The 1890 college football season was the season of American football played among colleges and universities in the United States during the 1890–91 academic year.
The 1890 Harvard Crimson football team compiled a perfect 11–0 record, outscored opponents by a total of 555 to 12, and was recognized as the national champion by the Billingsley Report, Helms Athletic Foundation, Houlgate System, National Championship Foundation, and Parke H. Davis.
In the Midwest, the Baker Methodists defeated the Kansas Jayhawks by a score of 22–9 in the first college football game played in Kansas. In the South, Vanderbilt Commodores defeated Nashville (Peabody), 40–0, in the first college football game played in Tennessee.
As the popularity of the sport increased, several notable programs were established in 1890, including Ohio State, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Vanderbilt.
All eleven players selected by Caspar Whitney for the 1890 All-America college football team came from the Big Three (Harvard Princeton, and Yale). Three of the honorees have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame: Harvard's great tackle Marshall "Ma" Newell, Yale's guard Pudge Heffelfinger, and Yale's halfback Thomas "Bum" McClung.
Conference and program changes School 1889 Conference 1890 Conference Army Black Knights Program established Independent Butler Bulldogs Independent IIAA Colorado Silver and GoldProgram establishedIndependent DePauw TigersIndependent IIAA Earlham Hustlin' QuakersIndependent IIAA Hanover PanthersIndependent IIAA Illinois Illini Program EstablishedIndependent Indiana State Normal SycamoresIndependent IIAA Indiana HoosiersIndependent IIAAKansas JayhawksProgram Established Independent Missouri TigersProgram EstablishedIndependentNashville Program Established Independent Nebraska Program Established IndependentOhio State BuckeyesProgram EstablishedIndependent Purdue BoilermakersIndependent IIAA Rose Polytechnic EngineersIndependent IIAA Vanderbilt football Program Established Independent Wabash Little GiantsIndependent IIAA Western Reserve football Program establishedIndependent
Awards and honors
All-Americans
The consensus All-America team included: PositionNameHeightWeight (lbs.)ClassHometownTeamQBDudley DeanSr.Lake Village, New HampshireHarvardHBBum McClung5'10"165Jr.Knoxville, TennesseeYaleHBJohn J. CorbettFr.Boston, MassachusettsHarvardFBSheppard Homans, Jr.Jr.Englewood, New JerseyPrincetonEFrank HallowellSo.Medford, MassachusettsHarvardTMarshall Newell5'7"168Fr.Great Barrington, MassachusettsHarvardGPudge Heffelfinger6'4"178Jr.Minneapolis, MinnesotaYaleCJohn CranstonSr.Sheridan, New YorkHarvardGJesse RiggsJr.Baltimore, MarylandPrincetonTWilliam RhodesSr.Cleveland, OhioYaleERalph WarrenJr.Montclair, New JerseyPrinceton
Statistical leaders Player scoring most points: Philip King, Princeton, 145
Conference standings The following is a potentially incomplete list of conference standings:
Independents
References