1909 Michigan Wolverines football team

1909 Michigan Wolverines football
ConferenceIndependent
Record6–1
Head coach
CaptainDave Allerdice
Home stadiumFerry Field
Seasons
← 1908
1910 →
1909 Midwestern college football independents records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Iowa State Normal     6 0 0
Notre Dame     7 0 1
Michigan Agricultural     8 1 0
Carthage     6 1 0
Michigan     6 1 0
Western State Normal (MI)     6 1 0
Mount Union     8 2 0
Lake Forest     5 1 1
Haskell     7 2 0
Detroit College     3 1 2
Butler     5 3 0
Central Michigan     4 3 0
St. Mary's (OH)     4 3 0
Cincinnati     4 3 1
Doane     3 2 3
Buchtel     4 4 0
Rose Poly     4 4 0
Marquette     2 2 1
North Dakota Agricultural     2 2 1
Wabash     3 4 1
Miami (OH)     3 4 0
Ohio     2 4 2
Saint Louis     3 5 0
Michigan State Normal     2 4 0
Western Illinois     1 2 0
Fairmount     2 5 1
Northern Illinois State     2 6 0
South Dakota State     1 3 0
Heidelberg     0 7 2

The 1909 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1909 college football season. The team's head coach was Fielding H. Yost in his ninth year at Michigan. The Wolverines compiled a record of 6–1, outscored opponents 116 to 34, and held six of seven opponents to six points or less.

The team began its season with four consecutive victories, including close calls against Case (3–0) and Marquette (6–5) and dominating performances against Ohio State (33–6) and Syracuse (44–0). The team's sole setback came in the fifth game, losing to Notre Dame (11–3) for the first time in nine games between them. Following the game, a Detroit newspaper described Notre Dame's predominantly Irish-American lineup as a group of "Fighting Irishmen", giving birth to the team's nickname.

The Wolverines then finished the season with impressive road victories over two of the best teams in the country. In Philadelphia, they defeated the 1908 national champion Penn Quakers, 12–6, breaking the Quakers' 23-game winning streak. In Minneapolis, they defeated the previously unbeaten 1909 Western Conference champions from Minnesota, 15–6. The 1909 Minnesota game was the first game played for possession of the Little Brown Jug, the oldest rivalry trophy in college football.

Several players from the 1909 Michigan team received recognition for their performance. Left guard Albert Benbrook was the first Western lineman (and the fifth Western player at any position) to be selected as a first-team All-American by Walter Camp. Both of Michigan's halfbacks, Dave Allerdice and Joe Magidsohn, were chosen by Camp as second-team All-Americans and also received first-team honors on Walter Eckersall's All-Western team in the Chicago Daily Tribune. Allerdice, who was the 1909 team captain, also received first-team All-American honors from The New York Times and syndicated sports columnist Tommy Clark. Magidsohn was the first Jewish athlete to win a varsity "M" at the University of Michigan. Andrew Smith was also named the first-team All-Western center, despite having only moved to the position for the last two games of the season.