| Year: | 1899 |
| Team: | Oregon Agricultural Aggies |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | OIFA/Independent |
| Record: | 3–2 |
| Head Coach: | Hiland Stickney |
| Hc Year: | 1st |
| Captain: | Fred C. Walters |
| Stadium: | OAC Field |
| Next: | 1902 |
The 1899 Oregon Agricultural Aggies football team represented Oregon Agricultural College (now known as Oregon State University) as an independent during the 1899 college football season. In their first and only season under head coach Hiland Orlando Stickney, the Aggies compiled a 3–2 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 76 to 60. The Aggies lost to Oregon, 38–0.[1] Fred Walters was the team captain.[2]
The season was marked by the collapse of the Oregon Intercollegiate Football Association (OIFA) in mid-season when OAC and the University of Oregon bolted amidst allegations that Willamette University was stacking its roster with "ringers" who were not actual students of the school.
American football in 1899 remained a variant of rugby, played with a virtually identical ball and sharing a fundamental prohibition of use of the forward pass to advance the ball.[3] The game was played on a field 110 yards long and 53-1/3 yards wide, marked off with white lines parallel to the goal lines every five yards.[4]
The game was played by teams of 11 players, aligned typically with 7 "rushers" or "forwards" at the line of scrimmage, and four "backs" behind them.[5] These were a quarterback immediately behind the line, two halfbacks stationed a couple yards behind him, and a fullback or "goal tend," who stood deep behind the halfbacks. Duration of the game was 70 minutes, divided into two 35-minute halves, which could be shortened by mutual consent,[6] with play regulated by three officials.[7]
Teams were allowed three downs to either advance the ball 5 yards or retreat towards their own goal 20 yards via running or lateral pass, otherwise being forced to surrender the ball to the defenders at the last spot.[8] All tackles had to be made above the knees.[9] A pair of light sticks with a 5-yard length of stout cord or chain were used to measure the line-of-gain for a new first down. As with the modern game, teams typically did not turn over the ball on downs, since "if the prospects of completing the five-yard gain appear small, it is so manifestly politic to kick the ball as far as possible down the field..."[10]
A dropkick or place-held field goal over the 10-foot crossbar and through the goalposts mounted at the goal line counted 5 points, as did a touchdown. Safeties counted as 2 points, as the case remains today.[11]
The possibility of an extra (6th) point followed each touchdown, with the scoring team given the option of a place-kick from any point on the field parallel to where the touchdown crossed the goal line; or a "punt out," in which the scoring team punted the ball from the end zone to a fair-catching teammate, which (if successfully executed) would provide the spot for a drop kick for the extra point.[12] The extra-point placekick was executed with the holder elevating the ball slightly above the ground as the defenders lined up at the goal line. The play began when the ball was touched to the ground, with a mad rush ensuing to block the kick.
Players played both offense and defense without substitution; those being replaced due to exhaustion or injury were forbidden from returning for the duration to the game. Coaching from the sideline was expressly prohibited.
A season-opening game with neighboring Albany College — today's Lewis & Clark College — had been planned for Saturday, October 28. However, just over one week ahead of the game, the match was cancelled by the captain of Albany College, with a published news report indicating that Albany declined to meet OAC on the gridiron "on any conditions whatever."[13] The reason may have been related to lack of preparedness so early in the season, with new coach E.E. McClannahan said to have arrived in Albany only five days previously.
In one of what one observer called "one of the prettiest and liveliest games ever witnessed on the gridiron," the OAC Aggies defeated the Willamette Bearcats in a "practice game" by a score of 10–0.[14] The game was 45 minutes long, with two unequal halves — 20 minutes before intermission and 25 minutes after.
The Aggies scored one touchdown in the first half but missed the conversion, taking a 5–0 lead to halftime. A second OAC touchdown was added near the end of the game, although again the extra point attempt failed. According to a report in a friendly Salem newspaper, "throughout the game the Salem players had no problem piercing the line of the opposing team almost at will, but a number of fumbles at critical stages of the game were costly and prevented the team from scoring."
Oregon Agricultural College and Albany College met at last on November 11 in Corvallis. It quickly became evident on the field why Albany was so hesitant to meet OAC two weeks earlier — the game proved to be a one-sided wipe-out in which Albany failed to gain even one first-down during what was planned to be a regulation 70-minute contest.[15]
The Orange scored their first touchdown after just two minutes of game action following Albany turning over the ball on downs deep in their own end. The 20-yard touchdown run by Goodrich was just OAC's second play from scrimmage and set the tone for the afternoon. Eight minutes later, following another surrender of the ball on downs by Albany leading to a protracted drive by the home team, OAC scored again, this time on a short run by Hall, who also successfully kicked the extra point to make the score 11–0.
Thereafter the teams traded possessions until at the 19-minute mark the Orange found paydirt for a third time, this time on an end run by Belt, with a successful conversion kick by Hall run the score to 17–0. Albany kicked off after the touchdown and on the next play from scrimmage OAC was in the end zone again, this time on a 64-yard run by McCaustland, with Belt and Hall throwing the key blocks on the run. Hall once again converted and Albany found themselves looking at a 23–0 deficit.
Another Albany kickoff was followed by another Aggie drive, with runs of 20 yards by Belt, 15 yards by Goodrich, and 15 yards by Hall setting up Goodrich for his second touchdown of the day, this one around end. After the conversion the score was 29–0. Just 3:45 later, the Orange were in the end zone again, this time with Walters doing the honors, bringing the score to 35–0 at the half. Play was halted after just 30 minutes.
Having gained no first downs all afternoon and looking at a 6 touchdown deficit, Albany College was ready to run up the white flag. The captains agreed to play a second "half" just 15 minutes in duration. OAC substituted out several starters in an attempt to keep the score manageable but Walters scored again at the 6-minute mark, bringing the tally to 41–0. Substitute back Noel scored again for OAC on an end run at the 11 minute mark, bringing the score after the successful conversion to 47–0, which stood as the final result.
The second half was ended after just 13 minutes, bringing the total game duration to only 43 minutes.
An official rematch between OAC and Willamette University was arranged by the two club managers on November 13, slated to be played in Salem that Saturday, November 18.[16] Arrangements were to be made for a special train to run between Corvallis and Salem in conjunction with the event. The winner of the game was to meet the University of Oregon on Thanksgiving Day to determine a state collegiate football champion. This plan proved short-lived, however, being cancelled the next day.
Allegations arose that "ringers" had been enrolled at Willamette "for the sole purpose of playing football," prompting the University of Oregon and OAC to withdraw abruptly and jointly from the Oregon Intercollegiate Football Association (OIFA)[17]
A story in the Eugene Guard declared:
"It is said that no less than eight of Willamette's eleven are 'grafters.' 'Spike' Young occupies a fat job in the state house; Ruben Sanders comes up from Chemawa for daily practice; Savage, a Salem blacksmith; two practicing physicians, two asylum employees. These are samples of the 'students' that play under Willamette colors."
With the Saturday, November 18 date suddenly freed, OAC team manager James H. Gallagher hastily booked a match between the Orange and the football team of the Multnomah Athletic Club, to be held in Corvallis on that date.
From Salem came claims that OAC had developed a case of "cold feet" and rather than face the "humiliation of defeat" at the hands of a superior Willamette squad the Orangemen had enlisted the University of Oregon to go along with the "juvenile prank" of quitting the association.[18] "The Salem team ... entered the league in good faith, organized a team of the very best material available, employed a competent coach, and has been practicing very assiduously," it was noted — only to face the withdrawal of its two leading in-state competitors. Willamette therefore claimed the pennant of the Oregon Intercollegiate Football League as champion as its own by default.
Originally Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 30, 1899, was slated to be an OIFA championship game between the University of Oregon and the winner of the November 18 contest between Willamette University and OAC. This was cancelled in the aftermath of the Willamette football "ringer" scandal, as a part of which U of O and OAC had proclaimed all agreements between themselves and the league to be "null and void." Instead, OAC manager James Gallagher and U of O manager Luke L. Goodrich, scheduled a Thanksgiving Day game of their own, to be held in Eugene.