1930 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team

1930 Minnesota Golden Gophers football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record3–4–1 (1–3 Big Ten)
Head coach
MVPClarence Munn
CaptainWin Brockmeyer
Home stadiumMemorial Stadium
Seasons
← 1929
1931 →
1930 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 5 Michigan + 5 – 0 – 0 8 – 0 – 1
No. 4 Northwestern + 5 – 0 – 0 7 – 1 – 0
Purdue 4 – 2 – 0 6 – 2 – 0
Wisconsin 2 – 2 – 1 6 – 2 – 1
Ohio State 2 – 2 – 1 5 – 2 – 1
Minnesota 1 – 3 – 0 3 – 4 – 1
Indiana 1 – 3 – 0 2 – 5 – 1
Illinois 1 – 4 – 0 3 – 5 – 0
Iowa 0 – 1 – 0 4 – 4 – 0
Chicago 0 – 4 – 0 2 – 5 – 2
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from Dickinson System

The 1930 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1930 college football season. In their first year under head coach Fritz Crisler, the Golden Gophers compiled a 3–4–1 record, shut out four opponents (including a scoreless tie with Stanford), and outscored all opponents by a combined score of 126 to 81. Out of 126 points scored by the Golden Gophers, most were scored in two games against schools from South Dakota who the Golden Gophers defeated by a combined score of 107 to 0.[1]

Guard Clarence Munn was selected as the team's Most Valuable Player.[2] Munn was also selected by the United Press as a first-team player on the 1930 All-Big Ten Conference football team.[3]

Total attendance for the season was 167,728, which averaged to 27,955.[4] The season high for attendance was against Northwestern.[4]

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 27South Dakota State*
W 48–020,000[5]
October 4Vanderbilt*
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Minneapolis, MN
L 7–3320,000[6]
October 11Stanford*
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Minneapolis, MN
T 0–045,000[7]
October 18Indiana
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 6–020,000[8]
November 1Northwestern
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Minneapolis, MN
L 6–2754,000[9]
November 8South Dakota*
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Minneapolis, MN
W 59–020,000[10]
November 15at Michigan
L 0–754,944[11]
November 22at Wisconsin
L 0–1432,000[12]
  • *Non-conference game

Game summaries

Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total
Gophers 0 0 0 0 0
Wolverines 7 0 0 0 7

In the seventh week of the season, Minnesota played Michigan in the annual competition for the Little Brown Jug. The game marked the first appearance by Fritz Crisler as a head coach at Michigan Stadium. Crisler was in his first year as head coach at Minnesota; he took over as Michigan's head coach eight years later. Michigan won the game 7 to 0. The game's only score came in the first quarter on a 45-yard punt return by Michigan's left halfback, Jack Wheeler. The return was off of a punt by Minnesota's All-American Biggie Munn. A newspaper account of the game described Wheeler's run as follows:

"Wheeler's run will go down as one of Michigan's, classics. He got the ball after a low, twisting kick by Munn had traveled to the Minnesota 45-yard line. Wheeler gathered it in and charged. He hit two Minnesota tacklers and knifed his way between them. He staggered a yard or two from the impact and sidestepped another Gopher tackler. Morrison came across like a charging bull to take another from Wheeler's path. He waved away, and slid yards across the goal line on his dive for a touchdown."[13]

Despite the lack of scoring, the Associated Press reported that the game was "a desperately-fought breath-taking football battle."[13]

References

  1. ^ "1930 Minnesota Golden Gophers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  2. ^ Keiser, Jeff (2007), 2007 Media Guide (PDF), p. 181[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ "United Press Names Big Ten All Stars: Wildcats Lead With Four Men on Honor Team; Harry Newman Called Best Quarterback in Conference Since Friedman". Decatur Herald. November 24, 1930. p. 3.
  4. ^ a b Keiser, Jeff (2007), 2007 Media Guide (PDF), p. 160[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ "Crisler's passing attack wins for Gophers". The Minneapolis Journal. September 28, 1930. Retrieved April 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Vanderbilt runs over Minnesota for 33 to 7 win". Chicago Sunday Tribune. October 5, 1930. Retrieved May 20, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Minnesota gridders hold Stanford to scoreless tie". The San Francisco Examiner. October 12, 1930. Retrieved May 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Gophers down Hoosiers, 6 to 0". The Des Moines Register. October 19, 1930. Retrieved May 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Wildcats crush Gophers, 27 to 6". Wisconsin State Journal. November 2, 1930. Retrieved May 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Coyotes routed 59–0, South Dakota unable to halt Minnesota team". The Daily Argus-Leader. November 9, 1930. Retrieved May 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Michigan keeps slate clean with win over Minnesota". Decatur Herald. November 16, 1930. Retrieved May 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Wisconsin outplays Gophers to win 14–0". The Minneapolis Journal. November 23, 1930. Retrieved May 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ a b W.G. Stevenson (November 16, 1930). "Michigan Beats Gophers, 7-0; Still In Big Ten Race; 45-Yard Run By Wheeler Lone Score". Capital Times (AP story).