On a cold November day in Syracuse following an overnight snowfall, the Holy Cross Crusaders battled the Jim Brown-led Orange. Brown threw for one TD, ran for another, and kicked five extra points. While Holy Cross kept Brown somewhat contained, it came at the cost of his teammates going wild.

While Brown never broke into the clear, his transparent bar face mask allowed the Crusaders to see his pretty smile while leading the Orange to a 41-20 victory.

If you are interested in learning more about Jim Brown’s helmet, including some color pictures, see this UniWatch article from 2009.

For additional information about the evolution of face masks, check out:

Football Archaeology

Football History As Told By Sporting Goods Catalogs: Nose Guards and Face Masks

The equipment used by football players at different points in the game's history tells us much about the game during each period, making period sporting goods catalogs an interesting archival source of football history. My first post examining catalog items covered the history of…

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2 years ago · Timothy P. Brown

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