1.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
2.
Gary, Indiana
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Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States,25 miles from downtown Chicago, Illinois. The population of Gary was 80,294 at the 2010 census, from the middle of the twentieth century to the present, Gary has experienced drastic population loss, falling by 55 percent from its peak of 178,320 in 1960. Gary is adjacent to the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and borders Lake Michigan, the city is known for its large steel mills, and for being the birthplace of The Jackson 5 music group. Gary, Indiana, was founded in 1906 by the United States Steel Corporation as the home for its new plant, the city was named after lawyer Elbert Henry Gary, who was the founding chairman of the United States Steel Corporation. Gary was the site of civil unrest in the Steel Strike of 1919, on October 4,1919, a riot broke out on Broadway, the main north-south street through downtown Gary, between striking steel workers and strike breakers brought in from outside. Three days later, Indiana governor James P. Goodrich declared martial law, shortly thereafter, over 4,000 federal troops under the command of Major General Leonard Wood arrived to restore order. The jobs offered by the industry provided Gary with very rapid growth. At that time,19. 3% of the population was classified as foreign-born, Gary was also becoming increasingly racially diverse, with 17. 8% of the population classified as black, and 3. 5% as Mexican. Garys fortunes have risen and fallen with those of the steel industry, the growth of the steel industry brought prosperity to the community. Broadway was known as a center for the region. Department stores and architecturally significant movie houses were built in the downtown area, in the 1960s, like many other American urban centers reliant on one particular industry, Gary entered a spiral of decline. Garys decline was brought on by the growing overseas competitiveness in the steel industry, the U. S. Steel Gary Works employed over 30,000 in 1970, declined to just 6,000 by 1990, and further declined to 5,100 in August of 2015. As the city declined, crime increased, rapid racial change occurred in Gary during the late 20th century. Non-whites were primarily restricted to live in the Midtown section just south of downtown, Gary had one of the nations first African-American mayors, Richard G. Hatcher, and hosted the ground-breaking 1972 National Black Political Convention. Since the 1930s, Gary had developed a reputation as a city due to rampant political corruption, racial violence & segregation, labor unrest. In the 1960s through the 1980s, surrounding localities such as Merrillville and Crown Point experienced rapid growth, including new homes. Owing to white flight, economic distress, and a perception of skyrocketing crime, many middle-class, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Gary had the highest percentage of African-Americans of U. S. cities with a population of 100,000 or more, 84%. This no longer applies to Gary since the population of the city has now fallen well below 100,000 residents, as of 2013, the Gary Department of Redevelopment has estimated that one-third of all homes in the city are unoccupied and/or abandoned
3.
American football positions
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In American football, each team has 11 players on the field at one time. The specific role that a player takes on the field is called his position, under the modern rules of American football, teams are allowed unlimited substitutions, that is, teams may change any number of players after any play. This has resulted in the development of three platoons of players, the offense, the defense, and the special teams, within those platoons, various specific positions exist depending on what each players main job is. In American football, the offense is the side in which the players have possession of the ball and it is their job to advance the ball towards the opponents end zone to score points. The backs and receivers are also known as skill position players or as eligible receivers. Offensive linemen are not usually eligible to advance the ball past the line of scrimmage during a play, the organization of the offense is strictly mandated by the rules, there must be at least seven players on the line of scrimmage and no more than four players behind it. The only players eligible to handle the ball during a play are the backs. The remaining players are considered ineligible, and may only block, within these strictures, however, creative coaches have developed a wide array of offensive formations to take advantage of different player skills and game situations. The following positions are standard in every game, though different teams will use different arrangements of them. The offensive line is responsible for blocking. The offensive line consists of, Center The center is the player who begins the play from scrimmage by snapping the ball to the quarterback. As the name suggests, the center usually plays in the middle of the offensive line, like all offensive linemen, the center has the responsibility to block defensive players. The center often also has the responsibility to call out blocking assignments, offensive guard Two guards line up directly on either side of the center. Like all interior linemen, their function is to block on both running and passing plays, in such cases, the guard is referred to as a pulling guard. Guards are typically shorter builds than tackles but taller than centers, offensive tackle Two tackles play outside of the guards. Their role is primarily to block on both running and passing plays, the area from one tackle to the other is an area of close line play in which blocks from behind, which are prohibited elsewhere on the field, are allowed. For a right-handed quarterback, the tackle is charged with protecting the quarterback from being hit from behind. Like a guard, the tackle may have to pull, on a running play, the six backs and receivers are those that line up outside or behind the offensive line
4.
College football
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It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. No minor league farm organizations exist in American football and it is in college football where a players performance directly impacts his chances of playing professional football. The best collegiate players will declare for the professional draft after 3 to 4 years of collegiate competition. Those not selected can still attempt to land an NFL roster spot as a free agent. Even after the emergence of the professional National Football League, college football remained extremely popular throughout the U. S, in many cases, college stadiums employ bench-style seating, as opposed to individual seats with backs and arm rests. This allows them to more fans in a given amount of space than the typical professional stadium. College athletes, unlike players in the NFL, are not permitted by the NCAA to be paid salaries, colleges are only allowed to provide non-monetary compensation such as athletic scholarships that provide for tuition, housing, and books. Modern North American football has its origins in various games, all known as football, by the 1840s, students at Rugby School were playing a game in which players were able to pick up the ball and run with it, a sport later known as Rugby football. The game was taken to Canada by British soldiers stationed there and was soon being played at Canadian colleges, the first documented gridiron football match was a game played at University College, a college of the University of Toronto, November 9,1861. One of the participants in the game involving University of Toronto students was William Mulock, a football club was formed at the university soon afterward, although its rules of play at this stage are unclear. In 1864, at Trinity College, also a college of the University of Toronto, F. Barlow Cumberland, modern Canadian football is widely regarded as having originated with a game played in Montreal, in 1865, when British Army officers played local civilians. The game gradually gained a following, and the Montreal Football Club was formed in 1868, early games appear to have had much in common with the traditional mob football played in England. The games remained largely unorganized until the 19th century, when games of football began to be played on college campuses. Each school played its own variety of football, Princeton University students played a game called ballown as early as 1820. A Harvard tradition known as Bloody Monday began in 1827, which consisted of a mass ballgame between the freshman and sophomore classes, in 1860, both the town police and the college authorities agreed the Bloody Monday had to go. The Harvard students responded by going into mourning for a figure called Football Fightum. The authorities held firm and it was a dozen years before football was again played at Harvard. Dartmouth played its own version called Old division football, the rules of which were first published in 1871, all of these games, and others, shared certain commonalities
5.
Purdue University
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Purdue University is a public research university located in West Lafayette, Indiana and is the main campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money to establish a college of science, technology, the first classes were held on September 16,1874, with six instructors and 39 students. The main campus in West Lafayette offers more than 200 majors for undergraduates, over 70 master’s and doctoral programs, in addition, Purdue has 18 intercollegiate sports teams and more than 900 student organizations. In 1865, the Indiana General Assembly voted to take advantage of the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act of 1862, communities throughout the state offered their facilities and money to bid for the location of the new college. Popular proposals included the addition of a department at Indiana State University or at what is now Butler University. By 1869, Tippecanoe County’s offer included $150,000 from Lafayette business leader and philanthropist John Purdue, $50,000 from the county, and 100 acres of land from local residents. On May 6,1869, the General Assembly established the institution in Tippecanoe County as Purdue University, classes began at Purdue on September 16,1874, with six instructors and 39 students. Professor John S. Hougham was Purdue’s first faculty member and served as acting president between the administrations of presidents Shortridge and White, a campus of five buildings was completed by the end of 1874. Purdue issued its first degree, a Bachelor of Science in chemistry, in 1875, emerson E. White, the university’s president from 1876 to 1883, followed a strict interpretation of the Morrill Act. He intended not only to students for industrial work, but also to prepare them to be good citizens. Part of White’s plan to distinguish Purdue from classical universities included an attempt to ban fraternities. This ban was overturned by the Indiana Supreme Court and led to White’s resignation. The next president, James H. Smart, is remembered for his call in 1894 to rebuild the original Heavilon Hall one brick higher after it had destroyed by a fire. Purdue’s engineering laboratories included testing facilities for a locomotive and a Corliss steam engine, one of the most efficient engines of the time. The School of Agriculture was sharing its research with farmers throughout the state with its cooperative extension services, programs in education and home economics were soon established, as well as a short-lived school of medicine. By 1925 Purdue had the largest undergraduate engineering enrollment in the country, President Edward C. Elliott oversaw a campus building program between the world wars. Inventor, alumnus, and trustee David E. Ross coordinated several fundraisers, donated lands to the university, ross’s gifts and fundraisers supported such projects as Ross–Ade Stadium, the Memorial Union, a civil engineering surveying camp, and Purdue University Airport. Purdue Airport was the country’s first university-owned airport and the site of the country’s first college-credit flight training courses, amelia Earhart joined the Purdue faculty in 1935 as a consultant for these flight courses and as a counselor on women’s careers
6.
National Football League Draft
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The National Football League Draft, also called the player selection meeting, is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players. It serves as the leagues most common source of player recruitment, from this position, the team can either select a player or trade their position to another team for other draft positions, a player or players, or any combination thereof. The round is complete when each team has selected a player or traded its draft position. Currently the draft consists of seven rounds, the original rationale in creating the draft was to increase the competitive parity between the teams as the worst team would, ideally, have chosen the best player available. In the early years of the draft, players were based on hearsay, print media. In the 1940s, some franchises began employing full-time scouts, the ensuing success of their corresponding teams eventually forced the other franchises to also hire scouts. Colloquially, the name of the each year takes on the form of the NFL season in which players picked could begin playing. For example, the 2010 NFL draft was for the 2010 NFL season, however, the NFL-defined name of the process has changed since its inception. The location of the draft has continually changed over the years to more fans. The drafts popularity now garners prime-time television coverage, in recent years, the NFL draft has occurred in late April or early May. The 2015 and 2016 NFL drafts were held in Chicago, in late 1934, Art Rooney, owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers, gave the right of usage of two players to the New York Giants because Rooneys team had no chance to participate in the post-season. After the owner of the Boston Redskins, George Preston Marshall, protested the transaction, at a league meeting in December 1934, the NFL introduced a waiver rule to prevent such transactions. Any player released by a team during the season would be able to be claimed by other teams, the selection order to claim the player would be in inverse order to the teams standings at the time. Throughout this time, Bert Bell, co-owner of the Philadelphia Eagles, felt his teams lack of competitiveness on the field made it difficult for the Eagles to sell tickets and to be profitable. As a result, the NFL was dominated by the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, Giants, and Redskins. At a league meeting on May 18,1935, Bell proposed a draft be instituted to enhance the possibility of competitive parity on the field in order to ensure the viability of all franchises. His proposal was adopted unanimously that day, although the first draft would not occur until the next off-season. The rules for the selection of the players in the first draft were, first, from this pool, each franchise would select, in inverse order to their teams record in the previous year, a player
7.
Minnesota Vikings
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The Minnesota Vikings are an American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as a team in 1960. The team competes in the National Football Conference North division, before that, the Vikings were in the NFC Central, the team has played in four Super Bowl games, but lost each one. The team plays its games at U. S. Bank Stadium in the Downtown East section of Minneapolis, professional football in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area began with the Minneapolis Marines/Red Jackets, an NFL team that played intermittently in the 1920s and 1930s. However, a new team in the area did not surface again until August 1959. Skoglund, and Max Winter were awarded a franchise in the new American Football League. Ole Haugsrud was added to the NFL team ownership because, in the 1920s, when he sold his Duluth Eskimos team back to the league, the agreement allowed him 10 percent of any future Minnesota team. Coincidentally or not, the teams from Ole Haugsruds high school, Central High School in Superior, Wisconsin, were called the Vikings. From the teams first season in 1961 to 1981, the team called Metropolitan Stadium in suburban Bloomington home, the Vikings conducted summer training camp at Bemidji State University from 1961 to 1965. In 1966, the moved to their current training camp at Minnesota State University in Mankato. The Vikings played their games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis from 1982 to 2013. The Vikings played their last game at the Metrodome on December 29,2013, since the teams first season in 1961, the Vikings have had one of the highest winning percentages in the NFL. As of 2014, they have won at least three games in every season except in 1962, and are one of only six NFL teams to win at least 15 games in a regular season. The Vikings have won one NFL Championship, in 1969, before the merger with the American Football League. Since the league merger in 1970, they have qualified for the playoffs 26 times, the team has played in Super Bowls IV, VIII, IX, and XI, though failing to win any of them. In addition, they have lost in their last five NFC Championship Game appearances since 1978, the team currently has 13 members in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The team was named the Minnesota Vikings on September 27,1960
8.
Atlanta Falcons
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The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Falcons compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference South division. The Falcons joined the NFL in 1965 as an expansion team, the AFL instead granted a franchise to Miami. The Falcons are tied with the Dolphins for being the second-oldest NFL franchise in the Deep South, the Falcons played their home games at the Georgia Dome in downtown Atlanta from the 1992 to 2016 NFL seasons. Construction began on Mercedes-Benz Stadium in May 2014, with play projected to begin there during the 2017 season and their headquarters and practice facilities are located at a 50-acre site in Flowery Branch, Georgia. Two years later, the AFL held another exhibition, this time with the New York Jets taking on the San Diego Chargers, in 1965, after the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium was built, the city of Atlanta felt the time was right to start pursuing professional football. Another group reported it had deposited earnest money for a team in the AFL and he forced the city to make a choice between the two leagues. By June 30, the city picked Rankin Smith and the NFL, former commissioner Pete Rozelle and Smith made the deal in about five minutes and the Atlanta Falcons brought the largest and most popular sport to the city of Atlanta. The Atlanta expansion franchise became the 15th NFL franchise, and they were awarded the first pick in the 1966 NFL draft as well as the pick in each of the first five rounds. The Falcons drafted All-American linebacker Tommy Nobis from the University of Texas with the first pick of the draft, the league also held the 1966 NFL Expansion Draft six weeks later in which the Falcons selected unprotected players from existing franchises. Although the Falcons selected many players in those drafts, they still were not able to win right away. The Atlanta Falcons Football Club received its nickname on August 29,1965, miss Julia Elliott, a school teacher from Griffin, Georgia, was singled out from many people who suggested Falcons as the nickname for the new franchise. Elliott wrote, the Falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and it is deadly and has a great sporting tradition. The Falcons had their first season in 1966, and their first preseason game on August 1,1966, under Head Coach Norb Hecker they lost their first nine regular-season games in 1966 and secured their first victory on the road against the New York Giants. The team finished the 1960s with only 12 wins, the Falcons had their first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season. The only two winning seasons in this period were 1971 and 1973. In the 1978 season, the Falcons qualified for the playoffs for the first time, the following week, they lost to the Dallas Cowboys 27–20 in the Divisional Playoffs. In the 1980 season, after a winning streak, the Falcons posted a franchise then-best record of 12–4
9.
New York Giants
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The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League as a club of the leagues National Football Conference East division. The team plays its games at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants hold their training camp at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center at the Meadowlands Sports Complex. The Giants were one of five teams that joined the NFL in 1925 and their championship tally is surpassed only by the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears. Throughout their history, the Giants have featured 28 Hall of Fame players, including NFL Most Valuable Player award winners Mel Hein, Frank Gifford, Y. A. Tittle, and Lawrence Taylor. The teams heated rivalry with the Philadelphia Eagles is the oldest of the NFC East rivalries, dating all the way back to 1933, the Giants played their first game as an away game against All New Britain in New Britain, Connecticut, on October 4,1925. They defeated New Britain 26–0 in front of a crowd of 10,000, the Giants were successful in their first season, finishing with an 8–4 record. In its third season, the finished with the best record in the league at 11–1–1 and was awarded the NFL title. In 1930, there were many who questioned the quality of the professional game. In December 1930, the Giants played a team of Notre Dame All Stars at the Polo Grounds to raise money for the unemployed of New York City and it was also an opportunity to establish the skill and prestige of the pro game. Knute Rockne reassembled his Four Horsemen along with the stars of his 1924 Championship squad and told them to score early, Rockne, like much of the public, thought little of pro football and expected an easy win. But from the beginning it was a one-way contest, with Friedman running for two Giant touchdowns and Hap Moran passing for another, when it was all over, Coach Rockne told his team, That was the greatest football machine I ever saw. I am glad none of you got hurt, the game raised $100,000 for the homeless, and is often credited with establishing the legitimacy of the professional game for those who were critical. It also was the last game the legendary Rockne ever coached, in a 14-year span from 1933 to 1947, the Giants qualified to play in the NFL championship game 8 times, winning twice. During this period the Giants were led by Hall of Fame coach Steve Owen, the period also featured the 1944 Giants, which are ranked as the #1 defensive team in NFL history. a truly awesome unit. They gave up only 7.5 points per game and shut out five of their 10 opponents, though they lost 14-7 to the Green Bay Packers in the 1944 NFL Championship Game. The famous Sneakers Game was played in this era where the Giants defeated the Chicago Bears on an icy field in the 1934 NFL Championship Game, the Giants played the Detroit Lions to a scoreless tie on November 7,1943
10.
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
11.
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
12.
Tommy Kramer
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Thomas Francis Tommy Kramer is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the NFL from 1977 to 1990. He played collegiately at Rice University and was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 1977 NFL Draft after being named MVP of the 1977 Senior Bowl and he was inducted with the 2012 class into the College Football Hall of Fame. Kramer played his school football at Robert E. Lee High School in San Antonio. He guided the Volunteers to a title in 1971 and then to the state semi-finals in 1972. The state championship game in 1971 was the first high school played in the new Texas Stadium in Irving. Kramer guided the Lee Volunteers to a 28–27 victory which has been hailed by some as the best high school game played in Texas. Kramers high school teammates included Pat Rockett, and Richard Osborne, guided by head coach John Ferrara, the 1971 team finished 14–0–1 – a 7–7 tie with rival Churchill kept the Volunteers from being perfect – and the 1972 squad went 13–1. In an era when most Texas high school football teams churned out yardage with ground-oriented offenses such as the wishbone or the veer, Kramer passed for 2,588 yards as a senior, then a state record, and completed 149 of 294 passes for 28 touchdowns. In two seasons, he completed 327 of 597 attempts for 5,489 yards and 54 TDs, surrounded by sure-handed receivers Richard Osborne, Pat Rockett and Gary Haack, Kramer was a master at picking apart defenses with his deft passing. Kramer started all but one game as a varsity player, going 26–1–1 and he made his debut in the 1971 season opener, replacing starter Bruce Trimmier and rallying Lee to a 7–3 victory over Alamo Heights on a rainy night. After a stellar career at Lee, Kramer became another in the long list of San Antonio products to play football at Rice University. He was the 1976 George Martin Award winner as Rices MVP in 1976 and was elected to the Rice Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984, Kramer played in the Senior Bowl and the Blue-Gray Game in 1976 and was named MVP of the Senior Bowl. He also received the Fort Worth Kiwanis Sportsmanship Award in 1976, in 2012, Kramer was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Kramer became the quarterback for the Vikings before the 1979 NFL season. The Vikings drafted him as Tarkentons heir apparent, ahmad Rashād was clustered in a group of Browns defenders but managed to catch the ball and back into the end zone. The play became known as the Miracle at the Met, and although they lost their game the next week. Throughout his career with the Vikings, Kramer suffered on-the-field injuries and he was selected for the Pro Bowl following the 1986 season, in which he was the NFLs highest-rated quarterback. Kramer was the first NFL quarterback to throw for over 450 yards in a game twice and he was released by the Vikings after the 1989 season and signed by the New Orleans Saints in 1990
Gary, Indiana