1890 Nebraska Old Gold Knights football team

The 1890 Nebraska Old Gold Knights football team represented the University of Nebraska in the 1890 college football season. The team was coached by Langdon Frothingham. Nebraska played no home games.

1890 was the first year that Nebraska fielded a football team. Dr. Langdon Frothingham (April 21, 1866 – July 29, 1935), a veterinary physician and graduate of Harvard University who had been hired to the faculty in 1889 to teach physiology, agriculture, and bacteriology at Nebraska, was named as coach of Nebraska's first football team, mainly because he had brought a football with him. It is unclear if Dr. Frothingham ever traveled with the team to either of their two games. He broke his leg while preparing the team for their second game; he may have coached the second game on crutches or may have already left the school before then (Dr. Frothingham left the university sometime in 1891 to teach in Dresden, Germany).

The University of Nebraska fielded their first team, as yet without an official name, for the inaugural game of the football program against the YMCA of Omaha. Approximately 500 students from the Lincoln campus were in attendance, which was a significant traveling group considering the transportation options of the era and the approximately 55-mile journey. In this early era of American football, The game was divided merely into two halves instead of four quarters, touchdowns were worth four points, and field kicks after touchdowns were worth two.

Omaha started the game with possession and drove 40 yards before giving up a fumble to Nebraska. Nebraska failed to capitalize, coming as close as 1 yard from the end zone before a penalty setback eventually resulted in the drive coming up empty. Omaha's subsequent possession ended early when an attempt to kick the ball out of the end zone failed and the kicker was tackled for a safety by Charles Chandler and James Porterfield, marking Nebraska's first-ever points scored and putting them ahead 2-0. After several possession changes, Nebraska came close enough to try for a field goal. However, the play was executed as a drop-kick, and although it went through the uprights it was ruled as a punt by the officials, and no points were awarded.

Nebraska soon after forced an Omaha fumble in their end zone, but Omaha recovered it to prevent the touchdown, instead suffering another safety which brought the scoreboard to 4-0 Nebraska.