On this day in 1939, the Waynesburg University Yellow Jackets played in the first ever televised football game. Despite losing 34-7 to the Fordham University Rams, the Yellow Jackets scored the first touchdown ever seen on TV, a 63-yard run by Bobby Brooks. 

According to a press release from waynesburgsports.com, 42 Waynesburg players and the team’s personnel made the 400-mile trip to Fordham, located in New York. Among the players on the Waynesburg roster was John F. “Jack” Wiley, for whom Waynesburg University’s football stadium is named. Wiley played three years at what was then Waynesburg College, before serving in the United States Army during World War II. He later played five seasons in the NFL for the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

An article on americansportscastersonline.com submitted by former Waynesburg University professor Bill Molzon states that the broadcast signal had about a 50-mile radius from New York, meaning that it wasn’t even possible for people who lived in Waynesburg to watch the game. 

Ncaa.com estimates that the game, which aired on NBC, had between 500-5,000 viewers.

Now, 86 years later, the Waynesburg University Department of Communication puts out television broadcasts for each home football game that are entirely run by students, airing on the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Digital Network.

Whenever you watch college football or the NFL on TV this upcoming weekend, take a second to think about how Waynesburg played in first ever televised game.