Cumberland Phoenix football


The Cumberland Phoenix football team represents Cumberland University in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, primarily competing in the Mid-South Conference. The Phoenix formerly competed in the TranSouth Athletic Conference and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

History

Cumberland football began on October 26, 1894 with a 6–6 tie with Peabody and finished that first year with a 2–1–1 season record. The early days of Cumberland football were very promising. The pinnacle of the early days of CU football was the 1903 season that began with a win over Vanderbilt then a loss to Sewanee and continued with a five-day road trip with victories over Alabama November 14, 1903, LSU November 16, 1903, and Tulane November 18, 1903. Cumberland would play a postseason game against Coach John Heisman's Clemson team on Thanksgiving Day that ended in an 11–11 tie and a record of 4–1–1 which gave Coach A. L. Phillips and Cumberland University the Championship of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association. The 1916 game against Georgia Tech is famous as the most lopsided-scoring game in the history of college football; Georgia Tech defeated Cumberland by a score of 222–0.
For the 2008 season, CU's football earned a share of the Mid-South Conference West Division. In 2016, the team changed its name from Bulldogs to the Phoenix.

Conference championships

YearConferenceCoachOverall recordConference record
1903Southern Intercollegiate Athletic AssociationA. L. Phillips6–1–14–1–1
1935Smoky Mountain ConferenceGus Morrow7–35–0

Notable individual achievements

Cumberland Athletics Hall of Fame
All-Southerns