1897 Oregon Webfoots football team

The 1897 Oregon Webfoots football team represented the University of Oregon in the 1897 college football season.^[1] It was the Webfoots' fourth season; they competed as an independent and were led by head coach Joe Smith. They finished the season with a record of one win and one loss (1–1).

1897 Oregon Webfoots football
Conference	Independent
Record	1–1
Head coach	Joe Smith (1st season)
Captain	Richard Shore Smith
Home stadium	Kincaid Field
Seasons ← 1896 1898 →

1897 Far West college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Oregon Agricultural			–					5	–	0	–	0
Washington Agricultural			–					2	–	0	–	0
Wyoming			–					2	–	0	–	0
USC			–					5	–	1	–	0
Stanford			–					4	–	1	–	0
New Mexico A&M			–					1	–	0	–	1
Oregon			–					1	–	1	–	0
Montana			–					1	–	2	–	3
Washington			–					1	–	2	–	0
Montana Agricultural			–					1	–	3	–	0
California			–					0	–	3	–	2
Utah			–					1	–	5	–	0
Arizona Normal			–					0	–	1	–	0
Idaho			–					0	–	1	–	0
Nevada State			–					0	–	1	–	0

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
November 6	Chemawa	Kincaid Field Eugene, OR	W 10–0	[2]
November 20	Oregon Agricultural	Kincaid Field Eugene, OR (rivalry)	L 8–24	[3][4][5]
Source: [6][7]

Background

Ahead of the 1897 football season, the faculty of the University of Oregon established a set of rules for athletes participating in the school's behalf in athletic events. All players were required to have attained 42 academic credits, with a 85% grade standing in all classes taken during the most recent semester.^[8] All players must have attended the school for one full year prior to playing and were required to "maintain a student character above reproach" to be eligible for competition.^[8]

Only games against other colleges were permitted, with the schedule required to be submitted to and approved by an elected committee of four faculty members.^[8] The season was also required to be terminated by December 1.^[8]