“The All-America League has lured its first player from the Green Bay Packers of the rival National League, the star fullback Ted Fritsch, who will do his place kicking and line plunging with the Cleveland Browns this fall,” the Marshfield News-Herald and many other newspapers across the country reported on April 23, 1946.
“Fritsch will report for practice August 1, said general manager and Coach Paul Brown.
“Assistant Coach Don Hutson said in Green Bay last night that Fritsch was the first Packers player to make the jump, though All-America representatives had been ‘talking to’ members of the Green Bay team.”
Hutson told the Green Bay Press-Gazette that he was “very much surprised to hear about it” and that “several Packers had been approached by All-America league clubs” but the “Green Bay roster remained intact until Fritsch walked off the roost.”
“I certainly am sorry to hear it,” Hutson said. “The last time we talked to Fritsch, he said he wouldn’t sign until he talked to us. Fritsch said he would come in and see us next week.”
By May, all of the 10 National League clubs had lost players to the All-America league.
“There has been verbal sparring over the alleged ‘contract jumping’ of the gridders, but in most cases the only restraining weapon the National League had was increased paychecks,” The Sheboygan Press reported.
According to the publication, the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions threatened court action on their players, but no suits were filed.
While Packers Head Coach Curly Lambeau was uncharacteristically silent about Fritsch’s reported departure, Press-Gazette Sportswriter Art Daley reached out to Fritsch’s mother, Anna, of Spencer, who said she felt “just terrible about it” and that she wanted “Ted to stick with Curly.”
Meanwhile, Ted was working construction in Hazelton, N.D., where he was helping to build a church.
He then spent the summer playing ball for the Manitowoc Braves, while rumors swirled about a return to the Packers.
But on Aug. 5, Fritsch reported for training camp with the Cleveland Browns at Bowling Green, Ohio — a week late for training — after meeting with Lambeau for a reported three days.
To be continued
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