1918 Michigan Wolverines football team The 1918 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1918 college football season . The team ' s head football coach was Fielding H . Yost in his 18th season with the program . The 1918 team played in a season shortened by World War I travel restrictions and the 1918 flu pandemic . They shared the Big Ten Conference championship with Illinois and finished with a perfect record of 5 – 0 , outscoring opponents 96 to 6 . Although no formal mechanism existed in 1918 to select a national champion , the 1918 Michigan team has been deemed a national championship team by the Billingsley Report and the National Championship Foundation . The Wolverines played their home games at Ferry Field . Fullback Frank Steketee was selected by Walter Camp as a first - team All - American and was one of the top kickers in the game during the 1918 season . Center Ernie Vick , and left tackle Angus Goetz were both selected as first - team All - Big Ten players . Schedule . Impact of World War I . In 1918 , the United States was embroiled in World War I . Many University of Michigan students , including athletes , were serving in the military . Team captain Elton Wieman did not play during the 1918 season as he had enlisted in the Aviation Corps . Halfback Eddie Usher was also taken into active military service after the first game of the season . Three former Michigan football players were killed in the war . One of the casualties was Curtis Redden , star end of Fielding Yost ' s " Point - a - Minute " teams . In April 1918 , newspapers published a letter from Redden to a friend back home describing his unit ' s " baptism of fire " : " And so it went from day to day , but oftimes the nights were very bad . At night , when the infantry launched its raids , or the enemy his , or the infantry became nervous and called for help , the guns stamped like stallions and snorted their breaths of fire . The blackness of the night became a series of dots and dashes , until the world resembled a vast radio station , spelling hell , hell , and hell again . To this must be added the shriek of shells , the whistle of fragments , the automatic hammer effect of the machine gun , the rattle of the rifle fire , the rockets and star shells out over No Man ' s land — all combined to make the night weird , hideous , fascinating , sublime . " The " Michigan Alumnus " published a letter from another Michigan athlete , Cecil F . Cross , recalling memories of football in Ann Arbor : " The autumn is approaching here . The days are getting shorter and there is a chill in the air . . . It seems to bring back the old feeling which is experienced where the smell of football is in the air , the first cold days of autumn and it makes me homesick , though only slightly . Ralph Henning , of Bay City , is here , and though we come from different parts of Michigan and attended different schools , he being the captain of the Michigan Aggies ' football team in 1916 , we quite frequently talk over the old scenes with which we are both familiar . He , too , has mentioned the feeling of football in the air . If they were to train an army of football players and throw them into the lines , the last weeks of October , with Coach Yost to address them just before the battle , we would score a touchdown the first half , and before Thanksgiving we would have pushed the Germans under their own goal posts and eat dinner in Berlin . " Before the football season began , a rumor spread that football would be abandoned for 1918 . The university decided to proceed with the football season , though war - time restrictions limited travel and practice time . To compensate for the players serving in the military , the existing prohibition on freshman players was lifted for the year . Season overview . As originally adopted , Michigan ' s 1918 schedule included games against Cornell ( at Ithaca ) , Northwestern ( at Ann Arbor ) and Minnesota ( at Ann Arbor ) . Those games , and planned replacement games against Camp Custer and the University of Mount Union , were cancelled . Travel restrictions resulted in cancellation of the Cornell and Minnesota games , and the 1918 flu pandemic forced the cancellation or rescheduling of other games . After Cornell cancelled its game , Syracuse was put on the schedule in its place . The team finished the season with a 5 – 0 record and outscored opponents 96 to 6 , allowing only a single touchdown all season . Though Illinois had two non - conference losses , it finished with a 4 – 0 record in Big Ten play , resulting in a shared conference championship between Michigan and Illinois . Although no formal mechanism existed in 1918 to select a national champion , several organizations recognized by the NCAA have developed systems to identify " national champions " for past seasons . Two of those organizations , the Billingsley Report and the National Championship Foundation , selected Michigan as a national championship team for 1918 . Fullback Frank Steketee , who scored all 15 points in Michigan ' s victory over Syracuse , was the only Michigan player selected as a first - team All - American . Left tackle Angus Goetz won All - Big Ten Conference honors after scoring touchdowns off fumble recoveries and a blocked punt against Chicago , Michigan Agricultural and Ohio State . Center Ernie Vick also won All - Big Ten honors and played so well on defense that Fielding Yost called him " a second [ Germany ] Schultz . " Quarterback Kenneth Knode , " though not a brilliant player individually , " was credited with piloting the team with " fine judgment . " Game summaries . Michigan 33 , Case Scientific School 0 . Michigan opened its season on October 7 , 1918 , with a home game against the Case Scientific School ( now Case Western Reserve University ) from Cleveland . Michigan came into the game with only two players ( Angus Goetz and Abe Cohn ) who had ever played for Michigan previously . Despite facing a Case team that returned seven letterman from 1917 , head coach Fielding H . Yost expressed confidence in a pre - game interview : " I haven ' t had a scrimmage since Monday , but the team looks like it ought to go pretty good . Conditions are fair for a good game , and I expect one . " Michigan won easily by a score of 33 – 0 , but the " Detroit Free Press " noted that the inexperienced team " played a ragged game , " albeit showing " promise of development into a smooth playing machine . " Cress , playing at center , was credited with playing " the best defensive game of any man on Ferry Field , " and John Perrin was reported to have made " a splendid showing . " The " Detroit Free Press " called Abe Cohn " an eye opener " as a ground gainer and noted : " He made a gain practically every time he was given the ball and , when he was stopped , it always took two or three men to turn the trick . " Edward Usher tore ligaments in his ankle while running with the ball and had to be taken out of the game . Freshman Frank Steketee entered the game as a substitute and made an impressive debut ; he accounted for 21 points , " making three of the five touchdowns and kicking three out of five attempts at goal . " Michigan ' s starting line - up against Case , as announced the day before the game , was Fletcher ( left end ) , Clash ( left tackle ) , Goetz ( left guard ) , Cress ( center ) , Freeman ( right guard ) , Lent ( right tackle ) , Dunne ( right end ) , Walker ( quarterback ) , Cohn ( right halfback ) , Perrin ( left halfback ) and Usher ( fullback ) . Michigan 13 , Chicago 0 . After its season opener against Case , the Michigan team was idle for more than a month as games with Camp Custer and Mt . Union College were cancelled , and the game against Michigan Agricultural College postponed , due to the influenza pandemic . On November 9 , 1918 , the team resumed play with a game against Amos Alonzo Stagg ' s Chicago Maroons at Stagg Field in Chicago . The two teams , which had been one another ' s principal rivals from 1890 to 1905 , had not met for 13 years . In the prior meeting , Chicago had defeated Michigan 2 – 0 , breaking a 56 - game undefeated streak by the Wolverines . The game was played as negotiations were underway to end World War I , and the " Chicago Daily Tribune " wrote : " While the nations of the world are hoping for an armistice , the resumption of hostilities between forces guided by Gens . Yost and Stagg brought joy to thousands of football fans , and the opening battle attracted approximately 7 , 000 of them . " The game began at 2 : 30 pm Despite fumbles by Cohn and Knode early in the game , Michigan held on defense . After Knode ' s fumble , Chicago ' s Stegman attempted a dropkick from the 45 - yard line , but Goetz broke through the Chicago line and blocked the kick . Goetz picked it up an returned it 55 yards for a touchdown . Steketee kicked the extra point , and Michigan led 7 – 0 . The third quarter ended with Michigan driving deep in Chicago territory at the seven - yard line . On the first play of the fourth quarter , Perrin was stopped at the one - yard line on a run up the middle from a fake punt formation . On the next play , Perrin ran for the touchdown . Steketee missed the extra point , and Michigan led 13 – 0 . Michigan ' s starting lineup was Dunne ( left end ) , Goetz ( left tackle ) , Adams ( left guard ) , Vick ( center ) , Freeman ( right guard ) , Morrison ( right tackle ) , Karpus ( right end ) , Knode ( quarterback ) , Perrin ( left halfback ) , Cohn ( right halfback ) and Steketee ( fullback ) . Michigan 15 , Syracuse 0 . On November 16 , 1918 , five days after the signing of the Armistice marking the end of hostilities in Europe , Michigan defeated Syracuse 16 – 0 . The game was played in pouring rain at Ferry Field . Both teams failed to score in the first quarter , as Michigan fullback Frank Steketee missed a field goal from the 25 - yard line on one drive and Knode fumbled at the Syracuse five - yard line to end another drive . Cohn and Vick both intercepted passes in the second quarter . After Knode made a fair catch on a punt and Syracuse was penalized for offsides , Steketee kicked a field goal from the 36 - yard line to give Michigan a 3 – 0 lead . Michigan ' s next possession mirrored its last , as the ball was placed on Syracuse ' s 35 - yard line after a roughing penalty was called against Syracuse for interfering with Knode as he attempted a fair catch of a punt at the 40 - yard line . Steketee kicked his second field goal from the spot to give Michigan a 6 – 0 lead at halftime . In the third quarter , Steketee missed a field goal from the 32 - yard line . In the fourth quarter , Vick and Knode both intercepted pass . Vick ' s interception stopped a Syracuse drive at Michigan ' s 15 - yard line , and Knode ' s interception gave Michigan the ball at the Syracuse 21 - yard line . After advancing the ball to the 14 - yard line , Steketee added a third field goal to give Michigan a 9 – 0 lead . Later in the fourth quarter , Steketee intercepted a pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown . Steketee missed the extra point , and Michigan led 15 – 0 . Steketee scored all 15 points in Michigan ' s win over Syracuse and received national media attention for his performance . In the " Detroit Free Press " , Harry Bullion wrote : " One man stood above all the rest in this sparkling triumph of the Wolverines . They ' ll be singing the praises of Steketee long after he trods the campus for the last time . All of the points assembled by Michigan are attributed to the educated toe and agility of Yost ' s brilliant fullback . " The " Syracuse Herald " reported : " One man stood out in the Michigan triumph , Steketee of Grand Rapids . He made the entire 15 points scored by his team and otherwise mussed up perfect good intentions on the part of the visitors . " The victory over Syracuse also enhanced Michigan ' s reputation , as Syracuse and Pittsburgh had been viewed as the most powerful teams in the East . The " Michiganensian " called the Syracuse game " the best contest of the year " against the strongest team in the East and noted : " From the very first moment of play to final blowing of the whistle , the contest was one of the prettiest exhibitions of football ability that has been seen on Ferry Field . " Michigan ' s starting lineup was Dunne ( left end ) , Goetz ( left tackle ) , Adams ( left guard ) , Vick ( center ) , Freeman ( right guard ) , Young ( right tackle ) , Morrison ( right end ) , Knode ( quarterback ) , Perrin ( left halfback ) , Cohn ( right halfback ) and Steketee ( fullback ) . Michigan 21 , Michigan Agricultural College 6 . On November 23 , 1918 , Michigan played its fourth game against Michigan Agricultural College ( now known as Michigan State University ) . The game was played at Ferry Field in front of the largest crowd of the season estimated at between 10 , 000 and 20 , 000 . Followers of both schools attended in large numbers , " the maize and blue of Michigan and the green and white of M . A . C . decorating the stands the length and breadth of them . " The Aggies in 1918 had a new head coach , George Gauthier , and a highly touted African - American running back , Harry Graves . The Aggies had defeated Knute Rockne ' s Notre Dame the previous week in East Lansing . After a scoreless first quarter , Michigan scored two touchdowns in the second quarter . Right halfback Abe Cohn scored Michigan ' s first touchdown on a two - yard run . Left tackle Angus Goetz scored the second touchdown after Graves fumbled a forward pass . Goetz recovered the fumble and ran it back for a touchdown . Quarterback Knode scored Michigan ' s final touchdown in the third quarter on a 30 - yard run after faking a pass . Steketee converted all three extra points . Michigan ' s line was given credit for stopping the Aggies ' running attack . The " Detroit Free Press " reported that M . A . C . ' s " vaunted stars " , including Harry Graves ( described as " the colored boy of whom so much was expected " ) , were unable to assert themselves . " Superiority of the Michigan line was the rock upon which the Aggies split . M . A . C . showed a fast backfield that might have created endless trouble , but it got little support from the forwards , who were cracked open to let the Wolverines surge through and flatten the runner . " The start of the game was delayed by lengthy pre - game ceremonies featuring the French Blue Devils , performances by the U . of M . army and navy bands and the M . A . C . bands , parades by the Students ' Army Training Corps and Naval Units , and a fly - over by former Michigan football captain Pat Smith in his aeroplane . Because of the delay , the game was concluded in darkness . The Aggies took advantage of the darkness late in the game by unleashing a passing attack . The Aggies scored late in the game , " as the darkness already had begun to enshroud the playing field , " on a pass from Archer to Schwei . The " Detroit Free Press " reported : " But for the review of the service corps and the ceremonies attending there hardly would have been an Aggie score . " After the game , sports writer Harry Bullion wrote in the " Detroit Free Press " : " M . A . C . ' s defeat is nothing for her to be ashamed of . It simply was a case of a better - conditioned and smarter eleven overpowering another that , though it lacked nothing in the way of fight that its enemy possessed , failed to cope with the superior knowledge of the game that was Michigan ' s by right of judgment and the attending conditions . " Michigan ' s starting lineup was Dunne ( left end ) , Goetz ( left tackle ) , Adams ( left guard ) , Vick ( center ) , Freeman ( right guard ) , Fortune ( right tackle ) , Boville ( right end ) , Knode ( quarterback ) , Cohn ( left halfback ) , Perrin ( right halfback ) and Steketee ( fullback ) . Michigan 14 , Ohio State 0 . For its fifth game , Michigan traveled to Columbus to play Ohio State . The game presented an opportunity for Michigan to lay claim to the Big Ten Conference championship . Illinois had previously beaten Ohio State by a 13 – 0 margin , and Michigan supporters hoped that a greater margin of victory would allow the Wolverines to prove themselves superior to the Illini . Michigan did not achieve the large margin it had hoped for , but won the game 14 – 0 , scoring one point more than Illinois . The game was played on a wet and slippery field that handicapped the offensive players . The " Detroit Free Press " reported that players had difficulty untracking themselves in " the mire that lay over the gridiron like custard . " The teams played to a scoreless tie in a first half that featured a punting duel between Steketee and Rife . Michigan ' s first touchdown was set up by a 73 - yard punt from Steketee that " stuck fast in the mud " at Ohio State ' s two - or three - yard line . Michigan ' s defense held , and Rife was forced to punt from his end zone . In the outstanding play of the game , Goetz blocked the punt and recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown . The " Detroit Free Press " described the key play as follows : " The pass from center was perfect and there seemed to be no fear that Rife would not get it away . But Goetz , one man who has starred in every game the Maize and Blue played this year , shattered the line and rammed the Buckeye punter . Leather and Goetz collided and the pigskin went bounding away with Goetz in hot pursuit . Three scarlet - robed athletes tried to block Goetz ' s path to the ball , but he thrust them aside and went to earth with it just as his rivals in the race catapulted themselves at the leather . " Later in the quarter , with the ball at Ohio State ' s 28 - yard line , Steketee faked a run around the end and passed to Dunne who was " camped near the uprights . " Steketee kicked both extra points to give Michigan a 14 – 0 margin . Michigan had an earlier touchdown called back in the third quarter when the head linesman ruled that Knode had stepped out of bounds on a long run . Michigan ' s starting lineup was Dunne ( left end ) , Goetz ( left tackle ) , Fortune ( left guard ) , Vick ( center ) , Freeman ( right guard ) , Czysz ( right tackle ) , Bovill ( right end ) , Knode ( quarterback ) , Perrin ( left halfback ) , Cohn ( right halfback ) and Steketee ( fullback ) . Dispute over Big Ten championship . The 1918 season was Michigan ' s first season in the Big Ten Conference following its withdrawal in 1906 . Due to the cancellation of games against Minnesota and Northwestern , Michigan played only two games against Big Ten opponents , Chicago and Ohio State . Illinois , which had lost a non - conference game , but finished 4 – 0 against Big Ten opponents , declined Michigan ' s invitation to meet in a post - season game to decide the championship . The " Detroit Free Press " chided Illinois for refusing the match : " [ Illinois athletic director ] Huff ' s explanation was as humorous as it was disappointing . He attempted to excuse Illinois on the grounds that the weather in December would be too cold for a game and for that reason there could be no meeting . . . . the fact remains that it couldn ' t be too cold for Michigan , whose players have the same number of arms and legs and a covering of skin no thicker than the athletes who disport themselves under the colors of the Illini . " Some sources refer to Illinois and Michigan as co - champions in 1918 . However , at the time , the question of conference supremacy was contested . The following excerpt from Michigan ' s 1903 yearbook outlines the opposing arguments : " Eastern critics were of the opinion that the Maize and Blue team was rightfully entitled to claim the honors , but western writers held that since Illinois played four Conference games , all of which went to them , they should hold the honors . Despite the fact that they were beaten once by the Municipal Pier Service team of Chicago , and although Michigan had lost no games , the opinion of the western critics could not be changed . " Players . Letter winners . The following 18 players from Michigan ' s 1918 football team won varsity letter M ' s . Names of players who started at least three games are in bold . Non - letter winners . The following individuals from the 1918 team were not awarded M ' s but instead received " AMA " or " R " designations .