1904 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team

The 1904 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1904 Western Conference football season. In their fifth year under head coach Henry L. Williams, the Golden Gophers compiled a 13–0 record (3–0 against Western Conference opponents).[1] The 1904 Minnesota team has been recognized as a college football national champion by the Billingsley Report.[2]

1904 Minnesota Golden Gophers football
National champion (Billingsley)
Western Conference co-champion
ConferenceWestern Conference
Record13–0 (3–0 Western)
Head coach
Base defense7–1–2–1
CaptainMose Strathern
Home stadiumNorthrop Field
1904 Western Conference football standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
Minnesota + 3 –0 –013 –0 –0
Michigan + 2 –0 –010 –0 –0
Chicago 5 –1 –110 –1 –1
Illinois 3 –1 –19 –2 –1
Northwestern 1 –2 –08 –2 –0
Purdue 1 –2 –09 –3 –0
Iowa 0 –3 –07 –4 –0
Wisconsin 0 –3 –05 –3 –0
Indiana 0 –3 –06 –4 –0
  • + – Conference co-champions

The 146 point victory over Grinnell represents both the largest point total and the largest margin of victory in Gopher football history.[3]

Ten Minnesota players were recognized on the 1904 All-Western college football team: quarterback Sigmund Harris (COL-2, CT-2, MJ-1); halfbacks Otto Nelson Davies (COL-1, CT-2, MJ-1) and James Edward Kremer (COL-2); fullback Earl Current (CT-2, MJ-1); end Bobby Marshall (COL-2, MJ-1); tackles Percy Porter Brush (CRH, CT-2, MJ-2) and George Leland Case (MJ-2); guards Walton W. Thorpe (COL-1, CRH, CT-1, DFP, DT, MJ-1, SLR, WC) and Daniel D. Smith, Minnesota (CT-2); and center Moses Strathern (MJ-1).[4][5][6][7][8][9]

Two players also received recognition on the 1904 College Football All-America Team. Quarterback Sigmund Harris received third-team honors from Walter Camp, and guard Walton Thorp received first-team honors from Illinois coach Fred Lowenthal and third-team honors from Walter Camp.[10][11][12]

Notably, Minnesota did not play undefeated Michigan in 1904, despite the teams being members of the Western Conference. Both teams received acclaim as national champion for the 1904 season.

Schedule
DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 17Twin Cities Central High*
W 107–03,000
September 24South Dakota*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 77–0
September 28Shattuck*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 75–0
October 1Carleton*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 65–0
October 5St. Thomas (MN)*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 47–0
October 8North Dakota*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 35–02,000
October 15Iowa State*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 32–0
October 22Grinnell*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 146–0
October 29Nebraska*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN (rivalry)
W 16–1212,000
November 5Lawrence*
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 69–0
November 12Wisconsin
  • Northrop Field
  • Minneapolis, MN (rivalry)
W 28–018,000
November 19vs. Northwestern
W 17–011,000[13]
November 24vs. IowaCedar Rapids, IA (rivalry)W 11–0[14]
  • *Non-conference game

References
  1. "1904 Minnesota Golden Gophers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  2. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) (2015). "National Poll Rankings" (PDF). NCAA Division I Football Records. NCAA. p. 108. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  3. General Alumni. History. p. 92.
  4. Collier's Self Indexing Annual. P. F. Collier & Son. 1905. p. 674. (COL)
  5. "News-Athletics". The Michigan Daily. December 1904. p. 133. (CRH, DT, DFP)
  6. "All-Western Football Eleven". Chicago Tribune. November 27, 1904. (CT)
  7. O'Loughlin (November 28, 1904). "The Journal's "All Western"". The Minneapolis Journal. p. 15. (MJ)
  8. "All-Western Football Team". The St. Louis Republic. November 30, 1904. p. 9. (SLR)
  9. Walter Camp, ed. (1905). Spalding's Official Foot Ball Guide 1905. American Sports Publishing Company. p. 35. (WC)
  10. "Camp's Idea Of Football Stars: Yale Coach Puts Two Western Men in His Selection". The Daily Review (Decatur, IL). December 28, 1904.
  11. "Camp's 1904 All America Football Team". Capital Times. November 24, 1904.
  12. "Some All-American Football Elevens". The Pittsburgh Press. November 29, 1904.
  13. "Minnesota Wins From the Purple". Chicago Tribune. November 20, 1904. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. "Victory Stays By Gophers Thru Year". The Minneapolis Journal. Minneapolis, Minnesota. November 25, 1904. p. 25. Retrieved April 5, 2019 – via Newspapers.com open access.
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