So I was recently thinking about a popular American institution, and how it’s evolved over the years. Most of us aren’t all that familiar with the history, but football is the most popular sport and one of the most popular forms of entertainment in our country. I just thought it would be interesting to look at what the rules used to be.
Walter Camp is looked as the father of American football, and he borrowed from historically European sports; Rugby and Soccer. Most of us would agree he improved on the foundation of those two sports. The rules were first documented in 1876. In 1882 Camp also introduced the system of downs. After first allowing three attempts to advance the ball five yards, in 1906 the distance was changed to ten yards. The fourth down was added in 1912. The game was so brutal that many colleges banned the game. Reportedly, there were nearly 180 serious injuries and 18th deaths. In 1905 President Theodore Roosevelt called upon Harvard, Princeton and Yale to save the sport. The schools met and reform was agreed upon. A second meeting, attended by more than 60 other schools formed the NCAA. This committee also came to legalize the forward pass, which lead to a redesign of the ball. Locking arms by teammates, in effort to “clear” the field was banned. The length of the game was shortened, and the neutral zone was established.
Football players didn’t start wearing helmets until they began to don leather helmets in 1893, but the NFL didn’t require helmets until the 1940’s. The face mask was recommended for players by the NFL in 1955.
The NFL merged with another professional football league, the AFL, in 1970. The league has expanded, like the other major professional sports. Did you know the NFL started with eight teams? There are now 32 teams. Teams have relocated, some have folded. They’ve changed the length of the season, and they’re considering doing so again in the near future. The league has restructured its post season numerous times.
When they realized technology could help the officials, they adapted instant replay (1986). They dropped instant replay because the majority of owners and coaches felt it didn’t improve the game (1992). Then over time, as technology has advanced, the use of instant replay was reinstituted and its use has grown (1999).
The very basics of the game have changed over the years, including the field and the scoring system. Did you know a touchdown was originally worth four points, and a field coal was worth five? They moved the field goal posts to the back of the end zone, as it proved to be too dangerous where it stood previously.
Rules have continued to change, to the dismay of many, but in large part, they’ve done so to protect their investment (see: quarterbacks). There’s also been a need to adapt the rules, as players have become bigger, stronger and faster.
The financial setup has changed over time. Until the 1960’s, the majority of profits were made from the gate revenue, generated by selling game tickets. At one time, owners feared that airing the games on television for free was a threat, and fans would stay home instead of heading out to the stadium. In 1961, Commissioner Pete Rozelle convinced the owners as well as Congress, that a revenue-sharing system would best serve the league. The salary cap wasn’t instituted over 30 years later, in 1994.
Look at how much the game has changed in over 140 years. It’s remarkable, and inspiring. The game wouldn’t have survived without changing the rules. Now it’s the most popular sport in America, by far. The league’s next television deal is worth nearly $5 billion a year. All because the league allowed itself to evolve, and didn’t allow itself to be stuck with a set of rules, that worked for a time, but couldn’t work over the long haul.
Brilliant, right? Wonder if we could learn anything here.
February 15, 2012
April 19, 2011
Hirpolitical
I never meant to take this blog in such a political direction. I’ve always enjoyed arguing about politics, but that’s probably because I just like to argue anyway. I’m trying to take this back to concentrating on pop culture as well as some personal experiences and thoughts, but it’s a process. So if you’re not interested in my ranting on politics, it won’t offend me if you surf off to another site. But please come back soon.
Okay, so there’s still all these “birthers” out there. These people drive me nuts. They claim that President Obama hasn’t proven that he was born in America, which he has. I don’t want to get into all the proof; instead I think I’ll just make fun of them. If not seeing Obama’s original birth certificate is reason to doubt that he’s a natural born American citizen, here are some beliefs that make complete sense, using the same logic:
You haven’t see Obama’s penis, you’re free to doubt that he’s in fact a man.
You haven’t seen Glenn Beck have sex with his wife, so it’s okay to doubt that he’s straight.
There’s no birth certificate on file for a Jesus Christ, or a Jesus H. Christ. So it makes sense to doubt his existence.
I’ve never seen Donald Trump work, so I doubt he’s earned his money legally.
We didn’t see any signed documents by Osama Bin Laden, signing off on 9/11, so I’m not crazy to doubt he planned it.
**
I’ve been involved in political conversations with conservatives, and from time to time, I’ve referenced something said by Bill Maher, Jon Stewart, Stephan Colbert or Lewis Black. Then been teased for listening to comedians. Okay, if that’s a valid dig, what does it say about those who listen to Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity? Let’s go to the tale of the tape:
Maher, Stewart, Colbert and Black have degrees from Cornell, William & Mary, Northwestern and Yale. None of the four have been divorced, and as far as I know, none of them have been addicted to drugs. Take Beck, Limbaugh and Hannity and you have what? Zero degrees, seven marriages and two confirmed drug addictions. So if I’m wrong for listening to some educated guys who make me laugh, while sharing their often on point opinion, that’s fine.
Okay, so there’s still all these “birthers” out there. These people drive me nuts. They claim that President Obama hasn’t proven that he was born in America, which he has. I don’t want to get into all the proof; instead I think I’ll just make fun of them. If not seeing Obama’s original birth certificate is reason to doubt that he’s a natural born American citizen, here are some beliefs that make complete sense, using the same logic:
You haven’t see Obama’s penis, you’re free to doubt that he’s in fact a man.
You haven’t seen Glenn Beck have sex with his wife, so it’s okay to doubt that he’s straight.
There’s no birth certificate on file for a Jesus Christ, or a Jesus H. Christ. So it makes sense to doubt his existence.
I’ve never seen Donald Trump work, so I doubt he’s earned his money legally.
We didn’t see any signed documents by Osama Bin Laden, signing off on 9/11, so I’m not crazy to doubt he planned it.
**
I’ve been involved in political conversations with conservatives, and from time to time, I’ve referenced something said by Bill Maher, Jon Stewart, Stephan Colbert or Lewis Black. Then been teased for listening to comedians. Okay, if that’s a valid dig, what does it say about those who listen to Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity? Let’s go to the tale of the tape:
Maher, Stewart, Colbert and Black have degrees from Cornell, William & Mary, Northwestern and Yale. None of the four have been divorced, and as far as I know, none of them have been addicted to drugs. Take Beck, Limbaugh and Hannity and you have what? Zero degrees, seven marriages and two confirmed drug addictions. So if I’m wrong for listening to some educated guys who make me laugh, while sharing their often on point opinion, that’s fine.
April 12, 2011
Swingers 2k11
I simply love the movie, Swingers. Yeah, I really had to say movie there, because just saying “I love Swingers” would be a completely different and false statement, which would get me in loads of trouble at home. That said, I was recently thinking about how different that movie would be if it took place in 2011. A lot has changed since 1996.
Here are a few things that I think would be different:
Mikey wouldn’t just vent to Rob about his ex, he’d blog about the pain.
When the Mike and Trent are closing in on Vegas, rather right after uttering, “Vegas baby, Vegas” Trent would Tweet, “Vegas, Baby, Vegas. #Vegas!”
The guys wouldn’t play blackjack in Vegas, opting for poker instead. “Always raise with aces. Always, baby.”
Each time the guys hit a new bar or party, they’d get out their iPhones and check in on Foursquare.
Mikey would check his ex-girlfriend’s Facebook page for updates, and find out about the lawn jockey from a profile update.
Mikey wouldn’t have left five drawn out messages on that girl Nikki’s answering machine; he would have sent her 15 text messages.
Mike wouldn’t pine over his ex, by looking at a shoebox full of old photos, instead looking at an old Myspace page.
Instead of meeting up at Sue’s pad to play Sega before heading out, they’d play “Call of Duty” online from the comfort of their own homes.
Instead of auditioning for sitcoms, the guys would be trying out for reality television shows. Rob’s big news wouldn’t be a Pluto call back, but a Real World call back.
After leaving the diner, Trent would tweet where they were and, “I would never eat there. #Imthebadguy”
There would be no going home to check messages, since no one would have a home phone, just cell phones. Mikey would constantly be checking his phone for missed calls and reporting how many bar’s he has.
Instead of arguing how long Mikey should wait to call a girl, the debate would center on the proper waiting time before sending a friend request on Facebook.
When Mike meets Lorraine, and she asks for his number, she’d also ask for his email address and someone would say “I’ll Facebook you.” His card would also have his URL, which would contain an image of the duck head from “You Bet Your Life.”
Thankfully, Swingers came out at the perfect time. So money, baby.
Here are a few things that I think would be different:
Mikey wouldn’t just vent to Rob about his ex, he’d blog about the pain.
When the Mike and Trent are closing in on Vegas, rather right after uttering, “Vegas baby, Vegas” Trent would Tweet, “Vegas, Baby, Vegas. #Vegas!”
The guys wouldn’t play blackjack in Vegas, opting for poker instead. “Always raise with aces. Always, baby.”
Each time the guys hit a new bar or party, they’d get out their iPhones and check in on Foursquare.
Mikey would check his ex-girlfriend’s Facebook page for updates, and find out about the lawn jockey from a profile update.
Mikey wouldn’t have left five drawn out messages on that girl Nikki’s answering machine; he would have sent her 15 text messages.
Mike wouldn’t pine over his ex, by looking at a shoebox full of old photos, instead looking at an old Myspace page.
Instead of meeting up at Sue’s pad to play Sega before heading out, they’d play “Call of Duty” online from the comfort of their own homes.
Instead of auditioning for sitcoms, the guys would be trying out for reality television shows. Rob’s big news wouldn’t be a Pluto call back, but a Real World call back.
After leaving the diner, Trent would tweet where they were and, “I would never eat there. #Imthebadguy”
There would be no going home to check messages, since no one would have a home phone, just cell phones. Mikey would constantly be checking his phone for missed calls and reporting how many bar’s he has.
Instead of arguing how long Mikey should wait to call a girl, the debate would center on the proper waiting time before sending a friend request on Facebook.
When Mike meets Lorraine, and she asks for his number, she’d also ask for his email address and someone would say “I’ll Facebook you.” His card would also have his URL, which would contain an image of the duck head from “You Bet Your Life.”
Thankfully, Swingers came out at the perfect time. So money, baby.
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