gopresstimes
Continued from previous week In January of 1942, Green Bay Packers Coach Curly Lambeau took a trip to Chicago, where he met with Elmer Layden, National Football League commissioner at the time.
Lambeau was also busy that month interviewing prospective players, but that wasnt the only thing on his mind.
Following the surprise aerial assault on the U.S.
naval base at Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Japanese troops invaded Luzon, Philippines.
Weeks later, on Jan.
1, 1942, the United States joined 25 other Allied nations in signing the Declaration by United Nations, formally committing to fight the Axis powers together.
As American mobilization for the war effort got underway, the first U.S.
troops arrived in the British Isles on Jan.
26, 1942, marking the beginning of the American buildup in the European theater.
Although all teams, including the Packers, will give up players to various branches of the military service, there will be enough left to assure strong aggregations throughout the circuit, Lambeau conveyed to the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
Officials of the league are greatly encouraged, Lambeau added, since military and government officials in increasingly large numbers have come out for no curtailment of the nations athletic program.
Despite the positivity surrounding the situation, new players were needed to replace those enlisting and being drafted.
Ted Fritsch had turned 21 on the Halloween of 1941 and registered for the draft on Feb.
16.
Though Fritsch was ready to serve his country, Lambeau had an eye on the Stevens Point Teachers College backfield star for a different role.
Knowing what he would potentially need for the upcoming season, Lambeau reached out to Fritsch weeks earlier about joining the team.
On Feb.
21 just five days after he registered for service the Green Bay Packers announced that Fritsch had signed with the team.
Besides being a fine runner and blocker, Fritsch is an excellent kicker and a better passer than average.
He did all the place kicking, including the kickoff, while at Stevens Point, the Press-Gazette stated in the February article announcing the newest Packers player.
In addition to playing football, Fritsch became a star in basketball.
He is playing his fourth year on the varsity this winter.
During the summer months, he played baseball..
How did Lambeau learn about Fritsch? The coach who invited Fritsch to try out in Stevens Point years earlier Eddie Kotal, who was the college athletic director had recently resigned at the Stevens Point university to take a position as the Packers backfield coach.
To be continued.