Football Archaeology

Share this post

Today's Tidbit... Bobby Dodd Kicks The Tires On Trailers

www.footballarchaeology.com
Tidbits

Today's Tidbit... Bobby Dodd Kicks The Tires On Trailers

Timothy P. Brown
Aug 19, 2022
Share this post

Today's Tidbit... Bobby Dodd Kicks The Tires On Trailers

www.footballarchaeology.com

Bobby Dodd was a pretty smart fella, and is one of the four members of the College Football Hall of Fame inducted as both a player and a coach. He put together a 165-64-8 record at Georgia Tech, most of that coming while Georgia Tech was in the SEC.

Dodd won many arguments in his day, but he pushed for a change in football's rules at the 1963 coaches' convention, hoping they would include it in their recommendations to the NCAA rules committee. The previous decade had seen the NFL chip away and overtake college football in popularity, so the NCAA was open to rules changes to make the game more exciting. Giving teams the option in 1958 to go for two after a touchdown was one such attempt.

As was normal for him, Bobby Dodd (center) sat quietly on the bench during Georgia Techn’s 1963 season. (1964 Georgia Tech yearbook)

Just as the two-point conversion allowed trailing teams to close the gap, tie the game, or take the lead, Dodd looked to encourage more close games. So, Dodd proposed that the team leading on the scoreboard after each score kick to the trailing team. 

The idea did not pass muster with the coaches, so the scoring team still kicks following each score. Some youth football leagues have since adopted the idea, but not the big boys.


Subscribe for free and never miss a story. You can also support this site with a paid subscription to receive additional content or check out my books here.

Share this post

Today's Tidbit... Bobby Dodd Kicks The Tires On Trailers

www.footballarchaeology.com
Previous
Next
Comments
TopNewCommunity

No posts

Ready for more?

© 2023 Timothy P. Brown
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing