1908 Florida football team

American college football season February 2026 August 2023 1908 Florida football Independent 5–2–1 Jack Forsythe 3rd William Wetmore "Gric" Gibbs The Ballpark The 1908 Florida football team represented the University of Florida during the 1908 college football season. The season was Jack Forsythe's third and last as the head coach of the University of Florida football team.Norm Carlson, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, pp. 7–11 (2007). Forsythe's 1908 Florida football team posted a record of 5–2–1 in their third varsity season. Before the season The team was captained by veteran transfer William Gibbs. It was the first season for a talented Gainesville product, Dummy Taylor. The backfield also included Charlie Bartleson Jim Vidal, and William A. Shands, future state senator and namesake of Shands Hospital. One story of Florida becoming the "Florida Gators" originates in 1908. Gainesville shop owner ordered orange and blue pennants with a gator emblem from the Michie Company, drawing inspiration from the University of Virginia.McEwen 1974 43 Schedule October 10 l y Mercer Macon, GA 0–24 October 17 w y Riverside Athletic Club Baseball Park Jacksonville, FL 4–0 October 21 w Gainesville Athletic Club The Ballpark Gainesville, FL 37–5 October 24 w y Columbia College Lake City, FL 6–0 November 1 l y Rollins Winter Park, FL 0–5 November 7 w Stetson The Ballpark Gainesville, FL 6–5 November 21 w Riverside Athletic Club The Ballpark Gainesville, FL 37–0 November 26 t y Stetson DeLand, FL 0–0 2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide https://web.archive.org/web/20151208143532/http://web.gatorzone.com/football/media/2015/media_guide.pdf December 8, 2015 , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 107 (2015). Retrieved August 16, 2015. Game summaries Mercer The Florida football team opened the season with a loss to the Mercer Baptists for the third consecutive season, 24–0. Mercer outweighed Florida by 20 pounds.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/5964816/the_atlanta_constitution/ 4 Mercer 24; Florida 0 The Atlanta Constitution October 11, 1908 July 22, 2016 Newspapers.com The starting lineup was Malhorton (left end), Rader (left tackle), Vanfleet (left guard), Parker (center), Videll (right guard), J. Taylor (right tackle), Shands (right end), Thompson (quarterback), Bartleson (left halfback), E. Taylor (right halfback), Gibbs (fullback). Riverside A. C. thumb|260px|UF at Riverside, 1908 Florida beat the Riverside Athletic Club of Jacksonville twice. The first win was 4–0. Former Gator Roy Corbett coached and played right halfback for Riverside.McEwen 1974 41 Gainesville A. C. The Gainesville Athletic Club fell to Florida 37–5. Columbia College Columbia College of Lake City was beaten 6–0. Rollins Florida 0 0 Rollins 0 5 Winter Park, FL Florida lost to the state champion Rollins Tars 5–0. Rollins' Harman broke away for a 30-yard touchdown in the second half.Football 1908 Stetson Florida also played the Stetson Hatters for the first time, beating them 6–5 on the Orange and Blue's home field in Gainesville. Dummy Taylor's extra point decided the win over Stetson, after a Charlie Bartleson touchdown run.McEwen 1974 42http://digitalcollections.net.ucf.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/CFM/id/85425/rec/114 U. of F. Victorious 21 6 Stetson Weekly Collegiate November 12, 1908 Riverside A. C. The second win over Riverside was 37–0. Stetson Florida 0 0 Stetson 0 0 DeLand, FL Florida tied Stetson 0–0 in a rematch on the Hatters' home field in DeLand, Florida.http://digitalcollections.net.ucf.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/CFM/id/85371/rec/108 Football Game 21 3 November 26, 1908 Stetson Weekly Collegiate The starting lineup was Moody (left end), Taylor (left tackle), Shands (left guard), Parker (center), McMillan (right guard), Rader (right tackle), Haughton (right end), Bartleson (quarterback), Gibbs (left halfback), E. Taylor (right halfback), Vidal (fullback). Postseason Forsythe finished his three-year tenure as Florida's football coach with an overall record of 14–6–2.Horne 2012 105 References Bibliography Horne Larry E. Florida Gators IQ 1-4499-8947-0 2012 McEwen Tom The Gators: A Story of Florida Football The Strode Publishers Huntsville, Alabama 1974 0-87397-025-X Florida Category:Florida Gators football seasons Florida football