1893 Delaware football team

1893 Delaware football
1893 Delaware football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–1
Head coach	None;
	Seasons ← 1892 1894 →

1893 Southern college football independents records
v t e	Conf			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
Maryland		–		6	–	0	–	0
Texas		–		4	–	0	–	0
Central (KY)		–		2	–	0	–	0
Howard		–		2	–	0	–	0
North Carolina A&M		–		2	–	0	–	0
Vanderbilt		–		6	–	1	–	0
Auburn		–		3	–	0	–	2
Virginia		–		8	–	2	–	0
Ole Miss		–		4	–	1	–	0
Centre		–		4	–	1	–	0
Trinity (NC)		–		3	–	1	–	0
VMI		–		3	–	1	–	0
Kentucky State College		–		5	–	2	–	1
Delaware		–		2	–	1	–	0
Georgia Tech		–		2	–	1	–	0
Guilford		–		2	–	1	–	0
West Virginia		–		2	–	1	–	0
William & Mary		–		2	–	1	–	0
Navy		–		5	–	3	–	0
Richmond		–		3	–	2	–	0
Georgetown		–		4	–	4	–	0
Sewanee		–		3	–	3	–	0
Furman		–		1	–	1	–	0
Georgia		–		2	–	2	–	1
Western Maryland		–		1	–	1	–	0
Johns Hopkins		–		2	–	3	–	2
North Carolina		–		3	–	4	–	0
Tennessee		–		2	–	4	–	0
Tulane		–		1	–	2	–	0
Wake Forest		–		1	–	2	–	0
Hampden–Sydney		–		0	–	1	–	0
LSU		–		0	–	1	–	0
Maryville (TN)		–		0	–	1	–	0
Mercer		–		0	–	1	–	0
Wofford		–		0	–	1	–	0
VAMC		–		0	–	2	–	0
Alabama		–		0	–	4	–	0

The 1893 Delaware football team represented Delaware College—now known as the University of Delaware—as an independent during the 1893 college football season.^[1]

Football in 1893

American football in 1893 was a variant of rugby football, played with a rugby ball and making use of rules closely derived from the original sport. The field of play was 110 yards long and 53-1/3 yards wide, with chalk lines every five yards to help the referee determine necessary distances.^[2] Forward passing was prohibited; only lateral passing or running with the ball was allowed.^[3] Teams of eleven were divided into seven "rushers or forwards" positioned at the line of scrimmage, with four backs behind the line — a quarterback just behind the line, two halfbacks located about two yards behind him, and a fullback or "goal-tend," who stood about a dozen yards behind the halfbacks.^[4]

Kickoffs were generally executed by kicking the ball forward slightly for a self-recovery and quick lateral pass to a teammate who carried the ball in the middle of a V-shaped blocking wedge of his teammates.^[5] When the ball was brought to a standstill, the runner would cry "down" and a line of scrimmage formed, with the "center-rusher" (also called the "snap-back") hiking the ball to the quarterback.^[5] The quarterback would generally pitch the ball to one of the three backs behind him to attempt to run forward, while the defenders would "endeavor by all lawful means to retard that advance."^[6]

The offense would retain the ball if it was able to gain 5 yards in three downs — or by retreating 20 yards towards their own goal line.^[7] The ball would generally be punted away after two downs "if the prospects of completing the 5-yard gain appear small."^[7]

A touchdown counted as 4 points and allowed the scoring team the opportunity to add 2 more points by kicking the ball over the crossbar and through the goal posts, which were planted at the goal line.^[8] After a touchdown, the scoring team had the option of bringing out the ball as far as desired at a right angle from the point at which the ball crossed the goal line (as in modern rugby) and attempting a place kick, or by executing a "punt out" from the end zone to a teammate making a fair catch, from which spot a drop-kick for the extra points could be attempted.^[9]

A drop kick through the goal posts from the field counted as 5 points.^[8] As with the contemporary game, safties counted for 2 points.^[10]

The game consisted of two 45-minute halves with an intermission of 10 minutes, although duration of the game could be shortened by mutual consent.^[10] No coaching was allowed from the sidelines, all game decisions had to be made by the players on the field.^[11] Once removed from the game for a substitute, a player could not return to the game (as in modern soccer).^[12]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
October 23	at Warren Athletic Club of Wilmington	Wilmington, DE	L 0–2	^[13]
November 11	at Philadelphia Manual Training School	Philadelphia, PA	W 44–0	^[14]
November 18	at Dover Conference Academy Athletic Club	Dover, DE	W 58–0	^[15]

References

^ "Delaware Yearly Results: 1890–1894". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
^ Walter Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," in Camp (ed.), Foot-ball Rules and Referee's Book for the Season of 1893–94. New York: A.G. Spalding & Bros., 1893; pp. 3–4.
^ Walter Camp (ed.), "Foot-ball Rules of the American Intercollegiate Association," in Camp (ed.), Foot-ball Rules and Referee's Book for the Season of 1893–94. New York: A.G. Spalding & Bros., 1893; p. 23.
^ Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," p. 5.
^ ^a ^b Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," p. 6.
^ Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," pp. 6–7.
^ ^a ^b Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," p. 7.
^ ^a ^b Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," p. 9.
^ Camp (ed.), "Foot-ball Rules of the American Intercollegiate Association," p. 27.
^ ^a ^b Camp, "An Introductory Chapter for Beginners," p. 11.
^ Camp (ed.), "Foot-ball Rules of the American Intercollegiate Association," p. 19.
^ Camp (ed.), "Foot-ball Rules of the American Intercollegiate Association," p. 17.
^ "Three contests, two in this city, when Wilmington teams gained in a hard tussle". The News Journal. October 23, 1893. Retrieved April 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Delaware College and Manuals". The Philadelphia Times. November 12, 1893. Retrieved April 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Delaware College and WIlmington". The Philadelphia Times. November 19, 1893. Retrieved April 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.