Origin of The Term
The term "alley-oop" is derived from the French term allez hop!, the cry of a circus acrobat about to leap. The term "Alley Oop" was first used in the 1950s by the San Francisco 49ers of the NFL to describe a high arcing pass to wide receiver R.C. Owens, who would outleap smaller cornerbacks for touchdown receptions ("The Catch", the famous Dwight Clark touchdown reception from Joe Montana by which the 49ers gained entry into their first Super Bowl, was also an "Alley Oop" pass) and later became more well-known from its use in basketball.
Read more about this topic: Alley-oop (basketball)
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