1919 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

The 1919 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the 1919 college football season. Dan McGugin, in his 15th year as head coach, returned from World War I service ( interim coaching had been provided by Ray Morrison during his absence). Josh Cody served as captain and earned third-team All-America honors from Walter Camp for the second time. The team used a short punt offense and played its home games at Dudley Field.

Season highlights
- Overall record: 5–1–2; conference record in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA): 3–1–2.
- Opened with a 41–0 victory over Union University.
- A steady rain produced a 3–3 tie with Tennessee, with Cody scoring on a 30-yard drop kick and Buck Hatcher adding a 25-yard drop kick.
- Lost to Georgia Tech in the mud, 0–20.
- Upset Auburn 7–6, in a defensive battle considered one of Vanderbilt’s great stands. Cody returned a fumble 15 yards for a touchdown and added the winning extra point; Auburn’s late drive was stopped by Vanderbilt’s defense.
- Tied Kentucky 0–0 on a muddy field in Lexington.
- Beat Alabama 16–12 at Dudley Field. Alabama fumbled twice; Cody kicked a 30-yard field goal to seal the win, with Berryhill and Zerfoss contributing scores for Vanderbilt.
- Defeated Virginia 10–6 at Lambeth Field.
- Finished with a 33–21 win over Sewanee.

Season context
Vanderbilt finished strong in a year when multiple teams claimed national honors were in dispute, but the Commodores’ performance—especially the Auburn result and the defensive efforts in several games—secured them a prominent place in the 1919 season.