I felt like writing something about the Patriots’ Gino Cappelletti, whom I feel is one of the most underrated stars of the AFL. Cappelletti was a great receiver and kicker, played all 10 years of the AFL, and ended up as the league’s all-time leading scorer. Still he gets little recognition for his accomplishments.
Based on that I went to the S.I. Vault, and looked for the first article that I could find that included Cappelletti’s name. Oddly, it was a preview of the 1964 AFL Championship game. Cappelletti was included as the Patriots and Bills were still to play what was essentially a divisional championship game, and S.I. then evaluated all three teams chances in the championship game. Author Edwin Shrake was very complimentary of Cappelletti. After stating in the paragraph before that Babe Parilli was the best quarterback in the AFL (really?) he had the following to say about Cappelletti, “He is small and slow. But Cappelletti lulls defenses into a doze and then pops up so far open that it looks as if he had sneaked out of the bleachers… In one recent game Cappelletti ran a succession of square-outs, then ran another square-out, took two more steps, whirled and went deep and was open by 20 yards for a touchdown.”
Unfortunately, that was about it for the Patriots and Cappelletti (and the Bills, for that matter) in Shrake’s mind. The remainder of the article was about how the only way the Chargers could lose was if the game was played in inclement weather. Shrake lists the Chargers many talents and throws just a few bones to the Bills, the greatest of which is to say that Buffalo probably has a better offensive line. Well, I guess that is why they still play the game instead of leaving it to sportswriters to determine outcomes. As we all know, Mike Stratton clobbered Keith Lincoln, and the Bills beat the Chargers in the first of two consecutive AFL championships.
The full article is called, “…in The AFL, Guile And Go Should Win For The Chargers; Neither the Bills nor the Patriots are likely to beat San Diego unless the game is played in fierce weather,” and can be found HERE.
I guess I will continue my Cappelletti research, and write about Gino another day.
Living in the Boston area, It was a pleasure to listen to Gino as the color man on Patriots radio broadcasts for many years. He retired after the 2011 season, but he was great as both an expert analyst and as a great gentleman.
His radio partner, Gil Santos just retired as the play by play announcer after 34 years. It will be sad to not hear those great gentlemen on fall Sunday’s.
As odd as it may seem, you may want to look up some stories about Cappelletti written by Larry Felser in the Buffalo News (The Buffalo Evening News back in the day). A great writer who appreciated great talent.
Gino was one of the good guys (and players)…Felser probably one of the AfL’s best sports writers and boosters along with Stirling (Raiders), and Murphy (Chargers), Halford/Jones /Blair(Texans) (Cartwright floated back and forth while favoring the Cowboys)….Shrake, a shill for the NFL, we had to put up with his bs everyday that the Texans and Cowboys shared Dallas. He and Tex Maule (the worst) just couldn’t accept that the Texans would have wiped out the early Cowboys! Ah, the “good old days”…was quite a time in American sports!
I didn’t realize Shrake was an NFL shill. I always thought he was SI’s “AFL guy”!
Tex Maule was an NFL shill of the highest order. I did re-read Maule’s SI article that he wrote for SI after Super Bowl III. He actually was very complementary towards the Jets. I was a bit surprised about that.
Not a bag job like Sabol’s NFL film, which was about how Unitas couldn’t pull off the win.
Just my recollections Howard….could be faulty but don’t think so. Regards, Chris. (Maule was veerrrry slow to come around and not sure he ever did…probably did lots of crow eating after SB III and IV) Bud Shrake was in Dallas and if he was “S.I.s AFL guy”, wasn’t exactly enamored with the AFL, possibly a bit more open minded then Maule and Blackie Sherrod, and not trying to be as controversial as Gary Cartwright. (Dallas did have a core of good writers, even if some were biased, they were still good at their craft)
Didn’t mean to leave Dan Jenkins out, he was in Fort Worth before his S.I. Golf days….he was always a good read and a damn nice guy!
Chris, were you still with the Chiefs when Curly Culp joined? He is a member of the new HOF class of 2013. While he was a good defensive tackle with KC, he seemed to be one of the earliest and still best nose tackles in the 3-4 defense. I presume the HOF induction is due to his Oiler days more than with KC?
Howard, I was no longer “on” the team when Curley arrived. I was “furloughed” to Cincy in the expansion draft of late ’67 (didn’t go) and stayed on in K.C. doing TV Sports on WDAF (nbc) through early ’69 before returning to calif to practice law for the next 42 years.. I agree Curley’s rise to prominence was as an Oiler…..still a force in K.C. with Buck, Mays ,Bell, Lanier, Robinson, Lynch, Thomas, et al on that great defense of the ’60;s Sure wish robinson (10 year AFL, All Time AFL> team would have gotten in…Curley deserving, but no more then Johnny, Mays, Tyrer, Budde, Arbanas.
One could even make a case that of the five players you mentioned, plus Culp, that Culp may be the least deserving to be a HOF member. I’m not saying that he’s not worthy, he is. But, the others especially Robinson, Mays, Tyrer and Budde were all exceptional. I’m still not convinced that Arbanas is an HOF tight end, but that is for another day.
Best tight end in AFL history….far and away the best blocker, more then adequate receiver…in Stram’s offense, we ran more then we threw which was different then most other teams in the AFL with exception of Buffalo, paired with Budde and Tyrer when strong left formation….the best O-line in the AFL. (Hill on the other side, no slouch!) Check the All Prto, pro bowl stats, receptions, yards per catch and T.D.s against the others of the era. check http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/A/ArbaFr00.htm In my book, under-rated, even with all the honors shown. Always believed that those players that were selected to the All Time AFL Team (covered the 10 years prior to the merger) are all deserving of HOF recognition….a shame not there already!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Football_League_All-Time_Team
See All Time AFL selections
I guess in my mind I cannot put Arbanas in Ditka and Mackey category. However, Charlie Sanders is in the HOF. Arguably Arbanas is superior to Sanders, or at the least his equal.
Looking at TE reception numbers in the 1960’s vs. today is staggering. A modern TE catches over 50 passes a season. Watching Vernon Davis of SF is like watching a WR weighing 260 pounds.
No problem with Ditka, a great players, but Arbanas was in same class….check out yards per game, T.D.s per game, catches per game et al….All Pro years, pro bowl years….
Ditka 13.8 yds per catch, 43 Td,s, 158 games 36.9 yds /game (not a lot of yds/game for either) 2.7 recepts/game 2 All Pro ist team 5 pro bowls
Arbanas 15.7 yyds/catch, 34 TD’s, 118 games 26.3 yards/game, 1.7 recepts/game
3 All Pro ist team, 5 pro bowls
both outstanding blockers Similar All Pro and Pro Bowl selections
p.s. Arbansas did it with one good eye for the better part of his career after an incident mid career in Kansas City
I imagine it depends on how you define underatted, but in a league with only eight teams and televised games, contrary to Gino being underatted my recollection of the earliest days of the AFL, excluding the qb position, the highest rated and most publicised stars included Cappelletti, Cannon, Abner Haynes and Lowe and later Alworth and then Cookie. Gene Mingo and Gino were given special attenion as they doubled as place kickers.
The underatted players I think, would include Burford, Powell, Clem Daniels, (Maynard until later in his career) and in some respects Dubenion, although playing with Kemp on a title team the Golden Wheels was given a lot of love.
This post about Gino has unleashed a lot of emotion about AFL Stars. Gino was one of many who played semipro, service ball or Canadian football before getting their opportunity in the AFL. A lot of well deserved backlash against Tex Maule of SI. In 1968 Tex writes an article entitled The Young Generals in SI. He writes about Ken Nix, Gary Couzzo, Jack Conannon, Randy Johnson and others in the NFL as the up and coming QB’s with no mention of Griese, Namath, Beathard, Lamonica, Tensi, Wyche ,or a still young Hadl in the AFL. Who can’t forget Curt Gowdy’s tirade against Maule after Super Bowl III.
Gino owned a popular bar for many years in Boston called The Point After. I had a drink there in 1976. I also remember seeing Chris Burford doing the sports broadcast on the local news as a young teenager visiting my great aunt in Leawood Kansas in early July 1967. Thanks Todd.
Gino played in Canada but not the CFL, in 1955 he played in the ORFU Ontario Rugby Football Union with the Sarnia Imperials, and in 1956 tried out with Winnepeg and was cut. In 1954 19 year old Cookie Gilchrist played with Sarnia. In 1958 Gino returned to Sarnia, now The Golden Bears and played another season.
The difference between the CFL and the ORFU was the ORFU was partly amateur, the Canadians were not paid, only imports from the States like Gino were paid. Frank Filchock played a role in chaging the amateur rules and held influence enough and made the case and the amateur rule was replaced and all players in the league became pros.
I watched the clip on the Championship game and noticed on the one catch and run that Cappelletti was a finesse player not fast, but knew how to get open and catch a football, he reminded me of another Italian reciever that played in the CFL for 11 seasons all in Calgary Tommy Forzani, Tommy was faster, quicker and could glide like Barishnikoff. Trivia question Who was the NCAA D1 leader in pass receptions in 1973? answer: Tommy Forzani Utah State 85 receptions.
Forzani led the nation in 1972, in 1973 he was CFL Rookie of the Year in the west, Johnny Rogers was honored that same year as top rookie in the east with the Alouettes.
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