The 1904 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...
during the
1904 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football season. The team's head coach was
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 ...
, who served his first season in that capacity. 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 ...
, the Commodores played six home games in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
and finished the season with a record of 9–0.
The 1904 Vanderbilt team scored an average of 52.7 points per game, the most in college football that season, and allowed just four points, all surrendered in their game against
Missouri-Rolla. The team had a strong claim to the
Southern
Southern may refer to:
Businesses
* China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China
* Southern Airways, defunct US airline
* Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US
* Southern Airways Express, M ...
championship, as the elevens of Georgetown and Virginia played few southern schools.
Before the season
The Commodores hired former Michigan guard
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 ...
, a protege and son-in-law of Michigan coach
Fielding H. Yost. Like Yost, McGugin utilized a
short punt formation
The short punt formation is an older Formation (American football), formation on both offense and defense in American football, popular when scoring was harder and a good punt was itself an offensive weapon.Retyl, Richard U-M's Shotgun Offense is ...
. Sportswriter
Fuzzy Woodruff
Lorenzo Ferguson "Fuzzy" Woodruff (May 27, 1884 – December 7, 1929) was an early 20th-century American sportswriter known throughout most of the southeast for his vivid writing. He was also a music and drama critic. He began his newspaper c ...
once wrote "The plain facts of the business are that McGugin stood out in the South like
Gulliver
Gulliver may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Arts and entertainment
* Lemuel Gulliver, the protagonist of Jonathan Swift's novel ''Gulliver's Travels''
*the title character of ''Brian Gulliver's Travels'', a satirical BBC radio series
*Gary Gulliver, the t ...
among the native sons of
Lilliput... There was no foeman worthy of the McGugin steel."
Vanderbilt alumnus
Myles P. O'Connor wrote of
Dan Blake
Daniel Bigelow Blake, Jr. (May 22, 1882 – September 7, 1953) was an American football player and coach.
Early years
Dan Bigelow Blake, Jr. was born on May 22, 1882 in Cuero, Texas to Daniel Bigelow Blake, Sr. and Mary Clara Weldon. Dan, Sr. ...
, who "played left half for Vanderbilt, '04, being taken from left end, which position he played in '03. End is his position; he is heavy, weighing about 170, is fast, a good tackler, advances the ball well, and is a fair punter."
Schedule
Season summary
Mississippi A&M
In his first career game, McGugin's team defeated
Mississippi A&M, 61–0.
Georgetown
In the second week of play,
Georgetown of Kentucky was defeated 66–0.
Mississippi
Vanderbilt defeated
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
69–0. Both sides had players removed for roughness. "The whole South read that 69–0 score and gasped." McGugin remains the only coach in
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...
history to win his first three games by 60 points.
The starting lineup was D. Blake (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Sibley (left guard), Stone (center), Brown (right guard), Graham (right tackle), I. Brown (right end), Kyle (quarterback), Costen (left halfback), Craig (right halfback), Hamilton (fullback).
Missouri Mines
Sources:
[
The Commodores beat the Missouri Mines 29–4. All scoring was done in the first half. The Missouri school once got the ball on Vanderbilt's 8-yard line. Unable to go any further, Wilson dropped back and made an 18-yard drop kick, the only points scored on the Commodores all season.][ ]
The starting lineup was I. Brown (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Pritchard (left guard), Stone (center), Sibley (right guard), Graham (right tackle), Costen (right end), Kyle (quarterback), Blake (left halfback), Craig (right halfback), Hamilton (fullback).[
]
Centre
Vanderbilt easily beat Centre
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
97–0. The first score came on Vanderbilt's kickoff to Centre. Dan Blake recovered the ball for a touchdown.[ ]
The starting lineup was I. Brown (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Pritchard (left guard), Patterson (center), B. Brown (right guard), Graham (right tackle), Hamilton (right end), Haygood (quarterback), Blake (left halfback), Craig (right halfback), Manier (fullback).
Tennessee
The Commodores defeated the rival Vols
Vol or Vols may refer to:
* Vol (command), a computer operating system command
* Vol (heraldry), a heraldic charge
* Volatility (finance)
* Volume (disambiguation)
* Volunteer (Irish republican)
* Nashville Vols, an American minor league baseball ...
22–0. Ed Hamilton and Manier alternated against Jones Beene, easily taking care of him.[ ]
The starting lineup was I. Brown (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Pritchard (left guard), Patterson (center), B. Brown (right guard), Graham (right tackle), Hamilton (right end), Haygood (quarterback), Blake (left halfback), Craig (right halfback), Manier (fullback).[
]
Nashville
Sources:[
Vanderbilt defeated the Nashville Garnet and Blue 81–0. Capt Biddle of the Nashville team said "We were outclassed too far in weight, besides were not as aggressive as Vanderbilt. Their line bucking was not to be denied, and after they had thrown their weight on our line, it weakened and went to pieces."][ ]
The starting lineup was I. Brown (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Stone (left guard), Patterson (center), B. Brown (right guard), Graham (right tackle), Hamilton (right end), Haygood (quarterback), Blake (left halfback), Craig (right halfback), Manier (fullback).[
]
Central
Vanderbilt then beat Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
22–0.
Sewanee
Vanderbilt faced rival and previously undefeated Sewanee Tigers for the championship of the south. Vanderbilt won 27–0. Vanderbilt's backfield starred. Dan Blake
Daniel Bigelow Blake, Jr. (May 22, 1882 – September 7, 1953) was an American football player and coach.
Early years
Dan Bigelow Blake, Jr. was born on May 22, 1882 in Cuero, Texas to Daniel Bigelow Blake, Sr. and Mary Clara Weldon. Dan, Sr. ...
had many gains, and 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 Cli ...
twice had his jersey torn from his body.[ ]
The 6,500 attendants made the crowd a sea of colors.[
The starting lineup was I. Brown (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Stone (left guard), Patterson (center), T. Brown (right guard), Graham (right tackle), Hamilton (right end), Kyle (quarterback), Blake (left halfback), Craig (right halfback), Manier (fullback).
][
]
Postseason
A postseason match between Vanderbilt and Auburn to decide a Southern championship was forbidden by the SIAA.
Personnel
Depth chart
The following chart provides a visual depiction of Vanderbilt's lineup during the 1904 season with games started at the position reflected in parenthesis. The chart mimics a short punt formation
The short punt formation is an older Formation (American football), formation on both offense and defense in American football, popular when scoring was harder and a good punt was itself an offensive weapon.Retyl, Richard U-M's Shotgun Offense is ...
while on offense, with the quarterback under center.
Line
Backfield
References
Bibliography
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*
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{{SIAA football champions
Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt Commodores football seasons
College football undefeated seasons
Vanderbilt Commodores football