The 1894 University of Pennsylvania football squad went 12-0 and were retroactively named co national champions. This was one of the first years a team not named Yale, Harvard, or Princeton could put a claim to that title.
Old Football Stuff
A history of football through memorabilia
Saturday, November 7, 2026
Friday, October 16, 2026
Early 1880s football silver gelatin photo
Here is a large silver gelatin image of a high school football team in the early 1880s. Digital commonwealth has the same photo listed as the 1881 Lawrence high school football team but I’m not too sure that is correct.
Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Early Northwestern Football Celluloid Pin
This is the earliest football related celluloid pin I have ever come across. It is an older style football uniform that Northwestern University had pre 1890. I included a yearbook image of the 1890 team with similar uniforms. The patent on the back is 1898 so maybe it was made as a 10 year anniversary of the team?
Thursday, June 25, 2026
Howard and Tad Jones Early 1900s Exeter football photos
Here are two amazingly clear Exeter cabinet photos of Tad and Howard Jones. Both brothers went on to play for successful Yale teams of the early 1900s. Following their playing careers they both were successful national championship winning coaches. Tad spent the majority of his coaching career at Yale while his older brother Howard won four National championships coaching USC. They were the first brothers inducted into the college HOF.
Sunday, June 14, 2026
Tuesday, June 2, 2026
1890s Football Player Original Artwork
Here is an interesting drawing of an 1890s football player in uniform. This was done on a cabinet photo and shows signs that it was framed for many years.
Thursday, May 28, 2026
1898 John Eckstorm signed Dartmouth grad photo
Here is a signed 1898 Dartmouth Grad photo of John Eckstorm. He played halfback from 1894-97 and was team captain his senior year. He was also one of the early Ohio State football coaches from 1899-1901.













