| Year: | 1905 |
| Team: | VPI |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Independent |
| Record: | 9–1 |
| Head Coach: | Sally Miles |
| Hc Year: | 1st |
| Captain: | Thomas Walker Lewis |
| Stadium: | Gibboney Field |
| Champion: | Southern champion |
The 1905 VPI football team represented the Virginia Polytechnic Institute in the 1905 college football season. Led by first-year head coach Sally Miles, the team went 9–1 and claims a Southern championship.[1] The team had the most wins in a Virginia Tech season for many years to come, and defeated rival Virginia for the first time.[2] Tech outscored its opponents 305 to 24. Hunter Carpenter scored 82 of those points.
The team reported for practice on September 1. "Never in the history of the school have prospects for a winning team been so bright."[3]
The season opened with an 86 - 0 defeat of .[4]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Shuey (left end), Stickling (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Johnson (center), Walker (right guard), Lewis (right tackle), Squires (right end), Harris (quarterback), Treadwell (left halfback), Connor (right halfback), Harlan (fullback). The substitutes were: Adams, Branch, Cahill, Diffendal, Furstein, Grant, Hanvey, Hildebrand, Noland, Rogers, Sanfort, Stiles and Varner.
The starting lineup for Roanoke was: Moss (left end), Shannon (left tackle), Link (left guard), Obenshain (center), Engleby (right guard), Cale (right tackle), Kelley (right end), Darnall (quarterback), F. H. Hansbarger (left halfback), Steele (right halfback), Groves (fullback). The substitutes were: W. H. Cline.
See also: 1905 Cumberland Bulldogs football team. In the second week of play, VPI beat Cumberland 12 - 0.
See also: 1905 Army Cadets football team. The upset of the week was VPI's 16–6 win over Army.[5] Carpenter was the star of the game, and made a kick from placement.
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Willson (left tackle), Diffendal (left guard), Stiles (center), Strickling (right guard), Hines (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Nutter (quarterback), Treadwell (left halfback), Carpenter (right halfback), Harlan (fullback). The substitutes were: Harris.[6]
The starting lineup for Army was: Ellis (left end), Wallace Philoon (left tackle), Moss (left guard), Clyde Abraham (center), William Christy (right guard), Charles Mettler (right tackle), Alexander Garfield Gillespie (right end), Enoch Garey (quarterback), Edwin Greble (left halfback), Hill (right halfback), Henry Torney (fullback). The substitutes were: Martyn Shute.
VPI "had no trouble" in beating Gallaudet 56–0.
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Wilson (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Stiles (center), Stickling (right guard), Hynes (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Harris (quarterback), Nutter (left halfback), Carpenter (right halfback), Hollan (fullback). The substitutes were: Branch, Cox, Diffendal, Grant, Hanvey, Johnson, Shuey, Squires, Varner and Walker.[7]
The starting lineup for Gallaudet was: Dan Reichard (left end), Sharp (left tackle), Odie Underhill (left guard), Busch (center), John Chandler (right guard), Frank Mikesell (right tackle), Russell (right end), Arthur Hinch (quarterback), Frank Horton (left halfback), Majure (right halfback), John McCandless (fullback). The substitutes were: Philip Caldwell, Early Elder, Chester Erwin and Alvin Kutzleb.
See also: 1905 North Carolina Tar Heels football team. VPI defeated North Carolina 35–6. Carpenter made "several sensational runs."[8] During the second half VPI "scored almost at will."[8]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Wilson (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Stiles (center), Stickling (right guard), Hynes (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Harris (quarterback), Nutter (left halfback), Carpenter (right halfback), Harlan (fullback).
The starting lineup for North Carolina was: Newman Townsend (left end), Meadows (left tackle), Williams (left guard), Edgar Snipes (center), Perry Seagle (right guard), Romy Story (right tackle), Ferdinand Whitaker (right end), Foy Roberson (quarterback), Harvey Snipes (left halfback), Robert Reynolds (right halfback), LeRoy Abernethy (fullback). The substitutes were: Lucius Dunlap, Wiley Pittman, Thompson, John Winborne and Wright.
See also: 1905 Virginia Orange and Blue football team. Hunter Carpenter had returned to VPI in 1905 for a last shot at beating Virginia in his eighth year of college football. Going into the game, UVA was 8–0 against VPI by a cumulative score of 170–5. The Cavalier Daily ran a story outlining Carpenter's motives and move from VPI to UNC and back to VPI over the preceding eight years. Virginia accused Carpenter of being a professional player, as he had played college football already for nearly a decade.[9] Carpenter signed an affidavit that he had not received payment to play against UVA and played against a backdrop of recrimination.Virginia fumbled at midfield, and as a result Carpenter eventually got away for a 30-yard gain around left end. Virginia held VPI on downs at the 3-yard line. Virginia's punt had to go high and short to avoid hitting the goal post. Carpenter called a fair catch in order for a free kick, but was tackled anyway, and the penalty brought the ball back to Virginia's 3-yard line. On third down, Murray Harlan skirted end for a touchdown, and Carpenter added the extra point.
"The second half was even more hotly contested than the first." Carpenter "finally" got off a long punt, down to Virginia's 5-yard line. VPI blocked Virginia's ensuing punt, and on third down Carpenter dashed through left tackle for the final score. Carpenter was later ejected for throwing the ball at the face of a Virginia defender, but stayed on the sidelines to watch as neither team was able to score against each other. Carpenter left immediately after the game and moved to Middleton, New York, never to return to the Commonwealth. Carpenter retired 1–7 against UVA, but Virginia still refused to play VPI again until 1923.[9]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Willson (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Stiles (center), Stickling (right guard), Hynes (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Nutter (quarterback), Treadwell (left halfback), Carpenter (right halfback), Harlan (fullback).
The starting lineup for Virginia was: Edward Dodson (left end), Charles Haskell (left tackle), Alexander Garnett (left guard), George Kite (center), Terrence Murphy (right guard), Merritt Cooke Jr. (right tackle), James E. Barry (right end), Oscar Randolph (quarterback), Joseph Waples (left halfback), Edward Johnson (right halfback), Henry Maddux (fullback).
See also: 1905 South Carolina Gamecocks football team. VPI beat South Carolina 34–0. Captain Lewis asked for the game to be called after eight minutes' phlay in the second half, as the crowd surged on the field and play was impossible. South Carolina did not earn a single first down. Carpenter had one run of 68 yards.[10]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Willson (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Tomson (center), Stickling (right guard), Hynes (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Harris (quarterback), Nutter (left halfback), Carpenter (right halfback), Hanvey (fullback). The substitutes were: Cox, Fuenstein, Hildebrand, Varner
The starting lineup for South Carolina was: Ralph Foster (left end), S. H. Wilds (left tackle), Paul Moore (left guard), William Fendley (center), Thomas Sligh (right guard), Edward Croft (right tackle), Douglas McKay (right end), Homer Holmes (quarterback), Gene Oliver (left halfback), John Wilds (right halfback), Tristam Hyde (fullback).
See also: 1905 Navy Midshipmen football team. VPI suffered its sole loss of the season against Navy, getting revenge for when Carpenter and VPI won in 1903. VPI scored when Carpenter returned the second-half kickoff 95 yards, after a hand-off from Murray Harlan who caught the kick.[11]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Willson (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Stiles (center), Stickling (right guard), Hynes (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Harris (quarterback), Nutter (left halfback), Carpenter (right halfback), Harlan (fullback).[11]
The starting lineup for Navy was: Douglas Howard (left end), Percy Northcroft (left tackle), Joseph O'Brien (left guard), Lewis Causey (center), John Shafroth (right guard), Ronan Grady (right tackle), Edwin Woodworth (right end), Walter Decker (quarterback), Herbert Spencer (left halfback), Stephen Doherty (right halfback), Robert Ghormley (fullback). The substitutes were: A. H. Douglas, Homer Norton and Leo Welch.
See also: 1905 VMI Keydets football team. The season closed with a 34–0 win over old rival VMI. "The story of the contest may be summed up in the statement that the Lexington boys were outclassed."[12] The crowd did not exceed 5,000 due to the cold weather.[12] Byrd, Fraser, Harlan, and Beckner were all injured.[13] Nutter, Cox, Harvey, and Harlan starred.[12]
The starting lineup for VPI was: Webber (left end), Diffendal (left tackle), Cunningham (left guard), Stiles (center), Stickling (right guard), Hynes (right tackle), Lewis (right end), Nutter (quarterback), Cox (left halfback), Hanvey (right halfback), Harlan (fullback).[12]
The starting lineup for VMI was: Alexander Fraser (left end), Oscar Thraves (left tackle), William Montgomery (left guard), Edward Hancock (center), Alphonse Stude (right guard), William Riley (right tackle), William Poague (right end), Byrd (quarterback), Mahlon Caffee (left halfback), William Beckner (right halfback), Robert Massie (fullback).
Six players made W&L coach R. R. Brown's All-Southern team.[14]
The following players were members of the 1905 football team according to the roster published in the 1906 edition of The Bugle, the Virginia Tech yearbook.[15]