The 1928 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 1928 Southern Conference football season. The season was future Hall-of-Famer Charlie Bachman's first of five as the team's head coach. The Gators finished 8–1 overall,2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 108 & 115 (2015). Retrieved August 15, 2015. and 6–1 in the Southern Conference (SoCon), placing third of twenty-three teams in the conference, behind the national champion Georgia Tech Golden Tornado (7–0 SoCon), and the Tennessee Volunteers (6–0–1 SoCon).2009 Southern Conference Football Media Guide, Year-by-Year Standings , Southern Conference, Spartanburg, South Carolina, p. 74 (2009). Retrieved August 30, 2010.
The Gators led the nation in scoring with 336 points, and were remembered by many sports commentators as the best Florida football team until at least the 1960s. The large scores were mostly due to its "Phantom Four" backfield which included: quarterback Clyde Crabtree, halfbacks Carl Brumbaugh and Royce Goodbread, and fullback Rainey Cawthon. Other backs who were key contributors included: captain Goof Bowyer, sophomore halfback Lee Roy "Red" Bethea, alternate-captain and halfback Tommy Owens, and fullback Ed Sauls. One account reads: "There were twelve backs on the squad. Six of them can do the hundred in 10.1 seconds. Eight of them are fine punters and ten of them are great passers. And all of them are good receivers."
At ends were future coach Dutch Stanley, and Florida's first-ever, first-team All-American, Dale Van Sickel. Van Sickel and quarterback Crabtree, who was ambidextrous and could throw passes with either hand, or punt with either foot, while on the run or stationary, were both unanimous All-Southern selections.
Among the many football highlights of 1928 were the Gators' 26–6 victory over the Georgia Bulldogs, which ended a six-game losing streak versus the Bulldogs, and the controversial loss to Tennessee ending their bid at an undefeated season and possible Rose Bowl berth.
Before the season Head coach Charlie Bachman succeeded Tom Sebring, his former player at Kansas State. Bachman had attended Notre Dame and used Knute Rockne's system. Sebring graduated from the University of Florida's College of Law, and left Bachman several recruits.
Players not returning from the previous season included: Horse Bishop, Cecil Beck, Speedy Walker, Tom Fuller, Charlie Tucker, and Bill Middlekauff. Practice was opened on September 3. A wealth of talented players from Florida high schools was expected. After spending just two weeks with the team, while many players were engaged in other sports, Bachman declared his backfield material as the finest he ever had.
John J. Tigert became UF president in 1928, and began a drive to construct a new and larger stadium upon his arrival.
Schedule
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Game summaries Week 1: Southern College
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In the first game of the 1928 season, the Gators posted a 26–0 victory over Southern College, whose quarterback weighed just . The Gators were held scoreless in the first half of the game, and achieved only two first downs; but then scored 26 points in the third quarter.
The starting lineup was: W. DeHoff (left end), Norfleet (left tackle), Grandoff (left guard), Clemons (center), Perry (right guard), Hicks (right tackle), Green (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Bethea (left halfback), Owens (right halfback), and Sauls (fullback).
Week 2: Auburn
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In the second week of play, the Gators easily defeated the Auburn Tigers 27–0. Carl Brumbaugh ran for three touchdowns in a single quarter, including one scoring run of 85 yards. The other touchdown occurred near the start of the second quarter, when Royce Goodbread carried a pass from Clyde Crabtree 16 yards to the goal. Dutch Stanley kicked the extra point.
In less than three quarters of play, Crabtree had directed 8 touchdowns. Crabtree was an ambidextrous triple threat, able to pass with either arm and punt with either foot, and both while on the run. Crabtree said he learned this technique "from sheer fright." Assistant Nash Higgins added "he played by instinct." "He was a double-quadruple option." said coach Bachman.
It began to rain as the third quarter started, and the Gators' substitutes were on the field. This hampered play and prevented a larger score. The rain sent the 6,000 spectators seeking shelter.
The starting lineup was: Green (left end), Norfleet (left tackle), McRae (left guard), Clemons (center), Houser (right guard), Hicks (right tackle), Nolan (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Bethea (left halfback), Van Sickel (right halfback), and Brumbaugh (fullback).
Week 3: Mercer
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During Florida's homecoming celebrations, the Gators played coach Bernie Moore's Mercer Bears, winning 73–0, and setting a scoring mark that remains the fifth-highest single-game scoring total in team history. Tommy Owens scored four touchdowns, tying a school record; Brumbaugh scored three touchdowns; and Bowyer, Sauls, McEwan, and Stanley had one each. The Mercer Cluster wrote: "The student body is laughing at the football team." This was the last time Florida played Mercer.
The starting lineup was: Green (left end), Norfleet (left tackle), Grandoff (left guard), Bono (center), Houser (right guard), Hicks (right tackle), Nolan (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), McEwen (left halfback), Owens (right halfback), and Sauls (fullback).
Week 4: North Carolina State
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Because of the hot autumn weather in Gainesville, the Gators had begun practicing at night. In a closely contested game, the Gators defeated coach Gus Tebell's North Carolina State Wolfpack 14–7 in Jacksonville, Florida, in front of an audience of 13,000.
Both of Florida's touchdowns were scored by Royce Goodbread on 70-yard runs. One of those was around left end, and the other was a punt return. Dutch Stanley missed both extra points after the Gators' two touchdowns, but Rainey Cawthon made up for it when he netted a safety. The Wolfpack scored on the return of a punt blocked off the toe of Gators team captain Goof Bowyer. Just before the game ended, the Wolfpack missed on a long pass to a receiver with a clear field to the goal.
The starting lineup was: Green (left end), Waters (left tackle), McRae (left guard), Bono (center), Houser (right guard), Allen (right tackle), Nolan (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), McEwen (left halfback), Owens (right halfback), and Sauls (fullback).
Week 5: Sewanee
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In the fifth week, Florida crushed the mismatched Sewanee Tigers 71–6 in Jacksonville despite Sewanee's highly publicized aerial attack. Clyde Crabtree and Tommy Owens had to sit out with injuries. Goof Bowyer, Red Bethea, and Broward McClellan were seen as the stars of the game. The Gators played substitutes throughout the second half, putting the first stringers back in by the middle of the fourth quarter. Florida's center, Frank Clark, also drew praise for his play on the line. This score placed the Gators in first place for scoring within the Southern Conference, and still remains one of the seven highest single-game scoring totals in Gators team history.
The scoring started in the first period after some three minutes when Red Bethea caught a 25-yard pass from Goof Bowyer and ran the additional 10 yards for a touchdown. Bethea also had a 14-yard touchdown run in the second period, and a 58-yard touchdown run in the third. Royce Goodbread had two touchdowns, on end runs around the Sewanee line of 15 and 25 yards. Ed Sauls also had two touchdowns, including the second-half kickoff return for 75 yards and a score. Bowyer, Cawthon, Clark, and McClellan all had one touchdown each. Bowyer netted four extra points, and the Gators had another conversion due to a Sewanee penalty.
The starting lineup was: Green (left end), Waters (left tackle), Grandoff (left guard), Clark (center), Houser (right guard), Hicks (right tackle), Nolan (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Bethea (left halfback), Yancey (right halfback), and Sauls (fullback).
Week 6: at Georgia
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Before the 1928 Florida–Georgia game, Georgia fans trumpeted the return of center Ike Boland to bolster its defense. Florida's defense, however, rendered the Georgia Bulldogs' running game, including that of fullback Herdis McCrary, ineffective en route to a 26–6 victory. This was Florida's first victory over Georgia in seven match-ups and solidified the Gators as legitimate contenders for their first-ever conference title. Two Bulldogs' fumbles, and two Gators pass plays, accounted for Florida's four touchdowns.
The first score came after Rip Reeves recovered a Georgia fumble at the 30-yard line. On the second play after this, Red Bethea ran off left tackle for a touchdown. Goof Bowyer missed the extra point. By the second quarter Georgia had failed to consistently move the ball on the ground against Florida's line and tried to pass. Bulldogs' quarterback H. F. Johnson completed a 10-yard pass to back Frank Dudley, who ran 30 additional yards for a touchdown. Johnson missed the extra point and the score was tied. A 16-yard touchdown run by Florida's Clyde Crabtree, starting around right end, then reversing field, broke the tie. Carl Brumbaugh converted the extra point.
A touchdown pass reception by end Dale Van Sickel of more than 30 yards provided another score in the third period, followed by Brumbaugh's extra point kick. To close the third quarter, fullback Rainey Cawthon made a 40-yard broken field run. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Crabtree passed to Brumbaugh for another score, but Brumbaugh's extra point attempt was blocked by the Bulldogs. In the middle of the fourth quarter, Gator fans rushed the field to tear down the goal posts, and fist fights broke out between Georgia and Florida fans.
The starting lineup was: Van Sickel (left end), J. Clemons (left tackle), Steele (left guard), Clark (center), Reeves (right guard), Bryan (right tackle), Stanley (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Goodbread (left halfback), Bethea (right halfback), and Sauls (fullback).
Week 7: Clemson
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Coach Josh Cody's Clemson Tigers, captained by O. K. Pressley, held extra practices to prepare for the undefeated Gators.
Clemson scored first on a 30-yard pass, leading 6–0 after the first quarter. From then on the Gators dominated, winning 27 to 6. Brumbaugh, Van Sickel, and Bethea were cited as players of the game. In the second quarter, Florida's Owens went around end and Brumbaugh finished the drive with a touchdown.
Florida used both the run and the pass effectively, as Bethea "looked for all the world like the famous Red Grange" according to Associated Press (AP) staff writer Benton E. Jacobs. Florida's second touchdown occurred in the second half, when Bethea caught a pass that went 25 yards in the air, and when he gathered it ran 36 yards more for the score. The third score came in the fourth quarter on a pass from Crabtree to Cawthon. The Gators' fourth and final score was on a pass from Brumbaugh to Van Sickel.
The starting lineup was: Green (left end), Waters (left tackle), McRae (left guard), B. Clemons (center), Allen (right guard), Hicks (right tackle), Nolan (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Bethea (left halfback), Goodbread (right halfback), and Sauls (fullback).
Week 8: Washington & Lee
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