1917 Denver Ministers football team

The 1917 Denver Ministers football team represented the University of Denver as a member of the Rocky Mountain Conference (RMC) during the 1917 college football season. In their third season under head coach John Fike, the Ministers compiled a perfect 9–0 record (6–0 against conference opponents), shared the RMC championship with Utah Agricultural, and outscored opponents by a total of 226 to 45.[1]

1917 Denver Ministers football
RMC co-champion
ConferenceRocky Mountain Conference
Record9–0 (6–0 RMC)
Head coach
Home stadiumUnion Park
Seasons
← 1916
1918 →
1917 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Denver $ 6 0 0 9 0 0
Utah Agricultural 4 0 0 7 0 1
Colorado 4 2 0 6 2 0
Colorado Mines 2 3 0 5 3 0
Colorado College 2 3 0 3 3 0
Utah 2 3 0 2 4 0
Wyoming 1 4 0 3 4 0
Montana State 0 1 2 0 2 2
Colorado Agricultural 0 7 1 1 7 1
  • $ – Conference champion

At the end of the season, both Denver and Utah Agricultural were undefeated against RMC opponents. A game between the two teams was proposed to determine an undisputed conference champion, but Denver's faculty ruled against the game. Denver officials claimed the title and asserted that the Utah Aggies "have a right to claim nothing more than a tie for the honors."[2][3]

The 1917 team compiled the only perfect season in the program's history.[4]

Schedule

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DateOpponentSiteResultSource
October 6Camp Logan*Denver, COW 45–0
October 13Montana StateDenver, COW 33–7
October 20ColoradoDenver, COW 7–0
October 27at Colorado AgriculturalFort Collins, COW 10–6
November 3at WyomingLaramie, WYW 18–0
November 10at Kendall*
W 20–19[5]
November 17Colorado Mines
  • Union Park
  • Denver, CO
W 51–0[6]
November 24at Colorado Teachers*Greeley, COW 14–6
November 29Colorado CollegeDenver, COW 28–7
  • *Non-conference game

References

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  1. ^ "1917 Denver Pioneers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  2. ^ "Denver 'U' Cancels Game with Aggies". The Salt Lake Telegram. December 1, 1917. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ In games against three common conference opponents (Colorado, Wyoming, and Colorado A&M), Utah State won by a total margin of 120 points; Denver defeated the same three opponents by a total margin of only 31 points.
  4. ^ "Denver Pioneers School History". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  5. ^ "One Point Gives Denver University Victory Over Kendall Collegians". Tulsa Daily World. November 11, 1917. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Denver University Defeats Miners, 51-0". Salt Lake Telegram. Salt Lake City, Utah. United Press. November 18, 1917. p. 8. Retrieved September 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .