This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/cfb by /u/eastexaslion on 2025-03-05 03:13:56+00:00.
Click here to see the introductory post about this series.
Click here to see previous entries in this series.
Claimed National Champions
Michigan 11-0 (4-0) Helms Athletic Foundation, National Championship Foundation, *Billingsley Report, Houlgate System
Yale 11-1-1 **Parke H. Davis
Bowl Games: 1
Bold indicates main national championship selector recognized by NCAA Championship List
\Billingsley Report had changed its formula after it was used as a BCS formula. It originally awarded Michigan as the national champion until the change in formula, which now awards Harvard.)
\*Parke H. Davis’ selection for this year is controversial. There is) one source from 1934 that claims he picks Harvard as the champion while the NCAA record book claims he has picked Yale. Yale still claims this and Harvard does not claim a title from this year.
- The colonies of Australia federate, and Edmund Barton becomes the first Prime Minister of Australia.
- King Edward VII becomes king of the United Kingdom.
- U.S. Steel is incorporated by J.P. Morgan. It becomes the first billion-dollar corporation.
- William McKinley is assassinated, Theodore Roosevelt becomes the 26th president.
- Walgreens is founded in Chicago.
- Oil is discovered at Spindletop in Beaumont, Texas.
- New York becomes the firs state to require automobile license plates.
- Cuba becomes a U.S. protectorate.
- The Boxer Rebellion in China ends.
- Future Japanese Emperor Hirohito, Chuck Taylor, Louis Armstrong, Walt Disney, Art Rooney, and CFB Hall of Famers Lynn Bomar, Charlie Caldwell, Allison “Pooley” Hubert, Bill Mallory, Edgar “Rip” Miller, Century “Wally” Milstead, Harold “Brick” Muller, Harry Stuhldreher, Frank Sundstrom, Adam Walsh, and George “Wildcat” Wilson are born.
- Queen Victoria II, President William McKinley, and President Benjamin Harrison die.
- Prolate speheroid, without specific measurements.
- The field is 110 yds. by 53 1/3 yds., uprights 18 1/2’ apart, with lines marked every five yards, crossbar 10’ high uprights
- When a team has possession of the ball, it must gain five yards within three downs, to gain a new set of downs
- There are three different ways to score. A field goal is worth 5 points, A touchdown is worth 4 points, the kick after a TD is worth 2 points, and a safety is worth 2 Points.
- Each team consists of 11 players on the field.
- *The game’s regulation is separated into four 15-minute quarters with a halftime break in between. If the game is tied at the end of regulation, the next scored point wins the game.
Italics denote rule change from previous season.
\Overtime rules are for simulation only and do not reflect overtime rules of the time.)
The Teams
- Harvard 12-0
- Michigan 11-0
- Wisconsin 9-0
- Yale 11-1-1
- Cornell 11-1
- Army 5-1-2
- Minnesota 9-1-1
- Princeton 9-1-1
- Dartmouth 10-1
- Illinois 8-2
- Northwestern 8-2-1
- Syracuse 7-2
- Lafayette 9-3
- Penn 10-5
- Columbia 8-5
- Williams 6-4
- Notre Dame 8-1-1
- Nebraska 7-2
- Iowa 6-3
- Massachusetts 9-1
- Navy 6-4-1
- Penn St 5-3
- Virginia 7-2
- Vanderbilt 5-1-1
Teams are listed by their seeding in the bracket.
\Record may not reflect official record of the year.)
Italics indicate conference champion but don’t qualify for auto bid.
Bold indicates conference auto-bid.
First Four Out
Season Breakdown and 1901 All-Americans
1901 was the beginning of the modern era of College Football. The teams in the mid-west started to finally gain recognition, as the East Coast teams dominance started to wane. I want to emphasize started to, because the Ivy’s will still be a menace to those that play them for the next few decades. However, this year truly felt, and still feels like the year that college football became the national sensation that it is today. So let’s look at our big teams competing this year.
On the east coast, the Ivy’s continue their dominance over their regional teams. Harvard being the best of the bunch by far (despite them not claiming a title for this year). However, much of their early games were games decided by one or two scores, including a 6-0 win over Army. It was not until they played Carlisle that they had truly started to show a dominating season, as they would beat Carlisle 29-0, Brown 48-0, Penn 33-6, Dartmouth 27-12, and Yale 22-0 in dominating fashion. Yale (for some reason) claims a title despite this loss and a tie to Army, however, still won plenty of tough games in their own right. Including a 12-0 win over Princeton, and a win over a professional team (to later be in the NFL). Though that is not saying too much as pro teams in this time were . . . not great. Many contemporary writers still picked Harvard as the national champion, though few of the recognized major selectors picked them. One underdog in this playoff that I would like to mention is UMass in probably one of their best seasons ever (excluding their FCS run of dominance in the late 90’s to 00’s), for no other reason than I feel like UMass fans really need a win, even if it’s over a century ago.
In the south, two teams would end up getting bids. One was Vanderbilt, who barely squeaked out a SIAA conference title off of Clemson due to one tie Clemson would have with VPI (Virginia Tech). Vanderbilt’s schedule however, isn’t necessarily impressive, as they would lose a close game to non-conference Washington-St. Louis, but did impressively tie Sewanee, who is . . . independent this year? I really don’t know how to explain this one other than the fact that the SIAA is a disorganized mess like the rest of college football. One southern independent, did in fact get a bid this year, and it is Virginia, as they were not afraid to face harder teams, and that despite their loss to Penn and Georgetown, the rankings still put them in as the #23 team in the nation that year, with their most impressive win being a 16-0 beating of VPi, and a 23-5 win over Sewanee.
In the Mid-West/Western Conference, the real story of this season begins as two teams end up dominating every team they face. First Coach Philip King’s Wisconsin, as they would outscore their opponents 317-5 and have a perfect season. Primarily behind their halfback Al “Norsky” Larson. Even if there were some questionable teams like Milwaukee Medical and Hyde Park High School, they still put up some good fights with a 50-0 win over Kansas, 18-0 over Nebraska, 45-0 over Iowa State, and winning their only two conference games 18-0, and 35-0. This season is, however, overshadowed by one of the greatest teams of this century that th…
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