Jack Trice's Jersey Number

**Benny34** · 11-01-2010, 08:31 PM

Does anyone here know what Jack Trice's jersey number was? I was board rummaging around the istatefb.com site and started reading about him and was curious. Thanks to anyone with info.

**Stumpy** · 11-01-2010, 08:35 PM

Were jersey numbers even used in Trice's time? Just a wild guess, but I'm assuming not.

**Benny34** · 11-01-2010, 08:41 PM

I looked at this wikipedia article
Uniform number (American football) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
and it mentions that jersey numbers started in the college ranks, but before the '20s it was uncommon for numbers greater than 25. That leads me to believe there was a good chance they had numbers at that time.

Edit:
Here is the quote from the article:

The earliest numbering systems were significantly different from the modern variation. Until the 1920s, it was rare to see player numbers much higher than 25, and numbers had little correlation with positions...This numbering system originated in college football and was used only informally in the NFL until 1952

**Stumpy** · 11-01-2010, 08:49 PM

Originally Posted by Benny34

I looked at this wikipedia article
Uniform number (American football) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
and it mentions that jersey numbers started in the college ranks, but before the '20s it was uncommon for numbers greater than 25. That leads me to believe there was a good chance they had numbers at that time.

Edit:
Here is the quote from the article:

You're right, that would indicate that at least some teams had numbers. I still have my doubts for two reasons:

1. Jerseys that I have seen from around that time that do have numbers have them on the front and back of the jersey. The only pictures of Trice that I have ever seen have had the stripes on the front of the jersey.

2. If Trice had a number, it almost certainly would be retired and that would be common knowledge.

**Benny34** · 11-01-2010, 09:26 PM

Originally Posted by Stumpy

You're right, that would indicate that at least some teams had numbers. I still have my doubts for two reasons:

1. Jerseys that I have seen from around that time that do have numbers have them on the front and back of the jersey. The only pictures of Trice that I have ever seen have had the stripes on the front of the jersey.

2. If Trice had a number, it almost certainly would be retired and that would be common knowledge.

Those two reasons are what led me to research the history of numbers in football. I would bet you are correct. Hopefully someone can shed some light on this further.

**ZebraCakes** · 11-01-2010, 10:00 PM

I tried to google the answer and it lead me to a post on this very site and it stated that there are no records of jersey numbers prior to 1925. That was the most detailed info I found.