Phillips Haymakers football

The Phillips Haymakers football team represented the now-defunct Phillips University in college football. Between 1917 and 1920, John Maulbetsch was the head football coach at Phillips University.[1] Maulbetsch was an All-American running back at the University of Michigan in 1914, where he earned the nickname the "Human Bullet". With his name recognition, he was able to recruit big-name talent to Phillips, including future Pro Football Hall of Famer Steve Owen, and future United States Olympic Committee President Doug Roby. Maulbetsch quickly turned Phillips into a major contender in the southwest, as his teams beat Oklahoma and Texas and lost only one game in the 1918 and 1919 seasons. The 1919 team, known as "Mauley's Iron Men", was considered by many experts to be the finest football squad in the southwest that season.[2]

Phillips Haymakers
First season?
Last season1933
LocationEnid, Oklahoma
ConferenceSouthwest Conference
ColorsMaroon and Black
   

After defeating the Oklahoma and Texas football teams, the "Haymakers" gained a reputation as “one of the strongest teams in the southwest.”[3][4] When Phillips defeated Texas, 10–0, in Austin, Texas in October 1919, the Longhorns had not lost a game since 1917.[5] One Texas newspaper reported that Phillips had "whitewashed the Longhorns in their own corral."[6]

As a result of Phillips' success, it was admitted to the Southwest Conference for the 1920 season. However, with the loss of several key players from the previous squads, Phillips fell to 4–5–1 record, failed to score a single point in conference play and immediately dropped out of the conference. Maulbetsch was hired to coach at Oklahoma A&M in 1921. Unable to sustain its previous success, the program's reputation faded; the school finally closed the program in 1933.[2]

References
  1. "Maulbetsch Is Married". Syracuse Herald. June 29, 1917.
  2. Jim Strain, The Iron Men Of Phillips Used Just 12 Players In Upsetting Mighty Texas, Sports Illustrated, October 19, 1981, Accessed June 4, 2010.
  3. "A New Foe in Football: Texas University Will Meet Phillips University in Austin". Corsicana Daily. October 10, 1919. Retrieved December 19, 2007.
  4. "Longhorns to Play Phillips Uni. October 11th". San Antonio Evening News. September 13, 1919. Retrieved December 19, 2007.
  5. "Texas, Unable to Score, Bows to Haymakers, Phillips University Blanks Longhorns on Muddy Field 10 to 0". San Antonio Light. October 12, 1919.
  6. "Texas Defeat By A&M Eleven Was 'Knock Out' Blow". The Eagle. December 4, 1919. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
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