American Football Database
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The 1905 college football season had no clear-cut champion, with the Official NCAA Division I Football Records Book listing Chicago and Yale Bulldogs football as national champions.[1]

Rule experiment

On December 25 in Wichita, Kansas an experimental game was played between Fairmount College and Washburn University. The game tested a rule change that required the offense to earn a first down in three plays instead of four. Football legend John H. Outland officiated the game and commented, "It seems to me that the distance required in three downs would almost eliminate touchdowns, except through fakes or flukes."[2] The Los Angeles Times reported that there was much kicking and that the game was considered much safer than regular play, but that the new rule was not "conducive to the sport."[3]

See also

References

  1. Official 2009 NCAA Division I Football Records Book. Indianapolis, IN: The National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2009-08. pp. 76–77. http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/stats/football_records/DI/2009/2009FBS.pdf. Retrieved 2009-10-16.
  2. New York Times "Ten Yard Rule a Failure" December 26, 1905
  3. Los Angeles Times "New Football Rules Tested" December 26, 1905
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