The Sewanee–Vanderbilt football rivalry 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 ...
rivalry
A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...
between the
Sewanee Tigers
The University of the South, familiarly known as Sewanee (), is a private Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Sewanee, Tennessee. It is owned by 28 Province 4 of the Epis ...
and
Vanderbilt Commodores
The Vanderbilt Commodores are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt fields 16 varsity teams (6 men's teams and 10 women's team ...
. They were both founding members of the
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) was one of the first collegiate athletic conferences in the United States. Twenty-seven of the current Division I FBS (formerly Division I-A) football programs were members of this conferen ...
(SIAA), the
Southern Conference
The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...
, and the
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...
(SEC). Both teams' histories feature some powerhouses of early Southern football, e.g.
1899 Sewanee Tigers football team and
1906 Vanderbilt Commodores football team
The 1906 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University during the 1906 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football season. The team's head coach was Dan McGugin, who served his third season in that capacity. M ...
. It was the oldest of Vanderbilt's rivalries; dating back to
1891
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Paying of old age pensions begins in Germany.
** A strike of 500 Hungarian steel workers occurs; 3,000 men are out of work as a consequence.
**Germany takes formal possession of its new Africa ...
when Vanderbilt played its second ever football game and Sewanee played its first.
Vanderbilt leads the series 40–8–4. It used to be claimed as the oldest rivalry in the south, older than the "
South's Oldest Rivalry
The South's Oldest Rivalry is the name given to the North Carolina–Virginia football rivalry. It is an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Virginia Cavaliers football team of the University of Virginia and the North ...
" between
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 ...
and
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
. Usually played towards the end of the season on
Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden a ...
, the two teams have not met again since
1944
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 2 – WWII:
** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...
.
The two universities are in the same state of
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
and are over 90 miles away from each other. A newspaper account of the rivalry reads: "Both schools look upon the game as the big feature of their schedule each year, no matter what other games are included, and it is always the biggest drawing card on either schedule." "Goodbye Sewanee goodbye" was even a song sung by Vanderbilt students.
Game results
Notable games
1891: Sewanee's first game; Vanderbilt's second
Sewanee's first ever football game, and Vanderbilt's second, was the first instance of this rivalry at
McGee Field
McGee Field/Harris Stadium (officially Benjamin Humphreys McGee Field at Eugene O. Harris Stadium) located in Sewanee, Tennessee is the home of the Sewanee Tigers football and lacrosse teams. It was dedicated as McGee Field at homecoming on Octobe ...
on November 7, 1891. Vanderbilt won 22 to 0. McGee Field is the oldest stadium in the south still in use, and the fourth oldest in the nation.
1897: Vanderbilt gives Sewanee Hell
Vanderbilt beat Sewanee 10–0. A shocking event occurred in 1897 at the Thanksgiving Day match with Sewanee on the original
Dudley Field
FirstBank Stadium (formerly Dudley Field and Vanderbilt Stadium) is a American football, football stadium located in Nashville, Tennessee. Completed in 1922 as the first stadium in the American South, South to be used exclusively for college foo ...
. The word "hell" had been used in the line of a popular cheer on campus by Vanderbilt students and spread into events as football. This caused uproar with the university administration and the city of Nashville.
Both teams commenced to pass the ball around for the purpose of limbering up. Throughout this preliminary the students of both colleges gave their respective yells and sung their several songs written for the occasion. There was one yell given with great frequency by the Vanderbilt students which was very offensive to decent people. It starts off "Hippity Huz, Hippity Huz; What in the hell is the matter with us." It had become so popular at Vanderbilt that it was in the minds and causes them to be oblivious to the fact that it was not exactly proper to shock refined ladies by such utterances.
Phil Connell
William Phillip Connell (August 24, 1874 – February 13, 1932) was a college football player and later a prominent business man of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Vanderbilt University
He was a running back for the Vanderbilt Commodores football tea ...
and captain
Howard Boogher dove to recover the ball after the victory, giving Vanderbilt its first conference title.
1899: Sewanee's greatest team; no game with Vanderbilt
Sewanee Sewanee may refer to:
* Sewanee, Tennessee
* Sewanee: The University of the South
* ''The Sewanee Review'', an American literary magazine established in 1892
* Sewanee Natural Bridge
* Saint Andrews-Sewanee School
See also
* Suwanee (disambiguati ...
manager
Luke Lea, after a disagreement with Vanderbilt over gate receipts resulting in the 1899 game being cancelled, sought a way to make up for the lost revenue. In response, Lea put together an improbable schedule of playing five big name opponents in six days. Playing so many games in a short period minimized costs while maximizing revenue. During this road trip, Sewanee outscored its opponents for a combined 91–0, including Texas, Texas A&M, LSU, and Ole Miss. Sewanee obliterated each one, traveling by train for some 2,500 miles. This feat, barring fundamental changes in modern-day football, can never be equaled. Contemporary sources called the road trip the most remarkable ever made by an American college team.
1902: Sewanee drubs Vandy
Sewanee defeated Vanderbilt in a surprising 11 to 5 upset.
John Edgerton
John Emmett Edgerton (October 2, 1879 – August 4, 1938) was an industrialist who gained prominence as the president of the National Association of Manufacturers from 1921 to 1931. Edgerton was also an All-Southern college football fullback ...
's touchdown was the first Vanderbilt had scored on Sewanee since 1897. Captain
Henry D. Phillips made Sewanee's touchdown.
1903: Vanderbilt upsets Sewanee
1903 met difficulty in determining an SIAA champion. Clemson's
John Heisman
John William Heisman (October 23, 1869 – October 3, 1936) was a player and coach of American football, baseball, and basketball, as well as a sportswriter and actor. He served as the head football coach at Oberlin College, Buchtel College ...
pushed strongly for Cumberland to share the SIAA title with Clemson, but also originally scheduled a game with the Vanderbilt-Sewanee winner to decide the conference. Cumberland's strongest victory was its win over
Vanderbilt.
John J. Tigert
John James Tigert IV (February 11, 1882 – January 21, 1965) was an American university president, university professor and administrator, college sports coach and the U.S. Commissioner of Education. Tigert was a native of Tennessee and the ...
, later a prominent educator, got Vanderbilt's first touchdown, and thus was the first person to score on the Tigers all season.
1905: Vanderbilt drubs Sewanee
Vanderbilt crushed a strong
Sewanee Sewanee may refer to:
* Sewanee, Tennessee
* Sewanee: The University of the South
* ''The Sewanee Review'', an American literary magazine established in 1892
* Sewanee Natural Bridge
* Saint Andrews-Sewanee School
See also
* Suwanee (disambiguati ...
squad 68–4. One publication claims "The first scouting done in the South was in 1905, when Dan McGugin and Captain Innis Brown, of Vanderbilt went to
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
to see Sewanee play
Georgia Tech
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
."
John Scarbrough
John William Scarbrough (October 20, 1885 – March 3, 1960) was a college football player.
Early years
John William Scarbrough was born on October 20, 1885 in Rockdale, Texas to Eugene Monroe Scarbrough and Ada Ledbetter.
Sewanee
Scarbrough ...
made Sewanee's only points on a 35-yard field goal.
[ ] On the dedication of
Harris Stadium
McGee Field/Harris Stadium (officially Benjamin Humphreys McGee Field at Eugene O. Harris Stadium) located in Sewanee, Tennessee is the home of the Sewanee Tigers football and lacrosse teams. It was dedicated as McGee Field at homecoming on Octobe ...
, one writer noted "The University of the South has numbered among its athletes some of the greatest. Anyone who played against giant
Henry Phillips in 1901-1903 felt that he was nothing less than the best as guard and fullback. Anyone who ever saw a punt from the foot of J. W. Scarbrough."
Honus Craig
John Livingston "Honus" Craig (November 30, 1881 – April 18, 1942) was an American college football player and coach.
Early years
John Livingston Craig was born on November 30, 1881, in Culleoka, Tennessee, to Thompson Sloan Craig and Ella Clin ...
once ran 60 yards for a touchdown.
[
]
1907: Grantland Rice's Greatest Thrill
In the second year of the legal forward pass Vanderbilt won the SIAA championship on a double-pass play. Sewanee led 12 to 11 with twelve minutes to play. At McGugin's signal, the Commodores went into a freakish formation in which Stein Stone
James Nollner "Stein" Stone Sr. (April 18, 1882 – August 25, 1926) was an American football and basketball player and coach. "Stein" is the German for stone.
Vanderbilt University
At Vanderbilt he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternit ...
remained at center but all other players shifted to his left. Quarterback Hugh Potts took the snap and lateraled the ball to Vaughn Blake
John Vaughn Blake (1888 – June 29, 1964) was an American college football player and FBI agent. He played football for Dan McGugin's Vanderbilt Commodores football teams with his brothers Dan and Bob. Dan, Bob, and Vaughn were captains of t ...
, who lateraled it across to Bob Blake, who had lined up deep in punt formation, as Stone ran down the field.[ Blake then connected with Stone on a 35-yard pass down inside the 5-yard line.][ ]Honus Craig
John Livingston "Honus" Craig (November 30, 1881 – April 18, 1942) was an American college football player and coach.
Early years
John Livingston Craig was born on November 30, 1881, in Culleoka, Tennessee, to Thompson Sloan Craig and Ella Clin ...
ran in it to win the game. It was cited by Grantland Rice
Henry Grantland "Granny" Rice (November 1, 1880July 13, 1954) was an early 20th-century American sportswriter known for his elegant prose. His writing was published in newspapers around the country and broadcast on the radio.
Early years
Rice wa ...
as the greatest thrill he ever witnessed in his years of watching sports.
![LeeTolley](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/LeeTolley.jpg)
Vanderbilt coach Dan McGugin
Daniel Earle McGugin (July 29, 1879 – January 23, 1936) was an American football player and coach, as well as a lawyer. He served as the head football coach at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee from 1904 to 1917 and again from ...
in ''Spalding's Football Guides summation of the season in the SIAA wrote "The standing. First, Vanderbilt; second, Sewanee, a might good second;" and that Aubrey Lanier
Aubrey Falls "Laney" Lanier (February 18, 1888 – April 25, 1936) was a college football player.
Early years
Aubrey was born on February 18, 1888, in the city of Butler in Lonoke County, Arkansas, to Isaac Hill Lanier and Mary "Ellen" Cooper ...
"came near winning the Vanderbilt game by his brilliant dashes after receiving punts." Innis Brown
Innis Brown (March 31, 1884 – January 23, 1961) was a college football player, referee, sportswriter, and civil engineer. His sports articles were nationally known, writing for the New York Sun and Hearst newspapers.
Early years
Innis Bro ...
recalled that Sewanee was likely the South's best team that year.[ ]
1909: Sewanee's last SIAA title
Sewanee beat Vanderbilt 16–5, giving Vanderbilt its first loss to a Southern team in six years. and netting the SIAA championship for Sewanee. " Moise, for Sewanee, played the game of his life."
1914: Tolley leads Tigers over Vanderbilt
Sewanee quarterback Lee Tolley
Robert Lee Tolley (September 28, 1892 – November 1, 1972) was a college football player and Southeastern Conference Official (American football), official.
Sewanee
Tolley was a quarterback for the Sewanee Tigers football, Sewanee Tigers of ...
was awarded a gold football charm to commemorate the 14 to 13 victory. One account reads "For brilliance and beauty of execution, (Tolley's play) has had few equals, if any, in the South, and the Tiger leader retires from the game as the premier quarterback in the S.I.A.A., beyond a doubt." His performance included a 75-yard punt return for a touchdown.
1921: Vanderbilt's muddiest game
The Commodores closed the season with a 9 to 0 win over Sewanee Sewanee may refer to:
* Sewanee, Tennessee
* Sewanee: The University of the South
* ''The Sewanee Review'', an American literary magazine established in 1892
* Sewanee Natural Bridge
* Saint Andrews-Sewanee School
See also
* Suwanee (disambiguati ...
in the "muddiest game" in its history.[ The Commodores were supposedly knee-deep in mud and water, with players unrecognizable. The two teams were considered a fairly even match before the game. Sewanee felt confident its line gave them a chance to win, but also a bit nervous about Vanderbilt's passing attack. In a game for bragging rights and the ]Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) was one of the first collegiate athletic conferences in the United States. Twenty-seven of the current Division I FBS (formerly Division I-A) football programs were members of this conferen ...
title, Lynn Bomar
Robert Lynn Bomar (January 21, 1901 – June 11, 1964) was an American football end in the National Football League (NFL). Bomar played college football, basketball and baseball for Vanderbilt University, following coach Wallace Wade and ...
would be injured.
The game went scoreless until the fourth quarter, when Sewanee fumbled the snap on a punt and the punter was smothered by Jess Neely
Jesse Claiborne Neely (January 4, 1898 – April 9, 1983) was an American football player and a baseball and football coach. He was head football coach at Southwestern University (now Rhodes College) from 1924 to 1927, at Clemson University f ...
, Frank Godchaux, and Pink Wade
William James "Pink" Wade (August 18, 1899 – March 1, 1966) was an American football player for the Vanderbilt Commodores of Vanderbilt University. Wade was the captain of the 1921 SIAA champion Vanderbilt football team. He was the father ...
for a safety. Later in the fourth, Hek Wakefield
Henry Smith "Hek" Wakefield (February 10, 1899 – November 19, 1962) was an American college football player and coach. He played fullback and end for the Vanderbilt Commodores of Vanderbilt University from 1921 to 1924, receiving the honor ...
would punt the ball 54 yards from his own 38 yard-line, and Elam recovered a fumble by Sewanee's Powers. Wakefield ran in the game's only touchdown off-tackle from about 5 yards out. Wakefield kicked goal. Sewanee had more first downs than Vanderbilt, six to Vandy's two, but suffered four successive fumbles.[Camp, Walter, ed]
National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Rules: Official Intercollegiate Football Guide.
45 Rose St, New York: American Sports, 1922. Print. Spalding's Athletic Library.
1924: Sewanee's last and greatest victory
Sewanee won for the first time in a decade by the score of 16-0. The student newspaper ''The Sewanee Purple'' labeled it "The Greatest Victory for Sewanee in Its Thirty-one Years of Football History." Vanderbilt coach Dan McGugin
Daniel Earle McGugin (July 29, 1879 – January 23, 1936) was an American football player and coach, as well as a lawyer. He served as the head football coach at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee from 1904 to 1917 and again from ...
stated "Sewanee played a brilliant, sustained game. It was her day all the way." Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
coach Fielding Yost
Fielding Harris Yost (; April 30, 1871 – August 20, 1946) was an American football player, coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at: Ohio Wesleyan University, the University of Nebraska, the University ...
said of the game, "It was one of those days when everything you try goes wrong and everything the other fellow tries goes right. Sewanee played great football." Gil Reese
David Argillus "Gil" Reese (January 14, 1901 – May 30, 1993) nicknamed "The Tupelo Flash" was an American football, basketball, and baseball player for the Vanderbilt Commodores of Vanderbilt University. He was captain of all three his senior ...
was relatively controlled and Bob Rives
Robert Franklin Rives (November 12, 1903 – March 1, 1956) was an American football tackle. He played college football for Vanderbilt University.
Early years
Bob Rives was born on November 12, 1903, in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, to R. H. Rives.
H ...
' line play was adequately challenged. Gil Reese and Fatty Lawrence starred for the Commodores. Sewanee's backfield of captain Harris, Gibbons, Barker, and Mahoney "clicked to perfection"[Russell, Fred, and Maxwell Edward Benson. Fifty Years of Vanderbilt Football. Nashville, TN, 1938, p.39, 43] and its line received much praise as well. It's the last time Sewanee has beaten Vanderbilt.
See also
* List of NCAA college football rivalry games
This is a list of rivalry games in college football in the United States. The list also shows any trophy awarded to the winner of the rivalry between the teams.
NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision
...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sewanee-Vanderbilt football rivalry
College football rivalries in the United States
Sewanee Tigers football
Vanderbilt Commodores football
Dissolved sports rivalries
1891 establishments in Tennessee