1941 was the sixth of seven seasons for the Dixie Football League, which ran from 1936-1947.  For the first time, the Dixie League had six teams, all of them with actual home fields, with the Charlotte Clippers of Charlotte in North Carolina replacing Washington.  As the
United States started preparing for a war with the "Axis Powers", (Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan) that appeared to be inevitable in the fall of 1941, the League benefited from the addition of military personnel from bases in the region.  Playing for the Newport News Builders, two such newcomers broke passing and scoring records that were established just the previous year. George Cafego had eight of his passes go for touchdowns, while Ken Fryer scored 61 points, more than any minor league player in a single season before the entry of the USA into World War II. Despite the records on offense, the Builders finished the 1941 season in third place. Charlotte had a successful freshman season in the DFL, scoring 184 points, roughly 30 more than Newport News and Norfolk… and the previous record set in 1940 by Richmond. The Clippers finished second to Norfolk, whose star back Pete Sachon was billed as "Pistol Pete" three decades before Pete Maravich. "Pistol Pete" Sachon was selected the DFL most valuable player for 1941. As there were no playoffs in the DFL in 1941, the Norfolk Shamrocks were declared the 1941 Dixie League Champions.