It's believed the first spring football practice was held at Harvard in 1889. “The football squad was practicing on Jarvis Field yesterday afternoon,” a reporter for the Harvard Crimson wrote on March 15, 1889. “The work consisted of kicking, tackling, and falling on the ball.”

Spring practice isn't quite that simple today. Harvard didn't play a spring game in 1889 before 90,000 fans and a TV audience, let alone pick up its ball and go to IMG Academy. (To be fair, Michigan's punters could use a falling-on-the-ball drill.)

Sweep the leg....