Why is the football field called a gridiron?
According to Wikipedia.com, a football field is called a gridiron because the markings on the field resemble that type of grill that can be used to cook food over a fire. Yes, the markings are the reason but the above is incomplete, I believe. Besides the yard markings every five yards on the field; during the early days following the introduction of the forward pass, longitudinal lines were added so that the field became a series of rectangles or squares. The football fathers of that time thought the forward pass was just a little too much of a good thing and so in an effort to limit the impact you could only pass the ball from your square to an ajoining one.
