On December 15, 1962 the Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers, two teams that face each other on this week’s NFL schedule, were involved in a contest at San Francisco’s Kezar Stadium, a game that is our feature for our Throwback Thursday post. It was the final game of the regular season for both clubs, and both were eliminated from postseason play (which amounted to just a championship matchup of the Eastern and Western Division winners at that time). To make matters worse this basically meaningless game would be played on a rain-soaked field that turned into a Mud Bowl. The playing surface became so bad in the second half that neither team could muster up a score.
The teams traded touchdowns in the first quarter, as 49er quarterback John Brodie snuck in from a yard out and Cleveland fullback Jim Brown rambled in from 5 yards out. A missed extra point by the Browns left them behind at 7-6. Brown’s second score of the game, a 12 yard scamper, along with Lou Groza’s extra point put the Browns up 13-7.
Muddy Browns’ defense awaits the action
San Francisco’s Tommy Davis kicked a 14 yard field goal before the half ended to close the Niners’ deficit to 13-10, but that would end the scoring, and the clubs sloshed through the mud the second half without generating points. The win allowed Cleveland to at least salvage a winning record as they finished 7-6-1, but there was disappointment also. Brown, who in my opinion is the greatest football player of all time, fell 4 yards short of passing the 1,000 yards rushing mark for the fourth consecutive season , despite gaining 135 yards on 22 carries in the messy weather.
A muddy and disappointed Jim Brown leaves the field