Today's Tidbit... The Year of Living Seniorlessly

Discussions of the football crisis of 1905-1906 tend to focus on the rule changes covering play on the field to make the game safer. However, the same general movement also brought concerns about the overemphasis on football, including the game's commercialization, recruiting practices, and eligibility standards.

The predecessor of the NCAA was formed in 1905 to look at the playing rules, but it had no role in player eligibility. Instead, that power rested with the conferences or the individual schools for the independents. Most conferences then focused on shared eligibility standards rather than scheduling, particularly for football.

('Football Reform,' Minneapolis Journal, November 27, 1905.)

The Western Conference, now the Big Ten, took the strongest positions on these issues in January 1906. They considered but did not approve a motion to eliminate professional, non-faculty coaches. They also limited the football season to five games, capping varsity eligibility to three years. They intended the three-year rule to eliminate tramp players, who showed up for one season and left, and reduce the pressure on freshmen during their first semester on campus.