Harpaston: The History Of American Football

The History of American Football

Football, as well as rugby and soccer, is believed to have originated from an ancient Greek game known as Harpaston. Harpaston is mentioned quite frequently throughout classical literature, in which it is referred to as a “very rough and brutal” game. The rules of this ancient sport were simple: a team would be awarded points when a player would move the ball across the opposing team’s goal line by either kicking the ball, running with it across the goal line, or throwing it across the line to another player. The only objective of the other team was to stop the ball from crossing their line, by whatever means possible. There was no specific field length, no side line boundaries, no specified number of
players per team, only a highly entertaining lack of rules. Throughout this paper will be discussed the following topics; the early origins of the game, some of the founding fathers of the league, a summary of the standard equipment, the excitement of the Super Bowl, and what the NFL means to people today.
Though football’s ancient roots are in Harpaston, more modern versions of football are believed to have originated from England, and the actual beginning of American football is believed to begin with a surprisingly humorous story. It was during the 19th century in England when a soccer player, frustrated at using only his feet to manipulate the ball, decided to simply pick it up and run with it. Though this action was clearly against the rules of soccer, players and fans soon found this new form of “playing” soccer appealing, and thus, rugby was born. Rugby was spreading across the world faster than anyone would have guessed. People found the sport quite appealing due to the hard-hitting nature of the game, and as rugby gained popularity, it soon found its way to the United Sates. Almost as soon as it came into America, nearly all of the northeastern colleges began their own rugby programs. It was not long before Harvard University and Yale University met in Massachusetts in 1876 to formalize the rules to rugby that were similar to those in England. Though the colleges made the rules almost identical to the originals, there were some notable changes. For instance, rather than using a standard round ball, they decided to use a more, oval, egg shaped one, and the name was changed from rugby, to football. To finalize the meeting, an organization called the Intercollegiate Football Association (IFA) was created to direct the Americanized sport. Due to the lack of necessary rules and protective equipment, football became, for a time, a savage sport full of fights, brawling, even fatalities.
Knowing that this could not continue the direction it was heading, football players grudgingly accepted the wearing of protective equipment. Step-by-step, players braved being called sissies to wear pads of various types that in just a few years would be considered essential. The first of this protective gear was the hip, thigh, knee and shoulder pads, which were just thin layers of pliable foam. The final installment, and without a doubt the most important, was the helmet. George Barclay is the man credited for the invention of the first football helmet. He designed a headgear which had three thick leather straps forming a close fit around his head, made by a harness maker. It became known as a head harness. It slowly began to take more of the appearance we recognize today when around 1915 more padding and flaps were added, along with ear holes for better on-field
communication. The next innovation came in 1917, a design intended to "cradle" the skull away from the leather shell. Straps of fabric formed a pattern inside the helmet. They absorbed and distributed the impact better, and they allowed for ventilation. It was a breakthrough. They were first known as "ZH" or Zuppke helmets named after the Illinois coach who came up with the design. Rawlings and Spalding, two widely known athletic companies today, were some of the first manufacturers. The next breakthrough in helmet design came in 1939, when plastic was used. The single molded plastic shell was stronger, lighter, longer lasting, and didn't rot the way leather does when damp. Players and coaches took a like to this plastic helmet, and by 1949, the leather helmet was extinct. This helmet stayed for quite some time, and was upgraded as newer, stronger plastics were discovered. Today, helmets are made from an incredibly strong polycarbonate alloy, and shaped into nearly perfect spheres. These advancements, along with rules and players, have reduced the amount of serious injury to a much, much smaller number. Though it had its differences from the rules in England, football was still very similar to rugby. However, all of that changed over the course of three years starting in the 1880’s when Yale player Walter Camp convinced the IFA to make changes to many of the rules, which in turn created a game that is very similar to today’s NFL. For that, many consider Walter Camp to be the Father of modern day football. Throughout the 1800’s, college football continued to grow and develop in a league of its own until the start of the twentieth century, when professional teams began appearing. At that time, the only rules that governed football were those of the National College Athletic Association (NCAA), so naturally the rules of professional football followed those exact guidelines. The professional league slowly continued to grow, that when 1920 arrived, there were a total of 10 different professional teams spread across America. Organizers from each of the different teams decided to meet in Canton, Ohio to form the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which later became the National Football League (NFL). The NFL soon derived its own rules, though still very similar to those of the collegiate level, as football began to solidify itself as an all-American past time. From the time of the actual establishment of the National Football League, the public really took a liking to football. Games played by the more popular teams, such as the Chicago Bears against the Los Angeles Tigers or the New York Giants brought in record numbers of fans, mainly due to college stars and favorites, one of the more famous being Harold “Red” Grange. Soon into the NFL’s establishment, the league was divided into two separate divisions; the National Football League, more commonly referred to as the NFL, and the American Football League, or AFL. Though many other leagues tried to establish their own franchises, the AFL was the only one that actually held on, at least, for a while. Soon after the AFL’s establishment, the two leagues began to fight over the top star college players, television contracts, and other perks generated from football's popularity. However, more often than not the AFL was easily outdone by the NFL and its overpowering dominance, and soon, the American Football league would exist no longer. For all the great games and for all the rivals, if there is one thing that defines football and its fans, it would be the Super Bowl.
The Super Bowl was created as part of the merger agreement between the National Football League and its rival, the American Football League. The agreement was to combine the two leagues into one. One of the conditions of the AFL-NFL Merger was that the winners of each league would meet in a contest to determine the "world champion of football". At first, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle wanted to call the game "The Big One". However, during a discussion to figure out the details, AFL founder and Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt jokingly referred to game as a Super Bowl. Hunt thought of this name after seeing his children playing with a toy called a Super Ball. So it turns out, the name stuck, and that very ball that he saw his kids playing with is on display at the National Football Hall of Fame in Canton,
Ohio.
The first ever Super Bowl was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. It was a battle between the two best teams of the era; the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Packers were heavily favored by 14 points to win this game, and in the end defeated the Chiefs by 25, in a 35-10 victory. The Packers would go on to win the Super Bowl the following year as well, defeating the Oakland Raiders 33-13, led by their Hall of Fame quarterback, Bart Star. Along with America and the rest of the league, the Super Bowl continued to evolve into what we know today. Today, there are many more events that excite fans about Super Bowl rather than just football. Nearly half of the people that watch the Super Bowl watch it mainly for the commercials. People enjoy the singing and dancing of the pre-game show, the singing of the National Anthem, and the fact that every year there is at least one performing artist at half-time.
One of the top sports in America, football has come a long way from the barbaric sport with few rules that it began as. With the introduction of the television (which greatly increased football's accessibility to more parts of the United States) and the merger of the NFL and the AFL, football games became the most-watched television program. The ratings were as big as the profits, and to some people, football was just seen as a foolish sport with cocky, overpaid athletes, but to many, it’s more than just a game you watch on TV or listen to on the radio. For some, it’s more than just entertainment; it’s a time to relax, a time to reunite with friends and family from years past. It is a time to sit back and enjoy something that has been part of our nation’s history for over a century.
If change was how football began, it is change that has kept the sport's popularity high. Football was unlike any other sport introduced to America, and for that reason, it has become one of the most beloved sports of all time. Whether it’s the strange and uncanny origins of the game, the climax of excitement at the Super Bowl, or maybe just being able to come together to watch something great, everyone likes a little football.