I'd just like to say Teddy Roosevelt is one of my personal heroes. Broke up monopolies, founded the national park system, discovered tributaries of the Amazon, fought to establish a third-party in American politics & once took a bullet and swatted it away like a mosquito.

/DNRTFA

Bad.

Ass.

I coach football and during the season, I had this as my signature line on my e-mails to the team parents:

"I am delighted to have you play football. I believe in rough, manly sports. But I do not believe in them if they degenerate into the sole end of any one's existence. I don't want you to sacrifice standing well in your studies to any over-athleticism; and I need not tell you that character counts for a great deal more than either intellect or body in winning success in life. Athletic proficiency is a mighty good servant, and like so many other good servants, a mighty bad master. "
-- Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt's Letters to His Children

Krymson Tyde: Klippoklondike: Lando Lincoln: Teddy Roosevelt is the greatest everything of all time. He's like Kim Jong-Il, except that he doesn't have to lie about the amazing things he's done.

Teddy Roosevelts mustache is the prototype for steel wool

Indeed. In fact he invented the mustache.

I already like this better than references to Chuck Norris' beard.

ColTomParker: I coach football and during the season, I had this as my signature line on my e-mails to the team parents:

"I am delighted to have you play football. I believe in rough, manly sports. But I do not believe in them if they degenerate into the sole end of any one's existence. I don't want you to sacrifice standing well in your studies to any over-athleticism; and I need not tell you that character counts for a great deal more than either intellect or body in winning success in life. Athletic proficiency is a mighty good servant, and like so many other good servants, a mighty bad master. "
-- Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt's Letters to His Children

As long as we're throwing out TR quotes... My personal favorite.

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. "

I heard that back in Teddy's day when he played against the Detroit Lions, it was actually a group of lions. Can anyone find a citation for this?

I have a book called "Almost America," with historians doing various "what if"s of history, where there is a chapter on Teddy and the saving of football. Unlike Greene's essay, it's well researched and thought out, including the implications of the lack of college football on higher education throughout the 20th Century.

TheManofPA: I heard that back in Teddy's day when he played against the Detroit Lions, it was actually a group of lions. Can anyone find a citation for this?

That's not true. They had scheduled real lions, but the lions were too afraid of TR to make it into the stadium.

Looks like someone just finished reading The Big Scrum (new window).

A pox upon Teddy Roosevelt! He's so concerned about the "safety" of players, but it's a travesty what's being done to the sport at his insistence. Now it takes ten yards to make a first down instead of five! He's outlawed the wedge on kick returns! He's even insisting on this thing called the "forward pass"! This is so outrageous, they might as well be playing two-hand touch, and put skirts on all the players! He's ruining this game!!1!1!

farkingismybusiness: Bad.
[i.imgur.com image 430x595]
Ass.

He was. One famous story has him cold-cocking a cowboy in the Dakota territory who was making fun of his glasses. Knocked the guy clean out.

Teddy Roosevelt's threat to ban football led to the two biggest travesties in sports: The forward pass, and the NCAA.

Beerguy: Homer Nixon: Looks like someone just finished reading The Big Scrum (new window).

I am in the middle of it right now, great book.

[www.nationalreview.com image 398x600]

Hell, that's going on the list right now.

JosephFinn: I have a book called "Almost America," with historians doing various "what if"s of history, where there is a chapter on Teddy and the saving of football. Unlike Greene's essay, it's well researched and thought out, including the implications of the lack of college football on higher education throughout the 20th Century.

I read that too. He says that the rule changes increased attendance at the games and turned the sport into a major source of revenue. The extra money enabled the colleges to lower tuition costs and let people who weren't from wealthy families attend the schools.

SlothB77: [farm3.static.flickr.com image 500x359]

he's not so good at running.

At least he had the balls to challenge Mark Grace's racing mascot. I'm still waiting for it, should be intense.

TR is my hero. What a badass.

Grimthorn: ColTomParker: I coach football and during the season, I had this as my signature line on my e-mails to the team parents:

"I am delighted to have you play football. I believe in rough, manly sports. But I do not believe in them if they degenerate into the sole end of any one's existence. I don't want you to sacrifice standing well in your studies to any over-athleticism; and I need not tell you that character counts for a great deal more than either intellect or body in winning success in life. Athletic proficiency is a mighty good servant, and like so many other good servants, a mighty bad master. "
-- Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt's Letters to His Children

As long as we're throwing out TR quotes... My personal favorite.

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. "

"I can be President or control Alice (his daughter). I can not do both."