Gridiron has changed over the years, but we retain the original name, in part because of traditionalists like those who never liked the forward pass and the modern ones who still wish it were used less. I, for example, like passing but think it's too much a part of the modern game; passing is a risky proposition (to quote the line attributed to every college coach since at least Woody Hayes, "only three things can happen when you throw a pass, and two of them are bad. " ) Unless there's a big payoff it's stupid to accept a big risk; if you're playing a ball control game where four or five yards on a single play is considered pretty good, and regular first downs with few turnovers are vital, running is the way to go. In my view, you should pass for scores and first downs; otherwise, you should throw just often enough that the defense doesn't take it for granted that you're running (in which case they'll stack eight or nine guys on the line of scrimmage and running will become very difficult very fast. ) Still and so, the recipe for winning once you gain the lead is still the same: run the ball, nearly certain to move it farther from your goal at least a little every time, taking time off the clock with little risk of a turnover, then count on your D and decent punting to win the field position battle. As recently as fifteen or twenty years ago a team that passed more than it ran was synonymous with a team that lost more than it won.

In the golden age of college ball, however, it was all about punting and field goal kicking, with a ton of running in the interim. 6-0 scores were common, both because TDs were rare and because extra points really were accomplishing something "extra. " It helped that the goalposts were still on the goal line instead of the back of the endzone; Jim Thorpe used to spend part of his pregame at midfield, drop kicking a ball over one goal post before turning around drop kicking one over the other. Which is why he accounted for a lot of 3-0 and 6-0 Canton wins.

But, yeah, we'll stop calling it "football" about the same time we stop saying, "soccer. " I think the Moon landing was the last time America was really committed to the new, unprecedented and risky.