, and the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1958–1962...
. The Lions had previously traded fullback Camp Wilson for Layne, but Wilson refused to report to the Yankees. Mann later recalled that Yankees' coach Red Strader
Red Strader
Norman "Red" Strader was a football player and coach who served in both capacities at the collegiate and professional levels. In the college ranks, he spent two years as head coach at St...
was upset about the trade. Despite a good training camp, Mann received little playing time in exhibition games. John Rauch
John Rauch
John "Johnny" Rauch was an American football player and coach. He was head coach of the Oakland Raiders in the team's loss to the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl II in 1968.-Early life:...
, a rookie quarterback, told Mann that he had been ordered not to throw to him. The day after Rauch threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to Mann in a pre-season game against the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
, Mann was released by the Yankees. He was not picked up by any other team.
Charges of blackballing
Through the months of September and October 1950, Mann was jobless. At the end of October 1950, Mann publicly charged that he had been "railroaded" out of professional football. He claimed that, despite leading the NFL in receiving yards in 1949, the Lions had asked him to take a 20% pay cut. After he objected, he contended that the NFL had taken a "hands off" policy toward him. Mann publicly stated, "I must have been blackballed -- it just doesn't make sense that I'm suddenly not good enough to make a single team in the league. The Lions' response to Mann's charge was a statement that they "want something more from an end than pass-catching ability."In the fall of 1950, the Michigan Chronicle
Michigan Chronicle
The Michigan Chronicle is a weekly African-American run newspaper based in Detroit, Michigan. It was founded in 1936 by John Sengstacke, owner of the Chicago Defender. The first editor was Louis E. Martin, whom Sengestacke sent to Detroit on June 6, giving him a $5.00 raise above his $15-per-week...
, an African-American newspaper in Detroit, also questioned the treatment of Mann. Bill Matney wrote in the Chronicle:
"Has a 'freeze' been put on Bob Mann? Mann was expected to have his best year in 1950. He played a total of three minutes in four exhibition games. Officially, Mann has been told by the New York Yanks that he is 'too small to make the team.' Consider the following - the previous year he was considered one of the best receivers in the league. Rival coaches were comparing him to the great Don HutsonDon HutsonDonald Montgomery Hutson was the first star wide receiver in National Football League history. He is considered by many to have been the first modern receiver....
in pass catching ability, and shiftiness. Still, after a great year, he was asked to take a pay cut from $8,000 to $6,500. However, after his release, not one NFL team has indicated any interest in picking him up...Many fans believe Mann to be the victim of a 'league fix,' a situation which may be created by team owners which spells 'finis' to the grid career of the player in question...They [fans] are still wondering why such a superior player as Mann in 1949, would not be wanted by any team in the NFL just nine months later. Fans are wondering if outside forces or a situation in which he became innocently involved, have created a 'boycott' which has driven Mann right out of the league."
Green Bay Packers
Mann was signed by the Green Bay PackersGreen Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
on November 25, 1950. On November 26, 1950, he appeared in the Packers' final home game against the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
, becoming the first African-American to play for the Packers. In 1951, Mann led the Packers with 50 catches, 696 receiving yards and eight touchdowns; he also ranked 4th in the NFL in both receptions and receiving yards in 1951. He caught three touchdown passes in an October 1951 game against the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
.,
Mann remained with the Packers through the 1954 NFL season
1954 NFL season
The 1954 NFL season was the 35th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended when the Cleveland Browns defeated the Detroit Lions in the NFL Championship Game.-Major rule changes:...
. Lee Remmel
Lee Remmel
Lee Remmel is a retired public relations/historian/spokesman and sportswriter. He is known for working 62 years with the Green Bay Packers as a sportswriter and later a team employee....
, who worked for the Packers in public relations and served as a team historian, described Mann as "on the small side" (5 feet 11 inches, 175 pounds), but a "nifty and productive wide receiver." Green Bay Gazette sports writer Art Daley recalled a story involving Mann and teammate Dick Afflis, who later became known in professional wrestling as "Dick the Bruiser." The Packers stayed at a Baltimore hotel that would not allow Mann to stay with the team on account of a policy against allowing African-American guests. When Mann left to go to another hotel, the 252-pound Afflis left with him. When a cab driver told Afflis that he would not drive Mann because of his race, Afflis grabbed the driver by the shirt and said, "You will take him wherever he wants to go." Daley also recalled how he had protested the hotel not accepting Mann and Mann calmed him down by saying with a shrug, "That's just politics."
In November 1955, Mann filed a $25,000 breach of contract suit against the Packers. Mann charged he was released illegally after sustaining a knee injury in an exhibition game against the Eagles.
Mann was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame
The Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame was the first hall of fame built to honor a single professional American football team. After receiving approval from coach Vince Lombardi, William L. Brault, a Green Bay restaurateur and Packers fan, founded the Hall of Fame in 1966...
in 1988. At the time of his death, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. It is the primary newspaper in Milwaukee, the largest newspaper in Wisconsin and is distributed widely throughout the state...
recalled Mann as one of the players who undid "the myth of white superiority in football." The Journal Sentinel wrote:
"It sounds incredible now, given pro football today, but at one time a myth held sway that black men couldn't play as well as white men. That myth helped to justify the National Football League's practice of recruiting only whites. A player who helped make a lie of the myth was Bob Mann, an African-American who integrated the Green Bay Packers in 1950. In 1948, he and Melvin Groomes had done the same for the Detroit Lions. ... Mann pioneered the idea that skin color does not limit talents."
Later years
Mann later attended law school, graduating from the Detroit College of Law in 1970. He worked as a defense lawyer in Detroit and headed Robert Mann & Associates. Mann's law office was located a few blocks from the Detroit Lions' Ford FieldFord Field
Ford Field is an indoor American football stadium located in Detroit, Michigan, USA, that is the current home field of the NFL's Detroit Lions. It is owned by the Detroit/Wayne County Stadium Authority. It regularly seats 65,000, though it is expandable up to 70,000 for football and 80,000 for...
. At the Lions' first regular season game at Ford Field on September 22, 2002, Mann was the Lions' honorary captain.
Mann died in October 2006 at age 82. Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
r Lem Barney
Lem Barney
Lemuel Joseph "Lem" Barney is a former American Football cornerback who played for the Detroit Lions. He was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992.-College years:...
said of Mann, "Bob was a great example to everyone. He gave of himself to the city and the entire community."