Today's Tidbit... Double Your Pleasure, Double Your Fun

Some teams have trouble walking and chewing gum at the same time, but the 1949 Emory & Henry gridders doubled up twice, winning two conference championships and playing in two bowl games. In the finest season in school history, the Emory & Henry Wasps buzzed through the regular season to finish 10-0.

By going 2-0 in their first season of play in the Virginia Little Six Conference and 4-0 in the Smokey Mountain Conference, Emory & Henry won two conference titles. The Wasps tossed the ball all over the field in their 32-6 victory over Randolph-Macon in the final regular season finale to earn a trip to play Hanover of Indiana in the Burley Bowl in Johnson City, Tennessee, five days later on Thanksgiving Day. Like many bowls named for local flora, the Burley Bowl earned its title from a type of tobacco and for being part of the annual Tobacco Festival. The 1949 game was the fifth of twelve Burley Bowls featuring teams such as Emory & Henry, East Tennessee, and West Chester.

(Pinterest)

Game day opened with the governor's arrival, a parade featuring a few high school bands and 28 queens from local communities, all of which prepared the crowd of 12,000 for the 2:15 kickoff, as they hoped the rain would hold off as forecasted.