Football went downhill when they let the players have water.
If you want to see how tough they were in the good ol days, check out this documentary of my wife's alma mater. In 1899, the Sewanee Tigers won 5 road games (Texas, Texas A&M, Tulane, LSU, and Ole Miss) in 6 days and won the SEC undefeated. Also, it sounds like Hemingway levels of ultramasculine suckage.