1896 VPI football team

The 1896 VPI football team represented Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute in the 1896 college football season. The team was led by their head coach Arlie C. Jones and finished with a record of five wins, two losses, and one tie (5–2–1).

Schedule

Game summaries Alleghany Institute VPI's first game of the season was a victory over the Alleghany Institute at Sheib Field.

Cancelled St. Albans Game A game against St. Albans Lutheran Boys School was scheduled to be played on October 17, 1896 in Radford, Virginia. However, the game was not played after a dispute between both teams regarding the amateur eligibility of players on both sides.

Roanoke After their victory over Alleghany, VPI played Roanoke College at Sheib Field.

The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Mayer (left guard), Thomas (center), Pelter (right guard), R. Herbert (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback).

The starting lineup for Roanoke was: M. G. Jones (left end), Bales (left tackle), Terry (left guard), Keister (center), McClintic (right guard), Claiborne (right tackle), Robertson (right end), Hatcher (quarterback), Akard (left halfback), Miller (right halfback), Jones (fullback). The substitutes were: Boyd and Downing.

North Carolina

The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Pelter (left guard), R. Herbert (center), Mayer (right guard), Wood (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback). The substitutes were: Poindexter.

The starting lineup for North Carolina was: Joel Whitaker (left end), Robert Wright (left tackle), E. L. Neville (left guard), C. C. Joyner (center), James Carson (right guard), Harry Lake (right tackle), Charles Best (right end), Thomas Green (quarterback), Patterson (left halfback), F. J. Haywood (right halfback), Arthur Belden (fullback).

Virginia

The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Mayer (left guard), R. Herbert (center), Pelter (right guard), Wood (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback). The substitutes were: Smith.

The starting lineup for Virginia was: W. A. Martin (left end), Alexander Moore (left tackle), Johnson (left guard), Gustavus Wallace (center), Eugene Davis (right guard), V. H. Samoskeoy (right tackle), Paul Cocke (right end), Archie Hoxton (quarterback), Virginius Dabney (left halfback), Robert Groner (right halfback), James Morrison (fullback). The substitutes were: Malcolm Griffin.

Hampden–Sydney

Tennessee

Maryville

VMI

The starting lineup for VPI was: Johnson (left end), Starke (left tackle), Mayer (left guard), R. Herbert (center), Pelter (right guard), Wood (right tackle), Treadwell (right end), Martin (quarterback), Ingles (left halfback), Eskridge (right halfback), E. Herbert (fullback). The substitutes were: Whitehurst.

The starting lineup for VMI was: Harman (left end), Morrell Mills (left tackle), Rice (left guard), George Marrow (center), Percy Montgomery (right guard), James Harding (right tackle), Elisha McGill (right end), William Montgomery (quarterback), Richard Lawson (left halfback), John Steger (right halfback), Sidney Moore (fullback).

Players The following players were members of the 1896 football team according to the roster published in the 1897 and 1903 editions of The Bugle, the Virginia Tech yearbook. VPI 1896 rosterQuarterback Tarpley Douglas Martin Guards William Lawrence Mayer Nerbon Robert Patrick Joseph Glenwood Pelter Tackles William Edwin Starke Charles Morton Wood Centers Richard Ainsworth Herbert Sidney Johnson ThomasEnds Howard Archer Johnson William B. Treadwell Halfbacks Alexander Parker Eskridge J. Lewis Ingles (Capt.) K. Harrison Fullbacks Edward Henry Herbert Obediah Francis WhitehurstSubstitutes Charles Weedon Cochran William Franklin Cox George H. King David Gray Langhorne Dabney Thomas Poindexter G. H. Townes Benjamin Lanier Traynham

Coaching and training staff Head coach: Arlie C. Jones Manager: Carl Ernest Hardy Assistant manager: George S. Merrick Medical adviser: W. F. Henderson, MD

References