Morristown, NJ - This Week In College Football History steps back in time to look at some of football's greatest highlights, record-breaking performances, and interesting facts, which have shaped the game into what it is today. Throughout the season, many of this column's items are depicted in a changing exhibit at the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Indiana.
This Week In College Football is researched and compiled by Pat Harmon, National Football Foundation Historian. *If you choose to use this content in whole or in part, as a courtesy, please credit The National Football Foundation's College Football Hall of Fame.
November 25, 1898: Pat O'Dea of Wisconsin dropkicked a 62-yard field goal against Northwestern. O'Dea nicknamed "Kangaroo Kicker" was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1962.
November 25, 1920: Texas 7, Texas A&M 3. First game broadcasted on the radio. WTAW, College Station, Tex., carried the game.
November 25, 1971: Nebraska 35, Oklahoma 31. The game decided the national championship. In a poll it was voted the game of the century.
November 26, 1904: Walter Eckersall of Chicago returned a kickoff 106 yards against Wisconsin. Eckersall nicknamed "Eckie" was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1958.
November 26, 1914: Rolla School of Mines beat St. Louis 53-0, ending the season with a record of 8-0 and a scoring margin of 540-0.
November 26, 1926: A crowd of 110,000 at Soldier Field, Chicago, saw Army and Navy play a 21- 21 tie.
November 28, 1942: Boston College was 8-0, ranked No.1 in the national poll. Holy Cross was 3-4-1. Holy Cross beat Boston College 55-12.
November 29, 1980: Georgia beat Georgia Tech 38- 20. Herschel Walker of Georgia ended the regular season with 1, 618 rushing yards, a record at that time for a freshman. He was unanimous All-America. Georgia was the national champion. Walker was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1999.
November 30, 1905: Chicago beat Michigan 2-0, ending Michigan's 5- year, 56- game unbeaten streak.
November 30, 1936: Southern Methodist and Texas Christian, both with 10-0 records, met. The Rose Bowl announced it would invite the winner. Southern Methodist won 20-14.
November 30, 1980: UCLA beat Oregon State 34-3 in Tokyo, Japan.
With 119 chapters and over 14,000 members nationwide, The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in America's young people. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, The NFF Center for Youth Development Through Sport at Springfield College (Mass.), the NFL-NFF Coaching Academy, and scholarships of nearly $1 million annually for College and High School Scholar-Athlet
