Today's Tidbit… 1876 IFA Rule #6: Goal ≠ Punt

This is #6 in a series covering football’s original 61 rules adopted by the Intercollegiate Football Association in 1876. We review one rule each Friday, except today since we skipped last Friday.

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Rule 6: A goal may be obtained by any type of kick except a punt.

You may recall that IFA Rule #5 told us that a goal comes by kicking the ball from the field and over the crossbar of the opponent's goal. However, Rule #5 failed to mention that punts sent over the crossbar do not count as a goal, so the rule makers made that point via Rule #6.

Unfortunately, the IFA rules fail to mention that a ball kicked during a kickoff also does not count as a goal if, by chance, it sailed over the crossbar. The omission was not a problem then because the team kicking off typically dribbled the ball or booted it a few inches before picking it up and running. As a result, kickoffs seldom got anywhere near the opponent's goal.