February 22, 1893 - Alabama, Auburn played each other in what is in essence the 1st Iron Bowl. Only 450 people were at Birmingham's Lakeview Baseball Park on Feb. 22, 1893, to witness a 32-22 Auburn victory per an NCAA.com story. Little did the handful of football fans on that winter day realize what would develop from the first game of these two eventual SEC power houses. The Iron Bowl is one of the most looked forward to match ups every season by college football fans. We have covered many of the famous plays and players from the series in the Football History Headlines like Bo Jackson, Kenny Stabler, Joe Namath and more! The term Iron Bowl came from the venue the game had been played at for many years, Birmingham, Alabama’s Legion Field. The City of Birmingham is known for its historic role in the steel industry and these two top flight college programs from the state of Alabama treated the throngs at Legion Field to some great memories. The game was predominantly played there from the late 1940’s until 1989 with the tickets being split between the two schools. The series was interrupted for some 4 decades after the 1907 contest but when it resumed it became quite the popular game. The 1907 game had some allegedly questionable dirty plays and calmouring from both sides to bring in outside officiating crews to promote a fair playing field per an article on AngelFire.com. The article points to contract disputes as being the main reason for the series being suspended. “ During the 1907 game, the hotel allowance for 17 men from each team was $2 per man, per day, including lodging and meals. On Jan. 23, 1908, Alabama coach J.W. Pollard received a proposed contract from Auburn football manager Thomas Bragg asking for $3.50 per day for 22 men from each team for two nights for a game to be played at Birmingham's Fair Grounds. Alabama offered $3 per day for 20 men for two nights. Even then, Auburn and Alabama fans had trouble agreeing on anything and apparently a discrepancy of $34 could not be resolved until 41 years later. “Tigers and the Crimson Tide are so intertwined into the fabric of the citizens of Alabama that the victors gain the bragging rights in the state and there have even been some business dealings reported that were dependent on the game’s outcome!
February 22, 1967 - The NFL goal post changes shape & 6 foot wide border around field becomes standardized in the NFL. It seems odd for us to watch vintage footage of NFL games prior to 1974 and see the goal posts on the goal line rather than on the end lines where they stand today. A 1974 rule revision pushed each of the posts back ten yards deeper mainly for player safety. We are not going to focus on that rule change in this edition though but rather the one that occurred 7 seasons earlier when the “H” style posts were retired from the NFL fields and the more modern “Y” or “sling-shot” edition of the goal post became standard equipment. This elimination of one obstacle on each goal line at the time afforded the players and officials less chance of collision into said posts but it also opened up the running and passing lanes just a tad too. An article on the SI.com website states that in the first dozen years of the NFL’s existence the League simply played by the very popular College rules. The NCAA in 1927 took the posts and set them safely on the endline. In 1933, the NFL finally wrote its own rulebook. And in an effort to increase field goal attempts because the general feeling was that there were too many ties, the NFL moved the uprights back to the goal line. That is where they stayed for some 4 decades. The other rule revision that occurred on February 22, 1967 was the addition of the 6 foot boundary around the entire field. The American Football Fandom page describes the purpose quite well. “Its outer edge designates the closest that non-players can be to the field, and thus enables the game officials to have a running lane to work in.” As a former high school football official I can attest that those clear zones around the playing field are vitally important for the safety of the participants, sideline personnel and game officials.
