Spiral (football)
{{Other uses|Spiral (disambiguation)}}
File:RobinsonThrowing2.jpg, who threw the first legal forward pass, demonstrates an "Overhand spiral—fingers on lacing"Cochems, Eddie, "The Forward Pass and On-Side Kick", Spalding's How to Play Foot Ball, American Sports Publishing, Walter Camp, Editor, Revised 1907 edition]]
In American football, a spiral is the continuous in-flight rotation around the longitudinal axis of a football following its release from the hand of a passer{{cite web|url=http://www.sportingcharts.com/dictionary/nfl/spiral.aspx|title=What is Spiral? Definition from SportingCharts.com|work=sportingcharts.com}}{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/chadorzel/2015/10/05/football-physics-why-throw-a-spiral/|title=Football Physics: Why Throw A Spiral?|author=Chad Orzel|work=Forbes}} or foot of a punter.
History
Pop Warner is credited for teaching his players both the spiral punt and the spiral pass.{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3C4aAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA32|title=A course in football for players and coaches|publisher=|last1=Warner |first1=Glenn Scobey |year=1912 }}
=Pass=
The development of the forward pass is traced to Eddie Cochems and Bradbury Robinson at St. Louis. Howard R. Reiter also claimed to develop the overhand forward pass.
=Punt=
Alex Moffat invented the spiral punt, described by one writer as "a dramatic change from the traditional end-over-end kicks."{{cite book|title=The Anatomy of a Game: Football, the Rules, and the Men who Made the Game|author=David M. Nelson|page=53}} He also invented the drop kick.{{cite book|title=Princeton Football|author=Mark F. Bernstein|page=14}}