| Year: | 1896 |
| Team: | VPI |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Independent |
| Record: | 5–2–1 |
| Head Coach: | Arlie C. Jones |
| Hc Year: | 2nd |
| Captain: | J. Lewis Ingles |
| Stadium: | Sheib Field |
| Prev: | 1895 |
The 1896 VPI football team represented Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute in the 1896 college football season. The team was led by their head coach Arlie C. Jones and finished with a record of five wins, two losses, and one tie (5–2–1).
A game against St. Albans Lutheran Boys School was scheduled to be played on October 17, 1896 in Radford, Virginia. However, the game was not played after a dispute between both teams regarding the amateur eligibility of players on both sides.[1]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Mayer (left guard), Thomas (center), Pelter (right guard), R. Herbert (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback).
The starting lineup for Roanoke was: M. G. Jones (left end), Bales (left tackle), Terry (left guard), Keister (center), McClintic (right guard), Claiborne (right tackle), Robertson (right end), Hatcher (quarterback), Akard (left halfback), Miller (right halfback), Jones (fullback). The substitutes were: Boyd and Downing.
See also: 1896 North Carolina Tar Heels football team. The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Pelter (left guard), R. Herbert (center), Mayer (right guard), Wood (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback). The substitutes were: Poindexter.
The starting lineup for North Carolina was: Joel Whitaker (left end), Robert Wright (left tackle), E. L. Neville (left guard), C. C. Joyner (center), James Carson (right guard), Harry Lake (right tackle), Charles Best (right end), Thomas Green (quarterback), Patterson (left halfback), F. J. Haywood (right halfback), Arthur Belden (fullback).
See also: 1896 Virginia Orange and Blue football team. The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Mayer (left guard), R. Herbert (center), Pelter (right guard), Wood (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback). The substitutes were: Smith.
The starting lineup for Virginia was: W. A. Martin (left end), Alexander Moore (left tackle), Johnson (left guard), Gustavus Wallace (center), Eugene Davis (right guard), V. H. Samoskeoy (right tackle), Paul Cocke (right end), Archie Hoxton (quarterback), Virginius Dabney (left halfback), Robert Groner (right halfback), James Morrison (fullback). The substitutes were: Malcolm Griffin.
See also: 1896 VMI Keydets football team. The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Mayer (left guard), R. Herbert (center), Pelter (right guard), Wood (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback). The substitutes were: Whitehurst.
The starting lineup for VMI was: Harman (left end), Morrell Mills (left tackle), Rice (left guard), George Marrow (center), Percy Montgomery (right guard), James Harding (right tackle), Elisha McGill (right end), William Montgomery (quarterback), Richard Lawson (left halfback), John Steger (right halfback), Sidney Moore (fullback).
The following players were members of the 1896 football team according to the roster published in the 1897 and 1903 editions of The Bugle, the Virginia Tech yearbook.[2] [3]