157-941: The Arizona Outlaws were a professional American football team that played in the United States Football League in the mid-1980s. They were owned by Fresno banker and real estate magnate William Tatham Sr., who had briefly owned the Portland Thunder of the World Football League . During their first season, the team played as the Oklahoma Outlaws . They became the Arizona Outlaws for their second season. The Outlaws were originally slated to play in San Diego . However, under pressure from baseball's Padres ,
314-517: A Dallas , Texas, rally on the night before the election. Keith also endorsed Democrat Dan Boren in his successful run in Oklahoma's 2nd congressional district and was good friends with former Democratic New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson . In a January 2007 interview with Newsday , Keith was asked whether he supported the Iraq War . He responded with "Never did", and said he favors setting
471-403: A halftime period, and the first and third quarters are followed by a short break. Before the game starts, the referee and each team's captain meet at midfield for a coin toss . The visiting team can call either "heads" or "tails"; the winner of the toss chooses whether to receive or kick off the ball or which goal they wish to defend. They can defer their choice until the second half. Unless
628-401: A 10-yard-long chain between them, are used to measure for a first down. The chain crew stays on the sidelines during the game, but if requested by the officials they will briefly bring the chains on to the field to measure. A typical chain crew will have at least three people—two members of the chain crew will hold either of the two sticks, while a third will hold the down marker. The down marker,
785-548: A 40,000-seat stadium), 14th in the league. It might have been even higher if not for brutally cold and wet early-season weather and what amounted to season-long lame duck status. While Tulsa as a USFL host city had a number of legitimate problems, fan turnout was surprisingly respectable, especially compared to the unsustainable attendance numbers seen by USFL teams in Chicago (7,455), Washington (7,694) and Los Angeles (15,361). They were also one of eight teams whose average attendance
942-525: A PAT attempt or successful field goal, the scoring team must kick the ball off to the other team. A safety is scored when the ball carrier is tackled in the carrier's own end zone. Safeties are worth two points, which are awarded to the defense. In addition, the team that conceded the safety must kick the ball to the scoring team via a free kick . Football games are played on a rectangular field that measures 120 yards (110 m) long and 53 + 1 ⁄ 3 yards (48.8 m) wide. Lines marked along
1099-508: A cover of Inez and Charlie Foxx 's " Mockingbird ", recorded as a duet with his daughter, Krystal Keith . "Stays in Mexico" was a number 3 hit on the country charts, while "Mockingbird" peaked at number 27. Keith's final DreamWorks album was Honkytonk University in early 2005. Lead-off single " Honkytonk U " peaked at number 8, followed by " As Good as I Once Was ", which spent six weeks at number 1, and " Big Blue Note " at number 5. After
1256-528: A cover of Sting 's 1996 single " I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying ". Sting also sang duet vocals and played bass guitar on it, and the two also performed the song at the 1997 Country Music Association awards. After this song, the album's title track reached number 5, while "Double Wide Paradise" peaked at number 40. Keith's last Mercury release was Greatest Hits Volume One in October 1998. The album included twelve of his prior singles and two new songs:
1413-524: A cover of their 1963 hit " Be True to Your School " with the Beach Boys themselves providing the harmonies and backing vocals. Following a corporate merger, Keith returned to Mercury in 1997. His fourth studio album, Dream Walkin' , was also his first produced by James Stroud , who would also serve as Keith's co-producer until 2005. It produced two consecutive number 2 hits with " We Were in Love " and
1570-453: A field goal instead. A group of officials, the chain crew, keeps track of both the downs and the distance measurements. On television, a yellow line is electronically superimposed on the field to show the first down line to the viewing audience. There are two categories of kicks in football: scrimmage kicks, which can be executed by the offensive team on any down from behind or on the line of scrimmage, and free kicks. The free kicks are
1727-634: A fight with offensive tackle Donnie Hickman . It exploded into an all-out brawl, and the plane was met by federal agents when it landed in Phoenix. Teerlinck was fired the next day. Despite this, the Tathams hoped to stick it out once the league won their lawsuit against the NFL. The Outlaws were one of eight teams slated to play in 1986. After the Portland Breakers folded while the antitrust trial
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#17327721756941884-457: A group of Princeton players realized that, as the snap was uncontested, they could now hold the ball indefinitely to prevent their opponent from scoring. In 1881, in a game between Yale and Princeton, both teams used this strategy to maintain their undefeated records. Each team held the ball, gaining no ground, for an entire half, resulting in a 0–0 tie. This "block game" proved extremely unpopular with both teams' spectators and fans. A rule change
2041-660: A hefty award in court, it suspended operations never to return. In a last-ditch desperation move, in January 1987, Tatham met with the Canadian Football League hoping to transfer the Outlaws, along with any other USFL team that was willing and able, to the CFL. Under Tatham's proposal, the Outlaws would abide by the CFL's Canadian-born player quotas. The CFL's owners, who were facing their own financial crisis due to
2198-498: A hunter. Keith also made an appearance as a musical guest on the October 27, 2011, episode of The Colbert Report . On October 29, 2011, Keith appeared on Fox Channel 's Huckabee with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee . He played "Bullets in the Gun" and he joined with Huckabee ' s house band to play a song at the end of the show. In December 2018, Keith appeared as a guest on Darci Lynne : My Hometown Christmas . In
2355-533: A large stick with a dial on it, is flipped after each play to indicate the current down and is typically moved to the approximate spot of the ball. The chain crew system has been used for over 100 years and is considered an accurate measure of distance, rarely subject to criticism from either side. Football is a full-contact sport, and injuries are relatively common. Most injuries occur during training sessions, particularly ones that involve contact between players. To try to prevent injuries, players are required to wear
2512-408: A long circumference of 28 to 28 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (71 to 72 cm), and a short circumference of 21 to 21 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (53 to 54 cm). In college and high school play the ball has a long axis of 10 + 7 ⁄ 8 to 11 + 7 ⁄ 16 inches (27.6 to 29.1 cm), a long circumference of 27 + 3 ⁄ 4 to 28 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (70 to 72 cm), and
2669-420: A minimum of 10 feet (3.0 m) on high school fields. Goal posts are padded at the base, and orange ribbons are normally placed at the tip of each upright as indicators of wind strength and direction. The football itself is a prolate spheroid leather ball, similar to the balls used in rugby or Australian rules football . To contain the compressed air within it, a pig's bladder was commonly used before
2826-510: A modified scoring system. These schools formed the Intercollegiate Football Association , although Yale did not join until 1879. Yale player Walter Camp , now regarded as the "Father of American Football", secured rule changes in 1880 that reduced the size of each team from 15 to 11 players and instituted the snap to replace the chaotic and inconsistent scrum . While the game between Rutgers and Princeton
2983-652: A more confident sense of humor". In 2002, he released the Unleashed album which included four singles. First was " Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American) ", which Keith wrote in 20 minutes as a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks . The song references Keith's father, a United States Army veteran who died that March in a car accident. Both this song and " Who's Your Daddy? " were number 1 hits, with " Rock You Baby " reaching number 13. The last single
3140-518: A number 31 peak on the Hot 100. It was also the top country song of 2000 according to the Billboard Year-End chart. The album, which was certified platinum, produced a Top 5 hit in " Country Comes to Town " and another number 1 in " You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This ". It was also his first album to feature songs co-written by Scotty Emerick , who would be a frequent collaborator of Keith's for
3297-428: A pass hits the ground without a player having caught it. A forward pass can be legally attempted only if the passer is behind the line of scrimmage; only one forward pass can be attempted per down. As in rugby, players can also pass the ball backwards at any point during a play. In the NFL, a down also ends immediately if the runner's helmet comes off. The offense is given a series of four plays, known as downs . If
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#17327721756943454-583: A player being paid to participate in a game of American football , although many athletic clubs in the 1880s offered indirect benefits, such as helping players attain employment, giving out trophies or watches that players could pawn for money, or paying double in expense money. Despite these extra benefits, the game had a strict sense of amateurism at the time, and direct payment to players was frowned upon, if not prohibited outright. Over time, professional play became increasingly common, and with it came rising salaries and unpredictable player movement, as well as
3611-578: A professional venue. There was virtually no parking around the stadium, which would have held down attendance even without the weather problems. With no other facility in the Tulsa area suitable even for temporary use, they started searching for a new home. They initially planned to move to the University of Oklahoma 's Owen Field while a new stadium was being built in Oklahoma City . However, when
3768-427: A quarter ends, play continues until the down is completed. If certain fouls are committed during play while time has expired, the quarter may be extended through an untimed down . Games last longer than their defined length due to play stoppages—the average NFL game lasts slightly over three hours. Time in a football game is measured by the game clock. An operator is responsible for starting, stopping and operating
3925-456: A rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense , the team with possession of the oval-shaped football , attempts to advance down the field by running with the ball or throwing it , while the defense , the team without possession of the ball, aims to stop the offense's advance and to take control of the ball for themselves. The offense must advance the ball at least ten yards in four downs or plays; if they fail, they turn over
4082-551: A roster of players, but was fired by Tatham in December in a dispute over finances. In what proved to be a harbinger of things to come, Tatham and his son, Bill Jr.–who was tapped as general manager despite being fresh out of law school–discovered soon after the ink dried on his lease with TU that school officials had vastly inflated attendance figures for Tulsa Golden Hurricane football games in hopes of maintaining their Division I-A status. The Tathams had been led to believe that
4239-511: A round ball. An 1875 Harvard–Yale game played under rugby-style rules was observed by two Princeton athletes who were impressed by it. They introduced the sport to Princeton, a feat the Professional Football Researchers Association compared to "selling refrigerators to Eskimos ". Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Columbia then agreed to intercollegiate play using a form of rugby union rules with
4396-436: A secondary signal. Women can serve as officials; Sarah Thomas became the NFL's first female official in 2015. The seven officials (of a standard seven-man crew; lower levels of play up to the college level use fewer officials) on the field are each tasked with a different set of responsibilities: Another set of officials, the chain crew , are responsible for moving the chains. The chains, consisting of two large sticks with
4553-403: A separate sport from rugby, and the resulting five-yard lines added to the field to measure distances made it resemble a gridiron in appearance. Other major rule changes included a reduction of the field size to 110 by 53 + 1 ⁄ 3 yards (100.6 m × 48.8 m) and the adoption of a scoring system that awarded four points for a touchdown, two for a safety and a goal following
4710-407: A serious look at moving to Phoenix which had rocketed to major-city status due to its explosive growth in the second half of the 20th century. At one point, team revenue tailed off to the point that the Outlaws flew commercial flights to games rather than chartered jets. On one of those flights, from Houston back to Phoenix, the simmering tension on the team finally boiled over when Teerlinck got in
4867-563: A set of equipment. At a minimum players must wear a football helmet and a set of shoulder pads , but individual leagues may require additional padding such as thigh pads and guards, knee pads, chest protectors, and mouthguards . Most injuries occur in the lower extremities, particularly in the knee, but a significant number also affect the upper extremities. The most common types of injuries are strains , sprains , bruises , fractures , dislocations , and concussions . Toby Keith Toby Keith Covel (July 8, 1961 – February 5, 2024)
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5024-410: A short circumference of 20 + 3 ⁄ 4 to 21 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (53 to 54 cm). Football games last for a total of 60 minutes in professional and college play and are divided into two halves of 30 minutes and four quarters of 15 minutes. High school football games are 48 minutes in length with two halves of 24 minutes and four quarters of 12 minutes. The two halves are separated by
5181-629: A single, "Red Solo Cup" became Keith's best-peaking crossover, reaching number 15 on the Hot 100. The album's final single was " Beers Ago " at number 6 in 2012. In December 2011, Keith was named "Artist of the Decade" by the American Country Awards. Keith's sixteenth album, Hope on the Rocks , was released in late 2012. It produced only two singles, both of which are top 20 hits: " I Like Girls That Drink Beer " reached at number 17 and
5338-433: A team in Tulsa. It was only the 60th-largest television market, which would have made it by far the smallest market in the league. Moreover, the only viable facility, the University of Tulsa 's Skelly Stadium , needed major renovations in order to bring it to something approaching professional standards. However, Tatham had roots in Oklahoma , and eventually concluded that putting his team there would give something back to
5495-416: A touchdown , and five for a goal from the field . Additionally, tackling below the waist was legalized, and a static line of scrimmage was instituted. Despite these new rules, football remained a violent sport. Dangerous mass-formations like the flying wedge resulted in serious injuries and deaths. A 1905 peak of 19 fatalities nationwide resulted in a threat by President Theodore Roosevelt to abolish
5652-557: A two-disc compilation featuring most of his singles to date, as well as the new song " She's a Hottie ", which peaked at number 13 on Billboard's country songs chart. Keith released " She Never Cried in Front of Me ", which went to number 1 in 2008. Its corresponding album, That Don't Make Me a Bad Guy , followed on October 28, 2008. It was followed by " God Love Her ", also a number 1 hit, and " Lost You Anyway ". American Ride , in 2009, produced another number 1 in its title track . It
5809-460: Is a sport in which two competing teams vie for control of a ball, which can be kicked through a set of goalposts or run into the opponent's goal area to score points. What is considered to be the first American football game was played on November 6, 1869 , between Rutgers and Princeton , two college teams. They consisted of 25 players per team and used a round ball that could not be picked up or carried. It could, however, be kicked or batted with
5966-425: Is called on the offense. There are two main ways the offense can advance the ball: running and passing . In a typical play, the center passes the ball backwards and between their legs to the quarterback in a process known as the snap . The quarterback then either hands the ball off to a running back, throws the ball, or runs with it. The play ends when the player with the ball is tackled or goes out-of-bounds or
6123-437: Is caught or recovered behind the line of scrimmage. If it is touched or recovered by the kicking team beyond this line, it becomes dead at the spot where it was touched. The kicking team is prohibited from interfering with the receiver's opportunity to catch the ball. The receiving team has the option of signaling for a fair catch , which prohibits the defense from blocking into or tackling the receiver. The play ends as soon as
6280-579: Is commonly considered the first American football game, several years prior in 1862, the Oneida Football Club formed as the oldest known football club in the United States. The team consisted of graduates of Boston's elite preparatory schools and played from 1862 to 1865. The introduction of the snap resulted in an unexpected consequence. Before the snap, the strategy had been to punt if a scrum resulted in bad field position. However,
6437-403: Is known as a two-point conversion . In general, the extra point is almost always successful, while the two-point conversion is a much riskier play with a higher probability of failure; accordingly, extra point attempts are far more common than two-point conversion attempts. A field goal (FG), worth three points, is scored when the ball is place kicked or drop kicked through the uprights and over
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6594-407: Is responsible for all kicking plays. The special teams unit of the team in control of the ball tries to execute field goal (FG) attempts, punts , and kickoffs , while the opposing team's unit will aim to block or return them. Three positions are specific to the field goal and PAT (point-after-touchdown) unit: the placekicker (K or PK), holder (H), and long snapper (LS). The long snapper's job
6751-421: Is to block members of the defensive line from tackling the ball carrier on running plays or sacking the quarterback on passing plays. The leader of the offensive line is the center, who is responsible for snapping the ball to the quarterback, blocking, and for making sure that the other linemen do their jobs during the play. On either side of the center are the guards (G), while tackles (T) line up outside
6908-437: Is to snap the football to the holder, who will catch and position it for the placekicker. There is not usually a holder on kickoffs, because the ball is kicked off a tee; however, a holder may be used in certain situations, such as if wind is preventing the ball from remaining upright on the tee. The player on the receiving team who catches the ball is known as the kickoff returner (KR). The positions specific to punt plays are
7065-630: The Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including 20 number one hits and 22 additional top 10 hits. His longest-lasting number one hits are "Beer for My Horses" (a 2003 duet with Willie Nelson ) and " As Good as I Once Was " (2005). He was nominated for seven Grammy Awards . Keith was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Donald Trump in a closed ceremony alongside Ricky Skaggs on January 13, 2021. Keith died on February 5, 2024, from stomach cancer . He
7222-688: The Billboard Hot 100 . This song led off his self-titled debut album . Certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of one million copies, the album produced three more Top 5 hits on the country charts with " He Ain't Worth Missing " (at #5), " A Little Less Talk and a Lot More Action " (originally the B-side of "Should've Been a Cowboy"), and " Wish I Didn't Know Now " (both at #2). Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote of
7379-776: The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) in 1997. The BCS arrangement proved to be controversial , and was replaced in 2014 by the College Football Playoff (CFP). A football game is played between two teams of 11 players each. Playing with more on the field is punishable by a penalty. Teams may substitute any number of their players between downs; this "platoon" system replaced the original system, which featured limited substitution rules, and has resulted in teams utilizing specialized offensive, defensive and special teams units. The number of players allowed on an active roster varies by league;
7536-586: The Comedy Central Roast of Larry the Cable Guy , which aired on March 14, 2009. Keith received the "Colbert Bump" when he appeared on Comedy Central 's The Colbert Report . He holds the distinction of being the only musical artist to have received a five star rating from Stephen Colbert on iTunes . Keith furthered this connection when he appeared in Colbert's 2008 Christmas special as
7693-642: The Michigan Panthers . Homeless and looking for options, the Tathams would turn to the 1984 Western Conference Champion Arizona Wranglers . Despite advancing all the way to the USFL title game after essentially trading rosters with the Chicago Blitz , the Wranglers' 1984 attendance figures—although respectable—were not enough to cover expenses. In fact, they were actually slightly below those of
7850-598: The NCAA and the NAIA . The National Football League (NFL) has the highest average attendance of any professional sports league in the world . Its championship game, the Super Bowl , ranks among the most-watched club sporting events globally. In 2022, the league had an annual revenue of around $ 18.6 billion, making it the most valuable sports league in the world. Other professional and amateur leagues exist worldwide, but
8007-562: The NFL 's Chargers and the NASL 's Sockers , the city refused to grant Tatham a lease for Jack Murphy Stadium . Scrambling for a home, Tatham seriously considered playing in Honolulu for its inaugural 1984 season. However, he settled on Tulsa, Oklahoma —even though the city had not even been included in a list of possible expansion sites for the USFL. Tatham was initially skeptical about basing
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#17327721756948164-412: The center (C), are allowed to line up in or cross the neutral zone until the ball is snapped. Interior offensive linemen are not allowed to move until the snap of the ball. The main backfield positions are the quarterback (QB), halfback/tailback (HB/TB), and fullback (FB). The quarterback is the leader of the offense. Either the quarterback or a coach calls the plays. Quarterbacks typically inform
8321-409: The commissioner . NCAA and NFHS teams are "strongly advised" to number their offensive players according to a league-suggested numbering scheme. Although the sport is played almost exclusively by men, women are eligible to play in high school, college, and professional football. No woman has ever played in the NFL, but women have played in high school and college football games. In 2018, 1,100 of
8478-541: The country rap " Getcha Some " and "If a Man Answers". Both were released as singles, with "Getcha Some" reaching the Top 20, but "If a Man Answers" became his first single to miss the Top 40. According to Keith, these two songs were originally to be put on a studio album, but Mercury executives, dissatisfied with the album that Keith had made, chose to put those two songs on a greatest hits package, and asked him to "go work on another album". After he recorded two more songs which
8635-555: The forward pass , created the neutral zone , and specified the size and shape of the football. The sport is closely related to Canadian football , which evolved in parallel with and at the same time as the American game, although its rules were developed independently from those of Camp. Most of the features that distinguish American football from rugby and soccer are also present in Canadian football. The two sports are considered
8792-461: The honky-tonk circuit in Oklahoma and Texas . Keith went to Nashville, Tennessee , where he busked along Music Row to no avail, until producer Harold Shedd signed him with Mercury Records after receiving a copy of Keith's demo tape from a flight attendant who was a fan of Keith's. Keith's debut single, " Should've Been a Cowboy ", went to number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1993, and it reached number 93 on
8949-411: The kickoff , which starts the first and third quarters and overtime and follows a try attempt or a successful field goal; the safety kick follows a safety. On a kickoff, the ball is placed at the 35-yard line of the kicking team in professional and college play and at the 40-yard line in high school play. The ball may be drop kicked or place kicked. If a place kick is chosen, the ball can be placed on
9106-407: The neutral zone was created along the width of the football before the snap. Scoring was also adjusted: points awarded for field goals were reduced to three in 1909 and points for touchdowns were raised to six in 1912. Also in 1912, the field was shortened to 100 yards (91 m) long, two 10-yard-long (9.1 m) end zones were created, and teams were given four downs instead of three to advance
9263-407: The punter (P), long snapper, upback , and gunner . The long snapper snaps the football directly to the punter, who then drops and kicks it before it hits the ground. Gunners line up split outside the line and race down the field, aiming to tackle the punt returner (PR)—the player who catches the punt. Upbacks line up a short distance behind the line of scrimmage, providing additional protection to
9420-407: The title track peaked at number 18. In mid-2013, he entered the charts with " Drinks After Work ", the first single from his seventeenth album, also titled Drinks After Work . The album's second single is "Shut Up and Hold On". In October 2014, Keith released " Drunk Americans ", the lead single from his eighteenth studio album, 35 MPH Town . In April 2015, Keith released " 35 MPH Town ",
9577-413: The 1966 season. Once the merger was completed, it was no longer a championship game between two leagues and reverted to the NFL championship game, which came to be known as the Super Bowl . College football maintained a tradition of postseason bowl games . Each bowl game was associated with a particular conference and earning a spot in a bowl game was the reward for winning a conference. This arrangement
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#17327721756949734-461: The 1983 Wranglers team. Owner Dr. Ted Diethrich, who had swapped the Blitz for the Wranglers in the 1983–84 offseason, had anticipated much higher attendance after bringing most of a team reckoned as an NFL-caliber unit to Phoenix. Additionally, he never was paid in full for selling the Chicago franchise rights after the new Blitz owner, James Hoffman, saw his finances collapse. After losing millions for
9891-497: The 1984 Wranglers' defensive players and coaches, while bringing Williams and most of the 1984 Outlaws offense with them to Arizona. Rather than retaining the majority of the 1984 Western Conference Champion Wranglers and simply replacing retiring Wranglers QB Greg Landry with Williams, for the second year in a row little effort was made to retain players in which Phoenix fans felt a vested interest. The Tathams did, however, name former Sun Devils coach Frank Kush as head coach. Kush
10048-657: The 2008 movie Beer for My Horses , which is based on the 2003 hit single " Beer for My Horses " recorded by Keith and Willie Nelson . In 2005, Keith opened Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill in Oklahoma City , Oklahoma, as well as Syracuse, New York , and Tulsa, Oklahoma , and later also had restaurants in Thackerville, Oklahoma ; Auburn Hills, Michigan ; Kansas City ; Las Vegas ; Mesa, Arizona ; Peoria, Arizona ; St. Louis Park, Minnesota ; Foxborough, Massachusetts ; Cincinnati, Ohio ; Newport News, Virginia ; and Denver , Colorado. Keith did not actually own
10205-567: The 225,000 players in Pop Warner Little Scholars youth football were girls, and around 11% of the 5.5 million Americans who report playing tackle football are female according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association. The role of the offensive unit is to advance the football down the field with the ultimate goal of scoring a touchdown . The offensive team must line up in a legal formation before they can snap
10362-500: The Autumn of 2005, he filmed Broken Bridges , written by Cherie Bennett and Jeff Gottesfeld , and directed by Steven Goldmann . This feature film from Paramount / CMT Films was released on September 8, 2006. In this contemporary story set in small-town Tennessee , Keith plays Bo Price, a washed-up country musician. The movie also stars Kelly Preston , Burt Reynolds , Tess Harper , and Lindsey Haun . Keith wrote and starred in
10519-537: The Bucs, he made less than several backups, and their offer for 1984 would have still made him one of the lowest-paid starters in the league. Williams was not a very refined, efficient, or consistent passer at that point in addition to being a little rusty, but had a big arm and a knack for making plays. Along with Williams, the Outlaws roster included rookie Oklahoma State star RB Ernest Anderson . Former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Woody Widenhofer coached
10676-817: The Capri Restaurant Group included those in Great Lakes Crossing in Auburn Hills, Michigan , and in the Shops at West End in St. Louis Park, Minnesota . Both of which closed in 2015. In 2011, Keith introduced a new drink named "Wild Shot". At first it was only available in Mexico, but now is sold and served in America. It is a featured drink in his restaurant chain. Keith's music career and his various other business ventures made him one of
10833-538: The Hurricane drew 35,000–40,000 people per game, which would have been more than respectable by USFL standards. However, business manager Bill Wall, TU's former athletic director, told them after the season opener that the Hurricane actually drew 17,000 per game. Fortunately for the Tathams, they had a lifeline in Gillman's highest-profile signing, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Doug Williams , who bolted to
10990-516: The NFL had established itself as America's premier professional football league. The dominant form of football at the time was played at the collegiate level . The upstart NFL received a boost to its legitimacy in 1925, however, when an NFL team, the Pottsville Maroons , defeated a team of Notre Dame all-stars in an exhibition game . A greater emphasis on the passing game helped professional football to distinguish itself further from
11147-570: The NFL has a 53-man roster, while NCAA Division I allows teams to have 63 scholarship players in the FCS and 85 scholarship players in the FBS, respectively. Individual players in a football game must be designated with a uniform number between 1 and 99, though some teams may "retire" certain numbers , making them unavailable to players. NFL teams are required to number their players by a league-approved numbering system, and any exceptions must be approved by
11304-495: The St. Louis Cardinals moved into Sun Devil Stadium for the 1988 NFL season . Sources Rushing yards: 1031 (1985), Reggie Brown Receiving yards: 1087 (1984), Alphonso Williams Passing yards: 3645 (1985), Doug Williams American football American football , referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football , is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on
11461-482: The Tathams inherited the Wranglers' player contracts, the deal was still widely reported as a merger. As a result, Phoenix received what amounted to its third USFL team in as many seasons. Under the terms of the deal with Diethrich, the offseason roster for the new Arizona Outlaws comprised 20 players from the 1984 Wranglers, and 13 from the 1984 Outlaws. The Tathams retained many of the better players off both rosters, but not all of them. With few exceptions, they retained
11618-590: The Top Country Albums chart and 38 on the Billboard 200 chart. In 2021, Keith featured on the Brantley Gilbert single " The Worst Country Song of All Time " with Hardy . On January 13, 2021, President Trump awarded Keith the National Medal of Arts . The award was given in a closed ceremony, alongside fellow country musician Ricky Skaggs . On September 28, 2023, after receiving
11775-435: The U.S. military. "My father was a soldier. He taught his kids to respect veterans", said Keith. "It's that respect and the thank-you that we have a military that's in place and ready to defend our nation; our freedom." In 2004, Keith called himself "a conservative Democrat who is sometimes embarrassed for his party". He endorsed the re-election of President George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential election and performed at
11932-520: The USFL voted to move to the fall for the 1986 season, OU officials backed out of the deal. Bill Jr. then worked out a deal to play at Honolulu 's Aloha Stadium , but Bill Sr. vetoed it. The Tathams nearly had a deal to merge the Outlaws with the Oakland Invaders . However, the deal collapsed at the last minute because Invaders owner Tad Taube was unwilling to give control of the team to the younger Tatham. The Invaders ultimately merged with
12089-407: The United States. The CFL commissioner ultimately rejected the proposal (along with a similar one from Charles O. Finley ), stating: "if any expansion takes place, it will be within the bounds of Canada." Soon afterward, the Tathams abandoned any hope of bringing the Outlaws back, and concentrated their efforts on bringing an NFL expansion team to the Phoenix market. Those efforts were abandoned when
12246-460: The advent of artificial rubber inside the leather outer shell to sustain crushing forces . At all levels of play, the football is inflated to 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 to 13 + 1 ⁄ 2 psi (86 to 93 kPa), or just under one atmosphere, and weighs 14 to 15 ounces (400 to 430 g); beyond that, the exact dimensions vary slightly. In professional play the ball has a long axis of 11 to 11 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (28 to 29 cm),
12403-408: The album with session guitarist Kenny Greenberg and recording engineer Mills Logan . On October 25, 2011, Clancy's Tavern was released. The album included the single " Made in America ", written by Keith along with Bobby Pinson and Scott Reeves , which went to number 1. Following it was " Red Solo Cup ", which had previously been made into a music video which became popular. Upon release as
12560-611: The album's title track and second single. In 2015, Keith was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In September 2017, Keith released the compilation album, The Bus Songs . The album contains twelve songs: two new, five re-recorded, and five previously released songs. The new songs on the album are "Shitty Golfer" and "Wacky Tobaccy". In the U.S. The Bus Songs topped the Billboard Comedy Albums chart for 11 weeks. It also reached number 6 on
12717-799: The album, "It is given a production that's a bit too big, clean, glossy and cavernous for Keith's good—it fits the outsized sound of early-'90s radio, but not his outsized talent—but beneath that sheen the songs are very strong." He also thought that it showed the signs of the style that Keith would develop on subsequent albums. The album's success led to Keith touring with then-labelmates Shania Twain and John Brannen . Keith and Twain also appeared in Tracy Lawrence 's music video for " My Second Home " in 1993. Keith then signed with Polydor Records Nashville and released his second album, Boomtown , in September 1994. Also certified platinum, this album
12874-572: The ball 10 yards (9.1 m). The roughing the passer penalty was implemented in 1914, and eligible players were first allowed to catch the ball anywhere on the field in 1918. On November 12, 1892, Pudge Heffelfinger was paid $ 500 (equivalent to $ 16,956 in 2023) to play a game for the Allegheny Athletic Association against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club . This is the first recorded instance of
13031-435: The ball is caught, and the ball may not be advanced. Officials are responsible for enforcing game rules and monitoring the clock. All officials carry a whistle and wear black-and-white striped shirts and black hats except for the referee, whose hat is white. Each carries a weighted yellow flag that is thrown to the ground to signal that a foul has been called. An official who spots multiple fouls will throw their hat as
13188-430: The ball. An offensive formation is considered illegal if there are more than four players in the backfield or fewer than five players numbered 50–79 on the offensive line. Players can line up temporarily in a position whose eligibility is different from what their number permits as long as they report the change immediately to the referee, who then informs the defensive team of the change. Neither team's players, except
13345-591: The college game during the late 1930s. Football, in general, became increasingly popular following the 1958 NFL Championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants , still referred to as the "Greatest Game Ever Played". The game, a 23–17 overtime victory by the Colts, was seen by millions of television viewers and had a major influence on the popularity of the sport. This, along with
13502-552: The conference, as they favored a rugby-style game that allowed running with the ball. After playing McGill University using both American (known as "the Boston game ") for the first game and Canadian (rugby) rules for the second one, the Harvard players preferred the Canadian style of having only 11 men on the field, running the ball without having to be chased by an opponent, the forward pass, tackling, and using an oblong instead of
13659-551: The conservative NFL to expand to Dallas and Minnesota in an attempt to destroy the new league. Meanwhile, the AFL introduced many new features to professional football in the United States: official time was kept on a scoreboard clock rather than on a watch in the referee's pocket, as the NFL did; optional two-point conversions by pass or run after touchdowns; names on the jerseys of players; and several others, including expansion of
13816-467: The country charts, with the latter two both holding that position for five weeks. "I Wanna Talk About Me", written by Bobby Braddock , also displayed a country rap influence with its spoken-word lyrics. The Country Music Association named "My List" as Single of the Year in 2002. Of Pull My Chain , Erlewine wrote that "this is a bigger, better record than its predecessor, possessing a richer musicality and
13973-649: The country. In 2009, Capri Restaurant Group announced that it will open another "I Love this Bar & Grill" location in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania's South Side Works shopping and entertainment district. In 2009, Keith also established a line of clothing, TK Steelman. February 2010 marked the opening of the Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill in the Winstar World Casino, exit 1 on Interstate 35 in Oklahoma. Other locations opened in 2010 by
14130-413: The crossbars of the defense's goalposts. In practice, almost all field goal attempts are done via place kick. While drop kicks were common in the early days of the sport, the shape of modern footballs makes it difficult to reliably drop kick the ball. The last successful scoring play by drop kick in the NFL was accomplished in 2006; prior to that, the last successful drop kick had been made in 1941. After
14287-399: The defense is to prevent the offense from scoring by tackling the ball carrier or by forcing turnovers . Turnovers include interceptions (a defender catching a forward pass intended for the offense) and forced fumbles (taking possession of the ball from the ball-carrier). The defensive line (DL) consists of defensive ends (DE) and defensive tackles (DT). Defensive ends line up on
14444-430: The defensive backfield. They are divided into two types: middle linebackers (MLB) and outside linebackers (OLB). Linebackers tend to serve as the defensive leaders and call the defensive plays, given their vantage point of the offensive backfield. Their roles include defending the run, pressuring the quarterback, and tackling backs, wide receivers, and tight ends in the passing game. The defensive backfield , often called
14601-523: The earnings of even more well known musicians such as Jay-Z and Beyoncé and that he hasn't earned less than $ 48 million a year over the past 5 years. Keith wrote at least one #1 country single per year over the past 20 years and the partnership between his own label, Show Dog-Universal , and Big Machine Records , which Keith also helped found in 2005. Keith had made numerous trips to the Middle East, starting in 2002, to perform for those serving in
14758-472: The ends and sides of the field are known as the end lines and sidelines . Goal lines are marked 10 yards (9.1 m) inward from each end line. Weighted pylons are placed the sidelines on the inside corner of the intersections with the goal lines and end lines. White markings on the field identify the distance from the end zone. Inbound lines, or hash marks , are short parallel lines that mark off 1-yard (0.91 m) increments. Yard lines , which can run
14915-404: The ends of the line, while defensive tackles line up inside, between the defensive ends. The primary responsibilities of defensive ends and defensive tackles are to stop running plays on the outside and inside, respectively, to pressure the quarterback on passing plays, and to occupy the line so that the linebackers can break through. Linebackers line up behind the defensive line but in front of
15072-403: The expansion Pittsburgh Maulers on a rainy and cold spring day. (Home openers in the USFL for most teams were the highest attendance games of the season.) Two weeks into the season, Bill Jr. announced that Skelly Stadium was inadequate for the Outlaws' needs and that they would be playing elsewhere in 1985. The Outlaws were competitive for much of the first half of the season, starting out 6–2 off
15229-490: The family moved to Moore, Keith attended Highland West Junior High and Moore High School , where he played defensive end on the football team. Keith graduated from Moore High School and worked as a derrick hand in the oil fields. He worked his way up to become a supervisor. When Keith was 20, he and his friends formed the Easy Money Band, which played at local bars and roadhouses as he continued to work in
15386-499: The feet, hands, head, or sides, with the objective being to advance it into the opponent's goal. Rutgers won the game 6–4. Collegiate play continued for several years with games played using the rules of the host school. Representatives of Yale, Columbia , Princeton and Rutgers met on October 19, 1873, to create a standard set of rules for use by all schools. Teams were set at 20 players each, and fields of 400 by 250 feet (122 m × 76 m) were specified. Harvard abstained from
15543-525: The first Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (then NWA-TNA) weekly pay-per-view on June 19, 2002, where his playing of "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue" was interrupted by Jeff Jarrett . He would later enter the Gauntlet for the Gold main event and eliminate Jarrett from the match. He appeared the next week, on June 26, and helped Scott Hall defeat Jarrett in singles action. In 2009, Keith participated in
15700-729: The first Country Icon Award at the People's Choice Country Awards, Keith performed publicly for the first time since his June 2022 cancer diagnosis announcement. His performance of " Don't Let the Old Man In ", which was previously used in Clint Eastwood 's 2018 film The Mule , received a standing ovation. Keith's final performance was held in Las Vegas, Nevada , at the Park MGM , on December 14, 2023. His last studio recording
15857-416: The football to the defense, but if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs to continue the drive . Points are scored primarily by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponent's goalposts for a field goal . The team with the most points at the end of the game wins. American football evolved in the United States, originating from
16014-409: The former Wranglers and former Outlaws found it hard to get along. At one point, he threatened to fire the entire defensive staff unless the sniping ended. The Outlaws were a much better rushing team in 1985 totalling 2019 yards in support of Williams and the passing game. As had been the case with both versions of the Wranglers, Phoenix-area fans largely viewed the Outlaws with indifference. For
16171-525: The full season. The 1985 season was very much a replay of 1984, with the Outlaws struggling after a quick start. The team jumped out to a 4–2 start, including a 31–13 pounding of the Herschel Walker and Doug Flutie -led New Jersey Generals . However, they proceeded to drop six in a row, and seven out of eight. They rebounded to win three straight, but did not get enough help to make the playoffs, and finished 8–10. Years later, Bill Jr. recalled that
16328-419: The game clock based on the direction of the appropriate official . A separate play clock is used to show the amount of time within which the offense must initiate a play. The play clock is set to 25 seconds after certain administrative stoppages in play and to 40 seconds when play is proceeding without such stoppages. If the offense fails to start a play before the play clock reads "00", a delay of game foul
16485-655: The game unless major changes were made. In response, 62 colleges and universities met in New York City to discuss rule changes on December 28, 1905. These proceedings resulted in the formation of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States, later renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The legal forward pass was introduced in 1906, although its effect
16642-443: The ground or a tee; a holder may be used in either case. On a safety kick, the kicking team kicks the ball from their own 20-yard line. They can punt, drop kick or place kick the ball, but a tee may not be used in professional play. Any member of the receiving team may catch or advance the ball. The ball may be recovered by the kicking team once it has gone at least ten yards and has touched the ground or has been touched by any member of
16799-434: The guards. The principal receivers are the wide receivers (WR) and the tight ends (TE). Wide receivers line up on or near the line of scrimmage, split outside the line. The main goal of the wide receiver is to catch passes thrown by the quarterback, but they may also function as decoys or as blockers during running plays. Tight ends line up outside the tackles and function both as receivers and as blockers. The role of
16956-555: The illegal payment of college players who were still in school. The National Football League (NFL), a group of professional teams that was originally established in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, aimed to solve these problems. This new league's stated goals included an end to bidding wars over players, prevention of the use of college players, and abolition of the practice of paying players to leave another team. By 1922,
17113-451: The innovations introduced by the new American Football League (AFL) in the early 1960s, helped football to become the most popular sport in the United States by the mid-1960s. The rival AFL arose in 1960 and challenged the NFL's dominance. The AFL began in relative obscurity but eventually thrived, with an initial television contract with the ABC television network. The AFL's existence forced
17270-467: The instance of mergers, the league ran allocation drafts to send players to other teams. The Tathams allowed several of the better players on the Wranglers to be dispersed. In this way Wrangler star HB Tim Spencer , for example, ended up starting for Memphis in 1985. Other key Wranglers joined Landry in retirement or defected to other leagues (ex. CB Frank Minnifield who left in the 1984 season). Wrangler lead receiver Trumaine Johnson actually held out for
17427-461: The label also rejected, he asked to terminate his contract with the label. After exiting Mercury, Keith co-wrote Shane Minor 's debut single " Slave to the Habit " with Chuck Cannon and Kostas . In 1999, Keith moved to DreamWorks Records ' Nashville division, of which Stroud served as president. His first release for the label was "When Love Fades", which also failed to make Top 40. Upon seeing
17584-410: The loss of its television sponsorship, doubted that any commitment by a U.S. team to honor Canadian player quotas would withstand legal challenges. The CFL later stated that unless any prospective owner could deliver a television contract of at least $ 20 million a year (the USFL's contract with ESPN was offering $ 27 million a year for the 1986 season had it been held), it would not consider expanding into
17741-470: The new restaurants; the new restaurant is the first in a franchise under Scottsdale, Arizona -based Capri Restaurant Group Enterprises LLC, which purchased the master license agreement to build more Toby Keith restaurants nationwide. Capri Restaurant Group is owned by Frank Capri, who opened the restaurant in Mesa in the shopping center known as Mesa Riverview and is planning on opening multiple locations across
17898-555: The next several albums. Steve Huey wrote that this album "had a rough, brash attitude that helped give Keith a stronger identity as a performer." In 2001, Keith won the Academy of Country Music 's Top Male Vocalist and Album of the Year awards. Following this album was Pull My Chain , released in August 2001. The album's three singles—" I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight ", " I Wanna Talk About Me ", and " My List "—all went to number 1 on
18055-429: The offense advances ten or more yards in the four downs, they are awarded a new set of four downs. If they fail to advance ten yards, possession of the football is turned over to the defense. In most situations, if the offense reaches their fourth down they will punt the ball to the other team, which forces them to begin their drive from farther down the field; if they are in field goal range , they might attempt to score
18212-656: The oil industry. At times, he would have to leave in the middle of a concert if he was paged to work in the oil field. In 1982, the oil industry in Oklahoma began a rapid decline and Keith soon found himself unemployed. He fell back on his football training, and tried out for the professional Oklahoma Outlaws . When he did not make the team, he joined its unofficial semi-pro farm club , the Oklahoma City Drillers, and played defensive end while continuing to perform with his band. He then returned to focus once again on music. The Easy Money Band then began playing
18369-445: The plane of the two end lines. The crossbar of these posts is 10 feet (3.0 m) above the ground, with vertical uprights at the end of the crossbar 18 feet 6 inches (5.64 m) apart for professional and collegiate play, and 23 feet 4 inches (7.11 m) apart for high school play. The uprights extend vertically 35 feet (11 m) on professional fields, a minimum of 10 yards (9.1 m) on college fields, and
18526-451: The point(s)-after-touchdown (PAT) or conversion, which is a single scoring opportunity. This is generally attempted from the two- or three-yard line, depending on the level of play. If the PAT is scored by a place kick or drop kick through the goal posts, it is worth one point, typically called the extra point. If the PAT is scored by what would normally be a touchdown, it is worth two points; this
18683-556: The primary proponents of the rugby-style game, compromised and did not request the name of the sport be changed to "rugby". The terms " gridiron " or "American football" are favored in English-speaking countries where other types of football are popular, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia. American football evolved from the sports of rugby and soccer . Rugby, like American football,
18840-429: The primary variants of gridiron football . American football is the most popular sport in the United States in terms of broadcast viewership audience. The most popular forms of the game are professional and college football , with the other major levels being high-school and youth football. As of 2022 , nearly 1.04 million high-school athletes play the sport in the U.S., with another 81,000 college athletes in
18997-422: The punter. In football, the winner is the team that has scored more points at the end of the game. There are multiple ways to score in a football game. The touchdown (TD), worth six points, is the most valuable scoring play in American football. A touchdown is scored when a live ball is advanced into, caught, or recovered in the opposing team's end zone. The scoring team then attempts a try, more commonly known as
19154-401: The receiving team. The three types of scrimmage kicks are place kicks, drop kicks, and punts. Only place kicks and drop kicks can score points. The place kick is the standard method used to score points, because the pointy shape of the football makes it difficult to reliably drop kick. Once the ball has been kicked from a scrimmage kick, it can be advanced by the kicking team only if it
19311-910: The release of the latter, DreamWorks Records ceased operations. On August 31, 2005, Keith founded a new label, Show Dog Nashville . Its first release was his 2006 album White Trash with Money , followed by the soundtrack to Broken Bridges . He also abandoned Stroud as co-producer in favor of Cannon's wife, Lari White . The album included three singles: " Get Drunk and Be Somebody ", " A Little Too Late ", and " Crash Here Tonight ". Big Dog Daddy followed in 2007, with Keith serving as sole producer. Its singles were " High Maintenance Woman ", " Love Me If You Can ", and " Get My Drink On ". "Love Me If You Can" became Keith's first number 1 hit since "As Good as I Once Was" more than two years prior. A two-disc Christmas album, A Classic Christmas , followed later in 2007. In 2008, Keith completed his Biggest and Baddest Tour. On May 6, 2008, he released 35 Biggest Hits ,
19468-631: The rest of the offense of the play in the huddle before the team lines up. The quarterback lines up behind the center to take the snap and then hands the ball off, throws it, or runs with it. The primary role of the halfback, also known as the running back or tailback, is to carry the ball on running plays. Halfbacks may also serve as receivers. Fullbacks tend to be larger than halfbacks and function primarily as blockers, but they are sometimes used as runners in short-yardage or goal-line situations. They are seldom used as receivers. The offensive line (OL) consists of several players whose primary function
19625-507: The role of minority players, actively recruited by the league in contrast to the NFL. The AFL also signed several star college players who had also been drafted by NFL teams. Competition for players heated up in 1965, when the AFL New York Jets signed rookie Joe Namath to a then-record $ 437,000 contract (equivalent to $ 4.23 million in 2023). A five-year, $ 40 million NBC television contract followed, which helped to sustain
19782-491: The second year in a row, Diethrich wanted out. Ultimately, Diethrich agreed to merge the Wranglers with the Outlaws. The merged team was to be known as the Arizona Outlaws, and would take the Wranglers' place at Arizona State University 's Sun Devil Stadium . Initially, the Tathams owned 75 percent of the merged team, with Diethrich retaining 25 percent. However, Diethrich quickly decided to get out altogether. Since
19939-464: The second year in a row, attendance dropped—from the 25,568 George Allen 's Wranglers' drew the year before, to 17,881. The crowds looked even smaller than that due to the spacious configuration of Sun Devil Stadium. The Outlaws actually drew 4,000 fewer fans than they did in Tulsa, even though Sun Devil Stadium was almost double the size of Skelly Stadium. It did not help matters that the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Cardinals were taking
20096-503: The secondary, consists of cornerbacks (CB) and safeties (S). Safeties are themselves divided into free safeties (FS) and strong safeties (SS). Cornerbacks line up outside the defensive formation, typically opposite a receiver to be able to cover them. Safeties line up between the cornerbacks but farther back in the secondary. Safeties tend to be viewed as "the last line of defense" and are responsible for stopping deep passing plays as well as breakout running plays. The special teams unit
20253-628: The short-lived Nashville division of A&M Records to release his third album Blue Moon in April 1996. That album received a platinum certification and produced three singles. Its first single, " Does That Blue Moon Ever Shine on You ", which Keith wrote in 1987, peaked at number 2. Following it were " A Woman's Touch " at number 6, and " Me Too ", which became his third number one hit in March 1997. Keith also appeared on The Beach Boys ' now out-of-print 1996 album Stars and Stripes Vol. 1 performing
20410-407: The single's poor performance, Keith requested that it be withdrawn and replaced with " How Do You Like Me Now?! ", a song that he wrote with Chuck Cannon, and which had previously been turned down by Mercury. It also served as the title track to his first DreamWorks album, How Do You Like Me Now?! The song spent five weeks at number 1 on the country charts, and became his first top 40 pop hit, with
20567-539: The sport does not have the international popularity of other American sports like baseball or basketball ; the sport maintains a growing following in the rest of North America, Europe, Brazil, and Japan. In the United States, American football is referred to as "football". The term "football" was officially established in the rulebook for the 1876 college football season , when the sport first shifted from soccer-style rules to rugby-style rules. Although it could easily have been called "rugby" at this point, Harvard, one of
20724-439: The sports of soccer and rugby . The first American football game was played on November 6, 1869 , between two college teams, Rutgers and Princeton , using rules based on the rules of soccer at the time. A set of rule changes drawn up from 1880 onward by Walter Camp , the "Father of American Football", established the snap , the line of scrimmage , eleven-player teams, and the concept of downs. Later rule changes legalized
20881-549: The state. He christened his team the Oklahoma Outlaws . The club was the second major-league sports team to play in the state, after the North American Soccer League 's Tulsa Roughnecks . On July 7, 1983, at the same time the USFL announced the expansion team, Tatham introduced Hall of Fame member Sid Gillman , who came out of retirement at age 71 to serve as the Director of Operations. Gillman signed
21038-429: The strength of Williams' arm. Unfortunately, the team could not consistently run the ball. (The Outlaws finished with a league worst total of 1537 total rushing yards --- almost 200 yards less than the 17th ranked team.) Two blowout losses sent the team into a downward spiral. They did not win another game that season, dropping 10 straight to finish 6–12. In spite of those factors, the Outlaws averaged 21,038 fans (in
21195-402: The team. A young out-of-work oil worker, defensive end and part-time musician named Toby Covel played during the Outlaws' preseason but failed to make the team and played that season with the Oklahoma City Drillers, an unofficial farm team; under his middle name Toby Keith , he eventually emerged as a major country music star. The team only drew 15,937 to their first game, a home opener versus
21352-411: The upstart league when the Bucs rejected his offer for a significant pay raise out of hand. Years later, Williams said that he was won over when the Tathams "treated me like a human," rather than "a piece of cattle in a stockyard." They signed him to a $ 3 million contract, along with a $ 1 million signing bonus, which made him easily one of the highest-paid players in either league. By comparison, while with
21509-413: The wealthiest celebrities in the United States. The July 15, 2013, edition of Forbes magazine features Keith on the cover with the caption "Country Music's $ 500 million man". The article titled "Cowboy Capitalist" by Zack O'Malley Greenburg also contains information regarding Keith's earnings as a musician over the course of his career, such as earning $ 65 million in the past 12 months, which surpasses
21666-411: The width of the field, are marked every 5 yards (4.6 m). A one-yard-wide line is placed at each end of the field; this line is marked at the center of the two-yard line in professional play and at the three-yard line in college play. Numerals that display the distance from the closest goal line in yards are placed on both sides of the field every ten yards. Goalposts are located at the center of
21823-408: The winning team decides to defer, the losing team chooses the option the winning team did not select—to receive, kick, or select a goal to defend to begin the second half. Most teams choose to receive or defer, because choosing to kick the ball to start the game allows the other team to choose which goal to defend. Teams switch goals following the first and third quarters. If a down is in progress when
21980-408: The young league. The bidding war for players ended in 1966 when NFL owners approached the AFL regarding a merger, and the two leagues agreed on one that took full effect in 1970. This agreement provided for a common draft that would take place each year, and it instituted an annual World Championship game to be played between the champions of each league. This championship game began play at the end of
22137-608: Was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2024, having been elected just hours after his death. Toby Keith Covel was born on July 8, 1961, in Clinton, Oklahoma , to Carolyn Joan ( née Ross) and Hubert K. Covel Jr. He has a sister and a brother. The family lived in Fort Smith, Arkansas , for a few years when Keith was in grade school, but moved to Moore, Oklahoma (a suburb of Oklahoma City ), when he
22294-478: Was " Beer for My Horses ", a duet with Willie Nelson which spent six weeks at the top of the country charts. At the time, it was also Keith's highest entry on the Hot 100, at number 22. In July 2003, Keith made a guest appearance on Scotty Emerick's debut single "I Can't Take You Anywhere", which was previously recorded by Keith on Pull My Chain . Emerick's version of the song was his only top 40 country hit, at number 27. Shock'n Y'all , his eighth studio album,
22451-1257: Was 45 percent or more of listed capacity. The Outlaws would draw decent crowds of 25,403, 21,625, 22,017 and 29,324 later in the season. During the team's season in Tulsa, all six of their wins came during inclement weather, 4 at home. Wins against Pittsburgh, Michigan, Houston, at Washington, and San Antonio came in rainy conditions, and a win against Chicago came in a Chicago snow storm. Running backs Wide receivers Tight ends Defensive linemen Defensive backs Special teams rookies in italics 40 Active, 13 Developmental Sources Running backs Wide receivers Tight ends Defensive linemen Defensive backs Special teams rookies in italics 43 Active, 7 Developmental * Denotes Starter COACHING STAFF : Head Coach: Woody Widenhofer Offensive Coordinator/QBs – Ed Chlebek ; Offensive Line – Charlie Butler ; Running Backs – Frank Novak; Receivers/Spec. Teams – Wright Anderson; Defensive Coordinator/Secondary – Jim Johnson ; Tim Mills Defensive Line – Ralph Staub; Linebackers – Jim McKinley ; Strength & Conditioning – Bert Jacobson; Trainer – Keith Jones, Equipment Mgr. – Bud Turk The Tathams were not exaggerating about Skelly Stadium's inadequacy as
22608-442: Was a hard-nosed, run-oriented coach who had struggled as coach of the NFL's Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts , largely because he had little luck handling professional quarterbacks. The Tathams may have been looking to the future by hiring Kush. By this time, they had become strong proponents of moving to the fall, and ultimately forcing a merger with the NFL (in which case their investment would have more than doubled). They knew Kush, who
22765-432: Was an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and businessman. Keith released his chart-topping debut single, " Should've Been a Cowboy ", in 1993. During the 1990s, Keith released his first four studio albums, each of which earned gold or higher certification . Keith's breakthrough single, " How Do You Like Me Now?! ", was the title track to his 1999 album How Do You Like Me Now?! The single
22922-476: Was followed by the Top 10 hit " Cryin' for Me (Wayman's Song) ", a tribute to basketball player and jazz bassist Wayman Tisdale , a friend of Keith's who died in May 2009. Bullets in the Gun was released on October 5, 2010. This was Keith's first album not to produce any top 10 singles, with " Trailerhood " reaching number 19, followed by the title track and " Somewhere Else " both at number 12. Keith produced
23079-427: Was friendly to the media. Years later, defensive line coach John Teerlinck claimed that Kush told him not to worry too much about winning, since it was very likely that the Outlaws would be one of the surviving teams in any merger with the NFL "and our owners will make a lot of money." Kush did, however, show flashes of his old heavy-handed self during film sessions, often calling his players unflattering nicknames. In
23236-730: Was included on Hixtape: Vol. 3: Difftape , a tribute album to Joe Diffie , to which Keith joined Luke Combs on a rendition of Diffie's single " Ships That Don't Come In ". In March 2024, one month after his death, it was announced that Keith would be posthumously inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame , having been elected just hours after his death. Keith performed on a series of television advertisements for Telecom USA for that company's discount long-distance telephone service 10-10-220. He also starred in Ford commercials, singing original songs such as "Ford Truck Man" and "Look Again" while driving Ford trucks. Keith made an appearance at
23393-418: Was initially minimal due to the restrictions placed on its use. The idea of a 40-yard-wider field was opposed by Harvard due to the size of the new Harvard Stadium . Other rule changes introduced that year included the reduction of playing time from 70 to 60 minutes and an increase of the distance required for a first down from 5 to 10 yards (4.6 to 9.1 m). To reduce infighting and dirty play between teams,
23550-464: Was led off by the number one single " Who's That Man ". After it, " Upstairs Downtown " and " You Ain't Much Fun " both made the Top 10, while " Big Ol' Truck " peaked at number 15. By late-1995, he released his first Christmas album, Christmas to Christmas , via Mercury. Composed entirely of original songs, the album produced one chart entry in "Santa I'm Right Here", which reached as high as number 50 based on Christmas airplay. Keith then signed with
23707-440: Was necessary to prevent this strategy from taking hold, and a reversion to the scrum was considered. However, Camp successfully proposed a rule in 1882 that limited each team to three downs , or tackles, to advance the ball 5 yards (4.6 m). Failure to advance the ball the required distance within those three downs would result in control of the ball being forfeited to the other team. This change effectively made American football
23864-556: Was profitable, but it tended to prevent the two top-ranked teams from meeting in a true national championship game, as they would normally be committed to the bowl games of their respective conferences. Several systems have been used since 1992 to determine a national champion of college football. The first was the Bowl Coalition , in place from 1992 to 1994. This was replaced in 1995 by the Bowl Alliance , which gave way to
24021-533: Was released in November 2003. The album's title is a pun on the military term " shock and awe ". It became his second album from which all singles went to number 1: " I Love This Bar ", " American Soldier ", and " Whiskey Girl ". Also included on the disc were "The Taliban Song" and "Weed with Willie", two live songs recorded with Emerick. The album was followed in late 2004 by Greatest Hits 2 , which included three new songs: " Stays in Mexico ", "Go with Her", and
24178-500: Was still underway, the Outlaws were the only team west of the Mississippi River left in the league. While the league won the suit, it only received a nominal award of a dollar (trebled to $ 3 under antitrust law). The Outlaws, and the rest of the league, had been counting on the lawsuit money to finance their move to the fall and bail out their unsustainable spending. As the league had essentially staked its future on winning
24335-522: Was still very much an icon in the region due to his successful 21-year tenure at ASU, would lend them instant credibility. However, he was a surprising choice to team with Williams. In part due to Kush's reputation as a harsh taskmaster who frequently abused his players physically and emotionally, the players boycotted his press conference announcing his return to Phoenix after a six-year absence. However, Kush appeared to have mellowed considerably when training camp began. He complemented players and coaches and
24492-467: Was still young. Before the family moved to Moore, he visited his grandmother in Fort Smith during the summers. His grandmother owned Billie Garner's Supper Club in Fort Smith, where Keith became interested in the musicians who came there to play. He did odd jobs around the supper club and started getting up on the bandstand to play with the band. He got his first guitar at the age of eight. After
24649-632: Was the number one country song of 2000. Keith's next three albums were certified 4× Platinum, and each album produced three number one singles. In 2005, Keith founded the label Show Dog Nashville, which later became Show Dog-Universal Music . Keith also made his acting debut in 2006, starring in the film Broken Bridges . He co-starred with comedian Rodney Carrington in the 2008 film Beer for My Horses , inspired by his song " Beer for My Horses ". In all, Keith released 19 studio albums, two Christmas albums, and five compilation albums, totaling worldwide sales of over 40 million albums. He charted 61 singles on
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