The Forward Pass

All of your life you've been told to believe things that weren't true. First off, don't blame it on the educators. They are handcuffed as to what they can and can't teach to our younger generations. Luckily, things are being explored more openly and some of these truths are leaking out. One of the oldest lies in the book is the forward pass in American Football. The thought of Knute Rockne and Gus Dorais leading their Notre Dame Football squad in an upset over Army is the first to come to mind, but you would be wrong.

Knute Rockne and Gus Dorais definitely popularized the forward pass, but they did not start it. The legend of Knute Rockne is a great one for all football fans. He deserves much of the credit in popularizing football in American homes, whether as a player, or as a coach at Notre Dame. Most people have this belief that it was Notre Dame's 35-13 upset over Army on November 1^st, 1913 as the first forward pass, but it wasn't. Over the loud speakers on the PA system that day many people heard the phrase of “Dorais to Rockne.” Rockne would later state that in the previous summer the two would practice throwing and catching to try and change the way football can be played.

The concept of the forward pass was legalized in 1906 but there were some major disadvantages to passing. Walter Camp who was in charge of the College Football world was completely against the “Projectile Pass.” Camp along with many other hard-nosed football legends believed the pass was a watered down sissy way of playing the sport. For those who believe in this, it is of note to mention that President Roosevelt even believed that there needed to be changes in collegiate football. In 1905 alone, it was reported in the Chicago Tribune that there was 18 deaths on the football field. Late into 1905 the President of the Unites States ordered Harvard, Princeton and Yale send representatives to Washington. While meeting he issued an ultimatum to all American colleges: “Clean up football; stop the brutality and foul play, or abolish the sport altogether.”

In December of 1905 college representatives from 62 different schools met to change the rules for the better of college football. Many changes were made, including the abolishment of the “flying wedge,” and the creation of the neutral zone between offense and defense. The other major changes were that the offense's now had to go 10 yards instead of 5 on three downs, and the allowance of a forward pass. Because so many people did not want to allow the forward pass the rules first implemented against the pass were very harsh if there was an incompletion. The decision makers did not want any part in the forward pass, so if they allowed it with very strict guidelines they believed they could keep teams from using it. If an incomplete pass was thrown, the offense would be penalized 15 yards, if the pass was incomplete without any receiver touching the ball, then it was a turnover. An incomplete pass would later be changed to only a 5yard penalty, and also at one point in time the offensive team could not score a touchdown on a completed pass. Many of these rules were implemented by the Chairman of the Rules Committee Walter Camp.

Walter Camp is known to many as being the "Father of American Football." While enrolled at Yale University from 1876-1881, Camp played halfback while acting as the team captain. At this time in history the team captain was also considered by many to be the head coach of the ball team. Walter Camp became a member of the Intercollegiate Football Association and from 1880 forward, he made changes that would separate the sport of American Football from its English counterparts.

In its inception, American Football was a mixture of the two English sports known as rugby and soccer. The sport was most commonly known as gridiron football because of the vertical yard line marks on the field. By the time Walter Camp entered Yale the college football game had adopted the likes of rugby more than soccer. Camp did not want football to be exactly like rugby and while serving on the Intercollegiate Football Association he had his hand on transforming the closely resembled rugby game into football. Camp's rule changes included getting rid of the "scrum," and he introduced the down and yardage distance.

Walter Camp continued to make changes in football that are still used today, such as; the 11 man team, the quarterback position, a line of scrimmage, offensive signal calling, and the scoring scale. Walter Camp would also coach his Alma mater to a career record of 67-2 from 1888-1892. All of these great innovations to the game, but Camp still did not want to allow the forward pass. Walter Camp is a legend in his own right, although it's important to note that he could have very well been the first person to throw a forward pass in a college football game.

Long before the legalization of the forward pass in 1906 many teams would attempt a forward pass as a way to not only catch the defense off-guard, but the referees as well. Officials were not taught to watch for these passes, so teams would attempt trickery and quick plays to see if they could do it. In 1876 while playing quarterback for Yale, Walter Camp actually threw a forward pass to teammate Oliver Thompson as Camp was being tackled. Those teams that were caught doing a forward pass would be penalized at the time.

John Heisman envisioned the forward pass as a great tool for football when he attended a football game in 1895 between North Carolina and Georgia. Heisman was scouting at the time when he had seen a pass play like no other. North Carolina was set to punt the ball and the punter was quick to realize there was a defensive player coming towards him. In order to avoid a blocked punt, the Tar Heel punter threw the ball forward to another North Carolina teammate who then ran 70 yards for the touchdown. The play was very controversial as it should have been called an illegal play, but instead the play stood. The referee allowed the play and the score because he would state that he did not see the ball thrown.

Once the forward pass was considered legal, it would take a few weeks into the 1906 season before somebody would complete a pass. On September 5^th, 1906 the Eddie Cochem coached St. Louis University team would throw the first completed pass in a football game against Carroll College. St. Louis University Quarterback Bradbury Robinson would complete a pass to teammate Jackie Schneider. Eddie Cochem called the play due to his frustration that the team couldn't move the ball down the field. Bradbury actually threw a pass earlier in the game that was incomplete and was turned over to Carroll College. It was reported that the 20 yard pass completion for the touchdown to Schneider surprised Caroll College so much that Schneider was able to just walk into the end zone without any defensive pressure. Rookie Head Coach Eddie Cochem would lead the team to an undefeated season at 11-0 while outscoring their opponents 407-11.

With many changes defining the sport of American Football, the teams were still using a ball that closely resembled a rugby ball. The ball was large, heavy, and was shaped more like an egg. SLU coach Eddie Cochem had seen the possible advantages to throwing the ball due to Bradbury Robinson's unique hands. Robinson was athletic, but he had unusually large, bony hands and he could grip the ball with one hand. There were not many quarterbacks at the time who could grip the ball with one hand. With the ball shaped oddly, most throws that were attempted would actually be considered a toss with two hands.

To bring some local flavor into the mix, Marietta College would complete its first ever completed pass on November 29, 1906. A few months after Robinson completed his pass, Marietta College quarterback Petey Gilman would throw a 50 yard plus touchdown pass for the Pioneers. The famous football is displayed at the Ban Johnson Field House in Marietta, Ohio. The completion is recognized as being one of the first ever completed passes in college, although the yardage is up for debate. Inscribed on the football is that it was a 52 yard touchdown pass. According to Petey's son Bill Gilman, the pass was actually a 56 yard pass instead of the 52 yards that was inscribed on it. Petey Gilman was inducted into the Marietta College Hall of Fame in 1998 after a luxurious college career that included being a captain of the baseball team in 1907, and also being a member of the basketball team.

With the legalization of the forward pass, Coach “Pop” Warner would return to the coaching ranks in 1907. "Pop" was known for his trick plays and deceptive ways of playing football. He would read the rule book over multiple times to find loopholes in which he could gain any advantage. These advantages would be needed when he took the coaching position at a boarding school for Native Americans. Warner would use tricks so that the smaller, but faster Native Americans could have a chance while playing against teams who had players that were much larger than them.

“Pop” Warner and the Carlisle Indians would implement a new formation called “the Calisle formation,” that would change football for years. The purpose of the formation was to give the offense the availability to run, pass, or kick without letting the defense know the difference. The formation was executed in which the defense would not be able to recognize what type of play was coming their way. The Carlisle Indians would finish their season with only one loss that year, falling to Princeton by a score of 16-0.

So why does everybody believe that Knute Rockne and Notre Dame were the first ones to complete a forward pass in college football? Many answers can be given to this question, including the films that have been made to glorify the 1913 upset over Army. Once the 1913 season began, many of the restrictions of the forward pass had been eliminated and not everybody decided to read up on their literature over the summer. Rockne and Dorias actually practiced the pass all off-season from different angles and schemes while working as lifeguards in Ohio that summer. It is true that Rockne did order the pass play, but he would later state in his own biography the first forward pass should be credited to SLU head coach Eddie Cochem and quarterback Bradbury Robinson. Rockne would state that Cochem “…enrolled a few boys with hands like steam shovels who could toss a football just as easily and almost as far as they could throw a baseball."