Nov. 27, 1888:Trinity College’s inaugural football team, organized and coached by president John Franklin Crowell, beats UNC 16-0 in the first game played in the South under recognizably modern rules.

What was it, exactly, that sent Duke football into an epic tailspin, from which it is only now, forty years and millions of wasted dollars later, beginning to emerge? Was it admissions standards? Declining attendance? Bad business decisions?

  CORRECTION: There are several factual errors in the story “Why Football Matters.” Specifically, the story states that Duke reported $20.5 million in football revenue in fiscal year 2011-12, and $25.4 million in expenses. The story further states that Duke spends more than any current or incoming conference school on football, and is the only ACC program to “operate in the red.”

Gaining momentum: Pigskin prognosticators give Coach Cut high marks for turnaround potential. Jon Gardi

It's not yet 8 on a sweltering July morning, and David Cutcliffe is in his oak-paneled office on the third floor of Duke's Yoh Football Center, looking for a story. Not just any story—a Paul "Bear" Bryant story. The legendary coach in the houndstooth hat was Cutcliffe's first boss, at the University of Alabama back in the early 1970s.

Motivator, mentor, coach: Cutcliffe with Eli Manning

Brothers Chris Cutcliffe and Marcus Hilliard. Jon Gardiner

The Census Bureau believes nearly 82,000 Americans are 100 years of age or older. But only one of them played major-league baseball. And he's not about to act his age.

BookMarks: Reading in Black and White, A Memoir

  A Well-Paid Slave: Curt Flood's Fight for Free Agency in Professional Sports