John Heisman

Heisman coached Clemson football, as well as baseball, through 1903. His football record of 19-3-2 and .833 winning percentage established a yet-to-be-broken school record. In 1903 Heisman married Evelyn Cox, a widow with a twelve-year-old son. The following year Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) lured Heisman away from Clemson, offering a salary of $2,000 and 30 percent of gate receipts. Heisman was at the peak of his coaching career at Georgia Tech, compiling a record of 102-29-6 during his sixteen-year stay. As with his previous teams, Heisman began to develop the Tech program through tough workouts, strict discipline, and the highest standards of commitment from his players.

On a national level, football was under fire for the ever-increasing number of football-related deaths and injuries; twenty-one players were reported to have died in 1904 alone. Consequently, for a period of time numerous schools, including Columbia, Northwestern, California, and Stanford Universities, discontinued their football programs altogether. To create a safer game, Heisman joined those who advocated the legalization of the forward pass. By allowing the ball to be thrown beyond the line of scrimmage (up to that time, only laterals were allowed), the crushing pile of players that led to so many injuries would be neutralized by spreading play across the entire field. Heisman became one of the strongest voices in support of the forward pass, which was finally legalized in 1906.

With the forward pass now at his disposal, Heisman regularly added its use to his game plan. He also developed what became known as the jump shift, or Heisman shift, in 1906. Prior to Heisman's invention of jump shift, players lined up and stayed put until the ball was snapped. Once again breaking with traditional play, Heisman's team would line up in one formation, then one or more men would quickly shift to new positions with the snap coming as soon as they were reset. This put the opponent at a disadvantage as the defensive players had little time to assess the new formation or communicate with teammates regarding necessary changes in defensive coverage.

During his first ten years at Georgia Tech, Heisman fielded good teams that sometimes struggled against chief rivals Auburn, Georgia, and Sewanee. Rules were changing rapidly as the prototype for modern college football began to take shape. By 1912 the game had evolved into what can be recognized as American football. Gifted at forming a winning team from players who were outmatched in size and talent, Heisman's recruiting efforts eventually paid off, and in 1915 he found himself with a truly talented team. For three consecutive seasons, from 1915 to 1917, Heisman's team went unbeaten, outscoring opponents during the 31-game streak 1,599 to 99. The crowning moment came in 1917 when Georgia Tech earned its first national championship.

On October 7, 1916, Georgia Tech participated in the most lopsided game in the history of college football. According to the nearly legendary story, Tech's baseball team (coached by Heisman) had been trounced the previous spring by Cumberland University, a small school in Tennessee. Reportedly, Cumberland had loaded its baseball team with professional players out of Nashville, hoping to salvage its struggling athletic program. Heisman, in need of revenge for the humiliating defeat, offered Cumberland $500 to come to Atlanta for a football game. At halftime the score stood at 126-0, and Heisman told his team, "You're doing all right, but we can't tell what those Cumberland players have up their sleeve. They may spring a surprise." For his part, the Cumberland coach reminded his players to hang on and remember that $500 guarantee.

Legends surrounding the game include reports of several Cumberland players who jumped the fence and deserted and one player who found his way to the Tech bench. When informed he was on the wrong side, the Cumberland player refused to join his own team for fear he'd be put back in the game. The third and fourth quarters were mercifully shortened to 10 minutes, and at the end of the day Tech had racked up 528 rushing yards and an additional 450 yards in punt returns. Cumberland posted a total of 20 yards rushing, 12 yards passing, and 10 fumbles. Georgia Tech's record of 32 touchdowns and 18 consecutive extra points still stands.