A History of Athletics at William & Mary: From Humble Beginnings to Division I Competition
The College of William & Mary, the second-oldest university in the United States, boasts a rich athletic history that dates back to 1893. Since the founding of its athletic program, the school's athletes have worn different colors and nicknames, evolving from informal games on the Courthouse Green to a comprehensive Division I NCAA program.
The Genesis of William & Mary Athletics
In the fall of 1893, Charles L. Hepburn, a student from an extraordinary family, brought together the College’s first organized athletic team and helped establish the fledgling Athletic Association. This student-run organization governed athletics in the days before the creation of the athletic department. As the manager of the Athletic Association and an editor of one of the College’s literary magazines, The Phoenix, he was also instrumental in lobbying for the first baseball team and for the development of later athletic policy.
Hepburn's letters provide a fascinating source of material on the life of the College in the 1890s. Unlike most of the other students at W&M, Hepburn had prior experience in playing football, a new and developing game. He was one of the featured players at Episcopal High School. As manager of the Athletic Association, Hepburn not only recruited the students to play and trained those unfamiliar with the game of football but also performed the duties of coach, business manager, trainer, equipment manager, and groundskeeper.
Informal games had been held on Court House Green for years, but Hepburn had other ideas. Hepburn petitioned the Executive Committee of the Board of Visitors to defray expenses incurred in creating the College’s first athletic grounds. The site along the Richmond Road side of campus where Monroe Hall now stands was used until another field was constructed in 1907-08. William and Mary played three games during its first football season. Hepburn was at quarterback with his brother Lloyd playing end. The College won, 14-4. After the season, Hepburn turned his considerable talents to shaping public opinion about athletics. The Phoenix published the editorials. The College, in fact, organized its first regular baseball team that same spring.
Nicknames, Colors, and Mascots: Evolving Identities
From 1893 to 1916, William & Mary football players were known as the "Orange and White" because those were the old official school colors. The uniform colors changed to the "Orange and Black," because the white became dirty too quickly, according to one report. From 1916 to the mid-1980s William & Mary athletic teams were known as the "Indians," a nickname first referenced in the 1916 edition of the Colonial Echo referring to the basketball team. In the 1960s, William & Mary's colors were changed to green, gold, and silver, derived from the College's coat of arms.
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The term "Tribe" was first referenced in the 1924 edition of the Colonial Echo. An Indian pony WAMPO was used on the sidelines as a mascot, often carrying a rider in full Indian attire. The term "Indian" was phased out by the early 1980s. In May, the National Collegiate Athletic Association determined that William & Mary could keep its Tribe nickname but had to do away with its logo because it could be offensive. Since 1978 the school's teams have been known simply as the "Tribe." A green costumed character named Colonel Ebirt began serving as an unofficial mascot. The iconic costumed griffin that roams arenas, sidelines and athletics events was named "Reveley," in honor of the university's 27th President.
Football: A Storied Tradition
William & Mary's initial outstanding team was the 1926 edition, which won the Southern Intercollegiate Championship. The squad went 7-3 and won a post-season game, at Chattanooga, 9-6. Ramsey, W&M's original First-Team Associated Press All-American, is in the College Football Hall of Fame and is considered by some as one of the greatest guards ever in Tribe football history. Cloud was the team's poster boy. He rose to national prominence and his photo appeared on the front cover of Street & Smith's annual Football Magazine.
The football team has won eight conference championships. While a member of the Southern Conference, W&M were champions or co-champions in 1942, 1947, 1966, and 1970. After joining the Yankee Conference, the Tribe won the Mid-Atlantic Division in 1993 and won the conference championship in 1996. After the Yankee Conference's 1997 merger with the A-10 Conference, the Tribe were co-champions in 2001 and 2004.
William & Mary's traditional rival in football is the University of Richmond. William & Mary and Richmond have met 134 times since 1898, making the rivalry (sometimes referred to as "the South's oldest rivalry") the fourth most-played in Division I college football. The winner of this annual W&M-Richmond match-up claims the Capital Cup. Aside from William & Mary's lengthy Capital Cup rivalry with the University of Richmond, the Tribe also hold historic rivalries with in-state opponents like James Madison University and the Virginia Military Institute, as well as out-of-state opponents like the University of Delaware.
Basketball: From Blow Gym to Kaplan Arena
The first gymnasium at William & Mary was the "old gym," which opened in 1900 and served the campus' athletic needs for over two decades before the opening of Blow Gym in 1925. The need for a large, modern athletic arena had been identified by William & Mary in its long range planning and the idea gained traction in the budgeting cycles of the 1960s and construction of William & Mary Hall began in September 1969. William & Mary Hall replaced Blow Gym as the university’s premiere athletic facility upon opening in December 1970 when the men’s basketball team played the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. In 2005, the arena was named Kaplan Arena.
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Traditionally, the Tribe has not been a storied basketball program, though they have achieved sporadic success. They have reached the postseason three times, all in the National Invitation Tournament. The Tribe have appeared in the championship game of a conference tournament nine times but have lost them all.
The Tribe women's basketball team has generally not been a successful program. The Tribe then defeated third-seeded Campbell 66-63 on March 16 for the first ever CAA basketball tournament championship in school history, thereby qualifying for their first NCAA tournament, and marking the first NCAA tournament appearance in school history for either of the men's or women's basketball teams.
Other Sports: A Legacy of Excellence
The College of William & Mary's most dominant sports are its men's and women's cross country and track & field teams. The men's cross country team qualified for fourteen straight NCAA Division I championships (1997-2010), and 26 total NCAA championship appearances. The women's cross country squad has made nine NCAA championship appearances.
The Tribe men's soccer team has produced two First Team All-Americans and fourteen NCAA Tournament appearances, most recently in 2010. They have won eight conference tournaments since the program's inception in 1965. When counting all-time women's soccer NCAA Tournament appearances, just behind national powerhouses North Carolina (with 30) and UConn (with 28) are the William & Mary Tribe (24). As of the end of 2011, they were on an NCAA-record 30-year consecutive winning seasons streak (tied with North Carolina), dating back to 1982, capturing ten conference tournament crowns in that span.
The men's team has been very successful across the years. While never winning a team national title, the team has achieved two individual championships: Scott McCall on the rings in 1996 and Ramon Jackson on the parallel bars in 2004. The women's team has never qualified for the national championship meet or won an individual event. Nonetheless, the women's team has still won six ECAC gymnastics championships: 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2014 & 2015.
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The men's tennis team won two NCAA championships in 1947 and 1948. Individually, players have won two individual events: Gardner Larned won the singles title in 1947 and the pair of Fred Kovaleski and Bernard Bartzen won the doubles title in 1948. The women's team, while never winning an NCAA title, has also been prolific. The team has made 26 appearances in the NCAA championships with a combined record of 21-26.
The William & Mary Athletics Hall of Fame
Created in 1969, the William & Mary Athletics Hall of Fame recognizes student-athletes, coaches, and administrators who have distinguished themselves as outstanding performers on or with an intercollegiate team.
Notable Alumni
Notable graduates from the athletic programs include Jon Stewart, Adin Brown, Sean McDermott, Mike Leach, Buster Ramsey, Darren Sharper, Mike Tomlin, Bill Chambers, J. D. Gibbs, Jim Garrett, and Joe Plumeri.
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