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107-396: Irby Rice "Rabbit" Curry (August 4, 1894 – August 10, 1918) was an American football quarterback for Vanderbilt University from 1914 to 1916. He was selected as a first-team All-Southern player in 1915 and 1916 and a third-team All-American in 1916. In August 1918, while serving as a pilot in the 95th Aero Squadron during World War I, he was killed in aerial combat over France. He

214-403: A halftime period, and the first and third quarters are followed by a short break. Before the game starts, the referee and each team's captain meet at midfield for a coin toss . The visiting team can call either "heads" or "tails"; the winner of the toss chooses whether to receive or kick off the ball or which goal they wish to defend. They can defer their choice until the second half. Unless

321-401: A 10-yard-long chain between them, are used to measure for a first down. The chain crew stays on the sidelines during the game, but if requested by the officials they will briefly bring the chains on to the field to measure. A typical chain crew will have at least three people—two members of the chain crew will hold either of the two sticks, while a third will hold the down marker. The down marker,

428-525: A PAT attempt or successful field goal, the scoring team must kick the ball off to the other team. A safety is scored when the ball carrier is tackled in the carrier's own end zone. Safeties are worth two points, which are awarded to the defense. In addition, the team that conceded the safety must kick the ball to the scoring team via a free kick . Football games are played on a rectangular field that measures 120 yards (110 m) long and 53 + 1 ⁄ 3 yards (48.8 m) wide. Lines marked along

535-527: A classmate from Vanderbilt were in the same aero squadron. At Chateau Thierry their squad engaged Richthofen 's circus (Germany's greatest aero squad). Irby was wounded and went into a tight spiral and to land. He never gained strength to come out of the spiral and crashed to the earth. His classmate downed a plane and landed to get the German, but landed on German soil and was captured. Nine out of eighteen of Irby's squad were killed, The Germans suffered greater than

642-507: A composite poll published by The Atlanta Constitution . In December 1915, Curry's teammates elected him captain of the 1916 Vanderbilt football team. During the 1916 football season, Curry led Vanderbilt to a 7–1–1 record. In October 1916, Curry led Vanderbilt to its first-ever victory over Virginia , and the Associated Press reported that "Virginia was unable to stop the fleet-footed 'Rabbit' Curry", whose "spectacular open field running

749-482: A district chairman, along with another head coach who serves as the chairman of the selection committee. The coaches in each district are responsible for ranking the top players in their respective districts; that information, along with ballots submitted by FBS head coaches, are used to select the AFCA FBS Coaches' All-America Team.snake The Coaches' All-America Team has been sponsored by various entities throughout

856-453: A field goal instead. A group of officials, the chain crew, keeps track of both the downs and the distance measurements. On television, a yellow line is electronically superimposed on the field to show the first down line to the viewing audience. There are two categories of kicks in football: scrimmage kicks, which can be executed by the offensive team on any down from behind or on the line of scrimmage, and free kicks. The free kicks are

963-457: A group of Princeton players realized that, as the snap was uncontested, they could now hold the ball indefinitely to prevent their opponent from scoring. In 1881, in a game between Yale and Princeton, both teams used this strategy to maintain their undefeated records. Each team held the ball, gaining no ground, for an entire half, resulting in a 0–0 tie. This "block game" proved extremely unpopular with both teams' spectators and fans. A rule change

1070-533: A large stick with a dial on it, is flipped after each play to indicate the current down and is typically moved to the approximate spot of the ball. The chain crew system has been used for over 100 years and is considered an accurate measure of distance, rarely subject to criticism from either side. Football is a full-contact sport, and injuries are relatively common. Most injuries occur during training sessions, particularly ones that involve contact between players. To try to prevent injuries, players are required to wear

1177-408: A long circumference of 28 to 28 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (71 to 72 cm), and a short circumference of 21 to 21 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (53 to 54 cm). In college and high school play the ball has a long axis of 10 + 7 ⁄ 8 to 11 + 7 ⁄ 16 inches (27.6 to 29.1 cm), a long circumference of 27 + 3 ⁄ 4 to 28 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (70 to 72 cm), and

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1284-420: A minimum of 10 feet (3.0 m) on high school fields. Goal posts are padded at the base, and orange ribbons are normally placed at the tip of each upright as indicators of wind strength and direction. The football itself is a prolate spheroid leather ball, similar to the balls used in rugby or Australian rules football . To contain the compressed air within it, a pig's bladder was commonly used before

1391-496: A modified scoring system. These schools formed the Intercollegiate Football Association , although Yale did not join until 1879. Yale player Walter Camp , now regarded as the "Father of American Football", secured rule changes in 1880 that reduced the size of each team from 15 to 11 players and instituted the snap to replace the chaotic and inconsistent scrum . While the game between Rutgers and Princeton

1498-505: A newspaper account reported on the special place that Curry maintained in McGugin's memory: Uncle Dan may have had better players than Curry, but the Rabbit somehow wound himself more closely into the affections of the old master than any other Black and Gold athlete. It was one of those reciprocal admirations of a big man for a little man. Dan, husky old-time guard of a generation ago, marveled at

1605-572: A panel of sportswriters who vote to determine the AP All-America Team. It has selected an All-America team since 1925. The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) has selected an All-America team every year since 1945. It is often referred to as the "Coaches' All-America Team". The Selection Process is an All-America Selection Committee is made up of three head coaches from each of the AFCA's nine I-A (Bowl Division) districts, one of whom serves as

1712-474: A pass hits the ground without a player having caught it. A forward pass can be legally attempted only if the passer is behind the line of scrimmage; only one forward pass can be attempted per down. As in rugby, players can also pass the ball backwards at any point during a play. In the NFL, a down also ends immediately if the runner's helmet comes off. The offense is given a series of four plays, known as downs . If

1819-583: A player being paid to participate in a game of American football , although many athletic clubs in the 1880s offered indirect benefits, such as helping players attain employment, giving out trophies or watches that players could pawn for money, or paying double in expense money. Despite these extra benefits, the game had a strict sense of amateurism at the time, and direct payment to players was frowned upon, if not prohibited outright. Over time, professional play became increasingly common, and with it came rising salaries and unpredictable player movement, as well as

1926-427: A quarter ends, play continues until the down is completed. If certain fouls are committed during play while time has expired, the quarter may be extended through an untimed down . Games last longer than their defined length due to play stoppages—the average NFL game lasts slightly over three hours. Time in a football game is measured by the game clock. An operator is responsible for starting, stopping and operating

2033-517: A record-setting season in which they scored 514 points in 510 minutes of actual playing time, "ranking them as a legitimate 'point-a-minute' team." They finished 9–1–0. Following an 85-yard touchdown run in Vanderbilt's one loss, The Washington Post wrote that the "little Curry" was "quick as a flash" and "Vanderbilt's bright star." In Vanderbilt's 1915 game against Mississippi , the team traveled by train from Nashville to Memphis, Tennessee , where

2140-494: A round ball. An 1875 Harvard–Yale game played under rugby-style rules was observed by two Princeton athletes who were impressed by it. They introduced the sport to Princeton, a feat the Professional Football Researchers Association compared to "selling refrigerators to Eskimos ". Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Columbia then agreed to intercollegiate play using a form of rugby union rules with

2247-436: A secondary signal. Women can serve as officials; Sarah Thomas became the NFL's first female official in 2015. The seven officials (of a standard seven-man crew; lower levels of play up to the college level use fewer officials) on the field are each tasked with a different set of responsibilities: Another set of officials, the chain crew , are responsible for moving the chains. The chains, consisting of two large sticks with

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2354-403: A separate sport from rugby, and the resulting five-yard lines added to the field to measure distances made it resemble a gridiron in appearance. Other major rule changes included a reduction of the field size to 110 by 53 + 1 ⁄ 3 yards (100.6 m × 48.8 m) and the adoption of a scoring system that awarded four points for a touchdown, two for a safety and a goal following

2461-545: A set of equipment. At a minimum players must wear a football helmet and a set of shoulder pads , but individual leagues may require additional padding such as thigh pads and guards, knee pads, chest protectors, and mouthguards . Most injuries occur in the lower extremities, particularly in the knee, but a significant number also affect the upper extremities. The most common types of injuries are strains , sprains , bruises , fractures , dislocations , and concussions . College Football All-America Team As of 2023,

2568-410: A short circumference of 20 + 3 ⁄ 4 to 21 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (53 to 54 cm). Football games last for a total of 60 minutes in professional and college play and are divided into two halves of 30 minutes and four quarters of 15 minutes. High school football games are 48 minutes in length with two halves of 24 minutes and four quarters of 12 minutes. The two halves are separated by

2675-416: A touchdown , and five for a goal from the field . Additionally, tackling below the waist was legalized, and a static line of scrimmage was instituted. Despite these new rules, football remained a violent sport. Dangerous mass-formations like the flying wedge resulted in serious injuries and deaths. A 1905 peak of 19 fatalities nationwide resulted in a threat by President Theodore Roosevelt to abolish

2782-399: A touchdown. Another time he ran 34 yards for a touchdown. Time after time Curry made 10, 15 and 20 yard gains, and his work was largely responsible for Vanderbilt's victory." Sewanee coach Harris Cope said "I think Curry is one of the greatest players I have ever seen." At the end of the 1915 season, Curry was selected as a first-team All-Southern back by all ten Southern sporting writers in

2889-460: Is a sport in which two competing teams vie for control of a ball, which can be kicked through a set of goalposts or run into the opponent's goal area to score points. What is considered to be the first American football game was played on November 6, 1869 , between Rutgers and Princeton , two college teams. They consisted of 25 players per team and used a round ball that could not be picked up or carried. It could, however, be kicked or batted with

2996-425: Is called on the offense. There are two main ways the offense can advance the ball: running and passing . In a typical play, the center passes the ball backwards and between their legs to the quarterback in a process known as the snap . The quarterback then either hands the ball off to a running back, throws the ball, or runs with it. The play ends when the player with the ball is tackled or goes out-of-bounds or

3103-437: Is caught or recovered behind the line of scrimmage. If it is touched or recovered by the kicking team beyond this line, it becomes dead at the spot where it was touched. The kicking team is prohibited from interfering with the receiver's opportunity to catch the ball. The receiving team has the option of signaling for a fair catch , which prohibits the defense from blocking into or tackling the receiver. The play ends as soon as

3210-563: Is commonly considered the first American football game, several years prior in 1862, the Oneida Football Club formed as the oldest known football club in the United States. The team consisted of graduates of Boston's elite preparatory schools and played from 1862 to 1865. The introduction of the snap resulted in an unexpected consequence. Before the snap, the strategy had been to punt if a scrum resulted in bad field position. However,

3317-403: Is known as a two-point conversion . In general, the extra point is almost always successful, while the two-point conversion is a much riskier play with a higher probability of failure; accordingly, extra point attempts are far more common than two-point conversion attempts. A field goal (FG), worth three points, is scored when the ball is place kicked or drop kicked through the uprights and over

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3424-669: Is listed. If a player is named an All-American by all five organizations, he receives " unanimous All-American " recognition. Depending upon the distribution of first team honors at any given position, it is possible to be consensus with fewer than three first-team selections. As of 2021, the University of Alabama had produced the most unanimous All-Americans of any program with 40. There have been 2,868 players from 156 colleges and universities since 1889 who were selected to at least one All-American first team. Five players have earned that honor four times: They are: The Associated Press has

3531-407: Is responsible for all kicking plays. The special teams unit of the team in control of the ball tries to execute field goal (FG) attempts, punts , and kickoffs , while the opposing team's unit will aim to block or return them. Three positions are specific to the field goal and PAT (point-after-touchdown) unit: the placekicker (K or PK), holder (H), and long snapper (LS). The long snapper's job

3638-537: Is selected by a committee of writers representing all conferences and regions of the NCAA . The Writers' Team has been highlighted in various media forums. From 1946 to 1970, Look published the FWAA team and brought players and selected writers to New York City for a celebration. During that 25-year period, the FWAA team was introduced on national television shows by Bob Hope, Steve Allen, Perry Como and others. After Look folded,

3745-421: Is to block members of the defensive line from tackling the ball carrier on running plays or sacking the quarterback on passing plays. The leader of the offensive line is the center, who is responsible for snapping the ball to the quarterback, blocking, and for making sure that the other linemen do their jobs during the play. On either side of the center are the guards (G), while tackles (T) line up outside

3852-437: Is to snap the football to the holder, who will catch and position it for the placekicker. There is not usually a holder on kickoffs, because the ball is kicked off a tee; however, a holder may be used in certain situations, such as if wind is preventing the ball from remaining upright on the tee. The player on the receiving team who catches the ball is known as the kickoff returner (KR). The positions specific to punt plays are

3959-756: The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) in 1997. The BCS arrangement proved to be controversial , and was replaced in 2014 by the College Football Playoff (CFP). A football game is played between two teams of 11 players each. Playing with more on the field is punishable by a penalty. Teams may substitute any number of their players between downs; this "platoon" system replaced the original system, which featured limited substitution rules, and has resulted in teams utilizing specialized offensive, defensive and special teams units. The number of players allowed on an active roster varies by league;

4066-697: The College Football All-America Team is composed of the following College Football All-American first teams chosen by the following selector organizations: Associated Press (AP), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Walter Camp Foundation (WCFF), Sporting News ( TSN , from its historic name of The Sporting News ), Sports Illustrated ( SI ), The Athletic (Athletic), USA Today (USAT), ESPN , CBS Sports (CBS), College Football News ( CFN ), Scout.com , Athlon Sports , Phil Steele , and Fox Sports (FOX). Starting in 2009,

4173-998: The International News Service (INS), it became United Press International . The INS had chosen teams since 1913. UPI continued to choose an All-America team, based on a poll of sportswriters, through the 1996 season. The Central Press Association , a newspaper syndicate based in Cleveland, polled team school captains for its "Captain's All-America Team" Another media group who polled writers and players to compose its team. It ran from 1924 through 1996. ABC Sports , ESPN , CNN Sports Illustrated , College Football News , CBSSports.com , PFF , Time magazine, Bleacher Report and many others also select All-America teams. Time magazine selected All-America teams from 1956 through 1976. ESPN's selections are made by veteran college football writer Ivan Maisel. Maisel's began selecting an All-America team for ESPN.com in 2002. CBS Sports.com

4280-717: The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recognizes the All-America teams selected by the AP , AFCA , FWAA , Sporting News , and the WCFF to determine consensus All-Americans. If more than half of the organizations select a player to their first team, he receives the "consensus" honor. If no player qualifies under that criterion, a player named to two first teams can be chosen. Second- and third-team selections can be used as tie-breakers. If still tied, each player

4387-473: The Super Bowl , ranks among the most-watched club sporting events globally. In 2022, the league had an annual revenue of around $ 18.6 billion, making it the most valuable sports league in the world. Other professional and amateur leagues exist worldwide, but the sport does not have the international popularity of other American sports like baseball or basketball ; the sport maintains a growing following in

Irby Curry - Misplaced Pages Continue

4494-412: The center (C), are allowed to line up in or cross the neutral zone until the ball is snapped. Interior offensive linemen are not allowed to move until the snap of the ball. The main backfield positions are the quarterback (QB), halfback/tailback (HB/TB), and fullback (FB). The quarterback is the leader of the offense. Either the quarterback or a coach calls the plays. Quarterbacks typically inform

4601-409: The commissioner . NCAA and NFHS teams are "strongly advised" to number their offensive players according to a league-suggested numbering scheme. Although the sport is played almost exclusively by men, women are eligible to play in high school, college, and professional football. No woman has ever played in the NFL, but women have played in high school and college football games. In 2018, 1,100 of

4708-494: The drive . Points are scored primarily by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponent's goalposts for a field goal . The team with the most points at the end of the game wins. American football evolved in the United States, originating from the sports of soccer and rugby . The first American football game was played on November 6, 1869 , between two college teams, Rutgers and Princeton , using rules based on

4815-411: The kickoff , which starts the first and third quarters and overtime and follows a try attempt or a successful field goal; the safety kick follows a safety. On a kickoff, the ball is placed at the 35-yard line of the kicking team in professional and college play and at the 40-yard line in high school play. The ball may be drop kicked or place kicked. If a place kick is chosen, the ball can be placed on

4922-407: The neutral zone was created along the width of the football before the snap. Scoring was also adjusted: points awarded for field goals were reduced to three in 1909 and points for touchdowns were raised to six in 1912. Also in 1912, the field was shortened to 100 yards (91 m) long, two 10-yard-long (9.1 m) end zones were created, and teams were given four downs instead of three to advance

5029-407: The punter (P), long snapper, upback , and gunner . The long snapper snaps the football directly to the punter, who then drops and kicks it before it hits the ground. Gunners line up split outside the line and race down the field, aiming to tackle the punt returner (PR)—the player who catches the punt. Upbacks line up a short distance behind the line of scrimmage, providing additional protection to

5136-412: The 1915 season was a Thanksgiving Day game against Sewanee . Vanderbilt won 27–3, as Curry scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns and kicked three goals from touchdown, leading The Atlanta Constitution to write: "Curry was the star of the game, and proved a marvel at advancing the ball. Near the end of the last quarter, when Clark punted, Curry received the ball on his own 20-yard line and ran 80 yards for

5243-426: The 1962 season TSN's All-America team was picked by a poll of sportswriters. Beginning in 1964 the team was selected by "professional scouts and observers". The Sporting News cited the advent of two-platoon football as the need to go to that system. United Press International (UPI) selected players in a national poll of sportswriters and began selecting teams in 1925 as "United Press". In 1958, after it merged with

5350-413: The 1966 season. Once the merger was completed, it was no longer a championship game between two leagues and reverted to the NFL championship game, which came to be known as the Super Bowl . College football maintained a tradition of postseason bowl games . Each bowl game was associated with a particular conference and earning a spot in a bowl game was the reward for winning a conference. This arrangement

5457-552: The 225,000 players in Pop Warner Little Scholars youth football were girls, and around 11% of the 5.5 million Americans who report playing tackle football are female according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association. The role of the offensive unit is to advance the football down the field with the ultimate goal of scoring a touchdown . The offensive team must line up in a legal formation before they can snap

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5564-540: The Americans. After learning about the death of Curry, McGugin wired this telegram to The Tennessean : During the four years of my intimate association with Irby Curry, I never heard him utter a word his mother might not hear and approve. A game sportsman and scholar, truly he was gentle as a dove . He had a lion's heart, and now a hero's death. Poor Little Rabbit! How he pulls at the heart-strings of all of us who knew him and therefore honored and loved him tenderly. Curry

5671-490: The FWAA started a long association with NCAA Films (later known as NCAA Productions), which produced a 30-minute television show and sold it to sponsors. The team was part of ABC Television's 1981 College Football Series. From 1983 to 1990, the team was either on ABC or ESPN, and since 1991 has returned to the national spotlight on ABC. The corporate sponsor for the Writers' team is AT&T , after several years of Cingular being

5778-508: The NFL had established itself as America's premier professional football league. The dominant form of football at the time was played at the collegiate level . The upstart NFL received a boost to its legitimacy in 1925, however, when an NFL team, the Pottsville Maroons , defeated a team of Notre Dame all-stars in an exhibition game . A greater emphasis on the passing game helped professional football to distinguish itself further from

5885-564: The NFL has a 53-man roster, while NCAA Division I allows teams to have 63 scholarship players in the FCS and 85 scholarship players in the FBS, respectively. Individual players in a football game must be designated with a uniform number between 1 and 99, though some teams may "retire" certain numbers , making them unavailable to players. NFL teams are required to number their players by a league-approved numbering system, and any exceptions must be approved by

5992-472: The Vanderbilt team on the road against Texas in 1921, he took the team to Curry's grave in Marlin, Texas before the game. Before the team ran onto the field against Texas, McGugin told them: "They are betting Texas will beat you 20 to 0, they say you are a bunch of cowards. 'Rabbit' Curry, whose father is sitting here with you, is looking down on you from his Eternal Home." Vanderbilt won the game 20–0. In 1930,

6099-460: The advent of artificial rubber inside the leather outer shell to sustain crushing forces . At all levels of play, the football is inflated to 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 to 13 + 1 ⁄ 2  psi (86 to 93 kPa), or just under one atmosphere, and weighs 14 to 15 ounces (400 to 430 g); beyond that, the exact dimensions vary slightly. In professional play the ball has a long axis of 11 to 11 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (28 to 29 cm),

6206-550: The ball 10 yards (9.1 m). The roughing the passer penalty was implemented in 1914, and eligible players were first allowed to catch the ball anywhere on the field in 1918. On November 12, 1892, Pudge Heffelfinger was paid $ 500 (equivalent to $ 16,956 in 2023) to play a game for the Allegheny Athletic Association against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club . This is the first recorded instance of

6313-435: The ball is caught, and the ball may not be advanced. Officials are responsible for enforcing game rules and monitoring the clock. All officials carry a whistle and wear black-and-white striped shirts and black hats except for the referee, whose hat is white. Each carries a weighted yellow flag that is thrown to the ground to signal that a foul has been called. An official who spots multiple fouls will throw their hat as

6420-478: The ball-carrying ability of the 130-pound Curry, and Curry had nothing but worship for the famous coach. In 1922, after Vanderbilt moved into its new football stadium Dudley Field, now known as Vanderbilt Stadium , the old football ground at the corner of West End Avenue and 21st Avenue South in Nashville ( Old Dudley Field ), was renamed Curry Field in honor of Curry. An open space called "Curry Field" still exists on

6527-430: The ball. An offensive formation is considered illegal if there are more than four players in the backfield or fewer than five players numbered 50–79 on the offensive line. Players can line up temporarily in a position whose eligibility is different from what their number permits as long as they report the change immediately to the referee, who then informs the defensive team of the change. Neither team's players, except

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6634-573: The college game during the late 1930s. Football, in general, became increasingly popular following the 1958 NFL Championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants , still referred to as the "Greatest Game Ever Played". The game, a 23–17 overtime victory by the Colts, was seen by millions of television viewers and had a major influence on the popularity of the sport. This, along with

6741-594: The conference, as they favored a rugby-style game that allowed running with the ball. After playing McGill University using both American (known as "the Boston game ") for the first game and Canadian (rugby) rules for the second one, the Harvard players preferred the Canadian style of having only 11 men on the field, running the ball without having to be chased by an opponent, the forward pass, tackling, and using an oblong instead of

6848-541: The conservative NFL to expand to Dallas and Minnesota in an attempt to destroy the new league. Meanwhile, the AFL introduced many new features to professional football in the United States: official time was kept on a scoreboard clock rather than on a watch in the referee's pocket, as the NFL did; optional two-point conversions by pass or run after touchdowns; names on the jerseys of players; and several others, including expansion of

6955-413: The crossbars of the defense's goalposts. In practice, almost all field goal attempts are done via place kick. While drop kicks were common in the early days of the sport, the shape of modern footballs makes it difficult to reliably drop kick the ball. The last successful scoring play by drop kick in the NFL was accomplished in 2006; prior to that, the last successful drop kick had been made in 1941. After

7062-399: The defense is to prevent the offense from scoring by tackling the ball carrier or by forcing turnovers . Turnovers include interceptions (a defender catching a forward pass intended for the offense) and forced fumbles (taking possession of the ball from the ball-carrier). The defensive line (DL) consists of defensive ends (DE) and defensive tackles (DT). Defensive ends line up on

7169-430: The defensive backfield. They are divided into two types: middle linebackers (MLB) and outside linebackers (OLB). Linebackers tend to serve as the defensive leaders and call the defensive plays, given their vantage point of the offensive backfield. Their roles include defending the run, pressuring the quarterback, and tackling backs, wide receivers, and tight ends in the passing game. The defensive backfield , often called

7276-472: The ends and sides of the field are known as the end lines and sidelines . Goal lines are marked 10 yards (9.1 m) inward from each end line. Weighted pylons are placed the sidelines on the inside corner of the intersections with the goal lines and end lines. White markings on the field identify the distance from the end zone. Inbound lines, or hash marks , are short parallel lines that mark off 1-yard (0.91 m) increments. Yard lines , which can run

7383-404: The ends of the line, while defensive tackles line up inside, between the defensive ends. The primary responsibilities of defensive ends and defensive tackles are to stop running plays on the outside and inside, respectively, to pressure the quarterback on passing plays, and to occupy the line so that the linebackers can break through. Linebackers line up behind the defensive line but in front of

7490-499: The feet, hands, head, or sides, with the objective being to advance it into the opponent's goal. Rutgers won the game 6–4. Collegiate play continued for several years with games played using the rules of the host school. Representatives of Yale, Columbia , Princeton and Rutgers met on October 19, 1873, to create a standard set of rules for use by all schools. Teams were set at 20 players each, and fields of 400 by 250 feet (122 m × 76 m) were specified. Harvard abstained from

7597-412: The field by running with the ball or throwing it , while the defense , the team without possession of the ball, aims to stop the offense's advance and to take control of the ball for themselves. The offense must advance the ball at least ten yards in four downs or plays; if they fail, they turn over the football to the defense, but if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs to continue

7704-465: The game are professional and college football , with the other major levels being high-school and youth football. As of 2022 , nearly 1.04 million high-school athletes play the sport in the U.S., with another 81,000 college athletes in the NCAA and the NAIA . The National Football League (NFL) has the highest average attendance of any professional sports league in the world . Its championship game,

7811-419: The game clock based on the direction of the appropriate official . A separate play clock is used to show the amount of time within which the offense must initiate a play. The play clock is set to 25 seconds after certain administrative stoppages in play and to 40 seconds when play is proceeding without such stoppages. If the offense fails to start a play before the play clock reads "00", a delay of game foul

7918-536: The game unless major changes were made. In response, 62 colleges and universities met in New York City to discuss rule changes on December 28, 1905. These proceedings resulted in the formation of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States, later renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The legal forward pass was introduced in 1906, although its effect

8025-406: The game was to be played. The players complained about the lack of food on the train, and the team's manager picked three or four hatfuls of green apples from an orchard near the tracks. The manager later recalled that Curry ate many of the green apples and proceeded to score six touchdowns and kick eight goals after touchdown against Ole Miss. The final score was 91-0. Vanderbilt's final game of

8132-443: The ground or a tee; a holder may be used in either case. On a safety kick, the kicking team kicks the ball from their own 20-yard line. They can punt, drop kick or place kick the ball, but a tee may not be used in professional play. Any member of the receiving team may catch or advance the ball. The ball may be recovered by the kicking team once it has gone at least ten yards and has touched the ground or has been touched by any member of

8239-434: The guards. The principal receivers are the wide receivers (WR) and the tight ends (TE). Wide receivers line up on or near the line of scrimmage, split outside the line. The main goal of the wide receiver is to catch passes thrown by the quarterback, but they may also function as decoys or as blockers during running plays. Tight ends line up outside the tackles and function both as receivers and as blockers. The role of

8346-539: The illegal payment of college players who were still in school. The National Football League (NFL), a group of professional teams that was originally established in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, aimed to solve these problems. This new league's stated goals included an end to bidding wars over players, prevention of the use of college players, and abolition of the practice of paying players to leave another team. By 1922,

8453-448: The innovations introduced by the new American Football League (AFL) in the early 1960s, helped football to become the most popular sport in the United States by the mid-1960s. The rival AFL arose in 1960 and challenged the NFL's dominance. The AFL began in relative obscurity but eventually thrived, with an initial television contract with the ABC television network. The AFL's existence forced

8560-414: The military when the United States entered World War I in 1917. Curry joined the 95th Aero Squadron in the village of Saints as a pilot, attaining the rank of First Lieutenant . On August 10, 1918, while on protection patrol, he was killed in an aerial combat over Perles, France . Lieutenant Hunnicutt, who flew with Rabbit, described First Lieutenant Curry's death in a letter to his family: Irby and

8667-429: The offense advances ten or more yards in the four downs, they are awarded a new set of four downs. If they fail to advance ten yards, possession of the football is turned over to the defense. In most situations, if the offense reaches their fourth down they will punt the ball to the other team, which forces them to begin their drive from farther down the field; if they are in field goal range , they might attempt to score

8774-445: The plane of the two end lines. The crossbar of these posts is 10 feet (3.0 m) above the ground, with vertical uprights at the end of the crossbar 18 feet 6 inches (5.64 m) apart for professional and collegiate play, and 23 feet 4 inches (7.11 m) apart for high school play. The uprights extend vertically 35 feet (11 m) on professional fields, a minimum of 10 yards (9.1 m) on college fields, and

8881-448: The point(s)-after-touchdown (PAT) or conversion, which is a single scoring opportunity. This is generally attempted from the two- or three-yard line, depending on the level of play. If the PAT is scored by a place kick or drop kick through the goal posts, it is worth one point, typically called the extra point. If the PAT is scored by what would normally be a touchdown, it is worth two points; this

8988-544: The pole vault as a junior with a then-record 10' 4" (3.14 m), and in 1913, he was on the Texas state champion mile-relay team with a then-state record 3:49. After graduating from high school, Curry enrolled at Vanderbilt University where he became the quarterback for the school's football team from 1914 to 1916. He was nominated though not selected for an Associated Press All-Time Southeast 1869–1919 era team. Curry weighed only 130 pounds while playing football for Vanderbilt. He

9095-473: The punter. In football, the winner is the team that has scored more points at the end of the game. There are multiple ways to score in a football game. The touchdown (TD), worth six points, is the most valuable scoring play in American football. A touchdown is scored when a live ball is advanced into, caught, or recovered in the opposing team's end zone. The scoring team then attempts a try, more commonly known as

9202-401: The receiving team. The three types of scrimmage kicks are place kicks, drop kicks, and punts. Only place kicks and drop kicks can score points. The place kick is the standard method used to score points, because the pointy shape of the football makes it difficult to reliably drop kick. Once the ball has been kicked from a scrimmage kick, it can be advanced by the kicking team only if it

9309-411: The rest of North America, Europe, Brazil, and Japan. In the United States, American football is referred to as "football". The term "football" was officially established in the rulebook for the 1876 college football season , when the sport first shifted from soccer-style rules to rugby-style rules. Although it could easily have been called "rugby" at this point, Harvard, one of the primary proponents of

9416-631: The rest of the offense of the play in the huddle before the team lines up. The quarterback lines up behind the center to take the snap and then hands the ball off, throws it, or runs with it. The primary role of the halfback, also known as the running back or tailback, is to carry the ball on running plays. Halfbacks may also serve as receivers. Fullbacks tend to be larger than halfbacks and function primarily as blockers, but they are sometimes used as runners in short-yardage or goal-line situations. They are seldom used as receivers. The offensive line (OL) consists of several players whose primary function

9523-499: The role of minority players, actively recruited by the league in contrast to the NFL. The AFL also signed several star college players who had also been drafted by NFL teams. Competition for players heated up in 1965, when the AFL New York Jets signed rookie Joe Namath to a then-record $ 437,000 contract (equivalent to $ 4.23 million in 2023). A five-year, $ 40 million NBC television contract followed, which helped to sustain

9630-515: The rugby-style game, compromised and did not request the name of the sport be changed to "rugby". The terms " gridiron " or "American football" are favored in English-speaking countries where other types of football are popular, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia. American football evolved from the sports of rugby and soccer . Rugby, like American football,

9737-451: The rules of soccer at the time. A set of rule changes drawn up from 1880 onward by Walter Camp , the "Father of American Football", established the snap , the line of scrimmage , eleven-player teams, and the concept of downs. Later rule changes legalized the forward pass , created the neutral zone , and specified the size and shape of the football. The sport is closely related to Canadian football , which evolved in parallel with and at

9844-435: The same time as the American game, although its rules were developed independently from those of Camp. Most of the features that distinguish American football from rugby and soccer are also present in Canadian football. The two sports are considered the primary variants of gridiron football . American football is the most popular sport in the United States in terms of broadcast viewership audience. The most popular forms of

9951-619: The second longest continuously published team in college football, has been a staple of the college football scene since 1944. It is sometimes referred to as the "Writers' All-America Team". The FWAA has selected an All-America team with the help of its members and an All-America Committee which represents all the regions in the country. Some who have helped to select this team over the years: Mark Blaudschun, Grantland Rice, Bert McGrane, Blackie Sherrod, Furman Bisher, Pat Harmon, Fred Russell, Edwin Pope, Murray Olderman , Paul Zimmerman . The All-America team

10058-503: The secondary, consists of cornerbacks (CB) and safeties (S). Safeties are themselves divided into free safeties (FS) and strong safeties (SS). Cornerbacks line up outside the defensive formation, typically opposite a receiver to be able to cover them. Safeties line up between the cornerbacks but farther back in the secondary. Safeties tend to be viewed as "the last line of defense" and are responsible for stopping deep passing plays as well as breakout running plays. The special teams unit

10165-473: The site on the Vanderbilt University campus. American football American football , referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football , is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense , the team with possession of the oval-shaped football , attempts to advance down

10272-642: The sponsor. The Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF) All-America team is selected by the head coaches and sports information directors of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision schools and certified by UHY Advisors, a New Haven-based accounting firm. Walter Camp, "The Father of American Football", first selected an All-America team in 1889. The WCF claims an 80% participation rate in the voting for its All-America team. Sporting News , formerly known as The Sporting News and known colloquially as TSN , have teams college football editors and staff select teams, which they have been doing since 1934. From that year through

10379-411: The width of the field, are marked every 5 yards (4.6 m). A one-yard-wide line is placed at each end of the field; this line is marked at the center of the two-yard line in professional play and at the three-yard line in college play. Numerals that display the distance from the closest goal line in yards are placed on both sides of the field every ten yards. Goalposts are located at the center of

10486-408: The winning team decides to defer, the losing team chooses the option the winning team did not select—to receive, kick, or select a goal to defend to begin the second half. Most teams choose to receive or defer, because choosing to kick the ball to start the game allows the other team to choose which goal to defend. Teams switch goals following the first and third quarters. If a down is in progress when

10593-559: The years but it is now under its own banner, the AFCA. These are the sponsors/publishers of the team throughout the years. 1945–1947 : Published in Saturday Evening Post 1948–1956 : Published in Collier's 1957–1959 : General Mills 1960–1993 : Eastman Kodak 1994 : Schooner's International 1995–1996 : AFCA 1997–1999 : Burger King 2000–present : AFCA The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) Team,

10700-408: The young league. The bidding war for players ended in 1966 when NFL owners approached the AFL regarding a merger, and the two leagues agreed on one that took full effect in 1970. This agreement provided for a common draft that would take place each year, and it instituted an annual World Championship game to be played between the champions of each league. This championship game began play at the end of

10807-543: Was an elusive runner who reportedly "only needed the suspicion of an opening to wriggle through, and once into the open — zip, flash and a touchdown." Curry also played center field on the baseball team and would pole vault , hurdle , and broad jump for the track team. He was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity and the Delta Sigma Delta medical fraternity. As a junior in 1915, Curry led Vanderbilt to

10914-504: Was described as "the player who has most appealed to the imagination, admiration, and affection of the entire university community through the years." Curry was born on August 4, 1894, in Marlin, Texas , to his parents, Oscar E. Curry (1869–1964) and Emma C. (Fannin) Curry (1872–1963). He attended Marlin High School , where he was a stand-out athlete. In 1912, he was the Texas state champion in

11021-418: Was initially minimal due to the restrictions placed on its use. The idea of a 40-yard-wider field was opposed by Harvard due to the size of the new Harvard Stadium . Other rule changes introduced that year included the reduction of playing time from 70 to 60 minutes and an increase of the distance required for a first down from 5 to 10 yards (4.6 to 9.1 m). To reduce infighting and dirty play between teams,

11128-440: Was necessary to prevent this strategy from taking hold, and a reversion to the scrum was considered. However, Camp successfully proposed a rule in 1882 that limited each team to three downs , or tackles, to advance the ball 5 yards (4.6 m). Failure to advance the ball the required distance within those three downs would result in control of the ball being forfeited to the other team. This change effectively made American football

11235-542: Was profitable, but it tended to prevent the two top-ranked teams from meeting in a true national championship game, as they would normally be committed to the bowl games of their respective conferences. Several systems have been used since 1992 to determine a national champion of college football. The first was the Bowl Coalition , in place from 1992 to 1994. This was replaced in 1995 by the Bowl Alliance , which gave way to

11342-625: Was survived by his wife, Dimple Jenna Rush. Curry's remains were initially buried at Atz, France, but were subsequently removed to a military cemetery at Château-Thierry. In August 1921, Curry's remains were removed and reburied in a cemetery in his hometown of Marlin, Texas . Floral tributes, telegrams and tributes from hundreds of Vanderbilt alumni, athletes and officials were sent to the funeral. For many years after Curry's death, Vanderbilt's football coach Dan McGugin had three photographs displayed over his desk. The three pictures were of Abraham Lincoln , Robert E. Lee and Curry. When McGugin took

11449-431: Was the feature of the game." Curry had runs of 61, 40 and 11 yards against Virginia, scored a touchdown and kicked three goals from touchdown. At the end of the 1916 season, Curry was selected as an All-Southern quarterback and as a third-team All-American by Walter Camp for Collier's Weekly . Curry was honored as Bachelor of Ugliness . Curry would have graduated with Vanderbilt's Class of 1918, but he enlisted in

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