World Series of Football

The World Series of Football was a series of football games played indoors at New York's original Madison Square Garden from 1902 through 1903. It comprised five teams, four from New York state and one from New Jersey. While none of the teams were really the best in the country, historians refer to the affair as a "World Series." It was hardly a series in the sense of two strong teams playing each other over several games; no team played another more than once. The pairings were odd, too. The anticipated second-place team was automatically swept into the championship game without playing a down while the expected first place finisher had to fight its way through the brackets, effectively creating a cross between a traditional tournament and a "gauntlet-style" tournament for the first place team.^[1]

The series is best remembered for showcasing the first indoor professional football game in 1902. ^[2]

History

Origins

The league was the idea of Tom O'Rourke, who was the manager of the Gardens at the time. 'O'Rourke needed an event to draw people to the Gardens in late December, which was a slow time of the year for sporting events. Basketball and hockey were not yet major sports in New York, so O'Rourke decided to play host a series of indoor football games. He decided to invite several professional and college teams to the Gardens for the series.^[3] Tom O'Rourke envisioned a series of games, showcasing the best in college and pro teams, eventually leading to one climactic game, crowning the "champion of the world." ^[1]

1902

Finding teams

However O'Rourke had a tough time finding teams to play in the tournament. The colleges refused due to increased pressured from the Amateur Athletic Association to stop particiapting in professional games. Also the Pittsburgh Stars, Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia Athletics, along with the National Football League, had all disbanded. The Watertown Red and Blacks, who were the top team in New York state at the time (and one of the few teams of the era that still exists today) also refused the series.^[3] This left four teams to compete in the tournament, the Syracuse Athletic Club, the Knickbocker Athletic Club, the Warslow Athletic Club and the Orange Athletic Club. O'Rourke did finally get a fifth team to join the series when some players from the Phillies and Athletics got together and formed was called the "New York" team.^[4] In calling them the "New York" team, O'Rourke expected to give his patrons the pleasure of watching a "home team" win.^[1] The team was made up of eight Phillies and 4 Athletics that included A's coach Charles "Blondy" Wallace and Phillies coach Ben Roller.

The field

Madison Square Garden had to be redone to accommodate the teams. The wooden flooring of the arena was removed and replaced by an earthen surface. The goal lines were only 70 yards apart and the playing field was only 35 yards wide. The earthen surface became sticky as the game progressed and made for some tough maneuvering, while the stands were right up to the playing field and proved to be a physical hazard.^[5] The kicking game was also drastically affected. In a game on a normal field, the team with the longest punts had the advantage. However the Gardens proved to be a dream for a weak punter, due to the field size. Also the arena wall was right on the edge of the field, presenting a serious hazard on any sideline plays. One player knocked himself out of the tournament by running into the wall on the opening kickoff.

Schedule

The tournament was scheduled to last three nights starting on December 29 and ending on New Years Eve. O'Rourke scheduled his tournament with a certain logic, considering the expected strengths of the teams. On opening night, he scheduled the "New York" team against Syracuse. The "New York " team would then defeat the team that would probably bring the fewest fans into the Garden. Then on the second night the Knickerbockers and Warlow would play for team to be beaten by the "New York" team. O'Rourke then anticipated the third game as having the best attendance of the tourney. Then for the fourth game, by holding out the Orange Athletic Club until the end, he prdicted a New York versus New Jersey match-up in which New Jersey would lose a close game to one of the three New York teams.

However, O'Rourke didn't realize how seriously the Syracuse team took the tournament. Prior to the start of the series, Syracuse signed three running backs from Watertown, along with Bernis and Hawly Pierce from the Carlisle Indian School, and Bill Warner and his brother Glenn.^[3] The team was put together by Frank "Buck" O'Neill who conducted daily practices in preparation for the series.

Outcome

Syracuse defeated "New York" in what has been called the first indoor pro football game. The final score of the game was recorded as 6-0, but in reality it was 5-0, since touchdowns only counted for five points in 1902 and Pop Warner missed the extra point. Warner later suffered a head injury and was replace by Wallace from the "New York" team. The Knickerbockers then defeated Warlow the very next night 11-6. Syracuse then defeated the Knickerbockers 36-0 on New Year's Eve. The finale on New Year's night against Orange resulted in another 36-0 win, and the series championship, for Syracuse.^[1]

1903

Plans

O'Rourke planned another series for 1903. This year he planned for a round robin tournament of the top football clubs in the area, a high school all-star game, bicycle races, and a Gaelic football match. The end result would be fifteen football games during a span of six days at the Garden.The attendees included Oreos Athletic of Asbury Park, New Jersey; the returning Orange AC; and the Franklin Athletic Club from Pennsylvania. Watertown, which refused entry into the tournament in 1902, put up $2000 in prize money ($1,250 for first place, $750 for second). ^[6] Blondy Wallace returned to the series, this time as a member of the Franklin team.

The field

The playing surface of the Gardens for the 1903 series was still 70 yards. However the surface itself was also improved upon. Dirt was trucked into the Gardens and steamrolled into a more natural surface. ^[6]

Results

Franklin and Waterbury became the two top teams for the 1903 series^[7] . Waterbury narrowly won the opening game against Oreo by a score of 6-0. While Franklin came out the victor against Orange 16-0, amid various calls of rough play and fighting. Two nights later, Franklin and Watertown were featured in the championship game. Many Watertown fans bet between $100 to $500 a clip on their team. However when Franklin won the game 12-0, their betters brought home with them over $4,000 in winnings. ^[6]

End of the series

O'Rourke, after the 1903 series, cancelled the event. He was largely disappointed by the lack attendance at the series. ^[8] The largest crowd over six days was only 2,500 fans, which was for a high school football game.^[6]

References

External links

• Pigskin The Early years of Pro Football
• The First Football World Series