TIM MARA'S BIO
| Mara introduced the city of New York to pro football when he purchased the franchise for a reported $500 (others claim it was $2,500) in 1925, thus giving the National Football League a vital showcase in the nation’s largest city.
Mara withstood heavy financial losses his first year until the Giants were saved on the last home game of the season. Mara needed a good showing at the gate to keep the team alive.
The most heralded college player of the era, Red Grange, showed up at the Polo Grounds as a Chicago Bear and helped draw a crowd of over 70,000 people to save the Giants. After seeing the crowd that formed, Mara decided that under the right circumstances, professional football could be a big success.
Mara bore the brunt of the fight against the rival American Football League in 1926 and the All-American Football Conference from 1946-49. He helped build the Giants into a perennial powerhouse with three NFL and eight divisional titles.
He was honored in 1963 as one of 17 charter members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. |
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