1891 Nebraska Old Gold Knights football team

The 1891 Nebraska Old Gold Knights football team represented the University of Nebraska in the 1891 college football season. The team had no head coach, but Theron Lyman led NU in preparation for its game against Iowa. The team played its single home game at Lincoln Park, in Lincoln, Nebraska.

1891 Nebraska Old Gold Knights football
Nebraska state champion
Conference	Independent
1891 record	2–2
Head coach	Theron Lyman (1st season)
Home stadium	Lincoln Park

1891 Midwestern college football independents records
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Ohio Wesleyan			–					4	–	0	–	0
Kansas			–					7	–	0	–	1
Illinois			–					5	–	1	–	0
Missouri			–					3	–	1	–	0
Lake Forest			–					6	–	2	–	0
Washington University			–					4	–	1	–	1
Minnesota			–					3	–	1	–	1
Wisconsin			–					3	–	1	–	1
Cincinnati			–					4	–	2	–	1
Iowa			–					3	–	2	–	0
Doane			–					2	–	2	–	0
Iowa College			–					1	–	1	–	1
Nebraska			–					2	–	2	–	0
Northwestern			–					2	–	2	–	3
Michigan			–					4	–	5	–	0
Ohio State			–					2	–	3	–	0
Buchtel			–					1	–	3	–	0
Washburn			–					1	–	5	–	0
Michigan State Normal			–					0	–	2	–	0

Nebraska fielded its second football team in 1891. Although the university did not provide an official head coach, Iowa College coach Theron Lyman assisted Nebraska in preparation for its November 26 game against Iowa, in order to increase the competitiveness of NU's young program against the veteran Hawkeyes. However, Lyman likely did not even attend his single game as "head coach".[1]

Nebraska's second victory over Doane gave the program a second straight unofficial Nebraska state championship. This was the final year Nebraska was known as the Old Gold Knights. They would later be referred to as the "Tree Planters", "Nebraskans", "The Rattlesnake Boys", "Red Stockings", and "Antelopes", but "Bugeaters" became the university's official nickname in 1892.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result
October 31	3:30 p.m.	Doane	Lincoln Park Lincoln, NE	W 28–4
November 14		at Doane	Crete, NE	L 12–14
November 26		vs. Iowa	Omaha, NE (rivalry)	L 0–22
December 5		at Doane	Crete, NE	W 32–0
All times are in Central time

[2]

Coaching staff

Coach	Position	First year	Alma mater
Theron Lyman	Head coach (unofficial)	1891	Yale
Jack Best	Trainer	1890	Nebraska

Roster

[3]

Official Roster

Anderson, Arthur C Barkely, James QB Chandler, Charles T Church, R.D. HB Flippin, George HB Mockett, Ebenezer HB^1 Hyde, Frederick G Johnston, James HB Jones, Albin T Mosher, Bradley FB Nusz, Chauncy FB Pace, Eugene QB Porterfield, James G Skiles, Charles E Stockton, William E White, Jacob E Wynegar T Yont, Jesse G ^1 Withdrew from classes after first game

Game summaries

Doane (October)

Doane at Nebraska

1 2 Total Doane 4 0 4 • Nebraska 16 12 28 Date: October 31 Location: Lincoln Park, Lincoln, NE

Overall	Last meeting	Result
1–0	February 14, 1891	Nebraska, 18–0

Nebraska had planned a rematch with Doane during the 1890 season, which was never played, but led to the teams facing each other three times in 1891.

Although Doane scored the first points of the game (the first ever scored against Nebraska), Nebraska posted 16 unanswered points before halftime. The game was reportedly very physical, with several players suffering serious injuries, to the point that the Doane squad considered calling off the rest of the game, though they eventually agreed to a shortened 15-minute second half. Nebraska scored 12 more points to win 28-4.[4][5]

at Doane (November)

Nebraska at Doane

1 2 Total Nebraska 6 6 12 • Doane 4 10 14 Date: November 14 Location: Crete, NE

Overall	Last meeting	Result
2–0	October 31, 1891	Nebraska, 28–4

Nebraska, hoping for more playing time before facing the established Iowa Hawkeyes, scheduled a rematch with Doane. Team captain Ebenezer Mockett withdrew from the university prior to the game, leaving the Old Gold Knights without a head coach or captain. Doane reportedly prepared at length for the game, while several Nebraska players remained out with injuries.

Nebraska scored the first points off an early Doane fumble to go ahead 6-0. Doane pulled ahead 10-6 at the beginning of the second half, NU's first-ever deficit. Although the Old Gold Knights responded with six points to regain the lead, Doane responded to hand Nebraska the first loss in program history.[4][5]

Iowa

Iowa vs. Nebraska

1 2 Total • Iowa 14 8 22 Nebraska 0 0 0 Date: November 26 Location: Omaha, NE

Overall	Last meeting	Result
0–0	–	–

Although Nebraska was supported by temporary head coach Theron Lyman, the Old Gold Knights' lack of experience and substandard equipment made NU heavy underdogs against the Hawkeyes. Despite having played just one more season than NU, Iowa use playing styles and strategies Nebraska had never seen before, such as pre-play signal calling by the quarterback. Despite a strong defensive effort by Nebraska, Iowa pulled away in the second half to win 22–0, Nebraska's first shutout loss.[4][5]

at Doane (December)

Nebraska at Doane

1 2 Total • Nebraska 22 10 32 Doane 0 0 0 Date: December 5 Location: Crete, NE

Overall	Last meeting	Result
2–1	November 14, 1891	Doane, 14–12

After splitting two games, Nebraska and Doane arranged a tie-breaking third game to serve as an unofficial state championship game.

Despite losing a physical game to Iowa just one week prior, visiting Nebraska opened the first half with 22 unanswered points. NU halfbacks George Flippin, the first African American to play football for Nebraska, and James Johnston each scored three touchdowns. NU added ten points in the second half en route to a 32–0 victory and the unofficial Nebraska state championship for the second consecutive year.[4][5][6]

References

1. "Husker Press Box - 1891 Game Recaps". University of Nebraska-Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved 2009-11-05.
2. "Football - 1891 Schedule/Results". University of Nebraska-Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved November 5, 2009.
3. "Nebraska 1891 Roster". University of Nebraska-Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved 2009-11-05.
4. "Husker Press Box - 1891 Game Recaps". University of Nebraska-Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
5. "1890s". HuskerMax. Retrieved 2009-11-05.
6. "Husker Football History Over a Century of Winning Tradition" (PDF). University of Nebraska-Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved 2009-11-05.