About The Football Odyssey

Football has come to hold a paramount place in the fixture of American culture. What began as an assembly of colleges playing under a variety of different rules, often times witnessed by a crowd of less than one hundred, has transformed into an American institution. In it’s 150 year history, the game of American Football has included numerous iconic, forgotten and obscure figures and events that have contributed to the development of a strategically complex and physically combative pastime. It’s a game that has continuously evolved to the point that no other game can be compared to it, leaving some historians claiming that football is a sport distinct to the American identity. Football, in essence, has become a narrative that continues to write itself, interweaving numerous characters and plots that builds tension and conflict, while rewarding those committed to sacrifice, innovation and collaboration. This is why I created The Football Odyssey, to document the saga of American Football, spanning from various eras, countries and institutions that made the game what it is today.

In this blog, you will find articles categorized into six different sections; Anatomy of a Game, derived from the book of the same name by former University of Delaware head coach David M. Nelson, is dedicated to the evolution of the rules, positions and playing strategies of American football, as well as profiling the coaches and players behind the innovations. White Collar Football will focus on the front office personnel, executive officers and legal and economic cases of football’s leading institutions, the National Football League and National Collegiate Athletic Association. Book Reviews will contain long form analyses on vintage books related to American Football. Football and the Media will trace football’s profitable relationship with the press and electronic media, including the writers and network producers that brought football into the public eye. American Football Abroad looks at American Football around the globe, both in it’s contemporary state and how the sport took root in the foreign land. Lastly, Gridiron Outliers are the topics that don’t fit a specific category, but nonetheless hold an interesting spot in American Football’s history.

This blog is not made for the purpose of creating a linear, absolute history of American Football or the organizations formed to promote and profit from the game. Rather, it’s a collection of articles curated to fill the void of under appreciated football topics that are not often touched upon in mass media. That said, if I hope you enjoy reading this blog just as much as I did writing it.