The Ed Hughes Football League was founded by a group of University of Houston alumni as a basic scoring league with nine original franchises in 1980. After a year of weekly winner-take-all, we began using a head-to-head schedule in 1981. We are among the oldest continuous leagues in the U.S.
Our league was named in honor of former Houston Oilers head coach Ed Hughes. Coach Hughes struggled through a 4-9-1 season with the Oilers in 1971, but he went on to jobs with the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys. He earned a Super Bowl ring as offensive coordinator of the Bears in 1986 before retiring in 1990. He had also won two NFL Championships as a defensive back with the NY Giants in the 1950s. Ed Hughes died on June 23, 2000.
For a closer look at Coach Hughes' career and my collection of memorabilia, click the Ed Hughes Tribute Page link in the right side column.
In the summer of 1980, I took my usual vacation trip to Baltimore. As always, it consisted of a couple of weeks of Orioles games, crab feasts, and shuffleboard at the local corner bar. But on this trip, as I've mentioned over the years, my uncle, Ralph Straley, asked me to make him a "cheat sheet" for his upcoming fantasy football draft. I was aware of the concept through some Sports Illustrated stories about the Raiders employee who is credited with inventing it. But I had never gotten involved with it until that afternoon.
I went to the nearby market and bought one of those "pulp", printed-in-June football magazines off the newsstand, and got to work. I was back in Houston before my uncle had his draft, but the idea had intrigued me. At our next softball game, I brought up putting together the draft list. It sounded interesting to several of the guys. One thing led to another, and we had a draft of our own scheduled. The birth of the Hughes League sometimes feels like yesterday. At other times, it feels like a really long time ago.
Ralph Straley passed away on August 2, 2025, at the age of 90, a life well led. To honor him, his name will be on our champion's trophy. RIP, Uncle Ralph.
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