The 1931 Tulane Green Wave football team represented

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

during the

1931 Southern Conference football season The 1931 Southern Conference football season was the college football games played by the member schools of the Southern Conference as part of the 1931 college football season. The season began on September 19. In the annual Rose Bowl game, the ...

. The team posted an undefeated regular season, but lost in the Rose Bowl to national champion

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

. It is one of the best teams in school history.

Before the season

Jerry Dalrymple Gerald Richard Dalrymple (August 6, 1906 – September 25, 1962) was an American football and basketball player and coach. Dalrymple worked odd jobs at Ouachita Junior College in Arkadelphia for three years. He was a prominent end for coach Berni ...

was elected captain.

Schedule

Game summaries

Ole Miss

Tulane opened the season with a 31–0 victory over Ole Miss. The starting lineup was DeColigny (left end), Cunningham (left tackle), Calhoun (left guard), Lodrigues (center), Scafide (right guard), Upton (right tackle), Dalrymple (right end), Dawson (quarterback), Glover (left halfback), Zimmerman (right halfback), Felts (fullback).

Texas A&M

In the second week of play, Tulane defeated Texas A&M 7–0. The starting lineup was DeColigny (left end), Cunningham (left tackle), Calhoun (left guard), Lodrigues (center), Scafide (right guard), Upton (right tackle), Dalrymple (right end), Dawson (quarterback), Glover (left halfback), Zimmerman (right halfback), Felts (fullback).

Spring Hill

The Spring Hill College Badgers lost to Tulane 40–0 .

Vanderbilt

Against Vanderbilt, Tulane won 19–0.

Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech was beaten 33–0.

Mississippi A&M

Mississippi A&M was beaten 59–7. The starting lineup was Haynes (left end), Bankston (left tackle), Scafide (left guard), Lodrigues (center), Calhoun (right guard), Upton (right tackle), Dalrymple (right end), Richardson (quarterback), Roberts (left halfback), Hodgins (right halfback), Lemmon (fullback).

Auburn

Don Zimmerman eclipsed 100 yards rushing in the 27–0 defeat of

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

. Felts scored three touchdowns.

Georgia

Tulane defeated the

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...

20–7. Tulane scored first on a 33-yard pass from Zimmerman to

Vernon Haynes Vernon Carlton "Lefty" Haynes (December 17, 1910 – May 28, 1973) was an American football and basketball player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Louisiana College in 1940 and at The Apprentice School in Newport News, Virginia f ...

Nollie Felts Nollie C. "Papa" Felts (February 7, 1905 – November 1, 1974) was an American football player for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles of the University of Southern Mississippi and the Tulane Green Wave of Tulane University. Felts is a member of b ...

plunged in from the 1-yard line for the next touchdown. A pass from Georgia's Homey Key to

Buster Mott Norman Howard "Buster" Mott (June 21, 1909 – November 14, 1987) was an American football back in the National Football League (NFL). Mott played with the Green Bay Packers during the 1933 NFL season. He split the following season between t ...

netted 60 yards and a touchdown. After a botched punt, a double pass play led to Payne sprinting around left end for Tulane's final score.

Sewanee

Tulane shut out the Sewanee Tigers 40–0 .

LSU

Tulane defeated rival LSU 34–7. The starting lineup was Haynes (left end), DeColigny (left tackle), Scafide (left guard), Lodrigues (center), McCormick (right guard), Upton (right tackle), Dalrymple (right end), Dawson (quarterback), Zimmerman (left halfback), Glover (right halfback), Felts (fullback).

Washington State

Tulane had an intersectional victory to close the regular season, over Washington State 28–14 . Dahlen scored the first touchdown. After starting on the bench, Dalrymple rallied the team when he entered the game. A pass from Zimmerman to Haynes got the first touchdown, with Haynes tackled by Sander at the goal line. In the second quarter, Zimmerman connected with Dawson for a long pass, pushed out of bounds at the 6-yard line. Glover then got a touchdown on a double lateral pass play, scoring with two tacklers around his neck. After a Zimmerman interception and 30-yard return, another Zimmerman to Haynes pass got another touchdown. After a blocked punt and then a fumble by Tulane on the next drive, Washington State was in scoring distance, with Schroeder scoring on a line plunge. At the start of the fourth quarter, Dalrymple caught 25-yard touchdown despite being covered.

Postseason

Rose Bowl

Tulane lost in the Rose Bowl to

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

by a 21–12 score. The Trojans had six

All-Americans The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

in their lineup: tackle Ernie Smith, guards Johnny Baker and Aaron "Rosy" Rosenberg, halfback

Erny Pinckert William Ernest Pinckert (May 1, 1907 – August 30, 1977) was an American football halfback. He played college football at the University of Southern California (USC) under head coach Howard Jones. Pinckert played professionally in the National ...

and quarterbacks

Orville Mohler Orville Ernest Mohler (May 29, 1909 – November 26, 1949), sometimes referred to as Orv Mohler, was an American football and baseball player. He grew up in Alhambra, California, and attended the University of Southern California (USC). His fath ...

and

Gaius Shaver Gaius Ray "Gus" Shaver (August 14, 1910 – October 11, 1998) was an All-American football player. He played at the quarterback and fullback positions for the University of Southern California Trojans football teams from 1929 to 1931. He was ...

. Down 21 to 0 in the third quarter, Zimmerman led a running attack which ended with a 6-yard pass to Haynes for the score. Tulane's other score was a run by "Wop" Glover set up by 11 and 15 yard passes from Zimmerman to

. Tulane still managed a Rose Bowl record for yardage gained.

Awards and honors

One article which attempts to retroactively name

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

winners before 1936 named Dalrymple as the recipient for 1931. He was the season's only unanimous All-American; and is still the only unanimous All-American in school history. Felts was elected next year's captain.

Players

Line

Backfield

References

{{Southern Conference football champions

Tulane Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

Tulane Green Wave football seasons Southern Conference football champion seasons

Tulane Green Wave football The Tulane Green Wave football team represents Tulane University in the sport of American football. The Green Wave compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a member of the American A ...