1896 Fielding Yost signed cabinet photo

 In 1896 Lafayette College coached by Parke Davis played West Virginia University 3 consecutive days in October beating them in all three contests.  In a truly bizarre turn of events the star player for WVU ended up joining Lafayette one week later to play at the University of Pennsylvania.

Lafayette ended up beating UPenn 6-4 and snapping their 34 game consecutive win streak.  There was backlash with Yost playing in this game since afterwards he ended up transferring back to West Virginia.  Lafayette was recognized as co-national champions this year with Princeton.

Here is a signed cabinet photo depicting Yost with his Lafayette jersey.  He went on the have an illustrious career coaching specifically at the University of Michigan winning 6 national championships.  He was inducted into the college HOF in 1951.

1882 Mcgill University Football

Harvard and McGill played 2 contests in Cambridge Massachusetts in May 1873, one association style and one rugby style.  This rugby style match eventually changed football as we know it from more of a kicking game to a carrying game we are accustomed to now.

Harvard and McGill continued to play each other until 1882.  Here is an image of McGill from that 1882 season.

1879 O.D. Thompson Yale Grad photo

 

I have done a previous write up on the importance O.D. Thompson had not only to early college football but also the beginnings of professionalism.  I found this photo in a grouping of normal photos and immediately knew who it was.  Definitely a great find of one of my favorite early football stars.

1896 Green Bay Wisconsin Football Players

This is one of the oldest Green Bay football images I have seen with the football dating to 1896.  The first unofficial game was played in 1895 between Green Bay East High and West.  They also had a town team that started around this time.

1899 Indiana University football Player

 Here is a very interesting image of an 1899-1900 Indiana University football photo.  Fresh with a Spalding #50 helmet, Morril nose guard  and sewed on padding.  

1880s Penn State Football Medallion

 One of the oldest football related jewelry items I have come across.  This gold medallion displays the old colors of Penn State from 1887-90 on an enamel melon football.  Their first colors was a combination of Pink and Black.  They changed to the blue and white colors we are accustomed to in 1890.  

I included a collotype photo I have of the 1889 team along with the color chant from an old La Vie yearbook I have.  Here is a more in depth article on the color exchange  https://www.psu.edu/news/campus-life/story/dear-old-state-pink-and-black-blue-and-white.  I also took a few snippets of the interesting parts of the article if you don’t want to read.

1888 Albert Holden Harvard Pach Bros photo

 Here is an amazing Pach brothers cabinet photo of one of the premier football players in the 1880s Bert Holden.  He was captain for Harvard in 1887 and 88.  The 1887 team went 10-1 with their only loss being a close one to Yale in which Holden starred as rusher.