The Game Before the Money: Oral History of Pro and College Football

NFL Kicker Tony Franklin tells why he kicked barefoot in the NFL, how he set the NCAA record with two 60-yard field goals in one game, and playing against Earl Campbell in high school.

The popular football history podcast is now a national radio show! Airing Saturdays at 11am Eastern/10 am Central on the SportsMap Radio Network and the SportsMap Radio app. Connecting the past, present, and future of pro and college football.

This interview is the full interview for the August 13, 2022 radio show.

Episodes of The Game Before the Money Radio Show will be posted weekly throughout the 2022 NFL and NCAA football season. Additional episodes of The Game Before the Money Podcast, featuring pro and college football legends, will also be posted regularly.  Learn more at https://www.TheGameBeforeTheMoney.com.

#NFL #NCAAFootball

Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel shares insights about the signature game of his career – leading Texas A&M to a victory at Alabama in 2012. Host Jackson Michael guides listeners through key moments of the game.

Hear more from Johnny Manziel on his Ball Don't Lie podcast featuring Johnny Manziel and recording artist Mike. Learn more about The Game Before the Money at https://TheGameBeforeTheMoney.com  

John Lobon shares his experience as a member of the Syracuse 8, a group of Syracuse football players who stood up for student-athlete rights and against racial injustice. The players were ultimately suspended for the entire 1970 season but later vindicated in an investigative report ordered by the university.

John Lobon tells the story of his stellar high school football career in Hartford, Connecticut, his decision to attend Syracuse University, and his decision to join the Syracuse 8. He describes the defensive play he made that his teammates called, “The Defining Moment” of the team his freshman year, and brings us into the times of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The story of the Syracuse 8 illustrates how discrimination can occur in places one might not expect. John Lobon and his teammates rallied against discrimination and for better medical and academic support for all student-athletes. The young men paid a heavy cost to establish gains still enjoyed by student-athletes today.

The Game before the Money Podcast is released each Tuesday. The show is produced and hosted by Jackson Michael, author of The Game before the Money: Voices of the Men Who Built the NFL, published by the University of Nebraska Press. Learn more at https://TheGameBeforeTheMoney.com.

John Wooten truly is a legend. Coming into the NFL in 1959, he blocked for Jim Brown, played for Paul Brown, and was a key part of the 1964 Cleveland Browns NFL championship team. Hear him share stories of his friendships with Ernie Davis and Muhammad Ali, including great info on the famous "Cleveland Summit" with Ali, Jim Brown, Bill Russell, and many other sports superstars. In college, he helped the Colorado Buffaloes to the Orange Bowl.

John worked as a scout for the Dallas Cowboys for 16 years, then worked for the Eagles and Ravens. He now chairs the Fritz Pollard Alliance. He worked with Commissioner Pete Rozelle and other NFL legends to establish an important program to develop African-Americans for coaching and front office positions. John's amazing story -- which includes working with Pete Rozelle to avoid filing a discrimination lawsuit against the NFL in the 1960s and Clemson mailing a threatening letter to Colorado before the 1957 Orange Bowl because he and a teammate were African-American -- is told in this episode.