College football is one of the most popular sports in the United States, and it has a rich and long history. The rules of American Football are thought to originate from games played between colleges, which evolved to become the sport we know today.
From humble beginnings, where the first game was watched by approximately 100 people, college football has grown to attract as many as 100,000 spectators to a single game. Today, the College Football Playoff is one of the biggest competitions in college football and has a huge number of teams vying to win. The Clemson Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide are two of the favorites for the title, according to Oddschecker.
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First Game
The first football game was played on November 6, 1869 between Rutgers and New Jersey (now known as Princeton) at a field in New Brunswick. Although it had many similarities to the American football we know today, it had significantly different rules. First, each team had 25 players, and the aim of the game was to kick the ball into the goal of the other team, similar to the rules of soccer. Unlike soccer though, players could use their hands to bat the ball, but throwing or carrying it was against the rules. The first game ended with a 6-4 victory by Rutgers, although New Jersey beat them 8-0 in a rematch the following week.
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Photo by Ashton Clark[/credit]
Rule Development
Rule changes happened regularly following these two matches, as officials tried to find a balance between offense and defense to make the games fairer and more exciting. This saw the number of players reduced to 20 in 1873, 15 in 1876 and the 11 player rule we know now was set way back in 1880. The size of the field was later reduced down from 120 yards to 100 yards. The games in 1869 was played with a round ball, but the oval ball was introduced shortly afterwards, with it being reduced in size from 23 inches to 20.25 inches. Changes to the points system were made too, with early games awarding two points to a touchdown and five to a field goal.
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Safety
In the early 20th century, the game had become brutally rough, resulting in many injuries and even deaths. Colleges had therefore begun to consider dropping football even though it was popular. Instead, Theodore Roosevelt forced officials to make changes to the rules to improve safety. This led to a number of rougher practices being banned, and the legalizing of the forward pass.
In the best part of two centuries, American football has been refined by the colleges of the United States creating one of the most popular sports in the country, and with it a multi billion dollar industry.
