Football Player. He was a star player for the University of Georgia, having played quarterback, fullback, and defense. In a game versus Virginia on October 30, 1897, in Atlanta's Brisbine Park, Gammon rushed to make a play. As he tried, he fell head first, striking his chin on the ground. Gammon was carried to the sidelines and eventually to Grady Hospital, where he died. A bill went through the Georgia legislature that banned football and similar sentiments echoed through other states. Governor W.Y. Atkinson's signature was all that was needed. He faced a lone dissenter, Rosalind Burns Gammon, who wrote the governor, pleading that the sport her son loved so dearly shouldn't be taken away. Atkinson did not sign the legislation and football was allowed to continue. A plaque was later mounted in the Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall at the University of Georgia with an image of a mother holding her fallen son. It was inscribed with the words, "the cause shall live in which his life was given".
Football Player. He was a star player for the University of Georgia, having played quarterback, fullback, and defense. In a game versus Virginia on October 30, 1897, in Atlanta's Brisbine Park, Gammon rushed to make a play. As he tried, he fell head first, striking his chin on the ground. Gammon was carried to the sidelines and eventually to Grady Hospital, where he died. A bill went through the Georgia legislature that banned football and similar sentiments echoed through other states. Governor W.Y. Atkinson's signature was all that was needed. He faced a lone dissenter, Rosalind Burns Gammon, who wrote the governor, pleading that the sport her son loved so dearly shouldn't be taken away. Atkinson did not sign the legislation and football was allowed to continue. A plaque was later mounted in the Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall at the University of Georgia with an image of a mother holding her fallen son. It was inscribed with the words, "the cause shall live in which his life was given".
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