1939 Stanford Indians football team
Encyclopedia
The 1939 Stanford Indians football team represented Stanford University
in National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) intercollegiate competition
during the 1939 season
. Seventh-year head coach Claude "Tiny" Thornhill
led the team to a 1–7–1 record, which ultimately contributed to his relief at the end of the season. He was replaced by Clark Shaughnessy
, who surprised critics by leading the following year's team
, largely made up of the same players, to the Rose Bowl
. Shaughnessy noted that the players were not suited to the single-wing offense that Thornhill had employed.
Before the season, the Stanford Board of Athletic Control retained Thornhill as head coach, despite opposition from some of the alumni base. The Indians finished last in the Pacific Coast Conference
with a 0–6–1 record against league opponents. It was the first time in history that Stanford failed to win a single Pacific Coast Conference game in a season. Contemporary sources called the 1939 squad the worst football team to represent Stanford University in the history of the program.
Stanford's only victory came in the season finale against at the Polo Grounds
in New York City
. At halftime, Stanford trailed 3–0, and Thornhill and his assistants, at a loss for words, asked former "Vow Boys" back Bones Hamilton to deliver a halftime pep talk. He told the downtrodden players, "You are by far and large the worst group of players who have ever worn the Stanford red
." The insult motivated the team to score 14 unanswered points to take away their only win of the season.
After the game, the United Press wrote, "Stanford, the worst team the West Coast has produced in years, pulled the day's gridiron surprise by walloping the strong Dartmouth eleven."
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in National Collegiate Athletic Association
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
(NCAA) intercollegiate competition
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
during the 1939 season
1939 college football season
The 1939 college football season concluded with the Aggies of The Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas being named as the national champions by the voters in the Associated Press writers' poll....
. Seventh-year head coach Claude "Tiny" Thornhill
Claude E. Thornhill
-References:...
led the team to a 1–7–1 record, which ultimately contributed to his relief at the end of the season. He was replaced by Clark Shaughnessy
Clark Shaughnessy
Clark Daniel Shaughnessy was an American football coach and innovator. He is sometimes called the "father of the T formation", although that system had previously been used as early as the 1880s. Shaughnessy did, however, modernize the obsolescent T formation to make it once again relevant in the...
, who surprised critics by leading the following year's team
1940 Stanford Indians football team
The 1940 Stanford Indians football team, nicknamed the "Wow Boys", represented Stanford University in National Collegiate Athletic Association intercollegiate competition during the 1940 season. First-year head coach Clark Shaughnessy inherited a team that finished with a 1–7–1 record the previous...
, largely made up of the same players, to the Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
. Shaughnessy noted that the players were not suited to the single-wing offense that Thornhill had employed.
Before the season, the Stanford Board of Athletic Control retained Thornhill as head coach, despite opposition from some of the alumni base. The Indians finished last in the Pacific Coast Conference
Pacific Coast Conference
The Pacific Coast Conference was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pacific-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, the older league had a completely different charter and was disbanded in 1959 due to a major crisis...
with a 0–6–1 record against league opponents. It was the first time in history that Stanford failed to win a single Pacific Coast Conference game in a season. Contemporary sources called the 1939 squad the worst football team to represent Stanford University in the history of the program.
Stanford's only victory came in the season finale against at the Polo Grounds
Polo Grounds
The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used by many professional teams in both baseball and American football from 1880 until 1963...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. At halftime, Stanford trailed 3–0, and Thornhill and his assistants, at a loss for words, asked former "Vow Boys" back Bones Hamilton to deliver a halftime pep talk. He told the downtrodden players, "You are by far and large the worst group of players who have ever worn the Stanford red
Stanford Cardinal
The Stanford Cardinal is the nickname of the athletic teams at Stanford University.-Nickname and mascot history:Following its win over Cal in the first-ever Big Game in 1892, the color cardinal was picked as the primary color of Stanford's athletic teams...
." The insult motivated the team to score 14 unanswered points to take away their only win of the season.
After the game, the United Press wrote, "Stanford, the worst team the West Coast has produced in years, pulled the day's gridiron surprise by walloping the strong Dartmouth eleven."