John Frederick "Johnny" Bryan (February 28, 1897July 1, 1966) was a professional football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 player for the Chicago Cardinals, the Chicago Bears

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

, and the Milwaukee Badgers

Milwaukee Badgers

The Milwaukee Badgers were a professional American football team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that played in the National Football League from 1922 to 1926. The team played its home games at Athletic Park, later known as Borchert Field, on Milwaukee's north side...

. He was also a player-coach

Player-coach

A player-coach, in sports, is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. The term can be used to refer to both players who serve as head coaches, or as assistant coaches....

 and franchise owner of the Badgers from 1925 until 1926.

The Badgers franchise was turned over to Bryan after it was discovered that the team had employed four Chicago high school players for game

1925 Chicago Cardinals-Milwaukee Badgers scandal

The 1925 Chicago Cardinals–Milwaukee Badgers scandal was a scandal centered around a 1925 game between the Chicago Cardinals and the Milwaukee Badgers of the National Football League. The scandal involved a Chicago player, Art Folz, hiring a group of high school football players to play for the...

 against the Chicago Cardinals that resulted in a 59-0 loss for the Badgers. As a result of the scandal, owner Ambrose McGuirk

Ambrose McGuirk

Ambrose McGuirk was the first owner of the Milwaukee Badgers of the National Football League. He is best known for being ordered to sell the Badgers for his role in the 1925 Chicago Cardinals-Milwaukee Badgers scandal, in which four Chicago-area high school football players were employed by the...

 was forced by NFL President Joe Carr

Joseph Carr

Joseph "Joe" F. Carr was the president of the National Football League from 1921 until his death in 1939. Carr was born in Columbus, Ohio. As a mechanic for the Pennsylvania Railroad in Columbus, he directed the Columbus Panhandles football team in 1907 until 1922...

 to turn over his franchise to Bryan.

Under Bryan, the team did manage to win two games in 1926 due to the arrival of end Lavern Dilweg

Lavern Dilweg

LaVern "Lavvie" Ralph Dilweg was an American football player, official, lawyers, and politician.Dilweg was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on January 11, 1903. He graduated from Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee in 1927, and was admitted to the Wisconsin Bar the same year. While at...

. However Milwaukee dropped out of the NFL after that season.