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Detroit Titans football
University of Detroit team, 1896 to 1964
University of Detroit team, 1896 to 1964
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| TeamName | Detroit Titans football |
| Image | 30-University of Detroit-teamphoto.jpg |
| ImageSize | 300px |
| HCLosses | 59 |
| Stadium | University of Detroit Stadium |
| StadCapacity | 20,000 |
| FirstYear | 1896; |
| LastYear | 1964; |
| Location | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| ATWins | 308 |
| ATLosses | 204 |
| ATTies | 24 |
| NatlTitles | 1 (1928) |
The Detroit Titans were the college football team which represented the University of Detroit (now University of Detroit Mercy) from 1896 to 1964. The team posted an undefeated season in 1928, staking a claim to a national title. The program was terminated in 1964 for financial reasons.
History
Under head coach Gus Dorais in 1928, the Titans won all nine of their games. Several years later Parke H. Davis, considered to be a "major selector" by the NCAA, named the 1928 team to a share of the national championship.
From 1922 on, the Titans played their home games at University of Detroit Stadium (also known as U of D Stadium, Titan Stadium, and Dinan Field) near McNichols Road (Six Mile Road) and Fairfield Street on the university's McNichols campus.
The football program had incurred large losses since 1951, and was discontinued after the 1964 season. At the time of the sport's termination, university president Rev. Laurence V. Britt stated that the institution "does not currently have and does not foresee any prospects of its having the substantial funds" required to continue the program.
Conference affiliations
Detroit was both independent and affiliated with the Missouri Valley Conference.
- Unknown (1896–)
- Independent (–1947)
- Missouri Valley Conference (1948–1956)
- Independent (1957–1964)
Championships
National championships
Detroit won its only national championship in 1928, with Parke H. Davis selecting both Detroit and Georgia Tech. The school claims this championship.
| 1928 | Parke H. Davis | Gus Dorais | 9–0 |
|---|
Head coaches
Main article: List of Detroit Titans head football coaches
| Head Coach | Years | Seasons | Record | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| William S. Robinson | 1896–1899 | 4 | 13–5–1 | .700 |
| John C. Mackey | 1900–1901 | 2 | 6–6–0 | .500 |
| Edward J. Ryan | 1902, 1906 | 2 | 7–5–1 | .577 |
| Alfred W. Debo | 1903–1904 | 2 | 6–6–0 | .500 |
| George A. Kelly | 1907, 1909–1910 | 3 | 7–5–2 | .571 |
| Royal R. Campbell | 1911–1912 | 2 | 8–6–1 | .567 |
| George M. Lawton | 1913–1914 | 2 | 6–6–3 | .500 |
| Harry Costello | 1915–1916 | 2 | 4–7–2 | .385 |
| James F. Duffy | 1917, 1919–1922, 1924 | 6 | 43–12–1 | .777 |
| Germany Schulz | 1923 | 1 | 4–3–2 | .556 |
| Gus Dorais | 1925–1942 | 18 | 113–48–7 | .693 |
| Chuck Baer | 1945–1950 | 6 | 35–21–1 | .623 |
| Dutch Clark | 1951–1953 | 3 | 13–17–0 | .433 |
| Wally Fromhart | 1954–1958 | 5 | 19–25–2 | .435 |
| Jim Miller | 1959–1961 | 3 | 18–10–0 | .643 |
| John Idzik | 1962–1964 | 3 | 6–21–1 | .232 |
Notable personnel
| Name | Position | Years | Notes | Grady Alderman | Sig Andrusking | Vince Banonis | Dan Boisture | Lloyd Brazil | Walt Cassidy | Walt Clago | Bill Dando | Andy Farkas | Norm Harvey | Harvey Long | Elmer Madarik | Ted Marchibroda | John P. Metras | Doug Nott | Bill O'Neill | Lee Riley | Sod Ryan | Jim Shorter | Jack Simmons | Steve Stonebreaker | Tillie Voss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lineman | 1950s | Played in NFL, 1960-1974 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Guard | 1930s | Played in NFL in 1937 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Center | 1939-1941 | Inducted into College Football Hall of Fame | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| End | 1947-1948 | Head coach at Eastern Michigan, 1967-1973 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Halfback | 1927-1929 | All-American; inducted into Michigan Sports Hall of Fame | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| End | 1920s | Played in NFL, 1924 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| End | Played in NFL, 1921-1922 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Halfback | 1956-1968 | Head coach at Buffalo, 1977-1979 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fullback | 1930s | Played for Washington Redskins, 1938-1944 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tackle | 1920s | Played in NFL, 1925-1929 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lineman | 1920s | Played in NFL, 1929-1930 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Halfback | 1940s | Played for Detroit Lions 1945-1948 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Quarterback | 1950s | Played and coached in the NFL for over 40 years, 1953-1998 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Center | 1930s | Inducted into Canadian Football Hall of Fame as a coach | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Halfback | 1930s | Played for Detroit Lions in 1935 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Halfback | 1930s | Played for Detroit Lions in 1935 and Cleveland Rams in 1937 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defensive back | 1950s | Played in NFL and AFL, 1955-1962 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tackle | 1920s | Played in NFL from 1929 to 1930 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defensive back | 1960s | Played in NFL, 1948-1956 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lineman | 1940s | Played in NFL, 1962-1969 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Linebacker | 1960s | Played in NFL, 1962-1968 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| End | 1920s | Played in NFL, 1921-1929 |
Players in the NFL draft
Main article: List of Detroit Titans in the NFL draft
References
References
- (August 2011). "2011 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records". The National Collegiate Athletic Association.
- (December 1, 1964). "Students yip as Detroit drops grid". Spokesman-Review.
- (December 1, 1964). "Detroit kicks out football, students stage big protest". Pittsburgh Press.
- Berry, Jack. (1964-12-01). "U-D Football Finally Dies of Neglect". The Detroit Free Press.
- "Detroit Mercy Titans Football Record By Year".
- (August 2018). "2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records". National Collegiate Athletic Association.
- "2013 Will Be A Season To Remember In Motown".
- "Remembering the 1953 Missouri Valley Conference Champion Detroit Titans".
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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