1956 Princeton Tigers football team

1956 Princeton Tigers football
ConferenceIvy League
Record7–2 (5–2 Ivy)
Head coach
CaptainMichael E. Bowman
Home stadiumPalmer Stadium
Seasons
← 1955
1957 →
1956 Ivy League football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Yale $ 7 0 0 8 1 0
Princeton 5 2 0 7 2 0
Dartmouth 4 3 0 5 4 0
Penn 4 3 0 4 5 0
Brown 3 4 0 5 4 0
Columbia 2 5 0 3 6 0
Harvard 2 5 0 2 6 0
Cornell 1 6 0 1 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion

The 1956 Princeton Tigers football team was an American football team that represented Princeton University as a member of the Ivy League during the 1956 college football season.

In their 12th and final year under head coach Charlie Caldwell, the Tigers compiled a 7–2 record and outscored opponents 237 to 135. Michael E. Bowman was the team captain.[1]

After starting the year 7–0, Princeton briefly appeared as No. 20 in the AP Poll, but only remained ranked for one week.

Princeton's 5–2 conference record secured second place in the Ivy League standings.[2] This was the first season of formal play for the league, although the Tigers' previous independent schedules, dating back to the 19th century, often featured future Ivy opponents. All seven Ivy matchups on Princeton's 1956 schedule had been present on the 1955 slate, as well (as had both non-conference opponents, Colgate and Rutgers).

Princeton played its home games at Palmer Stadium on the university campus in Princeton, New Jersey.

Schedule

[edit]
DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 29 Rutgers*
  • Palmer Stadium
  • Princeton, NJ (rivalry)
W 28–6 26,000 [3]
October 6 Columbia
  • Palmer Stadium
  • Princeton, NJ
W 39–0 16,000 [4]
October 13 at Penn W 34–0 28,484 [5]
October 20 Colgate*
  • Palmer Stadium
  • Princeton, NJ
W 28–20 32,000 [6]
October 27 at Cornell W 32–21 17,000 [7]
November 3 Brown
  • Palmer Stadium
  • Princeton, NJ
W 21–7 15,000 [8]
November 10 Harvard
  • Palmer Stadium
  • Princeton, NJ (rivalry)
W 35–20 34,000 [9]
November 17 at Yale No. 20 L 20–42 68,000 [10]
November 24 Dartmouth
  • Palmer Stadium
  • Princeton, NJ
L 0–19 32,000 [11]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Results". Princeton Football Record Book. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University. p. 28. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
  2. ^ "Year-by-Year History". Ivy League Football Media Guide (PDF). Princeton, N.J.: Ivy League. 2017. p. 22. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  3. ^ Werden, Lincoln A. (September 30, 1956). "Princeton Trims Rutgers, 28 to 6". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  4. ^ Strauss, Michael (October 7, 1956). "Benham of Columbia Hurt as Tigers Rout Lions, 39-0". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  5. ^ Sheehan, Joseph M. (October 14, 1956). "Powerful Tigers Crush Penn, 34-0". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  6. ^ Effrat, Louis (October 21, 1956). "Tigers Turn Back Colgate, 28 to 20". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  7. ^ Werden, Lincoln A. (October 28, 1956). "Unbeaten Tigers Top Cornell, 32-21". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  8. ^ McGowen, Roscoe (November 4, 1956). "Princeton Trims Brown Team, 21-7". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  9. ^ Sheehan, Joseph M. (November 11, 1956). "Princeton Tops Harvard, 35-20; Mottley Is Star". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  10. ^ Sheehan, Joseph M. (November 18, 1956). "Yale Beats Princeton, 42-20; Eli Reaches Peak". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
  11. ^ Effrat, Louis (November 25, 1956). "Indians Upset Princeton by 19-0 as Brown Excels". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.