1961 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season

American football team season August 2023 March 2026 1961-Cardinals-mediaguide.jpg St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) St. Louis Cardinals 1961 7–7 4th NFL Eastern Violet Bidwill Wolfner Pop Ivy (first 12 games)Chuck Drulis, Ray Prochaska,and Ray Willsey Busch Stadium Did not qualify Cardinals seasons The 1961 St. Louis Cardinals season marked the team's 42nd year in the National Football League (NFL) and their second in St. Louis. The team improved on their previous year's 6–5–1 record, winning seven games.1961 St. Louis Cardinals Despite the improvement, they finished fourth in the seven-team Eastern Conference and failed to qualify for the playoffs (NFL title game) for the thirteenth consecutive season. The Cardinals were led by fourth-year head coach Pop Ivy, who was replaced after a 5–7 start by the trio of Chuck Drulis, Ray Prochaska, and Ray Willsey. This was the final season of ownership by Violet Bidwill Wolfner, who died in January 1962 at age 62.http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1962/01/30/page/27/article/mrs-wolfner-cardinals-owner-dies Chicago Daily Tribune Associated Press Mrs. Wolfner, Cardinals' owner, dies January 30, 1962 1, part 3 Offseason NFL draft 1961 NFL draft 1961 St. Louis Cardinals 1 8 Ken Rice Tackle Auburn yes no 2 22 Fred Arbanas Tight end Michigan State yes no yes no Undrafted free agents + 1961 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeRoger KramerTackleKalamazoo Personnel Staff / Coaches 1961 St. Louis Cardinals Principal Owner - Violet Bidwill Wolfner Managing Director - Walter Wolfner Head Coach – Pop Ivy Assistant Head Coach - Chuck Drulis Assistant Head Coach - Ray Prochaska Assistant Head Coach - Ray Willsey Offensive Line – Ray Prochaska Defensive Coordinator - Chuck Drulis Defensive Backfield Coach - Ray Willsey Source:1961 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) Scores, Roster, Stats , Coaches, Draft https://www.profootballarchives.com/1961nflstl.html 2026-09-10 www.profootballarchives.com Roster 1961 St. Louis Cardinals 14 Sam Etcheverry  3 Ralph Guglielmi 12 Charley Johnson y 44 John David Crow 22 Prentice Gautt 20 Ken Hall American football 31 Mal Hammack 36 Frank Mestnik 40 Bobby Joe Conrad 37 Pat Fischer y 88 Sonny Randle 85 Taz Anderson y 75 Ed Cook American football T 50 Don Gillis American football C 64 Ken Gray American football G 68 Mike McGee American football G 66 Ron McDole y T 78 Dale Memmelaar T 74 Ken Panfil T 79 Gerry Perry C/T/K 65 Tom Redmond G 72 Frank Fuller American football DT 80 Ed Henke DE 70 Don Owens American football DT 78 Luke Owens DE 84 Joe Robb DE 51 Ted Bates American football OLB 34 Bill Koman OLB 33 Monte Lee American football y OLB 62 Dale Meinert MLB 45 Joe Driskill no CB/FS 41 Jimmy Hill American football CB 25 Jerry Norton SS/P 24 Billy Stacy CB/WR 49 Willie West CB  8 Larry Wilson American football FS 35 Joe Childress RB IR 61 Bob DeMarco y C/G Military 55 Charley Ellzey no C IR 73 Charley Granger y T IR 86 Hugh McInnis TE IR 73 Ernie McMillan y T Military -- Marion Rushing LB Military Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 17 at New York Giants W 21–10 1–0 Yankee Stadium 58,059 2 September 24 at Cleveland Browns L 17–20 1–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 50,443 3 October 1 at Philadelphia Eagles W 30–27 2–1 Franklin Field 59,399 4 October 8 New York Giants L 9–24 2–2 Busch Stadium 23,713 5 October 15 Philadelphia Eagles L 7–20 2–3 Busch Stadium 20,262 6 October 22 at Washington Redskins W 24–0 3–3 D.C. Stadium 28,037 7 October 29 Cleveland Browns L 10–21 3–4 Busch Stadium 26,696 8 November 5 at Dallas Cowboys W 31–17 4–4 Cotton Bowl 20,500 9 November 12 Detroit Lions L 14–45 4–5 Busch Stadium 20,320 10 November 19 at Baltimore Colts L 0–16 4–6 Memorial Stadium 56,112 11 November 26 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 27–30 4–7 Forbes Field 17,090 12 December 3 Washington Redskins W 38–24 5–7 Busch Stadium 16,204 13 December 10 Dallas Cowboys W 31–13 6–7 Busch Stadium 15,384 14 December 17 Pittsburgh Steelers W 20–0 7–7 Busch Stadium 16,298 Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. Game summaries Week 1 at NY Giants the Cardinals, supposedly crippled beyond repair, came roaring through with a fine display of offensive firepower to upset the New York Giants. The Cards razzle-dazzle offense was on display despite losing John David Crow and Joe Childress. But Sam Etcheverry, another cripple, cranked up Frank Ivy's offense and sent fullback Mal Hammack on a 28-yard touchdown run that overcame a 10-7 Giants lead, then fired a five-yard screen pass to another fullback Frank Mestnik, for another score. The Cards defense also was effective. The Giants' "new look" offense was badly frustrated and surrendered the first St. Louis Cardinals touchdown when halfback Bob Gaiters fumbled in the end zone and Willie West recovered for a touchdown. The Giants only scoring was a 44-yard field goal by Pat Summerall and a Larry Hayes return of a block punt for a touchdown. Standings References External links 1961 St. Louis Cardinals at Pro-Football-Reference.com 1961 St. Louis Cardinals Football Highlights at YouTube Category:Arizona Cardinals seasons St. Louis Cardinals Category:1961 in sports in Missouri