Wabash Little Giants football
| Wabash Little Giants football | |
|---|---|
| First season | 1884 |
| Athletic director | Matt Tanney |
| Head coach | Don Morel 8th season, 53–18 (.746) |
| Stadium | Hollett Little Giant Stadium (capacity: 3,550) |
| Field surface | FieldTurf |
| Location | Crawfordsville, Indiana |
| Conference | North Coast Athletic Conference |
| All-time record | 717–401–59 (.634) |
| Conference titles | 13 |
| Rivalries | DePauw(rivalry) |
| Consensus All-Americans | 80 |
| Colors | Scarlet and white[1] |
| Fight song | "Old Wabash!" |
| Website | wabash.edu |
TheWabash Little Giants footballteam representsWabash Collegein the sport ofcollege footballat theNCAA Division IIIlevel. The Little Giants have competed as a member of theNorth Coast Athletic Conference(NCAC) since 2000. Wabash plays home games atHollett Little Giant StadiuminCrawfordsville, Indiana.Don Morelhas served as the team's head coach since 2016.
History
[edit]In1884,Wabash played its first game ofintercollegiate footballwhen it defeated a team fromButler Universityon October 25, 4–0.[2]The first intercollegiate game in the state took place on May 31, between Butler andDePauw University.[3]From the 1890s to the 1910s, the Wabash football team played schedules against many much larger colleges, such asIllinois,IndianaandPurdue,against whom the Little Giants occasionally won impressive upsets. For instance Wabash won all five games against Purdue between 1906 and 1911.[4]
In 1903, the Wabash football team fielded its firstblackplayer, Samuel S. Gordon, and the following season added another, Walter M. Cantrell. Many opposing teams threatened boycotts, but school president William Patterson Kane insisted the men be allowed to play. Some opponents did cancel their games, but Gordon and Cantrell continued to play for Wabash. The1904 football teamadopted the nickname the "Little Giants", which was the first time that moniker was used by the school. That season, Wabash won decisive victories overHanover,81–0,Butler,51–0, andEarlham,35–0, and they lost close contests toIllinois,Notre Dame,Purdue,andMichigan Agricultural(Michigan State).[5]
The Little Giants' most prominent football game came againstNotre DameatSouth Bend, Indianaon October 21,1905.Wabash took a first-half lead, 5–0, through a dominating performance by theirbackfieldandlinemen.In the second half, Notre Dame advanced inside the Wabash five-yard line three times, but was repelled on each occasion. The Little Giants won, 5–0,[4]and it proved the only Notre Damehome-fieldloss in 125 games between 1899 and 1928.[6][7]The Little Giants andFighting Irishplayed several more times after that, and the last game took place in 1924.[4]Incidentally, both head coaches that season,Pete Vaughanof Wabash andKnute Rockneof Notre Dame, had played college football together for the Fighting Irish.[8][9]A further connection between the schools wasCollege Football Hall of FameinducteeJesse Harper,who coached Wabash from 1909 to 1912, and then Notre Dame from 1913 to 1917.[7][10]Century Milsteadplayed for the1921 team.
References
[edit]- ^"Wabash Little Giants".RetrievedMarch 5,2024.
- ^Edwin R. Taber,Ancestry Web, retrieved June 29, 2009.
- ^Bodenhamer, David J.; Barrows, Robert G. (1994-11-22).The Encyclopedia of Indianapolis.Indiana University Press.ISBN0253112494.
- ^abcThe Little Giants(PDF),College Football Historical Society Newsletter,vol. 19, no. 4, p. 5, August 2006.
- ^The Originals of 1904,Wabash College, October 31, 2008.
- ^Notre Dame Game-by-Game ResultsArchived2002-10-03 at theWayback Machine,College Football Data Warehouse, retrieved June 30, 2009.
- ^abSideline Chatter(PDF),College Football Historical Society Newsletter,vol. 20, no. 1, p. 1, November 2006.
- ^Wabash Yearly Results: 1920Archived2015-12-08 at theWayback Machine,College Football Data Warehouse, retrieved June 30, 2009.
- ^Little Giants,Dear Old Wabash,Wabash College, December 19, 2008.
- ^Jesse Harper,College Football Hall of Fame,National Football Foundation,retrieved June 30, 2009.