Portal:American football

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The American Football Portal

American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with possession of the oval-shaped football, attempts to advance down the field by running with the ball or throwing it, while the defense, the team without possession of the ball, aims to stop the offense's advance and to take control of the ball for themselves. The offense must advance the ball at least ten yards in four downs or plays; if they fail, they turn over the football to the defense, but if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs to continue the drive. Points are scored primarily by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponent's goalposts for a field goal. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins.

American football evolved in the United States, originating from the sports of soccer and rugby. The first American football game was played on November 6, 1869, between two college teams, Rutgers and Princeton, using rules based on the rules of soccer at the time. A set of rule changes drawn up from 1880 onward by Walter Camp, the "Father of American Football", established the snap, the line of scrimmage, eleven-player teams, and the concept of downs. Later rule changes legalized the forward pass, created the neutral zone, and specified the size and shape of the football. The sport is closely related to Canadian football, which evolved in parallel with and at the same time as the American game, although its rules were developed independently from those of Camp. Most of the features that distinguish American football from rugby and soccer are also present in Canadian football. The two sports are considered the primary variants of gridiron football.

American football is the most popular sport in the United States in terms of broadcast viewership audience. The most popular forms of the game are professional and college football, with the other major levels being high-school and youth football. As of 2022, nearly 1.04 million high-school athletes play the sport in the U.S., with another 81,000 college athletes in the NCAA and the NAIA. The National Football League (NFL) has the highest average attendance of any professional sports league in the world. Its championship game, the Super Bowl, ranks among the most-watched club sporting events globally. In 2022, the league had an annual revenue of around $18.6 billion, making it the most valuable sports league in the world. Other professional and amateur leagues exist worldwide, but the sport does not have the international popularity of other American sports like baseball or basketball; the sport maintains a growing following in the rest of North America, Europe, Brazil, and Japan. (Full article...)

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Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

The 2009 FedEx Orange Bowl was the 75th edition of Orange Bowl, an annual college football bowl game. It pitted the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) champion Virginia Tech Hokies against the Big East Conference champion Cincinnati Bearcats on January 1, 2009, at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Virginia Tech defeated Cincinnati, 20–7. The game was the second contest in the 2008–2009 Bowl Championship Series (BCS) of the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season and was the concluding game of the season for both teams. The game was televised in the United States on FOX, and an estimated 9.3 million viewers watched the broadcast live.

Virginia Tech was selected to participate in the Orange Bowl after a 9–4 season that culminated in a 30–12 victory in the 2008 ACC Championship Game. Cincinnati was selected as the other half of the matchup after an 11–2 season that ended with a 29–24 win against Hawaii. In the weeks between the teams' selection and the playing of the game, media attention focused on the nature of Cincinnati's first BCS game appearance and Virginia Tech's attempt to win its first BCS game since 1995. Attention also focused on Cincinnati's proficient offense and Virginia Tech's highly rated defense. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various American football-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A Native American college football team (from History of American football)
Image 2Jim Thorpe was the first president of the NFL. (from History of American football)
Image 31902 football game between the University of Minnesota and the University of Michigan (from History of American football)
Image 4The Big Game between Stanford and California was played as rugby union from 1906 to 1914 (from History of American football)
Image 5One of the two Harvard vs. McGill games played in 1874 (from History of American football)
Image 6An arena football goalpost structure featuring the rebound nets on either side of the uprights. (from Arena football)
Image 7A moment of the second game between Tufts and Harvard at College Hill, October 1875 (from History of American football)
Image 8Diagram of a Canadian football field (from Canadian football)
Image 9Touchdown monument outside the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton, Ontario (from Canadian football)
Image 10Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium, originally built for the 1978 Commonwealth Games, pictured in 2005. (from Canadian football)
Image 11Tom Davies of Pittsburgh runs against undefeated and unscored upon Georgia Tech in the 1918 game at Forbes Field (from History of American football)
Image 12A college football game between Colorado State University and the Air Force Academy (from History of American football)
Image 13Footballs and a helmet at a Calgary Stampeders (CFL) team practice (from Canadian football)
Image 14Sign at the old entrance to the Pro Football Hall of Fame (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
Image 15Inside the original structure in 2008 (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
Image 16A game between the Hamilton Tigers and the Ottawa Rough Riders, 1910 (from Canadian football)
Image 17Morgan Athletic Club (pictured c. 1900), predecessor of the Arizona Cardinals (from History of American football)
Image 18High school football stadium in Manhattan, Kansas (from History of American football)
Image 19The Hall is made up of several sections with display of the inductees at its heart (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
Image 20Colorado's first football team in 1890 (from History of American football)
Image 21Sewanee's 1899 "Iron Men" (from History of American football)
Image 22Walter Camp, the "Father of American Football", pictured here in 1878 as the captain of the Yale University football team (from History of American football)
Image 23A football signed by the 1974 Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement class (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
Image 24Montreal Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo looks down field with the ball during the 93rd Grey Cup game at BC Place. (from Canadian football)
Image 25Lehigh Valley Steelhawks (gold jerseys with black accents) vs. Triangle Torch (black jerseys with red and yellow accents) play an American Indoor Football game at Dorton Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, March 25, 2016 (from Arena football)
Image 261906 St. Louis Post-Dispatch photograph of Brad Robinson, who threw the first legal forward pass and was the sport's first triple threat (from History of American football)
Image 27A game between the 4th Canadian Armoured Division Atoms and First Canadian Army Red and Blue Bombers, in Utrecht, Netherlands, October 1945 (from Canadian football)
Image 281897 Latrobe Athletic Association football team: The first entirely professional team to play an entire season. (from History of American football)
Image 29Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium with the Hall of Fame in lower right (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
Image 30An early American football team, from the turn of the twentieth century (from History of American football)
Image 31Original entrance to the Pro Football Hall of Fame (from Pro Football Hall of Fame)
Image 32Don Hutson in 1940. (from History of American football)
Image 33A modern down indicator box is mounted on a pole and is used to mark the current line of scrimmage. The number on the marker is changed using a dial. (from Canadian football)

Selected image

Gerald Ford

Credit: Gerald R. Ford Library

Gerald Ford, the 38th President of the United States, played center and linebacker for the Michigan Wolverines, helping his team to two national titles.

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Luckman, circa 1950

Sidney Luckman (November 21, 1916 – July 5, 1998) was an American professional football quarterback who played for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) from 1939 through 1950. During his 12 seasons with the Bears, he led them to four NFL championships in 1940, 1941, 1943, and 1946.

Sportswriter Ira Berkow wrote that Luckman was "the first great T-formation quarterback", and he is considered the greatest long-range passer of his time. He was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player in 1943. Luckman was also a 3× NFL All-Star (1940–1942), 5× First-team All-Pro (1941–1944, 1947), 2× Second-team All-Pro (1940, 1946), 3× NFL passing yards leader (1943, 1945, and 1946), 3× NFL passing touchdowns leader (1943, 1945, and 1946), 3× NFL passer rating leader (1941, 1943, and 1946), named to the NFL 1940s All-Decade team, had his No. 42 retired by the Bears, and tied the NFL record of 7 touchdown passes in a game. To date, Luckman still holds the all-time NFL record for touchdown percentage, at 7.9 percent. (Full article...)

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Calendar

2023 season: NFL • NCAA FBS (Bowl games)
Jan 8	College Football National Championship: #1 Michigan vs #2 Washington
Jan 13-15	NFL: Wild Cards
Jan 20-21	NFL: Divisional games
Jan 28	NFL: Conference games
Feb 4	NFL: Pro Bowl Games
Feb 11	NFL: Super Bowl LVIII