Tony Morabito dedicated his life to bringing an idea to fruition that others thought preposterous -- the membership of the West Coast, in general, and San Francisco, in particular, in a nation-wide professional football league.
Morabito was the sports pioneer of the West, bringing San Francisco its first major league professional team, the San Francisco 49ers, in a professional sports business that was dominated by the East Coast. Before World War II, Morabito was convinced the San Francisco Bay Area was ready for a franchise in the National Football League. The Bay area was a Mecca for college football. Fans came in droves to Kezar Stadium to see the Wonder Teams of California -- Berkeley and the Wow Boys of Stanford, led by Frankie Albert. St. Mary's, Santa Clara and the University of San Francisco were also area powerhouses that regularly defeated the University of Washington and Southern California inside the walls of Kezar.
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