Alden Knipe
Encyclopedia
Alden Arthur Knipe was an American football
player and coach. He served as the sixth head football coach at the University of Iowa
from 1892–1894, compiling a record of 30–11–4. Knipe was also the first head head baseball coach at Iowa, coaching two seasons from 1900 to 1901 and tallying a mark 25–8. Knipe played college football
at the University of Pennsylvania
. After retiring from coaching, authored numerous books for children.
for the legendary George Washington Woodruff
. In 1893, Knipe scored a touchdown for the Penn Quakers
in a game against a Walter Camp
-coached Yale
team. It was the first points Yale had surrendered since 1890, a span of 35 consecutive games. Some sources attribute the famous touchdown to fellow Penn halfback
Winchester Osgood
, not Knipe.
In 1894, Knipe was the team captain for the Quakers, leading Penn to a perfect 12–0 record. For his efforts, Knipe, a halfback and quarterback
, was named as a first team All-American
that season. The 1894 Penn squad featured a very talented backfield that consisted of Carl Williams
at quarterback, George Brooke
at fullback
and Winchester Osgood
and Knipe at halfback. Both Osgood and Brooke were also named first team All-American that year. Woodruff later called Knipe "the greatest player I ever coached."
. The University of Iowa
offered him fifty dollars a month to coach the Hawkeye football team
in 1898.
of Princeton University
for ten days prior to the 1892 season to assemble and organize the team, making him Iowa’s first head football coach.
Ben "Sport" Donnelly
of Princeton was hired for two weeks prior to the 1893 season. Unlike Dalton, Donnelly was generally disliked by the Hawkeye players. As a result, Iowa turned away from Princeton and hired Roger Sherman
of the University of Michigan
in 1894. Sherman was the first Hawkeye coach to coach the entire season.
In 1895, Iowa nearly did not field an official team, as the school athletic board ruled that recognition would not be granted until the team paid off its debts. Emergency fundraising allowed the team to be financed and recognized, but Iowa decided not to hire a head coach in 1895. Practices were sloppy and disorganized, and Iowa stumbled to a 2–5 record and failed to score in all five losses. Iowa football would never again go without a head coach.
School officials hired Alfred E. Bull
of the University of Pennsylvania
to coach the 1896 squad. The 1896 Hawkeye team went 7–1–1 and won Iowa’s first conference title, claiming the Western Interstate University Football Association
crown in Iowa's final year in the conference. The Hawkeyes were led in scoring by Frank Holbrook, the first black football player at Iowa. Bull's success led school officials to hire more coaches from the University of Pennsylvania, including Otto Wagonhurst
in 1897 and Knipe in 1898.
, Ralph Blackmore led the "Blackmore Revolt", in which five players quit the team. Knipe simply started younger players, including Clyde Williams
and Joe Warner. These younger players would be the backbone of success to follow. Iowa closed the year 2–0–1, ending the season with a 6–5 victory over rival Nebraska. Nebraska had been a heavy favorite and was coached by Fielding H. Yost.
Iowa's finish validated Knipe, and school officials announced that Knipe would stay in Iowa City. He coached the 1899 Iowa track team in the spring and the 1899 football team that fall. Knipe guided the track team to the 1899 state championship. Before the 1899 football season, Knipe, an accomplished singer and director of Iowa's glee club, sang in a school production of the operetta
The Mikado. It raised $400 for the school's athletic fund.
After a season opening win over Northern Iowa in 1899, the Hawkeyes turned their attention to heavily favored Chicago
, coached by Amos Alonzo Stagg
. Iowa's Billy Edson, an Iowa State
transfer, scored a touchdown against Chicago, while the Maroons could muster only a field goal. Since both were scored as five points in those days, Iowa settled for a 5–5 tie. Chicago would go on to win the 1899 Western Conference
title with a 12–0–2 record.
Hawkeye fans were ecstatic with the tie. Iowa would not yield another point all year, winning their last seven games by a combined score of 194–0. In Iowa's final game of the season, the Hawkeyes defeated Illinois
in their first ever meeting by a 58–0 score. So outmatched were the Illini that both sides agreed to shorten the second half by ten minutes.
Less than 24 hours later, Arthur G. Smith, Iowa's football team captain in 1890, accepted on behalf of the University of Iowa an invitation for membership in the Western Conference
. Iowa has participated in the Western Conference, now known as the Big Ten Conference
, since 1900.
Nine starters from Iowa's undefeated 1899 team returned for the 1900 season, including Williams, Warner, Edson, John G. Griffith
, Ray "Buck" Morton, and Morey Eby, captain of the 1899 squad. Griffith was appointed captain in 1900.
The Hawkeyes won their first four non-conference games by a combined score of 198–0. Chicago loomed as Iowa's first ever Western Conference opponent. Chicago had won the conference the previous year and handed Iowa its only blemish on the season in 1899. After a scoreless first half, the Hawks scored two quick touchdowns early in the second period and Iowa won, 17–0. Iowa's next game was against Michigan
, the 1898 Western Conference champions, in Detroit. The Wolverines had sent scouts to watch the Iowa-Chicago game and prepare for Michigan's first ever meeting with Iowa.
Knipe had the Hawkeye players gather at Lake St. Clair
outside Detroit. Knipe taught his Hawkeye team 75 new plays in one week. He completely changed his offense, which had been one of power inside running, to exploit Iowa's speed advantage running outside the tackles. The Hawkeyes led 28–0 before Michigan managed a field goal to prevent the shutout, the first points scored on Iowa in 1900. But the Hawkeyes dominated the Wolverines and won, 28–5.
A controversial tie in Iowa's last game against Northwestern
was the only blemish on the 1900 season. Every member of the Iowa team except Griffith had creamed potatoes the day before the game, and Griffith was the only member of the team without severe stomach cramps the night before the game. Rumor has it that the hotel chef had a wager on the game. Iowa scored a first half touchdown against the Wildcats, but Northwestern scored a late field goal, and Iowa settled for the 5–5 tie. That was still good enough to salvage a tie for the league title with Minnesota in Iowa's first year in the conference.
Knipe, who was appointed Iowa's first director of music in 1901, put on another performance of The Mikado in the off-season. Only three starters returned in 1901, but arguably Iowa's best player, Clyde Williams, was one of them and was named team captain. The Hawkeyes won their first three games of the season before preparing to play fellow 1900 conference champion, Minnesota. 25 minutes before the game, Williams was told he was ineligible to play, because he had played professional summer baseball. A deflated Hawkeye team lost to Minnesota, 16–0, losing their first game and yielding their first touchdown in 23 games. Iowa had a 6–3 record in 1901.
Knipe had a large, early influence on Iowa athletics. He served as Iowa's coach for track and cross country from 1899–1902, and he was Iowa's first baseball coach from 1900–1901. In addition to serving as Iowa's director of music and Iowa's director of athletics, he is the only person in the history of the university to coach four separate sports (football, track, baseball, and cross country) simultaneously.
In 1902, Iowa's football team went 5–4, but lost to Michigan
and Illinois by a combined score of 187–0. After the 1902 season, Knipe was married in Philadelphia. It was his second marriage, and some on the Athletic Board suggested to the coach that he should not marry a second time because "whispered talk such a marriage would provoke would be bad for Iowa." Regardless, Knipe did it, and he tendered his resignation after the season as well. Knipe had a five year record of 30–11–4 at Iowa. He never coached again.
in 1930 at age 79.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player and coach. He served as the sixth head football coach at the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
from 1892–1894, compiling a record of 30–11–4. Knipe was also the first head head baseball coach at Iowa, coaching two seasons from 1900 to 1901 and tallying a mark 25–8. Knipe played college football
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...
at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. After retiring from coaching, authored numerous books for children.
Playing career
Alden Knipe was one of the great football players of the nineteenth century. He played at the University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
for the legendary George Washington Woodruff
George Washington Woodruff
Note: Before 1936, national champions were determined by historical research and retroactive ratings and polls. 1894 Poll Results = Penn: Parke H. Davis, Princeton: Houlgate, Yale: Billingsley, Helms, National Championship Foundation, Parke H. Davis1895 Poll Results = Penn: Billingsley, Helms,...
. In 1893, Knipe scored a touchdown for the Penn Quakers
Penn Quakers football
The Penn Quakers football team is the college football team at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. The Penn Quakers have competed in the Ivy League since its inaugural season of 1956, and are currently a Division I Football Championship Subdivision member of the National...
in a game against a Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
-coached Yale
Yale Bulldogs football
The Yale Bulldogs football program represents Yale University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision . Yale's football program is one of the oldest in the world, having begun competing in the sport in 1872...
team. It was the first points Yale had surrendered since 1890, a span of 35 consecutive games. Some sources attribute the famous touchdown to fellow Penn halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
Winchester Osgood
Winchester Osgood
Winchester Dana Osgood was a prominent American college athlete in the late 19th century at both Cornell University and University of Pennsylvania. He played halfback on the football teams at both schools and served as the head football coach at Indiana University for one season in 1895,...
, not Knipe.
In 1894, Knipe was the team captain for the Quakers, leading Penn to a perfect 12–0 record. For his efforts, Knipe, a halfback and quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
, was named as a first team All-American
1894 College Football All-America Team
The 1894 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans for the 1894 college football season, as selected by Casper Whitney for Harper's Weekly and the Walter Camp Football Foundation...
that season. The 1894 Penn squad featured a very talented backfield that consisted of Carl Williams
Carl Sheldon Williams
Carl Sheldon "Cap" Williams was an American football player and coach. A Wellington, Ohio native, Williams graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1894 with a bachelor of Science and a medical degree in 1897. Williams played both at Oberlin and University of Pennsylvania and coached at...
at quarterback, George Brooke
George Brooke
George Brooke may refer to:*George Brook , English cricketer*George H. Brooke , American football player and coach...
at fullback
Fullback (American football)
A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback...
and Winchester Osgood
Winchester Osgood
Winchester Dana Osgood was a prominent American college athlete in the late 19th century at both Cornell University and University of Pennsylvania. He played halfback on the football teams at both schools and served as the head football coach at Indiana University for one season in 1895,...
and Knipe at halfback. Both Osgood and Brooke were also named first team All-American that year. Woodruff later called Knipe "the greatest player I ever coached."
Coaching career
Knipe then served for two years as an assistant coach under Woodruff at Penn while earning his degree in medicine. In 1897, Knipe moved to Iowa CityIowa City, Iowa
Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, State of Iowa. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total population of about 67,862, making it the sixth-largest city in the state. Iowa City is the county seat of Johnson County and home to the University of Iowa...
. The University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
offered him fifty dollars a month to coach the Hawkeye football team
Iowa Hawkeyes football
The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
in 1898.
Previous Iowa coaches
Knipe was the first head football coach at Iowa to helm the football team for more than a single season, though five coaches preceded him. Iowa first recognized a varsity football team in 1889 and went without a head coach until 1892. School officials hired E. A. DaltonE. A. Dalton
-External links:...
of Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
for ten days prior to the 1892 season to assemble and organize the team, making him Iowa’s first head football coach.
Ben "Sport" Donnelly
Ben "Sport" Donnelly
-External links:...
of Princeton was hired for two weeks prior to the 1893 season. Unlike Dalton, Donnelly was generally disliked by the Hawkeye players. As a result, Iowa turned away from Princeton and hired Roger Sherman
Roger Sherman (American football)
Roger Sherman was an American football player, coach and lawyer. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1890 to 1893 and coached the University of Iowa football team in 1894...
of the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1894. Sherman was the first Hawkeye coach to coach the entire season.
In 1895, Iowa nearly did not field an official team, as the school athletic board ruled that recognition would not be granted until the team paid off its debts. Emergency fundraising allowed the team to be financed and recognized, but Iowa decided not to hire a head coach in 1895. Practices were sloppy and disorganized, and Iowa stumbled to a 2–5 record and failed to score in all five losses. Iowa football would never again go without a head coach.
School officials hired Alfred E. Bull
Alfred E. Bull
-External links:...
of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
to coach the 1896 squad. The 1896 Hawkeye team went 7–1–1 and won Iowa’s first conference title, claiming the Western Interstate University Football Association
Western Interstate University Football Association
The Western Interstate University Football Association was one of the first intercollegiate athletic conferences in the United States, existing from 1892 to 1897.-Formation, history and evolution:...
crown in Iowa's final year in the conference. The Hawkeyes were led in scoring by Frank Holbrook, the first black football player at Iowa. Bull's success led school officials to hire more coaches from the University of Pennsylvania, including Otto Wagonhurst
Otto Wagonhurst
-External links:...
in 1897 and Knipe in 1898.
Early years
Knipe was a stern disciplinarian, and friction soon arose between Knipe and the older players of the 1898 team, who resented Knipe's instruction and wanted some control over what positions players played. Iowa started the 1898 season 1–4–1, and after a loss to Northern IowaNorthern Iowa Panthers football
The first year of Northern Iowa Panthers football was in 1895. They have fielded a football team every year since then with the exceptions of 1906-1907 and 1943-1944...
, Ralph Blackmore led the "Blackmore Revolt", in which five players quit the team. Knipe simply started younger players, including Clyde Williams
Clyde Williams (football)
Samuel Clyde Williams was an All-American football player at the University of Iowa, and a football, basketball, and baseball coach and athletic director at Iowa State University. He is a member of both schools' Halls of Fame.- College career :Clyde Williams was born in Shelby, Iowa...
and Joe Warner. These younger players would be the backbone of success to follow. Iowa closed the year 2–0–1, ending the season with a 6–5 victory over rival Nebraska. Nebraska had been a heavy favorite and was coached by Fielding H. Yost.
Iowa's finish validated Knipe, and school officials announced that Knipe would stay in Iowa City. He coached the 1899 Iowa track team in the spring and the 1899 football team that fall. Knipe guided the track team to the 1899 state championship. Before the 1899 football season, Knipe, an accomplished singer and director of Iowa's glee club, sang in a school production of the operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
The Mikado. It raised $400 for the school's athletic fund.
After a season opening win over Northern Iowa in 1899, the Hawkeyes turned their attention to heavily favored Chicago
Chicago Maroons football
The Chicago Maroons are the college football team representing the University of Chicago. The Maroons play in NCAA Division III as a member of the University Athletic Association. From 1892 to 1939, the Maroons were a major college football power...
, coached by Amos Alonzo Stagg
Amos Alonzo Stagg
Amos Alonzo Stagg was an American athlete and pioneering college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football...
. Iowa's Billy Edson, an Iowa State
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
transfer, scored a touchdown against Chicago, while the Maroons could muster only a field goal. Since both were scored as five points in those days, Iowa settled for a 5–5 tie. Chicago would go on to win the 1899 Western Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
title with a 12–0–2 record.
Hawkeye fans were ecstatic with the tie. Iowa would not yield another point all year, winning their last seven games by a combined score of 194–0. In Iowa's final game of the season, the Hawkeyes defeated Illinois
Illinois Fighting Illini football
The Illinois Fighting Illini are a major college football program, representing the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. They compete in NCAA Division I-A and the Big Ten Conference.-Current staff:-All-time win/loss/tie record:*563-513-51...
in their first ever meeting by a 58–0 score. So outmatched were the Illini that both sides agreed to shorten the second half by ten minutes.
Less than 24 hours later, Arthur G. Smith, Iowa's football team captain in 1890, accepted on behalf of the University of Iowa an invitation for membership in the Western Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
. Iowa has participated in the Western Conference, now known as the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
, since 1900.
Big Ten membership
Before the 1900 season, the University of Iowa appointed Knipe to a position titled "Director of Physical Culture". Knipe oversaw all Iowa intercollegiate athletics at the time in this director of athletics role. He is occasionally referred to as Iowa's first athletic director, though the University of Iowa does not officially recognize the position until 1910, when it was split from the head football coaching duties for the first time.Nine starters from Iowa's undefeated 1899 team returned for the 1900 season, including Williams, Warner, Edson, John G. Griffith
John G. Griffith
John George "Red" Griffith was an American football player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball...
, Ray "Buck" Morton, and Morey Eby, captain of the 1899 squad. Griffith was appointed captain in 1900.
The Hawkeyes won their first four non-conference games by a combined score of 198–0. Chicago loomed as Iowa's first ever Western Conference opponent. Chicago had won the conference the previous year and handed Iowa its only blemish on the season in 1899. After a scoreless first half, the Hawks scored two quick touchdowns early in the second period and Iowa won, 17–0. Iowa's next game was against Michigan
1900 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1900 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1900 college football season. The team's head coach was the four-time All-American from Princeton and future College Football Hall of Fame inductee, Langdon Lea. The team opened the season with six wins, but...
, the 1898 Western Conference champions, in Detroit. The Wolverines had sent scouts to watch the Iowa-Chicago game and prepare for Michigan's first ever meeting with Iowa.
Knipe had the Hawkeye players gather at Lake St. Clair
Lake Saint Clair (North America)
Lake St. Clair is a fresh-water lake named after Clare of Assisi that lies between the Province of Ontario and the State of Michigan, and its midline also forms the boundary between Canada and the United States of America. Lake St. Clair includes the Anchor Bay along the Metro Detroit coastline...
outside Detroit. Knipe taught his Hawkeye team 75 new plays in one week. He completely changed his offense, which had been one of power inside running, to exploit Iowa's speed advantage running outside the tackles. The Hawkeyes led 28–0 before Michigan managed a field goal to prevent the shutout, the first points scored on Iowa in 1900. But the Hawkeyes dominated the Wolverines and won, 28–5.
A controversial tie in Iowa's last game against Northwestern
Northwestern Wildcats football
The Northwestern Wildcats football team, representing Northwestern University, is a NCAA Division I team and member of the Big Ten Conference, with evidence of organization in 1876...
was the only blemish on the 1900 season. Every member of the Iowa team except Griffith had creamed potatoes the day before the game, and Griffith was the only member of the team without severe stomach cramps the night before the game. Rumor has it that the hotel chef had a wager on the game. Iowa scored a first half touchdown against the Wildcats, but Northwestern scored a late field goal, and Iowa settled for the 5–5 tie. That was still good enough to salvage a tie for the league title with Minnesota in Iowa's first year in the conference.
Knipe, who was appointed Iowa's first director of music in 1901, put on another performance of The Mikado in the off-season. Only three starters returned in 1901, but arguably Iowa's best player, Clyde Williams, was one of them and was named team captain. The Hawkeyes won their first three games of the season before preparing to play fellow 1900 conference champion, Minnesota. 25 minutes before the game, Williams was told he was ineligible to play, because he had played professional summer baseball. A deflated Hawkeye team lost to Minnesota, 16–0, losing their first game and yielding their first touchdown in 23 games. Iowa had a 6–3 record in 1901.
Knipe had a large, early influence on Iowa athletics. He served as Iowa's coach for track and cross country from 1899–1902, and he was Iowa's first baseball coach from 1900–1901. In addition to serving as Iowa's director of music and Iowa's director of athletics, he is the only person in the history of the university to coach four separate sports (football, track, baseball, and cross country) simultaneously.
In 1902, Iowa's football team went 5–4, but lost to Michigan
1902 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1902 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1902 college football season. In their second year under head coach Fielding H. Yost, Michigan finished the season undefeated with an 11–0 record, outscored their opponents by a combined score of 644 to...
and Illinois by a combined score of 187–0. After the 1902 season, Knipe was married in Philadelphia. It was his second marriage, and some on the Athletic Board suggested to the coach that he should not marry a second time because "whispered talk such a marriage would provoke would be bad for Iowa." Regardless, Knipe did it, and he tendered his resignation after the season as well. Knipe had a five year record of 30–11–4 at Iowa. He never coached again.
Later years and death
As an accomplished singer with a degree in medicine, Knipe chose to be neither a singer nor a doctor. While in college at Penn he had been a member of the prestigious Delta Psi fraternity, AKA St. Anthony Hall. For the next 47 years, Knipe and his wife wrote and illustrated 32 children's books. He died in New YorkNew 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...
in 1930 at age 79.