1899 Columbia Blue and White football team

The 1899 Columbia Blue and White football team was an American football team that represented Columbia University as an independent during the 1899 college football season. In its first season under head coach George Sanford, the team compiled a 9–3 record and outscored opponents by a total of 224 to 91, including eight shutouts.[1][2] The 1899 season marked Columbia's return to the sport after not participating in intercollegiate football from 1892 to 1898.[2] Robert R. Wilson was the 1899 team captain.[2]

1899 Columbia Blue and White football
Conference	Independent
1899 record	9–3
Head coach	George Sanford (1st season)
Captain	Robert R. Wilson
Home stadium	Manhattan Field

1899 Eastern college football independents records
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Harvard			–					10	–	0	–	1
Buffalo			–					6	–	0	–	0
Lafayette			–					12	–	1	–	0
Princeton			–					12	–	1	–	0
Boston College			–					8	–	1	–	1
Carlisle			–					9	–	2	–	0
Wesleyan			–					7	–	2	–	0
Pittsburgh College			–					2	–	0	–	2
Villanova			–					7	–	2	–	1
Yale			–					7	–	2	–	1
Western Univ. of Penn.			–					3	–	1	–	1
Columbia			–					9	–	3	–	0
Fordham			–					3	–	1	–	0
Cornell			–					7	–	3	–	0
Penn			–					8	–	3	–	2
Brown			–					7	–	3	–	1
Geneva			–					2	–	1	–	0
New Hampshire			–					4	–	2	–	0
Tufts			–					7	–	4	–	0
Bucknell			–					6	–	4	–	0
Syracuse			–					4	–	4	–	0
Army			–					4	–	5	–	0
Colgate			–					4	–	5	–	0
Penn State			–					4	–	6	–	1
Frankin & Marshall			–					3	–	5	–	1
Amherst			–					4	–	7	–	1
NYU			–					2	–	6	–	0
Temple			–					1	–	4	–	1
Lehigh			–					2	–	9	–	0
Rutgers			–					2	–	9	–	0

On October 28, 1899, Columbia defeated Yale, 5–0. The result was described by The New York Times as "one of the most disastrous defeats Yale has ever experienced in her athletic history."[3] Columbia's freshman back Harold Weekes scored the game's only points on a long touchdown run in the middle of the second half.[3]

Three Columbia received honors on the 1899 All-America team: center Jack Wright (Walter Camp second team; New York Sun first team);[4][5] Weekes (Walter Camp second team);[4] and back Bill Morley (Outing Magazine second team).[6]

Columbia's sports teams were commonly called the "Blue and White" in this era, but had no official nickname. The name "Lions" would not be adopted until 1910.[7]

The team played its home games at Manhattan Field, also known as Polo Grounds II, in Upper Manhattan in New York City.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 23		at Walton	Margaretville, NY	W 30–6		[8]
October 3		at Rutgers	Neilson Field New Brunswick, NJ	W 26–0		[9]
October 7		at Union (NY)	Ridgefield Albany, NY	W 21–0	600	[10]
October 14	2:45 p.m.	Princeton	Manhattan Field New York, NY	L 0–11		[11]
October 18		NYU	Manhattan Field New York, NY	W 40–0
October 21		Amherst	Manhattan Field New York, NY	W 18–0
October 28		Yale	Manhattan Field New York, NY	W 5–0	5,000	[3]
November 1		at Stevens	St. George's Cricket Club grounds Hoboken, NJ	W 46–0
November 7		Cornell	Manhattan Field New York, NY (rivalry)	L 0–29
November 11		at Army	The Plain West Point, NY	W 16–0
November 18		Dartmouth	Manhattan Field New York, NY	W 22–0
November 30		Carlisle	Manhattan Field New York, NY	L 0–45

References

1. "1899 Columbia Lions Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
2. "Columbia Football 2018 Record Book" (PDF). Columbia University. 2018. p. 197 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Columbia Beats Yale at Football". The New York Times. October 29, 1899. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Sport of the Amateur on Field and Water". Collier's Weekly. 24 (15): 20. January 13, 1900 – via Google books.
5. "Other All-America Football Teams". The Philadelphia Inquirer. December 11, 1899.
6. "Football" (PDF). The Outing Magazine. Jan 1900.
7. "How Columbia Became the Lions". Columbia Football 2019 Record Book. New York, N.Y.: Columbia University. p. 238. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
8. "Columbia Plays Her First Game and Wins From Walton, 30 to 6". The Sun. September 24, 1899. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Columbia's First Game". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. October 4, 1899. p. 13. Retrieved May 2, 2020 – via Newspapers.com .
10. "Columbia, 21; Union, 0". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. October 8, 1899. p. 40. Retrieved May 2, 2020 – via Newspapers.com .
11. "Princeton 11, Columbia 0". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. October 15, 1899. p. 19. Retrieved May 2, 2020 – via Newspapers.com .