1902-Teams required to change goals following a touchdown or goal from the field.
1904-Value of field goal reduced to 4 points.
1905-1906-Football sank to its lowest depths, owing to great number of deaths and crippling injuries resulting from mass plays where brute strength and great weight were the determining factors. Many college presidents either banned football or threatened to do so unless something was done immediately. Parents of many football players forbade them to play. President Theodore Roosevelt said game must be made safer. With the fate of the game hanging in the balance, football leaders met in the winter of 1905-06, ruled out practically all mass formations, prohibited hurdling, permitted the forward pass and other “safety” rules.
1906-Forward pass introduced. Officials to consist of referee, 2 umpires and linesman. Length of game reduced to 60 minutes, divided into 2 halves of 30 minutes each. Distance to gain on downs increased to 10 yards. First forward pass reported thrown by Wesleyan against Yale, with Moore passing and Van Tassel receiving. Yale overwhelmed Wesleyan despite it. In the same season, Yale is reported to have completed a pass against Harvard for a touchdown, Yale winning the game, 6 to 0, the pass constituting the only score.
1907-Office of field judge was created; one of the 2 umpires was eliminated.
1908-Washington and Jefferson occasionally numbered its players, a college innovation that was not continued as a regular thing at W. & J.
1909-Value of field goal reduced to 3 points-the rule today.