now-defunct annual matchup between the champion of the professional National Football League (NFL) and a selection of the country's best college players. Professional career Los Angeles Dons (AAFC) Despite his accomplishments in college, Ford was passed over in all 32 rounds of the 1948 NFL Draft during a time when most professional teams did not employ African-Americans. (The following year, George Taliaferro became the first African-American to be selected in an NFL draft.) He was selected, however, by the Los Angeles Dons of the rival All-America Football Conference (AAFC) in the third round of the 1948 AAFC Draft. He signed with the Dons in April 1948. Playing as a right end opposite Joe Aguirre, Ford had 31 catches for 598 yards and seven touchdowns in 1948. As was the case at Michigan, Ford also worked on defense and was one of the AAFC's most successful pass-rushers. The Dons, meanwhile, finished the regular season with a 7–7 record, good for third place in the AAFC West. Ford played basketball in the off-season for the New York Renaissance, an all-black professional team in the National Basketball League. He did not play basketball at Michigan, the Big Ten Conference having maintained racial segregation of basketball until 1950. Ford had 36 catches for 577 yards and one touchdown in 1949, while the Dons fell to 4–8. The AAFC struggled financially during Ford's time with the Dons. Its teams competed with NFL franchises for fans' attention and player talent – the Dons shared a city with the NFL's Los Angeles Rams. By late 1949, team owners came to an agreement under which the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Colts joined the NFL and the rest of the league's teams, including the Dons, folded. Cleveland Browns 1950 season After the AAFC disbanded, the Browns selected Ford in the second round of the 1950 AAFC dispersal draft, created to reallocate former Dons, Buffalo Bills and Chicago Hornets players. Ford signed with the Browns in July 1950. Cleveland head coach Paul Brown converted Ford into solely a defensive end as two-platoon systems gained popularity after 1950. Ford bulked up to 260 pounds and quickly became a fixture of Cleveland's defense alongside linebacker Bill Willis and defensive back Warren Lahr. He was one of five black players for Cleveland – the others were Willis, punter Horace Gillom and fullbacks Emerson Cole and Marion Motley – at a