Timothy Brown of Football Archaeology joins us again this week to educate us on another aspect of football. This week we chat about the evolution of football scoring and the time before the current point-based system. Timothy Brown's FootballArchaeology.com has a daily football factoid that he shares that is really quite interesting in a short read. They preserve football history in a very unique way and we are quite happy that Tim has agreed to join us each week to go over some of his Today's Tidbits. Click that link and you can subscribe for free to receive them yourself each evening.

Here is a blog post write-up based on the podcast transcription provided.

When Touchdowns Didn’t Matter: The Bizarre History of Early Football Scoring

If you are an American football fan, you have probably heard the joke from our European friends: Why is it called football when you barely use your feet?

We take the name for granted today, but as author and historian Tim Brown recently shared with Darren Hayes on the Pigskin Daily History Dispatch podcast, the foot once ruled the gridiron. In fact, if you traveled back in time to the late 19th century, the scoring system would look like absolute gobbledygook.

Here is a look at how football scoring evolved from a kicking-centric rugby spinoff to the modern, touchdown-driven game we love today.

The 1876 Rulebook: No Points, Just Math

When the Intercollegiate Football Association met in 1876, they essentially adopted the rugby rulebook with just a few minor tweaks—most notably changing the terminology to "touchdown." But they did not use a point system. Instead, they used an equivalency-based system that heavily favored the kicking game.

According to Rule 7 of that original rulebook, the primary objective of the game was to kick the ball through the uprights. Scoring a touchdown was merely a means to an end; it earned you a free kick at the goal.

Here is how the confusing 1876 equivalency system broke down:

• A match was decided by the majority of touchdowns.
• One Goal was equal to Four Touchdowns.
• In the event of a tie, a goal kicked after a touchdown took precedence over four standard touchdowns.

In short, crossing the goal line was secondary. The real prize was proving you could kick the ball through the uprights.

1883: The Introduction of Points

By 1883, the rules committee decided to introduce actual point values, but the emphasis remained heavily on the foot rather than the end zone. Scrimmage kicks (like the drop kick) were the most valuable plays on the field.

Scoring Play

Point Value (1883)

Field Goal (Scrimmage Kick)

5 Points

Goal from Touchdown (Extra Point)

4 Points

Touchdown

2 Points

Safety

1 Point

Under this system, the combination of a touchdown and the subsequent kick was worth 6 points total, but the touchdown itself only accounted for a fraction of that value.

The Shift to the Modern Game

As the game matured, fans and officials wanted to see more action. They realized that football was a team sport and shouldn't rely so heavily on the specialized skills of a single kicker.

Over the next few decades, the rules committee intentionally ratcheted up the value of the touchdown while diminishing the value of the kick. They wanted to reward the effort of all 11 men driving the ball down the field. It wasn't until 1912 that the sport officially adopted the foundational scoring system we use today, where a touchdown sits at the top of the hierarchy at 6 points.

Unearthing Gridiron History

How do we know so much about these forgotten eras of football? For historians like Tim Brown, the secret lies in collegiate archives.

Brown runs Football Archaeology, a site dedicated to unearthing the lost rules, traditions, and visuals of the early game. To find his stories, he frequently browses through historical college yearbooks. Having reviewed over 3,100 yearbooks across 140 different schools, Brown relies on old campus photography to prove that long-lost concepts—like the "punt out," a play that vanished in 1922—actually existed.

Want to learn more about the forgotten days of the gridiron?

• Check out Tim Brown’s daily historical tidbits at footballarchaeology.com.
• Follow him on Twitter @footballarchaeology.
• Listen to more episodes of Darren Hayes' Pigskin Daily History Dispatch on the Sports History Network.

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