1893 Butler Christians football team

The 1893 Butler Christians football team represented Butler University during the 1893 college football season.[1] The team compiled a record of 4–2. Alfred H. Somerville was the team captain. The team began the season with 23 players.[2]

1893 Butler Christians football
Conference	Indiana Intercollegiate Athletic Association
1893 record	4–2 (2–2 IIAA)
Head coach	None
Captain	Alfred H. Somerville

1893 Indiana Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Purdue $	4	–	0	–	0			5	–	2	–	1
Butler	1	–	0	–	0			1	–	0	–	0
DePauw	3	–	1	–	0			6	–	3	–	0
Butler	2	–	2	–	0			4	–	2	–	0
Wabash	1	–	3	–	0			2	–	4	–	0
Indiana	0	–	4	–	0			1	–	4	–	1
$ – Conference champion

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance
October 14	at DePauw	Greencastle, IN	L 6–20
October 21	at Purdue	Stuart Field West Lafayette, IN	L 0–96	1,200
October 28	Indiana	Athletic Park Indianapolis, IN	W 38–0
November 4	Deaf and Dumb Institute	Irvington neighborhood Indianapolis, IN	W 16–0
November 11	Zig-Zags	East Ohio Street Park Indianapolis, IN	W 52–0
November 19	at Wabash	Crawfordsville, IN	W 28–24

Game notes

On October 14, 1893, Butler lost to DePauw, 20–6, at Greencastle, Indiana. The game was called due to darkness. Butler's starting lineup against DePauw was Williams at quarterback, Somerville at right halfback, Baker at left halfback, A. Hall at fullback, Stevenson at right end, Lister at right tackle, Anderson at right guard, Henry at center, Locy at left guard, Stevens at left tackle, and Scott at left end.[3][4]

On October 21, 1893, Butler lost to Purdue, 96–0, before a crowd of 1,200 at Lafayette, Indiana. Butler's starting lineup against Purdue was Burford at quarterback, Somerville at right halfback, Williams at left halfback, Hall at fullback, Parker at right end, Taylor at right guard, Lister at right tackle, Henry at center, Lackey at left guard, Payne at left tackle, and Scott at left end.[5]

On October 28, 1893, Butler defeated Indiana, 38–0, at Athletic Park in Indianapolis. Butler's lineup against Indiana was Burford at quarterback, Somerville at right halfback, Hall at left halfback, Scott at fullback, Parker at right end, Lister at right tackle, Taylor at right guard, Barnett at center, Losey at left guard, Payne at left tackle, and Moore at left end.[6]

On November 4, Butler defeated the team from the Deaf and Dumb Institute by a 16–0 score. The game was played in the Irvington neighborhood of Indianapolis.[7]

On November 11, Butler defeated the Zig-Zag bicycle eleven by a 52–0 score in a game played at the East Ohio Street Park in Indianapolis.[8]

On November 19, Butler defeated Wabash, 28–24, on the Wabash campus in Crawfordsville, Indiana. The game lasted one hour and 15 minutes, concluding at 2:40 p.m. Butler's starting lineup against Wabash was Williams at quarterback, Baker at right halfback, Somerville at left halfback, Hall at fullback, Scott at left end, Stevens at left tackle, Lecoy at left guard, Henry at center, Anderson at right guard, Lister at right tackle, and Stevenson at right end.[9][10]

After witnessing the DePauw–Wabash game, played one week earlier, Dr. H. A. Turker, the pastor at the Crawfordsville Methodist Church, wrote at length condemning the game as a disgrace. He opened his comments as follows: "We thought at first it was barbarous, then we concluded it would be a slander to the barbarians to compare a football game to their sports. . . . We have seen a pack of dogs fighting for a rotten bone, of which we were reminded at the football game. A football game, as now played, is a disgrace."[11] He closed: "This evil has surely gone far enough. Let every man speak who opposes this brutality."[11]

References

1. "2008 Butler Football Media Guide" (PDF). p. 33.(Note: The media guide erroneously records only one game, the victory over Wabash.)
2. "Ready for the Game". The Indianapolis News. October 13, 1893. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Foot-ball Season Begins". The Indianapolis News. October 16, 1893. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "They Kicked Hard". The Indiana State Sentinel. October 18, 1893. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Defeated By Purdue". The Indianapolis Journal. October 22, 1893. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Butler the Winner". The Indianapolis Journal. October 29, 1893. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Butler 16, Deaf and Dumb Institute 0". The Indianapolis News. November 6, 1893. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Butler 52, Zig-Zags 0". The Indianapolis News. November 13, 1893. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Wabash Kickers Win". The Indianapolis Journal. November 19, 1893. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Close Game of Football". The Indiana State Sentinel. November 22, 1893. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Does Football Make Cannibals". The Indianapolis Journal. November 19, 1893. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.