1918 Chicago Maroons football | |
---|---|
Conference | Big Ten Conference |
1918 record | 4–6–1 (0–5 Big Ten) |
Head coach | Amos Alonzo Stagg (27th year) |
1918 Big Ten football standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Michigan + | 2 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 0 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Illinois + | 4 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Purdue + | 1 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Iowa | 2 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Minnesota | 2 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northwestern | 1 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wisconsin | 1 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indiana | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ohio State | 0 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chicago | 0 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The 1918 Chicago Maroons football team was an American football team that represented the University of Chicago during the 1918 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 27th season under head coach Amos Alonzo Stagg, the Maroons compiled a 4–6–1 record, finished in last place in the Big Ten Conference, but still outscored their opponents by a combined total of 128 to 91. No Chicago players were selected to the first team of that All-America or All-Big Ten teams.
In late September 1918, the Big Ten's faculty committee suspended the conference's activities as a controlling body during the period of emergency and agreed to be governed by any rules of the War Department.
In early October, the War Department announced quarantine and travel restrictions which included the following: (1) a prohibition on more than one-and-a-half hours per day of football practice; (2) a prohibition on football games during the month of October that required absence from campus "for a longer period than from noon to taps on Saturday" (thus eliminating games that required lengthy travel); and (3) making allowance for only four November games per school, two at home and two on the road, "which shall in no case involve longer absences than from retreat Friday to taps Sunday."
The restrictions threatened to "kill" football in the west, where lengthy travel was required. Many games were cancelled, and concerns over spread of the 1918 flu pandemic also led to limitations on public gatherings and resulted in some games being cancelled and others being played in stadiums with closed gates and no spectators.
On Saturday, October 12, 1918, Chicago lost to the team from the United States Naval Reserve School by a 14–7 score at Stagg Field in Chicago. The Naval Reserve School was established on Chicago's Municipal Pier in June 1918.
On Wednesday, October 16, 1918, Chicago played the first of four midweek practice games. The Maroons defeated Crane Tech College, 46–0, at Stagg Field in Chicago. Amos Alonzo Stagg, Jr., made his college football debut in the game. Due to the influenze epidemic, city official forbade further athletic contests after this game.
On Friday, October 18, 1918, in an "unadvertised crowdless practice game", Chicago defeated Hyde Park High School, 41–0. Amos Alonzo Stagg, Jr., "ran the team for three quarters."