Today's Tidbit... Football Before Statehood

The history of college football at the University of Hawaii is fascinating, given the challenges they faced finding opponents other than service teams. For decades, one or another college team spent their holidays in Honolulu to enjoy the sun and play a spirited game or two.

I'll cover that topic in more depth in an upcoming story, but today's focus is on state flagship universities that played their first football game before achieving statehood. How many state universities fit that criterion?

Below are synopses of the six qualifying schools and a bonus team. Unfortunately, the early teams often were informal clubs, so their photographs, if taken, are lost to time.

The University of South Dakota

USD played its first game in 1889, a 6-6 tie with South Dakota State. An 11-0 win over Yankton left them with a 1-0-1 record during their inaugural year.

South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889, and while I have not confirmed the game preceded statehood, I'm giving this one to the Coyotes until proven otherwise.