55-753: Milton Eugene Stegall (born January 25, 1970) is a former professional gridiron football player who played 17 years of professional football, three years in the National Football League (NFL) with the Cincinnati Bengals and 14 years in the Canadian Football League (CFL) with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers . He is currently an analyst on the CFL on TSN studio panel. Stegall was an All-Star receiver for
110-493: A prolate spheroid with pointed ends. The international governing body for the sport is the International Federation of American Football (IFAF); although the organization plays all of its international competitions under American rules, it uses a definition of the game that is broad enough that it includes Canadian football under its umbrella, and Football Canada (the governing body for Canadian football)
165-416: A punt is when the ball is released from the punter's hand and kicked downfield as close to the opponent's end zone as possible without entering it; the kicking team loses possession of the ball after the kick and the receiving team can attempt to advance the ball or call a fair catch. The other scrimmage kick is a field goal attempt. This must be attempted by place kick or (more rarely) drop kick , and if
220-536: A wide receiver . Because of his speed (he competed on Miami's track and field team where he holds the 3rd fastest 100 meter dash, 10.44 seconds, and 5th fastest 200 meter dash, 21.24 seconds) he was also a dynamic tap dancer, and kick returner, setting a career record of 1,377 kick return yards which lasted until 2002, beaten by defensive back Milt Bowen, who like Stegall signed with the Cincinnati Bengals after college. All of these accomplishments garnered Stegall an honorable mention all-Mid-American Conference selection as
275-701: A ball goes out of bounds), the actual time it takes for a football game to be completed is typically over three hours in the NFL and slightly under three hours in the CFL. According to 2017 study on brains of deceased gridiron football players, 99% of tested brains of NFL players, 88% of CFL players, 64% of semi-professional players, 91% of college football players, and 21% of high school football players had various stages of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Other common injuries include injuries of legs, arms and lower back. CFL Receiving Leaders The CFL
330-463: A highlight reel 92-yard touchdown catch and run, totaling 14,982 yards in his career. On June 29, 2012, he was surpassed by Geroy Simon of the BC Lions and is currently second in career receiving yards at 15,153 yards. Although Stegall played in the CFL for many years, has accomplished impressive numbers, and is considered by many to be one of the greatest receivers in CFL history, Stegall never won
385-537: A junior. Stegall signed as an undrafted free agent with the Cincinnati Bengals. He played 21 games over 3 seasons, where he had four receptions for 43 yards and one touchdown. He was primarily played as a kick returner though, where he totaled 446 yards off of 26 kickoffs and made five tackles on special teams. In the 1995 season, he was signed as a free agent by the Green Bay Packers , but was
440-444: A late cut after a serious knee injury during the final days of training camp. In 1995, Stegall decided to go north to the Canadian Football League and signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers where he played the final 6 games of the 1995 CFL season , with 469 receiving yards, and two punt returns, one for 80 yards. In his first full season in 1996 , he gained 613 yards receiving on 34 catches for 6 touchdowns. Stegall started out as
495-506: A liking to McGill's rugby-style rules and adopted them. In turn, they were used when Harvard and Yale University played their first intercollegiate sports game in 1875, after which the rugby-style Canadian game was adopted by Yale players and spectators from Yale and Princeton University . This version of the game was subsequently played with several other U.S. colleges over the next several years. American football teams and organizations subsequently adopted new rules which distinguished
550-522: A new league single-season record for receiving touchdowns, also with 23. All of these made him the obvious choice as the CFL's Most Outstanding Player . Stegall continued his excellence throughout the seasons with the Blue Bombers. Throughout his career, Stegall led the CFL in receptions once, he twice led the league in receiving yards and he led the league in touchdown receptions 5 times. In 2005 at age 35, some thought Stegall's play would be on
605-409: A play in a huddle and freely substitute players to set into a formation , in which the offense must remain perfectly still for at least one second (the formation requirement does not apply to Canadian football). At least half of the players (seven in standard American and Canadian football, four in standard indoor ball) on the offense must line up on the line of scrimmage in this formation, including
SECTION 10
#1732772010337660-413: A slotback, peaking in 2002 where he had one of the greatest individual seasons in CFL history. He led the CFL in receptions (106), receiving yards (1,896), yards from scrimmage (1,896), touchdowns (23), receiving touchdowns (23), 100-yard games (10), 100-yard receiving games (10), average yards per catch (17.9) and non-kicker scoring (140). He set a new league single-season record for touchdowns with 23 and
715-474: A slotback/wide receiver, garnering him an All-Star selection in the 1997 season after having a 1616-yard season. Soon however, Stegall made the switch to slotback which let him start the play closer to the middle of the larger field. Stegall flourished as a slotback, where in the CFL a player is allowed a running start before the play to gain momentum, being able to outrun defenders with his impressive speed. Stegall would go on to get 3 more All-Star selections as
770-407: A ten-yard penalty against offensive players and a five-yard penalty against defensive ones), and pass interference (when either a receiver or the defending player pushes or blocks the other to prevent them from catching the pass). A team on offense cannot score points as the direct result of a penalty; a defensive foul committed in the team's own end zone, if the penalty is assessed from the spot of
825-540: Is 60 timed minutes in length, split into four 15-minute quarters. (High school football uses 12-minute quarters, and the general rule is that the younger the players, the shorter the quarters typically are.) Because of the halftime, quarter breaks, time-outs, the minute warnings ( two minutes before the end of a half in the NFL , three minutes in Canadian football ), and frequent stoppages of the game clock (the clock stops, for example, after every incomplete pass and any time
880-501: Is an IFAF member. The sport is typically known as simply "football" in the countries where it originated, regardless of the specific variety. In Europe the sport is commonly known as "American football". Various sources use the term "North American football" when discussing the American and Canadian games together, but this term is quite rare. The two sports are also sometimes known as "gridiron football". The name originated with
935-427: Is awarded one single point . If the team in possession of the ball, at any time, advances (either by carrying or catching) the ball into the opponent's end zone, it is a touchdown , and the team scores six points and a free play known as a try . In a try, a team attempts to score one or two points (rules vary by each league, but under standard rules, a field goal on a try is worth one point while another touchdown
990-890: Is usually called " soccer " in Australian English . The governing body for American football in Australia is Gridiron Australia . Similarly, in the UK American football is known as American football, as "football" is used to refer to soccer . The sport developed from informal games played in North America during the 19th century. Early games had a variety of local rules and were generally similar to modern rugby union and soccer . The earliest recorded instance of gridiron football occurred at University of Toronto's University College in November 1861. Later in
1045-404: Is worth two). At the college and professional levels, the defense can also score on a try, but only on the same scale (thus a botched try the defense returns for a touchdown scores only two points and not six). Kickoffs occur after every touchdown and field goal. If a team is in its own end zone and commits a foul, is tackled with the ball, or bats, fumbles, kicks or throws the ball backward out of
1100-460: The Grey Cup - despite reaching Grey Cup game twice: the 89th Grey Cup vs. Calgary and 95th Grey Cup vs. Saskatchewan. Stegall officially retired from professional football on February 18, 2009. He retired with CFL records for career touchdowns (147), career receiving touchdowns (144), and receiving yards (15,153). Stegall is one of the most popular CFL players among the media. He was voted
1155-651: The Hamilton Tiger-cats . He retired with 147 touchdowns in 2009. On August 24, 2007, the premier of Manitoba honoured Stegall with the Order of the Buffalo Hunt . On August 24, 2007, the mayor of Winnipeg honoured Stegall with the key to the city. He also was honoured with a street in Winnipeg adjacent to Canad Inns Stadium formerly called Arena Road (in reference to the former Winnipeg Arena ) which
SECTION 20
#17327720103371210-660: The Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL. Spanning an illustrious 14-year career from 1995 to 2008, he held several major CFL records upon his retirement including most career receiving yards, and currently holds the record for career receiving touchdowns and most touchdowns scored. In 2012, he was elected into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame . Stegall was born in Cincinnati , the fifth of five children of Betty Stegall (1935 - 2020) and Garland J. Stegall (1922–1987). He attended Roger Bacon High School , where he
1265-406: The western provinces , demanded changes to the game based on the innovations in American football. Over the years, the sport adopted more Americanized rules, though it retained some of its historical features, including a 110-yard (100 m) field, 12-player teams, and three downs instead of four. Around the same time Camp devised the rules for American football, the Canadian game would develop in
1320-611: The 1860s, teams from universities were playing each other, leading to more standardized rules and the creation of college football . While several American schools adopted rules based on the soccer rules of the English Football Association , Harvard University held to its traditional "carrying game". Meanwhile, McGill University in Montreal used rules based on rugby union . In 1874, Harvard and McGill organized two games using each other's rules. Harvard took
1375-470: The 19th century out of older games related to modern rugby football , more specifically rugby union football. Early on, American and Canadian football developed alongside (but independently from) each other; the root of the game known as "football" today originates with an 1874 game between Harvard and McGill Universities , following which the American school adopted the Canadian school's more rugby-like rules. Over time, Canadian teams adopted features of
1430-460: The American variant of the game and vice versa. Both varieties are distinguished from other football sports by their use of hard plastic helmets and shoulder pads , the forward pass , the system of downs , a number of unique rules and positions , measurement in customary units of yards (even in Canada, which largely metricated in the 1970s ), and a distinctive brown leather ball in the shape of
1485-567: The United States and Canada. American football , which uses 11 players, is the form played in the United States and the best known form of gridiron football worldwide, while Canadian football , which uses 12 players, predominates in Canada. Other derivative varieties include arena football , flag football and amateur games such as touch and street football . Football is played at professional , collegiate , high school , semi-professional, and amateur levels. These sports originated in
1540-415: The ball carrier at any time the ball is in play, provided they do not grab the face mask of the helmet or make helmet-to-helmet contact when doing so. At any time, the player with the ball can attempt a backward, or lateral, pass to any other player in order to keep the ball in play; this is generally rare. Any player on defense can, at any time, attempt to intercept a forward pass in flight, at which point
1595-405: The ball carrier is tackled, or, if the ball is kicked out of bounds , let the ball go dead on its own (the last case usually happens when the ball is kicked all the way into or through the opponent's end zone, resulting in a touchback and the ball being brought several yards out of the end zone to begin play). A kicking team can, under special circumstances, attempt to recover its own kick , but
1650-486: The best looking man in the CFL. He often received praise from his teammates for his work ethic, personality, and leadership. In June 2009, it was announced that Stegall would join TSN as an analyst for their CFL broadcasts throughout the 2009 CFL season. Stegall remains a prominent member of the CFL analyst panel on CFL on TSN broadcasts. Stegall and his wife Darlene are the parents of two sons. Stegall made it clear one of
1705-606: The conditions he would hold off retirement and return to playing was if his wife gave birth to their second son in Winnipeg . He currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia . On July 20, 2006, Milt Stegall scored the winning 100-yard touchdown reception to lead the Blue Bombers to a 25–22 victory over the Edmonton Eskimos with no time left. It has been dubbed the "Miracle Catch" by many Blue Bomber fans. Stegall had 254 yards in
Milt Stegall - Misplaced Pages Continue
1760-465: The decline, but he shrugged off critics by capping off the season with his 5th All-Star selection. Amidst endless offensive coordinator changes, as well as many head coach changes, Stegall still remained a reliable, and at times unstoppable force for the Blue Bombers. Arguably one of the most popular Bombers of all time he was named to the All-Time 75th Anniversary Team. With the 2005 season over, there
1815-399: The end of a quarter.) After the halftime break, a new kickoff occurs. Whichever team has more points at the end of the game is declared the winner; in the event of a tie, each league has its own rules for overtime to break the tie. Because of the nature of the game, pure sudden-death overtimes have been abolished at all levels of the game as of 2012. At all adult levels of the game, a game
1870-516: The end of the game to bring his total up to that point to 139 touchdowns. Stegall had said that he was 99.9% sure that he was going to retire after then 2007 season but on January 31, 2008, announced he was returning to the Bombers for another year. On September 12, 2008, Stegall initially tied Allen Pitts with a 16-yard touchdown reception to become the CFL's all-time leader in career receiving yards . Shortly thereafter, Stegall surpassed Pitts with
1925-433: The field of play through the same end zone, the defense scores a safety , worth two points. After a try, safety or field goal, the team that had possession of the ball goes back to the middle of the field and kicks the ball off to their opponent, and play continues as it did in the beginning of the game. Play continues until halftime . (Each team switches their side of the field with the other halfway through each half, at
1980-405: The foul, places the ball at the one-yard line. In contrast, a defensive team can score points as a direct result of a penalty; if the offense commits a foul under the same scenario, the defensive team receives two points and a free kick. In all other circumstances (except for the open-ended and extremely rare unfair act clause), a penalty cannot exceed more than half the distance to the end zone. If
2035-445: The game from rugby. Many of these early innovations were the work of Walter Camp , including the sport's line of scrimmage and the system of downs . Another consequential change was the adoption of the forward pass in 1906, which allowed the quarterback to throw the ball forward over the line of scrimmage to a receiver. Canadian football remained akin to rugby for decades, though a progressive faction of players, chiefly based in
2090-612: The game, perhaps the best game of his career. On December 12, 2006, Stegall signed a one-year contract extension to stay with Winnipeg for the 2007 season, but indicated that "there's basically no chance" that he will return beyond 2007. On June 28, 2007, Milt Stegall scored the game-tying touchdown versus the Edmonton Eskimos to tie the all-time touchdown record, shared with George Reed and Mike Pringle at 137 Touchdowns. On July 27, 2007, Milt Stegall became CFL's all-time touchdown leader after scoring his 138th touchdown against
2145-405: The kicked ball passes through the goal set at the edge of the opponent's end zone, the team scores three points. (Four-point field goals have been offered in a few variations of the game under special rules, but the NFL, college and high school football only offer three-point field goals.) In Canada, any kick that goes into the end zone and is not returned, whether it be a punt or a missed field goal,
2200-447: The line), who must catch the ball before it touches the ground. The play stops when a player with the ball touches any part of their body other than hand or foot to the ground, runs out of the boundaries of the field, is obstructed from making further forward progress, or a forward pass hits the ground without being caught (in the last case, the ball returns to the spot it was snapped). To stop play, players on defense are allowed to tackle
2255-425: The opponent. Whether this yardage is measured from the original spot of the ball before the play, the spot of the illegal action, or the end of the play depends on the individual foul. The most common penalties include false start (when an offensive player jumps to begin the play before the ball is snapped, a five-yard penalty), holding (the grabbing of a player other than the ball carrier to obstruct their progress;
Milt Stegall - Misplaced Pages Continue
2310-471: The penalty would be less advantageous than the result of the actual play, then the team not committing the penalty can decline it. In order to keep play moving, the offense must make a certain amount of progress (10 yards in most leagues) within a certain number of plays (3 in Canada, 4 in the United States), called downs . If the offense does indeed make this progress, a first down is achieved, and
2365-472: The previous play, and a play clock is kept to enforce the measure.) Once the ball is snapped, the play has commenced, and the offense's goal is to continue advancing the ball toward their opponent's end zone . This can be done either by running with the ball or by a rule unique to football known as the forward pass . In a forward pass, a player from behind the line of scrimmage throws the ball to an eligible receiver (another back or one player on each end of
2420-564: The province of Manitoba, the Manitoba Foundation for Sports provides scholarships to young athletes in his name through the MFFS Milt Stegall Scholarship. Gridiron football Gridiron football ( / ˈ ɡ r ɪ d aɪ . ər n / GRID -eye-ərn ), also known as North American football, or in North America as simply football , is a family of football team sports primarily played in
2475-407: The rules of the game make it very difficult to do so reliably, and so this tactic is usually only used as a surprise or desperation maneuver. At this point, play from scrimmage begins. The team in possession of the ball is on offense and the opponent is on defense . The offense is given a set amount of time (up to forty seconds, depending on the governing body), during which the teams can set up
2530-473: The same way (but separately) from the American game; the Burnside rules were instrumental in establishing many of the rules for the modern game. The best NFL players are among the highest paid athletes in the world. This is a minimal description of the game in general, with elements common to all or almost all variants of the game. For more specific rules, see each code's individual articles. Prior to
2585-414: The snapper, who handles the ball before play commences; the rest can (and almost always do) line up behind the line. Neither the offense nor the defense can cross the line of scrimmage before the play commences. Once the formation is set, the snapper snaps the ball to one of the players behind him. (A snapper must snap the ball within 20 to 25 seconds of the official setting the ball back into position after
2640-410: The sport's once-characteristic playing field : the original American football and Canadian football fields were marked by a series of parallel lines along both the width and length of the field, which produced a grid pattern resembling a cross-hatched cooking gridiron . The ball would be snapped in the grid in which it was downed on the previous play. By 1920, the grid system was abandoned in favor of
2695-405: The start of a game, a coin toss determines which team will decide if they want to kick off the ball to their opponent, or receive the ball from their opponent. Each team lines up on opposite halves of the field, with a minimum ten yards of space between them for the kickoff. The team receiving the ball can make a fair catch (which stops the play immediately), catch the ball and run it back until
2750-446: The system of yard lines and hash marks used today. The International Federation of American Football (IFAF), uses "American football" inclusive of Canadian football and other varieties. In Australia, American football is often referred to as "gridiron" or (in more formal contexts) "American football", as " football " usually refers to Australian rules football , rugby league or rugby union , similar to how association football
2805-418: The team gains possession; they can also gain possession by recovering a fumble or stripping the ball away from the ball carrier (a "forced fumble"). A typical play can last between five and twenty seconds. If any illegal action happens during the play, then the results of the previous play are erased and a penalty is assessed, forcing the offending team to surrender between five and fifteen yards of field to
SECTION 50
#17327720103372860-460: The team gets 3 or 4 more plays to achieve another 10 yards. If not, the offense loses possession to their opponent at the spot where the ball is. More commonly, however, the team on offense will, if they have a minimal chance of gaining a first down and have only one play left to do it ( fourth down in the U.S., third down in Canada), attempt a scrimmage kick . There are two types of scrimmage kick:
2915-514: Was an All-State football player, All-City basketball player and qualified for the state track meet his senior year. Stegall started playing football at age 4 for now defunct Parchman & Oyler Pop Warner Football. During a three-year span (ages 8–10), Stegall scored 87 touchdowns playing running back, a record still held today. Stegall attended Miami University , where he was a four-year football letterman from 1988 to 1991. Stegall finished with 106 receptions for 1,581 yards, and eight touchdowns as
2970-547: Was renamed Milt Stegall Drive. On September 12, 2008, Milt Stegall became the leader in receiving yards, moving past Allen Pitts' previous record. The record is now held by Geroy Simon. On August 3, 2016, at halftime of the Blue Bombers home game against the Tiger-Cats, Stegall was inducted into the Winnipeg Blue Bombers Ring of Honour. In recognition of Stegall's contributions to the community and
3025-419: Was speculation that Stegall would retire, but he soon announced that he would in fact be returning for, at least, one more year. In the 5th game of the Bombers' 2007 season , July 27, 2007, Milt Stegall became the all-time CFL touchdown leader on a 1-yard pass originally designed as a running play for the occasion, surpassing running backs Mike Pringle and George Reed , and went on to score another major before
#336663