Stats/comments about Linfield vs. Willamette football series (posted 10/28/2014)

Thanks to Wildcatville contributor Gerry Painter -- a Linfield grad, Wildcat football season ticket holder and member of the McMinnville Quarterback Club -- for compiling and supplying these statistics/comments about the Linfield Wildcats vs. Willamette Bearcats football series (1902-2013). Some additional info added by Wildcatville. 

The 2014 game of the series has a 1 p.m. kickoff on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014, on Linfield's Maxwell Field.

(Sorry, spacing problem below. Unable to put spaces between grafs.)

• First game was played in 1902 and the score was 6-6 -- the first of three ties in the series.
• Through 2013 a total of 86 games have been played covering more than a century.
• Until Paul Durham arrived as football coach in 1948, the series was dominated by Willamette.  They won 19 of the 22 games played through 1947 having won the last 16 games, and outscored Linfield 540 to 85.

• In the 1948 game, the first coached by Durham, Linfield lost 26-0, but in 1949 the Wildcats won 20-0  breaking the string of 17 consecutive Willamette victories.  As promised, if Linfield won, Linfield President Harry Dillin stood on his head in the middle of the field (the mud was several inches deep).   

=On Saturday 11-05-1949 in McMinnville on Maxwell Field, Linfield beat Willamette, 20-0

The book Linfield's Hundred Years (published 1956) says in the 1949 season, after Linfield beat Willamette, Linfield football players saw "their president (Harry Dillin) do a hand stand in the mud in front of a packed grandstand after the final whistle blew."  (The sports section of the book was written by Paul Durham.)

=On Saturday 11-14-1953 in McMinnville on Maxwell Field, Linfield beat Willamette, 21-6.

Sunday Oregonian, 11-15-53, says, "Dr. Harry L. Dillin, the college president, stood on his head on the 45-yard-line , no less, in the midst of a ring of frenzied Linfield students." (The Oregonian sports reporter at the game was Pat Frizzell.)

• From Durham on Linfield has dominated, winning 47 of the 64 games since 1948, and outscoring Willamette 1774 to 939.
• Linfield’s longest winning streak, 14 games from 1969 to 1982, was during football Coach Ad Rutschman’s tenure.
• Rutschman lost only two games, 1968 (His first year at Linfield) and 1983. Rutschman’s teams played Willamette 22 times outscoring them 221 to 20—that’s defense!
• Overall, Linfield has won 57% of the 86 games played.
• Both teams have scored “blowouts” (a differential score of 34 or more points): 6 times by Willamette and 9 times by Linfield.
• Close games (a differential score of 7 or less) have occurred 22 times: 8 won by Willamette and 11 by Linfield plus the 3 ties.
• Most devastating loss for Linfield may have been in 2007 with Willamette winning 33-32 by kicking a field goal with only 4 seconds left in the game.
• The highest score for each of the two teams was 63 by Linfield in 2005 and 52 by Willamette in 2008.
• Largest combined score by the two teams was the 2005 game. Willamette racked up 21 points, added to the 63 by Linfield, making a total of 84.

From the Wildcatville Archives are these historic/old/not current Linfield Wildcat and Willamette Barney Bearcat athletics logo. No, these won't be used on a regular basis. Just dusted them off for use here/now.