HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 1924 Florida Gators football team represented the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
during the
1924 Southern Conference football season The 1924 Southern Conference football season was the college football games played by the member schools of the Southern Conference as part of the 1924 college football season. The season began on September 20. Sewanee Tigers football, Sewanee an ...
. This was Major
James Van Fleet General (United States), General James Alward Van Fleet (19 March 1892 – 23 September 1992) was a United States Army officer who served during World War I, World War II and the Korean War. Van Fleet was a native of New Jersey, who was raised i ...
's second and final year as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Van Fleet's 1924 Florida Gators finished 6–2–2 overall,
2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 107–108 (2015). Retrieved August 15, 2015.
and 2–0–1 in the
Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. Southern Conference College football, football teams c ...
, placing second of twenty-two teams in the conference standings.''2009 Southern Conference Football Media Guide''
Year-by-Year Standings
Southern Conference, Spartanburg, South Carolina, p. 74 (2009). Retrieved August 30, 2010.
The Gators traveled further during the 1924 season than any other college football team in the country, and received national recognition for a controversial tie with the
Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and ...
and the close loss to
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
. The season also involves a tie with southern power
Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...
.


Before the season

Coach Van Fleet's assignment was changed to the Panama Canal Zone, but he coached the team on an unpaid basis during four months of leave. More than 100 players took part in the game between the varsity and freshmen. A 4-month old
Florida black bear The Florida black bear (''Ursus americanus floridanus'') is a subspecies of the American black bear that has historically ranged throughout most of Florida and the southern portions of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. The ...
captured by a freshman wandered onto the field on October 1. Some fan placed a Gator banner on its back, and it never caused much trouble.


Schedule


Game summaries


Week 1: Rollins

At the "newly completed" Fleming Field in Gainesville the Gators rolled up a 77–0 score on the Rollins Tars. The game was played mostly in the rain. Every man on the Gator squad saw playing time. Owen Pittman scored three touchdowns; Tiny Chaplin, Ark Newton, Spic Stanley, and Bob Brumby scored two each, and Dick Brown scored one. Chaplin contributed a field goal. Newton had five extra points; Brown two, and Brumby one. The starting lineup for the Gators against Rollins: Todd (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Cornwall (center), Goldstein (right guard), Davis (right tackle), Oosterhoudt (right end), Murphree (quarterback), Newton (left halfback), Brown (right halfback), Chaplin (fullback).


Week 2: at Georgia Tech

The Gators and Bill Alexander's Georgia Tech Golden Tornado fought to a 7–7 tie, the second tie with Tech in two years. Within the first few minutes, Tech scored when Gus Merkle launched at Edgar C. Jones, causing him to crash into the approaching Cy Williams and fumble. Doug Wycoff picked it up and ran 35 yards for the score. Florida once fumbled at Tech's 1-yard line. Again the Gators drove to the goal, and a Jones to Ark Newton pass tied the game. The starting lineup for the Gators against Georgia Tech: Lightsey (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Cornwall (center), Goldstein (right guard), Smith (right tackle), Oosterhoudt (right end), Jones (quarterback), Newton (left halfback), Brown (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).


Week 3: Wake Forest

On Plant Field in a drizzling rain, Florida defeated the
Wake Forest Demon Deacons The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Wake Forest University, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...
34–0, a surprising score. Fullback Tiny Chaplin was the star of the day; as well as the forward passes of captain Ark Newton, Edgar C. Jones on punt returns, and Cy Williams in the line.
Bill Middlekauff Willis William Middlekauff (December 28, 1904 – September 1957) was an American college football player, attorney, boxer, and wrestler. University of Florida Middlekauff from 1922–25 and in 1927 was a member of the University of Florida sw ...
was kept out of the lineup due to injures sustained versus Tech. The starting lineup for the Gators against Wake: Lightsey (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Cornwall (center), Goldstein (right guard), Smith (right tackle), Merrin (right end), Jones (quarterback), Newton (left halfback), Brown (right halfback), Chaplin (fullback).


Week 4: at Texas

Both Florida and the
Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and ...
faced one of their season's stiffest tests when the Gators traveled to
Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...
. The game ended a 7–7 draw, and was a controversial one. Van Fleet explained that Texas coach Doc Stewart did not like Florida's former coach William G. Kline, and thus accused Florida of harboring a pro team, demanding verification of ages and accusing Ark Newton of being a professional. Florida scored on an illegal play which went unnoticed, a pass from Edgar Jones to Spec Lightsey, who had lined up at tackle. Texas scored on the last of the first half, after the clock had run out already and officials ruled to give Texas another play.


Week 5: Southern College

Upon return from the Texas game, the Gators got some time off practice to attend the circus in town. Mostly reserves defeated Southern College 27–0. The starting lineup for the Gators against Southern: Lightsey (left end), Williams (left tackle), Peter (left guard), Cornwall (center), Goldstein (right guard), Davis (right tackle), Merrin (right end), Murphee (quarterback), Pittman (left halfback), Brown (right halfback), Chaplin (fullback).


Week 6: at Army

The Gators traveled to
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...
to play coach John McEwan's Army Cadets and lost 14 to 7. The close loss was felt bitterly. The Gators were expected to lose 16 to 0. Army's Harry Wilson scored the first touchdown. Ark Newton ran the second half kickoff for a 102-yard touchdown. A second third quarter Gator touchdown was waved off, and Army scored in the final moments to evade the tie. Coach Van Fleet kvetched about the officiating favoring his alma mater: "I hate to say it but they robbed us. Twice we scored, our backs pushing across the goal line, but the officials would not blow the whistle until our boys were pushed back...Then, later in the game on an important play,
Bill Middlekauff Willis William Middlekauff (December 28, 1904 – September 1957) was an American college football player, attorney, boxer, and wrestler. University of Florida Middlekauff from 1922–25 and in 1927 was a member of the University of Florida sw ...
was clipped right in front of our bench, and they did not call it. He was clipped so severely it broke his left leg. It was a disgrace." Of Newton's kick return, Van Fleet said thereby Newton "carved his name in the football hall of fame."McEwen, Tom, ''The Gators: A Story of Florida Football'', The Strode Publishers, Huntsville, Alabama (1974). . The starting lineup was: Lightsey (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Cornwall (center), Goldstein (right guard), Smith (right tackle), Oosterhoudt (right end), Jones (quarterback), Brown (left halfback), Pittman (right halfback), Middlekauf (fullback).


Week 7: at Mercer

The Gators returned south, and after much travel (over 5,000 miles in three weeks), coach Stanley L. Robinson's
Mercer Bears The Mercer Bears are the college athletics, athletic teams of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, United States. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia with an NCAA Division I athletic program and fields teams in eight men's and nine wom ...
defeated Florida 10 to 0. Mercer's Crook Smith starred. The touchdown came on a dextrous twist, catch, and run by Kid Cecil. The game caused Morgan Blake, sportswriter for the ''Atlanta Journal'', to remark "the Mercer Alumni would do well to name their children after "Crook" Smith and Sid Ellison."


Week 8: vs. Mississippi A&M

Bitter after the untimely loss to Mercer and last year's tie with Mississippi A&M, the Gators unleashed their second win in the state of
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
when they defeated coach
Earl Abell Earl C. "Tuffy" Abell (May 29, 1892 – May 26, 1956) was an American college football player and coach. He played football as a tackle at Colgate University. He later returned to Colgate as an assistant coach in 1925, and took over the head coa ...
's Mississippi Aggies 27–0 in Montgomery. After a scoreless first quarter, Dick Brown and Spic Stanley led the Gator attack from the backfield. The starting lineup was: Lightsey (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Cornwall (center), Goldstein (right guard), Smith (right tackle), Merrin (right end), Jones (quarterback), Newton (left halfback), Brown (right halfback), Chaplin (fullback).


Week 9: Drake

At homecoming, Florida's ability to break up passes and hot weather helped the Gators to a 10–0 intersectional victory over the
Drake Bulldogs The Drake Bulldogs are the intercollegiate athletics teams that represent Drake University, located in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. The Bulldogs' athletic program is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) and competes at the NCA ...
. Florida's Dick Brown was the game's standout performer. Florida had eight first downs and Drake seven. Scores came on a 30-yard interception return for a touchdown by Brown and a 25-yard Ark Newton field goal from placement. The starting lineup for the Gators against Drake: Oosterhoudt (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Sarra (center), Goldstein (right guard), Stewart (right tackle), Merrin (right end), Jones (quarterback), Newton (left halfback), Brown (right halfback), Chaplin (fullback).


Week 10: Washington & Lee

The Gators defeated coach James DeHart's
South Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...
champion Washington & Lee Generals 16–6 in
Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
. Jacksonville natives Edgar C. Jones and Dick Brown ran well; and Ark Newton punted 13 times for an average of 55 yards. Florida made numerous substitutions in the fourth quarter. Neither team had before suffered a conference loss, and the win secured Florida a second-place finish. The starting lineup for the Gators against Washington & Lee: Rose (left end), Williams (left tackle), Norton (left guard), Sarra (center), Goldstein (right guard), Smith (right tackle), Merrin (right end), Jones (quarterback), Brown (left halfback), Newton (right halfback), Chaplin (fullback).


Postseason


Awards and honors

Goldy Goldstein and Edgar C. Jones made composite All-Southern.


Van Fleet's departure

The U.S. Army transferred Van Fleet to the
Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone (), also known as just the Canal Zone, was a International zone#Concessions, concession of the United States located in the Isthmus of Panama that existed from 1903 to 1979. It consisted of the Panama Canal and an area gene ...
after the 1924 season, and he would later become a regimental, divisional and corps commander during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and the commander of all United States and
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
armed forces during the
Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
.


Personnel


Depth chart

The following chart provides a visual depiction of Florida's lineup during the 1924 season with games started at the position reflected in parentheses. The chart mimics a Notre Dame Box on offense.


Line


Starters


Subs


Backfield


Starters


Subs


Coaching staff

*Head coach:
James Van Fleet General (United States), General James Alward Van Fleet (19 March 1892 – 23 September 1992) was a United States Army officer who served during World War I, World War II and the Korean War. Van Fleet was a native of New Jersey, who was raised i ...
* Assistants: Tom Sebring, A. C. Tipton, Everett Yon, J. H. Atkinson, Herbert Bunker, Brady Cowell (freshmen) *Manager: John Bond


See also

* 1924 College Football All-Southern Team


References


Additional sources

* * {{Florida Gators football navbox
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
Florida Gators football seasons
Florida Gators football The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American football, American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the ...