1931 Jefferson Bobcats football team
The 1931 Jefferson Bobcats football team was an American football team that represented Jefferson University (formerly known as Jefferson Law School) during the 1931 college football season. In its second season of intercollegiate football, Jefferson compiled a 1–7–1 record. George C. Sutherland was the head coach and was succeeded by player-coach Frankie Estes. Chester ("Gump" or "Gabby") Weatherford was the team captain. The team played its home games at Oak Cliff Field in Dallas. Known as the Lawyers in 1930, the team was re-branded as the Bobcats for the 1931 season to go along with the Jefferson University re-branding.
| 1931 Jefferson Bobcats football | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Independent |
| Record | 1–7–1 |
| Head coach |
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| Captain | Chester (Gabby, Gump) Weatherford |
| Home stadium | Oak Cliff Field |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Catholic University | – | 8 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas Mines | – | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Delaware | – | 5 | – | 1 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| William & Mary Norfolk | – | 1 | – | 0 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Furman | – | 5 | – | 2 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| George Washington | – | 5 | – | 2 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas Tech | – | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Troy State | – | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Middle Tennessee State Teachers | – | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Navy | – | 5 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wake Forest | – | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Carolina | – | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Davidson | – | 4 | – | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Maryland | – | 4 | – | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Delaware State | – | 2 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgetown | – | 4 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Richmond | – | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Virginia | – | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oglethorpe | – | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Georgia Teachers | – | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jefferson | – | 1 | – | 7 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jacksonville State | – | 0 | – | 7 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Jefferson was opened in 1919 as a law school by Andrew J. Priest in downtown Dallas. One of its early faculty members was Judge Sarah T. Hughes. The school achieved some success training lawyers and had a high graduation rate and most students successfully passed the bar exam. Jefferson was rebranded as Jefferson University in 1931 as it added additional colleges such as engineering, liberal arts, business, commerce, and secretarial training.[1]
Playing against mostly junior college and smaller four-year college teams, Jefferson was only able to score seven points on the entire season. Despite the lack of scoring, the Bobcats were competitive in their early games, losing two games by a single touchdown, tying one game at 0–0 and then finally winning when the other team missed an extra point for a 7–6 victory. Thereafter, the team was blown out, with an especially bad loss coming against a top all-boys preparatory school in Dallas, Terrill Prep School, losing by a 52–0 score.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 25 | Paris Junior College |
| L 0–7 | [2] |
| October 3 | at Hillsboro Junior College | Hillsboro, TX | L 0–19 | [3] |
| October 10 | Weatherford |
| L 0–6 | [4] |
| October 17 | Decatur Baptist |
| T 0–0 | [5] |
| October 23 | Simmons (TX) freshmen |
| W 7–6 | [6] |
| October 30 | at Terrill Prep School | L 0–52 | [7] | |
| November 6 | at Southeastern Oklahoma State | Durant, OK | L 0–60 | [8] |
| November 13 | at North Texas State freshmen | Denton, TX | L 0–14 | [9] |
| November 20 | at Tarleton Agricultural College | Stephenville, TX | L 0–34 | [10] |
References
- "Jefferson University". Lost Colleges. Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- "College Grid Results". The Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 26, 1931. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com
. - "Hillsboro Junior Takes 19 to 0 Win from Jefferson U.". The Dallas Morning News. October 4, 1931. p. 11 – via NewsBank .
- "Junior Elevens Score Victories". The Dallas Morning News. October 14, 1931. p. 4 – via NewsBank .
- "Bobcats Play Decatur Draw". The Dallas Morning News. October 18, 1931. p. 14 – via NewsBank .
- "Bobcats Nose Out Freshmen". The Dallas Morning News. October 24, 1931. p. 11 – via NewsBank .
- "Terrill Drubs Bobcats, 52-0". The Dallas Morning News. October 30, 1931. p. 10 – via NewsBank .
- "Jefferson U. Takes Sound Trouncing In Durant Tussle". The Dallas Morning News. November 7, 1931. p. 5 – via NewsBank .
- "T. C. Frosh Defeat Jefferson, 14 to 0". The Denton Record-Chronicle. November 14, 1931. p. 4 – via Newsbank .
- "Plowboys Trounce Jefferson Eleven". The Dallas Morning News. November 21, 1931. p. 9 – via NewsBank .