120 years ago today – November 30, 1905, which was also Thanksgiving Day – undefeated University of Chicago hosted undefeated University of Michigan in the first “Game of the Century,” for the @b1gfootball.bsky.social title and the de facto national championship.

The print version…

Best day ever, and the foundation for all good things that followed...15 years ago now. Happy anniversary my love!

120 years ago today, on November 7, 1905, scandal hit the University of Chicago football program. The first installment of “Buying Football Victories,” a four-part expose on crooked recruiting, academic fraud, and other shady dealings in Big Nine football, appeared in Collier’s magazine.

Spotted on a trip to KC (home of Hallmark Inc., of course) a couple years ago.

120 years ago today, on October 21, 1905, the Chicago Maroons played their first road football game of the year against Wisconsin, on a suspiciously muddy field. Madison hadn’t had rain for two days, yet the ground was soaked. Coach Stagg blamed both the coaching staff and grounds crew.

120 years ago, on October 14, 1905, University of Chicago football coach Amos Alonzo Stagg skipped his game against @indianafootball.bsky.social to scout an upcoming opponent, Wisconsin. Skipping a “lesser” game was fairly common practice at the time, but this turned out to be a near-fatal mistake.

After serving as distributor, play-caller, & occasional kicker in Chicago's "minor" games, Walter Eckersall finally scored a TD of his own on October 7, 1905, in the team’s first @b1gfootball.bsky.social game against Iowa, on a 70-yard punt return. But the game’s star was Eckie’s regular backup.

Back to Sam Ransom and Walter Eckersall. They became fast friends in January 1900, when Sam arrived at Hyde Park High School as a midyear entry, one semester behind Eckersall. The pair both excelled in football, baseball, and track; Sam also starred in basketball.

The long-awaited day is here! My new book "Eckie: Walter Eckersall and the Rise of Chicago Sports" is officially published! Thanks to all who helped me in this five-plus year journey, especially my wife and daughters for their support and patience! www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/978...

On 9/23/1905, Chicago took on Lawrence University of Appleton, WI, in the season's 2nd game. For the 2nd week in a row, Walter Eckersall only played the first half & never attempted a rush. He kicked one PAT, but missed two others, in a comfortable 33-0 win. www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/978...

A few days ago, I introduced University of Chicago football star Walter Eckersall. He & most of his 1905 Maroons teammates are largely forgotten today. But the original “Monsters of the Midway” were folk heroes, much like the 1985 Chicago Bears (a franchise which co-opted the “Monsters” nickname!)

Hello BlueSky! First-time poster here.
With the pending publication of "Eckie" & the 120th anniversary of the greatest season for University of Chicago football, this seems a good time to revisit 1905. On 9/16/1905, Chicago opened play against North Division High School (today's Lincoln Park H.S.).