1920 Rock Island Independents season

September 26, 1920, at Douglas Park, Rock Island, Illinois

To start its 1920 season, the Independents played the first game in the history of the league against the non-APFA St. Paul Ideas. This was the Ideals' second game of the season, coming off a 14–7 victory the week prior.[17] Coach Flanigan had Fred Chicken, Bobby Marshall, and Freeman Fitzgerald—the 1919 Independents' main stars—in reserve in case he needed to play them.[18] The Independents shutout the Ideals, winning 48–0.[19] Every touchdown by the Independents were rushing. In the first quarter, Ed Novak and Chicken both scored; Novak and Jerry Mansfield scored in the second quarter. The Independents scored 14 points in the third quarter with touchdowns from Ray Kuehl and Mansfield. In the final quarter, Kuehl scored the Independents' last points of the game.[18]

October 3, 1920, at Douglas Park

Rock Island Independents played against the Muncie Flyers after their victory. It is considered to be one of the first games played with two APFA teams.[20] The Columbus Panhandles played against the Dayton Triangles on the same day; however, in 1920, starting times were not standardized. Thus, it is unknown which of the two games started first. In the first quarter, the Independents scored three touchdowns: two from Arnold Wyman and one from Rube Ursella. In the second quarter, Ursella scored kicked a 25-yard (23 m) field goal, and Wyman scored from an 86-yard (79 m) kickoff return. In the third quarter, Sid Nichols had a 5-yard (4.6 m) rushing touchdown, and Waddy Kuehl scored a 7-yard (6.4 m) rushing touchdown. The final score of the game was 45–0.[21] This game was the only one that counted towards the Flyers' standing for the entire 1920 season.

October 10, 1920, at Douglas Park

This was the Pros' first game of the 1920 season. There were no scores by either team in the first or third quarters, but the Independents scored 13 points in the second and fourth.[22] Back Fred Chicken scored a 1-yard (0.91 m) rushing touchdown; back Ray Kuehl scored two touchdowns: a 5-yard (4.6 m) rushing touchdown and a 35-yard (32 m) receiving touchdown from back Pudge Wyman; and back Gerald Mansfield caught a 20-yard (18 m) receiving touchdown from Wyman. Hammond started to purposely injure their opponents during the game. As a result, Rube Ursella suffered a twisted knee. Duey Lyle was kicked in the face and required seven stitches. Lastly, Ed Healey was kicked in the face and needed five stitches in the cheek.[22]

October 17, 1920, at Douglas Park

In week 4, the Independents played the Decatur Staleys. After two games against non-APFA teams, the Staleys played against an APFA team. Late in the first quarter, the Independents' Freeman Fitzgerald forced a fumble on Jimmy Conzelman; Fitzgerald retrieved it at the 49-yard (45 m) line. The Independents drove the ball down the field, and the Staleys' players were tired. As a result, they called a timeout. With possession on the 23-yard (21 m) line, Arnie Wyman rushed for 10-yard (9.1 m), and the Independents were in the Red zone. The first quarter ended there. Wyman took the next snap and fumbled as he was tackled. George Trafton recovered the ball at the 8-yard (7.3 m) line. Later in the quarter, Conzelman scored the only touchdown in the game.[23]

In the third quarter, Fred Chicken intercepted a Staley pass on the Independents' 28-yard (26 m) line. Early in the fourth quarter, the Staleys drove to the Independents' 14-yard (13 m) line, where they lined up for a field goal. Wyman blocked the kick, however. The Independents next possession resulted in a punt, and the Staleys started the possession at their own 7-yard (6.4 m) line. On this possession, Kuehl intercepted a pass. The Independents attempted a Hail Mary pass late in the game, but it was unsuccessful. The game ended a few minutes later with the Staleys with possession.[23]

October 24, 1920, at Douglas Park

Coming off their first loss of the season, the Independents played against the Chicago Cardinals in week 5, with 4,000 spectators in attendance. The Independents out-gained the Cardinals in yards; the Independents had 263 total yards while the opponent had 153.[24] The only score was in the second quarter when Wyman caught a 6-yard (5.5 m) receiving touchdown from Nichols, making the final score 7–0. This was the first loss of the season for the Cardinals.[25]

October 31, 1920, at Douglas Park

In week six, the Independents played the Chicago Tigers. The Independents out-gained the Tigers in first downs, 14 to 3.[26] The first score of the game was a 6-yard (5.5 m) rushing touchdown by Chicken; however, the extra point was missed, so the score was only 6–0. The Tigers took the lead in the second quarter after Dunc Annan had a 2-yard (1.8 m) rushing touchdown. Chicken ended up having two rushing touchdowns, and Wyman had another rushing touchdown, as the Independents beat the Tigers 20–7.[26]

November 7, 1920, at Douglas Park

On a five-game winning streak, the Staleys played against the Independents again. The game ended in a 0–0 tie. Several injuries occurred throughout the game for the Independents. Sid Nichols, Fred Chicken, and Oke Smith injured their knees on different plays. Harry Gunderson was hit late by George Traften and the former had to get thirteen stitches on his face, and his hand was broken.[27]

November 11, 1920, at Monmouth College Athletic Park

In the Independents' first road game of the season, they traveled to Monmouth, Illinois, to play the Chicago Thorns-Tornadoes. The Thorns' players decided to have 10-minute quarters. The game was a tie for the first three quarters. In the fourth quarter, however, Kuehl muffed a punt while standing at his own 20-yard (18 m) line. Mooney of the Thorn-Tornadoes picked up the football and ran it back for a touchdown with only 3 minutes left in the game. At this time, Ursella was substituted for Kuehl. After a kickoff return to the 44-yard (40 m) line, the Independents used Novak, Mansfield, and Jordan to help score before time expired. Ursella kicked the game-tying extra point to end the game a 7–7 tie.[28]

November 14, 1920, at Douglas Park

For their second game in week eight, the Independents played against the Dayton Triangles. The Independents had six players returning from injuries this game.[29] In the first quarter, Rube Ursella for the Independents fumbled a punt on the 40-yard (37 m) line, and the Triangles gained possession.[29] On that possession, Frank Bacon scored a rushing touchdown. The Independents controlled the football for a majority of the second quarter. On their final possession of the half, they traveled to the Triangles' 4-inch (100 mm) line, but the referee signaled to end the first half.[29] In the fourth quarter, Ed Novack and Arnold Wyman left the game due to injury.[29] The Triangles scored two passing touchdowns in the final 10 minutes of the game; the first was caught by Dave Reese, and the second was caught by Roudebush.

November 28, 1920, at Douglas Park

In their final game that counted for the standings, the Independents played the Pittsburgh All-Collegians. There were three names for this team, the Pittsburgh All-Collegians,[30] the Wheeling Collegians,[16] and the Washington and Jefferson All-Stars. This game was originally supposed to be played against the Canton Bulldogs, but it was cancelled.[16] Most players from the All-Collegians did not show up for the game, and the coach used people from the crowd to form a team.[30] The first score of the game came in the first quarter when Wenig blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown. The only points the All-Collegians scored was a blocked punt from Morris, who returned it for a touchdown.[30] This was the only points the team scored all year.[31] The game ended with a 48–7 victory for the Independents.