“Not far from one quarter of the entire national income of America is expended for play and recreation” (1920s Sports”). During the 1920s, many people had enough money to spend on entertainment and a lot of people spent the money on sports. In the 1920s, there was many sports including boxing, baseball and football. In the 1920s, sports grew in popularity, and had a major effect on American society. First, baseball was one of the biggest sports in the 1920s. Then football will come in and have an impact on American society. Boxing was always a big sport, but in the 1920s the popularity grew more. Out of all the sports in the 1920s, baseball had grew the most in popularity. Baseball was an essential part of American society in the 1920s. …show more content…
Michael Oriard wrote in his article Gridiron Football, “Attendance more than doubled, exceeding 10 million by the end of the decade, and newspaper coverage of the sport expanded at a similar rate.” Football originally came from rugby and soccer combined together. Football came from rugby by running with the ball and having an 18 foot goal post and a cross-bar at 10 feet above the ground. Football came from soccer by kicking the ball a certain length and then trying to score a goal on the opposite side of the field. Football became popular because many men wanted a contact sport that entertained them and was fun at the same time. Many people looked up to football players in the 1920s. Jimmy Conzelman was a halfback at Washington University in Saint Louis. Jimmy Conzelman played as a quarterback for many years with different teams. Jimmy played for the Decatur Staleys, Detroit Panthers, and Rock Island Independents. Jimmy also coached after he played. Jimmy coached the Milwaukee Badgers, Detroit Panthers, St. Louis Gunners, and Chicago Cardinals. John "Paddy" Driscoll was a quarter back and a coach in football. Paddy played quarterback for the Chicago Bears, Chicago Cardinals, and Hammond Pros. Paddy also coach football in his career. Paddy coached the Chicago Bears, and the Chicago Cardinals in his