1904 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football season explained

The 1904 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football season was the college football games played by the member schools of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association as part of the 1904 college football season. The season began on September 24 with conference member Sewanee hosting the Mooney School.

1904 saw new coaches Mike Donahue at Auburn and Dan McGugin at Vanderbilt,^[1] both of which posted undefeated conference records. McGugin remains the only coach in NCAA history to win his first three games by 60 points. Both McGugin and Donahue were inaugural inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame. The SIAA forbade a postseason contest between Auburn and Vanderbilt.

Also significantly, John Heisman was hired at Georgia Tech.

Season overview

Results and team statistics

Conf. Rank	Team	Head coach	Overall record	Conf. record	PPG	PAG
1 (tie)	Vanderbilt		9–0	5–0	52.7	0.4
1 (tie)	Auburn	Mike Donahue	5–0	5–0	19.5	1.8
3	Sewanee	George S. Whitney	7–1	4–1	22.5	4.6
4	Georgia Tech		8–1–1	3–1–1	28.7	3.4
5	Alabama	W. A. Blount	7–3	5–3	10.0	6.2
6 (tie)	Clemson		3–3–1	3–2–1	7.1	6.4
6 (tie)	Tulane	Thomas A. Barry	5–2	3–2	8.3	3.4
8			3–1	1–1	43.7	5.7
9	Kentucky State	Fred Schacht	9–1	0–0	27.7	1.5
10	Mississippi		4–3	2–3	26.4	15.1
11	LSU	Dan A. Killian	3–4	1–2	5.4	5.4
12	Tennessee	Sax Crawford	3–5–1	1–4–1	5.0	8.6
13	Nashville		1–7–1	0–5–1	4.3	21.0
14 (tie)	Mississippi A&M		2–5	0–4	14.4	18.0
14 (tie)	Georgia	Charles A. Barnard	1–5	0–4	11.5	11.3

Key

PPG = Average of points scored per game
PAG = Average of points allowed per game^[2]

Regular season

Index to colors and formatting
Non-conference matchup; SIAA member won
Non-conference matchup; SIAA member lost
Non-conference matchup; tie
Conference matchup

SIAA teams in bold.

Week Two

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 1	Tennessee Docs	Sewanee	Hardee Field • Sewanee, TN	W 58–0		[3]
October 1	Camp McPherson	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	W 11–5		[4]
October 1	Vanderbilt	Mississippi A&M	Columbus Fairgrounds • Columbus, MS	VAN 61–0		[5]
October 1		Tennessee	Baldwin Park • Knoxville, TN	W 17–0		[6]
October 3	Florida Agricultural College	Alabama	The Quad • Tuscaloosa, AL	W 29–0		[7]

Week Three

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 4	Florida Agricultural College	Auburn	Drill Field • Auburn, AL	W 44–0		[8]
October 8	Florida State College	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	W 35–0		[9]
October 8	Clemson	Alabama	West End Park • Birmingham, AL	CLEM 18–0		[10]
October 8	Florida Agricultural College	Georgia	Central City Park • Macon, GA	W 52–0		[11]
October 8	Tennessee Docs	Nashville	Peabody Field • Nashville, TN	L 21–0		[12]
October 8		Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, TN	W 66–0		[13]

Week Four

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 12	Nashville	VPI	Gibboney Field • Blacksburg, VA	L 32–0		[14]
October 15	Alabama	Mississippi A&M	Columbus Fairgrounds • Columbus, MS	ALA 6–0		[15]
October 15	Auburn	Clemson	Bowman Field • Calhoun, SC	AUB 5–0		[16]
October 15	Mooney	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	W 51–0		[17]
October 15	Nashville	Tennessee	Baldwin Park • Knoxville, TN	T 0–0		[18]
October 15	Sewanee	Washington University	World's Fair Stadium • St. Louis, MO	W 17–0		[19]
October 15	Ole Miss	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, TN	VAN 69–0		[20]
October 17	Florida Agricultural College	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	W 77–0		[21]

Week Five

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 21	Louisiana Industrial	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, LA	W 17–0		[22] [23]
October 22	Nashville	Auburn	West End Park • Birmingham, AL	AUB 10–0		[24] [25]
October 22	Georgia	Clemson	Bowman Field • Calhoun, SC	CLEM 10–0		[26]
October 22	Tennessee	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	GT 2–0		[27]
October 22	Ole Miss	Mississippi A&M	Columbus Fairgrounds • Columbus, MS	MISS 17–5		[28]
October 22		Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, TN	W 29–4		[29]
October 23	Louisiana Industrial	Tulane	Athletic Park • New Orleans, LA	W 11–0		[30]
October 24	Nashville	Alabama	The Quad • Tuscaloosa, AL	ALA 17–0		[31]

Week Six

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
October 26	Georgia	South Carolina	Columbia, SC	L 0–2		[32]
October 27	Sewanee	Clemson	Columbia, SC	SEW 11–5	5,000	[33]
October 28	LSU	Shreveport Athletic Association	Shreveport Ball Park • Shreveport, LA	L 0–16		[34]
October 29	Georgia Tech	Auburn	Drill Field • Auburn, AL	AUB 12–0		[35]
October 29	Sewanee	Tennessee	Baldwin Park • Knoxville, TN	SEW 12–0		[36]
October 29	LSU	Louisiana Industrial	Ruston, LA	L 0–6		[37]
October 29	Southwestern Baptist	Ole Miss	Oxford, MS	W 114–0		[38]
October 29	Mississippi A&M	Tulane	Athletic Park • New Orleans, LA	TUL 10–0	1,100	[39]
October 29	Vanderbilt		Danville, KY	W 97–0		[40]

Week Seven

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 5	Clemson	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	T 11–11		[41]
November 5	Georgia	Alabama	The Quad • Tuscaloosa, AL	ALA 16–5		[42]
November 5	Maryville	Cumberland	Lebanon, TN	W 45–0		[43]
November 5	Ole Miss	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, LA	LSU 5–0		[44]
November 5	Sewanee	Texas A&M	Dallas, TX	SEW 17–5		[45]
November 5	Tulane		Marion, AL	W 10–0		[46]
November 5	Tennessee	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, TN	VAN 22–0		[47]

Week Eight

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 10	Tennessee Docs	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, LA	W 16–0		[48]
November 11	Tennessee Docs	Mississippi A&M	Starkville Fairgrounds • Starkville, MS	W 59–0		[49]
November 12	Tennessee Docs	Ole Miss	League Park • Jackson, MS	W 42–0		[50]
November 12	Auburn	Alabama	West End Park • Birmingham, AL	AUB 29–5		[51]
November 12	Clemson	Tennessee	Baldwin Park • Knoxville, TN	CLEM 6–0		[52]
November 12	Georgia	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	GT 23–6		[53]
November 12	Sewanee	Tulane	Athletic Park • New Orleans, LA	SEW 18–0		[54]
November 12	Nashville	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, TN	VAN 81–0	2,500	[55]

Week Nine

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 15		Cumberland	Lebanon, TN	W 103–0		[56]
November 16	Tennessee Docs	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	W 59–0		[57]
November 19	Ole Miss	Nashville	Citizens Park • Memphis, TN	MISS 12–5		[58]
November 19	Tennessee	Grant	Olympic Park Field • Chattanooga, TN	W 23–0		[59]
November 19	Vanderbilt		Richmond, KY	W 22–0
November 19	LSU	Tulane	Athletic Park • New Orleans, LA	TUL 5–0	5,000	[60]
November 19	Louisiana Industrial	Mississippi A&M	Starkville Fairgrounds • Starkville, MS	W 32–5		[61]

Week Ten

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
November 24	Auburn	Georgia	Central City Park • Macon, GA	UGA 17–6		[62]
November 24	Cumberland	Georgia Tech	Piedmont Park • Atlanta, GA	GT 18–0	5,000	[63]
November 24	Clemson	North Carolina A&M	State Fairgrounds • Raleigh, NC	L 0–18		[64]
November 24	Tennessee	Alabama	West End Park • Birmingham, AL	TENN 5–0		[65]
November 24	Ole Miss	Tulane	Athletic Park • New Orleans, LA	TUL 22–0		[66] [67]
November 24	Sewanee	Vanderbilt	Dudley Field • Nashville, TN	VAN 27–0	6,500	[68]

Week Eleven

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Reference
December 2	Alabama	LSU	State Field • Baton Rouge, LA	ALA 11–0		[69]
December 3	Alabama	Tulane	Athletic Park • New Orleans, LA	ALA 6–0	1,000	[70]
December 4	Alabama	Pensacola Athletic Club	Pensacola, FL	W 10–5		[71]

All-Southern team

See main article: 1904 College Football All-Southern Team. The composite All-Southern team compiled by John de Saulles included:^[72]

Position	Name	Team
QB	John Scarbrough	Sewanee
HB	Honus Craig	Vanderbilt
HB	Willard Steele	Cumberland
FB	Humphrey Foy	Auburn
E	Jones Beene	Tennessee
T	Lob Brown	Georgia Tech
G	Henry D. Phillips	Sewanee
C	Stein Stone	Vanderbilt
G	Innis Brown	Vanderbilt
T	Puss Derrick	Clemson
E	Ed Hamilton	Vanderbilt

References

• Book: Woodruff, Fuzzy. A History of Southern Football 1890–1928. 1. 1928.

Notes and References

1. News: The History of Southern Football (Chapter Two). Zipp Newman. Zipp Newman. 8. October 15, 2016. Newspapers.com. The Anniston Star. December 5, 1950.
2. Web site: 1904 Independent Year Summary College Football . www.sports-reference.com.
3. News: Sewanee again the victor. The Atlanta Constitution. October 12, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
4. News: Soldiers are defeated by Tech. The Atlanta Journal. October 2, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
5. News: Vanderbilt easy winner. The Atlanta Constitution. October 2, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
6. News: U. of T. wins game, defeats Maryville College team by score of 17 to 0. The Chattanooga Sunday Times. October 9, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
7. News: Florida lost to Alabama. The Atlanta Constitution. October 2, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
8. News: Auburn wins another. The Atlanta Journal. October 5, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
9. News: Techs Crush Florida Team. Atlanta Constitution. 5. October 9, 1904. September 1, 2015. Newspapers.com.
10. News: Clemson won handily . NewsBank: America's Historical Newspapers . The Montgomery Advertiser . October 9, 1904 . 20.
11. News: Georgia made a great showing against University of Florida. The Savannah Morning News. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
12. News: Victory for U. Of N.. The Nashville American. October 9, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
13. News: Georgetown beaten by Vandy. The Atlanta Journal. October 9, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
14. News: V.P.I. defeats Nashville. The Times-Dispatch. October 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
15. News: Game awarded to Alabama. The Atlanta Constitution. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
16. News: Auburn downs Clemson team. Atlanta Constitution. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
17. News: Tech crushes Mooney 51 to 0. The Atlanta Journal. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
18. News: Offside play saves Nashville. The Atlanta Constitution. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
19. News: Washington unable to score against Sewanee. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
20. News: Scrappy game captured by Vanderbilt. The Atlanta Journal. October 16, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
21. News: Georgia score badly beaten. The Atlanta Constitution. October 18, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
22. News: Football Friday; Athletics will play State University team that day. The Shreveport Journal. October 22, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
23. News: Baton Rouge Tigers win; Ruston defeated 17 to 0 in first game of season. The Times-Democrat. October 22, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
24. News: Auburn finds Nashville easy. 5. Atlanta Constitution. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
25. News: Nashville was easy for Auburn. The Birmingham Age-Herald. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
26. News: Clemson wins; In hard game the team beats Georgia 10 to 0. The Nashville American. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
27. News: Tennessee lost to Blacksmiths. The Atlanta Constitution. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
28. News: Mississippi teams beat; State University defeats A. and M. College team. The Times-Democrat. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
29. News: Vanderbilt finds easy game in Rolla. St. Louis Globe-Democrat. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
30. News: Tulane 11, Ruston 0. The Times-Democrat. October 23, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
31. News: Nashville lose to Alabama. The Nashville American. October 25, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
32. News: Georgia beaten; offensive weak. The Atlanta Constitution. October 27, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
33. News: Sewanee defeated Clemson in a spectacular game. The Savannah Morning News. October 28, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
34. News: Easy victory for Athletics. The Shreveport Journal. October 29, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
35. News: Georgia blacksmiths beaten by Auburn Tigers. The Montgomery Advertiser. October 30, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
36. News: Sewanee is winner, Mountain Boys take magnificent game from U. of T. by score of 12 to 0. The Chattanooga Sunday Times. October 30, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
37. News: Ruston defeated L.S.U.. The Shreveport Journal. October 31, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
38. News: Mississippi scores 114 in a one-sided game. The Atlanta Journal. October 30, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
39. News: A gruelling battle. The Times-Democrat. October 30, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
40. News: Central loses by big score. The Atlanta Constitution. October 30, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
41. News: Tech's Fine Offense Ties Clemson Game. Atlanta Constitution. November 6, 1904. 5. September 1, 2015. Newspapers.com.
42. News: Alabama wins from Georgia. The Atlanta Constitution. November 6, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
43. News: First game at Cumberland. Nashville Bannder. November 5, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
44. News: Mississippi defeated; Louisiana State University wins by score of 5 to 0. The Times-Democrat. November 6, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
45. News: Sewanee wins from Texas. The Vicksburg Herald. November 11, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
46. News: Tulane wins at Marion. The Times-Democrat. November 6, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
47. News: Tennessee easy for Vanderbilt. The Atlanta Constitution. November 6, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
48. News: Victory for Cadets. The Times-Democrat. November 11, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
49. News: A. and M. to meet Ruston. The Commercial Appeal. November 19, 1904. April 26, 2023. Newspapers.com.
50. News: Mississippi victorious; Oxford eleven won from Tennessee Meds 46 to 0. The Commercial Appeal. November 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
51. News: Plucky Auburn Tigers capture the championship of Alabama. The Birmingham Age-Herald. November 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
52. News: Clemson beat Tennessee team. Greenville Daily News. November 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
53. News: Georgia goes down before Tech rushes. The Birmingham Age-Herald. November 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
54. News: Sewanee 18; Tulane 0. The Times-Democrat. November 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
55. News: Vanderbilt Crushes Nashville Score Stands 81 to 0. The Tennessean. November 13, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
56. News: 103 To 0. Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle. November 17, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
57. News: Techs better Sewanee score. The Atlanta Constitution. November 17, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
58. News: Oxford eleven beat Nashville. The Commercial Appeal. November 20, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
59. News: Grant no match for the U.T. boys. The Chattanooga News. November 21, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
60. News: Tulane evened up. The Times-Democrat. November 20, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
61. News: Fine game of clean ball; Ruston team loses to Mississippi College boys. The Times-Democrat. November 20, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
62. News: Georgia goes down in defeat before the Auburn Tigers. The Macon News. November 25, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
63. News: Tech victor over Cumberland. The Atlanta Constitution. November 25, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
64. News: White and Reds get sweet revenge. The News and Observer. November 25, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
65. News: Alabama went down in defeat. The Birmingham News. November 24, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
66. News: Tulane–Mississippi. The Times-Democrat. November 24, 1904. May 5, 2024. Newspapers.com.
67. News: Tulane wins easily. The Times-Democrat. November 25, 1904. May 5, 2024. Newspapers.com.
68. News: Vanderbilt is the champion. 6. November 25, 1904. The Courier-Journal. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
69. News: Alabama the victor, Louisiana University team loses, 11 to 0. The Times-Democrat. December 3, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
70. News: Alabama 6; Tulane 0 - Last game of season won by Tuscaloosans. The Times-Democrat. December 4, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
71. News: Tuscaloosa defeats Pensacola. The Montgomery Advertiser. December 7, 1904. May 4, 2024. Newspapers.com.
72. Football in the South. 161. The Official National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Guide. Association. National Collegiate Athletic. 1904.