History of American Football
 

American Football is a game played between two teams of 11 players on a rectangular field 100 yards long. The main objective of the game is to take possession of the ball and push it across the opponent’s goal line. It is a wonderful sport involving a series of running and passing of the ball. Teams try to gain every inch of the field to score a goal.

American Football has its origin in Rugby which originated from earlier form of football that was played in United Kingdom.

Football was played in college campuses. There were no written norms for the game. Colleges played their own version of the game. Students of Princeton College played ‘Ballown’. First the players used to use their fists to advance the ball followed by their legs to take the ball past the opposing team. During the same period, students of Harvard played a football like game every Monday. This game involved brute force and caused injuries to the players.

1867- During this year, Princeton officially laid down the rules for the game. According to the rules 25 players were allowed in each team. The game was even patented in that year.

1869- The first intercollegiate football was played between Rutgers and Princeton

1873- Four years after 1869, representatives from Princeton,Coach Sunglasses, Rutgers, Columbia and Yale came together to form the Intercollegiate Football Association (IFA). They laid down the first rules for Intercollegiate Football matches.

Later with the efforts of Walter Camp,NBA Snapback Hats Sale, who is known as the Father of American Football, Rugby Style American Football was transformed to the present day American Football. Walter Camp was not only a member of the IFA but also the football coach at Yale College.

1878- Walter Camp reduced the number of players per team to 15 and ultimately to 11 players.

1880 – Walter Camp introduced a standardized scoring model. He created safety, interference, penalties and neutral zone etc. He also introduced the systems of downs and the lines of scrimmage rules.

1881- Walter Camp initiated and reduced the field in size to its modern dimensions of 120 by 53 1/3 yards.

1887- The total play time was divided in two halves of 45 minutes each. In the same year referee and umpire were introduced for each match.

November12, 1892- Launch of professional football in America. The first player to be hired was- William ‘Pudge’ Heffelfinger. Professionalism was seeping into the game. Playing for money was no longer dishonorable.

September 3, 1895 – In the town of Latrobe,Canada – The Mecca of Skiing, Pennsylvania, the first professional football game was played between Jeannette Athletic Club and the Latrobe YMCA.

1905- 62 Schools met at New York City to discuss about further changes that could be made in the rules of the sport. The game was highly physical, players of one team would charge at the other team in unison. Many players were seriously injured and many even succumbed to injuries. The then President Theodore Roosevelt had declared to ban the sport if the rules were not changed.
During the meeting, the intercollegiate athletic Association of the United States was created. It later became National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
Forward pass was legalized.

Football coaches like Knute Rockne, Pop Warner and Eddie Cochems, introduced techniques and skill to the sport.

1909- Field goals were lowered to three points.

1912- Touchdowns were raised to six points.

1918- Players were allowed to catch the ball anywhere on the field. Earlier players were only allowed passes to certain areas of the field.

August 1920 - The first professional football league, National Football League, was formed. This was the initiative of Jim Thorpe who became the league’s first president.

1935- New York City’s Downtown Athletic Club awarded the first Heisman Trophy to University of Chicago halfback Jay Berwanger.

1959- A rival of NFL sprang up; the team was called American Football League. AFL tried to attract NFL player with higher pay. The annual football matches between AFL and NFL called Super Ball became the most awaited event of the year.

1970- AFL and NFL were merged. Supper Ball was converted to NFL championship game. The rivalry between the teams was detrimental for them and hence they were merged. Today NFL has 32 teams under it.

Now American football is a multi billion dollar sport. It has become an important source of revenue for television networks. During the football season dozens of matches are aired and NFL is the most popularly viewed sport in United States.