1896 Carlisle Indians football team

The 1896 Carlisle Indians football team represented the Carlisle Indians football team of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School during the 1896 college football season. The Indians were coached by Bill Hickok in his 1st year as head coach. The team compiled a record of 5–5 and outscored opponents 164 to 102.

1896 Carlisle Indians football
Conference	Independent
1896 record	5–5
Head coach	Bill Hickok (1st season)
Captain	Bemus Pierce

1896 Eastern college football independents records
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Fordham			–					1	–	0	–	0
Lafayette			–					11	–	0	–	1
Princeton			–					10	–	0	–	1
Penn			–					14	–	1	–	0
Yale			–					13	–	1	–	0
Pittsburgh College			–					11	–	2	–	0
Buffalo			–					8	–	1	–	2
Army			–					3	–	2	–	1
Boston College			–					5	–	3	–	0
Storrs			–					5	–	3	–	0
Syracuse			–					5	–	3	–	2
Cornell			–					5	–	3	–	1
Villanova			–					10	–	4	–	0
Harvard			–					7	–	4	–	0
Temple			–					3	–	2	–	0
Carlisle			–					5	–	5	–	0
Rutgers			–					6	–	7	–	0
Brown			–					4	–	5	–	1
Wesleyan			–					4	–	5	–	1
Frankin & Marshall			–					3	–	4	–	2
Geneva			–					3	–	4	–	0
Penn State			–					3	–	4	–	0
Colgate			–					3	–	4	–	1
Amherst			–					3	–	6	–	1
Holy Cross			–					1	–	3	–	2
Western Univ. Penn.			–					3	–	6	–	0
Lehigh			–					2	–	5	–	0
Tufts			–					2	–	6	–	1
New Hampshire			–					1	–	4	–	0
Massachusetts			–					0	–	4	–	0
Rhode Island			–					0	–	4	–	0

Carlisle played games against college football's "Big Four" (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Penn) and nearly defeated Yale. The New York Times reported on a run by Isaac Seneca that nearly won the game against Yale:

"Seneca was given the ball to go through the centre. He got through with one or two Yale men hanging on to him. Then he squirmed and shook off the Yale men, dodged a man or two, and, making a splendid run down the field, made what was thought to be a touchdown. Nearly all on the grounds shouted themselves hoarse. Men waved their hats in the air, pretty gals clapped their hands ..."[1]

However, the referee waved off the touchdown, ruling that Seneca was "down" when the Yale players hung on to him. The New York Times wrote the next day that the referee had made the wrong call and that Carlisle had been robbed of a touchdown, but the game went into the record books as a 12–6 win for Yale.[1]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
September 26	vs. Dickinson	Carlisle, PA	W 28–6
October 3	at Duquesne Athletic Club	Pittsburgh, PA	W 18–0
October 14	at Princeton	Osborne Field Princeton, NJ	L 6–22
October 24	vs. Yale	New York, NY	L 6–12
October 31	at Harvard	Cambridge, MA	L 0–4
November 7	at Penn	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	L 0–21
November 14	Cincinnati	Indian Field Carlisle, PA	W 28–0
November 21	at Penn State	Harrisburg, PA	W 48–5
November 26	Brown	Indian Field Carlisle, PA	L 12–24
December 19	vs. Wisconsin	Chicago Coliseum Chicago, IL	W 18–8

[2]

References

1. "Yale Had A Close Call: Defeats Carlisle Indians by 12 Points to 6; Referree Hickock's Wrong Decision in the Second Half Robbed the Indians of a Touchdown". The New York Times. 1896-10-25.
2. "1896 Carlisle Indian Schedule and Results".