1929 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

1929 Pittsburgh Panthers football
National champion (Davis) Eastern champion
Rose Bowl, L 14–47 vs USC
Conference	Independent
1929 record	9–1
Head coach	Jock Sutherland
Home stadium	Pitt Stadium

The 1929 Pittsburgh Panthers football team, coached by Jock Sutherland, represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 1929 college football season. The Panthers finished the regular season undefeated and were considered the champions of the East,^[1] and by some, a national championship team.^[2] The Panthers concluded the season by traveling by train to California where they lost to USC in the Rose Bowl. Bowls at the time were still widely considered to be exhibition games, and the loss did not prevent football historian Parke H. Davis, whose selection is recognized as "major" in the official NCAA football records book,^[3] from naming Pitt as that season's national champion. The team is also recognized as national champion in 1929 by College Football Data Warehouse^[4] and according to a Sports Illustrated study^[5] that has served as the historical basis of the university's historical national championship claims since its original publication.^[6]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
September 28	Waynesburg	Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA	W 53–0
October 5	at Duke	Duke Stadium • Durham, NC	W 52-7
October 12	West Virginia	Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA (Backyard Brawl)	W 27-7
October 19	at Nebraska	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	W 12-7
October 26	at Allegheny	Erie, PA	W 40-0
November 2	Ohio State	Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA	W 18-2
November 9	Washington & Jefferson	Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA	W 21-0
November 16	Carnegie Tech	Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA	W 34-13
November 28	Penn State	Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA (Rivalry)	W 20-7
January 1, 1930	vs. USC	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	L 14-47

All-Americans

• Joe Donchess, end (College Football Hall of Fame inductee) (1st team Associated Press, based on a nationwide opinion poll of 215 experts, including "newspaper sports editors and writers, Associated Press staff observers, officials and coaches in every section of the country.";^[7] 1st team United Press, "named by the United Press with the assistance and advice of more than 200 coaches, officials and experts from every part of the country";^[8] 1st team Collier's Weekly as selected by Grantland Rice;^[9] 1st team Newspaper Enterprise Association selected as follows: "In the selection of these All-America players, the opinions of more than 100 coaches and football writers have been confidentially consulted.";^[10] 1st team International News Service (later merged with UP to form UPI), based on "popular vote among sport writers and coaches, representing every major section of the country"; voters included Damon Runyon, Ford Frick, Tom Thorp, Dick Hylund, John Heisman, and Bill Corum;^[11] 1st team North American Newspaper Alliance, selected by four noted coaches, Dan McGugin, Howard Jones, Bob Zuppke, and Bill Roper;^[12] 1st team New York Sun;^[13][14] 1st team New York Post;^[15] 1st team All-America Board of Football, consisting of Knute Rockne, ”Pop” Warner, Tad Jones and W.A. Alexander;^[16] 1st team Davis Walsh for the International News Service;^[17] 1st team Lawrence Perry:"Lawrence Perry selected his 1929 All-America football team after traveling many thousands of miles and watching most of the country's leading teams in play or practice";^[18] Washington Times^[19])
• Ray Montgomery, guard (2nd team AP; 1st team United Press; 1st team Collier's Weekly; 1st team Newspaper Enterprise Association; 1st team International News Service; 2nd team North American Newspaper Alliance; 2nd team New York Sun; 1st team All-America Board of Football; 1st team Davis Walsh)
• Luby DiMeolo, guard (3rd team International News Service [t]; 2nd team New York Post)
• Octavius "Toby" Uansa, halfback (1st team AP-1; 3rd team United Press; 2nd team Newspaper Enterprise Association; 2nd team International News Service; 3rd team North American Newspaper Alliance; 1st team Central Press Association, "selected by the readers of hundreds of client newspapers of the Central Press Association";^[20] Washington Times)
• Thomas "Pug" Parkinson, fullback (2nd team AP; 2nd team United Press; 1st team International News Service; 2nd team North American Newspaper Alliance; 1st team New York Sun; 2nd team New York Post; 2nd team Davis Walsh [hb]; 1st team Lawrence Perry; Washington Times)

*Bold - Consensus All-American^[21]

References

1. University of Pittsburgh 1975 football media guide. University of Pittsburgh. 1975. p. 54. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
2. Cameron, L.S. (December 24, 1929). "Gridirons Fail to Produce Champs". The Bend Bulletin (Bend, OR). p. 8. Retrieved March 8, 2013.
3. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) (2015). "National Poll Rankings" (PDF). NCAA Division I Football Records. NCAA. p. 109. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
4. "1929 National Championships". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
5. Jenkins, Dan (September 11, 1967). "This Year The Fight Will Be In The Open". Sports Illustrated (Chicago, IL: Time, Inc.) 27 (11): 30–33. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
6. Borghetti, E.J.; Nestor, Mendy; Welsh, Celeste, eds. (2008). 2008 Pitt Football Media Guide (PDF). Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh. p. 156. Retrieved 2010-07-07.
7. Alan Gould (AP Sports Editor) (1929-12-07). "Three Big Ten Players on A.P. All-American Team: Carideo and Cannon Land Honor Posts". The News-Palladium (Michigan).
8. "United Press Selects Its 1929 All-American Football Eleven". Charleston Gazette. 1929-12-04.
9. "Nagurski Gets Post On Rice’s All-American: Minnesota Star Placed At Tackle on All-Star Aggregation; Glassgow and Welch Other Big Ten Aces". The Evening Tribune (Albert Lea, MN). 1929-12-20.
10. William Braucher (NEA Service Sports Writer) (1929-12-06). "NEA Names Three Big 10 Stars on All-American: Place Carideo of Notre Dame at Quarterback". Sheboygan Journal.
11. "International News Service Announces All-American Teams: Leading Coaches And Writers Of Nation Aid In Selections; Carideo, Marsters, Welch And Parkinson Picked In First Team Backfield". New Castle News. 1929-12-05.
12. "Race for All-Star Picking Gets Going: Great Coach Critics for Standard in Their Annual Huddle Agree on Choices". Montana Standard. 1929-12-01.
13. "Bear Schwartz on One All-American". Montana Standard. 1929-12-01.
14. "Sleight Picked for All-America: Purdue Tackle Placed On New York Sun's Mythical Team; Welch On Second Eleven". Kokomo Tribune. 1929-11-30.
15. "First and Second All-American Are Named by N.Y. Post". Sterling Daily Gazette (IL). 1929-12-02.
16. "All-America Football Board Selects 1929 Honor Team: Rockne, Warner, Jones, Alexander Present Choices for Season’s Best". Salt Lake Tribune. 1929-12-08.
17. "Walsh's All-American 1929 Football Team". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. 1929-12-04.
18. "Lawrence Perry's 1929 All-American". Evening Huronite. 1929-12-10.
19. "All-America Addendum" (PDF). College Football Historical Society Newsletter. November 2008.
20. "Gene M'Ever Gains Place on Popular All-American Team: Hundreds of Thousands of Football Followers Select Fourth Annual Mythical Eleven by Good Old-Fashioned Election Method". Kingsport Times. 1929-12-10.
21. Consensus All-American designations based on the NCAA guide to football award winners