# 1939 VPI Gobblers football team

The 1939 VPI Gobblers football team represented Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute in the 1939 college football season. The team was led by their head coach Henry Redd and finished with a record of four wins, five losses and one tie (4–5–1).
VPI was ranked at No. 110 (out of 609 teams) in the final Litkenhous Ratings for 1939.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance |
| September 23 | | Randolph–Macon* | Miles StadiumBlacksburg, VA | W 26–0 | 2,500 |
| September 30 | | at Marshall* | Fairfield StadiumHuntington, WV | L 0–20 | |
| October 7 | 2:30 p.m. | vs. North Carolina | Foreman FieldNorfolk, VA | L 6–13 | 15,000 |
| October 14 | 2:30 p.m. | vs. William & Mary | City StadiumRichmond, VA | T 6–6 | 6,500 |
| October 21 | | Centre* | Miles StadiumBlacksburg, VA | W 28–0 | 3,500-4,000 |
| October 28 | 2:30 p.m. | vs. Washington and Lee | Lynchburg Municipal StadiumLynchburg, VA | L 0–6 | 10,000-12,000 |
| November 4 | 2:30 p.m. | Furman | Miles StadiumBlacksburg, VA | W 20–7 | 2,500 |
| November 11 | 2:30 p.m. | at Richmond | City StadiumRichmond, VA | L 0–13 | 8,000 |
| November 18 | | at Virginia* | Scott StadiumCharlottesville, VA (rivalry) | W 13–0 | 8,000 |
| November 23 | 2:15 p.m. | vs. VMI | Maher FieldRoanoke, VA (rivalry) | L 7–19 | 20,000 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Before the season

The 1938 VPI Gobblers football team compiled a 3–5–2 record and were led by Henry Redd in his seventh season as head coach. After the 1938 season, VPI lost ten letter winners due to graduation and another letter winner by withdrawal.
VPI started their preseason practices September 1st.

## Game summaries
### Randolph–Macon

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| RM | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • VPI | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 26 |
VPI's first game of the season was a victory over Randolph–Macon at Miles Stadium.
During the trip to Blacksburg, the manager for the Randolph–Macon team had a ruptured ulcer and had to be taken to the hospital.
The starting lineup for VPI was: Lawson (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Zydiak (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), Willson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Thomas (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Hudson (fullback). The substitutes were: Clark, DeMuro and Rose. Willard Henderson and Kern did not play due to injury.
The starting lineup for Randolph–Macon was: Robert Golubic (left end), Stuart Pugh (left tackle), R. Miller (left guard), George Chappell (center), Marshall Peterson (right guard), Dick Powell (right tackle), George Sawyer (right end), Billy Fox (quarterback), John Lovett (left halfback), Gordon Harrell (right halfback), Dick Irby (fullback).

### Marshall

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| VPI | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • Marshall | 0 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 20 |
After their victory over Randolph–Macon, VPI played Marshall College at Fairfield Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.
The starting lineup for VPI was: Willson (left end), Coleman (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Zydiak (center), Gosney (right guard), Pitts (right tackle), Clark (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Ellison (left halfback), Thomas (right halfback), Warriner (fullback). Hudson and Henderson did not play due to injury.
The starting lineup for Marshall was: Bob Adkins (left end), Ed Ulinski (left tackle), John Boyd (left guard), Roberts (center), Ray Truitt (right guard), Harold Cox (right tackle), Jack Mattiford (right end), Zach Kush (quarterback), Jackie Hunt (left halfback), Jack Morlock (right halfback), Ev Elkins (fullback).

### North Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • UNC | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| VPI | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
The starting lineup for VPI was: Clark (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Streiff (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), Willson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Thomas (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Warriner (fullback). The substitutes were: DeMuro, Willard Henderson, Hudson, Taylor, Woolwine and Zydiak.
The starting lineup for North Carolina was: Paul Severin (left end), Charles Slagle (left tackle), Leroy Abernethy (left guard), Robert Smith (center), James Woodson (right guard), Claud Kimball (right tackle), James Mallory (right end), Jim Lalanne (quarterback), George Radman (left halfback), Mike Bobbitt (right halfback), Sydney Sadoff (fullback). The substitutes were: Don Baker, Harry Dunkle, Bill Faircloth, Sweet James and Leo Slotnick.

### William & Mary

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| W&M | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| VPI | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
The starting lineup for VPI was: Clark (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Zydiak (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), Willson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Thomas (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Warriner (fullback). The substitutes were: Rose.
The starting lineup for William & Mary was: Charles Gondak (left end), Hank Whitehouse (left tackle), Buster Ramsey (left guard), Rudolph Tucker (center), John Brodka (right guard), John Dillard (right tackle), Alphonse Chestnut (right end), Mervyn Simpson (quarterback), Lloyd Phillips (left halfback), Waldo Matthews (right halfback), Hollingsworth (fullback). The substitutes were: Burchfield, Jim Hickey and Jimmy Howard.

### Centre

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Centre | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • VPI | 14 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
VPI's 1939 homecoming game was a victory over the Centre Colonels.

### Washington and Lee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • W&L | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| VPI | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The game against Washington & Lee on October 28 was the first game played at Lynchburg Municipal Stadium.
The starting lineup for VPI was: Lawson (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Zydiak (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), Willson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Thomas (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Warriner (fullback).
The starting lineup for Washington & Lee was: Howard Dobbins (left end), Richard "Dick" Boisseau (left tackle), Stephen Hanasik (left guard), John "Jack" Mangan (center), James Lindsey (right guard), Kelley Litteral (right tackle), Courtney Wadlington (right end), Dan Justice (quarterback), Charles Didier (left halfback), Preston Brown (right halfback), Alfred "Junie" Bishop (fullback). The substitutes were: Francis Sugrue and Taylor Truehart.

### Furman

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Furman | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| • VPI | 12 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 20 |
Before their match against Furman, VPI athletic director Monk Younger offered free tickets to the game to the first 13 people who brought him a black cat, in an effort to "slay the jinx that has denied Tech victory in two state games despite impressive yardage totals". The cats would then be released on the football field before the game.
The starting lineup for VPI was: Lawson (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Zydiak (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), John Henderson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), DeMuro (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Warriner (fullback). The substitutes were: Thomas.
The starting lineup for Furman was: Lloyd Coley (left end), Sam Fleming (left tackle), Hugh Wofford (left guard), Johnson Moore (center), Gates Barker (right guard), Hinson (right tackle), Ray Dorman (right end), C. V. Lipscomb (quarterback), Joe Jenkins (left halfback), Dan Martin (right halfback), Rhoten Shetley (fullback). The substitutes were: Brevil and Robert Fitzer.

### Richmond

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| VPI | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • Richmond | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
The starting lineup for VPI was: Clark (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Graves (left guard), Zydiak (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), Willson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Thomas (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Warriner (fullback). The substitutes were: Hudson.
The starting lineup for Richmond was: Bill Burge (left end), Harold McVay (left tackle), Joseph Mack (left guard), Ed Merrick (center), Bert Milling (right guard), David Robertson (right tackle), Dick Humbert (right end), William Fitzhugh (quarterback), Art Jones (left halfback), Alec Moore (right halfback), Stuart Hoskins (fullback). The substitutes were: Gordon ReMine.

### Virginia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • VPI | 6 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 13 |
| UVA | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The starting lineup for VPI was: Lawson (left end), Pitts (left tackle), Bill Tate (left guard), Streiff (center), Gosney (right guard), Coleman (right tackle), John Henderson (right end), Boswell (quarterback), Thomas (left halfback), Ellison (right halfback), Hudson (fullback). The substitutes were: Clark.
The starting lineup for Virginia was: James White (left end), Lee McLaughlin (left tackle), Herbert Winokur (left guard), Raymond Murden (center), John Sauerbeck (right guard), R. Walter Jones (right tackle), Nick Gianakos (right end), Mosby Cardozo (quarterback), Jim Gillette (left halfback), Sylvester O'Grince (right halfback), Leroy Neustedter (fullback).

### VMI

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • VMI | 7 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 19 |
| VPI | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |

## After the season

Multiple VPI players were named to the Associated Press All-State Team. They were Gosney (First Team), Warriner (First Team), Coleman (Second Team), Pitts (Second Team), Tate (Honorable Mention) and Zydiak (Honorable Mention).
In December 1939, the VPI letterwinners chose linemen Jim Coleman and John Henderson as co-captains of the 1940 VPI Gobblers football team.

## Players
### Varsity letter winners

Twenty-two players received varsity letters for their participation on the 1939 VPI team.
| Player | Hometown | Notes |
| Cecil Van Anderson | Andersonville, Virginia | World War II veteran (Major, Army Air Corps). |
| Irving Ward Boswell, Jr. | Arlington, Virginia | |
| Graham Sullivan Buchanan, Jr. | Saltville, Virginia | |
| Gerald Harley Clark | Bristol, Tennessee | |
| James Emory Coleman | Fayetteville, West Virginia | |
| Philip Galliano DeMuro | Passaic, New Jersey | |
| Mathew Leslie "Sonny" Ellison | Beckley, West Virginia | |
| H. Woodrow Gosney | Clarksburg, West Virginia | |
| Robert Preston Graves | Salem, Virginia | World War II and Vietnam War veteran (Colonel, Army). Awarded the Bronze Star Medal. |
| John L. Henderson | Sevierville, Tennessee | |
| Rankin McGuire Hudson | Sweetwater, Tennessee | |
| Richard Davis Kern | Winchester, Virginia | |
| J. Robert "Bob" Lawson | Cambria, Virginia | |
| David Marion Pitts (Capt.) | Manassas, Virginia | |
| Daniel Green Shawhan | Washington, D.C. | World War II veteran (Lieutenant Colonel, Army). |
| Frank Arthur Streiff | Savannah, Georgia | World War II veteran (Lieutenant commander, Navy). |
| William Lee "Bill" Tate | Pulaski, Virginia | |
| Herbert Joseph Thomas | South Charleston, West Virginia | World War II veteran (Sergeant, Marines). Awarded the Medal of Honor. |
| W. H. Trimble | | |
| George Daniel Warriner | Montgomery County, Virginia | World War II veteran (Captain, Army). Awarded the Bronze Star Medal and Purple Heart. |
| Louis C. Willson | Blacksburg, Virginia | |
| William Daniel Zydiak | Manville, New Jersey | |

## Coaching and training staff

* Head coach: Henry Redd
* Assistant coaches
** Backfield coach: Herbert McEver
** Line coach: Sumner D. Tilson
* Manager: John Harrington
* Freshman coaches
** Freshman head coach: Red Laird
** Assistant freshman coach and trainer: Willard D. Altman
** Assistant freshman coach and trainer: Thomas A. Slusser