1922 Southern Conference football season explained

1922 Southern Conference football season
Sport:	College football
League:	NCAA
Season:	Regular Season
Season Champs:	Vanderbilt Georgia Tech North Carolina
No Of Teams:	20
Duration:	September 23, 1922 through December 2, 1922
Seasonslistnames:	Football
Nextseason Year:	1923

The 1922 Southern Conference football season was the college football games played by the member schools of the Southern Conference as part of the 1922 college football season. The season began on September 23 as part of the 1922 college football season. Conference play began on October 7 with Washington & Lee defeating North Carolina State 14–6 in Lexington.

This was the conference's inaugural season, featuring former members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) and South Atlantic Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SAIAA). Amongst others, conference co-champion Vanderbilt was still a co-member of the SIAA.

Though North Carolina posted the best conference record, most sources listed either Vanderbilt or Georgia Tech as champion.^[1] Vanderbilt was the only school to claim a championship and remain undefeated against all opponents. It posted the nation's number one defense as measured by points against per game and was retroactively selected for a national championship by selector Clyde Berryman.^[2]

Intersectionalism was popular. Vanderbilt fought Michigan to a scoreless tie at the inaugural game at Dudley Field, the first football stadium in the south in the style of the Eastern schools. Alabama, which scored 300 points on the season,^[3] upset John Heisman's Penn Quakers 9–7.

Auburn's upset of Centre opened the door for the SoCon champion to claim a championship of the South. It was considered one of best teams Auburn turned out in the first half of the 20th century.^[4] Centre quarterback Herb Covington had made a "world record" six drop kick field goals against Louisville.^[3]

Vanderbilt end Lynn Bomar and Georgia Tech halfback Red Barron were unanimous All-Southern selections and second-team Walter Camp All-Americans.

Season overview

Results and team statistics

Conf. Rank	Team	Head coach	Overall record	Conf. record	PPG	PAG
1 (tie)	North Carolina	Bob Fetzer/Bill Fetzer	9–1	5–0	19.1	7.2
1 (tie)	Georgia Tech	William Alexander	7–2	4–0	17.4	6.6
1 (tie)	Vanderbilt	Dan McGugin	8–0–1	3–0	19.7	1.8
4	VPI	Ben Cubbage	8–1–1	3–0	26.2	3.2
5	Florida	William G. Kline	7–2	2–0	26.7	5.7
6	Auburn	Mike Donahue	8–2	2–1	27.6	4.8
7 (tie)	Tennessee	M. B. Banks	8–2	3–2	23.9	4.5
7 (tie)	Alabama	Xen C. Scott	6–3–1	3–2–1	30.0	8.1
9	Virginia	Thomas J. Campbell	4–4–1	1–1–1	11.3	6.7
10	Mississippi A&M	Dudy Noble	3–4–2	2–3	6.2	20.4
11 (tie)	Kentucky	William Juneau	6–3	1–2	18.6	6.2
11 (tie)	Clemson	Doc Stewart	5–4	1–2	18.9	12.1
11 (tie)	Washington and Lee	James DeHart	5–3–1	1–2	23.2	12.0
11 (tie)	Maryland	Curley Byrd	4–5–1	1–2	7.7	13.7
11 (tie)	LSU	Irving Pray	3–7	1–2	7.2	24.4
16	Georgia	Herman Stegeman	5–4–1	1–3–1	17.8	7.7
17	Tulane	Clark Shaughnessy	4–4	1–4	17.0	12.5
18 (tie)	South Carolina	Sol Metzger	5–4–1	0–2	10.2	7.7
18 (tie)	Ole Miss		4–5–1	0–2	8.7	18.3
20	NC State	Harry Hartsell	4–6	0–5	10.1	9.2

Key

PPG = Average of points scored per game
PAG = Average of points allowed per game^[5]

Regular season

Index to colors and formatting
Non-conference matchup; SoCon member won
Non-conference matchup; SoCon member lost
Non-conference matchup; tie
Conference matchup

SoCon teams in bold.

Week One

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
September 23	Marion	Auburn	Drake Field • Auburn, Alabama	W 61–0
September 23	Newberry	Georgia		W 82–13
September 23		Tennessee		W 50–0
September 23	Hampden-Sydney	VPI	Miles Field • Blacksburg, Virginia	W 38–0

Week Two

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
September 29		Erskine	South Carolina	Columbia, South Carolina	W 13–0
September 30			Alabama		W 110–0		^[6]
September 30		Auburn	Howard		W 72–0
September 30		Centre	Clemson	Riggs Field • Calhoun, South Carolina	L 21–0
September 30			Georgia		W 41–0
September 30			Georgia Tech	Grant Field • Atlanta	W 31–6
September 30		Marshall	Kentucky		W 16–0
September 30		Northwestern State	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, Louisiana	W 13–0
September 30		3rd Army Corps	Maryland	Baltimore	W 7–0
September 30		Wake Forest	North Carolina		W 62–3
September 30		Randolph-Macon	North Carolina State		W 20–2
September 30		Union (TN)	Ole Miss	Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi	T 0–0
September 30		Carson-Newman	Tennessee	Shields–Watkins Field • Knoxville, Tennessee	W 32–7
September 30	3:00 p. m.		Vanderbilt		W 38–0
September 30		George Washington	Virginia		W 34–0
September 30		King	VPI		W 25–0
September 30		Emory & Henry	Washington & Lee	Wilson Field • Lexington, Virginia	W 85–0

Week Three

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 7		Alabama		W 41–0
October 7		Auburn		W 19–6
October 7	Ole Miss			L 55–0
October 7	Newberry	Clemson	Riggs Field • Calhoun, South Carolina	W 57–0		^[7]
October 7	Furman	Florida	Fleming Field • Gainesville, Florida	L 7–6		^[8]
October 7	Georgia	Chicago		L 20–0	18,000
October 7		Georgia Tech		W 19–0
October 7		Kentucky		W 15–0
October 7	Loyola	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, Louisiana	L 7–0
October 7	Maryland	Richmond		T 0–0
October 7	Birmingham–Southern	Mississippi A&M	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi	W 14–60
October 7	North Carolina	Yale	New Haven, Connecticut	L 18–0
October 7	Presbyterian	South Carolina		W 6–0
October 7	Maryvile	Tennessee		W 21–0
October 7	Mississippi College	Tulane		W 30–0
October 7	Henderson-Brown	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, Tennessee	W 33–0		^[9]
October 7	Virginia	Princeton		L 5–0
October 7	North Carolina State	Washington & Lee		W&L 14–6
October 7	William & Mary	VPI	Miles Field • Blacksburg, Virginia	W 20–6

Week Four

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 12		Duke	North Carolina		W 20–0
October 13		Presbyterian	Clemson		W 13–0
October 14		Auburn	Army	Parade Ground • West Point, New York	L 19–6
October 14		Florida	Rollins		W 19–0		^[10]
October 14		Georgia	Furman		W 7–0
October 14		Alabama	Georgia Tech		GT 33–7
October 14		Louisville	Kentucky		W 73–0
October 14		Maryland	Penn		L 12–0
October 14		Rhodes	Ole Miss	Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi	W 23–0
October 14		Howard	Mississippi A&M	Starkville, Mississippi	T 0–0
October 14		South Carolina	North Carolina	Emerson Field • Chapel Hill, North Carolina	UNC 10–7
October 14		Roanoke	North Carolina State		W 13–0
October 14		Tennessee	Fort Benning		W 15–0
October 14		Spring Hill	Tulane	Second Tulane Stadium • New Orleans	W 30–10
October 14	2:15 p. m.	Michigan	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, Tennessee	T 0–0	16,000	^[11]
October 14		Richmond	Virginia	Lambeth Field • Charlottesville, Virginia	W 14–6
October 14	2:30 p. m.	Centre	VPI	Mayo Island Park • Richmond, Virginia	L 10–6	12,500	^[12]
October 14		Carson-Newman	Washington & Lee		W 13–0

Week Five

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 19		North Carolina	North Carolina State	Riddick Stadium • Raleigh, North Carolina	UNC 14–9
October 20		Wofford	South Carolina		W 20–0
October 20		LSU	Texas A&M		L 46–0
October 21		Sewanee	Alabama	Rickwood Field • Birmingham, Alabama	T 7–7
October 21			Auburn		W 50–6
October 21		American Legion	Florida	Tampa, Florida	W 14–0		^[13]
October 21		Tennessee	Georgia		UGA 7–3
October 21		Georgia Tech	Navy		L 13–0
October 21		Kentucky	Georgetown (KY)	Georgetown, Kentucky	W 40–6
October 21		Maryland	Princeton		L 26–0
October 21		Ole Miss	Mississippi A&M	Jackson, Mississippi	MSA&M 19–13
October 21		Fort Benning	Tulane	Second Tulane Stadium • New Orleans	W 18–0
October 21	3:00 p. m.	Vanderbilt	Texas	Fair Park Stadium • Dallas, Texas	W 20–10	11,000	^[14]
October 21		VMI	Virginia		L 14–0
October 21		VPI	Davidson	Sprunt Field • Davidson, North Carolina	T 7–7	3,000	^[15]
October 21		Washington & Lee	West Virginia	Laidley Field • Charleston, West Virginia	T 12–12

Week Six

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 26	Clemson	South Carolina		CLEM 3–0
October 28	Alabama	Texas	Austin, Texas	L 19–10
October 28	Fort Benning	Auburn		W 30–0
October 28	Howard	Florida		W 57–0		^[16]
October 28	Oglethorpe	Georgia		W 26–6
October 28	Notre Dame	Georgia Tech		L 13–3
October 28	Sewanee	Kentucky		W 7–0
October 28		LSU		L 40–6
October 28	Maryland	North Carolina		UNC 27–3
October 28	Ole Miss	Tennessee	Shields–Watkins Field • Knoxville, Tennessee	TENN 49–0
October 29	Mississippi A&M	Tulane		TUL 26–0
October 29	Mercer	Vanderbilt		W 25–0		^[17]
October 28	Virginia	Johns Hopkins	Baltimore, Maryland	W 19–0
October 28	Catholic	VPI	Blacksburg, Virginia	W 73–0
October 28	Lynchburg	Washington & Lee	Wilson Field • Lexington, Virginia	W 53–0

Week Seven

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 2	Spring Hill	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, Louisiana	W 25–7
November 4	Alabama	Penn		W 9–7
November 4	Auburn	Georgia		AUB 7–3
November 4	Clemson	Georgia Tech		GT 21–7
November 4	Florida	Harvard	Harvard Stadium • Boston, Massachusetts	L 24–0	30,000
November 4	Centre	Kentucky		L 27–3
November 4	Maryland	VPI		VPI 21–0
November 4		Ole Miss		W 6–0
November 4	North Carolina	Tulane	Second Tulane Stadium • New Orleans	UNC 19–12
November 4	Davidson	North Carolina State		W 15–0
November 4	Ouachita	Mississippi A&M	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi	T 7–7
November 4	Sewanee	South Carolina		L 7–6
November 4	Vanderbilt	Tennessee		VAN 14–6	7,000
November 4	Washington & Lee	Virginia	Lambeth Field • Charlottesville, Virginia	UVA 22–6

Week Eight

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 7	LSU	Rutgers	New York	L 25–0
November 10	LSU	Alabama	Denny Field • Tuscaloosa, Alabama	ALA 47–3
November 11	Tulane	Auburn	Montgomery, Alabama	AUB 19–0
November 11	Clemson	The Citadel	College Park Stadium • Charleston, South Carolina	W 18–0
November 11	Mississippi College	Florida	Plant Field • Tampa, Florida	W 58–0	4,000
November 11	Georgia	Virginia		T 6–6
November 11	Georgetown	Georgia Tech	Grant Field • Atlanta	W 19–7
November 11	Hendrix	Ole Miss	Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi	W 13–7
November 11	North Carolina	VMI		W 9–7
November 11	North Carolina State	VPI	Norfolk, Virginia	VPI 24–0	6,000	^[18]
November 11	Mississippi A&M	Tennessee	Shields–Watkins Field • Knoxville, Tennessee	TENN 31–3
November 11	Kentucky	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, Tennessee	VAN 9–0	12,000
November 11	Washington & Lee	Centre	Louisville, Kentucky	L 27–6

Week Nine

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 16		The Citadel	South Carolina	County Fairgrounds • Orangeburg, South Carolina	W 13–0
November 18		Centre	Auburn	Rickwood Field • Birmingham, Alabama	W 6–0
November 18		Erskine	Clemson	Riggs Field • Calhoun, South Carolina	W 52–0
November 18		Alabama	Kentucky		UK 6–0
November 18		Florida	Tulane	Second Tulane Stadium • New Orleans	FLA 27–6	6,000	^[19]
November 18		North Carolina State	Georgia Tech		GT 17–0
November 18		Maryland	Johns Hopkins		W 3–0
November 18		Ole Miss	Tennessee Medical College	Memphis, Tennessee	L 32–0
November 18		Mississippi A&M	LSU		MSA&M 7–0
November 18		Davidson	North Carolina	Charlotte, North Carolina	W 20–6
November 18		Sewanee	Tennessee	Chamberlain Field • Chattanooga, Tennessee	W 18–7
November 18	3:00 p. m.	Vanderbilt	Georgia		VAN 12–0		^[20]
November 18		Virginia	West Virginia		L 13–0
November 18		VPI	Washington & Lee	Lynchburg, Virginia	VPI 41–6

Week Ten

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 25		Georgia	Alabama	Cramton Bowl • Montgomery, Alabama	ALA 10–6
November 25		Clemson	Furman		L 20–6
November 25		Florida	Oglethorpe		W 12–0
November 25		Maryland	Catholic		W 54–0
November 25		Drake	Mississippi A&M		L 48–6
November 25		Ole Miss	Fort Benning	Columbus, Georgia	L 14–13
November 25		North Carolina State	Wake Forest	Wake Forest, North Carolina	W 32–0
November 25	2:00 p. m.	Sewanee	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, Tennessee	W 26–0	20,000	^[21]

Week Eleven

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 30		Mississippi A&M	Alabama		ALA 59–0
November 30		Auburn	Georgia Tech		GT 14–6
November 30		Tulane	LSU		LSU 25–14		^[22]
November 30		Maryland	North Carolina State		MD 7–6
November 30		Ole Miss	Millsaps	Jackson, Mississippi	W 19–7
November 30		North Carolina	Virginia		UNC 10–7
November 30		Kentucky	Tennessee		TENN 14–7
November 30		South Carolina	Centre	Danville, Kentucky	L 42–0
November 30	2:30 p. m.	VMI	VPI	Roanoke, Virginia	W 7–3	15,000	^[23]
November 30		Washington & Lee	Johns Hopkins		W 14–0
December 2		Clemson	Florida	Jacksonville, Florida	FLA 47–14		^[24]

Awards and honors

All-Americans

See main article: 1922 College Football All-America Team.

• E – Lynn Bomar, Vanderbilt (WC-2; WE-3 [tackle]; BE; FM-1)
• T – Joe Bennett, Georgia (BE)
• G – Oscar Davis, Georgia Tech (LP-1; BE)
• QB – Doc Kuhn, Vanderbilt (BE)
• HB – Red Barron, Georgia Tech (WC-2 [fb]; BE; FM-2)
• FB – John Fletcher, Georgia (BE)

All-Southern team

See main article: 1922 College Football All-Southern Team. The following is the composite All-Southern team compiled from twenty four coaches and sporting editors of the South, each of whom received trophies from the Atlanta Journal:^[25]

Position	Name	First-team selectors	Team
QB	Herb Covington	AJ	Centre
HB	Red Barron	AJ	Georgia Tech
HB	John Shirey	AJ	Auburn
FB	John Fletcher	AJ	Georgia
E	Lynn Bomar	AJ	Vanderbilt
T	Albert Staton	AJ	Georgia Tech
G	Oscar Davis	AJ	Georgia Tech
C	Claire Frye	AJ	Georgia Tech
G	Puss Whelchel	AJ	Georgia
T	Joe Bennett	AJ	Georgia
E	Red Roberts	AJ	Centre

See also

• 1922 Michigan vs. Vanderbilt football game
• 1922 Alabama vs. Penn football game

References

• Book: Woodruff, Fuzzy. A History of Southern Football 1890–1928. 1928. 2.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Champions of the South regardless of conference affiliation. July 23, 2015.
2. see Web site: QPRS American College Football National Champions. Clyde Berryman. Web site: Official 2013 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records Book. 76–77. The National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2017-01-07. 2014-10-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20141023035512/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/aub/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2013-14/misc_non_event/20140421_ncaa_champions.pdf. dead.
3. Web site: Outing: Sport, Adventure, Travel, Fiction. 1922.
4. see e. g. News: Auburn's Gator Bowl Champs Rated Among Top Tiger Teams. Ocala Star-Banner. January 16, 1955.
5. Web site: 1922 Southern Conference Year Summary.
6. Web site: 1922 Season . https://web.archive.org/web/20180912130942/http://grfx.cstv.com/schools/alab/graphics/docs/22-m-footbl-recaps.pdf . September 12, 2018 . dead.
7. News: Tigers Wallop Newberry Indians. October 11, 1922. 18. The Tiger.
8. News: Florida Loses Initial Game To Furman By Close Score of 7-6 In Hard Fought Battle Saturday. Florida Alligator. October 1, 1922.
9. News: Vandy Defeats Arkansas Team.. The Macon Daily Telegraph. October 8, 1922.
10. News: Gators Outclass Rollins; Score Three Touchdowns Game Was Played In Rain. Florida Alligator. October 15, 1922.
11. News: Michigan and Vanderbilt play to Scoreless Tie In Commodores' Stadium: Southerns Spring Surprise on Rivals. https://archive.today/20130104170555/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/freep/access/1873197002.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Oct+15,+1922&author=SAM+GREENE&pub=Detroit+Free+Press+(1858-1922)&edition=&startpage=21&desc=Michigan+And+Vanderbitt+Play+To+Scoreless+Tie+In+Commodores'+Stadium.. dead. January 4, 2013. Detroit Free Press. Sam S. Greene. Sam Greene (sportswriter). October 15, 1922.
12. News: Prayin' Colonels Defeat Tech in Last Period Spurt After Being Played Off Their Feet. Library of Virginia. Richmond Times-Dispatch. October 15, 1922. 1. December 23, 2015.
13. News: Gators Take Third Game From State Legion team In Tampa By 14-0 Score. Florida Alligator. October 21, 1922.
14. "Big Gains Are Made On Punts And Wide Runs In Dallas Game." Fort Worth Star Telegram 22 Oct. 1922: 14.
15. News: Plucky Wildcats Fight Virginia Techmen To A 7–7 Draw And Uphold The Time Honored Glory Of Sprunt Athletic Field. Davidson College. The Davidsonian. October 26, 1922. 1. February 3, 2016.
16. News: Gators Swamp Howard Team; Score Is 58 to 0. Florida Alligator. October 28, 1922.
17. News: Rountree's Brilliant Runs Helps Vandy Subs to Conquer Mercer Team. The Tennessean. Blinkey Horn. October 29, 1922. 10. September 18, 2016. Newspapers.com.
18. News: Virginia Tech Romps on Tarheel Opponents. Library of Virginia. Richmond Times-Dispatch. November 12, 1922. December 23, 2015.
19. News: Heavy Florida Team Batters Down Tulane's Defense and Wins, 27-6. Atlanta Constitution. August 20, 2015. Newspapers.com. November 19, 1922. 3.
20. "Vanderbilt Defeats the University of Georgia." Charlotte Sunday Observer 19 Nov. 1922: 2.
21. News: The Sewanee Purple. Sewanee Loses To Vanderbilt, 26-0. December 14, 1922. 11005/1158.
22. Web site: LSU student kneeling at Tulane University "goat grave" . louisdl.louislibraries.org . 2017-01-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202071106/http://louisdl.louislibraries.org/cdm/ref/collection/LSU_SCE/id/146 . 2017-02-02 . dead .
23. News: Techs Lick Cadets in Thrilling Game. Library of Virginia. Richmond Times-Dispatch. December 1, 1922. 1. December 23, 2015.
24. News: University of Florida Wins Over Clemson, But Tigers Score Twice. 3. Atlanta Constitution. December 3, 1922. August 30, 2015. Newspapers.com.
25. News: Al Staton, Davis, Whelchel Frye, Roberts, Covington, Bennett, Fletcher Picked. Atlanta Constitution. December 10, 1922. 3. March 16, 2015. Newspapers.com. Cliff Wheatley.