Who he was
Ken Ploen was from the town of Clinton, Iowa, which is best known for being almost, but not quite, in Illinois. Ploen went to Iowa State University, and as their quarterback in 1956, not only did he take them to their first Big Ten Conference title in 35 years, he also brought home the 1957 Rose Bowl trophy. He was the Big Ten player of the year and the Rose Bowl MVP.
The Cleveland Browns drafted him in the 19th round as a defensive back, though, offering him a $5000 contract with a $500 signing bonus — not bad money for a football player in the late 50s. But the Blue Bombers came calling with a bigger offer, $9000 a year and $3000 for signing, and much better prospects for playing at pivot. Ploen accepted, and headed north to Winnipeg.
Why Ken Ploen was great
Quarterbacks are, by nature, offensive-minded animals; Ken Ploen was among the best of them. In his decade under centre, Ploen called all his own plays. He consulted his coach sometimes too, of course, but he called the plays himself.
He wasn’t just a great quarterback; he was also a real warrior. In the sixth game of the 1958 season, he was forced to the sidelines with a savage hit to the shoulder, unable to continue as the QB. His trainer trussed up the shoulder, no doubt using the best that 1950s sports medicine had to offer (cotton bandages and cursing). Good enough for Ploen; he was back on the field in that same game, playing slotback, halfback, and safety before it was over.
He did return to the QB position in the 1958 Grey Cup, and was instrumental in Winnipeg’s win over Hamilton. Not only did he run through three defenders and land at the one yard line to set up the winning touchdown, he also snagged a late desperation pass from Bernie Faloney to ensure the win.
He continued to split his time between pivot and defensive positions. For the whole 1959 season, he remained in the safety and halfback spots. He was effective there, too: he set the Bombers record, and tied the CFL record, for touchdowns that season. But in the ’59 Grey Cup, again facing Hamilton, he returned to the quarterback position when the starter for the whole season, Jim Van Pelt, was injured. Ploen played a strong game, capped off with two long bombs in the late game to bring the Cup home to the Peg.
In each of the four Grey Cups Winnipeg won in that era, Ploen was an instrumental part of the win, whether he was playing as quarterback, defensive back, or kick returner. Yes, in the second leg of the infamous 1962 Fog Bowl, it was Ploen who ran the last-minute Ticats punt out of the end zone, preserving the 28-27 win.
The only contemporary player who showed anything like Ploen’s dominance all over the field was Edmonton’s Jackie Parker. And while Parker was a stellar player in his own right (and we’ll be talking about him here soon enough), there’s a convincing argument to be made that Ploen was the greater player: his four Grey Cup rings to Parker’s three.
Ken Ploen was a key player who would be on the field whenever needed, offensively or defensively, down after down. He seemed to have a knack for winning games in dramatic fashion — Grey Cup games especially.
One great moment
Ploen played for the Blue Bombers in their most dominant period, winning four Grey Cups in the space of ten years. But as a quarterback, as a player, and as a scoring machine, none showed Ken Ploen at his best as the Grey Cup of ’61.
Winnipeg was playing their bitter rivals, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, in the vast, windy abomination of a stadium in Toronto, CNE Place. The two teams had met four times in five years.
It was one of the hardest-hitting championship games, with star players on both teams knocked out of the game in the first half. The Ticats were in the driver’s seat almost from the start, though, taking an early lead on a short Bernie Faloney pass that Paul Dekker ran in for a 90-yard TD. Winnipeg couldn’t get much going offensively in return, and Hamilton sat on a score of 14-4 after three quarters.
Winnipeg battled back in the fourth, though, scoring on a 28-yard field goal. This was followed by a long Ken Ploen pass that set up a short touchdown plunge. By the end of the fourth, they were deadlocked, 14-14. This was the first Grey Cup ever that would be decided in overtime.
The first of the 10-minute overtime halves was scoreless, but Winnipeg constructed a drive that put them on Hamilton’s 18 yard line, three minutes into the second period.
After the snap, Ploen dropped back, watching his offensive line crumple in front of him. The play was clearly broken, and Ploen narrowly evaded disaster as he stepped to avoid two Hamilton linemen who collided in his wake.
Running out to the right, Ploen made for the line of scrimmage, hoping to find a little safety at the sideline. A Ticats back reached for him and missed; another was blocked, and Ploen had room to run.
Only three Ticats stood in his way now, and clearly that was far too few. He shrugged off two of them who tried to tackle him at the ten; at the five he hurdled the defender who dove at his knees. With a final Hamilton player streaking towards him, Ploen crossed the goal line.
Ploen’s score gave Winnipeg their first and only lead in the game, and that miraculous touchdown salted it away for them. The final score: Winnipeg 21, Hamilton 14.
Why we should stand in awe
Back in the 20s and 30s, sure, there were players who played both ways, or who quarterbacked and kicked. Football was only slightly above amateur status then; as our recent profile of Lionel Conacher showed, even the star players would leave Grey Cup games for pressing engagements down at the hockey rink.
But by the 1960s, football was far away from those semi-pro days; players usually had only one position. Ken Ploen played five positions, and he not only played in them, he excelled in them.
Ploen went to six Grey Cups in ten years with the Bombers, winning four of them. He’s rightly remembered in Manitoba as one of the greatest players ever to don the blue and gold; we suspect even the clouds of mosquitos part when he walks up the street.
Many CFL legends were made in the 1960s, but it would be hard to argue against Ploen as being the greatest among them.
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