Football and Its Greatest Players

Football and Its Greatest Players book cover — CONTENTS INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1 ORGANIZED FooTBALL 1ol CHAPTER 2 PLAYING THE GAME CHAPTER 3 THE COLLEGE GAME 37 CHAPTER 4 THE PROFESSIONAL GAME 52 CHAPTER 5 NoTABLE PLAYERS CoNCLUSION GosSARY 83 85 For MORE INFORMATION BILIOGRAPHY INDEX 92

Football and Its Greatest Players — page 1 — INTRODUCTION fAmericans were to think of their brand of football as a product it might be hard to decide if the sport is an import or an export As evidence of the former consider how modern gridiron football came to be The game s roots reach back to 19th century England where rugby originated and became a popular pastime Rugby which can be described as a full contact version of soccer that hinges on players carrying rather than kicking a ball was imported to the United States in the late 1800s Many East Coast col leges including Yale and Princeton formed teams that played a rugby style game The game underwent a few changes once it came to the United States Two of the most important early rule changes dating from the 1880s made the game more orderly The first established a scrimmage which awarded pos session of the ball to one of the two teams and the second created the system of downs which required a team to advance the ball or

Football and Its Greatest Players — page 2 — INTRODUCTION lose possession of it By 1920 gridiron foot ball moved beyond the thriving college ranks and became a professional sport with the start of the National Football League NFL Gradually many of the rules and procedures of American football were adopted by Canadian teams which up until then had mostly played a rugby style game American football also was exporte to other countries beginning I in 1991 first with the formation of a European professional league and later with the sched uling of NFLgames abroad Whether it is an import or export grid iron football today is a distinctly American sport Virtually everything about the modern game was developed in the United States The popularity of this type of football is undeni able In some parts of the U S football fan devotion particularly at the high school and college level is so strong and sincere that the sport has been likened to a religion College and professional games are televised every weekend and a few nights a week during the fall season These broadcasts get good

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