WPI Engineers football

The WPI Engineers football team represents Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in the sport of American football. The Engineers compete in Division III (DIII) of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and the NEWMAC.[2] WPI's football program is one of the oldest in the country. The team has been coached by Chris Robertson since the 2010 season.

WPI Engineers football
First season1887
Head coachChris Robertson
10th season, 52–50 (.510)
StadiumAlumni Stadium
(capacity: 2,000)
Field surfaceFieldTurf
LocationWorcester, Massachusetts
NCAA divisionDivision III
ConferenceNEWMAC
Past conferencesIndependent (1887–1972)
DIII independent (1973–1991)
Freedom Football Conference (1992–2003)
Liberty League (2004–2016)
All-time record371–542–29 (.409)
Bowl record2–2 (.500)
Playoff appearances1992
Playoff record0–1
Conference titles1992, 1993, 2019
RivalriesRPI Engineers
MIT Engineers
ColorsCrimson and gray[1]
   
Fight song"E to the X"
MascotGompei the Goat
Marching bandWPI Pep Band
WebsiteAthletics.WPI.edu

WPI plays its home games at Alumni Stadium, located on the campus in Worcester, Massachusetts, with a capacity of 2,000.[3]

History

Prior to competing in collegiate football, WPI played association football (now known as the sport of soccer) from 1874 to 1876 and American rugby from 1877 to 1881. Starting in 1882, WPI attempted to play football as a sport.[4] It was not until 1885 that the football team was taken seriously.[5] The 1887 season was the first in which the team competed as a varsity sport.[6] Following their outstanding performance in the 1888 season, the Engineers were invited to join a football league of small New England colleges, but the faculty refused the idea and barred the team from playing any away games.[7] The Institute's opinion of football would improve by the turn of the century and give more support to the team.

Bowl games

WPI has appeared in four bowl games and has a 2–2 record.

Year Bowl Coach Opponent Result
1991ECAC Northeast BowlJack SiedleckiBuffalo StateL 17–23
2015ECAC Presidents BowlChris RobertsonKeanL 6–24
2017New England Bowl Series GameChris RobertsonSUNY MaritimeW 17–3
2019New England Bowl Series GameChris RobertsonWestern Connecticut StateW 35–6

References
  1. WPI Logo Usage: Quick Reference Guide (PDF). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
  2. "NCAA Members By Division". NCAA. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  3. "Alumni Stadium". Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  4. Smith, Melvin I. (2008). Evolvements of Early American Foot Ball: Through the 1890/91 Season. AuthorHouse. p. 586. ISBN 978-1-43436-248-3.
  5. Taylor, Herbert Foster (1937). Seventy Years of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Privately Published. p. 153. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  6. "2016 Media Guide (PDF)" (PDF). WPI Athletics. WPI Athletics. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  7. Taylor, Herbert Foster (1937). Seventy Years of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Privately Published. p. 154. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
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