Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-18
History Of Foot Ball

TO-DAY foot ball Is without doubt the most
popular sport in America. More than $500
schools and colleges are represented by teams,
and quarter Of million boys and young men
play On them every Fall During the brief sea-
son, more than 25, O00, 600 persons attend their
games in the United States, and the most inn
portant collegiate contests draw huge crowds
ranging from 20 900 up to 10000 spectators.
Yet so years ago there were only few
teams representing some of the leading Eastern
colleges and in 1875 it was considered quite
remarkable when $50 "rooters' made the jour.
ney from Cambridge to New Haven for the
first Ysle-Harvard game!
AS you play and watch 1t today foot BAN Is
a vastly different game from that played SO
years ago. In fact if you had been present at
a contest in the year 1880, you would hardly
have recognized the strange game as the fore-
runner of modern American foot ball.
The original rough and tumble game Of foot
ball had been played in England fer centuries,
although the edicts of kings had attempted TO
stop it. The sport was brought to America
by the early colonists found popularity in many
places, and soon made its way into the young
Nations new colleges.
The first real intercollegiate foot ball game
was played in 1869, although there had been
many interclass and unorganized contests be-
fore that. And what rough and bloody ARRAYS
they were! Once, in 1873, a game between
Yale and Princeton delayed for more than
an hour and half because they couldn't get
a ball to play with and when they did get
one it burst in the middle of the game causing
another delay!
In its earliest form, foot ball was mainly
kicking game, much like modern association or
soccer foot ball But in 1874 one of the teams
from the United States played Canadian
team and saw the advantages of the Rugby
game they played, in which the ball was carried
as well as kicked. Two years later the Inter-
collegiate Foot BAH Association organized,
and adopted the rules of the British Rugby
Union in modified form.
The game as then played would appear
strange to U.s. There were Is players on each
team and the field was half as long as at
present. Goals were counted in the scoring,
and four touchdowns were the equivalent Of one
goal In the modern game of course. the
touchdown is the important thing in seeking,
while goals are Of minor value.
In 1880 the number Of players was reduced
to II, and the use Of "scrinmage," the founda@
ton of modern foot ball was started. Changes
in scoring also were made. Thus in 1883 the
value Of field goal was i've points, while q
touchdown counted only two and a goal after
touchdown four. And until 1883 tackling was
only permitted above the waistl
The game now gradually changed from the
old Rugby to our modern foot ball. interiors
ence for the runner was first used in 1888. In
1889 the fashion Of long hair for players came
in, and for some time after that all players had
great crops Of hair to protect their heads.
And they needed it. About this time maS9
plays were very popular, and the flying wedges
and flying interference" based on the prins
ciple of a huge mass moving at high speed,
were widely used Finally the game got 50
rough that the Government abolished the
Army-Navy game, and in 1896 these "hyingS
plays were outlaWed.