Oct 7, 1916 - the most lopsided college football game in American history.

Bama Fan N TN

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On This date Georgia Tech defeated Cumberland University 222-0.

The 1916 Cumberland vs. Georgia Tech football game was a college football game played on October 7, 1916, between the Georgia Tech Engineers and the Cumberland College Bulldogs. The game became the most lopsided game in the history of college football, as Georgia Tech was victorious 222–0.

* Cumberland College, a school in Lebanon, Tennessee, had actually discontinued its football program before the season but was not allowed to cancel its game against the Engineers. The fact that Cumberland's baseball team had crushed Georgia Tech earlier that year 22-0 (amidst allegations of Cumberland using professionals as ringers) probably accounted for Georgia Tech coach John Heisman's running up the score on the Bulldogs. He insisted on the schools' scheduling agreement, which required Cumberland to pay $3,000 ($58,550 in inflation-adjusted terms) to Tech if its football team failed to show. So, George E. Allen (who was elected to serve as Cumberland's football team student manager after first serving as the baseball team student manager) put together a scrub team of 14 men (including some of his Kappa Sigma brothers) to travel to Atlanta as Cumberland's football team.

Cumberland received the opening kickoff and failed to make a first down. After a punt, the Engineers scored on their first play. Cumberland then fumbled on their next play from scrimmage, and a Tech player returned the fumble for a touchdown. The Bulldogs fumbled again on their next play, and it took Tech two runs to score its third touchdown. Cumberland lost nine yards on its next possession, then gave up a fourth touchdown on another two-play Tech drive.

The Engineers led 63–0 after the first quarter and 126–0 at halftime. Tech added 54 more points in the third quarter and 42 in the final period.

Several myths have developed around the game. Some have written that Cumberland did not have a single play that gained yards; in fact, its longest play was a 10-yard pass (on 4th-and-22). One page on Cumberland's website says Georgia Tech scored on every offensive play, but the play-by-play account of the game posted online says otherwise. Another part of Cumberland's webpage states a more likely scenario: that Georgia Tech scored on every one of its drives.





1916 Cumberland vs. Georgia Tech football game - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


* Cumberland is about 9 miles from where I live. The began their football program October 26th, 1894, against Peabody. The program has been dropped and resumed numerous times since then.

In 1990 the program returned and is still going on. So far this year they are 1-4
 
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TommyMac

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I read an account of this many years ago. They actually only played about 3 quarters of football.. They got together at halftime and agreed to mercifully shorten both the 3rd and 4th quarters.
 

Rueben

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Wow, considering the forward pass was not around back then...:eek:


( I am pretty sure it was not, but if it was I am sure I will be corrected on here.;))
 

bayoutider

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Check these guys out.

Record: 12–0–0 Points: Sewanee 322, Opponents 10

* Oct. 21 at Atlanta: Sewanee 12 Georgia 0
* Oct. 23 at Atlanta: Sewanee 32 Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech 0
* Oct. 28 at Sewanee: Sewanee 46 Tennessee 0
* Nov. 3 at Sewanee: Sewanee 54 Southwestern University
Rhodes College 0
* Nov. 9 (Thursday) at Austin: Sewanee 12 Texas 0
* Nov. 10 (Friday) at Houston: Sewanee 10 Texas A&M 0
* Nov. 11 (Saturday) at New Orleans: Sewanee 23 Tulane 0
* Nov. 13 (Monday) at Baton Rouge: Sewanee 34 LSU 0
* Nov. 14 (Tuesday) at Memphis: Sewanee 12 Ole Miss 0
* Nov. 20 at Sewanee: Sewanee 71 Cumberland 0
* Nov. 30 at Montgomery: Sewanee 11 Auburn 10
* Dec. 2 at Atlanta: Sewanee 5 North Carolina 0


The 1899 season
Sewanee’s 1899 season was very successful. From October 21 through December 2, under the leadership of Coach Billy Sutter and future Football Hall of Famer
Pro Football Hall of Fame

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, Ohio, United States, on September 7 1963 with 17 charter inductees....
captain Henry “Diddy” Seibels
Henry Seibels

Henry Seibels was an American football player. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1973....
, the Sewanee team, officially the Tigers but nicknamed the "Iron Men," played and won twelve games, was unscored upon except for one game, outscored their opponents 322 to 10, and were champions of the South. Ten of their twelve opponents are today big-time college football powers including National Champions from 1998 (Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football

The Tennessee Volunteers football team, is the University of Tennessee, Knoxville , National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I football team....
), 2003 and 2007 (Louisiana State
LSU Tigers football

The LSU Tigers football team, a.k.a. "Fighting Tigers", represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I#Football Bowl Subdivision college football....
), and 2005 (Texas
Texas Longhorns football

The Texas Longhorns football team is the interscholastic American football team at The University of Texas in Austin, Texas. The Texas Longhorns are a perennial powerhouse — one of the elite college football programs in the nation....
). The Auburn team they beat was coached by the legendary John Heisman
John Heisman

John William Heisman was a prominent American football player and college football coach in the early era of the sport and is the namesake of the Heisman Trophy awarded annually to the season's best college football player....
, after whom the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy

The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , was named after the former college football coach John Heisman, is awarded annually by the Heisman Trophy Trust to the most outstanding player in collegiate football....
is named.

The 1899 road trip
The 1899 Iron Men team's most notable accomplishment was a six-day period from November 9 to 14 which is arguably the greatest road trip in college football history. Manager Luke Lea put together an improbable schedule of playing five big name opponents in six days, all on the road. Sewanee played and shut out them all while travelling by train for 2500 miles. This feat, barring fundamental changes in modern-day football, can never be equaled.
 

Nolan

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What's the most lop-sided score in the modern era, or since 1990?

I'd be interested to know... :smile:
 

DzynKingRTR

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Dec 17, 2003
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I seem to remember Penn State hanging 80+ on Cincinatti in the 90's.


Edit: It was 1991 and it was 81 points. I also remembered that Penn State started taking a knee on extra points so they wouldn't run up the score.
 
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Alasippi

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Aug 31, 2007
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Back in the late sixties or early 70's when Warren McVay played WR for Houston I believe they beat Tulsa 100-6. I'm pretty sure that's accurate.
If so, that's probably the biggest blowout in the "modern era".

sip
 

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