1952 Tampa Spartans football team

1952 Tampa Spartans football
Cigar Bowl champion
Cigar Bowl, W 21–12 vs. Lenoir–Rhyne
Conference	Independent
Record	8–3–1
Head coach	Marcelino Huerta (1st season)
Home stadium	Phillips Field
Seasons ←  1951 1953  →

1952 Southern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Maryland State			–					9	–	1	–	0
Mississippi Southern			–					10	–	2	–	0
Virginia			–					8	–	2	–	0
Sewanee			–					7	–	2	–	0
No. 17 Navy			–					6	–	2	–	1
Arkansas State			–					8	–	3	–	0
Tampa			–					8	–	3	–	1
Chattanooga			–					7	–	3	–	0
Northeast Louisiana State			–					5	–	4	–	0
Delaware			–					4	–	4	–	0
Louisville			–					3	–	5	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					4	–	7	–	0
Marshall			–					2	–	7	–	2
Memphis State			–					2	–	7	–	0
Florida State			–					1	–	8	–	1
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1952 Tampa Spartans football team represented the University of Tampa in the 1952 college football season. It was the Spartans' 16th season. The team was led by head coach Marcelino Huerta, in his first year, and played their home games at Phillips Field in Tampa, Florida. They finished with a record of eight wins, three losses and one tie (8–3–1) and with a victory in the Cigar Bowl over Lenoir–Rhyne.

After the resignation of Frank Sinkwich, on March 5, 1952, Marcelino Huerta was introduced as the Spartans' new head coach. ^[1] Huerta had previously served as a line coach under Sinkwich for the 1950 and 1951 seasons after he graduated from the University of Florida. ^[1]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 20	at Troy State	Memorial Stadium Columbus, GA	W 7–0	6,000	[2]
September 27	South Georgia	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	W 66–6
October 4	Mississippi Southern	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	L 25–52
October 11	at Jacksonville State	College Bowl Jacksonville, AL	W 20–6	6,000	[3]
October 18	Stetson	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	T 6–6
October 24	McNeese State	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	L 20–42		[4]
October 31	Livingston State	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	W 27–12
November 8	Appalachian State	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	W 19–0	7,500	[5]
November 15	Chattanooga	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	L 7–30	10,000	[6]
November 22	Catawba	Phillips Field Tampa, FL	W 20–6
December 6	at Florida State	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	W 39–6
December 13	Lenoir–Rhyne	Phillips Field Tampa, FL (Cigar Bowl)	W 21–12		[7]

References

1. "Huerta named Spartan coach". St. Petersburg Times . Google News Archives. Associated Press. March 6, 1952. p. 33. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
2. "Tampa wins bitter 7–0 victory from Troy". The Sunday Ledger-Enquirer. September 21, 1952. Retrieved November 13, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Spartans score 20 to 6 victory over Jacksonville Teachers". Tampa Sunday Tribune. October 12, 1952. Retrieved December 4, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
4. "McNeese slams Tampa, 42–20". Orlando Morning Sentinel. October 25, 1952. Retrieved March 7, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Spartans capture homecoming tilt from Mountaineers, 19–0". The Tampa Tribune. November 9, 1952. Retrieved December 10, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Mocs find Spartans tough but win grid battle, 30–7". The Tampa Tribune. November 16, 1952. Retrieved September 9, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Lenoir–Rhyne bows to Tampa in bowl tilt". Asheville Citizen-Times. December 14, 1952. Retrieved January 6, 2023– via Newspapers.com.