Football and Its Greatest Players

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

Football and Its Greatest Players — page 3 — FooTRALL AND ITS GREATEST PLAYERS A football on the field awaiting kickoff Shutterstock com ratings Also the Super Bowl which is the NFLs championship game is watched by an international television audience numbering in the tens of millions A big part of what makes gridiron foot ball so popular is the personalities involved Many players and coaches have contrib uted to making the game what it is

Football and Its Greatest Players — page 4 — INTRODUCTION Modern day Hall of Famers and current mar quee players including Emmitt Smith and Peyton Manning respectively are recognized by football fans around the globe Some names from the early days of foot ball may not be as recognizable but their contributions are certainly well known For instance Walter Camp the coach who is con sidered the Father of American Football was the head of the rules committee that was formed soon after the game came to the United States In addition to introducing the scrimmage and the system of downs Camp was responsible for determining the dimen sions of the playing field and the number of players on the field among other fundamen tals of the game Another coach Glenn Pop Warner has been honored for his accomplishments and innovations during his long career by hav ing a national youth football program named after him Pop Warner Youth Football which operates programs in 42 states emphasizes the development of game skills and aca demic excellence In recognizing Coach Warner while also cultivating the next gen eration of players both on and off the field the program connects football's past with its present and

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