Things to consider in simulating football in the 1930's

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Things to consider in simulating football in the 1930's

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All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [Sports] >> Maximum-Football 2.0 >> Things to consider in simulating football in the 1930's

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Things to consider in simulating football in the 1930's - 7/29/2009 4:42:14 AM

Old Coach

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As I work toward seting up a 1933 SEC league, there are several things to consider that make that era very much different from present day.

The football was shaped more like a rugby ball than today's football which made it harder to throw an accurate pass. The ball was fatter and harder to grip and therefore more difficult to throw it with great velocity. Since a fat ball isn't an option in the game, passing ratings have to be set lower to reflect less pass strength and pass accuracy(difficulty in gripping the ball). There was also a rule in effect at that time that prevented anyone from throwing the ball within 5 yards of the LOS. That rule is not an option in MaxFB but the rule can be reflected in play design. To me that rule is not a big deal and I won't make any play adjustments to reflect its effects on gameplay.

Teams simply didn't pass very much in those days. That was probably due to many factors such as the ball shape as well as coaches' mistrust of the forward pass. I remember reading a microfilm article from a 1938 Knoxville News Sentinel that said something to the effect that a UT opponent had aired it out by throwing something like 12 passes in one game. Setting up a coach profile to reflect that conservative play calling approach can be tedious.

The quick kick was employed as an offensive weapon to flip field position. That meant teams often punted on 2nd or 3rd down and sometimes even 1st down if their field position was unfavorable. That means play calling and profiles that will call for punts if the down, distance and field position are not favorable. For example we could set a rule or condition that calls for a punt on 3rd down if the offense has the ball inside their 35 with more than 4 yards to go for a 1st down. Of course, score and time on the clock must enter in to this as well. You wouldn't punt on 3rd down if you trailed by 6 with 2 minutes to go.

Placekicking was a real mystery for many teams in the 30's. The drop kick was still legal. As I looked at Tennessee's scores from that time, it was apparent that they attempted very few fieldgoals and the extra point kick was an adventure. This was due to the small staffs and lack of a kicking coach. Back then, soccer was not popular in the U.S. so you didn't get kids coming into college with a kicking background. Placekickers will have to have low kick power and accuracy ratings to reflect these conditions. Finding the right balance here will be a challenge. I would say that about a 60% success rate on extra points would be goal to shoot for. You would probably want about a 15-20% success rate on fieldgoals. You could have a separate PAT man and FG man or you could have your PAT man have a weak leg so that most FG's fall short.

Taking all this into consideration, to reflect football in 1933 between relatively equal teams you want games in which one team scoring 3 or 4 TD's would be an offensive explosion. 3 or 4 TD's total in such a game would the norm. Since the game is driven by the math that involves player ratings, editing and balancing the ratings is the key. Ratings will gave to be adjusted to favor the defense.

Old Coach

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RE: Three 1933 Uniform sets - 7/29/2009 5:14:53 AM

Old Coach

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You know I can't resist posting screenshots, so here are 3 uniform sets for the 1933 SEC league. Most SEC teams didn't wear white jerseys on the road unless their opponents home jerseys were the same color but I created road whites nonetheless. Tennessee wore their home orange jerseys on the road until 1971.

Old Coach

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RE: Three 1933 Uniform sets - 7/30/2009 3:07:31 PM

garysorrell

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Great stuff oldcoach, especially the historical particulars. In todays game, 'airing it out' would probably be 30-35+ attempts.

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RE: Three 1933 Uniform sets - 7/30/2009 6:17:11 PM

Old Coach

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Gary,
With some teams now, "airing it out" means 50-60 passes. Hawaii, Utah for example. When I was in high school, we threw 10 passes in one game my senior year. Our local paper talked about our "prolific aerial game". We seldom threw more than 5 or 6 times a game. Back in 1977 or 1978, Georgia Tech defeated Notre Dame without throwing a single pass. The Jackets were an option team that just lined up and crammed it down people's throats.

Old Coach

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RE: Three 1933 Uniform sets - 8/3/2009 12:49:50 AM

Cryolemon

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The mention of teams "airing it out" with 10-12 passes reminded me of the Panthers - Falcons game from a couple of years ago when Delhomme was injured and Carolina basically ran teh wildcat with Williams the whole game Wienke finished the game 3 out of 7 passing if I remember rightly.

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