Davidson football, 1896–1899

The Davidson football team (later known as the Davidson Wildcats) represented Davidson College in American football. The football program started in 1896 with a game against the Charlotte YMCA. After not fielding a team in 1897, the program played two games in 1898 and a six-game schedule in 1899. The team did not hire a coach until 1900 when John A. Brewin began his four-year tenure as head coach. This article covers the program's early years prior to the hiring of Brewin as the school's first head football coach.

1896

1896 Davidson football
Conference	Independent
Record	0–1
Head coach	None
Seasons 1898  →

1896 Southern college football independents records
v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Centre			–					6	–	0	–	1
Texas A&M			–					2	–	0	–	1
Oklahoma			–					2	–	0	–	0
North Carolina A&M			–					1	–	0	–	0
Virginia			–					7	–	2	–	2
VPI			–					5	–	2	–	1
Navy			–					5	–	3	–	0
Arkansas			–					2	–	1	–	0
Clemson			–					2	–	1	–	0
Columbian			–					2	–	1	–	0
Add-Ran			–					1	–	1	–	1
Centenary			–					1	–	1	–	0
VMI			–					3	–	4	–	0
North Carolina			–					3	–	4	–	1
Furman			–					2	–	3	–	0
Ole Miss			–					1	–	2	–	0
West Virginia			–					3	–	7	–	2
South Carolina			–					1	–	3	–	0
Erskine			–					0	–	1	–	0
William & Mary			–					0	–	2	–	0
Davidson			–					0	–	1	–	0
Delaware			–					0	–	6	–	0

The 1896 Davidson football team was an American football team represented Davidson College as an independent during the 1896 college football season. The team compiled a 0–1 record and played just one match against the Charlotte YMCA on their own campus.

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
October 19	Charlotte YMCA	Davidson, NC	L 4–12	[1]

1898

1898 Davidson football
Conference	Independent
Record	1–1
Head coach	None
Seasons ←  1896 1899  →

1898 Southern college football independents records
v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
North Carolina			–					9	–	0	–	0
Central			–					3	–	0	–	1
Oklahoma			–					2	–	0	–	0
Navy			–					7	–	1	–	0
West Virginia			–					6	–	1	–	0
Marshall			–					4	–	1	–	0
Georgetown			–					7	–	3	–	0
Texas A&M			–					4	–	2	–	0
VMI			–					4	–	2	–	0
Arkansas Industrial			–					2	–	1	–	0
Centre			–					2	–	1	–	2
VPI			–					3	–	2	–	0
Virginia			–					6	–	5	–	0
Richmond			–					3	–	3	–	1
Davidson			–					1	–	1	–	0
William & Mary			–					1	–	1	–	0
South Carolina			–					1	–	2	–	0
Delaware			–					2	–	5	–	2
Columbian			–					3	–	6	–	0
Add-Ran			–					1	–	3	–	1
Maryland			–					2	–	6	–	1
Guilford			–					0	–	3	–	0

The 1898 Davidson football team was an American football team represented Davidson College as an independent during the 1898 college football season. The team compiled a 1–1 record and played both games at Charlotte, North Carolina. After a loss to North Carolina, Davidson secured their first win in program history against South Carolina by a score of 5–0.

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
November 5	vs. North Carolina	Latta Park Charlotte, NC	L 0–11	[2]
November 24	vs. South Carolina	Latta Park Charlotte, NC	W 5–0	[3]

1899

1899 Davidson football
Conference	Independent
Record	1–3–1
Head coach	None
Seasons ←  1898 1900  →

1899 Southern college football independents records
v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
VMI			–						–	0	–	0
VPI			–					4	–	1	–	0
Delaware			–					6	–	2	–	0
Arkansas			–					3	–	1	–	1
Georgetown			–					5	–	2	–	1
Texas A&M			–					4	–	2	–	0
Oklahoma			–					2	–	1	–	0
Baylor			–					2	–	1	–	1
Guilford			–					2	–	1	–	1
Navy			–					5	–	3	–	0
Virginia			–					4	–	3	–	2
Add-Ran			–					0	–	0	–	1
Richmond			–					2	–	2	–	0
South Carolina			–					2	–	3	–	0
West Virginia			–					2	–	3	–	0
William & Mary			–					2	–	3	–	0
North Carolina A&M			–					1	–	2	–	2
Davidson			–					1	–	3	–	1
Maryland			–					1	–	4	–	0
Marshall			–					0	–	0	–	1

The 1899 Davidson football team was an American football team represented Davidson College as an independent during the 1899 college football season, and the team compiled a 1–3–1. After they opened the season with three consecutive losses, Davidson had their first all time tie in program history with a scoreless game against North Carolina A&M.

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
October 14	vs. Clemson	Rock Hill, SC	L 0–10	[4]
October 21	vs. North Carolina	Latta Park Charlotte, NC	L 0–10	[5]
November 11	Oak Ridge Institute	Davidson, NC	L 2–6	[6]
November 17	vs. North Carolina A&M	Latta Park Charlotte, NC	T 0–0	[7] [8]
November 30	vs. South Carolina	Latta Park Charlotte, NC	W 5–0	[9] [10]

References

1. "Charlotte Was Victorious". Charlotte Daily Observer. October 20, 1896. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
2. "The contest on the gridiron, University won over Davidson". Charlotte Daily Observer. November 6, 1898. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Davidson 5, South Carolina 0". Winston-Salem Journal. November 25, 1898. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
4. "The score was 10 to 0 in Clemson's favor". The State. October 15, 1899. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
5. "University defeats Davidson College by a close score". The Morning Post. October 22, 1899. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Two happy teams". Greensboro Telegram. November 13, 1899. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Neither side scored, A. and M. and Davidson College eleven played to a standstill in Charlotte". The Morning Post. November 18, 1899. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Score: nothing to nothing". Charlotte Daily Observer. November 18, 1899. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Football To-Day". Charlotte Daily Observer. November 30, 1899. p. 4. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com .
10. "Davidson Wins The Game". Charlotte Daily Observer. December 1, 1899. p. 6. Retrieved September 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com .