Football

American Footballs Beginnings Before the 19 th century football referred to any number of games played on foot with a ball. The rules varied from game to game. Legend says that an Englishman was tired of no hands rule and picked up ball and ran.

American Footballs Beginnings While he was running with the ball, the other players chased him down and tackled him to enforce the rules. Amidst this event – and the fun of the event – the idea of American football was born. The idea of that brand of the game spread throughout U.S. colleges.

American Footballs Beginnings The game was not universal – every college played with their own rules. However, each version did have similarities. Huge number of players trying to move the ball into a goal – and violence and injury were common.

American Footballs Beginnings Because of the injuries, protests formed to abandon the games. Yale banned the game in 1860 – Harvard banned it in However, the game was growing popular among east coast prep schools.

American Footballs Beginnings A special ball was created specifically for the game – made kicking and carrying easier. A version of the game called the Boston Game was created by the Oneida Football Club. They are considered the first formal football club in the United States (1862).

American Footballs Beginnings The Boston Game caught the eye of the press and soon returned to college campuses. On November 6, 1869 – Rutgers University played Princeton University in New Jersey. Considered the first intercollegiate football game – Rutgers won at home 6-4.

American Footballs Beginnings Rematch was played one week later at Princeton – Princeton won 8-0. Columbia and Yale joined the series in the 1870s. Organization improved and colleges tried to set a rules standard.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE In your opinion, why were colleges the first places where American football began? Why is it important for there to be a uniform or standard set of rules for any sport? Who played in the first intercollegiate football game, and what was the score?

Walter Camp Enter Walter Camp – the father of American football. Camp was a great athlete – excelled in track, baseball, and soccer. Camp coached Yale and attended the meetings to make one set of rules.

Walter Camp Camp introduced a number of rules including… Reducing the number of players from 15 to 11. Camp also established the line of scrimmage and the snap from a center to quarterback

Walter Camp Camps ideas intended to place emphasis on speed instead of strength. Instead his rules slowed the game down – teams held the ball and methodically moved down the field. The game became boring and changes had to be made.

Walter Camp Camp made more adjustments – teams had to go five yards in three downs. Camp helped reduce the size of the field to what is today – 120 yards long, 53.5 yards wide. Camp also made the seven-man, a quarterback, two halfbacks and a fullback.

Walter Camp Camp also established a game time set for two halves – 45 minutes each. Two paid officials began attending each game. Camp died in 1925 and his legacy continues – he personally selected an All- American team from 1898 to 1924.

Walter Camp To this day, the Walter Camp Foundation continues to select All-American teams in his honor. In other words, Camp – through his contributions made football look like what it does today.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE Write an obituary-style article for Walter Camp as it could appear in a newspaper. Be sure to focus on Camps accomplishments and achievements. Be sure to include a headline for your article.

Modern College Football Emerges The popularity of the game grew among the general public. By 1900 – 43 colleges had teams – and it was spreading across the country. In 1879 Michigan (yuck) became the first school west of Pennsylvania to establish a team.

Modern College Football Emerges Others soon followed – Chicago, Northwestern and Minnesota made teams. This led to the first league – the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives – also called the Western Conference. This was the pre-cursor of the Big Ten Conference.

Modern College Football Emerges Notable figure Fielding Yost – coach of Michigan (yuck) early 20 th century. From 1901 to 1905 Michigan (yuck) won 56 games in a row – outscored opponents 2,831 to 40. In 1902 Michigan (yuck) played in the Rose Bowl – first post season bowl game – Michigan (yuck) beat Stanford 49-0.

Modern College Football Emerges Controversy followed football – in 1894 the Harvard vs. Yale game led to four crippling injuries. Army and Navy suspended their annual game from 1894 to 1898 for similar reasons. The problem was large formations of players – like the flying wedge.

Modern College Football Emerges Large numbers charged as a unit against a large defense – led to serious collisions. In 1905 – 19 fatalities occurred from football nationwide. President Theodore Roosevelt threatened to end the game – but he loved the sport and wanted to fix it.

Modern College Football Emerges In 1906 the forward pass was created to open up the game and reduce injuries. However, forward pass was rarely used – rules made it unattractive. On December 28, 1905 – 62 schools met in New York to make game safer – called the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States.

Modern College Football Emerges This meeting was the pre-cursor to establishing the current National Collegiate Athletic Association – or NCAA. As a result of the meeting, mass formations – including flying wedge – became illegal. New rules helped reduce injuries.

Modern College Football Emerges Bradbury Robinson playing for St. Louis University threw the first legal forward pass on September 5, In 1910, players could not push or pull – interlocking arms were not allowed. Roughing the passer implemented in 1914.

Modern College Football Emerges More changes to football were made. The huddle was introduced, as well as pre-snap shifts to create deception. Field goals were lowered from five points to three in 1909 – and touchdowns were raised to six points in 1912.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE Why was the game of football in danger of being shut down? Discuss some changes that were made to reduce the amount of injuries. How was the NCAA created?

College Footballs Golden Age The game began to produce famous players – Jim Thorpe, Red Grange and Bronko Nagurski. Sportswriters covered football and created national following. Grantland Rice used poetic descriptions and colorful nicknames – called Grange Galloping Ghost.

College Footballs Golden Age Coaches became living legends. Pop Warner – coached Georgia, Cornell, Pittsburgh, Stanford and Temple. Wrote books about strategy and how to play the game.

College Footballs Golden Age Warner created the single and double wing formations – most popular formations for 40 years. One of the first to use the forward pass routinely. Created modern blocking schemes and the three-point stance.

College Footballs Golden Age Knute Rockne – played and coached for Notre Dame. Deceptive plays, tricky schemes – led to rule that lineman had to stop for a full second before snap. Started USC-Notre Dame rivalry – went before dying in plane crash.

College Footballs Golden Age In the 1930s, football had become the number one spectator sport in the south. More conferences popped up – Pacific Coast Conference (Pac-12), Southeastern Conference (SEC). New bowl games developed – Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Sun Bowl and Cotton Bowl.

College Footballs Golden Age In 1936 the press began a weekly poll of ranking the teams The AP Poll was used to determine the champion at the end of the year. In 1935 the Heisman Trophy was created – named after coach John Heisman.

College Footballs Golden Age First winner of the Heisman Trophy was Chicagos Jay Berwanger – also becomes the first NFL draft pick. College football lost some popularity to the NFL but still was going strong. In 1966 ABC began televising a game of the week.

College Footballs Golden Age This brought key games and rivalries to the whole nation. Overall – Michigan (yuck) (910), Texas (875) and Notre Dame (874) are ranked 1, 2 and 3 in total wins – Yale (877). As television and radio progressed so did college football.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE The press was responsible for ranking college football teams and choosing a national champion – what problems do you see with this method? Discuss the contributions that Pop Warner and Knute Rockne made to college football.

College Football Today The number of bowl games grew – in 1940 there were five. By 1970 there were eight – and 11 in Cable television emerged, including ESPN which led to 15 bowls in 1980 – currently there are 34 bowl games.

College Football Today The argument has risen over the number of bowl games. More bowl games dilute the significance of playing in one. Others say more bowl games give increased exposure and revenue for more schools.

College Football Today In the 1990s college football wanted to come up with a better way then the AP picking a champion. In 1998 a new system was invented to force a true championship game. Called the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) it included the ACC, Big East, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac 10 and SEC conferences.

College Football Today Each year the #1 and #2 ranked teams in the nation will play in the championship. Venues rotated between the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl and Fiesta Bowl. A combination of computers, human votes, and strength of schedule determined #1 and #2 teams.

College Football Today The first BCS Championship game played on January 4, 1999 at the Fiesta Bowl – Tennessee 23, Florida State 16. In 2006 a fifth BCS game was added to open up the BCS to two more teams. On January 6, 2013, the BCS held its final championship game – Florida State 35, Auburn 31.

College Football Today BCS was controversial – there were arguments for and against the current system. Critics claimed a playoff – not votes – should determine a champion. Defenders say that every week of the college football season is a playoff – and popularity of the sport soared.

College Football Today Beginning next season (2014), FBS college football will hold a four-team playoff to determine its champion. Format is simple – the four top-ranked teams play in the semifinals at traditional bowl game locations. Winners play for the championship in different host cities each year.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE Pick one side: 1. Too many bowl games is bad for college football. 2. High number of bowl games is good for college football. Pick one side: 1. The BCS was good for college football. 2. The BCS was bad for college football. Write an argumentative paragraph for each side you chose.

Early Pro Football The creation and popularity of professional football has also had a tremendous impact in the United States. A Pittsburgh football club called the Allegheny Athletic Association hired Yale guard William Pudge Heffelfinger to be first paid player. He received $500 – and won the game.

Early Pro Football On September 3, 1895 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, the first wholly pro game was played. Latrobe YMCA vs. Jeannette Athletic Club – Latrobe won Was not the sole source of income for players – still had to work elsewhere.

Early Pro Football In 1899 the South Side of Chicago was founded. Later changed names to the Chicago Cardinals – now known as the Arizona Cardinals. The franchise is the oldest continuously operating professional football team.

Early Pro Football Ohio became the center of professional football in the early twentieth century. Small towns supported pro teams in what was called the Ohio League – later called National Football League (NFL). The best team was the Canton Bulldogs – where the current NFL Hall of Fame is located.

Early Pro Football By 1921 there were 22 teams – including the Green Bay Packers Packers hold the record for longest use of an unchanged team name. By the mid-1920s the NFL was up to 25 teams.

Early Pro Football At the end of the 1932 season, the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth Spartans were tied with the best record. To determine the champion a playoff game was played – first ever. Chicago won 9-0 – cold weather forced game indoors.

Early Pro Football The playoff game was very popular – and following season teams split into two divisions. The winners of each division played in an annual championship game. Many teams folded during WWII – by 1946 NFL had 10 teams.

Early Pro Football Bert Bell became commissioner and kept the league stable. Also in 1946, NFL integrated – Los Angeles Rams signed two African- American players. Kenny Washington and Woody Strode.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE How did the Ohio League help create the location of the National Football League Hall of Fame? Describe the circumstances that led to the creation of an NFL championship game. Discuss two key contributions Bert Bell made to the NFL.

Modern NFL Television and radio also helped NFL popularity. Rams first team to televise its entire schedule of games in was the turning point for the NFL when Baltimore Colts and NY Giants played championship game.

Modern NFL Game played at Yankee Stadium and tied after 60 minutes. First game to go into sudden death overtime – Colts won Televised live on NBC – called the Greatest Game Ever Played – NFL became a national sport.

Modern NFL In 1959 a new league formed called the American Football League – AFL. AFL posed a significant threat to the NFL – thanks to television exposure. In 1960 AFL had eight teams led by Al Davis owner of the Oakland Raiders.

Modern NFL AFL began luring players away from NFL like Joe Namath star quarterback from Alabama. NFL agreed to a merger – common draft and AFL vs. NFL championship at end of season. Two years later that game renamed to Super Bowl.

Modern NFL January 15, 1967 first Super Bowl was played in Los Angeles, California. Green Bay (NFL) defeated Kansas City (AFL) Green Bay beats Oakland in Super Bowl II to extend NFL dominance.

Modern NFL In Super Bowl III NFLs Baltimore Colts were heavily favored over AFLs New York Jets. Jets led by Namath upset Colts and gave AFL respect. In 1970 – both leagues merged to form 26-team league – all called NFL.

Modern NFL Currently NFL has 32 teams – and Super Bowl is one of the most popular television events in history. NFL is the most popular spectator sport in the U.S. Parity and salary caps have helped league sustain popularity.

Modern NFL Limits on teams salaries allow smaller cities like Green Bay to compete with larger cities. Other football leagues tried forming to tap into money made by NFL. World Football League in 1974 – folded in 1975.

Modern NFL In 1982 the United States Football League formed as a spring league. USFL successful at first – but in 1985 moved to fall season to compete directly with NFL. USFL failed and folded – could not hang with NFL.

Modern NFL The XFL was formed in 2001 – and folded after one season due to lack of fan interest. NFL went international in 1995 with NFL Europe – had success initially. Folded in 2007 – NFL now plays scheduled NFL games in Europe to hit their market.

YOUR TURN TO WRITE In your opinion, why is the NFL the most popular spectator sport in America? What was the Greatest Game Ever Played? How did was the Super Bowl created and what was the score of the first one?