1903 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team

1903 Nebraska Cornhuskers football
1903 Nebraska Cornhuskers football
Conference	Independent
Record	10–0
Head coach	Walter C. Booth (4th season);
Captain	John R. Bender
Home stadium	Antelope Field
	Seasons ← 1902 1904 →

1903 Midwestern college football independents records
v t e	Conf			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
Nebraska		–		11	–	0	–	0
North Dakota		–		7	–	0	–	0
Central Michigan		–		6	–	0	–	0
Notre Dame		–		8	–	0	–	1
Iowa State		–		8	–	1	–	0
Marquette		–		7	–	1	–	0
Lake Forest		–		6	–	1	–	0
North Dakota Agricultural		–		5	–	1	–	0
Haskell		–		7	–	2	–	0
St. Xavier		–		7	–	2	–	0
Fairmount		–		6	–	2	–	0
Wabash		–		9	–	3	–	0
Wittenberg		–		5	–	2	–	1
Doane		–		2	–	1	–	0
Northern Illinois State		–		4	–	2	–	0
American Medical		–		6	–	3	–	0
Kansas		–		6	–	3	–	0
Drake		–		5	–	3	–	0
Kirksville Osteopaths		–		5	–	3	–	0
Iowa State Normal		–		4	–	3	–	1
Ohio Medical		–		5	–	4	–	0
Lincoln (MO)		–		1	–	1	–	0
Michigan State Normal		–		4	–	4	–	0
Washington University		–		4	–	4	–	2
Heidelberg		–		3	–	4	–	2
Kansas State		–		3	–	4	–	1
Detroit College		–		3	–	4	–	0
Shurtleff		–		2	–	4	–	1
Ohio		–		2	–	4	–	0
South Dakota Agricultural		–		1	–	2	–	0
Mount Union		–		2	–	5	–	1
DePauw		–		2	–	6	–	1
Miami (OH)		–		1	–	4	–	0
Missouri		–		1	–	7	–	1
Western Illinois		–		0	–	3	–	1
Cincinnati		–		1	–	8	–	0
Baldwin–Wallace		–		0	–	1	–	0
Buchtel		–		0	–	2	–	0
Butler		–		0	–	3	–	0
Chicago P&S		–		0	–	4	–	0

The 1903 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska as an independent during the 1903 college football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Walter C. Booth, the Cornhuskers compiled a record of 10–0, excluding one exhibition game. Nebraska played home games at Antelope Field in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Nebraska went undefeated for the second straight season, setting a new program record with 22 consecutive victories. One newspaper of the time wrote "Nebraska occupies a unique position in western football. Too strong to find fearful competitors, the Cornhuskers can almost weep with Alexander the Great because they have no more teams to conquer."^[1]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 19	Lincoln High School	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 23–6 (exhibition)
September 26	Grand Island	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 64–0
October 3	South Dakota	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 23–0
October 10	at Denver	Denver, CO	W 10–0
October 17	Haskell	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 16–0	3,000	^[2]
October 24	Colorado	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE (rivalry)	W 31–0
October 31	at Iowa	Iowa Field Iowa City, IA (rivalry)	W 17–6
November 7	Knox (IL)	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 33–5
November 14	at Kansas	Central Park Lawrence, KS (rivalry)	W 6–0
November 21	Bellevue	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 52–0
November 26	Illinois	Antelope Field Lincoln, NE	W 16–0

^[3]

Coaching staff

Coach^[4]^[5]	Position	First year	Alma mater
Walter C. Booth	Head coach	1900	Princeton
John Westover	Assistant coach	1904	Nebraska
Jack Best	Trainer	1890	Nebraska

Roster

^[6]



Bell, Johnny HB Bender, John R. HB Benedict, Maurice QB Borg, Charles C Briggs LT Clark PLAYER Cortelyou, Spencer E Cotton, Charles RG Eager, Earl HB Engelhart, William FB Follmer, Eugene E Graves, Elliot HB Hunter, Fred RG Lantz HB Lesh, W.W. G Marsh, Earl HB Mason, Cyrus LT Mason, John FB Mickel, Oliver FB Perry, F.D. T Ringer, John LG Robertson, Claud RT Shedd, Charlie E Thorpe, Orley E Tobin, John G Wilson, Harry LT

Game summaries

Lincoln High

Lincoln High at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Lincoln High			6
• Nebraska			23

Date: September 19
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

In their sixth exhibition meeting, the Lincoln high schoolers managed to put points on the board against the Cornhuskers for the first time, remarkably ending Nebraska's run of 10 straight shutout victories. Unsurprisingly, though, the University put up more, and pushed the perfect series record to 6-0.^[7]

Grand Island

Grand Island at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Grand Island			0
• Nebraska			64

Date: September 26
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

Nebraska amassed nearly 800 yards of offense against Grand Island in the first meeting between the schools, the tenth straight shutout by the Cornhuskers defense.^[7]^[8]

South Dakota

South Dakota at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
South Dakota			0
• Nebraska			23

Date: October 3
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

Nebraska faced South Dakota for the first time in four years, dominating the Coyotes.^[7]^[8]

At Denver

Nebraska at Denver

	1	2	Total
• Nebraska	0	10	10
Denver	0	0	0

Date: October 10
Location: Denver, CO

Nebraska had 685 yards of offense to Denver's 15 in the first meeting between the schools. Frequent turnovers and a muddy playing surface likely prevented the Cornhuskers from scoring more than ten points.^[7]^[8]

Haskell

Haskell at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Haskell			0
• Nebraska			16

Date: October 17
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE
Game attendance: 3,000

Nebraska dominated Haskell in the 100th game in NU history. Some historical records mention this as the first game in which a Nebraska mascot appeared, in this case a bulldog wearing a scarlet and cream blanket, though records suggest NU may have used a white bull terrier painted half red as a mascot as far back as 1893.^[7]^[8]

Colorado

Colorado at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Colorado			0
• Nebraska			31

Date: October 24
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

Nebraska outgained Colorado 314 to 37 in the third game of the rivalry.^[7]^[8]

At Iowa

Nebraska at Iowa

	1	2	Total
• Nebraska			17
Iowa			6

Date: October 31
Location: Iowa City, IA

After three years without facing the Hawkeyes, Nebraska traveled to Iowa City for the first time. Nebraska's 14-game shutout streak ended after a fumble and penalty allowed Iowa to punch in a touchdown from NU's 2-yard line. Nebraska still won the game for its 18th straight victory.^[7]^[8]

Knox

Knox at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Knox			5
• Nebraska			33

Date: November 7
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

^[7]^[8]

Kansas

Nebraska at Kansas

	1	2	Total
• Nebraska	0	6	6
Kansas	0	0	0

Date: November 14
Location: Central Park, Lawrence, KS

Kansas presented the stiffest challenge of the season for the Cornhuskers, who did not score until minutes remained in the game. That touchdown was enough to win as NU shut out the Jayhawks 6–0.^[7]^[8]

Bellevue

Bellevue at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Bellevue			0
• Nebraska			52

Date: November 21
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

^[7]^[8]

Illinois

Illinois at Nebraska

	1	2	Total
Illinois	0	0	0
• Nebraska	0	16	16

Date: November 26
Location: Antelope Field, Lincoln, NE

Nebraska managed just 58 yards in a scoreless first half, but the Cornhuskers produced 276 yards and 16 points in the second half to defeat the Fighting Illini.^[7]^[8]

References

^ "Husker Football History" (PDF). University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 12, 2011. Retrieved November 14, 2009.
^ "Reds Shut Out". The Sunday State Journal. Lincoln, Nebraska. October 18, 1903. pp. 1–2. Retrieved November 18, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "1903 Nebraska Cornhuskers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
^ "Nebraska head coaches". HuskerMax. Retrieved November 14, 2009.
^ "1902 Sombrero - University of Nebraska Yearbook". University of Nebraska–Lincoln Libraries. Retrieved November 14, 2009.
^ "Nebraska Football 1903 Roster". University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved November 14, 2009.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k "the 1900s". HuskerMax. Retrieved November 14, 2009.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j "1903 Game Recaps". Husker Press Box. Retrieved November 14, 2009.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[1] "Husker Football History" (PDF). University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 12, 2011. Retrieved November 14, 2009.

[2] "Reds Shut Out". The Sunday State Journal. Lincoln, Nebraska. October 18, 1903. pp. 1–2. Retrieved November 18, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .

[3] "1903 Nebraska Cornhuskers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 2, 2019.

[4] "Nebraska head coaches". HuskerMax. Retrieved November 14, 2009.

[5] "1902 Sombrero - University of Nebraska Yearbook". University of Nebraska–Lincoln Libraries. Retrieved November 14, 2009.

[6] "Nebraska Football 1903 Roster". University of Nebraska–Lincoln Athletics Department. Retrieved November 14, 2009.

[1900s-7] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k "the 1900s". HuskerMax. Retrieved November 14, 2009.

[ref1903-8] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j "1903 Game Recaps". Husker Press Box. Retrieved November 14, 2009.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

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v t e Nebraska Cornhuskers football
Venues	Lincoln Park (1891–1893) Antelope Field (1894–1908) Nebraska Field (1909–1922) Memorial Stadium (1923–present)
Bowls and rivalries	Bowl games Colorado (Buffalo Head) Iowa (Heroes Trophy) Kansas Kansas State Miami (FL) Minnesota ($5 Bits of Broken Chair) Missouri (Victory Bell) Oklahoma Wisconsin (Freedom Trophy)
Culture and lore	History Herbie Husker Lil' Red "Dear Old Nebraska U" "Hail Varsity" Cornhusker Marching Band Blackshirts Origin of "Cornhuskers" nickname 1939 Kansas State game Game of the Century (1971 Oklahoma game) Fumblerooski 1982 Penn State game Flea Kicker Black 41 Flash Reverse Pass 2009 Big 12 Championship Game Yes Man
People	Head coaches All-Americans Athletic directors College Football Hall of Famers NFL draftees Pro Football Hall of Famers Statistical leaders
Seasons	1890 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
National championship seasons in bold