Colorado State University Athletics
This Week in CSU Football History -- 104 years of Homecoming, Football Tradition
10/10/2018 11:27:00 AM | Football
by John Hirn
CSU Athletics Historian
The 2018 homecoming game will mark the 95th intercollegiate football game played during the annual homecoming weekend. The Aggies and Rams hold an all-time record of 49-44-1 on homecoming day and continue the oldest tradition in school history.
Homecoming was established at CSU in 1914 when college president Charles A. Lory decided he wanted alumni to come back to the campus on an annual basis to celebrate their alma mater and carry on traditions to the younger generation of students. The first homecoming football games were not played against other college teams, but were rather a scrimmage between the alumni and varsity football team. The alumni won the first homecoming game on October 3, 1914 by a score of 3-0.
The alumni games did not last very long partially because coach Harry Hughes' teams continued to be much better than the alumni, and also because other schools started having their homecoming football game against other college teams.
On November 18, 1922, the first recorded intercollegiate homecoming game was played against the Colorado School of Mines with the Aggies winning 19-0. The first homecoming loss would come in 1924 in a thrilling 7-6 final where the Tigers blocked an Aggie punt and returned it for a touchdown. The homecoming games became more and more important as the tradition grew and in 1925 the Aggies faced CU for the first time on homecoming day. The 12-0 route over the Boulder team was an easy one, but the rivalry saw CU fans fighting and even stealing one of the Aggies "A" green and gold flags from the Colorado Field stands.
During the 1920s and early 1930s several games became very meaningful not just because they were to celebrate homecoming, but also because they had important meaning on the football season. Beating CU in 1925 helped seal the conference championship, as did a win over CU in the 1927 homecoming contest. The 1927 game was played on November 19th, the latest any CSU homecoming game was ever played. Then there was the 1934 homecoming game in which the Aggies beat Ike Armstrong's University of Utah team 14-6. The Aggies had not beat Utah since 1927, and by beating them Harry Hughes' team sealed the deal for their second co-championship in a row, tying with CU and UNC. It would be the eighth and final conference championship won by Coach Hughes.
Homecoming was a very important thing on the Aggie campus by the start of WWII, and a mandate by the government almost prevented the 1942 game from being an official homecoming game. Despite the loss to CU in 1942, it also marked the last homecoming game until 1945, as football would take a break during the War.
After WWII several more homecoming games would have meaning and memories as time marched on in Fort Collins. In 1948, a heartbreaking loss to Drake gave Colorado A&M the first loss of their Cinderella season to the Raisin Bowl. The only homecoming game to result in a tie occurred in 1951 against Utah State. In 1955, All-American Gary Glick, suffering from an injury the previous week, came in off the bench to inspire the Rams to a come-from-behind victory over their rivals from Utah State. In 1966, Oscar Reed tore up the Colorado Field turf rushing for 194 yards including a 70-yard touchdown run that earned him the Sports Illustrated Back of the Week Award. Reed also set the school record at the time for most yards rushed in one game and passed Wayne Schneider as the school's all-time career rusher.
The 1967 game was the last homecoming tilt at Colorado Field and the Rams won a close game against Utah State 17-14. The Utags have been the one school that CSU has played more than any other on homecoming day, a total of 19 times as of 2018. In 1970 the Rams played the only homecoming game on Halloween and beat Utah State 20-13 on Lawrence McCutcheon's 104 yards of rushing. McCutcheon would rush for 207 yards a week later.
Arguably the most memorable homecoming game of the 1970s would be the Oct. 30, 1976 edition of the Border War, which was broadcast on ABC regional television. The first homecoming game to be televised was a fight in which Dan Graham threw a 56-yard pass to Harry Washington for a spectacular touchdown. Ron Harris rushed for 140 yards and the Rams had to come-from-behind to beat their long-time rivals 19-16 in front of a then Hughes Stadium record 32,572 fans.
The longest homecoming win streak occurred from 1986 to 1991 when the Rams would beat New Mexico twice and Hawaii three times. Legendary CSU head Coach Sonny Lubick won 10 and only lost five homecoming games during his career. Lubick's great 1997 team would beat up Hawaii 63-0 for the most lopsided victory on homecoming day.
In 2014, CSU celebrated the 100th anniversary of homecoming and did it in dramatic fashion with a little help from an old Aggie relic. The previously mentioned "A" flag that was stolen after the homecoming win over CU in 1925, found its way back to the CSU campus thanks to an alumnus who found it 89 years after it went missing. Rams coach Jim McElwain wanted the flag to be led out onto the field by one of his players for the 2014 game to bring back some old Aggie magic. With the game tied at 13 and seeming to head into overtime with only 19 seconds on the clock, quarterback Garret Grayson connected to Rashard Higgins on a 46-yard pass to set up a game-winning field goal for the first homecoming victory in three years. Fans rushed the field and the old 1925 flag was carried to the locker room as the Rams sung the fight song; the flag has returned for homecoming games every year since.
The 2018 homecoming game against the University of New Mexico will only be the fourth time CSU has faced the Lobos for the annual tradition. CSU is 3-0 all-time against UNM on homecoming day with the last game a victory over the Lobos in 1990 when the Rams beat them 47-7. The Rams offense totaled over 600 yards that day with Todd Yert scoring three touchdowns and Tony Alford and Brian Copeland rushed for over 100 yards each.
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CSU Athletics Historian
The 2018 homecoming game will mark the 95th intercollegiate football game played during the annual homecoming weekend. The Aggies and Rams hold an all-time record of 49-44-1 on homecoming day and continue the oldest tradition in school history.
Homecoming was established at CSU in 1914 when college president Charles A. Lory decided he wanted alumni to come back to the campus on an annual basis to celebrate their alma mater and carry on traditions to the younger generation of students. The first homecoming football games were not played against other college teams, but were rather a scrimmage between the alumni and varsity football team. The alumni won the first homecoming game on October 3, 1914 by a score of 3-0.
The alumni games did not last very long partially because coach Harry Hughes' teams continued to be much better than the alumni, and also because other schools started having their homecoming football game against other college teams.
On November 18, 1922, the first recorded intercollegiate homecoming game was played against the Colorado School of Mines with the Aggies winning 19-0. The first homecoming loss would come in 1924 in a thrilling 7-6 final where the Tigers blocked an Aggie punt and returned it for a touchdown. The homecoming games became more and more important as the tradition grew and in 1925 the Aggies faced CU for the first time on homecoming day. The 12-0 route over the Boulder team was an easy one, but the rivalry saw CU fans fighting and even stealing one of the Aggies "A" green and gold flags from the Colorado Field stands.
During the 1920s and early 1930s several games became very meaningful not just because they were to celebrate homecoming, but also because they had important meaning on the football season. Beating CU in 1925 helped seal the conference championship, as did a win over CU in the 1927 homecoming contest. The 1927 game was played on November 19th, the latest any CSU homecoming game was ever played. Then there was the 1934 homecoming game in which the Aggies beat Ike Armstrong's University of Utah team 14-6. The Aggies had not beat Utah since 1927, and by beating them Harry Hughes' team sealed the deal for their second co-championship in a row, tying with CU and UNC. It would be the eighth and final conference championship won by Coach Hughes.
Homecoming was a very important thing on the Aggie campus by the start of WWII, and a mandate by the government almost prevented the 1942 game from being an official homecoming game. Despite the loss to CU in 1942, it also marked the last homecoming game until 1945, as football would take a break during the War.
After WWII several more homecoming games would have meaning and memories as time marched on in Fort Collins. In 1948, a heartbreaking loss to Drake gave Colorado A&M the first loss of their Cinderella season to the Raisin Bowl. The only homecoming game to result in a tie occurred in 1951 against Utah State. In 1955, All-American Gary Glick, suffering from an injury the previous week, came in off the bench to inspire the Rams to a come-from-behind victory over their rivals from Utah State. In 1966, Oscar Reed tore up the Colorado Field turf rushing for 194 yards including a 70-yard touchdown run that earned him the Sports Illustrated Back of the Week Award. Reed also set the school record at the time for most yards rushed in one game and passed Wayne Schneider as the school's all-time career rusher.
The 1967 game was the last homecoming tilt at Colorado Field and the Rams won a close game against Utah State 17-14. The Utags have been the one school that CSU has played more than any other on homecoming day, a total of 19 times as of 2018. In 1970 the Rams played the only homecoming game on Halloween and beat Utah State 20-13 on Lawrence McCutcheon's 104 yards of rushing. McCutcheon would rush for 207 yards a week later.
Arguably the most memorable homecoming game of the 1970s would be the Oct. 30, 1976 edition of the Border War, which was broadcast on ABC regional television. The first homecoming game to be televised was a fight in which Dan Graham threw a 56-yard pass to Harry Washington for a spectacular touchdown. Ron Harris rushed for 140 yards and the Rams had to come-from-behind to beat their long-time rivals 19-16 in front of a then Hughes Stadium record 32,572 fans.
The longest homecoming win streak occurred from 1986 to 1991 when the Rams would beat New Mexico twice and Hawaii three times. Legendary CSU head Coach Sonny Lubick won 10 and only lost five homecoming games during his career. Lubick's great 1997 team would beat up Hawaii 63-0 for the most lopsided victory on homecoming day.
In 2014, CSU celebrated the 100th anniversary of homecoming and did it in dramatic fashion with a little help from an old Aggie relic. The previously mentioned "A" flag that was stolen after the homecoming win over CU in 1925, found its way back to the CSU campus thanks to an alumnus who found it 89 years after it went missing. Rams coach Jim McElwain wanted the flag to be led out onto the field by one of his players for the 2014 game to bring back some old Aggie magic. With the game tied at 13 and seeming to head into overtime with only 19 seconds on the clock, quarterback Garret Grayson connected to Rashard Higgins on a 46-yard pass to set up a game-winning field goal for the first homecoming victory in three years. Fans rushed the field and the old 1925 flag was carried to the locker room as the Rams sung the fight song; the flag has returned for homecoming games every year since.
The 2018 homecoming game against the University of New Mexico will only be the fourth time CSU has faced the Lobos for the annual tradition. CSU is 3-0 all-time against UNM on homecoming day with the last game a victory over the Lobos in 1990 when the Rams beat them 47-7. The Rams offense totaled over 600 yards that day with Todd Yert scoring three touchdowns and Tony Alford and Brian Copeland rushed for over 100 yards each.
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