University of Chicago - Cap and Gown Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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a single studelnt thereqtomorrgvgu Qflciourse wenhad been having interviews with students for weeks, still he didn't fee sure t at any o y wou appear. The doubts of Dr. l-larper soon dispersed, however, when the Recorders Qffice disclosed that at 5:00 o'clock on the Saturday that schoflhopefnedjive hsndlried and fority atpiplicargtsdhad been admittjed to the Uni- versit. Writin of the events o tat irst ay, r. arper sai : very o y seems in goo spirits . . . The rlegular griflfd begins tomorrow. The days of dreaming are passed and now real action beginsf: Mr. Stagg, filled with an enthusiastic desire to get things under way as soon as possible, didn t wait until tomorrow to beg? hthe griilgd, bit called footiafl practicelon the very day lthaIt:ltheBUfniversity Sopenjd. l-le also ot the rest o is wor we un er way e are sc oo was yet a wee o . e ore t e atur ay of the firssflweek, the atfLletic prograg if thke Ehiol had been organized into the following familiar divisions: football baseball, trac , tennis, an as et a . Speaking of tlgehfirst daydat the Ugversityi, Mngaagg recalls tfie first recrugsh for the fogtbill sq+uad,E1v?F l-l de Park l-li h c oo gra uates. ne, arry ase, now a awyer in icago, an t e ot er, i Mvcfiillivray, niw dead, called on him soon after his arrival to inquire as to football prospects, and on the afternoon of Qctober 1 they and eleven other strangely assorted aspirants turned out for practice in Wash- ington Park. The majority of this number had never played football before, and as all of the other colleges in the Chicago vicinity had been practicing for almost a month, the prospects for a successful season were gndweecil slight..Agvee1k followingfthis first priigtice the team played its initial game against l-lyde Park l-ligh c oo winning y t e margin o two touc owns. . . U , , Duringlthe succeeding two weeks the team won five A ' A ' ' more games from high school and Y. M. C. A. elevens. All of the games were played in Wash- ington Park, free to all who chose to watch. There were by this time fourteen men on the squad, but on many occasions Mr. Stagg himself was forced to participate in order to make a Full team. Cn Qctober QQ the Maroon warriors ventured to tackle someone their own size, playing their first college game against Northwestern. lt was a tie game with neither team scoring. Eleven days later the two teams met once more and Northwestern won 6-4. five more college games were played that season: l.ake Forest was tied 18-18, Michigan won '18-TO, and Purdue overwhelmed the Stagg men 38-O. Cn November 15 Chicago won its first college game from lllinois, WO-4. On Thanksgiving Day, however, lllinois avenged itself by a Q8-'IQ victory. After this first football season, the game attracted widespread interest and commanded the instant favor of students, faculty members, and the general public. But Stagg knew that football could not be played without a college yell with which to cheer the team. Therefore, as general invitation was sent out to the University community to contribute yells. Many were brought out, but the one proposed by Stagg himself fairly earned the title of the official Chicago cheer. Chi-ca-go, Chi-ca-go Chi-ca-go-Gal Go Chi-ca, Go Chi-ca, Go Chi-ca-gol ln describing his first University of Chicago football team, Coach Stagg claimed that in the group picture of the 1892 squad, whiskers and mustaches grew almost as lushly as did the golden- rod on the Chicago prairie. The famous guard, Smith, now professor of chemistry at Lewis lnstitute, had an unrivalled hedge of black, while warhorse Allen, at tackle, wore a flowing moustache of the walrus school. It was during this first year that Mr. field gave the use of the ground north of 57th Street and east of Ellis Avenue for the University games. Temporary stands were built and the famous Marshall Field MV- SWQQ Bfefllfing Ground for the New Field HOUSE- came into being. William Scott Bond in the Background. 'I4 November 1925. 27

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A. A. Stagg, President l-larry Pratt Judson, William Scott Bond. Dedication oF the New West Stand, ' 4 October 1913, at this time, that could not Find a job as coach in the early '90s The game had rapidly outgrown the conFines oF the Big Three and its immediate satellites, and there were Few coaches, all oF whom were in great demand. Stagg had been coaching at Springtield only a short while when a letter came From Doctor William Rainey l-larper inviting Stagg to meet him in New York City to discuss a matter oF great importance. Stagg remembered Dr. l-larper From their agreeable assocations at Yale and it was with great pleasure that he made arrangements to see him. The meeting took place in the Murray l-lotel in New York where, over the breakfast table, Dr. l'larper brought Forth his plans For the creation of the University oF Chicago. Stagg was keenly interested in the project For the new University which would not open its doors For approximately two years. l-lowever, when Dr. l-larper suggested that he head the department oF athletics at a salary oF Si 500 a year, Stagg, not being a person to quickly make up his mind, remained silent For a Few minutes, deliberating the matter. Dr. l-larper, thinking that the question oF salary was making him hesitate, enthusiastically burst in with l II give you S2500 and an associate protessorship, which means an appointment For liFe.,' Still Stagg hesitated, Finding it impossible to make up his mind on the spur oF the moment. Cn Q5 November'l890 he Finally decided to accept the position oFFered at the new University and accordingly wrote to Dr. l-larper stating: ' AFter much thought and prayer l Feel decided that my lite can best be used For my Master's service in the position which you have oFFered. While travelling to Lake Geneva in the summer oF 'l89'l, Stagg stopped oFF For a Few hours in Chicago to look over the University which was to be the dominant interest oF his liFe For so many years to come. It was a rather desolate rural scene which greeted the eyes oF the youthiul coach, the great part oF the land owned by the University being pasture surrounded by barbed wire. The University site and much oF the surrounding countryside was owned by Marshall Field, whose speculations in Chicago real estate were even more praFitable than his great store. At this time the area which was to become the glorious Midway Plaisance oF the great Exposition oF 1893 was a mere strip oF unimproved land just taken over by the park commissioners to join Washington Park with jackson Park. When he returned to the Midway again in September oF 1892 to report For duty, Stagg Found that no one building had yet been completely Finished, the carpenters still being busy putting the Finishing touches on Cobb l-lall which was the First building to be started. l-le tells oF how people entered the building over bare planks, and as there were no knobs, Faculty members carried square pieces oF wood to insert in the doors to turn the latches. No one knew how many students to expect, and nobody knew what they would do with any students who came. The Feelings OF the president, Dr. l-larper, as to what would be the out- come oi the University's First day are admirably described in Goodspeeds History oF the University of Chicago. The First day oF Qctober, 1899, that great day so long anticipated, in preparation For which so many plans had been made and so many labors perFormed, the day on which the doors of the University were to be opened For receiving students and beginning that work oF investigation and instruction which it was hoped would end only with the end oF time-that great day was drawing near. President judson writing oF it, says: 'The night beFore l spent working with Dr. l-larper on the details oF the opening until about midnight at his house. When we had Finished he threw himselF back on the sofa and said, ul wonder if there will be Yu

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Fair Rooters ofthe Nineties Practice in 7907 football was not the only game played that first fall. It preceded tennis by only a few days, and by the last of Qctober the first tennis tournament was held. This was followed by indoor games in the gymnasium during the winter, two tournaments being held to decide the University championship. As there were no courts on the auadrangles the players were forced to do their playing wherever they could hang a net. four courts were begun by the authorities, however, and the Tennis Association was organized in june 7893, to maintain and manage them. ln December of 7892 the temporary gymnasium was finished and enthu- siastic baslcetball candidates began to appear. ln April the first traclt team got together, although there had been tracl4 practices and small meets on the new traclc of the temporary gymnasium. As spring of 7893 rolled around it was only natural that the boys should eagerly await the opening of the baseball season, especially when they had a famous college pitcher as their coach. Stagg says that he did his best to develop a student pitcher for his first baseball team, but the only candidate proved to be so wild in the opening game against Denison University, that Stagg, who had been catching, reversed positions and was obliged to pitch for the remainder of that season. The nine was organized in April and played fourteen games, ten against first-ranl4ing colleges. OF these ten games, Chicago won seven. ln his years at Chicago, Stagg has noticed a diminishing interest in baseball among students as other sports have come in competition with it. Every five years since 7970, however, baseball has boomed in prospect of the quin- auennial trip to japan. - ln those days bicycle races were a recognized part of intercollegiate competition, and in january, 7893, the University Cycling Club was organized. ln the years which followed some champion cyclists were developed who rode their way to fame Hfor the glory of the U. of Cf' Stagg started his 7893 football season with the majority of his 7899 men baclc for worlc, but with little in the way of new material. l-le himself ceased to play in that year. The 7893 team was better than its predecessor, but Chicago could not yet be considered as strong competition. The high school conditioning games were dropped that year and the team played l.alce Forest, Northwestern three times, Michigan twice, Purdue, Qberlin, Armour Institute and Notre Dame. The Big Three of the East had bossed football since 7876, but by 7894 the other colleges of the country began to revolt. ln the Middlewest the president of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, lllinois, Chicago, Northwestern and Purdue met at the suggestion of President Smart of Purdue and the first steps were talten in the organization of what is now the Big len Conference. This committee adopted a set of rules, but they were not uniformly enforced and a year later, aroused by criticism of Minnesota by Caspar Whitney in l-larper's Weelcly, Professor McMillan sent out an invitation to the same colleges to confer again on 8 february 7896. This time the conference idea was accepted, and the trail was blazed which has been followed by seventy or eighty other regional athletic conferences. lowa and lndiana were admitted to the Conference in 7899, and finally Chia State in 7972 to malte it the Big len. Every year since 7895 representatives of Big Ten Schools have met to modify and enlarge the conference rules, to the great benefit of the game. The fresh- man rule, the three-year playing limitation, and the abolition ofthe training table were among the reforms first adopted by the Conference. Stagg remembers 7894 as the busiest of all his football seasons. l-lis team that year played ei hteen regular games and four postseason games, three of which were in California. Chicago was the first Eastern team to appear on the Pacific coast. Clarence l-lerschberger, the first exceptional baclc and punter to appear at Chicago, and the first western player named on Camps All-American team,played his first season on the 7894 team. l-le was not able to play in 7895 because of parental objection, but his parents lifted their prohibition, and he was baclt and starred in '96, '97, and '98. 28