Back

1923 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

1923 Vanderbilt Commodores football
SoCon co-champion
ConferenceSouthern Conference, Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association
Record5–2–1 (3–0–1 SoCon, 2–0 SIAA)
Head coach
Offensive schemeShort punt
CaptainOliver Kuhn
Home stadiumDudley Field
Uniform
Seasons
← 1922
1924 →
1923 Southern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Washington & Lee + 4 0 1 6 3 1
Vanderbilt * + 3 0 1 5 2 1
VPI 4 1 0 6 3 0
Alabama 4 1 1 7 2 1
Maryland 2 1 0 7 2 1
Florida 1 0 2 6 1 2
North Carolina 2 1 1 5 3 1
Georgia 3 2 0 5 3 1
Mississippi A&M 2 1 2 5 2 2
Tennessee 4 3 0 5 4 1
Tulane 2 2 1 6 3 1
Clemson 1 1 1 5 2 1
Georgia Tech 0 0 4 3 2 4
NC State 1 4 0 3 7 0
Auburn 0 1 3 3 3 3
Kentucky 0 2 2 4 3 2
Virginia 0 3 1 3 5 1
LSU 0 3 0 3 5 1
Ole Miss 0 4 0 4 6 0
South Carolina 0 4 0 4 6 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • * co-member of SIAA
1923 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Furman $ 4 1 0 9 2 0
Centre 2 0 0 7 1 1
Vanderbilt* 2 0 0 5 2 1
Western Kentucky 2 0 0 3 4 0
Mississippi College 3 0 1 5 1 2
The Citadel 2 1 1 5 3 1
Presbyterian 2 1 1 4 3 1
Louisville 2 1 0 5 2 0
Sewanee 3 2 0 5 4 1
Oglethorpe 3 3 0 4 6 0
Chattanooga 1 3 1 3 4 2
Howard (AL) 1 3 1 3 4 3
Wofford 1 3 0 6 3 0
Mercer 2 2 0 4 5 0
Millsaps 0 1 1 0 1 1
Louisiana College 0 1 0 0 1 0
Georgetown (KY) 0 1 0 0 3 0
Transylvania 0 3 0 0 3 0
Newberry 0 4 0 2 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • * – co-member of SoCon

The 1923 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the sport of college football during the 1923 Southern Conference football season. The team's head coach was Dan McGugin, who served his 19th year in that capacity. The Commodores played six home games at Dudley Field in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt finished the season with a record of 5–2–1 overall and 3–0–1 in SoCon play, outscoring opponents 137–33. The team suffered its losses to the national champion Michigan Wolverines and the undefeated Texas Longhorns.

The Vanderbilt team was members of the Southern Conference (SoCon) as well as co-members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA). They won the conference title for the third straight year, tying with Washington & Lee for the SoCon championship. Most sportswriters listed the Commodores as the best team in the South and winners of the championship outright, resulting in their receiving the Champ Pickens Trophy. It is still to date the most recent conference title for Vanderbilt football.

The offense was led by captain and quarterback Oliver Kuhn and All-Southern halfback Gil Reese. The defense, which allowed and average of 2.33 points per game at home, was anchored by All-Southern ends Lynn Bomar and Hek Wakefield. As was common in 1923 and the days of one platoon football, both Bomar and Wakefield also featured heavily on offense and the kicking game. Bomar was also a consensus All-American, even selected for Walter Camp's first team, a rarity for a player from the South.[1] Of Wakefield's performance during the Michigan game, Michigan head coach Fielding Yost said "I never saw a greater exhibition of end play."[2]

  1. ^ Scott, Richard. SEC Football: 75 Years of Pride and Passion. Minneapolis, MN: Voyageur, 2008; p. 25
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference 50Years was invoked but never defined (see the help page).