1982 : 1-5-1d.... Pants required.
As an Umpire...I would like to personally thank whoever came up with this one....otherwise I'd spend my late Friday nights rinsing my eyes with Clorox!
I believe "Rule making" is often the simplest way of avoiding/eliminating really stupid objections that most often amount to abstract nonsense. Unfortunately, "Creative thinking" too often produces little more than "Why can't we" nonsense. Football, like any/every other game, creates rules to maintain a level, consistent playing opportunity and are generally intended to realistically create practical guidelines for general participation, applicable for
ALL participants. Annual rule reviews, considerations & adjustments (where/when necessary) are designed to insure continued relevance to each specific sport.
Such periodic reviews are designed to adjust rules, where considered necessary, to maintain an/or continue relevance to their particular sport/activity, and eliminate/avoid irrelevant modifications that are deemed unnecessary, or do not apply to general participation to the intended audience.
Participants, Coaches & Administrators are REQUIRED to accept & adhere to their chosen sport's current rules. Should/If/When existing rules/requirements become objectionable, the athlete/coach/administrator has absolute discretion to consider wide range of alternate activities to consider participation each of which, very likely require their own rule requirements, based on their own unique activity.