Case Western Reserve Spartans football | |||
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First season | 1890 | ||
Head coach |
Greg Debeljak 13th year, 91–42 (.684) |
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Stadium | DiSanto Field | ||
Seating capacity | 2,400 | ||
Field surface | FieldTurf | ||
Location | University Circle, Cleveland, OH | ||
NCAA division | Division III | ||
Conference | Presidents' Athletic Conference | ||
Bowl record | 1–0 (1.000) | ||
Conference titles | 20 | ||
Colors | Navy, White, and Gray |
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Fight song | Fight On | ||
Mascot | Spartie | ||
Outfitter | Nike | ||
Rivals | Carnegie Mellon Tartans | ||
Website | athletics.case.edu |
The Case Western Reserve Spartans football team is the varsity intercollegiate football team representing the Case Western Reserve University, located in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. They compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division III level and hold dual membership in both the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) and the University Athletic Association (UAA). They are coached by Greg Debeljak. Home games are played at DiSanto Field. The team in its current form was created in 1970 after the federation of Western Reserve University and Case Institute of Technology.
Case, originally known as Case School of Applied Science, carried the name Scientists from 1918–1939. In 1940, the mascot was changed to the Rough Riders, in honor of their head coach Ray A. Ride. Case formally updated their school name in 1947 to Case Institute of Technology. Western Reserve originally used the mascot Pioneers from 1921–1927, until being forced to change by Marietta College, who claimed earlier usage of the namesake. The famous Red Cats mascot was then used beginning in 1928. Upon the merger of the two schools, the Spartans name was adopted in 1970, as the team is now known.
Western Reserve played its first season in 1890 and Case began the following year in 1891. Physically bordering each other, the two schools became instant rivals. From 1894–1953, the rivalry game was played mostly on Thanksgiving Day, creating a Cleveland tradition. Due to high civic interest and large crowds, the games were often held at larger Cleveland city venues, such as League Park and Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Western Reserve led the all-time series 49–20–5.