The roots of the Cincinnati Celts go back to 1910, when the team was formed by a group of players from University of Miami in Oxford, Ohio. The team coached by Mel Doherty referred to themselves as "a bunch of wild Irishmen.

" The Celts played in the Ohio league, but were not among the teams that made up the charter teams in the American Professional Football Association as they were one of the poorer teams in the Ohio League. After a year playing independently in 1920 the Celts would join the APFA for its second season.