Portal:American football
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The American Football Portal
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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 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 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 the game are professional and college football, with the other major levels being high-school and youth football. , 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, 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 the rest of North America, Europe, Brazil, and Japan. (Full article...)
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Ralphie the Buffalo is the name of the live mascot of the University of Colorado Buffaloes. The current Ralphie – nicknamed Ember – is the sixth bison to fill the role since 1967. Ralphie is best known for running a horseshoe pattern around Folsom Field prior to each half of home football games. She begins each run as the public address announcer exclaims "Here comes Ralphie!" and typically leads the football team as they enter the playing field. She has frequently been named one of the best mascots in sports.
While commonly referred to as a buffalo, Ralphie is actually an American bison. Due to their smaller size, reduced strength, and less-aggressive temperament, female bison have always been chosen as Ralphie as opposed to males. She can reach speeds of 25 miles per hour, and it traditionally takes five handlers to guide her around the field. The team of approximately 15 "Ralphie Handlers" are student-athletes that earn varsity letters for their efforts. They spend more than 20 hours per week training, practicing, and caring for Ralphie, while rotating the privilege of running with her at the games. (Full article...)General images
- Image 2A football signed by the 1974 Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement class (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
- Image 3Walter Camp, the "Father of American Football", pictured here in 1878 as the captain of the Yale University football team (from History of American football)
- Image 5Sign at the old entrance to the Pro Football Hall of Fame (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
- Image 6Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium, originally built for the 1978 Commonwealth Games, pictured in 2005. (from Canadian football)
- Image 81902 football game between the University of Minnesota and the University of Michigan (from History of American football)
- Image 10An early American football team, from the turn of the twentieth century (from History of American football)
- Image 11Tom Davies of Pittsburgh runs against undefeated and unscored upon Georgia Tech in the 1918 game at Forbes Field (from History of American football)
- Image 12An arena football goalpost structure featuring the rebound nets on either side of the uprights. (from Arena football)
- Image 13Morgan Athletic Club (pictured c. 1900), predecessor of the Arizona Cardinals (from History of American football)
- Image 15Montreal Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo looks down field with the ball during the 93rd Grey Cup game at BC Place. (from Canadian football)
- Image 16A game between the Hamilton Tigers and the Ottawa Rough Riders, 1910 (from Canadian football)
- Image 17The Big Game between Stanford and California was played as rugby union from 1906 to 1914 (from History of American football)
- Image 18Original entrance to the Pro Football Hall of Fame (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
- Image 19A college football game between Colorado State University and the Air Force Academy (from History of American football)
- Image 20Diagram of a Canadian football field (from Canadian football)
- Image 21A Native American college football team (from History of American football)
- Image 221906 St. Louis Post-Dispatch photograph of Brad Robinson, who threw the first legal forward pass and was the sport's first triple threat (from History of American football)
- Image 23A game between the 4th Canadian Armoured Division Atoms and First Canadian Army Red and Blue Bombers, in Utrecht, Netherlands, October 1945 (from Canadian football)
- Image 25Colorado's first football team in 1890 (from History of American football)
- Image 26Inside the original structure in 2008 (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
- Image 27The Hall is made up of several sections with display of the inductees at its heart (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
- Image 28A moment of the second game between Tufts and Harvard at College Hill, October 1875 (from History of American football)
- Image 29Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium with the Hall of Fame in lower right (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
- Image 301897 Latrobe Athletic Association football team: The first entirely professional team to play an entire season. (from History of American football)
- Image 31Touchdown monument outside the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton, Ontario (from Canadian football)
- Image 32Lehigh Valley Steelhawks (gold jerseys with black accents) vs. Triangle Torch (black jerseys with red and yellow accents) play an American Indoor Football game at Dorton Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, March 25, 2016 (from Arena football)
- Image 33A modern down indicator box is mounted on a pole and is used to mark the current line of scrimmage. The number on the marker is changed using a dial. (from Canadian football)
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Richard Marvin Butkus (December 9, 1942 – October 5, 2023) was an American football linebacker, sports commentator, and actor. He played football for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) from 1965 to 1973. He was invited to eight Pro Bowls in nine seasons, named a first-team All-Pro five times, and was twice recognized by his peers as the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year. Butkus was renowned as a fierce tackler and for the relentless effort with which he played. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most intimidating linebackers in professional football history.
Butkus was born in Chicago and played his entire football career in his home state of Illinois, which began at Chicago Vocational High School. He was a linebacker and a center for the Illinois Fighting Illini. He was a twice consensus All-American, and he led the Illini to a Rose Bowl victory in 1963 and was deemed the most valuable player in the Big Ten Conference. Butkus was named college football's Lineman of the Year in 1964. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983. (Full article...)Calendar
Jan 8 | College Football National Championship: #1 Michigan vs #2 Washington | |
Jan 13-15 | NFL: Wild Cards | |
Jan 20-21 | NFL: Divisional games | |
Jan 28 | NFL: Conference games | |
Feb 4 | NFL: Pro Bowl Games | |
Feb 11 | NFL: Super Bowl LVIII | |
2023 season: NFL • NCAA FBS (Bowl games) |
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Selected quote
“ | I left Texas A&M because my school called me. Mama called, and when Mama calls, then you just have to come running. | ” |
— Bear Bryant On his deciding, after the 1957 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I-A football season, to resign as head coach of the Texas A&M University Aggies to assume the same position for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide, for whom he had been a wide receiver between 1931 and 1935 and whence he graduated in 1936 |
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Did you know...
- ...that while at the University of Miami, Devin Hester, pictured, became the first person in the university’s history to play in all three phases of American football?
- ...that in 1968, placekicker Garo Yepremian left his professional football career with the Detroit Lions to enlist in the United States Army?
- ...that during his senior season at the University of Pittsburgh, linebacker Hugh Green won the Walter Camp Award, the Maxwell Award, the Lombardi Award, and finished second in the Heisman Trophy balloting to running back George Rogers?
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