Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Massillon Tigers were founded on the 3rd of September 1903 at the Hotel Sailor in Massillon, Ohio. The name came from the orange and black striped jerseys the team adopted, which imitated the look of the Princeton Tigers and were the only style available in sufficient quantity from local vendors.
The Massillon Tigers won Ohio League championships in 1903, 1904, 1905, and 1906. After reorganizing as the All-Massillons, they won another title in 1907, and then claimed a disputed share of the 1915 championship when they returned as the Tigers.
In 1906, the Massillon Independent alleged that Canton Bulldogs coach Blondy Wallace and Tigers end Walter East had conspired to fix a two-game series, planning for Canton to win the first game and Massillon the second to force a high-gate third game. Canton denied the charges, and the scandal was never proven, but it is recognized as the first known case of gamblers attempting to fix a professional sport. The fallout effectively ended professional football in Ohio until the mid-1910s.
No. The Massillon Tigers chose not to join the American Professional Football Association, later renamed the NFL, in 1920. The franchise operated as an independent team through 1923, and during that period never played against any NFL team, even though other independent clubs did.
The 1916 Tigers roster included Knute Rockne, Charles Brickley, Gus Dorais, Bob Nash, Stan Cofall, and future Hall of Famer Greasy Neale. Earlier rosters featured players like Ted Nesser of the Nesser Brothers, Bob Shiring, and Harry McChesney, who had played with the Pittsburgh Stars.
After the Massillon Tigers folded in 1923, the team name was transferred to Massillon Washington High School, which still uses the Tigers name today.