George Allen (Cumberland)

College coach infobox
Name = George Edward Allen


Caption = Coach George E. Allen
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Sport = college football
College = Cumberland University
Title = Head coach
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OverallRecord = 0-1
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Coach = Trigger
CoachYears = 1916
CoachTeams = Cumberland University
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George E. Allen was the head football coach for Cumberland College Bulldogs in Lebanon, Tennessee for one game in 1916. [ [http://www2.cumberland.edu/about/gotc/pbp.html Cumberland University] The Game of the Century] Cumberland University suffered the greatest loss in the history of college football to Georgia Tech by a score of 222 to zero. [ [http://gtalumni.org/StayInformed/magazine/spr98/div11.html Gergia Tech Alumni] Cumberland 0, Tech 222]

Cumberland had actually discontinued its football program before the season but was not allowed to cancel its game against the Engineers. Georgia Tech coach John Heisman insisted on the schools' scheduling agreement, which required Cumberland to pay $3,000 (considered a sizeable sum in 1916) to Tech if its football team failed to show. [ [http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1073271/1/index.htm Sports Illustrated] Football's Glorious Slaughter]

George Allen (who was elected to serve as Cumberland's football team student manager after first serving as the baseball team student manager), also a Kappa Sigma Fraternity member, put together a scrub team of 14 men to travel to Atlanta as Cumberland's football team and were soundly beaten 222 to zero and saved the college $3,000 in the process. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/07/sports/ncaafootball/07tech.html?_r=1&oref=slogin New York Times] , "In 1916, a Blowout for the Ages", Litsky, Frank, October 7, 2006.]

Cumberland would not play football again until 1920. [ [http://www.cumberland.edu/athletics/mensfootball/history Cumberland University Athletics] Football history]

Allen went on to a prominent career in politics. [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,793136-1,00.html Time Magazine] "The Regular Guys"]

References