1917 Florida Gators football team

The 1917 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1917 college football season. The season was Alfred L. Buser's first of three as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. The 1917 season was a disappointment. Buser's 1917 Florida Gators completed their football season with an SIAA conference record of 1–3[1] and an overall record of 2–4.[2]

1917 Florida Gators football
ConferenceSouthern Intercollegiate Athletic Association
1917 record2–4 (1–3 SIAA)
Head coach
CaptainArtie Fuller, Rowdy Bill Wilkinson
Home stadiumUniversity Athletic Field
1917 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Georgia Tech $ 4 0 0  9 0 0
Auburn 5 1 0  6 2 1
Clemson 5 1 0  6 2 0
Centre 1 0 0  7 1 0
Mississippi A&M 3 1 0  6 1 0
Alabama 3 1 1  5 2 1
Sewanee 4 2 1  5 2 1
Tulane 2 1 0  5 3 0
Vanderbilt 3 2 0  5 3 0
LSU 2 3 0  3 5 0
South Carolina 2 3 0  3 5 0
Wofford 1 2 0  5 4 0
Furman 1 3 0  3 5 0
Florida 1 3 0  2 4 0
Ole Miss 1 4 0  1 4 1
The Citadel 0 2 0  3 3 0
Howard (AL) 0 3 0  0 3 0
Mississippi College 0 4 0  0 4 0
  • $ Conference champion
  • There were several SIAA schools that did not field a team due to World War I.

Before the season

Coach Buser was a former All-American lineman for the Wisconsin Badgers, and promised to bring a Midwestern power football style of play to revive the Gators after the winless 1916 season.[3] Captain "Rowdy Bill" Wilkinson was the team's only returning letterman.[4]

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResult
October 13South CarolinaW 21–13
October 20Tulane
  • Fleming Field
  • Gainesville, FL
L 0–52
October 27Florida Southern*
  • Fleming Field
  • Gainesville, FL
W 19–7
November 3at AuburnL 0–68
November 17vs. ClemsonJacksonville, FLL 7–55
November 29at Kentucky*L 0–52
  • *Non-conference game

Primary source: 2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide.[2]

Season summary

South Carolina

South Carolina at Florida
1 234Total
South Carolina 0 706 13
Florida 0 0210 21

On opening day, Florida came from behind with three touchdowns in the third quarter to beat South Carolina 2113.[3]

The starting lineup was Clemmons (left end), Wurtrich (left tackle), Connell (left guard), Wells (center), Swink (right guard), Brannon (right tackle), Thomas (right end), Fuller (quarterback), Wilkinson (left halfback), Ball (right halfback), Lightsey (fullback).[3]

Tulane

Tulane at Florida
1 234Total
Tulane 7 20186 51
Florida 0 000 0

Tulane overwhelmed the Gators 520,[5] several times skirting the ends for long gains.[6] The Gators were frequently penalized for offsides and hurdling.[6]

The starting lineup was Clemmons (left end), Wurtrich (left tackle), Connell (left guard), Wells (center), Otto (right guard), Brannon (right tackle), Thomas (right end), Fuller (quarterback), Wilkinson (left halfback), Ball (right halfback), Lightsey (fullback).[5]

Florida Southern

Florida Southern at Florida
1 234Total
Southern 0 070 7
Florida 6 067 19

The Gators extended their winning streak over the Florida Southern Moccasins to four games, winning 197.[7] After the first ten minutes, Florida replaced its backfield with second-string men.[7]

The starting lineup was Clemmons (left end), Wutrich (left tackle), Swink (left guard), Dye (center), Cornell (right guard), Brannon (right tackle), Thomas (right end), Fuller (quarterback), Marshall (left halfback), Leifeste (right halfback), Lightsey (fullback).[7]

Auburn

Florida at Auburn
1 234Total
Florida 0 000 0
Auburn 14 192114 68

Florida endured its sixth-straight loss to coach Mike Donahue's Auburn team. The Plainsmen had their biggest win on the season over Florida, 680.[8]

The starting lineup was Clemmons (left end), Wutrich (left tackle), Connell (left guard), Dye (center), Otto (right guard), Brannon (right tackle), Thomas (right end), Fuller (quarterback), Wilkinson (left halfback), Ball (right halfback), Fernald (fullback).[8]

Clemson

Clemson at Florida
1 234Total
Clemson 21 7207 55
Florida 0 007 7

Clemson defeated the Gators 557.[9] Florida's only score came on a forward pass, Loomis to Thomas.[9]

The starting lineup was Clemmons (left end), Wutrich (left tackle), Connell (left guard), Dye (center), Otto (right guard), Brannon (right tackle), Thomas (right end), Loomis (quarterback), Wilkinson (left halfback), Ball (right halfback), Lightsey (fullback).[9]

Kentucky

Florida at Kentucky
1 234Total
Florida 0 000 0
Kentucky 13 13206 52

On Thanksgiving, in the school's first-ever game against the Kentucky Wildcats, Florida lost 520.[10] Kentucky used its substitutes by the second half.[11]

The starting lineup was Clemmons (left end), Wuthrich (left tackle), Connell (left guard), Dye (center), Gunn (right guard), Brannon (right tackle), Thomas (right end), Loomis (quarterback), Wilkinson (left halfback), Ball (right halfback), Fernald (fullback).[10]

Personnel

Line

Player Position Games
started
Hometown Prep school Height Weight Age
Cutie BrannonTackle6Gainesville5'7"17021
Gordon ClemmonsEnd6Plant City5'10"14019
Harvey ConnellGuard6Orlando6'0"18019
Colonel DyeCenter4Bradentown5'11"17019
Rat Paul HaymanEndPunta Gorda5'7"15021
P. C. SwinkGuard, tackle2Spartanburg, SC5'10"15520
Clarence ThomasEnd6Gainesville5'11"16018
Fats WuthrichTackle6Brewster5'8"17020

Backfield

Player Position Games
started
Hometown Prep school Height Weight Age
Heinie BallHalfback5Sanford5'5"15520
Billy CanovaQuarterbackLake City5'6"15019
Fernie FernaldFullback2Tarpon Springs5'9"15518
Horace LoomisQuarterback2Plant City5'9"13519
Alf MarshallHalfback1Clearwater5'7"14521
Rowdy Bill WilkinsonHalfback5Gainesville5'8"14525

Coaching staff

  • Head coach: Al Buser
  • Manager: W. E. Stone
  • Assistant managers: E. B. Casler, J. W. Dalton[12]

References

  1. Roger Saylor, "Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association Archived 2011-05-26 at WebCite," College Football Historical Society, The LA84 Foundation (1993). Retrieved September 11, 2010.
  2. 2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide Archived 2015-12-08 at the Wayback Machine, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 107 (2015). Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  3. "Gators Smash Carolina Defense And Win Brilliant 21-13 Victory". The Florida Alligator. October 17, 1917.
  4. University of Florida 1918, p. 73
  5. "Tulane Swamps The Alligators". The Florida Alligator. October 24, 1917.
  6. "Tulane 52, Florida 0". The Atlanta Constitution. October 21, 1917. p. 4. Retrieved July 26, 2016 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Southern Puts Up A Stiff Fight But Gators Prove Too Strong". The Florida Alligator. October 31, 1917.
  8. "Auburn Had Little Trouble Defeating The Light Gator Eleven". The Florida Alligator. November 7, 1917.
  9. Roy L. Bishop (November 21, 1917). "Superior Weight of Clemson Eleven Enabled Them To Defeat Florida Team". The Florida Alligator.
  10. "Florida Loses To Kentucky 52-0". The Florida Alligator. December 5, 1917.
  11. "State Wins Final Game". The Courier Journal. November 30, 1917. p. 7. Retrieved July 26, 2016 via Newspapers.com.
  12. University of Florida 1918, pp. 72–77

Bibliography

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