1932 Colgate Red Raiders football team

Schedule

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Season

Colgate was led by fourth-year head coach Andrew Kerr, who had a previous stint at Stanford at the request of Pop Warner. Kerr employed a complex offensive scheme built around Warner's double-wing formation with an additional emphasis on trick plays using reverses and laterals. Colgate was also the first Eastern team to have accomplished the deed since 1910 when both Navy and Pittsburgh did so. Time magazine described the NYU defense as porous against Colgate's short-range passing and ground attack, and said the Violets' line "seemed to have a hinge in the middle." In that game, Colgate also debuted new uniforms that featured maroon trousers and a new nickname: the "Red Raiders of Chenango".

In the final game, the likewise undefeated and untied Brown Bears came the closest of any opponent to scoring against Colgate. At the end of the second quarter, with the score at 6–0, the Bears were at the Colgate one-yard line with time for one final play in the half. Brown's quarterback, , held onto the ball on a rushing attempt. He was brought down close to the goal line, and the referees measured it and determined the ball was still two inches shy of the end zone. Instead of playing conservatively to preserve their lead and unblemished record, Colgate took an aggressive approach in the second half. This included a blocked punt which Colgate converted for a safety. Later, Colgate halfback intercepted a pass on his own 20-yard line, and Colgate scored again. In a desperate attempt to score, Brown attempted a fourth down pass, but it fell incomplete and the Bears turned over on downs. Colgate scored on their next possession with a pass from Conroy to Bodganski, for the final score of 21–0.

Postseason

Upon the season's conclusion, Colgate felt there was the possibility of a Rose Bowl invitation. However, despite the team's remarkable record, they were not invited to participate in the . The team reportedly had their bags packed to go to the Rose Bowl, but the call never came. This led some observers to refer to the team as "undefeated, untied, unscored upon, and uninvited."

Parke H. Davis, an NCAA-recognized selector, named Colgate a national championship team (co-champions with Michigan and Southern Cal). After the season, Colgate guard Robert Smith was named a first-team All-American by the All-American Board, the International News Service, and Liberty magazine. Quarterback Charles R. Soleau was named an All-American Quarterback and was also named to the 1932 "All-Scout" team by Boys' Life magazine.

The 1932 team's use of maroon uniforms led to Colgate's nickname, the "Red Raiders", although in 2001 this was expurgated to simply "Raiders" due to a perceived racial connotation.

References

References

1. [http://chronicles.dickinson.edu/encyclo/k/ed_kerrA.htm Andrew Kerr, Class of 1900] {{webarchive. link. (November 22, 2008 , Dickinson College, retrieved June 20, 2009.)
2. (October 23, 1932). "35,000 watch Colgate outclass N.Y.U. in scoring 14-to-0 win". Democrat and Chronicle.
3. (November 6, 1932). "Colgate easily tops Mississippi College, 32 to 0". Daily Press.
4. Duke]] in 1938 and [[1939 Tennessee Volunteers football team. 1-4013-3703-1.
5. NYU Violets]] at [[Yankee Stadium (1923). link. (2009-07-04 , College Football Data Warehouse, retrieved June 20, 2009.)
6. [https://web.archive.org/web/20121103204144/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,769729-2,00.html Sport: Football, Oct. 31, 1932], ''Time'', October 31, 1932.
7. [https://web.archive.org/web/20090703174158/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,882443,00.html Sport: Football, Dec. 5, 1932], ''[[Time (magazine). Time]]'', December 5, 1932.
8. [http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2001/01/13/2001-01-13_history_hints_at_swift_beati.html History hints at swift beating] {{Webarchive. link. (July 4, 2009 , ''[[New York Daily News]]'', January 13, 2001.)
9. "National Poll Champions", [http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/stats/football_records/DI/2007/2007RB.pdf ''2007 NCAA Division I Football Records Book''] (PDF), p. 77, National Collegiate Athletic Association, 2007.
10. (2005). "2005 Colgate Football-History". [[Colgate University]].
11. (February 1934). "An All-America All-Scout Team". [[Boys' Life]].
12. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110727165812/http://www.patriotleague.org/genrel/081501aaa.html Colgate To Drop 'Red' From Its Nickname Red Raiders], Patriot League, August 15, 2001.