The History Of Thanksgiving And Football

I thought it would be fun to share this with history buffs.

Thanksgiving Day football, once a tradition among the high schools and colleges of America, has more or less faded into oblivion in most sections of the country.

G.A. Richards

But it is still alive in the National Football League in two franchise cities, Detroit and Dallas, where Thanksgiving Day football has become a normal, expected way of life.  Beginning in 1966, Dallas has missed playing on the holiday only in 1975 and 1977.                         

However, when it comes to Thanksgiving Day football, NFL style, most fans first think of the Lions and the tradition that was started in 1934. It was their first year in Detroit after a local radio executive, George A. Richards, had purchased the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans and moved the team to Detroit. The Spartans were members of the NFL from 1930 to 1933. Click here to read more.

 

 

Donna