Tom Harmon sighting

I think that's a good observation. I remember watching football games in the 60's. When players scored, there was much less celebrating, and the celebrations were more reserved. You'd see a few players in the end zone, patting helmets or smacking shoulder pads for several seconds - and then immediately lining up for the extra point or heading for the sideline. No extended celebrations, and certainly no individual self-glorification like dancing or dunking it over the crossbar.

I've often heard people who hate excessive celebratings use the old phrase, "Act like you've been there before." Well, I think that's what they were doing. I think the mindset may have been something like, "We did what we were supposed to and scored. Well done, but we've still got the rest of the game to play. We'll celebrate when we've won."

Plus, excessive celebrating might have been seen as "bad sportsmanship," and back then, sportsmanship mattered a lot more than it does now. That clip of Tom Harmon from the 1940 OSU game is a great example. As badly as Harmon and UM kicked their asses that day, the Buckeye fans still gave him a standing ovation when he left the field. It's impossible to imagine that happening today.