Earl Wayne Ball was a co-owner of the Muncie Flyers

Muncie Flyers

The Muncie Flyers from Muncie, Indiana played in the National Football League from 1920-1921.-Origins:...

 from 1917 until 1922, as well as a co-founder of the American Professional Football Association (renamed the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

 in 1922

1922 NFL season

The 1922 NFL season was the 3rd regular season of what was now called National Football League . The NFL fielded 18 teams during the season, including new league teams such as the Milwaukee Badgers, the Oorang Indians, the Racine Legion, and the Toledo Maroons...

).

As the owner of the Ball Company, located in Muncie, Indiana

Muncie, Indiana

Muncie is a city in Center Township, Delaware County in east central Indiana, best known as the home of Ball State University and the birthplace of the Ball Corporation. It is the principal city of the Muncie, Indiana, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a population of 118,769...

, was a sponsor of the Flyers along with Earl Miller

Earl Miller

Ernest Earl Miller was a professional ice hockey player who played 110 games in the National Hockey League. Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, he played with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Chicago Black Hawks. He won the Stanley Cup in 1932 with Toronto.-References:...

 and Bill Connelly

Bill Connelly (baseball)

William Wirt Connelly was a major league baseball pitcher who played in 1945, 1950, and 1952-53.He holds the career record for most extra-base hits with no singles, at four. Connelly had a 6-2 record with a 6.95 ERA. His biggest weakness was control; he issued 7.23 walks per nine innings...

. Earl first took over as the team's manager in 1917 and lined up some former college players, including Al Feeney of Notre Dame

University of Notre Dame

The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...

 and Dick Abrel of Purdue

Purdue University

Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...

. However, Ball was forced to cancel the 1918 season due to World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. However in 1919, Ball and team quarterback

Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...

, Cooney Checkaye

Cooney Checkaye

Severin Joseph Checkaye was a professional football player, coach and owner. He was also a co-founder of the National Football League. Checkaye's franchise, the Muncie Flyers was a charter member of the league.-Early football career:...

 reorganized the Flyers and guided them to a 4-1-1 record. The following year, Ball and Checkaye traveled to Canton, Ohio

Canton, Ohio

Canton is the county seat of Stark County in northeastern Ohio, approximately south of Akron and south of Cleveland.The City of Caton is the largest incorporated area within the Canton-Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area...

 attended the organizational meeting of the American Professional Football Association located at Ralph Hay's

Ralph Hay

Ralph E. Hay was the owner of the Canton Bulldogs from 1918 until 1923. However he is mostly recognized for organizing the first meeting of teams that would later former the American Professional Football Association, later called the National Football League....

 Hupmobile

Hupmobile

The Hupmobile was an automobile built from 1909 through 1940 by the Hupp Motor Company, which was located at 345 Bellevue Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Its first car, the Model 20, was introduced to the public at the Detroit Auto Show in February 1909...

 dealership. The pair renamed their team, the Muncie Flyers, and the franchise became a charter member of new the league.

The Flyers lost their first scheduled league game, to the Rock Island Independents

Rock Island Independents

The Rock Island Independents were a professional American football team based in Rock Island, Illinois. One of the first professional football teams, they were founded in 1907 as an independent club. They later played in what is now the National Football League from 1920 to 1925. They joined the...

, 45-0. Because of the team's poor showing, the Decatur Staleys canceled their game against Muncie, scheduled for the following week. Ball couldn't find any other APFA teams willing to play against a struggling team. Such a match-up would not draw many fans, or gate receipts. The Flyers only other scheduled game, against the Dayton Triangles

Dayton Triangles

The Dayton Triangles were an original franchise of the American Professional Football Association in 1920. The Triangles were based in Dayton, Ohio, and took their nickname from their home field, Triangle Park, which was located at the confluence of the Great Miami and Stillwater Rivers in north...

 in early November, was rained out. However the Flyers did win three non-league games before the season ended.

Muncie returned to the league in 1922. However, the Flyers lost to the Evansville Crimson Giants

Evansville Crimson Giants

The Evansville Crimson Giants were a professional American football team based in Evansville, Indiana and were a part of the National Football League in 1921 and 1922. The Giants home games were played at Bosse Field...

 and the Cincinnati Celts

Cincinnati Celts

The Cincinnati Celts was the first professional football team to play in Cincinnati, Ohio. The team played in the unofficial "Ohio League" and the American Professional Football Association . The Celts were a traveling team, playing all of their APFA games in other cities' stadia...

 to open the season. A scheduled game against the Green Bay Packers

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...

was also cancelled, and Checkaye and Ball folded the team and left the AFPA.