Muncie Flyers
| Founded | 1905 |
|---|---|
| Folded | 1925 |
| Based in | Muncie, Indiana , United States |
| League | National Football League (1920) |
| Team history | Congerville Athletic Club (1905–1916) Congerville Thirds (1916) Congerville Flyers (1916–1920) Muncie Flyers (1920–1921) Congerville Flyers (1922–1924) Jonesboro Flyers (1925) |
| Team colors |
Red, White |
| Head coaches |
Ken Huffine (1920) Cooney Checkaye (1921) |
| Owner(s) | Congerville Athletic Club (1905–16) Earl Ball (1917–1921) Cooney Checkaye (1919–25) |
Red, White
The Muncie Flyers, known as the Congerville Flyers for most of their existence, were a professional American football team from Muncie, Indiana that played from 1905 to 1926.
The Flyers were an independent squad for most of their existence, but are best known for their very brief stint in the American Professional Football Association (later known as the National Football League). With only three official league games, one in 1920 and two in 1921, the Flyers are the third-shortest-lived team in league history, behind the two games of the original New York Giants and the one game of the Tonawanda Kardex Lumbermen.
The origins of the team show that it evolved from the Congerville (Muncie) Athletic Club, which dates back to at least 1905. Local newspapers provided spotty coverage of the team. An occasional reference was made to a game being scheduled and sometimes the game results with a brief game account were in the Monday paper. In 1910, the Congerville Athletic Club finished with a 10–0–1 record, outscoring their opponents 145 to 0. All of the home games were played against other local Muncie teams, while the road games were played in nearby Hartford City, Dunkirk and Alexandria. In 1916 the Congerville Athletic Club team and the Congerville Flyers team merged and Muncie was represented by the Congerville Flyers.
The Congerville Muncie Flyers evolved from a team called the Congerville Thirds This team was later renamed the Congerville Flyers. The 1915 edition of the Flyers proved to be a respectable team, finishing with a 5–3–3 record. Their star player was local player, Cooney Checkeye. Playing all its games on the road, the 1916 Flyers had a disappointing year, finishing with a 2–6–1 record. Also representing Congerville in 1915 and 1916 was the Congerville Eagles. This lightweight team was closely associated with the Flyers, sometimes lending the heavyweight team a player or two when they were short due to injuries.
The Congerville Flyers played briefly in 1917, but they did not field a team in 1918 due to the United States involvement in World War I and the influenza epidemic. In September 1917, Earl Ball announced that he had organized a team. Scheduled to be on this team were famous college players: Dick Abrel of Purdue and Al Feeney of Notre Dame. Also scheduled to play was Christian Chambers formerly of the Fort Wayne Friars. The team was to be led by local hero, Cooney Checkaye. Ball invited 10 more players to come to practice the next morning. However, a week later on September 9, 1917, Ball announced that he had released all the players that he had signed and that he would not be fielding a team due to the war. Local press was convinced that had Muncie fielded this team, it would have no doubt been strong contenders for the state championship. In 1918 Muncie did not field a team.
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