Friday, November 20. mt

SCARLET AND BLACK

 

Grinnell In ﬁrst Game West

Seventy- -iive years ago _ on Nov
16,1889 — gridiron gladiators rape
resenting Grinnell College and the
State University of Iowa met in the
lirst intercollegiate football game
played west oi the Mississippi Riv-
er.

Grliinell, then known as Iowa
College oi Grinnell, won the game

up. It was played on the Grinnell .

campus north of the present Burl-
lng Lihrary and Fine Arts Center

The game grew out or an Octo-
her, 1889, challenge circulated by
SUI in two newspapers. it read:

“The State University ‘iooiball
team hereby challenges any Cole
legs or other team in the state to
a game of ioothall. American AS»
socialion Rules.”

Though the sport was tamiliai- to
only a iew Grinnellians, the Chal-
lenge was accepted, a team ivas
organized with F. L. (Lou) Van
Gieson as Captain, and a hall was
sent for.

Van Gieson and Frank F. Ever-
est were the main organizers. They
had played ioothall the previous
year while attending prep school
in New Jersey.

Game day — a raw late tall day
— arrived, and the SUI team was
accompanied to Grinnell by a
throng oi Iowa City partisans who
came “just to teach you boys how
to play the game” and to "see
their team bag a tow cornlield
canaries."

An old report tells that the SUI
players were “fairly radiant in un-
spotted suits oi white canvas." The
Grinnellians presented a much dif~
ferent appearance. They were a
rag-tag looking aggregation attired
in Duliiis of all sizes, shapes; and
colors. Only two had regulation
iootball pants. The others ware
sweaters, gym jerseys, last sum-
mer’s outing shirts, and- bicycle
pantsr one even were “ll pair of
genuine blue jean overalls."

Van Gieson’s “serpentine suit,”
along with his “bird-like hops,” re-
portedly frightened the SUI rush
line in the first half.

Even more lrightening to SUI
was _Grinneil's ﬂying wedge of-
fense. This formation was later for
hidden because it was so danger—
ous.

Game reports also tell how the
Grinnell rush line (defensive line)
"stood with locked arms like 8

WW,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Samuel J. Pooley, ’9

 

Page MRI

of Mississippi

'and the Pioneers claimed their

Grinnell College’s football team of 1889, which played the State University of
Iowa in the first intercollegiate game west of the Mississippi River, included
i the 12 men pictured above. FIRST ROW, (from the left) H Frank F, Everest
and F. L. Van Geison. SECOND ROW—Burt Monroe Huntley, Herbert S.
Miller, W. J. Barrette and George Lyon. THIRD ROW—L. L. Hoyt and Man-
ager A. Wright. BACK ROW—John Reed, William D. Bailey, Otto Ralph Sav-
age and Sam J. Pooley. Everest Van Gieson, Huntley, Miller, Savage, and
Pooley were starters in the SUI game.

stone wall" and noted that “the
University were weaker than our
eleven iti dodging, sprinting, hug-
ging the hall, and team work.”

No admission was charged, but
a hat: was passed both before and
during the game so that all spec-
tators might have an opportunity
(0 “push a good thing along.”

Members of the Grinnell team
and- their last known addresses
were:

John Francis Harvey, lelt end,
sam J Pouley, Mason City, lett
tackle; Otto Ralph Savage, Holly»
wood, Calif., left guard; James Al-
llson, State Center, center; Harry
Cross noremiis, right guard; uiirt
Monroe Huntly, Pendlelorl, 0re.,
right 'lackle; Everest, Council
Bluiis, right end; Van Gieson,
quarterback; Theron Upson Ly
man, New York, N.Y,, left half;
Harry J. Macomber. right hali-
back; Herbert S. Mlller, Chicago,
111,. fullback.

Pooiey is the
member of the Grillnell team.

sole surviving
He

played two more years or toothall,

ior Grinnell, graduated in 1892, and
is one of the College’s oldest liv»
ing graduates.

A replay was inimedlntely'sclled
uled for Iowa City for Nov , but
was cancelled because of the late-
ness of the date.

The leplay came about the next
year with Grinneil again winning,
1476. The roughness of the action
is related in this liltid account,
which tells about SUl's tollchdow ‘

"Pooley loses twice on good rush
ing by SUI and is hit in the face
by Powers, probably accidentally.
Blood ilows lreely. Miller gets the
ball somehow, kicks [on low and
the hall is knocked into Sampson's
face. Lyon about to down Sampson,

is himself knocked down by a blow l

in the breast, which-the umpire

clear ﬁeld makes a touch-down.”
There was a strong disposition
on the part oi the Grinnell team to
ﬁnd fault with Sampson for his
roughness, but when it was learned
that he was prolessor or English
literature at the university, the
matter was quickly droppedr
Giinnell also played the Univer-
sity of Minnesota at Minneapolis

14 2 with ten minutes leit. This was
the ﬁrst interstate football game
played in the West.

Grinneli made it three wins in a
row over SUI with a 674 victory in
1391 and twice met Minnesota,
gaining a 12112 tie here but losing
22—14 at Minneapolis. Five times
touring the 12—12 knot with Minne-
isota, Arthur Cowden stole the bail
ironi the Gophers. l-Ie twice ran 75
yaids ior touchdowns aitei steals,
‘but the reieree allowed only one oi
them.

. The St, Paul Pioneerrl’l'ess said
this about Grinnell’s diieiise in the
game in Minnesota:

“Braced behind their ‘snappei
back’ in double coliinin, they (Grin.
nell) would go crashing through the
University center like a battering
ram. ‘Blg’ Harding would thro w
himseli on top ol the wedge, and
,the other riisliers would attack it
‘tiom all ides, but the lowa men
would advance the ball iive yards
in better at every tlown. ”

‘ihat ganie decided the 1351
championship oi the Northwest.

By 1892, ioothall was Ian-ly well
established in Gl‘innell‘s athletic
gprogram, and six games were
played. Grinnell won ioiir oi them
including a 13270 tiomhing oi the
Des Moines YMCA, the biggest
sCore' ever registered by a Pioneer
11,

i‘ put,

 

the Grinnellians dropped

i

that year losing loll after leading

 

doesn't see and Sampson with a l their first game to SUI that year,

18-12, and again lost to Minnesota,
40-24.

H. 0. Stickney became Grinnell's

 

first regular lootball coach in 1893,

fourth and last state championship
by deieating SUI, 36-14, and twice
stopping Iowa StaLe, 35’s and 3&2.
Minnesota Continued its hex with H
366 Victory.

Football has continued as a part
oi Grinnell’s athletic program to
this day. Only in the war years of
1943 and 1944 did Grinnell tail in
field a team.

Since that first game, in 1889,
Griniiell has played 565 grid Conv
tests. Winning 261, losing 274 and
tying 31. Pioneer 11's have scored
7,326 points and given up 7,514,

Grinnell has gone unbeaten twice ‘
— 80 in 1917 and 770-1 in 1962 —
and only three times — in 1927,
1945 (when it played only one
game), and 1952 has Iaiied to will
at least one game.

The past decade has been the
brightest period in GI'innell’s long
grid history. Under Edd Bowers
the present coach, Pioneer up
have posted a 25-121 mark since
1960. won one conference title, and
shared another.

Big scores posted by Grinnell in
addition to the 132-0 stampede past
the Des Moines YMCA were 6870
and 724] ramps pas! Drake in 1915
and 1917, respectively, a 77-0 blast-
ing oi Highland Park in 1917, and
an 81~0 Cruise past Simpson in 1920.

On the other side of the ledger
are a 10270 loss to Minnesota in
1902 and a 14670 setback to "it
same club in 1904.

Grinnell Continued playing a big-
time schedule until the 1930's, when
it began a tierernphasis program. It
quit the Missouri Valley Copier-
ence in 1933 and otiicially entered
its present small-college phase by
joining the Midwest Conference in
1939. It‘s'still A member of that )0-
team loop.

Sam J. Pooley, (left) the only surviving member
of the Grinnell College football team of 1889 which

met the State University
collegiate game played

of Iowa in the first inter-
west of the Mississippi

River, Chats with Edd Bowers, the present Pio»
neer coach, during one of his last appearances at a
Pioneer game in 1960. A native of Grinnell, Pooley,
new 94 years old, lives in letii ement in Mason City,

Iowa

 

