College of Emporia Fighting Presbies football


The College of Emporia Football Team was a college football team at the College of Emporia in Emporia, Kansas. The team competed from 1893 until the college closed in 1974 and was known for its high quality play for the size of the school as well as its early adoption of modern football methods.
The final coach of the program was Dan Taylor.

Innovative play

The team was one of the earliest schools to regularly call the forward pass and the option pass under head coach Bill Hargiss and quarterback Arthur Schabinger. The school was using the forward pass as a regular play three years before Knute Rockne and Notre Dame Football.

Conference play and season successes

Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference

The team competed in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference from 1933 until 1970. The program was known for success among the small colleges which included three consecutive undefeated regular seasons under head coach Wayne J. McConnell and two back-to-back undefeated seasons under coach Bill Schnebel. Both coaches were recognized as Little All-American Coach of the Year.

Championships

YearResultNotes
1913conference champions
1918undefeated conference champions
1919undefeated
1925undefeated
1927conference champions
1928undefeated
1951undefeated
1953undefeated
1954undefeated regular seasonMineral Water Bowl
1955undefeated
1959 KCAC ChampionsWon Mineral Water Bowl
1962 KCAC ChampionsNAIA Bowl appearance
1963 KCAC ChampionsNAIA Bowl appearance
1966 KCAC Co-Champions

Table data source

Bowl games

The school also played in the 1954 Mineral Water Bowl, losing 20–14 to Hastings College, and then returned in 1959 to defeat Austin College by a score of 21–20.
DateResultBowlOpponentScoreHead Coach
1954LMineral Water BowlHastings College14 - 20Wayne J. McConnell
1959WMineral Water BowlAustin College21 - 20Bill Schnebel

Notable players

Two players from the College of Emporia played professional sports. Jim Jacquith played professional baseball in 1926. Lem Harkey was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1955 and ended up playing for the San Francisco 49ers for one year.