Originally, the game was based on common thievery between young toughs from North Indian Hill (now simply: Indian Hill) and Indian Hill Light (now Terrace Park). Roving gangs from each town would descend on their neighbor and steal a pig and race back to their own town. Each village would try to intercept the other group and recapture their pig.

A young Indian Hill tough is depicted pursuing a pig on what would later be called Shawnee Run Road. As the security camera would not be invented for years to come, wealthy people would often station sketch artists in trees to guard their property and record possible wrong doing.

Milford residents observed the pig theft phenomenon and in the 1880's devised a plan to acquire all of the pigs in the Little Miami Valley. The Milford people devised an intricate scheme of maneuvers and set movements to enable them to escape with the pigs. Since pig theft was a criminal offense at the time, this group was called the "Offense" unit. A separate unit of Milford residents would be assigned certain schemes to defend the pig pens on the Milford side. They were called the "Defense" unit. A tremendous breakthrough occurred in 1885 when a Milford raider completed the first forward pig in history. By tossing his pig ahead to another raider he was able to escape interception by the other town. Life in Milford being about as boring then as it is today, many spectators would gather to watch the encounters. Whenever a pig was successfully tossed forward, Milford spectators would shout: "He made a pig's ass out of you." The term for this ploy was soon called completing a "pig's ass" It was later shortened to P's Ass or pass.

A Milford player turns to catch a "pig's ass" or "pass" as the maneuver was eventually called. Once an inflated ball was introduced to replace the live pig, the pass and other such innovations made Milford the center of the new sport.

Eventually the pig thefts acquired 'game' status among the young men in the surrounding towns. By making these encounters an organized sport, young men were able to avoid the arrest records of their earlier counterparts. Milford residents, having the only school in the entire valley, created a set of written rules and introduced the use of an air filled ball in place of the live pig. Use of the air filled ball rather than a live pig certainly made extra points and field goals easier. The first photo is of the last team to win a championship using a live pig. The year was 1885 and you can see a live pig wiggling in the arms of the Milford captain. That team went 20-0 and was regarded as the team of the century in the "Live Pig" era. The second photo was taken the next year when the Milford team inaugurated the "Pigskin" era using the air filled ball. That team went 20-0. Sadly, to this day this would be the last year a Milford football team had a winning record.

1885...The greatest team of the "Live Pig Era."

The undefeated Milford Team of 1886.