Rutgers and Princeton must play on the 150th anniversary of the 1st football game

The sport of football will be celebrating its 150th birthday in a couple of years. Back in 1869, Princeton and New Jersey, now more famously known as the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, met and played what is considered to be the first-ever American football game.

The game was still adjusting and using some of the same rules as rugby, which explains the 6-4 Rutgers victory.

Here’s an excerpt from Rutgers University archives on this day in early November.

The game was played with two teams of 25 men each under rugby-like rules, but like modern football, it was “replete with surprise, strategy, prodigies of determination, and physical prowess,” to use the words of one of the Rutgers players.

The teams lined up with two members of each team remaining more or less stationary near the opponent’s goal in the hopes of being able to slip over and score from unguarded positions. Thus, the present day “sleeper” was conceived. The remaining 23 players were divided into groups of 11 and 12. While the 11 “fielders” lined up in their own territory as defenders, the 12 “bulldogs” carried the battle.

In March 2017, Princeton announced that on Nov. 9, 2019, three days after the 150th anniversary, the Tigers will commemorate the historic meeting with a football game in Yankee Stadium against ... Dartmouth.

“We are extremely proud to partner with Dartmouth and the New York Yankees to celebrate Princeton and Ivy League football in one of the world’s most spectacular sports venues,” said AD Mollie Marcoux Samaan via a release. “Just as Yankee Stadium has housed so many iconic moments, Princeton has played an important role in the development of college football since its very beginnings.”

Uhhhh wait, what? Princeton will play Dartmouth, not Rutgers, whom Princeton played 150 years ago in the first football game ever?

Looking at the Scarlet Knights’ 2019 schedule, they have all of their Big Ten games scheduled, but still two non-conference dates yet to fill.

But the kicker here: Rutgers’ 2019 schedule currently has an open date set for the date Princeton is playing Dartmouth on!

Maybe Princeton and Rutgers did discuss meeting and neither could get a date settled. Perhaps Rutgers has a deal in the works with a team that hasn’t been finalized yet. Maybe Rutgers and Princeton will play earlier in the season after all.

So please, Princeton and Rutgers, for the good of commemorating a historic moment in this beautiful sport, let’s maybe move Dartmouth-Princeton to a different date, and work something out to make this happen.