The Coe College football
team has won many games in the 105-year history of the program, and
there have been many outstanding players and coaches. But the most
memorable team in Coe's history is the Point-A-Minute football team of
1914. ".. .In the 5 Iowa Conference Championship games the Crimson and
Gold actually maintained an average of a trifle over a point a minute
throughout the twenty quarters of play."
This famous team was
coached by Moray Eby, whom the Eby field house was named in honor of.
During his career, his teams battled such formidable forces such as
Notre Dame, Illinois, and Wisconsin. However, the team of 1914 did not
have many men to participate; the varsity team was comprised of only 22
men, lead by Glenn "Straw" Bailey, who gained 355 yards in only six
plays during one game.
Coe opened the 1914 season
with a modest 17-0 victory over Parsons. Their next game was a 27-6
loss to Iowa State followed by victories over Monmouth and Simpson. But
what about the big scores? They soon followed, but first, Coach Eby had
some changes to make. After these first few games, he made modest
adjustments in the line-up and defense, but these changes are only a
part of the formula that made the winning team. Other factors include
the shortcomings of other teams in the conference, as well as the
"wealth of speedy reserve players" on Coe's squad. While the
Point-A-Minute team did not hold all of their opponents scoreless, they
were without dispute the champions of the Iowa Conference.
Coe went on to beat Leander
Clark 52-0 and then routed Grinnell 85-0. In the next game Coach Eby's
team annihilated Highland Park College of Des Moines 115-0. These
victories were even more impressive in 1914 than they are now, given
that in those days, football was not the high scoring game that it is
now.
People that are still alive
to remember the greatness of the 1914 team will no doubt tell you that
the greatest Coe college football team that ever played was the
Point-a-Minute team of 1914. There was Glenn Bailey, the captain, who
played left halfback, and ". . . overlooked a broken arm, two
decapitated hip bones and a dislocated shoulder" to help lead his
teammates to victory. Another notable player was Wykoff, the full back
known for his athleticism. "He has weight, speed and drive and on
defense meets a play accurately and aggressively." There was the right
tackle, Novak, known on the field and off for his leadership, and was
rightly elected the captain of the 1915 squad.
The final game of the year
was against Coe's rival, Cornell. Eby's team came up with yet another
victory, winning the contest 19-7. This victory also gave them the Iowa
championship and would later earn them their Point-a-Minute title. Coe
scored 330 points to their opponents' measly 43. The December 8, 1914
Cosmos coverage of the game has this to say: "Thus closed a football
season that may well be remembered by the Coe students as on well worth
the remembering. These deeds of Coach Eby' s heroes will go down in
Coe's history... "
