OF MULTIPLE CHAMPIONSHIPS IN THE SAME YEAR
By STEVE KING
As the Browns get ready to open training camp on Thursday, the Cleveland Indians are hot. They’re in the middle of a pennant race in the American League Central with the Minnesota Twins.
Wouldn’t it be great if the Indians make the playoffs and then, three months later, the Browns do the same?
You bet.
The pinnacle of that, of course, occurred in 1948 when the Browns turned in the first completely perfect season, with a league title, in pro football history in finishing 15-0 and capturing the All-America Football Conference championship for the third season in a row, after the Indians had won the World Series for the first time in 28 years in defeating the Boston Braves. All that, coupled with the Cleveland Barons earning the title in the American Hockey League, gave Cleveland the coveted tag of “The City of Champions.”
It nearly happened again in 1954 when the Browns won the NFL championship and the Barons captured the AHL, but the Indians, after winning an American League-record 111 games in the regular season, got swept in four games in the World Series.
But 1954 was still a super year from a football standpoint. In addition to the Browns winning their crown, Ohio State captured the national title, making Ohio “The State of Champions.”
In 1968, when the Buckeyes next won the national title, the Browns made it to the NFL (now consideed the NFC) Championship Game, one step away from the Super Bowl.
The Buckeyes won the championship again in 2002 and the Browns made the playoffs for the only time in the expansion era but got knocked out in the wild-card round.
In 2014, when Ohio State last won the national title, the Browns had a fast start but finished 7-9.
So, here we are in 2019. There are lofty expectations for the Browns heading into training camp for the first time in 11 years, and the Buckeyes, as usual, are among a small group of teams projected to compete for the national title.
Can nirvana actually play out for the Browns and Buckeyes in Ohio football, and also with the Browns, Buckeyes and Indians in Ohio sports overall?
We’ll find out down the road. But it should be exciting.
