1936 New Hampshire Wildcats football team

The 1936 New Hampshire Wildcats football team was an American football team that represented the University of New Hampshire as a member of the New England Conference during the 1936 college football season. In its 21st season under head coach William "Butch" Cowell,[a] the team compiled a 3–3–2 record, outscoring their opponents 137–76. The team scored 120 of their points in two shutout wins, and only 17 total points in their other six games. The team played its home games at Lewis Field (also known as Lewis Stadium) in Durham, New Hampshire.

1936 New Hampshire Wildcats football
ConferenceNew England Conference
Record3–3–2 (0–1 New England)
Head coach
CaptainBenjamin Lang[1]
Home stadiumLewis Field
Seasons
← 1935
1937 →
1936 New England Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Connecticut State $ 2 0 0 7 2 0
Maine 1 0 0 4 3 0
Rhode Island State 1 2 0 5 4 0
New Hampshire 0 1 0 3 3 2
  • $ – Conference champion

The September 26 game against Lowell Textile Institute (now University of Massachusetts Lowell) was the first football game played at New Hampshire's new athletic facilities, originally named Lewis Fields after former university president Edward M. Lewis, with the football stadium referred to as Lewis Stadium or simply Lewis Field.[2] The stadium was dedicated on October 10 with the rivalry game against the Maine.[3] In 1952, it was named Cowell Stadium in honor of coach Cowell.[4] It retained that name until renovations following the 2015 season, when it was renamed Wildcat Stadium.

A contemporary news report noted that Cowell had been "handicapped by illness during the past couple of years", with active coaching duties handled by his assistants.[5] This was Cowell's final season as head coach; he died in August 1940 at the age of 53.[6]

Schedule edit

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 26 Lowell Textile*[b] W 66–0 [7]
October 3 at Bates* W 9–6
October 10 Maine 
L 6–27 [2][3]
October 17 Boston College*
  • Lewis Field
  • Durham, NH
L 0–121,200 [8]
October 24 at Vermont* W 54–02,000 [9][10][11]
October 31 Saint Anselm*
  • Lewis Field
  • Durham, NH
L 2–31
November 7 at Tufts*
T 0–0 [12]
November 14 Springfiel*
  • Lewis Field
  • Durham, NH
T 0–0 [13]

The 1936 game remains the last time that the Boston College and New Hampshire football programs have met.[16] The 66–0 win over Lowell Textile still stands as the Wildcats' largest margin of victory.[17]

Wildcat captain Benjamin Lang, who also played lacrosse, served in the United States Navy in World War II and later became a Certified Public Accountant; he died in September 1951 at age 35.[18]

Notes edit

  1. ^ This was Cowell's 22nd year and 21st season as head coach, as the school did not field a team in 1918 due to World War I.
  2. ^ Lowell Textile is now University of Massachusetts Lowell.

References edit

  1. ^ a b The Granite. Durham, New Hampshire: University of New Hampshire. 1938. pp. 294–297. Archived from the original on January 24, 2020. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via library.unh.edu.
  2. ^ a b "Lewis Field to be Dedicated on Oct. 10". The Portsmouth Herald. Portsmouth, New Hampshire. October 3, 1936. p. 2. Retrieved November 29, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b "Dedication Day At New Hampshire Spoiled By Maine". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Connecticut. AP. October 11, 1936. p. 49. Retrieved November 29, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "UNH Football Field Is Cowell Stadium". The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. AP. June 19, 1952. p. 21. Retrieved November 29, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Sporting Notes Of Local Interest". The Portsmouth Herald. Portsmouth, New Hampshire. November 14, 1936. p. 6. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "William H. Cowell, Athletic Director". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. AP. August 29, 1940. p. 11. Retrieved November 23, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "New Hampshire Opens New Field in Victory". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Connecticut. AP. September 27, 1936. p. 45. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Kissell's Work in Wildcat Game Gratifies Dobie". The Boston Globe. October 19, 1936. p. 11. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Vermont-New Hampshire Line-ups This P.M." The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. October 24, 1936. p. 15. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Vermont Gridders are Overwhelmed by New Hampshire's Eleven 54 to 0". The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. October 26, 1936. p. 12. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Cats' Exhibition Quite Reverse Of Impressive". The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. October 26, 1936. p. 13. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Tufts Held to Tie". The Philadelphia Inquirer. AP. November 8, 1936. p. 54. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Preble Did Fine Work". The Portsmouth Herald. Portsmouth, New Hampshire. November 16, 1936. p. 4. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "New Hampshire Game by Game Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 29, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via Wayback Machine.
  15. ^ "Records of College Football Teams to Date". The Boston Globe. November 16, 1936. p. 9. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "New Hampshire vs Boston College (MA)". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved January 26, 2020 – via Wayback Machine.
  17. ^ "UNH Wildcats Football Guide". University of New Hampshire. 2015. p. 63. Retrieved January 30, 2020 – via pdfslide.net.
  18. ^ "Benjamin R. Lang". The Boston Globe. September 14, 1951. p. 19. Retrieved January 30, 2020 – via newspapers.com.