Fritz Hanson
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Fritz Hanson (born July 13, 1914 in Perham, Minnesota, died February 14, 1996) was a Canadian Football League player for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Calgary Stampeders. Hanson was signed by the Blue Bombers for $125 a game and free room and board, which was a considerable sum in the cash-strapped dirty thirties. Nicknamed the 'Galloping Ghost' and the 'Perham Flash', Hanson was one of the pioneers of football in Canada and a huge star at the time. Although he weighed only 145 pounds he used his incredible quickness to evade defenders. He helped lead the Blue Bombers to the first Grey Cup victory by a western Canadian team in 1935 and won again with the Bombers in 1939 and 1941. In the 1935 Grey Cup Game Hanson recorded 300 punt return yards, a record that still stands today. He played seven seasons with Winnipeg before playing for the Calgary Stampeders where he won a fourth Grey Cup in 1948.
Hanson was elected into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1963. In 2005 Hanson was named one of the Blue Bombers 20 All-Time Greats.
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