On the schedule, it was only an exhibition game. But to the members of the New York Jets and New York Giants, it might as well have been the biggest game of the season.

The teams had never played each other in any form when they met before a sellout crowd at the Yale Bowl on Aug. 17, 1969.

Engaged in a decade-long battle for tri-state fans (and their money), the Jets, formed nine years earlier, were still considered interlopers by the long-established Giants, an original NFL franchise, even if the Giants had little respect for either the Jets or the upstart AFL.

But the Jets’ astonishing upset victory over the Colts in Super Bowl III seven months earlier put the Giants’ status as football kings of New York in serious jeopardy. Joe Namath made sure everyone knew what was at stake.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story.

“Champions all!”

Those two words, written by New Haven Register scholastic sports editor Bill Lush, marked Connecticut’s introduction to the first Register All-State high school football team on Dec. 4, 1932. Eighty years later, the release of the annual team remains the most anticipated feature in the pages of this newspaper.

The first all-state team consisted of only 11 players, of whom Lush wrote “undoubtedly would show an edge over most of the high school combinations in the country (and) discloses no weakness.” The 11 were listed by their offensive positions, leaving a question of how they would perform when on defense. But most, if not all teams of the era had two-way players, so chances are they’d be just fine.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story.

Register file photo

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When senior Roger Graham stepped onto the practice field for the first time in late August 1994, teammates had a bit of a surprise for the record-shattering University of New Haven running back.

Fresh off a junior season in which he won the Harlon Hill Trophy as the top football player in Division II, Graham had to get used to a new nickname.

“The guys have nicknamed me ‘Harlon.’ It doesn’t bother me,” Graham said in a 1994 story in the Register.

“It was a lot of fun and celebrating, at least for a while. It’s certainly something I can never forget. But once I went to the first workouts this spring, that was that. It was over. Time to move on.”

Read Jim Fuller's complete story.

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Harlon Hill trophy winners

Graham's UNH Hall of Fame profile

Graham in Sports Illustrated

It was another perfect autumn afternoon at the Yale Bowl on Oct. 24, 1931. A crowd of 75,000 packed the stadium to see Yale and Army, two college football heavyweights of the day. The mood was positively electric as the teams traded touchdowns on the first two plays of the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs elevating the spirit of the home crowd on an 88-yard kickoff return by Bud Parker to knot the score at 6-6.

Within minutes, however, the bowl went silent as Army’s Richard Sheridan lay motionless on the turf.

Sheridan, a junior end who weighed 149 pounds, attempted to tackle Yale’s Bob Lassiter following a punt. Sheridan’s head struck Lassiter’s knee. The Army cadet suffered a broken neck.

Rushed to New Haven Hospital in critical condition he underwent emergency surgery, but doctors held out little hope. Sheridan died there two days later, the first and only on-field fatality in Yale Bowl history.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story.

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Hillhouse product Floyd Little was arguably the greatest running back in Connecticut schoolboy history.

He was a standout running back at Syracuse University, where he formed a backfield with Larry Csonka and current New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin.

He went on to a terrific nine-year professional career with the Denver Broncos, where he gained more than 12,000 career all-purpose yards and was ultimately — some say belatedly — inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, delivering a stirring acceptance speech.

But perhaps no honor touched Little more than when a glistening, 105,000-square-foot athletic center bearing his name was officially dedicated in his honor on Sept. 15, 2011.

Read Dave Borges' complete story.

Floyd Little official web site

Floyd Little Hall of Fame Speech (YouTube)

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Kevin Gilbride had dreams of becoming a major league pitcher while growing up in North Haven, where he starred at every level right through his time with high school coach Bob DeMayo.

Arm injuries derailed his baseball dreams. They also limited him as a quarterback at Southern Connecticut State, where he finished his career as a tight end.

Gilbride would still go on to great achievements, albeit as a coach. He is regarded as one of the premier offensive minds in football, winning his second Super Bowl ring as offensive coordinator of the New York Giants in February.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story.

Associated Press photos

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Eric Johnson has been a regular in the gossip magazines the past few years, famous in this age of TMZ for fathering a child with singer Jessica Simpson (the two have been engaged since 2010).

A dozen years ago, Johnson was an unstoppable force for the Yale football team. A 6-foot-3, 225-pound flanker, he graduated with nearly every receiving record in the Bulldogs’ book.

His athleticism was remarkable. When Yale found itself in need of a punter, Johnson not only filled in for two full seasons, but had one of the best kicking averages in the nation.

But his performance in the 1999 edition of “The Game” cemented his legacy as a Yale legend.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story.

Imagine if the Pittsburgh Steelers came to New Haven to play a local club team. Not a city all-star team, mind you, but a team made up of players from a specific neighborhood. And the locals battled their professional opponents to a tie...in a game that counted in the NFL standings.

Ridiculous, right? In modern times, yes. But, 92 years ago, this unlikely scenario actually happened. A New Haven team played the Canton Bulldogs, an original NFL club, to a scoreless tie. Even more astonishing? Jim Thorpe played for the opposition.

Read Chip Malafronte's complete story.