In a League of Their Own

In football, sometimes ending an era is lor the tetter.

1876

Students, inspired by the first Harvard-Yale game, put up goal posts. The College takes them down.

1880

Football becomes an official College sport. In uniforms borrowed from Princeton, the Green waits for action. Opposing teams, however, refuse to travel all the way to Hanover. On the other hand, the faculty bans away games.

1882

The Dartmouth-McGill game becomes an exercise in international diplomacy. Should football be played Canadian-style with 15 players, or American-style with 11? The team captains agree to field 13 players each.

1883

The team's training diet includes rare beef three times daily and two mugs of Bass ale with dinner.

1884

Dartmouth convinces Yale, regarded as the best team in the nation, to engage the Big Green. Yale wins 113 to 0 and the Yale Jinx is born.

1885

Football season is canceled due to lack of interest.

1898

Dartmouth plays away games against Brown, the University of Chicago, and the University of Cincinnati during the six-day Thanks giving break.

1903

Harvard Stadium is completed. The Crimson stacks the deck for a hometown victory by substituting Dartmouth (0-18 against Harvard) for Yale as its inaugural opponent. Harvard fumbles the second play of the game. Dartmouth recovers and scores. Dartmouth wins 11-0.

1925

Dartmouth goes undefeated. It does not play Yale.

1935

Dartmouth beats Yale. A wooden tombstone, inscribed with the words, "Yale jinx. Born 1884. Died 1934," appears on the Green.

1937

New York sportswriter Caswell Adams dubs Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia, Harvard, Yale, Penn, Cornell, and Princeton as the "Ivy League." The moniker sticks.

1939

An article about corruption in college football appears in the American Mercury. Dartmouth is cited for questionable recruiting and admissions practices. A linebacker tells the reporter that alumni regularly send him cash.

1954

The Ivy agreement is formally signed. It establishes standards for play and academics, and bans post-season play.

These champs were creamed by Penn, Princeton, and Harvard. Lucky for them, those schools were in league.