FOR BLACK HISTORY MONTH - MAYBERRY, PART TWO

'THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW'
"OPIE'S PIANO LESSON"

When Clara Edwards gets an opening for a new piano student, Aunt Bee thinks Opie should take lessons. Andy isn't keen on the idea and is surprised that Opie is even interested. Opie assures everyone that he will work hard at learning the instrument and will practice every day after school. A conflict arises however when the school hires an ex-NFL player, Flip Conroy, as its new football coach. With football practice scheduled for same time as his lessons or practice time, Opie finds himself trying to be in two places at the same time. Opie and his friend Arnold cook up a scheme that doesn't quite fool anyone. 
Written by garykmcd

According to the episode, Conroy played with the Giants for ten years before retiring.  As Conroy really wasn't the focus of the episode, there weren't any other details about his career.  

George Papadopolis, adoptive father of 'Webster' Long, had been a professional football player as well.  It could be that he was one of the Toobworld professional football players who played against him.  Conroy was finished by 1967 and if George's career was similar to that of the actor who played him (Alex Karras), he was done by 1970.  However, we don't know what team George played for.  

Since Flip Conroy was playing for an actual team, I think we can safely assume that George did as well.  I lean toward Chicago since that's where the Papadopolis family lived.  I'm not going with Detroit Lions of course, since they already had George's lookalike Karras on the team.

I'm sorry if this turned out to be more about George Papadopolis (now where have I heard that name before?) than about Rockne Tarkington's character, but I needed some way to immerse Flip Conroy into Toobworld more fully.  Interaction with another Toobworld character from a different show helps with that.

He may have also known Hayden Fox, future coach of Minnesota State University's Screaming Eagles.  In fact, their paths may have crossed after that episode of 'The Andy Griffith Show' rather than before it.  Who knows?  It could be that Conroy was also in the running for the job of head coach at Minnesota State.

BCnU!