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  • 8/4/2019 Fantasy Football History

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    hile crit ics, skeptics and the proverbial nattering nabobs of nega-tivism have a hard time coming to grips with the alreadyremarkable and still growing popularity of Fantasy Football, theallure to those who actively take part in the game couldn't bemore obvious.

    It's like this: Fantasy football offers NFL fans the otherwise unat-tainable ability to "get in" on their favorite sport by requiringthem to assume all the responsibilities associated with operatingreal NFL franchises.

    In fact, by asking participants to serve as owner, general manag-er and head coach, anybody from t he casual observer to themost ardent fan is afforded the unique opportunity to greatlyincrease the level of fun and excitement t hey already draw fromNFL games as a "normal" fan to exhilarating new heights.

    Which begs the question: What could possibly be cooler?

    The short answer, of course, is darned little.

    That's why we believe it's incumbent upon those of uswho promote, participate in and derive so much satis-faction from the game to document its origin and passalong to the uninitiated an understanding of whereand how our hobby began -- and at the same time,

    offer some much deserved credit to those responsi-ble for it.

    With that goal in mind, the intrepid staff of FantasySports Publications set out to accomplish that verytask. In the months spent putting this article

    together, one thing stood out above all else:

    The game of Fantasy Football -- and the basic con-cepts that drive Fantasy sports in general -- aretimeless.

    As we went through the process of interviewingmany of the principals involved and visiting someof their old haunts, we couldn't help but noticehow many of the same issues that today's partici-pants bump into mirror those encountered by thegame's inventors.

    So, even though the primary objective of this arti-cle is to document the origin of our hobby, we've

    taken the liberty of scattering a series of quotes, anecdotes andwhat we call historical footnotes throughout this article to putthat timelessness into perspective and lend fur ther credence tothe old corollary that states: The more things change the morethey stay the same.

    We hope you enjoy it.

    YOU ARE HERE

    Before we travel back in time it might be a good idea -- espe-cially for those just getting into Fantasy Football -- to examinethe current state of the hobby.

    8 Fantasy Sports Publications, Inc. web: fspnet.com phone: 505.293.050

    Fantasy Football BOB HARRIS/ EMIL KADLEC fspnet.com

    ANOD

    (ANDAWINK)

    TOTHEFOUNDERS

    OFFANTASYFOOTBALL

    W

    "Tellthemtogobuya

    football."--BillWinkenbachupon

    learningin1965thata

    groupofSanFranciscanswereapparentlyplan-

    ningacircuitsimilartoGOPPPL.

    Left to Right:BobLyons,HalWells, FatherJam

    esKelly,JohnMadden, John

    Ford III,BillWinkenbach andTomCulliganJr

    .InFront

    LetterheadfromtheCommissionerBillWinken

    bach

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    According t o a recent Harris Interactive poll, nearly 30mill ion Americans are on t he Fantasy bandwagon, anumber that grows exponentially with the startof each new season. That same poll tells us theaverage fantasy player spends $110 a year persport on the hobby. Another polling firmestimates that almost 6.5 mi llion womenplay fantasy sports.

    Of course, in addition to football, the

    above-mentioned figures include baseball,basketball, golf, tennis and NASCAR, all ofwhich also boast thriving Fantasy spin-offs.

    With all due respect, however, no sportbetter fits the specifications required bythe Fantasy sports model quite like foot-ball. Or, more specifically, NFL football.

    Denver Post columnist Mark Kiszla summedup the mindset of the current generation ofFantasy owners succinctly in September of2000, when he wrot e: "Fantasy football is therevenge of a fan disenfranchised by free agency,allowing any league participant to draft, start, bench orwaive the same mil lionaire players who once broke hearts by dum ping thehometown NFL team for bigger bucks in Baltimore."

    But there are obviously other factors involved. As Oakland area bar owner andrestaurateur Andy M ousalimas, who played a prominent role in both the ori-

    gin and early propagation of the hobby, once explained: "It's the ego trip,you know. ... You own your own team. You draft 'em. They're yours. You cansay, 'This is my team.'"

    Television has also played a major role in Fantasy's growth.

    As former Oakland Tribuneeditor and Fantasy OG George Ross once pointedout, "TV caters to fantasy leagues. ... You don't see the game on the screen;you see one guy throwing the ball or one guy running the ball. They focus inon t he quarterbacks and running backs way too much."

    In addition to the coverage described by Ross, the mainstream media's recent"discovery" of the game has resulted in a dramatic spike in airtime devoted tothe kind of specialized, Fantasy-specific information participants crave.

    If there were any lingering questions as to how big Fantasy Football has

    become, the best answers are clearly coming from Park Avenue.That's right. We're talking about the NFL itself.

    The very same league that until just a few years ago treated Fantasy ownerslike red-headed stepchildren has suddenly embraced the game -- as evi-denced by recent television commercials featuring star players discussingFantasy issues and the almost endless stream of time, energy and otherresources league officials have poured into the creation of Fantasy-specificweb content on NFL.com.

    The ol' trickle-down effect is in full swing here, too. NFL players are also get-ting the message.

    During a February 14, 2002 appearance on Fox Sports Net "The Best DamnSports Show Period," Tennessee Titans running back Eddie George admitted to

    e-mail: [email protected] Fantasy Football Pro Forecast

    Pro ForecasTO THE FOUNDERS OF FAN TASY FOOTBALL

    WHO

    MADE WHO?According to the highly regarded Dickson'sBasebal l Dictionary, Rotisserie baseball wasofficial ly created by Dan Okrent onNovemb er 17, 1979. For the record, Okr ent,a N ew York- based writer and editor, can'tverify the exact date of creation. What hedoes know is this: From 1978-82 he flewregularly from Hartford, Conn., to Austin,Texas, as a p ublishing consultant for theTexas Monthly, and the idea came to himduring one of those flights in the fall of '79.

    Which is well and good, except it complete-ly ignores the Superior Tile SummerInvi tati onal Home Run Tourn ey.

    The what??

    The S.T. SIHRT, a Rotisser ie style l eag ue tha tBill Winkenbach and his cronies startedplaying some 20 years prior -- and whi ch isstill in full swing today.

    Ed Winther s, a char ter S.T. SIHRT own er,pins the inaugural season down to either1959 or '60, and we found considerableanecdotal evidence supporting his claim.Nonetheless, the earliest documented evi-dence FSP was able to obtain came in theform of league correspondence from 1966.

    Whatever the case, Wink and the boysclearly had a going baseball concern wellbefore Okrent and his game were up andrunning.

    So, d oes th e S.T. SIH RT qua li fy a sRotisserie?

    If, you believe the official website ofRotisserie League Baseball, it certainlyappear s to.

    According to RBL: "The idea (behindRotisserie) is to simulate owning and man-aging your very own baseball team com-pr ised of a ctual pla yers. You select yourplayers from the rosters of teams in theAmerican or Nati onal leagues and competeagainst other teams in your own uniqueleague. The batting and pitching stats thatyour players generate in real life fuel the

    competition in your rotisserie leag ue."And as expla ined by Winther s, S.T. SIHRTowners "drafted" a fixed number of pitch-ers, catchers, infi elder s and outfield ers witheach pla yer awarded points based on th eiractual performa nce.

    Bottom li ne? Even if the S.T. SIHRT didn 'tmeet the textbook defin ition of Rotisserie, itwasn't far off and it lends further credenceto the notion Bill Winkenbach was the sin-gle most innovative force in the history ofFantasy sports.

    "WinkaskedmeoncetoputtogetheraboardgameorsomethinglikethatwhichfollowedourrulesinGOPPPL,butIneverhadthetimetodoit....Itprobablywouldhavemadeafewbucksifwecouldhavecopyrightedor

    patentedit." --GeorgeRoss

    Wilford Bill Winkenbach

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    catching serious grief in the wake of hiscareer-low 939-yard, five-touchdown rushingeffort in 2001.

    The heat wasn't applied by teammates -- oreven Titans fans. The majority of complainantswere Fantasy owners lamenting his less-than-expected totals.

    "I go into airports, and people say, 'Hey I hadyou on my fantasy football team.' I hear that

    from everybody," George said. "I'm like, 'Sorry.' Imight go in the last round [of the fantasy draft]this year. ..."

    And San Francisco 49ers quarter-back Jeff Garcia, when in troducedto 2002 World Championship ofFantasy Football grand prize win-ner Chris Schussman at this year'sEA Sports Madden Bowl partyheld in San Diego the Thursdaybefore this year's Super Bowl,admitted: "He probably didn'thave me on his team."

    Let's take stock, shall we?

    With millions already playing, more

    jumping on board each year and withthe most powerful sports league inthe world blowing its considerablepromotional winds into the metaphoric Fantasysail, our hobby heads into the future with con-siderable momentum.

    Now that we know where we stand, lets travelback in time to review some of the key individ-uals, places and circumstances surrounding theorigin of our hobby. So, settle in, take a deepbreath and get ready for a journey back morethan 40 years to the dawn of Fantasy Football.

    IN THE BEGINNING

    Any history of the game has to answer onequestion first and foremost: Who was the indi-

    vidual most responsible for Fantasy Football aswe know it today?

    There's no controversy or mystery surroundingthis one.

    The gentleman in question was the late Wilfred"Bill" Winkenbach, an Oakland-area business-man and a limited partner in the OaklandRaiders1.

    As legend has it, Winkenbach came up with theidea for Fantasy Football after developing simi-lar games involving other sports in the late1950's.

    The initial groundwork was laid on a rainyOctober night in a New York City hotel room2.It was 1962 and the Raiders were on the tail

    end of an annual 16-day East Coast road swing.

    According to Winkenbach, "Bill Tunnell, whowas the Raider P.R. man, and Scotty Stirling,who was then covering the Raiders for theTribune, helped me set it up."

    As the night progressed (and the cocktailsflowed), the three men hammered out a basicblueprint specifying league organization and a setof rules calling for the selection of offensive skillplayers from pro football teams who would

    comprise their imaginary teams with said teamscompeting on a weekly basis in the quest of anoverall champion.

    "Though I was involved, Winkenbach deservesthe lion's share of the credit for developing the

    game," Stirling, who currently serves as a scoutfor the Sacramento Kings, once said. "Wechipped in w ith rules, but the germ of inspira-tion was these earlier games he played withgolf and baseball (see sidebar titled "Who MadeWho?" on page 9)."

    WELCOME TO THE GOPPPL

    Upon their return to Oakland, the three men letRoss in on the project.

    "Right off the bat we came up with a prett y

    good system," Ross said. That system wasdubbed the Greater Oakland ProfessionalPigskin Prognosticators League -- or GOPPPL asthose who played referred to it -- which official-ly made its debut in 1963.

    The purpose of the league, as published in theoriginal GOPPPL rules was: "To bring togethersome of Oakland's finest Saturday morning grid-iron forecasters to pit their respective brains (andcash) against each other. Inasmuch as this league

    is formed only with owners having a deep inter-est and affection for the Oakland RaidersProfessional Football Team, it is felt thatthis tournament will automaticallyincrease closer coverage of daily happen-ings in professional football."

    This original eight-team league includedowner-coach combinations culled fromfriends at the Tribuneand the Raiders,and other sports-minded acquaintances.Per league rules, participants had to meetat least one of three prerequisites in orderto qualify:

    1. Affiliation with an AFL professionalfootball team in an administrativecapacity.

    2. A direct relationship to professionalfootball in a journalistic capacity.

    3. Either have purchased or have sold ten (10)season tickets for Oakland's 1963 season.

    In addition to Winkenbach, Sterling, Tunnell andRoss, the original list of club owners includedRaiders radio announcer Bob Blum and Raiderticket manager George Glace3, as well as seasonticket sellers Phil Carmona and Ralph Casebolt.

    Among the original coaches were Mousalimas,who teamed up with Stirling, and a surprisinglyknowledgeable kid named Ron Wolf4, who wasbrought into the mix by Ross after Al Davis hiredthe one-time Colts' water boy to work in theRaider front office.

    By the way, if you're wondering how intense thecompetition was back then, wonder no more.

    As Stirling once described it: "Competitionwas fierce. Friendships were destroyed. Therewere some divorces. But guys used to try likehell to get in."

    THE MORE THINGS CHANGEDEPARTMENT (Part I)

    As outlined in the ori ginal 1963 GOPPPLrules: "Lack of skill or study willalso afford the heaviest loser the

    yearly trophy, symbolic of the

    loser's ineptness in this grueling

    contest. This award will be pre-

    sented by the League Commissioner

    at the Annual GOPPPL Banquet, held

    in late January for club owners,

    coaches and wives."

    As Sterling once recalled: "Winkenbach had thistrophy made with a wooden football face and adunce cap on top for the guy who came in lasteach year. The last-place guy had to keep it onhis mantle till the next season, and when you vis-ited his house he damn well better have that tro-phy up on the mantle or there was trouble5."

    10 Fantasy Sports Publications, Inc. web: fspnet.com phone: 505.293.050

    Fantasy Football BOB HARRIS/ EMIL KADLEC fspnet.com

    "Wehadnoideait

    wouldexplodeinto

    thekindofmaniathat

    existstoday.Pro

    footballisn'tagame.

    It'sacult.And

    [FantasyFootball]is

    closetoacult."

    --ScottySterlingonthecurrentstateofthegame: --

    1) Winkenbach had a financial interest in the Raiders but no control or say in operational matters. According to relatives, his wife is still a limited partner in the franchise today. 2) The Manhattan Hotel is nowthe Milford Plaza, located at 700 8th Avenue in New York City. 3) From t he post season GOPPPL dinner invi tat ion sent to owners by Bill Winkenbach on January 30, 1967: "Inasmuch as George Glace is fur-nishing the victory drinks, he wants to know how much to order. So, R.S.V.P., damm it." 4) Yes, that would be th e same Ron Wolf who recently retired as general manager of the Green Bay Packers after a longand distingui shed career as an NFL fron t of fice whi z guy. 5) In a January 10, 196 6 letter to GOPPPL Own ers, Staff and Friends, Winkenbach noted: "Messrs. Tom Schalich and Tommy Moran will b e at thistime awarded the GOPPPL dunce trophy, making them the first record holders of the GOPPPL and S. T. SIHRT (see sidebar titled "Who Made Who?" on page 9) simultaneously."

    MilfordPlazaHotel,NYC

    2

    TheUtmostSportingHouseinNortherCalifornia(Site

    ofthe original FantasyFootball draft- Augus

    t 1963)

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    The Original Fantasy Football Draft held at Bill Winkenbachs house in Oakland, C

    H

    ALF

    QT

    R

    F

    UL

    L

    DE

    F

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    Also as outlined in the orig inal rules: "TheGOPPPL will have two officials --

    a Commissioner and a Secretary.

    The Commissioner will preside at

    all meetings, handle all arbitra-

    tion and appoint all committees.

    The Secretary will keep the league

    records and scoring data and be

    responsible for the collection and

    distribution of all monies at theend of the season. ..."

    According to those involved, Winkenbachbecame Fantasy Football's first commissionerprimarily because, as a small business owner,he already had the necessary equipment -- i.e.phone lines, typewriters and mimeographmachine.

    THE MORE THINGS CHANGEDEPARTMENT (Par t II )

    Asked by a reporter in 1965 why he was per-mitted to serve as both GOPPPL commissionerand team owner, Winkenbach replied: "It'seasy... If I can't own a team, they can't hold thedraft meeting at my home6."

    Despite being relegated to the use of whateven the most minim alist modern-day partici-pant would consider antiquated gear,Winkenbach prepared and published weeklyreports that were delivered to GOPPPL ownerswithout fail on Tuesday mornings through-out the regular season.

    DRAFT 1.0

    During an interview earlier this year,Mousalimas described the overall moodat the first draft (see page 11), held inWinkenbach's basement on a beautifulnight in late August of 1963, as "euphor-ic."

    The original -- pre-merger -- "Rules ofDrafting" were outlined t husly:

    "Prior to the opening of the

    professional football season,

    at the evening dinner

    meeting7, club owners willdraft 20 players from either

    league. However, no more than 8

    imports can be drafted from the

    NFL. In the event of injury, which

    depletes a position, owner shall

    apply to Commissioner for approval

    to activate a temporary replacement

    from undrafted players."

    As for the method of drafting, the rules state:

    "At the first draft, cards will becut for first choice, second

    choice, etc. The last choice or

    eighth choice will also get ninth

    choice going back up the ladder.

    Thus, the first choice will get

    sixteenth and seventeenth choice.

    After all cuts have been made,

    each owner will declare in what

    position he wants to draft. The

    following year, first choice goes

    to the heaviest loser of the pre-

    ceding year and so forth."

    Each owner selected a roster comprised of fouroffensive ends, four halfbacks, two fullbacks,two quarterbacks, two kickoff or punt returnmen, two field goal kickers, twodefensive backs or linebackers andtwo defensive linemen.

    For the record, owners submitted aweekly starting lineup featuring twooffensive ends, two halfbacks, a full-back and a quarterback.

    THE MORE THIN GS CHANGEDEPARTMENT (Part III)

    As outlined in th e original 1963GOPPPL rules: "Lineup hasto be posted with League

    Secretary prior to 12:00

    o'clock Friday morning. If

    no lineup is posted, the

    preceding week's lineup

    will be in effect."

    Since multi-position players were so

    common in the early 60's, leaguerules stated that field goals and cov-ersions could only be credited to theplayer specified. This meant thesame player could be selected at

    more than one position. For exampleHouston's George Blanda8 was drafted bytwo dif ferent teams in 1963, serving as quar-terback on one roster and place-kicker onthe other.

    THE MORE THINGS CHANGEDEPARTMENT (Part IV)

    As outlined in the original 1963 GOPPPLrules: "Inasmuch as this test ofskill and knowledge of the players

    in the AFL and NFL leagues will be

    backed by coin of the realm, it

    behooves each club owner to study

    carefully prior to draft, all

    available statistics, schedules,

    weather conditions, player habits

    and other factors, so as to pre-

    serve one's prestige and finances."

    While greater levels of sophistication, increasing-ly intricate scoring systems and more complexrules place a premium on reliable fantasy-specif-

    ic intelligence, the GOPPPL was a low-tech fanta-sy league, where information was harder tocome by than it is today.

    "Our computer software package was a Street &

    Smith annual9, just to make sure a guy was stillplaying wide receiver somewhere," Ross said.

    As any modern-day owner will tell you, that's

    probably not the most effective means of keeping

    up with the latest headlines.

    This probably explains how one unfortunate

    owner wound up drafting tight end J.V. Cain

    prior to the 1978 season -- a player whom

    Mousalimas (almost gleefully) recalled, had

    passed away only a short time before.

    12 Fantasy Sports Publications, Inc. web: fspnet.com phone: 505.293.050

    Fantasy Football BOB HARRIS/ EMIL KADLEC fspnet.com

    6) The Winkenbach residence/Office Of The Commissioner on Oakdale Road in Oakland, was described on official GOPPPL letterhead as "The Utmost Sporting House In North ern California." 7) According toinvitations sent out by Winkenbach, 1966 GOPPPLers had their choice of Prime Rib or New York steak -- at $6.00 per person, tax and gratuity included. Attendees at the 1967 Draft dinner could choosebetween a top sirloin steak, prime rib or lobster thermid or for a mere $11.00 p er couple, including tax and t ip. 8) Blanda was the first pl ayer selected in the inaugural GOPPPL draft. 9) In an August 23, 196letter sent to owners prior to that year's GOPPPL draft, Winkenbach wrote: "Street and Smith's Official Yearbook will again be the guide. It is now available."

    "Aboutthreeyears

    agoIranintoBill

    andhetoldme,'Itoldyouwesh

    ould

    havecopyrightedthe

    damnthing....."

    --ScottyStirling(reportedlythelasttimeh

    eever

    spokewithBillWinkenbach).

    AndyMousalimaswithTomFloreswho

    wasselected

    intheoriginalFFDraft

    LeftToRight:BillDowning,PaulS

    hanberg,AndyMousalimas

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    THE KING(S X) LIVES

    According to the principles, Fantasy Footballtook an immediate and compelling hold onthose involved, especially those whose livesrevolved around the t hree primary Oakland-area establishments involved in the early days-- the Raiders, the Tribuneand the Kings X.

    "[Winkenbach] would sit together wit h the

    other limi ted partners at home Raider games,

    and for the first couple weeks of the seasontheir big concern was not how the Raiderswere doing, but how well their GOPPPLteam was playing," Stirling said.

    Ross recalled how more than a few of his fel-low Tribunesport s staffers put in ext ra hours

    at the office in order to get an edge overtheir GOPPPL competitors.

    As previously published histories have noted,the concept of Fantasy Football began gain-ing wider appeal after people from aroundthe region and across the nation, many ofwhom visited the Kings X for trivia con-tests10 and other friendly competitions,quickly t ook not e of t he bar's FantasyFootball leagues, spreading word of this fas-cinating new fixation far and w ide11.

    While a comprehensive discussion of theensuing propagation of Fantasy Football isbeyond t he overall scope of this history,Stirling once told a reporter: "I think the

    thing first spread in the Bay Area. Once itgot to Montgomery Street, which is to SanFrancisco what Wall Street is to New York. Itspread like wildfire."

    "It spread out in concentric waves," Rosssaid. "Guys in offices and in bars would t alkabout it, and pretty soon it was all overtown, and then it spread to San Franciscoand the rest of the Bay Area."

    But the Kings X was where Fantasy Footballtruly came into its own.

    And Mousalimas, who sold the bar uponretirement in 1991, is the man responsible forintroducing the hobby to patrons by establish-ing the first Kings X League12 back in 1969.

    Mousalimas also p layed a vit al role in thedevelopment of performance scoring.

    In an article published on September 8,1994, Oakland Tribunecolumnist andrespected Fantasy expert Dave Del Grande

    wrote: "Mousalimas changed the scoring sys-tem to include yardage in the early 70s.That helps explain why Barry Sanders wasdrafted 10 spots ahead of Marcus Allen lastweek despite scoring 12 fewer touchdownslast season."

    THE MORE THINGS CHANGEDEPARTMENT (Par t V)

    According to Mousalimas, a motivating factor in

    the initial push for performance scoring wasRaider running back Pete Banaszak, who notonly finished his 13-year NFL career with animpressive 50 rushing touchdowns, but whoposted 31 of those TD runs during a four year-period in which he carried the ball 101 fewer times

    than Clarence Davis, who found the end zone arather scant 14 times during that same span.

    If that sounds familiar, it should.

    After all, current Raider short-yardage specialist ZackCrockett has hit pay dirt on no fewer than 25 carriesover the last four years. His 14 TD carries over thelast two seasons compares favorably with the com-bined total of 15 rushing TDs posted by far busierteammates Charlie Garner and Tyrone Wheatley.

    EPILOGUE: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

    A prominent figure in the East Bay Area duringhis life and financially successful in the tile busi-ness, Bill Winkenbach died March 7, 1993 atthe age of 81.

    Asked shortly before his passing if he was sur-prised at how popular the hobby he createdhad become, Winkenbach replied: "Oh, yeah.I'm surprised how big it's gotten."

    The definitive word on Wink came from Stirlingin 1994, when he told Fantasy Indexmagazine:"He was the ultimate sports fan."

    While Winkenbach continued to play GOPPPLright up until his death, George Ross13 andScotty Stirling moved on much sooner.

    "It got to the point where I was forgetting tophone in lineups and losing games because ofit," Ross said. "I was just too busy."

    "I originally quit because I didn't have the time,"Stirling said. "Then when I got out of football, I

    lost interest in the game. I still have some inter-est. It's just not nearly as great as it was.Basketball is by far the better game."

    Ross, a lifelong newspaperman who served assports editor of t he Tribunefor more than ten

    years, is currently enjoying retired life in north-eastern California.

    Stirling, whose career hasrun the gamut from sportsjour-

    nalism to sports management, has served as gener-al manager of the Raiders, assistant general manag-er of the Oakland Oaks of the ABA, generalmanager of the San Francisco Warriors, vicepresident of operations for the NBA and thengeneral manager of the New York Knicks.

    Andy Mousalimas currently spends a fair por-tion of each day in front of his computer work-ing on his Army memoirs.

    In fact, Mousalimas has become a dyed-in-the-wool computer junkie, something that becamequite apparent when he told us early in May:"If I had a computer back then (during theearly days of Fantasy Football), I might bedoing a Fantasy magazine today. ..."

    And the GOPPPL?

    Well, the w orld's first Fantasy Football leagueheads into its 41st season of continuous playshowing no signs whatsoever of slowingdown.

    14 Fantasy Sports Publications, Inc. web: fspnet.com phone: 505.293.050

    Fantasy Football BOB HARRIS/ EMIL KADLEC fspnet.com

    "NoKidding?!"GeorgeRossuponlearningaboutlastyear'sWorldChampionshipofFantasyFootballandits$200,000grandprize.

    "Icouldcarelessaboutyourfantasyleague

    ...."

    --InjuredDenverBroncosQBBrianGrieseduringaSeptember

    27,2000pressconferencewhenaskedifFantasyownerscould

    safely

    pencilhiminastheirstarteragainstthePatriotsthatweekend.

    10) In an article published on April 16, 1991, Oakland Montclarion correspondent Dawn Frasieur suggested the Kings X was the "Mecca for every trivia buff in Oakland and the East Bay," and noted: "Sevenmembers of t he Kings X teams have been chosen for the Trivia Hall of Fame in Boulder, which inducts only three to four individuals each year." 11) PGA golfer Tom Purtzer started a league in Phoenix afterwatching Ed Wint hers prepare for a GOPPPL draft in t he early 70s. 12) The Kings X is still a hot bed of Fantasy Football, featuring six d ivisions: The Kings Division (est. 1969); t he X Division (est. 1970) ; theTaxi Division (est. 1971); the Ot her Division (est. 1971); the Rookie Division (est. 19 73); and the Queens Division (est. 1973), a d ivision started exclusively for the ladies. 13) Ross and Winkenbach didn't speato each other for 15 years after the Tribunepublished a series of stories in the 1970's which questioned the propriety of some of the Raiders' financial dealings. The two failed to reconcile before Winkenbach'sdeath.

    AndyMousalimasshowingoffhis2002firstplaceperformanceintheKingsXdivision

    FrancescosRestaurantpastandpresentheadquartersofTheGOPPPLDraft.