Today's Tidbit... Feeling Detached About Tackling in 1902

Entering the 1902 season, the greatest hope of the preseason prognosticators was for football to experience its safest season yet. The game was witnessing rapid advances in the protective gear worn by players, the game's tackling techniques, and the training devices to teach tackling. We'll touch on the first two and focus on the third.

While some coaches argued against players padding themselves due to the added weight and its impact on their speed, most accepted the need for selective padding, primarily based on previous injuries. Still, solutions were available for nearly every body part if a player needed padding.

('New Devices To Prevent Injury To Football Players This Year,' St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 29, 1902.)