Harry Newman Harry Lawrence Newman ( September 5 , 1909 – May 2 , 2000 ) was an American football quarterback who played for the University of Michigan Wolverines ( 1930 – 32 ) , the New York Giants ( 1933 – 35 ) , and the Brooklyn / Rochester Tigers ( 1936 – 37 ) . College career . In Newman ' s three years at Michigan , the Wolverines lost only one game , won three Big Ten Conference championship , and had a combined record of 24 – 1 – 2 . As a senior in 1932 , Newman led the team to an undefeated season and national championship , as he played 437 out of 480 minutes of game time in Michigan ' s eight games . In 1932 , Newman was a unanimous first - team All - American , and the recipient of the Douglas Fairbanks Trophy as Outstanding College Player of the Year ( predecessor of the Heisman Trophy ) , and the Helms Athletic Foundation Player of the Year Award , the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy as the Most Valuable Player in the Big Ten Conference . NFL New York Giants . 1933 season . As a rookie with the New York Giants in 1933 , Newman was an All - Pro and led the NFL in passes completed ( 53 ) , passing yards ( 973 ) , touchdown passes ( 11 ) , and longest pass completion ( 78 yards ) . Newman ' s 973 passing yards stood as the NFL single - season record until 1937 when Arnie Herber threw for 1 , 239 yards . He also led the Giants , and was sixth in the NFL , with 437 yards rushing in 1933 . With 1 , 547 yards of total offense ( 973 passing , 437 rushing and 137 receiving ) , Newman personally accounted for more than half of the Giants ' total offense in 1933 . He was named to the All - Pro team , and led the Giants to the 1933 NFL championship game . In the 1933 NFL Championship Game against the Chicago Bears , Newman threw a 29 - yard touchdown pass to Red Badgro to give the Giants a 7 – 6 halftime lead . Newman ' s touchdown throw to Badgro was the first touchdown pass thrown in an NFL championship game . After the Bears went ahead 16 – 14 in the third quarter , Newman threw a second touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to give the Giants the lead , but the Bears scored the winning touchdown with less than one minute left to win the championship game , 23 – 21 . 1934 season . In 1934 , Newman was the Giant ' s leading rusher and passer , and was an All - Pro for the second consecutive season . The Giants went on to win their first NFL championship in 1934 , but Newman ' s season was cut short after he broke two bones in his back during the tenth game of the season against the Chicago Bears . Newman complained after the 1934 season that the new football adopted by the NFL in 1934 was " harder to pass " than the old one which had greater girth . He set the NFL single - game carries record of 38 which was tied in 1966 by Jim Nance and broken in 1973 by O . J . Simpson . 1935 season . In early September 1935 , there were reports that Newman might not return to the Giants ' backfield , because he did not want to leave his Detroit liquor business . Newman announced he was quitting professional football and did not play the first few weeks of the season . Then , on October 15 , 1935 , Newman announced that he had changed his mind and signed a contract to play with the Giants beginning the following Saturday . After his return , Newman wrote : " Football still is fun . If it weren ' t it wouldn ' t be worth while , regardless of how much they paid you for it . Believe me , I ' ve missed it the few weeks I was out and I was mighty glad to get back into action . " Newman played in eight games ( four as a starter ) for a Giants team that once again advanced to the NFL Championship Game , losing to the Detroit Lions , 26 – 7 . With the clock ticking off the final seconds of the championship game , Newman threw an interception that was run back 36 yards and resulted in a final score by the Lions . In November 1935 , Newman wrote a guest column for the New York Post on the difference between the college and professional game . Newman wrote : " Among the Giants we kid a lot about how we feel Monday morning . Sometimes it ' s not too good . That ' s when the aches and pains begin to creep up on you . Boys , how you hate to get out of bed ! The only difference between pro and amateur in that respect is that you ache all over a day later in pro football . " After the 1935 season , Newman credited his disappointing performance in 1935 to skating : " Skating is the best thing I know of to develop hip - swinging , judgment of distance , suppleness , dexterity , pivot and angle terms . I was off form in 1935 and the main reason was because I did no skating last winter . I did a lot in 1932 – 33 and followed it up with a great season on the gridiron . " In 1936 , Giants ' s president John V . Mara said that the club had paid Newman $ 10 , 000 in 1935 . Mara said that the owners had found out that it did not work out to pay one star $ 800 a game while the rest of the team was paid $ 100 per game , and the resentment sometimes showed . The owners reacted by trying to more evenly distributed money over the squad , such that Mara believed that the highest paid player in 1936 was paid only $ 500 per game . American Professional Football League . Brooklyn Tigers ( 1936 ) . In 1936 , Newman jumped to the new American Football League and signed with the Brooklyn Tigers . Newman reportedly made the move " because he got a contract calling for a big increase in salary . " Newman was one of the first established stars to switch to the new league , and sports writer Harry Grayson reported on Newman ' s move : " Harry Newman , the former Michigan quarterback who has been the highest paid pro athlete of the last three campaigns , has left the Giants flat to perform with and be the business manager of the American League entry which plans to stage its games at the Yankee Stadium . " Even before the new league got started , it was reported to be tottering on the brink and a " big flop . " As one report noted : " That in spite of the fact such outstanding players as Ken Strong , Harry Newman and Gomer Jones are slated to compete for the new clubs . " On October 19 , 1936 , Newman scored the Tigers ' only touchdown in a loss to Pittsburgh at Forbes Field . On November 1 , 1936 , Newman made a " sensational 45 - yard run " that " brought the crowd to its feet " just before the first quarter ended . Newman also kicked a field goal to give the Tigers a 3 – 0 lead over the New York Yankees , but the Yankees tied it with a field goal . Later in the game , Newman ran 75 yards for what appeared to be the winning touchdown , but the play was called back on a clipping penalty . In response to the penalty call , the crowd at Yankee Stadium " booed lustily . " On November 8 , 1936 , Newman lateraled for both of Brooklyn ' s touchdowns and kicked both extra points in a 15 – 14 loss to the Cleveland Rams . Rochester Tigers ( 1936 – 37 ) . In mid - November 1936 , the Tigers franchise moved to Rochester , New York , where they played the final two games of the 1936 season . In announcing the move , one report focused on Newman as one of the best players in the new league : " Headlining the Rochester cast is Harry Newman , football ' s greatest passer . . . Newman is the leading ground gainer in the American League , despite the fact that he is with a second division club . " The Rochester Tigers lost to the Rams again in late November by a score of 7 – 6 on " a snow - swept gridiron . " Newman put the Tigers ahead with two 35 - yard field goals in the fourth quarter , but the Rams recovered a fumble behind the Tigers ' goal line to win the game . The Brooklyn / Rochester Tigers finished the 1936 season in last place in the new league with a record of 0 – 6 – 1 , and were outscored 82 – 58 . Newman closed the season on December 20 , 1936 playing for the New York Yankees against the Boston Shamrocks . The Yankees won , 25 – 19 , and Newman " booted a perfect kick from placement on the 30 - yard line . " Newman and Mike Palm owned the Tigers franchise and moved it to Rochester for two games at the end of 1936 . However , in March 1937 , Newman and Palm said they expected to move the franchise out of Rochester unless a minimum of $ 25 , 000 in cash subscriptions could be raised . On September 14 , 1937 , a group of 30 men announced the formation of the Rochester Professional Football Team , Inc . to continue operation of the Rochester Tigers . Newman and Mike Palm were named as the coaches . Newman drew a salary of $ 250 per game for Rochester in 1937 , higher than the professional average of $ 100 , but less than the $ 425 paid to Sammy Baugh . The Tigers opened with a 16 – 0 loss to the Boston Shamrocks , followed by a 17 – 14 win over the Cincinnati Red Legs . They followed with a 6 – 0 win over the Boston Shamrocks , as Newman kicked a field goal in the win . On October 24 , 1937 , Newman and Bill O ' Neill led the Tigers to a 24 – 0 victory over the New York Yankees , as the Tigers moved into second place with a 3 – 2 record behind the Los Angeles Bulldogs . In the season ' s sixth game , Newman led the Tigers to a victory over the Cincinnati Bengals , throwing three passes to account for a touchdown and then kicking the extra point in the final minute and a half . Newman and former Pitt halfback Mike Sebastian were the mainstays of the 1937 Tigers . On November 14 , 1937 , the Tigers played the first place Los Angeles Bulldogs . The Bulldogs took a 35 – 0 lead before Newman launched a comeback attempt . Newman ran 25 yards for a touchdown and threw two touchdown passes , but the Bulldogs won , 48 – 21 . After the 1937 , season the American Professional Football League folded , and Newman retired from football . Later years . Newman later became an executive with Ford Motor Company and owned Ford dealerships in Detroit and Denver . Honors and accolades . Newman received numerous honors and accolades , including the following :