Today's Tidbit... 1969 and the 100th Anniversary Sticker

It could have been a big deal and should have been a big deal, but college football's centennial celebration fizzled. Intended to honor the 100th anniversary of the 1869 Princeton-Rutgers games, the NCAA announced their intention to celebrate the anniversary in March and opened the events with the June Coaches' All America, when they honored Barbara Sprecht, the National Centennial Queen, at halftime.

('A Time To Recall 100 Grid Years,' Fresno Bee, September 14, 1969.)

Perhaps it was the Vietnam War or the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, but the celebration took off like a lead balloon. Centennial flags were to fly at stadiums, and each of the 423 NCAA member schools received 22 medallions to award to varsity players. There was also a commemorative postage stamp, but it all fell flat.

(Personal collection)

Among the other celebrations announced by the NCAA was that NCAA teams would have their helmets emblazoned with the number 100, typically in the form of a sticker shaped like a football. Some did, some didn't. Some wore them all the time, some part of the time or only for big games.

Nevertheless, here are a few images of how teams used their helmets to honor the 100th anniversary of college football.

Alabama wore their 100 stickers every game. (1970 Alabama yearbook)

Cornell’s Ed Marinaro rushes against Princeton. (sportspaper.info - the blog)

The Kent State quarterback runs left while his teammates run right. (1970 Kent State yearbook)

Nebraska put 100 hats on an Iowa State back. (1970 Nebraska yearbook)

Texas displayed the 100 sticker better than anyone else but only wore them against Oklahoma, Notre Dame, and Arkansas. (1970 Texas yearbook)

UW-Oshkosh’s Ron Cardo fights for a first down in what looks like the last play of his career. He survived, later coaching Oshkosh for 15 years. (1970 UW-Oshkosh yearbook)

Leave it to Navy, however, to sail in a different direction. They don’t appear to have worn the 100 sticker like other teams, but wore their 100s TV number-style on two different helmets that year.

Navy versus Syracuse (1970 Navy yearbook)

Navy versus Army (1970 Navy yearbook)

Postscript:

Dave Perry sent an image of 100th Anniversary banner he has in his collection. The banner measures approximately 7 3/4 x 4.75 feet. It’s a thing of beauty!

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Special thanks to my brother Steve, who is not quite as good-looking as me, but had the idea for this Tidbit.

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