The Wilmington Clippers were a professional

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

team that played from 1937 to 1942, and from 1946 to 1949. They were based in the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

from 1939 to 1941, later returning for the 1946 to 1949 seasons. They were located in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Unami language, Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North ...

. The Clippers played as an independent team from 1937 to 1938, and in 1942.

Independent

Wilmington was an independent team from 1937–1938. In 1937, the team had NFL Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi on their roster. Their record in 1937 was 5–4. Their record in 1938 was 10–2.

American Association/AFL

1939 Season In 1939, the Clippers joined the

. The team included

Jack Ferrante Jack Anthony "Blackjack" Ferrante (March 9, 1916 – November 23, 2006) was an American football end in the National Football League who played for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1941 and from 1944 to 1950. Born in Camden, New Jersey, Ferrante's fa ...

, an End who led the league in touchdowns. The Wilmington Clippers finished the season with 9 wins, 3 losses, and a tie. They made the playoffs but lost to the Newark Bears, 13–6 (Wilmington protested the use of Sid Luckman who owner

George Halas George Stanley Halas Sr. (; February 2, 1895October 31, 1983), nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was an American professional football player, coach, and team owner. He was the founder and owner of the National Football League's Chi ...

sent in for the Newark Bears because he had been with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine ...

all season). 1940 Season In 1940, the Clippers finished with a 5–4–1 record which was enough to make the playoffs. In the semifinals they beat the Paterson Panthers 11–8. There were 2 safeties in that game, one scored by each team. Then they made the championship but lost 17–7 against the Jersey City Giants. 1941 Season In 1941 the Wilmington Clippers finished with a 4–3–2 record, which was 3rd in the league. They had

Offensive Guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative (Netherlands), Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that ...

Ed Michaels Edward Joseph Michaels (born Mikolajewski) (June 11, 1914 – January 21, 1976) was an American football guard in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears, the Washington Redskins, and the Philadelphia Eagles. He also played fo ...

who made the All-Star team for the 3rd year in a row. They played the Paterson Panthers again in the semifinals, and won 33–0. Then in the championship they won 21–13 against the 8–2 Long Island Indians. In the game

had 2 touchdowns. 1942 Season The 1942

was cancelled due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, but the Clippers kept playing, they were an independent team for that year. In 1942 they went 8–0–1. Their tie game was an exhibition match against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

. 1943–1945 Then in 1943 because of World War II, they did not play, and they would not return to playing until 1946. 1946 Season In the 1946 season the American Association continued but was renamed the American Football League. The team had their worst season in 1946, finishing with only a 1–7–2 record. 1947 Season In 1947, the Wilmington Clippers finished with a 2–5–1 record and missed the playoffs. They had 3 time All-Star

return and be named to a 4th All-Star. 1948 Season In the 1948 season, they finished with a 5–4–1 record, they made the playoffs and beat the Richmond Rebels to make the championship. However the Wilmington Clippers lost in the championship, 14–24 against the Paterson Panthers. 1949 Season The 1949 season was their last season, and they finished the year with a 5–5 record. They lost 66–0 in the semifinals against the Richmond Rebels, and that would be their final game because they dropped out of the league the next year. They were replaced by a team called the Brooklyn Brooks.

Stadium

The Clippers played at

Wilmington Park Wilmington Park was a ballpark in Wilmington, Delaware that was located at the corner of 30th Street and Governor Printz Boulevard. It was home to the University of Delaware football team from 1940 to 1952 and the Wilmington Blue Rocks of the Cl ...

. From 1937 to 1939 they played at

Pennsy Field The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was nam ...

Independent

American Association/AFL

Stadium

References

External links