Our Daily Show Interview! 100 Years Ago With Lacy! Illinois Vs Michigan
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ALTON - On October 18, 1924, 67,000 people, including 500 Altonians, attended the Illinois-Michigan football game in Urbana. Included in the Alton group at the game were John E. MacWherter, Alton High coach, several members of the Alton High football team, and Frank Garetson, coach at Western Military Academy. The Shurtleff College Pioneers football team and the Shurtleff director of athletics, William Graham, also attended. In addition to the game, the weekend events included Illini Homecoming and the formal dedication of the Illinois Memorial Stadium.
The University of Michigan Wolverines hasn’t lost a game in two years. But University of Illinois Fighting Illini star Harold “Red” Grange, the Galloping Ghost of the Gridiron, was up for the challenge. On the very first kickoff, Grange scooped up the ball on the Illinois five-yard line and raced 95 yards through the Michigan players for a touchdown. This happened less than ten seconds after the starting whistle blew. Within the first twelve minutes of the game, Grange had scored three more touchdowns in rapid succession, running 66, 55 and 40 yards, respectively. Coach Bob Zuppke took an exhausted Grange out of the game before the first quarter ended, but he returned in the second half to score a fifth touchdown and pass for a sixth. Illinois beat Michigan 39-14.
Following the game, sportswriter Grantland Rice wrote a poem for the New York Tribune:
Red Grange of Illinois
A streak of fire, a breath of flame
Eluding all who reach and clutch;
A gray ghost thrown into the game
That rival hands may never touch;
A rubber bounding, blasting soul
Whose destination is the goal.
On October 19, 2024, 100 years and one day after Red Grange’s historic performance against the University of Michigan Wolverines, the Illini will wear 1920s-themed uniforms to commemorate the anniversary of the game. This includes helmets hand-painted to look like the leather-style helmets worn during the early years of football at Memorial Stadium. The effect is absolutely incredible. Check out photos on Illini Football’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/illinifootball/p/C-YzBz-v9pn/?img_index=1
Sources
“Alton Alumni of Illini See Great Grange.’” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), October 20, 1924.
“Attended Illinois-Michigan Game.’” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), October 18, 1924.
“Graham’s Men Play Admirable Defensive Game.” Alton Pioneer, October 20, 1924.
“Illini Looms as Champion of the ‘Big Ten.’” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), October 20, 1924.
“Illinois Defeats Michigan, 39-14. Grange Stars – 5 Touchdowns.’” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), October 18, 1924.
“Illinois Unveils Throwback Uniforms for Rededication Game vs. Michigan on Oct. 19.” University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics, 2024. https://fightingillini.com/news/2024/8/7/football-illinois-unveils-throwback-uniforms-for-rededication-game-vs-michigan-on-oct-19.aspx
“Red Grange, the Galloping Ghost.” The New York Times (New York, NY), October 18, 1924.
Rice, Grantland. “Red Grange of Illinois.” Anaconda Standard (Anaconda, MT), October 24, 1924. Reprinted from The New-York Tribune.
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