This is a quick guide to some of college football's most notable firsts and historic moments. In 2019, the sport celebrated its 150th anniversary. First, the TL/DR version:

• The first college football game was played in 1869 between Rutgers University and the College of New Jersey (now known as Princeton University).
• The first college football rules were written Nov. 23, 1876, in Springfield, Mass., by representatives from Columbia, Harvard, Princeton and Yale.
• The first college football game on the radio was the contest between West Virginia University and Pittsburgh University on Oct. 8, 1921, broadcast on Pittsburgh radio station KDKA-AM.
• The first college football game on TV was between Fordham University and Waynesburg University on Sept. 30, 1939. The game was broadcast by NBC and aired on W2XBS.
• The first use of instant replay during a college football game was in 1963 during a Dec. 7 Army vs. Navy game.
• College football rankings began in 1939 with the release of the first Associated Press poll. Other notable ranking systems include the BCS (Bowl Championship Series) rankings, which started in 1998, and the CFP (College Football Playoff) rankings, which began in 2014.
• The first Heisman Trophy was awarded to Jay Berwanger of Chicago University in 1935. The award was created by the New York Downtown Athletic Club.
• The college football team with the most wins in history is the University of Michigan. The Wolverines have accumulated 962 wins since their first season in 1879.
• Yale has won the most championships in college football history with 18. Alabama and Princeton are tied for second with 15 each. 

When was the first college football game? 

The birth of American football came in 1869 on College Avenue in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The game was between Rutgers University and the College of New Jersey (now known as Princeton University). 

There were 25 players on the field for both teams and the rules were based on the London Football Association, which did not allow players to either pick up or throw the ball. The game resembled a form of soccer or rugby — something that if viewed in the context of football today, would look like one extended fumble with players trying to kick or hit the ball across the opposing team's goal line.

 The game resulted in a 6-4 victory for Rutgers and attracted around 100 spectators.

When were the first rules established? 

Just seven years after the first game was played, representatives from Columbia, Harvard, Princeton and Yale came together to propose the first rules of what is recognized today as American football.

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The representatives met at Massasoit House in Springfield, Mass., on Nov. 23, 1876. This is where Walter Camp emerged as the legendary father of American football. Camp created guidelines fans are familiar with today such as the line of scrimmage, the center-to-quarterback snap, a system of downs and proposed that each team should have no more than 11 players on the field.

When was the first college football game on radio?

On Oct. 8, 1921, one of the early installments of the "Backyard Brawl," the rivalry between West Virginia University and Pittsburgh University made history, as the game was the first to be broadcast across the airwaves. The game was on the first commercial radio station in the country, KDKA-AM in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh won the game 21-13. 

When was the first college football game on TV?

The first game to shoot across television screens came on Sept. 30, 1939, when Fordham hosted Waynesburg for a season-opener. The game was broadcast by NBC on W2XBS. Fordham, a powerhouse football program at the time, won, 34-7. The number of viewers was estimated to be between 500-5,000.

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When was the first use of instant replay?

Instant replay made its debut on television screens Dec. 7, 1963, during an Army vs. Navy game. The production used a 1,300-pound machine to wind back the reel and show a touchdown over again as commentator Lindsey Nelson warned viewers, "Ladies and gentlemen, Army did not score again!"

When did college football rankings begin?

The first Associated Press rankings were released in 1936. The rankings included 20 teams and helped determine a college football champion. Minnesota was the first team to sit atop the AP rankings at the end of the season, becoming the 1936 college football champs.  

The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was created in 1998. The BCS integrated a system that matched top-10 teams together in marquee bowl games at the end of the season, including putting together the No. 1 and 2 teams in a the BCS national championship game. The first BCS national championship game featured Tennessee beating Florida State 23-16.

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The College Football Playoff (CFP) was created 14 years after the BCS was established. The CFP committee ranks teams 1-25, similar to the AP and BCS rankings, each week before determining the top four teams after the final week of play. The top four teams then face-off in a playoff where the first ranked team plays the fourth-ranked team and the second-ranked team plays the third-ranked team. The winners then play each other in the CFP final to determine a champion. The first CFP national championship game pitted Ohio State against Oregon in 2014. Ohio State won, 42-20. 

When was the first Heisman Trophy awarded?

The Heisman Trophy award was created in 1935 and members of New York's Downtown Athletic Club (DAC) presented the first to Jay Berwanger of Chicago University. The trophy was named after John W. Heisman in 1936. On Dec. 2, 1975, Ohio State running back Archie Griffin became the first and only player to win the Heisman Trophy in consecutive seasons.

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Heisman Trophy winners: History

YEAR	WINNER	SCHOOL	POSITION
2021	Bryce Young	Alabama	QB
2020	Devonta Smith	Alabama	WR
2019	Joe Burrow	LSU	QB
2018	Kyler Murray	Oklahoma	QB
2017	Baker Mayfield	Oklahoma	QB
2016	Lamar Jackson	Louisville	QB
2015	Derrick Henry	Alabama	RB
2014	Marcus Mariota	Oregon	QB
2013	Jameis Winston	Florida State	QB
2012	Johnny Manziel	Texas A&M	QB
2011	Robert Griffin III	Baylor	QB
2010	Cam Newton	Auburn	QB
2009	Mark Ingram Jr.	Alabama	RB
2008	Sam Bradford	Oklahoma	QB
2007	Tim Tebow	Florida	QB
2006	Troy Smith	Ohio State	QB
2005	Reggie Bush*	Southern California	RB
2004	Matt Leinart	Southern California	QB
2003	Jason White	Oklahoma	QB
2002	Carson Palmer	Southern California	QB
2001	Eric Crouch	Nebraska	QB
2000	Chris Weinke	Florida State	QB
1999	Ron Dayne	Wisconsin	RB
1998	Ricky Williams	Texas	RB
1997	Charles Woodson	Michigan	CB/returner
1996	Danny Wuerffel	Florida	QB
1995	Eddie George	Ohio State	RB
1994	Rashaan Salaam	Colorado	RB
1993	Charlie Ward	Florida State	QB
1992	Gino Torretta	Miami	QB
1991	Desmond Howard	Michigan	WR/returner
1990	Ty Detmer	BYU	QB
1989	Andre Ware	Houston	QB
1988	Barry Sanders	Oklahoma State	RB
1987	Tim Brown	Notre Dame	WR
1986	Vinny Testaverde	Miami	QB
1985	Bo Jackson	Auburn	RB
1984	Doug Flutie	Boston College	QB
1983	Mike Rozier	Nebraska	RB
1982	Herschel Walker	Georgia	RB
1981	Marcus Allen	Southern California	RB
1980	George Rogers	South Carolina	RB
1979	Charles White	Southern California	RB
1978	Billy Sims	Oklahoma	RB
1977	Earl Campbell	Texas	RB
1976	Tony Dorsett	Pitt	RB
1975	Archie Griffin	Ohio State	RB
1974	Archie Griffin	Ohio State	RB
1973	John Cappelletti	Penn State	RB
1972	Johnny Rodgers	Nebraska	WR/RB
1971	Patt Sullivan	Auburn	QB
1970	Jim Plunkett	Stanford	QB
1969	Steve Owens	Oklahoma	FB
1968	O.J. Simpson	Southern California	HB
1967	Gary Beban	UCLA	QB
1966	Steve Spurrier	Florida	QB
1965	Mike Garrett	Southern California	HB
1964	John Huarte	Notre Dame	QB
1963	Roger Staubach	Navy	QB
1962	Terry Baker	Oregon State	QB
1961	Ernie Davis	Syracuse	HB/LB/FB
1960	Joe Bellino	Navy	HB
1959	Billy Cannon	LSU	HB
1958	Pete Dawkins	Army	HB
1957	John David Crow	Texas A&M	HB
1956	Paul Hornung	Notre Dame	QB
1955	Howard Cassady	Ohio State	HB
1954	Alan Ameche	Wisconsin	FB
1953	Johnny Lattner	Notre Dame	HB
1952	Billy Vessels	Oklahoma	HB
1951	Dick Kazmaier	Princeton	HB
1950	Vic Janowicz	Ohio State	HB/P
1949	Leon Hart	Notre Dame	End
1948	Doak Walker	SMU	HB
1947	Johnny Lujack	Notre Dame	QB
1946	Glenn Davis	Army	HB
1945	Doc Blanchard	Army	FB
1944	Les Horvath	Ohio State	QB/HB
1943	Angelo Bertelli	Notre Dame	QB
1942	Frank Sinkwich	Georgia	HB
1941	Bruce Smith	Minnesota	HB
1940	Tom Harmon	Michigan	HB
1939	Nile Kinnick	Iowa	HB/QB
1938	Davey O'Brien	TCU	QB
1937	Clint Frank	Yale	HB
1936	Larry Kelley	Yale	End
1935	Jay Berwanger	Chicago	HB

*Vacated

Who has won the most games in college football history?

Although college football started with Rutgers and Princeton, a pair of teams from the Midwest have won the most games. Entering the 2020 season, Michigan wears the crown with 962 wins, followed by rival Ohio State with 923 wins and then Yale with 917 wins. Alabama and Texas follow Yale with 916 wins each. Notre Dame and Oklahoma are also locked even with 908 wins with Nebraska behind them with 902. Penn State and Southern California round out the ten most winningest programs with 898 victories for the Nittany Lions and 847 for the Trojans.  

As for the number of National Championships, Yale tops the list, followed by Alabama and Princeton. 

Programs with the most college football national titles

School	Number of titles
Yale	18
Alabama	16
Princeton	15
Notre Dame	13
Michigan	9
Southern Cal	9
Harvard	8
Ohio State	8
Oklahoma	7
Minnesota	6

Other Notable milestones in college football

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• In 1916, Fritz Pollard became the first African American football player to participate in a Rose Bowl. Pollard went on to live a life full of football, as he would become the first African American to become an NFL head coach in 1921 (back when player-coaches were a thing), and would go on to be the first African American to play quarterback in the NFL in 1923. 
• On October 7, 1916, Georgia launched itself into the college football history books as they knocked off Cumberland College by a whopping score of 222-0. No other game has come close to this blowout, as Georgia Tech scored 32 touchdowns and Cumberland committed 15 turnovers. 
• In 1958, the NCAA implemented a rule allowing two-point conversions. The rule was put into place to try and increase scoring and maintain a balance between offensive play and defensive play. The post-touchdown maneuver was tried 51.4 percent of the time during that first season. 
• In 1966, No.1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Michigan State famously tied 10-10 during a game at the end of the season, which ultimately determined the champion of the 1966 season. Regarded as one of the most controversial games in college football history, Notre Dame coach Ara Parseghian decided to let the clock run from 1:10 down to zero even though Notre Dame had the ball with the game tied 10-10. After the game, Notre Dame went on to defeat Southern California to finish the season 9-0-1 and were voted champion of the NCAA by a majority of polls. 
• In the late 1990s and early 2000s, two place-kickers made history for being the first two women to score points during a college football game. Liz Heaston, for Williamette successfully kicked two extra-points for her team in 1997. Williamette was then an NAIA school but is now apart of Division III. In 2001, Ashley Martin kicked three extra points for Jacksonville State to be the first woman to score during a Division I college football game.