1890 An Awkward Start for Ohio State Football

Ohio State started playing college football in 1890, during the leather helmet Era. Ohio State had to start somewhere. This article reviews the roster as best we can. There was a two-season peculiarity in 1890, and Ohio State did not play the University of Michigan (even though they had a team).

The season 134 years ago did not go all that well, as they were 1-4. Total Apex Sports will print one of these articles chronicling Ohio State football’s history per week and will review the roster, the teams in the league, and the record.

Photo bySean BeneshonUnsplash

1890 Ohio State Football Roster

Obviously, all of the players on the team in 1890 have left this world, but the odd thing about the 1890 football season was that it was two seasons: a spring season and a fall season. The roster for the spring football season is a bit incomplete. A senior named Jesse Lee Jones organized and commanded the Ohio State spring football team. Another player on the Ohio State football team was George Cole. Jesse Lee Jones ordered a rule book and a new ball from the Spalding company, which was in Chicago.

The Ohio State football team did not yet have a coach. Herbert Johnson was the right tackle on the spring 1890 Ohio State football team. Johnson went on to invent the electric mixer. That was all the roster information still available for the spring season.

The roster information for the Ohio State football team for the fall season is complete. Right Guard Paul Lincoln was the captain of the fall football team. Alexander S. Lily was the coach of the fall 1890 team. Other players on the team were co-captains Jesse L Jones and Paul Martyn Lincoln, as well as Hamilton Hutchinson Richardson.

Herbert Lincoln Johnston was on the Ohio State football team, other players were, David Silson Hegler, Hiram Edgar Rutan, W.S. Scott, C.C. Schaeffer, A.P. Bronson, H Beatty, H. J. Whitacre, Romeo Orpheus Keiser, Jack Huggins, Charles William Foulk, Walter A Landacre, Joseph H Large, Frank W. Rane, Richard T.B. Ellis, Charles Bradfield Morrey, Walter H. Miller, Arthur H. Kennedy, and Edward D. Martin.

1890 College Football Scene

It is odd to see the list of college teams in Ohio State’s football conference. There were eighteen teams in the conference. There were several who are currently in the Big Ten conference, including the University of Michigan, whom the team did not play in 1890. Nebraska, Minnesota, Northwestern, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin were also teams at the time and are in the current Big Ten Conference,

Washington University, Missouri, Cincinnati, Lake Forrest, Baker, Kansas, Ohio Wesleyan, Doane, Washburn, and Western Reserve also had teams. They are listed in order of their record.

1890 Football Record

The spring football team at Ohio State played only one game. They defeated Ohio Wesleyan 20-14 on the third of May in 1890. The fall team lost all of its games by a lot. They lost 50-0 against Dayton, 64-0 to Wooster, 14-0 to Dennison, and 18-10 to Keyon. The Ohio State football team of 1890 finished with a 1-4 record (They are 5-0 this season).

Conclusion

This is the first in a series of articles on Ohio State football’s history, the next one will be on the 1891 Ohio State football team. In 1890 Ohio State got off to an inauspicious beginning to its illustrious football history.

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This article was written by Kevin Sweeney