1.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights football
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The Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represents Rutgers University in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association. The team was formerly a member of the American Athletic Conference, Rutgers joined the Big Ten Conference on July 1,2014. Rutgers plays its games at High Point Solutions Stadium, located on the universitys Piscataway. The team is coached by Chris Ash. The Rutgers University football program is considered to be one of the most historic programs in the country, in 1869, Rutgers defeated Princeton University by a score of 6–4 in what is considered to be the first ever intercollegiate football game. For this reason, Rutgers has been described as The Birthplace of College Football. The team currently holds a record of 641–622–42, giving Rutgers the 37th most victories among NCAA FBS programs. On November 6,1869, Rutgers and nearby neighbor Princeton competed in the first ever football game. The site for the contest was a plot of land where the College Avenue currently stands on Rutgers campus in New Brunswick. The structure of the game resembled more of a rugby-style contest instead of football, with players allowed to kick and bat the ball with their fists. At the time, Rutgers was referred to as the Queensmen, the Rutgers squad was captained by William J. Leggett and donned scarlet kerchiefs atop their heads in an effort to distinguish between the two teams. Rutgers would go on to win the contest by a score of 6 goals to 4, a week after the first game was held in New Brunswick, Rutgers would visit Princeton for a second matchup. This time, Princeton prevailed by a score of 8 goals to 0, Rutgers and Princeton had planned for a third game in the 1869 season, but the contest never took place due to fears that the games were interfering with the students studies. Thus, both schools would end the season with a record of 1-1, Rutgers first undefeated season was in 1876. From 1929 to 1975, Rutgers was a member of the Middle Three Conference, J. Wilder Tasker served as the head football coach of the Queensmen football program for seven seasons, from 1931 to 1937. Under his leadership, the Scarlet Knights compiled a record of 31–27–5, Tasker was replaced by Harvey Harman, who led the team from 1938 through the 1940s and into the 1950s. Harmans record at Rutgers stands at 33–26–1 in a total of 14 seasons, succeeding Tasker was John Stiegman, who compiled a record of 22–15 in four seasons. Starting in 1940, the champion received the Little Brass Cannon
2.
American football
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The offense must advance at least ten yards in four downs, or plays, or else they turn over the football to the opposing team, if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs. Points are primarily scored by advancing the ball into the teams end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponents goalposts for a field goal. The team with the most points at the end of a game wins, American football evolved in the United States, originating from the sports of association football and rugby football. The first game of American football was played on November 6,1869, during the latter half of the 1870s, colleges playing association football switched to the Rugby Union code, which allowed carrying the ball. American football as a whole is the most popular sport in the United States, Professional football and college football are the most popular forms of the game, with the other major levels being high school and youth football. As of 2012, nearly 1.1 million high school athletes and 70,000 college athletes play the sport in the United States annually, almost all of them men, in the United States, American football is referred to as football. The term football was established in the rulebook for the 1876 college football season. The terms gridiron or American football are favored in English-speaking countries where other codes of football are popular, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, American football evolved from the sports of association football and rugby football. What is considered to be the first American football game was played on November 6,1869 between Rutgers and Princeton, two college teams, the game was played between two teams of 25 players each and used a round ball that could not be picked up or carried. It could, however, be kicked or batted with the feet, hands, head or sides, Rutgers won the game 6 goals to 4. Collegiate play continued for years in which matches were played using the rules of the host school. Representatives of Yale, Columbia, Princeton and Rutgers met on October 19,1873 to create a set of rules for all schools to adhere to. Teams were set at 20 players each, and fields of 400 by 250 feet were specified, Harvard abstained from the conference, as they favored a rugby-style game that allowed running with the ball. An 1875 Harvard-Yale game played under rugby-style rules was observed by two impressed Princeton athletes and these players 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 play using a form of rugby union rules with a modified scoring system. These schools formed the Intercollegiate Football Association, although Yale did not join until 1879, the introduction of the snap resulted in unexpected consequences. Prior to the snap, the strategy had been to punt if a scrum resulted in bad field position, however, a group of Princeton players realized that, as the snap was uncontested, they now could hold the ball indefinitely to prevent their opponent from scoring. In 1881, both teams in a game between Yale-Princeton 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
3.
1911 college football season
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The 1911 NCAA football season was the last one before major reforms were made to the American game in 1912. In 1911, touchdowns were worth five points, the field was 110 yards in length, although no team finished the season unbeaten and untied, the United States Naval Academy finished with a record of 6 wins and 3 ties. Two of the ties were 0-0 games with the other major teams, Penn State. Other teams that finished the season unbeaten were Minnesota and Florida, Vanderbilt beat visiting Centre College 45-0, in its first four games, Vandy had outscored its opposition 164-0. Carlisle beat Lafayette 19-0 At Philadelphia, Penn State beat Pennsylvania, army beat Lehigh 20-0 Georgetown beat St. Johns College of Maryland, 20-0. Princeton beat Holy Cross 20-0 Minnesota won at Iowa 24-6, Carlisle won its 8th game, 16-0 over Penn. Michigan and Syracuse played to a 6-6 tie, Georgia beat Clemson three days later at Augusta, 22-0 Florida beat visiting Columbia College 9-0 in a Friday game. Carlisle handed Harvard its second loss, winning 18-15 Navy beat West Virginia 32-0. Army was scored upon for the first time in six games, Chicago beat Cornell 6-0 Vanderbilt beat Ole Miss 21-0. Georgia beat Georgia Tech 5-0 Harvard beat Dartmouth 5-3, Minnesota beat Illinois 11-0 Chicago beat Wisconsin 5-0 Michigan and Nebraska 6-6 tie Carlisle won at Johns Hopkins, 29-6 Harvard and Yale played to 0-0 tie. Kansas travels to Missouri for a 3–3 tie in what is considered the first homecoming game. More than 1,000 people gathered in downtown Lawrence, Kansas, on Wednesday, November 29, in Savannah, Georgia and Auburn played to a 0-0 tie. Penn State won at Pittsburgh 3-0, to finish the season 8-0-1, Carlisle closed its season with a 12-6 win at Brown. The last five-point American football touchdown was scored on January 1,1912, in a game played in Havana, mississippi A&M College defeated the Club Atletico de Cuba, 12-0. The following is a incomplete list of conference standings, The consensus All-America team included, Rushing yards leader, Jim Thorpe, Carlisle,899 Rushing avg. leader
4.
Giants Stadium
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Giants Stadium was a stadium located in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the Meadowlands Sports Complex. The venue was open from 1976 to 2010, and primarily hosted sporting events and concerts in its history, the maximum seating capacity was 80,242. The structure itself was 756 feet long,592 feet wide and 144 feet high from service level to the top of the bowl and 178 feet high to the top of the south tower. The volume of the stadium was 64,500,000 cubic feet,13,500 tons of structural steel were used in the building process and 29,200 tons of concrete were poured. It was owned and operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, in the early 1970s the New York Giants, who at the time were sharing Yankee Stadium with the New York Yankees baseball team, began looking for a home of their own. The Giants struck a deal with the fledgling New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority in 1971, the 1972 season was the Giants last full season in Yankee Stadium, as the ballpark was closed for a massive reconstruction following the end of the Yankees season. After spending two years in New Haven, the Giants would return to New York for one season in 1975 and shared Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens with the Yankees, New York Mets. The Giants finally moved into their new home on October 10,1976, eight years after Giants Stadium opened, it gained a second major tenant. The Jets lease at Shea Stadium had expired at the end of the 1983 season, the city of New York was unwilling to agree to his terms and Hess decided to move the Jets to the Meadowlands permanently. Their first game in Giants Stadium was on September 6,1984, the sharing of the stadium by both the Giants and Jets enabled it to break a record that had long been held by Chicagos Wrigley Field. Entering the 2003 season, its 28th, Giants Stadium had played host to 364 NFL games, the Giants season opening game with the St. Louis Rams tied the record, and the following week the Jets home opener against the Miami Dolphins broke it. Giants Stadium was closed following the 2009 NFL season following the construction of what is now MetLife Stadium in the parking lot. The stadiums final event was the January 3,2010 game featuring the Jets hosting the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday Night Football, a month after the game, demolition of the structure began and was completed on August 10,2010. Giants Stadium opened on October 10,1976, as 76,042 fans witnessed a loss by the Giants to the Dallas Cowboys, the Giants had played their first four games on the road that season. College football made its debut at Giants Stadium on October 23,1976, with Rutgers University defeating Columbia 47–0, the New York Giants played their season-opening home game in the stadium on September 18 of the 1977 season. The 1985 USFL championship game which turned out to be the last USFL game played was held at Giants Stadium. In the second week of the 2005 season, the New Orleans Saints used the stadium for a game against the Giants because of extensive damage to the Louisiana Superdome after Hurricane Katrina. One end zone was painted in Saints colors, Saints banners were hung on the walls around the sidelines, the game was rescheduled to a Monday night with a special start time of 7,30 PM EDT, preceding the other scheduled game on Monday Night Football
5.
High Point Solutions Stadium
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High Point Solutions Stadium is the football stadium at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey. It is located on the Busch Campus at Rutgers, and overlooks the Raritan River to the South, the stadium was opened as Rutgers Stadium on September 3,1994, when the Rutgers Scarlet Knights hosted the Kent State University Golden Flashes. It currently seats 52,454 spectators after a 2009 expansion, High Point Solutions Stadium underwent significant reconstruction from 2008 to 2009 to increase its capacity to 52,454. The stadium features two 5, 000-seat upper decks on each side of the field, as well as 968 loge. A two-story press box sits on the level of the West side of the stadium. Also located in the South end zone is the Brown Football Recruiting Pavilion and Welcome Center, the stadium also features light stanchions that allow for night games, a cannon for firing when Rutgers scores, concessions, and restrooms. Until 2004, the field maintained a grass surface, but has since replaced with Field Turf. From 1891 to 1938, the Rutgers football team played at Neilson Field on the College Avenue Campus in New Brunswick, with the aid of grants from the Works Progress Administration, and after three years of construction, the original Rutgers Stadium was completed in 1938. The first game in the new stadium was against Hampden-Sydney in front of a crowd of about 10,000 persons. Rutgers was victorious in the contest, defeating Hampden-Sydney 32–0, the stadium was dedicated on November 5,1938 in a game against Princeton. Rutgers would go on to win the game 20-18 and it was the first time Rutgers had defeated Princeton since the first ever intercollegiate football game in 1869. On September 27,1969, Rutgers and Princeton met for The Centennial Game at old Rutgers Stadium, Rutgers would win 29-0, their 10th win in 60 tries against the Tigers. The current stadium was built on the site of the original old Rutgers Stadium, the NJSEA financed the construction of the stadium via the issuance of bonds. The Scarlet Knights had previously played games at Giants Stadium, including the first college football game hosted at that venue. The new Rutgers Stadium was originally constructed to accommodate 41,500 fans at its capacity and was officially opened on September 3,1994. Light stanchions were integrated into the design so night games could be played, a two-story press box that fits 200 reporters was also constructed and is still in use today. A free-standing scoreboard was built near the end zone, which did not originally contain any seating areas. The original design of the stadium replicated the shape of a horseshoe, the Scarlet Knights were ranked #15 and the Louisville Cardinals #3 in the nation in the Associated Press poll at the time
6.
1869 New Jersey vs. Rutgers football game
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The 1869 New Jersey vs. Rutgers football game was a college football game between the College of New Jersey and the Rutgers Queensmen played on November 6,1869. The games rules were based on the London Football Associations early set of rules, part of the first season of college football ever played, the game took place on November 6,1869, at College Field in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Because the game was played at a Rutgers field, it was played under Rutgers rules. Rutgers won the game by a score of 6 runs to Princetons 4, the game was played in front of approximately 100 spectators. The teams played 10 games against each other, when a team scored one time, it counted as the end of the game, and the team with the most goals after play was completed was considered the winner. The game was played under a variation of the rules of the Football Association. As the first of the 10 games began, two players each of the teams positioned themselves near the opponents goal. This was presumably because the participants were hoping to score when the ball reached their territory on the field of play. On each team, there were eleven so-called fielders who were assigned to defend their own territorial area, there were 12 participants on each team that they named bulldogs who were the ones playing in the other teams territory. At some point early in the contest, the flying wedge play was first used as the team with the ball formed what is considered a wall-like formation and this flying wedge tactic was successful early on for Rutgers because of their perceived size disadvantage over Princeton. However, Princeton countered the tactic with a participant named J. E. Michael, Big Mike had broken up the Rutgers flying wedge play during the fourth game, and Princeton took advantage at that moment as they were able to tie the overall score at 2-2. A Rutgers player named Madison M. Ball, a veteran of the American Civil War, used his quickness. When the ball would enter Rutgers territory, Madison would get in front of it, Ball was able to successfully use that play to set up Dixon to score another goal which gave Rutgers a 4-2 games lead. Rutgers then allowed Princeton to score a goal as one of their players and it was blocked by a Rutgers player, but Princeton soon was able to take advantage to cut the lead down to 4-3. Princeton scored on their possession when they used a flying wedge play of their own led by Big Mike as they were able to march down the field to score to tie the game at 4. Rutgers captain John W. Leggett had a strategy for his team at this point and he suggested that the Rutgers team keep the ball low on the ground to counter the much taller players on Princetons team. This strategy appeared to work as Rutgers easily scored the two goals of the contest to win the first intercollegiate football game ever played 6-4. Princeton had more size which would normally be an advantage on a field with 50 total players, after the game, an eye witness named John W. Herbert said that he thought Rutgers was the smaller team, but that they had more speed than Princeton
