Duluth (NFL)
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| Founded | 1923 |
|---|---|
| Folded | 1927 |
| Based in | Duluth, Minnesota, United States |
| League | National Football League |
| Team history |
Duluth Kelleys (1923–1925) Duluth Eskimos (1926–1927) Orange Tornadoes (1929) Newark Tornadoes (1930) |
| Team colors | Red, White (Duluth Kelleys) Midnight Blue, White (Duluth Eskimos) |
| Head coaches |
Joey Sternaman (1923) Dewey Scanlon (1924–1926) Ernie Nevers (1927) |
| Owner(s) | Ole Haugsrud |
| Named for | Kelley-Duluth Hardware Store Ernie Nevers |
| Home field(s) | Athletic Park |
Duluth, Minnesota, hosted a professional football team called the Kelleys (officially the Kelley Duluths after the Kelley-Duluth Hardware Store) from 1923 to 1925 and renamed as the Eskimos (officially Ernie Nevers' Eskimos – after their star player) during the two seasons of 1926 and 1927 in the National Football League. After being a traveling team during most of their time as the Eskimos, they withdrew from the league after the 1927 season.
The Kelleys, residing in the northernmost city in the NFL at the time, had the disadvantage of not being able to play at home during late November and early December, due to the harsh winters in northern Minnesota. This meant that Duluth either played unusually short seasons (they played only 16 games in three years as the Kelleys—seven in 1923, six in 1924 and three in 1925) or had to play on the road (as the Eskimos did, which allowed them to have much longer schedules). Duluth's best season came in 1924, when the Kelleys went 5–1. Under modern NFL tiebreaking procedures, the Kelleys would have won a share of the NFL title with the league champion Cleveland Bulldogs. (Assuming the league would have implemented a tiebreaker, it would be assumed Cleveland would have been given the title anyway, seeing that the Bulldogs played more games.) The contemporary percentage used to rank teams in the era, wins divided by the sum of wins and losses, put the Kelleys in fourth place.
The Kelleys lost their name sponsorship in 1926, but signed star running back Ernie Nevers. The team renamed themselves Ernie Nevers's Eskimos in response to these developments. The 1926 NFL season saw an increased emphasis on traveling teams: the Los Angeles Buccaneers represented the West Coast, the Louisville Colonels represented the Southeast, and the Buffalo Rangers represented Texas and the Desert Southwest. The Eskimos joined in on the trend, becoming a traveling team (assumably representing the far northern states) and allowing themselves to play a far longer season than the Kelleys did. After one home game at the beginning of the 1926 season, the Eskimos never played in Duluth again. The team finished in the middle of the NFL standings in 1926, prompting the Eskimos to continue the traveling team setup. In 1927, the results were far more negative: winning only one game, owner Ole Haugsrud sold the team back to the league at the end of the season.
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