1896 Holy Cross football team

American college football season

1896 Holy Cross football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–2–2
Head coach	Alfred C. N. Petersen (1st season)
Captain	John J. Finn
Home stadium	Worcester Agricultural Fairgrounds, Worcester College Grounds
Seasons← 18951897 →

1896 Eastern college football independents records
v t e	Conf			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
Fordham		–		1	–	0	–	0
Lafayette		–		11	–	0	–	1
Princeton		–		10	–	0	–	1
Washington & Jefferson		–		8	–	0	–	1
Penn		–		14	–	1	–	0
Yale		–		13	–	1	–	0
Pittsburgh College		–		11	–	2	–	0
Buffalo		–		9	–	1	–	2
Villanova		–		10	–	4	–	0
Bucknell		–		5	–	2	–	1
Harvard		–		7	–	4	–	0
Boston College		–		5	–	3	–	0
Storrs		–		5	–	3	–	0
Cornell		–		5	–	3	–	1
Syracuse		–		5	–	3	–	2
Temple		–		3	–	2	–	0
Army		–		3	–	2	–	1
Rutgers		–		6	–	6	–	0
Carlisle		–		5	–	5	–	0
Holy Cross		–		2	–	2	–	2
Brown		–		4	–	5	–	1
Wesleyan		–		4	–	5	–	1
Frankin & Marshall		–		3	–	4	–	2
Geneva		–		3	–	4	–	0
Penn State		–		3	–	4	–	0
Colgate		–		3	–	4	–	1
Amherst		–		3	–	6	–	1
Western Univ. Penn.		–		3	–	6	–	0
Lehigh		–		2	–	5	–	0
Tufts		–		2	–	6	–	1
Swarthmore		–		2	–	6	–	0
New Hampshire		–		1	–	4	–	0
Drexel		–		1	–	5	–	0
Massachusetts		–		0	–	4	–	0
Rhode Island		–		0	–	4	–	0

The 1896 Holy Cross football team was an American football team that represented the College of the Holy Cross as an independent in the 1896 college football season.

In their first year under head coach Alfred C. N. Petersen, the team compiled a 2–2–2 record. John J. Finn was the team captain.

Holy Cross' record book considers this its first season of varsity football play. It also featured the first game in the Boston College–Holy Cross football rivalry, as well as the most controversial game in the history of the rivalry – and of Holy Cross football. BC and HC each claim to have won the November 14 rematch game, after both teams refused to follow referees' instructions following a controversial play with three minutes remaining in the game. Holy Cross was leading 6-4 when Boston College scored what its players, and a raucous home crowd, asserted was the go-ahead touchdown; Holy Cross maintained the runner had been tackled for a loss. Officials initially ruled in favor of Holy Cross, and Boston College's players protested by refusing to take the field, leading the officials to declare a 6-4 Holy Cross win. Under pressure from the South End Grounds crowd, however, they reversed their decision and asked Holy Cross, whose players were already celebrating their win, to resume play. Holy Cross refused. The game restarted with only Boston College players, who promptly scored a touchdown (then worth 4 points) to end the game with an 8-6 victory. Decades later, the two colleges continued to disagree on who had won the game. Because of the disputed win, some statisticians list Holy Cross with a 1–3–2 record in 1896.

One of Holy Cross' star players this year was Louis Sockalexis, a multi-sport athlete who later found fame as the first Native American player in Major League Baseball.

Holy Cross played its home games at two off-campus fields in Worcester, Massachusetts, the Worcester Agricultural Fairgrounds and the Worcester College Grounds.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance
October 17	Worcester Tech	Worcester Agricultural Fairgrounds Worcester, MA	L 0–10
October 24	Boston University	Worcester College Grounds Worcester, MA	T 0–0	500
October 31	Newton A.A.	Worcester College Grounds Worcester, MA	T 0–0
November 7	Boston College	Worcester College Grounds Worcester, MA (rivalry)	L 2–6
November 14	at Boston College	South End Grounds Boston, MA	W 6–4	500
November 27	Worcester Academy	Worcester College Grounds Worcester, MA	W 14–0

References

^ "2019 Holy Cross Football Fact Book" (PDF). Worcester, Mass.: College of the Holy Cross. p. 117. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
"2019 Holy Cross Football Fact Book" (PDF). Worcester, Mass.: College of the Holy Cross. p. 81. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
Birtwell, Roger (November 22, 1953). "Who Won that 1896 Game Anyhow? B.C. or Holy Cross?". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 58 – via Newspapers.com.
"Holy Cross and B.U. Tie". The Sunday Post. Boston, Mass. October 25, 1896. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
"Neither Side Scored". The Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. November 1, 1896. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
"Boston College, 6; Holy Cross, 2". The Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. November 8, 1896. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
"Boston College 8, Holy Cross 6". The Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. November 15, 1896. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.

v t e Holy Cross Crusaders football
Venues	Worcester College Grounds (1896–1902) Worcester Oval (1897–1902) Fitton Field (1903–present)
Bowls & rivalries	1946 Orange Bowl Boston College Fordham: Ram–Crusader Cup Sacred Cod Trophy
Culture & lore	The Crusader "Chu! Chu! Rah! Rah!" Holy Cross Goodtime Marching Band 2021 Patriot League Football Championship Game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

This college football 1890s season article is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it.

Categories: