Philadelphia Bell

The Philadelphia Bell was a franchise in the World Football League, which operated in 1974 and a portion of a season in 1975. The Bell played their home games in 1974 at JFK Stadium in South Philadelphia. The team logo was a representation of the Liberty Bell. In 1975 the team decided to stop playing at JFK and moved its games to Franklin Field.[1]

Philadelphia Bell
Established1974
FoldedOctober 1975
Based inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Home fieldJFK Stadium (1974)
Franklin Field (1975)
Head coachRon Waller (1974)
Willie Wood (1975)
Owner(s)John B. Kelly Jr.
John Bosacco
LeagueWorld Football League
DivisionEastern
ColoursBlue & Gold          

Formation

The Bell was one of just two WFL teams that maintained the same ownership in both 1974 and 1975 (the other being Canadian millionaire John Bassett's Memphis Southmen). The group was headed by John B. Kelly Jr., a respected business and sportsman in Philadelphia and part of the well-known Kelly family, which included his sister Grace Kelly, movie star-turned-Princess of Monaco. The major money contributor behind the ownership group was John Bosacco, who came forward during the first season and took over the operations of the franchise. Bosacco believed that the WFL could survive as a league and he was instrumental in the removal of Gary Davidson as commissioner following the 1974 season. Ron Waller was hired as head coach in 1974; he was replaced during training camp at Glassboro State University in 1975 by future NFL Hall of Famer Willie Wood.[2]

"Papergate" scandal

At first the Bell appeared to be the most popular team in the fledgling league, announcing a crowd of 55,534 for the home opener, followed by a whopping 64,719 for the second home game (for comparison's sake, the cross-town Eagles averaged 60,030 fans for seven home dates that year).

However, when the Bell paid city taxes on the attendance figures two weeks later, it emerged that they had inflated the gate on a scale unprecedented in professional sports. In an apparent attempt to pique interest, the Bell sold block tickets to several area businesses at a discount, and did not report the tax revenue. In turn, many of these businesses gave away the tickets for free. The actual paid attendance for the home opener was only 13,855, and for the second game just 6,200—and many of those tickets were sold well below face value. The "Papergate" scandal, as it was dubbed by the press, made the Bell and the WFL look foolish, and proved to be a humiliation from which neither recovered.

1974 and 1975 seasons

The Bell had a losing season in 1974, finishing 9–11, one game behind the Charlotte Hornets for the final playoff spot. (The Bell were actually 8–11 on the field, but were awarded a win by forfeit when the dissolving Chicago Fire refused to fly to Philadelphia for the season finale.) The club hit rock bottom on October 16, when only 750 fans found their way to JFK for a Wednesday night game in a torrential downpour.

However, at the request of league officials, they advanced to the playoffs in place of the Hornets. The Hornets were due to play the Florida Blazers in the first round. However, the Blazers only sold 1,000 advance tickets for the matchup in Orlando, nowhere near enough for the financially troubled Hornets (who had moved from New York City in mid-season) to meet their travel expenses. The Bell, in contrast, were somewhat better financed, and could cover their own expenses. They traveled to Orlando, where lost to the Blazers, 18-3.

Despite the Papergate fiasco, the Bell were reckoned as one of the WFL's stronger franchises, as evidenced by the league asking them to accept a playoff berth over the Hornets. They at least had the potential to have been successful had the WFL been better run. Bosacco was one of only three owners, along with the Memphis Southmen's John F. Bassett and The Hawaiians' Sam Battisone, thought to be capable of fielding a team in 1975. Those three teams had also been the only ones to meet payroll every week of the season.[3]

Even on TV, the Bell couldn't get any respect. On August 29, 1975, WTAF aired a sports doubleheader, featuring a Philadelphia Wings lacrosse match followed by the Bell's game against the Southern California Sun in Anaheim. The football game was scheduled for 10:30 pm EDT, but since the Wings game ran long, viewers missed the beginning. Bell fans would miss the end of the contest, too: WTAF abruptly cut the broadcast off with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, pleading a "prior commitment". The station then signed off for the night at 1:30 am; the game (won by the Sun, 58-39) didn't end until 2:06 am. (According to a Philadelphia Daily News story, "keeping the final six minutes of the game on TV could have cost the Bell an estimated $5,000 in telephone line charges," so the broadcast, which the club was evidently paying for, was cut off at the three-hour mark.)[4]

The Bell had a record of 4–7 in 1975 at the time of the league's dissolution. Attendance remained anemic, with the team's best-attended game at Franklin Field drawing barely 5,000 fans. After only 1,293 fans attended the Bell's October 18 contest, both the team and the WFL folded for good.

Vince Papale, the inspiration for the 2006 film Invincible, played wide receiver for the Bell for two seasons prior to his three years with the Philadelphia Eagles.[5][6] The Bell's starting quarterback was King Corcoran, who spent most of his career in the minor leagues due to his refusal to accept a backup quarterback position. Both Papale and Corcoran had recently played in the Seaboard Football League, the minor league that was active at the time in the area; Corcoran had played under Waller with the Pottstown Firebirds of the recently closed Atlantic Coast Football League.

Schedule and results
Key:WinLossBye

1974 regular season [7]
Week Day Date Opponent Result Attendance
1 Wednesday July 10, 1974 Portland Storm W 33–8 55,534
2 Wednesday July 17, 1974 at Houston Texans L 0–11 26,227
3 Thursday July 25, 1974 New York Stars L 15–17 64,719
4 Wednesday July 31, 1974 at Portland Storm W 25–7 13,757
5 Wednesday August 7, 1974 Memphis Southmen W 46–15 12,396
6 Wednesday August 14, 1974 at Chicago Fire L 29–32 27,607
7 Wednesday August 21, 1974 Southern California Sun L 28–31 14,600
8 Wednesday August 28, 1974 Detroit Wheels W 27–23 15,100
9 Monday September 2, 1974 at New York Stars L 16–24 6,132
10 Thursday September 5, 1974 at Jacksonville Sharks L 30–34 17,851
11 Wednesday September 11, 1974 Jacksonville Sharks W 41–22 (OT) 7,230
12 Wednesday September 18, 1974 at Florida Blazers L 21–24 10,417
13 Wednesday September 25, 1974 at Hawaiians W 21–16 14,497
14 Wednesday October 2, 1974 Florida Blazers L 7–30 7,150
15 Wednesday October 9, 1974 Hawaiians L 22–25 4,900
16 Wednesday October 16, 1974 Shreveport Steamer L 25–30 750
17 Wednesday October 23, 1974 at Southern California Sun W 45–7 N/A
18 Wednesday October 30, 1974 Chicago Fire W 37–31 12,500
19 Wednesday November 6, 1974 at Birmingham Americans L 23–26 22,963
20 Wednesday November 13, 1974 Chicago Fire W 2–0 (forfeit) cancelled

Playoffs
Game Day Date Opponent Result Attendance
Quarter-finals Thursday November 21, 1974 at Florida Blazers L 3–18 9,712

1975 regular season [8]
Week Day Date Opponent Result Attendance
1 Sunday August 2, 1975 Hawaiians W 21–15 3,266
2 Sunday August 9, 1975 at Birmingham Vulcans L 17–23 21,000
3 Sunday August 16, 1975 at Shreveport Steamer L 3–10 12,016
4 Sunday August 23, 1975 Memphis Grizzlies W 22–18 5,051
5 Saturday August 29, 1975 at Southern California Sun L 39–58 17,811
6 Saturday September 6, 1975 at Charlotte Hornets L 0–10 10,564
7 Saturday September 13, 1975 Portland Thunder L 10–25 4,710
8 Saturday September 20, 1975 at Jacksonville Express L 10–16 10,296
9 Saturday October 4, 1975 San Antonio Wings W 42–38 2,357
10 Saturday October 11, 1975 at Hawaiians L 13–14 10,789
11 Saturday October 18, 1975 Charlotte Hornets W 18–10 1,293
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References
  1. Goodtimes, Johnny (July 23, 2015). "The Philadelphia Bell, Papergate, and Possibly the Most Disastrous Pro League Ever". Retrieved 2016-10-04.
  2. "WFL Head Coach", Football Digest, August 1974 issue
  3. Marshall, Joe. World Bowl in crisis. Sports Illustrated, 1974-12-16.
  4. Jasner, Phil. Wood: Bell Picture to Improve. Philadelphia Daily News, September 2, 1975, p.67
  5. Vince Papale website
  6. # 83 Vince Papale of the Bell grabs a pass
  7. "1974 World Football League Game Results". Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  8. "1975 World Football League Results". Retrieved 2015-11-11.
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