The Pottsville Maroons played in the National Football League from 1925 to 1928. The team became the Boston Bulldogs in 1929. The NFL consider the Bulldogs and the Maroons the same team
Many Pottsville, Pennsylvania fans claim that Pottsville won the 1925 NFL Championship. The team was leading the league for most of the season, when NFL President Joseph Carr suspended the team for playing a team of Notre Dame University All-Stars in Philadelphia (and winning 9-7) on the same day the Frankford Yellow Jackets were scheduled to play a game in Philadelphia, violating Frankford's franchise rights. Although Carr warned the Maroons in writing that they faced suspension if they played in Philadelphia, the Maroons claim that Carr approved the game during a telephone call. The Chicago Cardinals, who finished the year with the best record, were declared the 1925 champions. This decision was controversial, as the Cardinals' final game was played against a faltering franchise which, in violation of NFL rules, resorted to using high school students in its lineup. The NFL sanctioned both teams following the game. Further, the Maroons' final league game, played shortly before the non-league Notre Dame game, was a victory over the Cardinals.
In 2003 the NFL decided to again examine the case regarding the 1925 championship. The league had reviewed the case before in the early 1960s, and voted overwhelmingly in favor of continuing to recognize the Cardinals as champions. The largest obstacle facing the Pottsville supporters is that the NFL would have to strike not one, but two Cardinals' wins for the Maroons to have the best record in 1925. Some argue the NFL should do so, as the Cardinals "shopped" for weak opponents late in the season (in the early years, the NFL left the last weeks of the season open for last-minute scheduling). On the other hand, Pottsville played a fairly easy schedule prior to their suspension, making their case less sympathetic. Still, the Maroons beat both the Cardinals and the Notre Dame all-stars (at a time when many considered college football superior to the emerging NFL), proving they were definitely a premier team.
