Birth of the NCAA

May 3, 1910 - The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States is renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

The roots of college football can be traced back to the late 19th century, with the first intercollegiate game played between Rutgers and Princeton in 1869. These early contests, however, bore little resemblance to the modern sport, drawing heavily from rugby and soccer. As the game evolved, it gained popularity at other universities, including Yale, Harvard, and Columbia. A pivotal figure in the development of American football was Walter Camp of Yale University, often called the "Father of American Football." Camp's innovations, such as the line of scrimmage and the system of downs, fundamentally shaped the sport. By the late 1800s, college football was rapidly growing in popularity, though it was also becoming increasingly violent.

The early years of college football were marked by a lack of standardized rules and regulations, leading to brutal and often dangerous gameplay. By the turn of the 20th century, concerns about the sport's violence reached a boiling point. In 1905 alone, reports of numerous deaths and serious injuries on the field sparked a national outcry, with some colleges even abolishing their football programs. President Theodore Roosevelt, a staunch advocate for the sport but also concerned about its brutality, intervened, urging university leaders to reform the game.

This push for reform led to the formation of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS) in 1906. The IAAUS, which would later become the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 1910, was established to create and enforce rules aimed at reducing injuries and promoting fair play. Early rule changes included the legalization of the forward pass in 1906, a rule intended to spread out the game and reduce the reliance on mass formations and gang tackling that contributed to the high injury rate. The NCAA's early years focused on establishing a framework for the sport, addressing safety concerns, and attempting to maintain amateurism.