By Darin December 10 is a monumental date in football history, chronicling everything from record-shattering defensive kicks and championship upsets to the evolution of the Heisman Trophy. This single day witnessed the longest recorded drop-kick field goal in the inaugural NFL season, celebrated the birth of two Hall of Famers (Pete Henry and Larry Morris), and crowned four unique Heisman winners—including the first freshman recipient, Johnny Manziel, and the youngest, Lamar Jackson. Dive into this definitive list of must-know milestones for college and pro football fans!
Gridiron Glory: What Happened on December 10 in Football History?
December 10, 1922, Pete Henry didn’t look like the prototypical gridiron player; he was 5’-11″ and 240 pounds, according to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s website. His teammates called him “Fats,” but opponents should never have doubted the threat he posed on the football field. It was on this day, as a member of the Canton Bulldogs, that Pete Henry allegedly made the longest known NFL drop-kicked field goal when he nailed it from 45 yards as documented on the American Football Database against the Toledo Maroons in a 19-0 Bulldog victory that gave the undefeated Canton Bulldogs the title of the league’s inaugural champions.
December 10, 1938, at the Grey Cup, it was a repeat of the previous season, as the Toronto Argonauts whalloped the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, 30-7, to keep the Canadian title.
December 10, 1939 – West Allis, Wisconsin – “The Dairy Bowl” – The National Football League’s Championship game in 1939 pitted the Green Bay Packers against the New York Football Giants. The Packers took home their fifth title, blanking the Giants 27-0, according to the Packers’ history site. (source)
On December 10, 1940, the Chicago Bears used the number one pick in the 1941 NFL Draft to select Tom Harmon from the University of Michigan. Harmon had just won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award, according to IMDb.com. Harmon turned down Geoge halas and the Bears, though, and accepted an offer from the upstart American Football League’s New York Americans. After that version of the AFL folded the following off-season, Tom became a fighter pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corp. and fought in WWII for four years. In 1946, he returned and played 3 seasons in the NFL for the LA Rams.
On December 10, 1961, in the AFL, the Houston Oilers’ great rusher, Billy Cannon, set a single-game all-purpose yards record of 373 against the New York Titans. The Houston Chronicle shares a great video of the event with more details. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jubNfpFzJzw
On December 10, 1983, Shea Stadium, the home of the New York Jets for 20 seasons, hosted its last NFL game as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Jets 34-7, according to a great Newsday article with more details.
December 10, 1994 – The 60th Heisman Trophy Award went to Rashaan Salaam of the University of Colorado, who played the position of running back. The Heisman’s official webpage tells us that Rashaan was the first player from Colorado to win the Award as he became the third finalist in history of the Trophy to surpass 2000 yards rushing in a season for Division I. Salaam totaled 2055 yards on the season with 24 scores and a remarkable 7.61 rushing average to lead the Buffs to a 4th place ranking in the polls.
On December 10, 2001, Eric Crouch, the option quarterback from Nebraska, won the 67th Heisman Trophy Award. Eric was a dual threat in the 2001 season, rushing for 1115 yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground while passing for 1510 yards, according to Heisman.com. In addition to the Heisman, Crouch also took home the Davey O’Brien quarterback Award and the Walter Camp player of the Year Award.
On December 10, 2005, the 71st Heisman Trophy was awarded to USC standout Reggie Bush. However, if you look at the Heisman’s website, you will not see an entry for a winner in 2005. That is because Bush later forfeited his Trophy due to what ESPN.com describes as him and other Trojan athletes receiving improper benefits that violated NCAA rules.
December 10, 2012, the 78th Heisman Trophy went to the first freshman to ever win the Award when Quarterback Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M was chosen to receive the coveted honor in his redshirt season with the Aggies. It is interesting to note that on Manziel’s bio on Heisman.com, it states that he initially committed to play at Oregon out of High School, signing about the same time as the 2014 Heisman winner Marcus Mariota. Johnny Football tossed 24 TDs on 3419 yards passing while using his legs for another 1181 yards and 19 scores. The game that really set the table for Manziel’s Heisman votes was most likely when he led the A&M to a 29-24 upset of the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, where he tallied 345 yards of total offense and performed some real dazzling plays.
December 10, 2016, The youngest player to win a Heisman Trophy Award did it at the age of just 19 in the 82nd edition of the Trophy. Lamar Jackson, the uniquely talented option quarterback for the Louisville Cardinals, was named the Heisman Trophy winner by Heisman.com. Jameis Winston of Florida State was 5 days older than Jackson when he took home the hardware in 2013. Lamar’s 4928 yards of total offense were second in Heisman history, only to Ty Detmer‘s 5022 yards in the 1990 season. Jackson was the first player from Louisville to receive the honor, and he was only the fourth sophomore to win it in the Trophy’s history.
December 10 Football Hall of Fame Birthdays
- Larry Morris
Conclusion
From Pete Henry’s historic drop-kick to a flurry of Heisman celebrations, December 10 is truly a date of records and firsts. This day not only crowned four unique Heisman winners but also witnessed championship victories in both the NFL and the Grey Cup, alongside record-setting rushing and the end of the Jets’ tenure at Shea Stadium.
Special thank you to the work shared by Pro-Football-Reference.com and the other sources linked in this post for helping us to tell the gridiron stories of the day.
