Massachusetts Aggies football, 1879–1889

The Massachusetts Aggies football team (later known as the UMass Minutemen) represented Massachusetts Agricultural College (now known as the University of Massachusetts Amherst) in American football. The team played its home games at Alumni Field in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Highlights of the school's first 11 years of intercollegiate football include the following:

• On November 22, 1879, the Aggies played and won their first game, defeating Amherst, 4–0.
• On November 10, 1880, the Aggies sustained their first loss, falling to Williston Academy by a 10–8 score.

1879

1879 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	1–0
Head coach	None
Captain	Fred P. Taylor
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons 1880 →

1879 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Princeton			–					4	–	0	–	1
Yale			–					3	–	0	–	2
Massachusetts			–					1	–	0	–	0
Michigan			–					1	–	0	–	1
Haverford			–					1	–	0	–	1
Harvard			–					2	–	1	–	2
Penn			–					2	–	2	–	0
Amherst			–					1	–	1	–	0
Navy			–					0	–	0	–	1
McGill			–					0	–	0	–	1
Toronto			–					0	–	0	–	1
Stevens			–					1	–	2	–	5
Rutgers			–					1	–	2	–	3
Pennsylvania Military			–					0	–	1	–	1
NYU			–					0	–	2	–	1
Racine			–					0	–	1	–	0
Swarthmore			–					0	–	1	–	0
Columbia			–					0	–	3	–	2

The 1879 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1879 college football season. The team played its first football game and finished the season with a record of 1–0.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
November 22	Amherst	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 4–0

1880

1880 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	0–1–1
Head coach	None
Captain	Arthur Whittaker
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1879 1881 →

1880 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Princeton			–					4	–	0	–	1
Yale			–					4	–	0	–	1
Kentucky University			–					2	–	0	–	0
Michigan			–					1	–	0	–	0
Harvard			–					2	–	2	–	2
Penn			–					2	–	2	–	0
Rutgers			–					2	–	2	–	0
Columbia			–					1	–	2	–	0
Amherst			–					0	–	1	–	1
Massachusetts			–					0	–	1	–	1
Stevens			–					1	–	4	–	0
Brown			–					0	–	1	–	0
CCNY			–					0	–	1	–	0
Philadelphia Crescent AC			–					0	–	1	–	0
Toronto			–					0	–	1	–	0
Centre			–					0	–	2	–	0

The 1880 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1880 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 0–1–1.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
November 10	Williston Academy	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 8–10
November 13	at Amherst	Amherst, MA	T 0–0

1881

1881 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–1–1
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1880 1882 →

1881 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
MIT			–					3	–	0	–	0
Richmond			–					2	–	0	–	0
Georgetown			–					1	–	0	–	0
Yale			–					5	–	0	–	1
Princeton			–					7	–	0	–	2
Penn State			–					1	–	0	–	0
Columbian University			–					1	–	0	–	1
Dartmouth			–					1	–	0	–	1
Harvard			–					6	–	1	–	1
Massachusetts			–					2	–	1	–	1
Kentucky University			–					2	–	1	–	0
Columbia			–					3	–	3	–	1
Rutgers			–					2	–	4	–	1
Stevens			–					1	–	2	–	1
Kentucky State College			–					1	–	2	–	0
CCNY			–					1	–	1	–	1
Amherst			–					0	–	3	–	2
Lewisburg			–					0	–	1	–	0
MIT			–					3	–	0	–	0
Wesleyan			–					0	–	1	–	0
Randolph–Macon			–					0	–	2	–	0
Michigan			–					0	–	3	–	0
Penn			–					0	–	5	–	0

The 1881 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1881 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 2–1–1.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
October 15	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	W NA
October 22	Amherst	Amherst, MA	T 0–0
October 31	at Wesleyan	Andrus Field Middletown, CT	W 36–0
November 12	MIT	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 0–8

1882

1882 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	0–2
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1881 1883 →

1882 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Yale			–					8	–	0	–	0
Colorado College			–					1	–	0	–	0
Navy			–					1	–	0	–	0
Richmond			–					1	–	0	–	0
Harvard			–					7	–	1	–	0
Fordham			–					7	–	1	–	0
Princeton			–					7	–	2	–	0
Wesleyan			–					3	–	1	–	0
Rutgers			–					6	–	4	–	0
Columbian University			–					0	–	0	–	1
Dartmouth			–					1	–	1	–	0
Lake Forest			–					1	–	1	–	0
Minnesota			–					1	–	1	–	0
Northwestern			–					1	–	1	–	0
Stevens			–					1	–	1	–	1
Amherst			–					2	–	3	–	0
Penn			–					2	–	4	–	0
CCNY			–					1	–	2	–	0
MIT			–					1	–	4	–	0
Randolph–Macon			–					0	–	1	–	0
Clifton AC			–					0	–	1	–	0
Lafayette			–					0	–	2	–	0
McGill			–					0	–	2	–	0
NYU			–					0	–	2	–	0
Massachusetts			–					0	–	3	–	0
Columbia			–					0	–	5	–	0

The 1882 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1882 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 0–2.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
November 2	Amherst	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 4–12
November 9	at Wesleyan	Andrus Field Middletown, CT	L 0–60

1883

1883 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	1–1
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1882 1884 →

1883 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Yale			–					9	–	0	–	0
Gallaudet			–					2	–	0	–	0
Carleton			–					1	–	0	–	0
Johns Hopkins			–					1	–	0	–	0
NYU			–					1	–	0	–	0
Harvard			–					8	–	2	–	0
Princeton			–					7	–	1	–	0
Penn			–					6	–	2	–	1
Stevens			–					6	–	4	–	1
Massachusetts			–					1	–	1	–	0
Minnesota			–					1	–	1	–	0
Wesleyan			–					3	–	3	–	0
Williams			–					1	–	1	–	0
Fordham			–					4	–	5	–	0
Michigan			–					2	–	3	–	0
Lafayette			–					2	–	4	–	0
Johns Hopkins			–					1	–	2	–	0
Columbia			–					1	–	3	–	0
Rutgers			–					1	–	6	–	0
Amherst			–					0	–	1	–	0
Dartmouth			–					0	–	1	–	0
Hamline			–					0	–	1	–	0
Lewisburg			–					0	–	1	–	0
Navy			–					0	–	1	–	0
CCNY			–					0	–	2	–	0
Columbian University			–					0	–	2	–	0
Georgetown			–					0	–	2	–	0

The 1883 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1883 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 1–1.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
November 7	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	L 0–14
November 21	at Amherst	Pratt Field Amherst, MA	W 9–8

1884

1884 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	1–2
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1883 1885 →

1884 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Princeton			–					9	–	0	–	1
Yale			–					8	–	0	–	1
Michigan			–					2	–	0	–	0
Williams			–					2	–	0	–	0
Navy			–					1	–	0	–	0
Wabash			–					1	–	0	–	0
Penn			–					5	–	1	–	1
Fordham			–					5	–	1	–	0
Harvard			–					7	–	4	–	0
Wesleyan			–					3	–	2	–	0
Butler			–					1	–	1	–	0
Columbia			–					1	–	1	–	0
Rutgers			–					3	–	4	–	0
Stevens			–					4	–	5	–	0
Dartmouth			–					1	–	2	–	1
Tufts			–					2	–	4	–	1
Massachusetts			–					1	–	2	–	0
Lafayette			–					2	–	5	–	0
Johns Hopkins			–					1	–	3	–	0
Albion			–					0	–	1	–	0
CCNY			–					0	–	1	–	0
Denver			–					0	–	1	–	0
DePauw			–					0	–	1	–	0
Olivet			–					0	–	2	–	0
Amherst			–					0	–	3	–	0
Lehigh			–					0	–	4	–	0

The 1884 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1884 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 1–2.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
October 11	at Wilbraham Academy	Wilbraham, MA	W 8–0
October 18	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	L NA
October 29	at Amherst	Amherst, MA	L 0–13

1885

1885 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	3–2–1
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1884 1886 →

1885 college football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Princeton			–					9	–	0	–	0
Michigan			–					3	–	0	–	0
Colorado College			–					1	–	0	–	0
Yale			–					7	–	1	–	0
Cincinnati			–					1	–	0	–	1
Penn			–					8	–	5	–	0
Lafayette			–					3	–	2	–	1
Massachusetts			–					3	–	2	–	1
Johns Hopkins			–					2	–	2	–	0
Richmond			–					1	–	1	–	0
Wesleyan			–					3	–	4	–	0
Navy			–					1	–	2	–	0
Lehigh			–					1	–	5	–	1
Rutgers			–					0	–	1	–	0
Fordham			–					0	–	3	–	0

The 1885 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1885 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 3–2–1.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
October 3	Amherst	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 4–0
October 5	at Amherst	Amherst, MA	T 0–0
October 7	Amherst	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 12–0
October 13	at Wesleyan	Andrus Field Middletown, CT	L 0–80
October 31	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	W 42–12
November 4	at Amherst	Amherst, MA	L 0–8

1886

1886 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–1
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1885 1887 →

1886 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Yale			–					9	–	0	–	1
Princeton			–					7	–	0	–	1
Harvard			–					12	–	2	–	0
Lafayette			–					10	–	2	–	0
Williams			–					5	–	1	–	1
Massachusetts			–					2	–	1	–	0
Penn			–					9	–	7	–	1
Lehigh			–					4	–	3	–	1
Dartmouth			–					2	–	2	–	0
Amherst			–					3	–	4	–	0
Rutgers			–					1	–	3	–	0
Wesleyan			–					2	–	6	–	0
MIT			–					2	–	6	–	1
Vermont			–					0	–	1	–	0
Stevens			–					0	–	7	–	1
Tufts			–					0	–	8	–	0
NYU			–					0	–	3	–	0
Swarthmore			–							–
Trinity (CT)			–							–

The 1886 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1886 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 2–1.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
October 13	Amherst	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 5–15
October 20	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	W 7–6
November 8	at Tufts	Tufts Oval Somerville, MA	W 6–5

1887

1887 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–3
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1886 1888 →

1887 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Yale			–					9	–	0	–	0
Penn State			–					2	–	0	–	0
Harvard			–					10	–	1	–	0
Lafayette			–					7	–	2	–	0
Princeton			–					7	–	2	–	0
Lehigh			–					4	–	3	–	0
Williams			–					3	–	3	–	0
Penn			–					6	–	7	–	0
Wesleyan			–					4	–	5	–	0
Tufts			–					4	–	6	–	0
Massachusetts			–					2	–	3	–	0
Rutgers			–					2	–	6	–	0
Bucknell			–					0	–	2	–	0
Cornell			–					0	–	2	–	0
Franklin & Marshall			–					0	–	2	–	0
Vermont			–					0	–	2	–	0

The 1887 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1887 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 2–3.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
October 8	Williston Academy	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 17–10
October 15	at Trinity (CT)	Hartford, CT	L 4–32
October 25	at Amherst	Amherst, MA	L 0–10
October 26	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	W 26–0
November 5	at Worcester Tech	Worcester, MA	L 0–10

1888

1888 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–4
Head coach	None
Captain	Arthur Nourse
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1887 1889 →

1888 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Yale			–					13	–	0	–	0
Harvard			–					12	–	1	–	0
Princeton			–					11	–	1	–	0
Lehigh			–					10	–	2	–	0
Trinity (CT)			–					5	–	1	–	1
Lafayette			–					6	–	3	–	0
Cornell			–					4	–	2	–	0
Penn			–					9	–	7	–	0
Bucknell			–					2	–	3	–	0
Fordham			–					1	–	2	–	0
Massachusetts			–					2	–	4	–	0
Wesleyan			–					2	–	7	–	0
Worcester Tech			–					1	–	4	–	0
Rutgers			–					1	–	6	–	1
Penn State			–					0	–	2	–	1
Swarthmore			–					0	–	5	–	0

The 1888 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1888 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 2–4.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
October 6	Trinity (CT)	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 0–34	[1]
October 13	Williston Academy	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 27–0
October 17	Williston Academy	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 17–9
October 17	Yale freshmen	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 0–32
October 18	at Amherst	Amherst, MA	L 0–58	[2]
October 30	Amherst	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	L 4–45

1889

1889 Massachusetts Aggies football
Conference	Independent
Record	2–0
Head coach	None
Home stadium	Alumni Field
Seasons ← 1888 1890 →

1889 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Princeton			–					10	–	0	–	0
Massachusetts			–					2	–	0	–	0
Yale			–					15	–	1	–	0
Harvard			–					9	–	2	–	0
Franklin & Marshall			–					5	–	1	–	1
Dickinson			–					4	–	1	–	1
Navy			–					4	–	1	–	1
Tufts			–					3	–	1	–	0
Lehigh			–					8	–	3	–	2
Cornell			–					8	–	4	–	0
Penn			–					7	–	6	–	0
Brown			–					2	–	2	–	0
Penn State			–					2	–	2	–	0
Wesleyan			–					5	–	7	–	1
Bucknell			–					2	–	3	–	1
Lafayette			–					3	–	4	–	2
Columbia			–					2	–	7	–	2
Fordham			–					1	–	3	–	0
Rutgers			–					1	–	4	–	0
NYU			–					0	–	2	–	0

The 1889 Massachusetts Aggies football team represented Massachusetts Agricultural College in the 1889 college football season. Massachusetts finished the season with a record of 2–0.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
November 2	Williston Academy	Alumni Field Amherst, MA	W 12–8	[3]
November 16	at Williston Academy	Easthampton, MA	W 18–6	[4]