Dayton Triangles - First Game in the NFL (1920)

Dayton Triangles - First Game in the NFL (1920)

On October 3, 1920, the Dayton Triangles won the very first APFA/NFL game, with a 14-0 defeat of the Columbus Panhandles at Triangle Park receiving a honorary plaque from the National Football League (NFL). 

 

The Triangles were an original franchise based in Dayton, Ohio, and took their nickname from their home field, Triangle Park, which is located at the confluence of the Great Miami and Stillwater Rivers in North Dayton. 

 

They were the longest-lasting traveling team in the NFL (1920-1929), and the last such "road team" until the Dallas Texans in 1952, who, coincidentally, descended from the Dayton franchise. The Texans players and assets were moved to Baltimore in 1953, and then to Indianapolis in 1983, where they now operate as the Colts, just 117 miles west of their origin. They have kept their color scheme through the years and, ultimately have never missed an NFL season in some form.

 

 

 

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