Football Trivia: When did Stanford... - Printable Version
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Football Trivia: When did Stanford... - Mick - 11-29-2019
...play its only home game at Cal's Memorial Stadium, and what were the circumstances?
RE: Football Trivia: When did Stanford... - MVCard - 11-29-2019
November 8, 1924. Game with USC canceled due to Trojans being Trojans. Needing to add a game back in to keep Rose Bowl hopes alive, Stanford books game with Utah on 4 days’ notice. But it’s the same day as Little Big Game (Freshman game), which is at Stanford and a problem to move. However Cal is away that weekend, so Memorial Stadium is empty, and the deal gets done.
RE: Football Trivia: When did Stanford... - CowboyIndian - 11-29-2019
I'll bet those swine wouldn't do that today.
RE: Football Trivia: When did Stanford... - Mick - 11-29-2019
(11-29-2019, 09:37 AM)MVCard Wrote: November 8, 1924. Game with USC canceled due to Trojans being Trojans. Needing to add a game back in to keep Rose Bowl hopes alive, Stanford books game with Utah on 4 days’ notice. But it’s the same day as Little Big Game (Freshman game), which is at Stanford and a problem to move. However Cal is away that weekend, so Memorial Stadium is empty, and the deal gets done.
Right as rain. And "Trojans being Trojans" included the following allegations by Stanford and Cal vs. USC. Remember, this is nearly a century ago. The Pacific Coast Conference had been a conference for less than a decade, with original members Cal, Oregon, Oregon State and Washington. Stanford and Washington State joined two years later, then two years after SU and WSU joined in 1920, Idaho and USC joined as provisional members in 1922.
By 1924, rumors were circulating that USC players were paid and weren't attending classes. Before the scheduled 11/1/24 game with Cal, Cal and Stanford representatives met with USC to inform USC that they would be dropped from further athletic competition at the end of the season. The Bears beat USC 7-0, their sixth consecutive win. Not sure what hard evidence that either Stanford or Cal had -- sounds like mostly rumors -- but USC did drop one of its players prior to the game. USC haughtily declined to play Stanford, saying "If we're not good enough to play you in 1925, we won't play you in 1924 either," hence the need to schedule Utah with four days to go. Interestingly, never commented on the allegations of paying players, or not requiring them to attend classes, or the player who was dropped from the roster.
Stanford actually tried to schedule St. Mary's, but USC got to them first as the replacement team (and the Gaels beat them, 14-10). And USC was ultimately suspended from the PCC (it was ever thus). USC's head coach "Gloomy Gus" Henderson was fired after the 1924 season, despite the fact that his .835 winning percentage was the best of any USC coach, ever. USC tried to hire Knute Rockne, to no avail.
https://www.californiagoldenblogs.com/2012/3/25/2813279/the-year-usc-caused-stanford-to-play-a-home-game-in-berkeley