1910 Alabama Crimson Tide football team
American college football season
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The 1910 Alabama Crimson Tide football team (variously "Alabama", "UA" or "Bama") represented the University of Alabama in the 1910 college football season. It was the Crimson Tide's 18th overall and 15th season as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA). The team was led by head coach Guy Lowman, in his first year, and played their home games at the University of Alabama Quad in Tuscaloosa and the Birmingham Fairgrounds in Birmingham, Alabama. They finished the season with a record of four wins and four losses (4â4 overall, 0â4 in the SIAA).
| 1910 Alabama Crimson Tide football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association |
| Record | 4â4 (0â4 SIAA) |
| Head coach |
|
| Captain | O. G. Gresham |
| Home stadium | The Quad Birmingham Fairgrounds |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vanderbilt + | 5 | â | 0 | â | 0 | 8 | â | 0 | â | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Auburn + | 5 | â | 0 | â | 0 | 6 | â | 1 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sewanee | 3 | â | 1 | â | 0 | 8 | â | 2 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia | 4 | â | 2 | â | 1 | 6 | â | 2 | â | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ole Miss | 2 | â | 1 | â | 0 | 7 | â | 1 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mississippi A&M | 3 | â | 2 | â | 0 | 7 | â | 2 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mercer | 3 | â | 2 | â | 0 | 6 | â | 3 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia Tech | 3 | â | 3 | â | 0 | 5 | â | 3 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Clemson | 2 | â | 3 | â | 1 | 4 | â | 3 | â | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LSU | 1 | â | 3 | â | 0 | 1 | â | 5 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tennessee | 1 | â | 4 | â | 0 | 3 | â | 5 | â | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Citadel | 0 | â | 2 | â | 0 | 3 | â | 4 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alabama | 0 | â | 4 | â | 0 | 4 | â | 4 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Howard (AL) | 0 | â | 5 | â | 0 | 1 | â | 8 | â | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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After Alabama opened the season with shutouts over both Birmingham College and the Marion Military Institute, the Crimsons lost four consecutive games to SIAA opponents by a margin of 104â0. The squad rebounded with a 5â3 victory over Tulane at New Orleans and a 9â0 victory over Washington and Lee to finish the season with an overall record of 4â4.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 1 | Birmingham* | W 25â0 | [1] | |
| October 8 | Marion* |
| W 26â0 | [2] |
| October 15 | Georgia | L 0â22 | [3] | |
| October 22 | Georgia Tech | L 0â36 | [4] | |
| November 5 | vs. Ole Miss | Greenville, MS (rivalry) | L 0â16 | [5] |
| November 12 | Sewanee |
| L 0â30 | [6] |
| November 19 | at Tulane* | W 5â3 | [7] | |
| November 24 | Washington and Lee* |
| W 9â0 | [8] |
| ||||
Before the season
In March 1910, J. W. H. Pollard announced his resignation as head football coach and athletic director, and took the same positions at Washington and Lee University.[11] After several months of searching for a replacement, in August the University's Committee on Athletics hired Guy Lowman from the University of Missouri to serve as both head football coach and athletic director.[12] With his hiring, many expected him to successfully guide the football team through what was viewed as its toughest schedule in school history.[12]
The team reported for its first practice on September 10, and at that time six players returned with at least one season of experience with he Crimson and White.[13] At the start of practice, coach Lowman identified as the teams weakest positions being the linemen and backs.[13]
Game summaries
Birmingham
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham College | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ⢠Alabama | 22 | 3 | 25 |
- Date: October 1, 1910
- Location: The Quad ⢠Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Alabama opened the season with this 25â0 victory over Birmingham College (now BirminghamâSouthern College) at Tuscaloosa.[14][15] After a scoreless first quarter where Birmingham unsuccessfully tries several trick plays, Alabama scored 22 second quarter points.[15] After a safety, the Crimsons scored their first touchdown of the season on an Adrian Van de Graaff run to take a 7â0 lead.[15] After a Lambert touchdown run, Van de Graaff scored his second touchdown of the game, and after a 20-yard Farley Moody field goal Alabama led 22â0 at halftime.[15] A second half Moody field goal made the final score 25â0.[15]
Marion
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marion Military Institute | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ⢠Alabama | 0 | 26 | 26 |
- Date: October 8, 1910
- Location: The Quad ⢠Tuscaloosa, Alabama
After a victory over Birmingham College to open the season, Alabama won its second game 26â0 against the Marion Military Institute at Tuscaloosa.[14][16] In the game, Robert Bumgardner scored three touchdowns with Adrian Van de Graaff scoring the fourth on a 70-yard run in the victory.[14]
Georgia
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| ⢠Georgia | 11 | 11 | 22 |
| Alabama | 0 | 0 | 0 |
- Date: October 15, 1910
- Location: Birmingham Fairgrounds ⢠Birmingham, Alabama
Against the Georgia Bulldogs, Alabama lost its first game of the season 22â0 before 12,000 fans at Birmingham.[17] After a scoreless first quarter, Georgia scored second-quarter touchdowns on runs by W. F. McClelland and Robert MacWhorter to take an 11â0 halftime lead.[17] In the third quarter, the Bulldogs scored on a 25-yard MacWhorter run and in the fourth on a 75-yard J. F. Slater fumble returned for a touchdown to make the final score 22â0.[17]
Georgia Tech
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| ⢠Georgia Tech | 24 | 12 | 36 |
| Alabama | 0 | 0 | 0 |
- Date: October 22, 1910
- Location: The Quad ⢠Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Alabama lost its second game of the season 36â0 at Tuscaloosa.[14]
Ole Miss
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ⢠Ole Miss | 5 | 11 | 16 |
- Date: November 5, 1910
- Location: Greenville, Mississippi
Against the Ole Miss Rebels, Alabama suffered its third loss of the season 16â0 at Greenville.[18] Fran Shields scored the only points of the first half on his touchdown run in the first quarter.[14] In the second half, Alonzo Lee scored on an 11-yard run and Steve Mitchell scored on a 10-yard run in the fourth to give the Rebels the 16â0 victory.[14]
Sewanee
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| ⢠Sewanee | 18 | 12 | 30 |
| Alabama | 0 | 0 | 0 |
- Date: November 12, 1910
- Location: Birmingham Fairgrounds ⢠Birmingham, Alabama
Against the Sewanee Tigers, Alabama lost its fourth consecutive game 30â0 at Birmingham.[19]
Tulane
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| ⢠Alabama | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Tulane | 0 | 3 | 3 |
- Date: November 19, 1910
- Location: "First" Tulane Stadium ⢠New Orleans, Louisiana
Against the Tulane Green Wave, Alabama ended their four-game losing streak after they defeated the Greenies 5â3 at New Orleans.[20] Alabama led 2â0 at halftime with their only points coming on a first quarter safety, which occurred after a Tulane player tried to return a missed Alabama field goal.[14] After Tulane took a 3â2 lead in the third, Farley Moody kicked a 20-yard, game-winning field goal for Alabama.[14]
Washington and Lee
| Team | 1 | 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington and Lee | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ⢠Alabama | 0 | 9 | 9 |
- Date: November 24, 1910
- Location: Birmingham Fairgrounds ⢠Birmingham, Alabama
Against the Washington and Lee Generals, Alabama closed their season with a 9â0 victory at Birmingham.[21] After a scoreless first half, Alabama took a 9â0 lead in the second half after three successful Farley Moody field goals.[14] The victory also marked the return of former Alabama head coach J. W. H. Pollard, who resigned his position with the Crimsons to take the head coaching position with the Generals in the spring of 1910.[22]
Personnel
Varsity letter winners
| Player | Hometown | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Robert H. Bumgardner | Bessemer, Alabama | End |
| Louis Malone Finlay | Pollard, Alabama | Tackle |
| Charles West Greer | Marion, Alabama | Back |
| Victor John Heard | Camp Hill, Alabama | Back |
| Vigil Willis Heard | Camp Hill, Alabama | Back |
| Thomas Manning | Talladega, Alabama | Center |
| William Hoadley Merrill | Eufaula, Alabama | Guard |
| Emory Bush Peebles | Vienna, Alabama | Quarterback |
| Harold Mustin Powell | Birmingham, Alabama | Tackle |
| James Alfred Scott | Thomasville, Alabama | End |
| Patrick Kyle Shirley | Wetumpka, Alabama | |
| Everett Wilkinson | Prattville, Alabama | Back/Kicker |
Coaching staff
| Name | Position | Seasons at Alabama |
Alma mater |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guy Lowman | Head coach | 1 | Springfield (1905) |
| F. G. Stickney | Assistant coach | 1 | Alabama (1903) |
| Reference:[24] | |||
Notes
- For the 1910 season, point values were different from those used in contemporary games. In 1910 a touchdown was worth five points, a field goal was worth three points and an extra point (PAT) was worth one point.[10]