History of Sports at MSU

1
History of Sports at MSU

• Portia Vescio
• University Archives and Historical Collections
• 101 Conrad Hall
• 355-2330
• http//archives.msu.edu

2
Overview

• History of athletics at MSU up to entry in Big
  Ten
• Closer look at history of specific sports
• Using the archives
• Helpful resources

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Early Years

• 1855 MAC founded
• 1857 First students enter the college
• 1862 Students begin to campaign for athletics
• 1865 Student-run baseball team is formed, The
  Stars

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College Hall
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Early Years, cont.

• 1870 Students renew efforts for athletic
  programs
• 1881 The College Speculum takes up the crusade
• 1884 MAC wins first intercollegiate sporting
  event (in baseball over Olivet)
• 1886 Student-run athletic association formed

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Article in the College Speculum, April 1, 1882
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Field Days and the MIAA

• Field days provided an opportunity for athtletes
  to compete.
• First one held in 1884
• In 1886 MAC hosted Albion and Olivet
• Competitions included wrestling, baseball,
  running, jumping, boxing, shot putting, and
  football.
• Out of field days came the MIAA- MAC, Olivet,
  Albion and Hillsdale.

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MAC Field Day Baseball Team 1888
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Change Begins

• 1886 Armory completed
• 1890 State Board of Agriculture approves 250
  for equipment
• 1892 First on-campus track installed
• 1896 Football begins first season with four
  game schedule
• 1897 Bobby Gale hired by athletic association
• 1899 Charles Bemies hired as first athletic
  coach.

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1896 Football Team
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Recruiting a Football Team

• Athletic Director George E. Denman began
  recruiting football players as early as 1902
• Wrote letters and visited promising athletes
  urging them to attend MAC
• Felt that he was at a disadvantage as MAC not
  known in the East

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Development in other Sports

• 1900 First two tennis courts built on campus
• 1902 First swimming pool installed. Old
  College Field becomes main athletic area
• 1904 Harry Moon is the first Aggie to compete
  in the U.S. Olympic team trials

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Class Athletes 1897
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Aggies vs. Spartans

• Aggies was the original nickname for athletic
  teams on campus
• 1925 MAC becomes Michigan State College of
  Agriculture and Applied Science
• Formal contest held Michigan Staters wins
• 2 Lansing newspapermen reject this, dig through
  rejected entries and choose Spartans

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Sparty Statue
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Rules Regulating Athletes

• May 1910 Faculty approve of regulations
• Three years of eligibility- Freshmen not eligible
• Outlawed pay for playing on college teams
• Athletes must compete under their own names
• Football team could not begin practice until
  school year started
• Football team could only play teams from other
  colleges and no more than 9 games (16 for
  baseball and basketball)

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Building Teams

• 1908 Football team has first undefeated season
  (6-0-2) including a 0-0 tie with UM. Aggies
  played Notre Dame in basketball for first time,
  winning 33-20, MAC is also expelled from the MIAA
  after winning 10 consecutive field days
• 1913 First perfect football season (7-0-0),
  including victory over UM

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First touchdown in MAC victory over UM, 1913
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Chester Brewer

• Director of Athletics, 1903-1910
• Led Aggies to such dominance, that MAC kicked out
  of MIAA
• Basketball team had a 70-25 record after 7
  seasons
• Returned as coach 1917-1921

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Taking more Control

• 1915 College strengthens Board in Control of
  Athletics. Student oversight of athletics
  disappears.
• 1916 backlash over MACs efforts to recruit
  best athletes in Michigan
• Beginning of battles between booster clubs and
  administration over athletics

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World War I era on campus

• MAC turned into a virtual military camp
• Formation of Student Army Training Corps (SATC)
  by the War Department
• Created 8 temporary barracks
• 500 men in auto mechanics course
• 500 men as regular college students
• 50 men in naval training course
• Students leaving to join war effort
• Formation of ROTC on campus in Spring 1917

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Post-War Growth

• 1920 - Mens Gymnasium opens. MAC joins the
  NCAA.
• 1921 WKAR broadcasts basketball games
• 1923 Football stadium with seating capacity of
  14,000 is built. WKAR begins broadcasting
  football games.

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Track team, 1920s
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North Central Association Investigation 1933

• Uncovered four unacceptable conditions
• Grades in physical education classes were
  uniformly high
• Athletes (5 of male students) received 11-12
  of student loan money
• Percentage of athletes employed exceeded all
  other groups
• Percentage of athletes indebted to college exceed
  all other groups

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Aerial view of campus, 1920s
26
All-time largest crowd in Macklin Stadium,
(26,977) Oct. 25, 1947
27
World War II era

• 1940 Enrollment more than doubles
• 1943 MSU President John Hannah issues a
  statement, Termination of all inter-collegiate
  athletic competition at M.S.C. for the duration

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Entry into Big Ten

• 1946 University of Chicago withdraws from Big
  Ten
• 1948 MSC voted into Big Ten pending
  certification
• May 20, 1949 MSC officially becomes member of
  Big Ten, competition to begin in 1950-51 school
  year, except football which begins 1953

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Big 10 Headlines
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Brief Histories of Individual Sports
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Baseball

• Was the first organized athletic activity on
  campus
• Early teams were mediocre
• John Kobs began as coach in 1925
• Kobs had 34 winning seasons out of 38

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1878 Sophomore Baseball Club
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Hockey

• Began on campus in 1906, played two games against
  Lansing High School
• Played on Red Cedar River weather providing
• 1922 Becomes a varsity sport. Tennis courts
  are flooded to make arena
• John Kobs coached the team 1925-1930
• 1931 Hockey cancelled until 1950 when an
  artificial ice arena was built in Demonstration
  Hall.

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Early Varsity Hockey team
35
1953 Hockey Team
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Wrestling

• One of the early sports part of 1884 informal
  field day
• Dropped in 1906 and interest remained low until
  after new Mens Gymnasium following WWI.
• Wrestling team reformed in 1921
• Wrestling thrived under coach Fendley Collins,
  1930-1962

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Wrestling ca. 1957
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Fencing

• Dates back to 1895 MIAA Field Day
• Not seen again on campus until post WWI when
  Chester Brewer reinitiated sport
• Joseph Waffa and Omar M. Lebel organized first
  fencing club (men and women)
• Becomes varsity sport in 1926
• Charles Schmitter coached MSU fencing for over 30
  years

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Fencing team practice 1936
40
Womens fencing, 1926
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Swimming

• First pool installed 1902, not popular as an
  organized sport until post WWI
• Becomes varsity sport in 1922
• Teams not great in 1920s, but improve during
  1930s
• New coach Charles McCaffree in 1942 brought team
  to new highs post-WWII

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Big Ten Invitational Swimming Relays 1956
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Basketball

• First season was in 1899. Team played 2 games to
  Olivet and lost.
• Played in the Armory until 1918
• Was considered a minor sport at first
• Became more prominent under coach Van Alstyne

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January 12, 1948 Basketball game vs. Marquette
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Basketball Trivia Question

• Which was the first basketball team at MAC to
  play against an off campus rival? (Men or
  women?)

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Basketball Trivia Answer

• The women
• In January 1898, Lansing High School defeated
  MAC, 16-2
• They met again a week later, when Lansing High
  School won in a 26-6 rout.

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Womens Athletics

• 1870 Women admitted as students
• 1888 Women regular members of tennis club
• Competed in field days in tennis from 1896
• Early womens sports fencing, pistol, field
  hockey, and swimming

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Womens Athletic Association

• Organized in 1924 by Helen Grimes, director of
  physical education
• Oversaw competition between the classes in
  baseball, field hockey, soccer, basketball,
  volleyball, and rifle
• By 1926 had a membership of 100 athletes
• Co-eds had to follow certain rules
• Sleep 8 hours per night one cup of coffee per
  day, no smoking
• Source M.S.C. Record, November 1926

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Womens softball, 1920s
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Title IX and Beyond

• 1972 Title IX womens sports expand greatly
• 1976 first athletics scholarships given to
  women (30K split among all sports)
• 1980 Women given Varsity letters for first time
• 2002 Over 300 former women athletes awarded
  Varsity letters

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University Archives and Historical Collections

• 101 Conrad Hall
• Monday Friday 8-12, 1-5
• http//archives.msu.edu
• 355-2330
• msuarhc_at_msu.edu

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Using the archives

• All materials are Library Use Only nothing
  leaves archives
• All bags, purses, coats in lockers
• Bring to table only notepad, laptop
• Write with pencil
• Leave items in same folders and same order as you
  received them

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Using the archives

• No food or drink allowed
• No cell phones
• First time users must register need to bring a
  photo ID
• Must sign the guest book every visit

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Copying Services

• Archives staff will copy materials for you
• Cost is 0.20 per page
• Depending on quantity may not be done immediately
  
• Can scan photographs/negatives
• Cost is 5.00 per scan

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Start Early!!

• Research with primary documents takes time.
  Dont wait until the last minute.
• Do preliminary research before going to archives
• Have a topic in mind

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Books on MSU History

• History of the Michigan agricultural college and
  biographical sketches of trustees and professors,
  by W. J. Beal.
• Main Library LD3245.M28 B4 
• Michigan State the first hundred years,
  1855-1955. by Madison Kuhn
• Main Library LD3245.M28 K8
• Michigan Agricultural College the evolution of
  a land-grant philosophy, 1855-1925 / Keith R.
  Widder.
• Main Library Reference LD3248.M5 W53 2005 

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General Reference Sources

• Spartan sports encyclopedia a history of the
  Michigan State men's athletic program
• Main Library GV691.M48 S45 2003 
• Spartan saga a history of Michigan State
  athletics
• Main Library GV691.M48 F7 1973 

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Sport Specific Books

• Football
• The Spartans a story of Michigan State football
  
• Main Library GV958.M5 S8 
• Spartan football 100 seasons of gridiron glory
• Main Library GV958.M5 .H6 1996   

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Sport Specific Books

• Hockey
• Awe inspiring the storied history of Spartan
  hockey
• Main Library GV848.M5 P7 1997 
• The Michigan State hockey encyclopedia
• Reference, 1 East GV848.M5 C6 1998 

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Sport Specific Books

• Basketball
• Magic moments a century of Spartan basketball
• Main Library GV885.43.M53 E35 1998 

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Early Records in the Archives

• College Speculum, 1881-1896
• The Holcad, 1909-1925
• Yearbooks also in library LD3245.M47 W6
• MSC Record (Alumni Magazine) 1896 1955
• Course Catalogs

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Early Records in the Archives

• Athletic Record Books, Sports Information Records
  (UA 8.1.3)
• Football, 1884-1962
• Basketball, 1889-1964
• Track, 1888-1963
• Fencing, 1926-1964
• Boxing, 1935-1958
• Wrestling, 1922-1964
• Hockey, 1922-1964

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General Sports Resources

• Intercollegiate Athletics Records, 1960-1972 (UA
  4.3)
• Baseball, basketball, cross-country, fencing,
  football, golf, gymnastics, hockey, lacrosse,
  soccer, swimming, tennis, track, wrestling
• Annual Reports for Intercollegiate Athletics,
  1959-1971
• Annual Reports for the Athletic Council, 1968,
  1970-71, 1975

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General Sports Resources

• John A. Hannah Papers, 1857-1991, 1954-1969 (UA
  2.1.12)
• Intercollegiate athletics, Rose Bowl Games, fight
  songs, Athletic Council
• Ralph Young Papers, 1915-1958 (UA 17.114)
• Basketball, baseball, boxing, cross-country,
  fencing, football, golf, gymnastics, hockey,
  swimming, tennis, track and field

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General Subject Files

• Baseball, basketball, womens basketball,
  bowling, crew, cross-country, football,
  gymnastics, hockey, womens hockey, judo,
  lacrosse, soccer, swimming, tennis, track,
  volleyball, water polo, wrestling, NCAA, Green
  Splash, Spartan Stadium, Sparty Statue, Title IX

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Search Library Catalog for Collections

• All processed collections have records in Library
  Catalog (http//magic.lib.msu.edu/search)
• Can limit search to only items in University
  Archives and Historical Collections
• Try various search terms if sports does not
  work, try athletics

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Collections related to Football

• Clarence Munn Papers, 1946-1972 (UA 17.75)
• Hugh Duffy Daugherty Papers, 1947-1975 (UA
  17.63)
• Ralph Young Papers, 1915-1958 (UA 17.114)
• Clifton Wharton Papers, 1950-1977 (UA 2.1.14)

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Collections related to Swimming

• Porpoise Fraternity Records, 1948 (UA 12.2.5)
• Green Splash Swimming Club Records, 1922-1937
  (UA 12.3.18)

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Womens Athletics

• Intercollegiate Athletics, 1972-1978 (UA 4.3)
• Edgar L. Harden Papers, 1976-1980 (UA 2.1.15)
• Associate Provost Records (UA 3.4)
• Carol Harding Papers, 1974-1995 (UA 17.210)
• Green Splash (UA 12.3.18)

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Other online resources

• This presentation
• http//archives.msu.edu/sportshistory.ppt
• Green Splash Exhibition
• http//archives.msu.edu/splash.htm