Caius Hunter Carpenter (June 23, 1883 – February 24, 1953) was an American

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

halfback who played for both

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

and

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. Carpenter was inducted into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

in 1957, the

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame honors athletes, coaches, administrators, journalists and other contributors to athletics. Many of the more than 350 inductees since 1972 were born in Virginia or enjoyed success in college, professional, amateur or ...

in 1973, and was in the inaugural induction class of the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1982.

Early life

Carpenter was born in

Louisa County, Virginia Louisa County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,596. The county seat is Louisa. History Prior to colonial settlement, the area comprising Louisa County was occupied by severa ...

, the son of Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Carpenter. He attended Clifton Forge High School in

Clifton Forge, Virginia Clifton Forge is a town in Alleghany County, Virginia, United States which is part of the greater Roanoke Region. The population was 3,555 at the 2020 census. The Jackson River flows through the town, which as a result was once known as Jac ...

College career

Carpenter was never named to the

All-America 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 ...

team only because

Walter Camp Walter Chauncey Camp (April 7, 1859 – March 14, 1925) was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". Among a long list of inventions, he created the sport's line of scrimmage and the system ...

, who named the team at the time, said he would never name a player who he had not seen play. Carpenter was inducted into the

in 1957.

Virginia Tech

Carpenter enrolled at Virginia Tech in 1898, and played college football for the

Virginia Tech Hokies football The Virginia Tech Hokies football team represents Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in the sport of American football. The Hokies compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ...

team from 1899 through 1903. He became a man possessed by one thing after Tech was routed by UVA in 1899: beating the Cavaliers in football. During much of his career, he used the alias "Walter Brown" because his father had forbidden him to play football. It was not until his father saw him play in a game in

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

against

Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

that he approved of his participation in football. He is considered by many to be one of greatest football players ever to attend Virginia Tech.

1902

He was named captain of the team in

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's f ...

1905

Carpenter returned to Virginia Tech in

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia (Shostakovich's 11th Symphony i ...

for a last shot at beating Virginia in his eighth year of college football. Going into the 1905 game, UVA was 8–0 against VPI by a cumulative score of 170–5. ''

The Cavalier Daily ''The Cavalier Daily'' is an independent, student-run daily news organization at the University of Virginia. Founded in 1890, under the name ''College Topics'', ''The Cavalier Daily'' is Virginia's oldest collegiate daily and the oldest daily new ...

'' ran a story outlining Carpenter's motives and move from Virginia Tech to UNC and back to Tech over the preceding eight years. Virginia accused Carpenter of being a professional player, as he had played college football already for nearly a decade. Carpenter signed an

affidavit An ( ; Medieval Latin for "he has declared under oath") is a written statement voluntarily made by an ''affiant'' or '' deponent'' under an oath or affirmation which is administered by a person who is authorized to do so by law. Such a statemen ...

that he had not received payment to play against UVA and, against a backdrop of recrimination, Carpenter led VPI to an 11–0 lead. Carpenter was ejected midway through the game for throwing the ball at the face of a Virginia defender, but stayed on the sidelines to watch as neither team was able to score against each other. Carpenter left immediately after the game and moved to Middleton, New York, never to return to the Commonwealth. Carpenter retired 1–7 against UVA, but the Cavaliers still refused to play Virginia Tech again until 1923. Carpenter helped lead Virginia Tech in 1905 to a 9–1 record, the best in school's history up to that time. During that season, Tech outscored its opponents 305–24, and Carpenter scored 82 points.

University of North Carolina

1904

Infuriated by his losses to UVA, he played in 1904 at the University of North Carolina. "I just want to beat the University of Virginia," Carpenter was quoted as saying by the Associated Press, in reference to his move to Chapel Hill. However, as a standout on the

Tar Heels Tar Heel is a nickname applied to the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is also the nickname of the University of North Carolina athletic teams, students, alumni, and fans. The origins of the Tar Heel nickname trace back to North Carolina's promi ...

' football squad, he again failed to win against Virginia for two years in a row. His one year at North Carolina managed to place him amongst the best ever to play at the school.

Death

He died in Middletown, New York.Bearss, 2006, ''op. cit.''.

References

External links

*
Virginia Sports Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Hunter 1883 births 1953 deaths Virginia Tech Hokies football players North Carolina Tar Heels football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees All-Southern college football players Players of American football from Virginia American football halfbacks 19th-century players of American football