1.
Barry Sanders (professor)
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Barry Sanders Ph. D. is a non-fiction author, eccentric academic, and college professor. Sanders was a professor at Pitzer College, member of the Claremont Colleges in Southern California and he currently teaches at Pacific Northwest College of Art, and is a contributing editor at the North American Review. Sanders received an MS from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1960, and he earned a doctorate in Medieval literature from USC in 1966. Sanders joined the faculty at Southern Illinois University, and helped start a radical newspaper to protest the war in Vietnam. He received death threats and a request from administrators to take his talents elsewhere, a stint at Valley State College in California ended the same way, Sanders was fired in 1971 not long after being arrested at an anti-war protest along with 200 students. In 1972 he started teaching at Pitzer College in Claremont, and was a professor in the departments of Literature and he was the first to hold the Peter S. and Gloria Gold Chair at Pitzer, and retired from the college in 2005. In 2005 Sanders won an appointment as Senior Fulbright Scholar. He has recently featured on WNYCs Radiolab program, and is a contributing editor of North American Review. Sanders currently teaches at Pacific Northwest College of Art in the Pearl District of Portland and he is Founding Co-chair of the MA in Critical Theory and Creative Research at the PNCA Hallie Ford School of Graduate Studies and the Ford Institute for Visual Education. His projects increasingly occur at the intersection of art and activism, Barry Sanders is the author and co-author of fourteen books and over fifty essays and articles, has twice been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, and twice a finalist for the Oregon Book Award. The Private Death of Public Discourse — thesis is that public discourse is possible only if there is the necessary corollary of truly introspective quest for meaning. In 1994 Sanders received his first nomination for a Pulitzer Prize from Random House for his book A is For Ox, Violence, Electronic Media, the Sacred Paw, The Bear in Nature, Myth, and Literature — co-author Paul Shepard. ABC, The Alphabetization of the Popular Mind — co-author Ivan Illich, alienable Rights, The Exclusion of African Americans in a White Mans Land, 1619–2000, co-author Francis D. Adams. The Detroit Free Press named it a Notable Book of the Year, the TNB Self-Interview, Barry Sanders Youtube. com, Barry Sanders, The Subversive Humor of Lenny Bruce
2.
Running back
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A running back is an American and Canadian football position, a member of the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a play, to catch passes from out of the backfield. There are usually one or two running backs on the field for a play, depending on the offensive formation. A running back may be a halfback or a fullback, a running back will sometimes be called a feature back if he is the teams starting running back. The halfback or tailback position is responsible for carrying the ball on the majority of running plays, in the modern game, an effective halfback must have a blend of both quickness and agility as a runner, as well as sure hands and good vision up-field as a receiver. Quarterbacks depend on halfbacks as a safety valve receiver when primary targets downfield are covered or when they are under pressure, occasionally, halfbacks line up as additional wide receivers. As a trick play, running backs are used to pass the ball on a halfback option play or halfback pass. The difference between halfback and tailback is the position of the player in the offensive formation. In historical formations, the lined up approximately halfway between the line of scrimmage and the fullback. Because the halfback is usually the main ball carrier, modern offensive formations have positioned the halfback behind the fullback. As a result, some systems or playbooks will call for a tailback as opposed to a halfback, in most modern college and professional football schemes, fullbacks carry the ball infrequently, instead using their stronger physiques as primary lead blockers. On most running plays, the leads the halfback, attempting to block potential tacklers before they reach the ball carrier. When fullbacks are called upon to carry the ball, the situation calls for gaining a short amount of yardage. Fullbacks are technically running backs, but today the term running back is used in referring to the halfback or tailback. Although modern fullbacks are rarely used as carriers, in previous offensive schemes fullbacks would be the designated ball carriers. In high school football, where player sizes vary greatly, fullbacks are still used as ball carriers. In high school and college offenses, the triple option uses the fullback as a primary ball carrier. The fullback plays a role by establishing an inside running threat on every play
3.
Wichita, Kansas
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Wichita is the largest city in the state of Kansas and the 48th-largest city in the United States. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County, as of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 382,368, as of 2014, it was estimated to have increased to 389,965. In 2015, the population of the Wichita metropolitan area was 644,610. The city began as a trading post on the Chisholm Trail in the 1860s and it subsequently became a key destination for cattle drives traveling north from Texas to access railroads, earning it the nickname Cowtown. In the 1920s and 1930s, businessmen and aeronautical engineers established a number of aircraft manufacturing companies in Wichita including Beechcraft, Cessna. The city transformed into a hub of U. S. aircraft production, in 1937, the city of Wichita established their official flag. As an industrial hub and the largest city in the state, Wichita is a center of culture, media. It hosts several museums, theatres, parks, and entertainment venues. Several universities are located in the city including Wichita State University, the citys daily newspaper, The Wichita Eagle, has the highest circulation of any newspaper in Kansas, and the Wichita broadcast television market includes the western two-thirds of the state. Wichita is also home to the Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center and Kansass largest airport, archaeological evidence indicates human habitation near the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas Rivers, the site of present-day Wichita, as early as 3000 B. C. In 1541, a Spanish expedition led by explorer Francisco Vázquez de Coronado found the area populated by the Quivira, or Wichita, conflict with the Osage in the 1750s drove the Wichita further south. Prior to American settlement of the region, the site was located in the territory of the Kiowa, the Wichita returned in 1864 due to the American Civil War and established a settlement on the banks of the Little Arkansas. During this period, trader Jesse Chisholm established a trading post at the site, after the war, the Wichita permanently relocated south to Indian Territory. In 1868, trader James R. Mead established another trading post at the site, and surveyor Darius Munger built a house for use as a hotel, community center, Business opportunities attracted area hunters and traders, and a new settlement began to form. That summer, Mead and others organized the Wichita Town Company, in 1870, Munger and German immigrant William Dutch Bill Greiffenstein filed plats laying out the citys first streets. Wichita formally incorporated as a city on July 21,1870, Wichitas position on the Chisholm Trail made it a destination for cattle drives traveling north from Texas to access railroads which led to markets in eastern U. S. cities. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway reached the city in 1872, as a result, Wichita became a railhead for the cattle drives, earning it the nickname Cowtown. Across the Arkansas River, the town of Delano became an entertainment destination for cattlemen thanks to its saloons, brothels
4.
Wichita North High School
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Wichita North High School, known locally as North, is a fully accredited high school located in Wichita, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9-12. Wichita North is a member of the Kansas State High School Activities Association, Athletic teams compete in the 6A division and are known as the Redskins. Wichita North High School was the high school in the city of Wichita. Wichita East High School was the first high school, due to the high school being located by a river, North is one of the few high schools in the United States that teaches canoeing. During the spring, the students hold a water festival called Waterfest which is held right before Wichitas annual Riverfest. Unique landmarks in close proximity to North are Mead Island and the Minisa Bridge, increases in enrollment at North necessitated a number of additions to the building, an auto mechanics shop, girls gymnasium, and, in the fall of 1957 the three-story extension on the south wing. By 1972, thirteen annexes were in use, in 1975, North was allocated 1.7 million dollars from a bond issue. Dressing rooms and shower areas, and a number of projects in rooms adjacent to the new or remodeled facilities. The improvements and/or additions made it possible to all but three annex buildings. Acquisition of land across from the school in 1977,1980, several senior classes have donated funds each year to be used to purchase a marquee sign for the student parking lot. The marquee is used to highlight student activities and provide recognition for worthy accomplishments of students, during the summer of 1988, the cafeteria was relocated to the first floor and classrooms were constructed in the former cafeteria. The change was made to make additional classrooms available to accommodate ninth grade students who started high school as a part of the restructuring plan. 2013 saw the addition of a new gymnasium and pool located on the side of the building to replace the obsolete 1928 gymnasium which is still used for pep rallies today. Since about 1977, the boys would participate in a rowdy school spirit club known as the S Section. The S Section is known for making obscure cheers and rants during North Highs sporting events, each member would have a red and white long sleeve t-shirt with the words North High S Section on the front. The back would be the nickname as well as their graduation year. These would typically be worn by the members on days that pep rallies occurred, one of the famous pranks of North High students is to attempt to steal Butch. Butch is a head that is mounted in the main hallway across from the administrative offices
5.
Oklahoma State Cowboys football
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The Oklahoma State Cowboys football program represents Oklahoma State University–Stillwater in college football. The team is a member of the Big 12 Conference and competes at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level, the Cowboys are led by Mike Gundy, who is in his tenth year as head coach. Oklahoma State plays their games at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. The Oklahoma A&M Aggies played their first season of football in 1900 and joined their first conference for the start of the 1915 season, in 1925, the Oklahoma A&M program joined the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association. In 1928, the MVIAA split into the Big Six Conference, A&M was the only large school that joined the smaller MVC. Jim Lookabaugh led the Cowboys for eleven seasons, which included a 9–0 campaign, Lookabaugh was an OSU alum who lettered in multiple sports. In October 2016, Oklahoma State was retroactively awarded the 1945 National Championship by the American Football Coaches Association, Lookabaugh stepped down after the 1949 season, finishing his tenure with a mark of 58–41–6. From 1950 to 1954, Jennings B, whitworth coached at Oklahoma A&M, and compiled a 22–27–1 record, which included only one winning season, a 7–3 campaign in 1953. Whitworth departed A&M to accept the coaching position at Alabama following the 1954 season. Cliff Speegle took the reins of the Oklahoma A&M Cowboys, under Speegles tutelage, the Cowboys compiled a record of 36–42–3, which included three winning seasons from 1957 to 1959. The losing record, combined with an 0–8 mark against rival Oklahoma, in 1956, A&M announced it was joining what had become the Big Seven for the 1958–59 academic year. As part of a period, the Cowboys went independent for two years. On May 15,1957, Oklahoma A&M changed its name to Oklahoma State University and they officially became a part of the renamed Big Eight Conference in 1958. Longtime Bear Bryant assistant Phil Cutchin led Oklahoma State to its first win over Oklahoma in 20 years, Cutchin was replaced by the OSU administration eager to see a winning product on the field. Oklahoma State continued to struggle under head coach Floyd Gass, an OSU alum, during his tenure, he led the team to three straight losing seasons. Fan and administration support became increasingly hard to come by as the on-field production slipped, despite the lack of football success, Gass would serve in multiple capactities at OSU, including athletics director for several years after his resignation as football coach. The Cowboys were finally able to enjoy a winning season —their first in nine years—in 1974 under the leadership of head coach Dave Smith, however, Smith wouldnt stick around, as he departed for the head coaching position at SMU after just one season in Stillwater. Jim Stanley, a defensive coordinator at OSU, returned to Stillwater to become the head coach of the Cowboys in 1973
6.
Detroit Lions
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The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference North division. The team plays its games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit. Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and called the Portsmouth Spartans, despite success within the NFL, they could not survive in Portsmouth, then the NFLs smallest city. The team was purchased and relocated to Detroit for the 1934 season and they are one of four current teams and the only NFC team to have not yet played in the Super Bowl. Aside from a change to maroon in 1948 instituted by then head coach Bo McMillin. The design consists of silver helmets, silver pants, and either blue or white jerseys, the shade of blue used for Lions uniforms and logos is officially known as Honolulu blue, which is supposedly inspired by the color of the waves off the coast of Hawaii. The shade was chosen by Cy Huston in 1935, houston, the Lions first vice president and general manager, said of the choice, They had me looking at so many blues I am blue in the face, Huston said about the selection. But anyway, its the kind of blue, I am told, there have been minor changes to the uniform design throughout the years, such as changing the silver stripe patterns on the jersey sleeves, and changing the colors of the jersey numbers. White trim was added to the logo in 1970, in 1998, the team wore blue pants with their white jerseys along with grey socks but dropped that combination after the season. In 1999, the TV numbers on the sleeves were moved to the shoulders, in 1994, every NFL team wore throwback jerseys, and the Lions were similar to the jerseys used during their 1935 championship season. The helmets and pants were silver, the jerseys Honolulu blue with silver numbers. The team wore solid blue socks along with black shoes, the helmets also did not have a logo, as helmets were simple leather back then. The Lions also wore 50s-style jerseys during their traditional Thanksgiving Day games from 2001 to 2004 as the NFL encouraged teams to wear throwback jerseys on Thanksgiving Day, in 2003, the team added black trim to their logo and the jerseys. The face masks on the changed from blue to black with the introduction of the new color. Additionally, a home field jersey which makes black the dominant color was introduced in 2005. For 2008, the dropped the black alternate jerseys in favor of a throwback uniform to commemorate the franchises 75th anniversary. The throwback uniform became the teams permanent alternate jersey in 2009, the Lions officially unveiled new logo designs and uniforms on April 20,2009
7.
Pro Bowl
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The Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League. Between 2014 and 2016, the NFL experimented with an unconferenced format, the players were picked in a televised schoolyard pick prior to the game. Unlike most major leagues, which hold their all-star games roughly midway through their respective regular seasons. Between 1970 and 2009, it was held the weekend after the Super Bowl. Since 2010, the Pro Bowl has been played the weekend before the Super Bowl, Players from the two teams competing in the Super Bowl do not participate. Observers and commentators expressed their disfavor with the Pro Bowl in its current state and it draws lower TV ratings than its regular-season games, although the game draws similar ratings to other major all-star games, such as the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. However, the biggest concern of teams is to avoid injuries to the star players, the Associated Press wrote that players in the 2012 game were hitting each other as though they were having a pillow fight. Between 1980 and 2016, the game was played at Aloha Stadium in Hawaii, on June 1,2016, the NFL announced that they reached a multi-year deal to move the game to Orlando, Florida as part of the leagues ongoing efforts to make the game more relevant. For years, the game has suffered from lack of interest due to perceived low quality, the 2017 Pro Bowl will also mark a return to the AFC–NFC format. The first Pro All-Star Game, featuring the all-stars of the 1938 season, was played on January 15,1939 at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles. The NFL All-Star Game was played again in Los Angeles in 1940 and then in New York, although originally planned as an annual contest, the all-star game was discontinued after 1942 because of travel restrictions put in place during World War II. During the first five games, an all-star team would face that years league champion. The league champion won the first four games before the all-stars were victorious in the game of this early series. The concept of a game was not revived until June 1950. The game was sponsored by the Los Angeles Publishers Association and it was decided that the game would feature all-star teams from each of the leagues two conferences rather than the league champion versus all-star format which had been used previously. This was done to avoid confusion with the Chicago College All-Star Game, the teams would be led by the coach of each of the conference champions. The first 21 games of the series were played in Los Angeles, the site of the game was changed annually for each of the next seven years before the game was moved to Aloha Stadium in Halawa, Hawaii for 30 straight seasons from 1980 through 2009. With the new rule being that the teams do not include players from the teams that will be playing in the Super Bowl
8.
Heisman Trophy
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The Heisman Memorial Trophy, is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football in the United States whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work and it is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust in early December before the postseason bowl games. The award was created by the Downtown Athletic Club in 1935 to recognize the most valuable football player east of the Mississippi. After the death in October 1936 of the Clubs athletic director, John Heisman, Heisman had been active in college athletics as a football player, a head football, basketball, and baseball coach, and an athletic director. It is the oldest of several awards in college football, including the Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Award. The most recent winner of the Heisman Trophy is University of Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, the trophy itself, designed by sculptor Frank Eliscu, is modeled after Ed Smith, a leading player in 1934 for the now-defunct New York University football team. The trophy is made out of cast bronze, is 13.5 inches tall, Eliscu had asked Smith, his former George Washington High School classmate, to pose for a commissioned sculpture of a football player. Smith did not realize until 1982 that the sculpture had become the Heisman Trophy, the Downtown Athletic Club presented Smith with a Heisman Trophy of his own in 1985. From its inception in 1935, the statue was cast by Dieges & Clust in New York until 1980, for a time until at least 2008, the statues were cast by Roman Bronze Works in New York. There are 870 media voters,145 voters from each of six regions, according to Heisman. com there are currently 57 prior winners eligible to vote and, thus,57 potential votes. Fans, As the Premier Partner of the Heisman Trophy, Nissan has a vote, fan voting done through a survey collected by ESPN on NissanHeismanHouse. com. Each voter identifies three selections, ranking them in order, each first-place selection is awarded three points. Each second-place selection is awarded two points, each third-place selection is awarded one point. Voters must make three selections and cannot duplicate a selection, else the ballot is invalid and none of the selections count, the accounting firm Deloitte is responsible for the tabulation of votes, which has moved almost exclusively to online voting since 2007. Larry Kelley and Clint Frank of Yale were the first teammates to win the Heisman Trophy, nile Kinnick of Iowa was the only Heisman Trophy winner to have a stadium named after him. In 1972, the University of Iowa renamed its football complex Kinnick Stadium, Kinnick is also the only winner to die in military service of the United States, he went down piloting an F4F Wildcat from the deck of USS Lexington. His death in 1943 made him the first Heisman Trophy winner to die, Doc Blanchard was the first junior to win the Heisman Trophy when he led Army to the national title in 1945. Paul Hornung was the player to win the Heisman Trophy as a player for a losing team
9.
College Football All-America Team
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The College Football All-America Team is an honor given annually to the best American college football players at their respective positions. Camp took over the responsibility for picking the All-America team and was recognized as the selector in the early years of the 20th century. com. As of 2009, the National Collegiate Athletic Association recognizes the All-America teams selected by the AP, AFCA, FWAA, Sporting News, if three of these organizations select a player to their first team, he automatically receives the consensus honor. If a player is named an All-American by all five organizations, depending upon the distribution of first team honors at any given position, it is possible to be consensus with fewer than three first-team selections. The University of Notre Dame has produced the most unanimous All Americans of any program, there have been 2,868 players from 156 colleges and universities since 1889 who were selected to at least one All-American first team. It has selected an All-America team since 1925, the American Football Coaches Association has selected an All-America team every year since 1945. It is often referred to as the Coaches All-America Team, the Coaches’ All-America Team has been sponsored by various entities throughout the years but it is now under its own banner, the AFCA. These are the sponsors/publishers of the team throughout the years and it is sometimes referred to as the Writers All-America Team. The FWAA has selected an All-America team with the help of its members, the All-America team is selected by a committee of writers representing all conferences and regions of the NCAA. The Writers Team has been highlighted in various media forums, from 1946-70, Look published the FWAA team and brought players and selected writers to New York City for a celebration. During that 25-year period, the FWAA team was introduced on television shows by Bob Hope, Steve Allen, Perry Como. After Look folded, the FWAA started an association with NCAA Films. The team was part of ABC Televisions 1981 College Football Series, from 1983-90, the team was either on ABC or ESPN, and since 1991 has returned to the national spotlight on ABC. The corporate sponsor for the Writers team is AT&T, after years of Cingular being the sponsor. Walter Camp, The Father of American Football, first selected an All-America team in 1889, the WCF claims an 80% participation rate in the voting for its All-America team. Sporting News, formerly known as The Sporting News and known colloquially as TSN, have teams college football editors and staff select teams, from that year through the 1962 season TSNs All-America team was picked by a poll of sportswriters. Beginning in 1964 the team was selected by professional scouts and observers, the Sporting News cited the advent of two-platoon football as the need to go to that system. United Press International is a organization that selected players in a national poll of sportswriters
10.
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
11.
National Football League
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The National Football League is a professional American football league consisting of 32 teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference and the American Football Conference. The NFL is one of the four professional sports leagues in North America. The NFLs 17-week regular season runs from the week after Labor Day to the week after Christmas, with each team playing 16 games, the NFL was formed in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association before renaming itself the National Football League for the 1922 season. The NFL agreed to merge with the American Football League in 1966, and the first Super Bowl was held at the end of that season, the merger was completed in 1970. Today, the NFL has the highest average attendance of any sports league in the world and is the most popular sports league in the United States. S. The NFLs executive officer is the commissioner, who has authority in governing the league. The team with the most NFL championships is the Green Bay Packers with thirteen, the current NFL champions are the New England Patriots, who defeated the Atlanta Falcons 34–28 in Super Bowl LI. Another meeting held on September 17,1920 resulted in the renaming of the league to the American Professional Football Association, the league hired Jim Thorpe as its first president, and consisted of 14 teams. Only two of these teams, the Decatur Staleys and the Chicago Cardinals, remain, the first event occurred on September 26,1920 when the Rock Island Independents defeated the non-league St. Paul Ideals 48–0 at Douglas Park. On October 3,1920, the first full week of league play occurred, the following season resulted in the Chicago Staleys controversially winning the title over the Buffalo All-Americans. In 1922, the APFA changed its name to the National Football League, in 1932, the season ended with the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth Spartans tied for first in the league standings. This method had used since the leagues creation in 1920. The league quickly determined that a game between Chicago and Portsmouth was needed to decide the leagues champion. Playing with altered rules to accommodate the playing field, the Bears won the game 9–0. Fan interest in the de facto championship game led the NFL, beginning in 1933, the 1934 season also marked the first of 12 seasons in which African Americans were absent from the league. The de facto ban was rescinded in 1946, following public pressure, the NFL was always the foremost professional football league in the United States, it nevertheless faced a large number of rival professional leagues through the 1930s and 1940s. Rival leagues included at least three separate American Football Leagues and the All-America Football Conference, on top of regional leagues of varying caliber. Three NFL teams trace their histories to these leagues, including the Los Angeles Rams
12.
NFL Network
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Dedicated to American football, the network features game telecasts from the NFL, as well as NFL-related content including analysis programs, specials and documentaries. The network is headquartered in the Los Angeles suburb of Culver City, California, as of February 2015, NFL Network is available to approximately 71,867,000 households that subscribe to a cable, satellite and telco television service in the United States. NFL Network was launched on November 4,2003, only eight months after the owners of the leagues 32 teams voted unanimously to approve its formation, the league invested $100 million to fund the networks operations. As a result, much of the highlights and recaps feature NFL Films trademark style of slow motion game action, sounds of the game. Beginning with the 2006 season, the network began to broadcast eight regular season NFL games during Thursday prime time, in addition to live games, the network has provided coverage of the NFL Draft since 2006, its coverage competes with that provided by ESPN and ESPN2. At the 2008 NFL Draft, NFL Network unveiled a logo that was updated to match the revised NFL logo introduced around the same time. Unlike the updated logo for the league, the NFL Networks logo included subtle changes such as using a shade of blue. Prior to the 2012 season, the NFL Network aired live primetime games on Thursdays beginning in mid-November. Starting with the 2012 season, the network began televising one live Thursday night game each week from Weeks 2 through 15, Collinsworth won the Sports Emmy for best game analyst for his work on the NFL Network telecasts. Dick Vermeil replaced Collinsworth for two games in 2006, Marshall Faulk and Deion Sanders replaced Collinsworth when needed in 2007, the 2007 schedule began on November 22, with a game between the Indianapolis Colts and the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Gumbel and Collinsworth returned as the booth announcers, bob Papa, also the radio voice of the New York Giants on local sports talk station WFAN, announced the games starting in 2008. Former Detroit Lions general manager Matt Millen was named Collinsworths replacement at the same time, former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann joined Papa and Millen in the booth for the 2010-11 season. In May 2011, NFL Network announced that Brad Nessler and Mike Mayock would serve as the announcers for that seasons game broadcasts. In the 2014 season, CBS Sports took over the production of all of the games in the package, in 2016, NBC Sports also gained a portion of the package under a similar arrangement. NFL Network televises all 65 preseason games each August, some of the games air live on the network, however a majority of these contests air on a tape-delayed basis and use the local broadcast of one of the teams involved. NFL Network had occasionally presented its own preseason broadcasts as special editions of Thursday Night Football, NFL Network held the broadcast rights to the revived Arena Football League from 2010 to 2012. The NFL stated that unlike when the NFL last showed interest in arena football, broadcasters for the games included Kurt Warner, Tom Waddle, Paul Burmeister, Fran Charles, Charles Davis and Ari Wolfe. Starting with the 2010 season, the network obtained the broadcast rights to the Arena Football League, each Friday, the NFL Network aired a Game of the Week from the AFL through the leagues playoffs and culminating with the ArenaBowl
13.
Super Bowl
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The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the National Football League. The game is the culmination to a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. Normally, Roman numerals are used to each game, rather than the year in which it is held. For example, Super Bowl I was played on January 15,1967, the single exception to this rule is Super Bowl 50, which was played on February 7,2016, following the 2015 regular season. The next game, Super Bowl LII, scheduled for February 4,2018, the game was created as part of a merger agreement between the NFL and its then-rival league, the American Football League. It was agreed that the two champion teams would play in the AFL–NFL World Championship Game until the merger was to officially begin in 1970. After the merger, each league was redesignated as a conference, currently, the National Football Conference leads the league with 26 wins to 25 wins for the American Football Conference. The Pittsburgh Steelers have the most Super Bowl championship titles, with six, the New England Patriots have the most Super Bowl appearances, with nine. The day on which the Super Bowl is played, now considered by some as an unofficial American national holiday, is called Super Bowl Sunday and it is the second-largest day for U. S. food consumption, after Thanksgiving Day. In addition, the Super Bowl has frequently been the most-watched American television broadcast of the year, in 2015, Super Bowl XLIX became the most-watched American television program in history with an average audience of 114. The NFL restricts the use of its Super Bowl trademark, it is called the Big Game or other generic terms by non-sponsoring corporations. As a result, watching and discussing the broadcasts commercials has become a significant aspect of the event, for four decades after its 1920 inception, the NFL successfully fended off several rival leagues. However, in 1960, it encountered its most serious competitor when the American Football League was formed. The AFL vied heavily with the NFL for both players and fans, but by the middle of the decade the strain of competition led to merger talks between the two leagues. Prior to the 1966 season, the NFL and AFL reached an agreement that was to take effect for the 1970 season. As part of the merger, the champions of the two agreed to meet in a world championship game for professional American football until the merger was effected. A bowl game is a college football game. Exploiting the Rose Bowl Games popularity, post-season college football contests were created for Miami, New Orleans, and El Paso, Texas in 1935, by the time the first Super Bowl was played, the term bowl for any major American football game was well established
14.
College Football Hall of Fame
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The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation launched the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players, from 1995 to 2012, the Hall was located in South Bend, Indiana. It was connected to a center and situated in the citys renovated downtown district,2 miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. In August 2014, the College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience opened in downtown Atlanta, rutgers donated land near its football stadium, office space, and administrative support. In response, the Foundation moved its operations to New York City, when the New York Attorney Generals office began its own investigation, the foundation moved to Kings Mills, Ohio, where a building finally was constructed adjacent to Kings Island in 1978. The Hall opened with good attendance figures early on, but visitation dwindled dramatically as time went on, nearby Galbreath Field remained open as the home of Moeller High School football until 2003. A new building was opened in South Bend, Indiana on August 25,1995. Despite estimates that the South Bend location would more than 150,000 visitors a year, the Hall of Fame drew about 115,000 people the first year. In 2009, the National Football Foundation decided to move the College Football Hall of Fame to Atlanta, the possibility of moving the museum has been brought up in other cities, including Dallas, which had the financial backing of billionaire T. Boone Pickens. However, the National Football Foundation ultimately decided on Atlanta for the next site, the new $68.5 million museum opened on August 23,2014. It is located next to Centennial Olympic Park, which is near other attractions such as the Georgia Aquarium, the World of Coca-Cola, CNN Center, and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. The Hall of Fame is located near the Georgia Institute of Technology of the ACC, the new building broke ground on January 28,2013. Sections of the architecture are reminiscent of a football in shape, the facility is 94,256 square feet and contains approximately 50,000 square feet of exhibit and event space, interactive displays and a 45-yard indoor football field. Atlanta Hall Management operates the College Football Hall of Fame, as of 2017, there are 987 players and 214 coaches enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame, representing 306 schools. The National Football Foundation outlines specific criteria that may be used for evaluating a candidate for induction into the Hall of Fame. A player must have received major first team All-America recognition, a player becomes eligible for consideration 10 years after his last year of intercollegiate football played. Football achievements are considered first, but the record as a citizen is also weighed. Players must have played their last year of football within the last 50 years
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2,000-yard club
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The 2, 000-yard club is a group of seven National Football League running backs that have rushed for 2,000 or more yards in a season. These seven rushing seasons rank as the highest single-season rushing totals in NFL history, no running back has yet achieved this feat twice. The first 2, 000-yard season was recorded in 1973 by Buffalo Bills running back O. J, los Angeles Rams running back Eric Dickerson, who had broken the single-season rookie rushing record in 1983, recorded the second 2, 000-yard season in 1984. Dickerson rushed for 2,105 yards, the current NFL rushing record, detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders recorded the third 2, 000-yard season in 1997, rushing for 2,053 yards. At the age of 29, Sanders was the oldest back to surpass 2,000 yards. Sanders had opened the season with only 53 yards through two games, but ran for 100 yards or more in each of the last 14 games of the season and averaged 6.1 yards per carry during the season. In 1998 Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis became the player to rush for over 2,000 yards. Davis also recorded 21 rushing touchdowns in his 2, 000-yard season, Davis had reached the 1, 000-yard mark only seven games into the season. Baltimore Ravens running back Jamal Lewis surpassed 2,000 yards in the 2003 season,500 of these yards were recorded in two games against the Cleveland Browns, with Lewis rushing for a then-NFL record 295 yards in the first and recording 205 rushing yards in the second. Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson ran for 2,006 yards in 2009, averaging 5.6 yards per carry, and also recorded an NFL-record 2,509 yards from scrimmage. Peterson had torn two ligaments in his knee the previous year, making him the only player to have surpassed 2,000 yards after having reconstructive knee surgery the prior season. Archived from the original on March 5,2013, AP Offensive Player of the Year winners. Archived from the original on March 5,2013, National Football League 250 best American Football League and NFL rushing seasons
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Retired number
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Retiring the number of an athlete is an honor a team bestows upon a player, usually after the player has left the team, retires from the sport or dies. Once a number is retired, no player from the team may wear that number on their uniform, unless the player so-honored permits it, however. Such an honor may also be bestowed on players who had highly memorable careers, died prematurely under tragic circumstances, some sports that retire team numbers include baseball, cricket, ice hockey, basketball, American football and association football. Retired jerseys are referred to as hanging from the rafters as they are, literally. The first number retired by a team in a professional sport was that of hockey player Ace Bailey. Some teams have retired number 12 in honor of their fans. Similarly, the Sacramento Kings and Orlando Magic retired number 6 in honor of their fans, if a jersey is retired and an active player is still wearing it, the player is usually permitted to wear the number for his entire career as a player. If in the sport, managers and coaches wear uniform numbers, however, in some cases the player may elect to change their number. For instance, in 1987 the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League decided to retire jersey number 7 in honor of Phil Esposito, at the time #7 belonged to Ray Bourque, who was the Bruins captain and had become a star in his own right. On the night of the ceremony honoring Esposito, Bourque took to the ice wearing his normal jersey. He skated over to the Hall of Famer, took off the jersey, underneath was a jersey numbered 77, which would become as associated with Bourque as the 7 was with Esposito in Boston. Bourques new jersey number would eventually join Espositos in the rafters of TD Garden, in rare cases, a number may be retired because of the players endeavors in other fields. For example, former football star Gerald Fords number 48 was retired by the University of Michigan football squad by virtue of his future career as the 38th President of the United States. Teams also take out of circulation without formally retiring them. For example, the Pittsburgh Steelers have only retired two numbers, Ernie Stautners #70 and Joe Greenes #75. However, they have not reissued the numbers of several of their greatest players since they retired, and it is understood that no Steeler will ever wear them again. Similarly, with the exception of a pair of quarterbacks in the mid-1980s, additionally, after Peyton Manning was released by the Indianapolis Colts, owner Jim Irsay stated that no Colt will ever wear Mannings #18 again, though it was not officially retired. After his departure from the team in 2004, the Lakers removed Shaquille ONeals #34 from circulation, the Lakers had announced the intention to retire ONeals #34 officially, though, doing so on April 2,2013
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Pro Football Hall of Fame
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The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football. As of 2017, there are a total of 310 members of the Hall of Fame, groundbreaking for the building was held on August 11,1962. The original building contained just two rooms, and 19,000 square feet of interior space, in April 1970, ground was broken for the first of many expansions. This first expansion cost $620,000, and was completed in May 1971, the size was increased to 34,000 square feet by adding another room. The pro shop opened with this expansion and this was also an important milestone for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, as yearly attendance passed the 200,000 mark for the first time. In November 1977, work began on another project, costing US$1,200,000. It was completed in November 1978, enlarging the shop and research library. The total size of the hall was now 50,500 square feet, the building remained largely unchanged until July 1993. The Hall then announced yet another expansion, costing US$9,200,000 and this expansion was completed in October 1995. The buildings size was increased to 82,307 square feet, the most notable addition was the GameDay Stadium, which shows an NFL Films production on a 20-foot by 42-foot Cinemascope screen. Through 2017, all inductees except one, played part of their professional career in the NFL. For CFL stars, there is a parallel Canadian Football Hall of Fame, only one player, the Chicago Bears have the most Hall of Famers among the leagues franchises with 32 enshrinees. Enshrinees are selected by a 46-person committee, largely made up of media members, each city that has a current NFL team sends one representative from the local media to the committee. A city with more than one franchise sends a representative for each franchise, there are also 13 at-large delegates, and one representative from the Pro Football Writers Association. Except for the PFWA representative, who is appointed to a term, all other appointments are open-ended and terminated only by death, incapacitation, retirement. To be eligible for the process, a player or coach must have been retired for at least five years. Any other contributor such as an owner or executive can be voted in at any time. Fans may nominate any player, coach or contributor by simply writing to the Pro Football Hall of Fame via letter or email
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Emporia State University
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Emporia State University, often referred to as Emporia State or ESU, is a public university in Emporia, Kansas, United States, east of the Flint Hills. Established in March 1863 and originally known as the Kansas State Normal School, Emporia State is one of six public universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. Emporia States intercollegiate athletic teams are known as the Hornets with the exception of the womens teams, Emporia State competes in NCAA Division II and has been a member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association since 1991. Since joining the NCAA Division II in 1991, the Lady Hornets basketball team is the team to win a NCAA championship. The origins of the university back to 1861, when Kansas became a state. This was because as a provision was included in the Kansas Constitution for a state university, from 1861 to 1863 the question of where the university would be located—Lawrence, Manhattan or Emporia—was debated. In February 1863, Manhattan was made the location of the states land-grant college, leaving only Lawrence and Emporia as candidates. The fact that Lawrence had $10,000 plus interest donated by Amos Lawrence plus 40 acres to donate for the university had great weight with the legislature and Lawrence beat out Emporia by one vote. A few years later, on March 7,1863, the Kansas Legislature passed the act to establish the Kansas State Normal School. Although Emporia State was established in 1863, it was not until February 15,1865 that classes began, the first president of the Kansas Normal School, who was also the schools only teacher, Lyman Beecher Kellogg, taught nearly 20 students in the district school house. The schools first class graduated on June 28,1867, the year the first permanent building was completed, consisted of two women, Mary Jane Watson and Ellen Plumb. The two women were daughters of two persons in Kansas, the first being Judge Watson, a local judge. The United States had many Normal schools in the 19th century, in 1876, the Kansas Legislature passed the Miscellaneous appropriations bill of 1876. The end result was that Leavenworth Normal and Concordia Normal were closed so the funding for normal schools could be directed to Emporia. KSN branched out with locations in Pittsburg and Hays, Kansas, the western branch in Hays opened June 3,1902 and is today known as Fort Hays State University. The Pittsburg branch was opened as the Manual Training Auxiliary School in 1904, today it is Pittsburg State University. In February 1923, the name of the school was changed to the Kansas State Teachers College, in July 1974, the name was changed to Emporia Kansas State College. On April 21,1977, the college became Emporia State University, Dr. Michael Shonrock became Emporia States 16th president on January 3,2012
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University of Tulsa
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The University of Tulsa is a private university located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. The university is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. The university is renowned for its programs in law, English, computer science, natural sciences, psychology and its faculty includes prominent scholars, scientists, and writers, including Russian dissident poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko, political scientist Robert Donaldson and others. The campuss design is predominantly Collegiate Gothic, the university manages the Gilcrease Museum, which includes one of the largest collections of American Western art in the world, and in 2016, The Bob Dylan Archive was placed at the university. TUs athletic teams are known as the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. The Presbyterian School for Girls was founded in Muskogee, Indian Territory, in 1894, the young school expanded to become Henry Kendall College, named in honor of Reverend Henry Kendall, secretary of the Presbyterian Board of Home Missions. The first president was William A. Caldwell, who served a brief, Kendall College, while still in Muskogee, granted the first post-secondary degree in Oklahoma in June 1898. Under King, the college was moved from its location in downtown Muskogee to a larger campus on lands donated by Creek Nation Chief Pleasant Porter. The opening of the new campus coincided with the start of the tenure of the third president, over the next ten years, Evans oversaw the struggling schools growth. At the request of the administration, the Synod of Indian Territory assumed control as trustees, when the administration was approached by the comparatively smaller town of Tulsa and offered a chance to move, the decision was made to relocate. The Tulsa Commercial Club decided to bid for the college, Club members who packaged a bid in 1907 to move the college to Tulsa included, B. Betters, H. O. McClure, L. N. Butts, W. L. North, James H. Hall, stebbins, Rev. Charles W. Kerr, C. H. Nicholson. The offer included $100,000,20 acres of real estate, the school opened to thirty-five students in September 1907, two months before Oklahoma became a state. These first students attended classes at the First Presbyterian Church until permanent buildings could be erected on the new campus and this became the start of higher education in Tulsa. Kendall Hall, the first building of the new school, was completed in 1908 and was followed by two other buildings. All three buildings have since demolished, with Kendall the last to be razed in 1972. The bell that hung in the Kendall Building tower was saved and displayed in Bayless Plaza. In 1918, the Methodist Church proposed building a college in Tulsa, the proposed college was to be named McFarlin College
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Thurman Thomas
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Thurman Lee Thomas is a former American college and professional football player who was a running back who spent most of his National Football League career with the Buffalo Bills. Thomas was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007, Thomas was an important part of the Bills no-huddle offense that won four consecutive AFC championships. Thomas was born in Houston, Texas and he grew up playing football on the Missouri City Junior High School and Willowridge High School teams. During the 82-83 season at Willowridge High School, Thomas led the team to a Texas Class 4A State Title. Thomas attended college at Oklahoma State University where he was a teammate of running back Barry Sanders, at Oklahoma State, Thomas had 897 rushes for 4,595 yards,43 touchdowns,5,146 total yards, and 21 100-yard rushing games. He was also a Heisman Trophy candidate in his senior year and he was a first team selection on the College Football All-America Team in 1985 and 1987. Thomas led the Big Eight in rushing and scoring in 1985 and 1987 and was voted the conferences Offensive Player of the Year both seasons, Thurman Thomas starred as a sophomore in 1985 when he posted 1,553 yards rushing, fourth best in the country. Between his sophomore and junior seasons he suffered a tear to his ACL in his left knee and he bounced back his senior season, rushing for 1,613 yards and finishing third nationally in rushing. From 1984-87, Thomas carried the ball a remarkable 898 times for the Cowboys, in the 1987 Sun Bowl, Thomas ran for 157 yards and four touchdowns in the 35-33 comeback victory over West Virginia, keeping freshman Barry Sanders on the sidelines for the majority of the game. Thomas left OSU as the schools all-time leading rusher and his number 34 is one of only three jerseys retired at Oklahoma State, in 2008, Thomas was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame. A knee injury damaged Thomass certain first round pick status and caused him to slip into second round of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills, their first choice in the draft. Thomas is well known as part of the offense that included Jim Kelly and Andre Reed, Thomas was the AFC rushing leader in 1990,1991, and 1993. In the first three seasons of his career, Thomas had a total of 12 games with at least 100 yards rushing, the Bills won every one of those games. In 1989 and 1990, his total yards from scrimmage was 3,742. This was more than 200 yards better than any player in the NFL. Currently, he is 12th on the NFL all-time list for most rushing yards in a career, Thomas currently holds the all-time Buffalo Bills rushing record with 11,938 yards and the team record for yards from scrimmage with 16,279 over 12 years. He is also 4th overall in team scoring, overall, Thomas finished his 13 seasons with 12,074 rushing yards,472 receptions for 4,458 yards, and 88 touchdowns with 16,532 total yards from scrimmage. Thomas is the player in NFL history to lead the league in total yards from scrimmage for four consecutive seasons
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Tokyo
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Tokyo, officially Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan and one of its 47 prefectures. The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous area in the world. It is the seat of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese government, Tokyo is in the Kantō region on the southeastern side of the main island Honshu and includes the Izu Islands and Ogasawara Islands. Formerly known as Edo, it has been the de facto seat of government since 1603 when Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu made the city his headquarters. It officially became the capital after Emperor Meiji moved his seat to the city from the old capital of Kyoto in 1868, Tokyo Metropolis was formed in 1943 from the merger of the former Tokyo Prefecture and the city of Tokyo. The Tokyo metropolitan government administers the 23 Special Wards of Tokyo, the metropolitan government also administers 39 municipalities in the western part of the prefecture and the two outlying island chains. The population of the wards is over 9 million people. The prefecture is part of the worlds most populous metropolitan area with upwards of 37.8 million people, the city hosts 51 of the Fortune Global 500 companies, the highest number of any city in the world. Tokyo ranked third in the International Financial Centres Development IndexEdit, the city is also home to various television networks such as Fuji TV, Tokyo MX, TV Tokyo, TV Asahi, Nippon Television, NHK and the Tokyo Broadcasting System. Tokyo ranked first in the Global Economic Power Index and fourth in the Global Cities Index. The city is considered a world city – as listed by the GaWCs 2008 inventory – and in 2014. In 2015, Tokyo was named the Most Liveable City in the world by the magazine Monocle, the Michelin Guide has awarded Tokyo by far the most Michelin stars of any city in the world. Tokyo ranked first in the world in the Safe Cities Index, the 2016 edition of QS Best Student Cities ranked Tokyo as the 3rd-best city in the world to be a university student. Tokyo hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics, the 1979 G-7 summit, the 1986 G-7 summit, and the 1993 G-7 summit, and will host the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tokyo was originally known as Edo, which means estuary. During the early Meiji period, the city was also called Tōkei, some surviving official English documents use the spelling Tokei. However, this pronunciation is now obsolete, the name Tokyo was first suggested in 1813 in the book Kondō Hisaku, written by Satō Nobuhiro. When Ōkubo Toshimichi proposed the renaming to the government during the Meiji Restoration, according to Oda Kanshi, Tokyo was originally a small fishing village named Edo, in what was formerly part of the old Musashi Province. Edo was first fortified by the Edo clan, in the twelfth century
