Aaron Hertzman

Aaron Hertzman (October 16, 1891 – August 16, 1970) was an American professional football executive. He was the owner of the Louisville team of the National Football League (NFL), known as the Brecks from the 1921 though 1923 seasons and as the Colonels in 1926. He also served as the general manager of the team when they were the Brecks.

Early life Hertzman was born on October 16, 1891, in Louisville, Kentucky, the son of Russian-Jewish immigrants. He grew up in Louisville but did not attend high school or college, with his highest education being eighth grade. He was working as a stenographer for a printing company as of 1910. He served in World War I in the medical corps at Camp Henry Knox; he had five brothers who also served in the war. Hertzman later worked as a bookkeeper for the American Cap Manufacturing Company, a business owned by his father, rising up to vice president by 1923. The following season, the 16-player squad assembled by Hertzman went 1–3 in the newly renamed NFL for a 13th-place finish; with a record of 3–4–1 overall. Louisville then recorded a mark of 0–3 in the NFL in 1923, being 19th out of 20 in the league standings while having an overall record of 5–4–1 including independent play. The team did not play in the NFL in 1924 and went 3–4–1 before folding.

In 1926, in order to compete with the newly formed American Football League (AFL), league president Carr decided to boost the number of NFL teams, which included reviving the Louisville team. Due to the burning down of the team's home field, Eclipse Park, they had no place to play and thus were re-organized in Chicago, Illinois, as a traveling team, under the name of Louisville Colonels. As an owner in the NFL, his record stood at 1–12, while he went 1–8 as a general manager. Despite his team's performance, he later noted in a letter to Leo Lyons the importance his and other teams played in the early league's development: "The majority of present owners know [nothing] of the hardships Joe Carr went through in finding new clubs each year, most of which only lasted one season – but they did contribute dues and assessments, which were essential to the continuance of the league until it finally got on its feet. The three or four or five games they filled in the schedules of the ruling clubs enabled the league to keep going." He also worked as a manager at the Berkeley Hotel and was the secretary of the Radcliffe Company. He died on August 16, 1970, at the Jewish Hospital in Louisville, aged 78.