Chicago College All - Star Game The Chicago Charities College All - Star Game was a preseason American football game played annually ( except in 1974 ) from 1934 to 1976 between the National Football League champions and a team of star college seniors from the previous year . It was also known as the College All - Star Football Classic . After the Super Bowl began , including the two seasons prior to the NFL / AFL merger , the Super Bowl winner was the professional team involved , regardless of which league the team represented . Thus , the New York Jets played in the 1969 edition , although still an AFL team . The second game in 1935 involved the hometown Chicago Bears , runner - up in 1934 , instead of the defending champion New York Giants . History of the game . The game was the idea of Arch Ward , the sports editor of the " Chicago Tribune " and the driving force behind baseball ' s All - Star Game . The game originally was a benefit for Chicago - area charities and was always played at Soldier Field , with the exception of two years during World War II ( 1943 and 1944 ) when it was held at Northwestern University ' s Dyche Stadium in Evanston . The Chicago game was one of several " pro vs . rookie " college all - star games held across the United States in its early years ( the 1939 season featured seven such games , all of which the NFL teams won in shutouts , and the season prior featured eight , with some of the collegiate players playing in multiple games ) ; Chicago ' s game had the benefit of being the highest profile , with the NFL champions facing off against the best college graduates from across the country ( as opposed to the regional games that were held elsewhere ) . Because of this , the game survived far longer than its contemporaries . The inaugural game in 1934 , played before a crowd of 79 , 432 on August 31 , was a scoreless tie between the all - stars and the Chicago Bears . The following year , in a game that included University of Michigan graduate and future president Gerald Ford , the Bears won 5 – 0 . The first all - star team to win was the 1937 squad , coached by Gus Dorais , which won 6 – 0 over Curly Lambeau ' s Green Bay Packers . The only score came on a 47 - yard touchdown pass from future Hall of Famer Sammy Baugh to Gaynell Tinsley . Baugh ' s Washington Redskins lost to the All - Stars the next year ; he did not play due to injury . In the 1940s , the games were competitive affairs that attracted large crowds to Soldier Field . But as the talent level of pro football improved , the pros came to dominate the series . The all - stars last won consecutive games in 1946 and 1947 but won just four of the final 29 games . The Philadelphia Eagles fell in 1950 , the Cleveland Browns in 1955 , and the Detroit Lions in 1958 . The last all - star win came in 1963 , when a college team coached by legendary quarterback Otto Graham beat Vince Lombardi ' s Green Bay Packers , 20 – 17 . In 1949 , Ward , who by this time had founded the competing All - America Football Conference , attempted to have that league ' s champion ( the perennially winning Browns ) play that year ' s game instead of the NFL , but the NFL strong - armed the Tribune board into overruling him and renewing its agreement with the NFL . By the 1970s , enthusiasm for the game started to erode , NFL coaches were reluctant to part with their new draftees ( who would miss part of training camp ) for an exhibition at which the players might be injured , and a player ' s strike forced the cancellation of the 1974 game . The finale took place in 1976 during a downpour at Soldier Field on July 23 . Despite featuring stars such as Chuck Muncie , Mike Pruitt , Lee Roy Selmon , and Jackie Slater , the all - stars were hopelessly outmatched by the Pittsburgh Steelers , winners of Super Bowl X . The star quarterback for the College All - Stars was Steeler draft pick Mike Kruczek , out of Boston College . Late in the third quarter , with the Steelers leading 24 – 0 , high winds prompted all - star coach Ara Parseghian to call time out . Fans began pouring out onto the field and sliding on the turf . With the rain getting harder , the officials ordered both teams to their locker rooms . All attempts to clear the field failed ; the fans even tore down the goalposts . However , by this time the rain had become so heavy as to make the field unplayable even if order had been restored . Finally , at 11 : 01 pm NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle and the " Tribune " announced that the game had been called . The news was greeted with jeers , and numerous brawls broke out on the flooded field before order was finally restored . Joe Washington of Oklahoma was selected MVP of this final College All - Star game . Chicago Tribune Charities had every intention of staging a 1977 game . However , with coaches increasingly unwilling to let their high draft picks play and insurance costs on the rise due to higher player salaries , the " Tribune " announced on December 21 , 1976 , that the game would be discontinued . In the 42 College All - Star Games , the defending pro champions won 31 , the All - Stars won nine , and two were ties , giving the collegians a winning percentage . One aspect of the College All - Star Game was later revived . The concept of the league champion playing in the first game of the season was adopted in 2004 for the National Football League Kickoff game ; in that game , the first game of the regular season is hosted by the defending Super Bowl champion . The game raised over $ 4 million for charity over the course of its 42 game run . Game results . Game was called late with 1 : 22 left in 3rd quarter because of heavy rain . MVPs . " The Most Valuable Player award was given from 1938 through 1973 and was always awarded to a player on the College All - Stars "