Creighton Miller
No. 37 | |
Brooklyn Tigers | |
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1941–1943 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish |
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Creighton Miller (September 26, 1922 – May 22, 2002) was an American football player and attorney. As an attorney, he played a role in organizing the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), the union that represents players in the National Football League (NFL). He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame and the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in 1976.
Miller was born in
Miller was drafted by the
Early life and college career
Miller was born in
Miller was a standout
Coaching and legal career
Miller was selected by the NFL's
Miller coached with the Browns for one year, drawing a $5,200 salary ($81,248 in 2023 dollars) that helped pay for law school.
Lavelli, Gibron, Miller and Browns quarterback George Ratterman met in Lavelli's basement in Rocky River, Ohio, on Wednesday nights to discuss the union idea.[7][15] The men also met at Miller's office in downtown Cleveland.[7] After two years of discussions and recruitment, they found 370 NFL players willing to support a union; the only holdouts were members of the Chicago Bears who were loyal to owner George Halas.[12] In November 1956, Miller, along with Los Angeles Rams quarterback Norm Van Brocklin and New York Giants end Kyle Rote announced the formation of the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA).[12]
The NFLPA demanded that players receive a $5,000 minimum annual salary and be paid during training camp and while unable to play due to football injury.[12] The owners made some concessions, but refused to recognize the union.[16] Miller threatened to sue the league under antitrust laws in 1957 unless owners recognized the union.[17] He testified before the U.S. Congress in NFL antitrust hearings that players were "mousetrapped" by the owners into disadvantageous contracts.[18] Miller earned $1,000 a year to advocate for the union, a salary some players said in 1960 was unjustified because of his tense relations with NFL owners and failure to get the union recognized.[19] In 1967, retired Browns defensive back Bernie Parrish said Miller did not do enough to meet the players' demands and Parrish tried to form his own union.[20]
Miller served as the NFLPA's lawyer until 1968, when he resigned to focus on representing individual players as an agent negotiating contracts.[21] The NFL officially recognized the union later in the year when the two sides negotiated their first collective bargaining agreement.[22] Cleveland coach Paul Brown disliked Miller so much for his work with the NFLPA that he had him scrubbed from the Browns' 1946 team picture.[3]
Later career and death
Later in his career, Miller was a
See also
- List of college football yearly rushing leaders
References
- ^ a b c d e f Creighton Miller at the College Football Hall of Fame
- ^ "Creighton Miller Adds to Family's Grid Glory". The Milwaukee Journal. South Bend, Ind. United Press International. October 26, 1943. p. 4. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g Goldstein, Richard (May 29, 2002). "Creighton Miller, 79, Lawyer And Notre Dame Halfback". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ "Creighton Miller Named for School; Gets Honor Letter". The Milwaukee Journal. Omaha, Neb. September 1, 1944. p. 2. Retrieved September 4, 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Creighton Miller To Shun Pro Grid". Painesville Telegraph. Chicago. August 24, 1944. p. 7. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ "Creighton Miller to Help McKeever". The Milwaukee Journal. South Bend, Ind. United Press International. September 27, 1944. p. 6. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f Coughlin 2011, p. 59.
- ^ "Pro League to Get Creighton Miller". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Cleveland. Associated Press. March 27, 1945. p. 15. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ "Creighton Miller Will Join Browns". Painesville Telegraph. Cleveland. May 21, 1946. p. 7. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ Piascik 2007, p. 64.
- ^ Piascik 2007, p. 73.
- ^ a b c d e f Coenen 2005, p. 181.
- ^ Coenen 2005, pp. 180–181.
- ^ a b "Professional Gridders Form an Organization". The Milwaukee Journal. Cleveland. November 29, 1956. p. 19. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ^ Keim 1999, p. 53.
- ^ Coenen 2005, p. 182.
- ^ "NFLPA Announces Plan For $4,200,000 Lawsuit". St. Petersburg Times. Cleveland. Associated Press. November 22, 1957. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ Shoemaker, Whitney (August 1, 1957). "Criticism Of Grid Owners Voiced Today". The Dispatch. Washington. Associated Press. p. 12. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ "Pro Grid Group May Drop Present Attorney". The Milwaukee Sentinel. Philadelphia. Associated Press. December 24, 1960. p. 5. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ "Parrish Seeks Football Union". The Milwaukee Journal. Cleveland, Ohio. November 3, 1967. p. 17. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ "Miller Resigns As Counsel For Pro Gridders". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Hollywood, Fla. Associated Press. January 7, 1968. p. 13. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ Goldaper, Sam (July 15, 1968). "N.F.L. Club Owners and Player Group Reach Agreement". The New York Times. p. 38. Archived from the original on March 15, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ a b c Coughlin 2011, p. 58.
- ^ "Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame". Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on September 28, 2011. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
Bibliography
- Coenen, Craig R. (2005). From Sandlots to the Super Bowl: The National Football League, 1920-1967. Knoxville, TN: University of Tennessee Press. ISBN 978-1-57233-447-2.
- Coughlin, Dan (2011). Pass the Nuts: More Stories About the Most Unusual People and Remarkable Events from My Four Decades As a Sports Journalist. ISBN 978-1-59851-073-7.
- Keim, John (1999). Legends by the Lake: The Cleveland Browns at Municipal Stadium. Akron, OH: University of Akron Press. ISBN 978-1-884836-47-3.
- Piascik, Andy (2007). The Best Show in Football: The 1946–1955 Cleveland Browns. Lanham, MD: Taylor Trade Publishing. ISBN 978-1-58979-571-6.