Monon Bell: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 15:07, 5 November 2009
The Monon Bell (pronounced MOE-non) is the trophy awarded to the victor of the annual college football matchup between the DePauw University Tigers (in Greencastle, Indiana) and the Wabash College Little Giants (in Crawfordsville, Indiana) in the United States. The Bell is a 300-pound locomotive bell from the Monon Railroad. At of the end of the 2008 season, the two teams have played against each other 115 times, and the all time series between the Tigers and the Little Giants stands at a tie at 53-53-9.
History
 |
The rivalry between Wabash and DePauw began in 1890 and is the oldest college football rivalry west of the Alleghenies where more than 100 games have been played. The Monon Bell was introduced as a traveling trophy in 1932 at the suggestion of a DePauw alumnus, Orien Fifer (Class of 1925), in a letter to the editor of the The Indianapolis News. Since the schools are only 27 miles apart, the adversaries in the game are often brothers, cousins, high school classmates or good friends, adding to the rivalry’s intensity. Since the Bell entered the series, DePauw has won 36 games, Wabash 33, and there were 6 ties. Before the introduction of overtime to college football, nine ties were logged in the series. By rule, in the event of a tie, the Bell was awarded to the previous owner. This rule last held significance for the 99th Monon Bell Classic in 1992 where Wabash opted for a field goal to tie the game at 17-17 retained ownership of the Bell (which also set up the 100th game as an evenly split 45-45-9 series).
The teams failed to play each other only 5 years in the entire history. From 1897-1899, the schools failed to schedule each other for an unknown reason. In 1910, the teams didn't play due to the death of Wabash's star halfback, Ralph Lee Wilson, who died from a concussion in a game earlier in the season. The schools have played each other every year since 1911.
Monon Bell Classic
| Category | Wabash | DePauw |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Crawfordsville | Greencastle |
| Team Name | Little Giants | Tigers |
| Students | 950 | 2,350 |
| School Colors | Scarlet | Black & Old Gold |
| Mascot | Wally Wabash | Tyler the Tiger |
| Conference | NCAC | SCAC |
| Home Field | Byron P. Hollett Little Giant Stadium | Blackstock Stadium |
| Student Body | All-Male | Coed |
The Monon Bell Classic is the name of the college football rivalry between Wabash College and DePauw University. Named after the trophy awarded to the winner (the Monon Bell), it is the sixth most-played Division III rivalry and equals the 12th-most played in college football.[1] To date, there have been 115 total games played between the two teams, resulting in a tie held at 53-53-9.[2]
Since the Bell was introduced as the rivalry's prize in 1932, DePauw leads 36-33-6.
The game has received national media coverage including articles in Sports Illustrated in 1973 and 1993, a feature on Charles Kuralt's 1979 "Sunday Morning" show, articles in USA Today in 1987 and the Wall Street Journal in 1999 and a feature on Fox Sports Net's show The Slant in 1999.
The game is regularly televised and past battles have been seen on ABC, ESPN2, and HDNet. Annually, alumni parties are held in about 50 cities across America where loyal fans from both schools gather to watch the game. In May 2007, a three-year agreement was announced with HDNet to televise the game through 2009.[3]
Professionally replicated DVDs have been produced of the 2001 through 2008 games, as well as the 1977 Monon Bell Classic.
Listed below are the all-time Monon Bell Classic results, with Wabash victories shaded in scarlet ██ and DePauw victories are shaded in old gold ██.[2]
All-Time Football Results
- Wabash College: 53 wins
- DePauw University: 53 wins
- Ties: 9
| Date | Winner | Score | Site |
|---|---|---|---|
Bell heists
The Bell has been stolen at least 9 times (1941, 1959, 1965, 1966, 1973, 1978, 1979, 1988, 1998). The most famous theft is known as "Operation Frijoles," which was ranked by Sports Illustrated as one of the five greatest all-time rivalry pranks (December 12, 2005, p. 36). "Operation Frijoles" is still the favorite story shared by Wabash fans regarding the "reappropriation" of the 300-pound trophy claimed each November by either Wabash College or DePauw University in the annual football meeting.
Operation Frijoles
Prior to the 1965 meeting between the two teams, Wabash student Jim Shanks '67 scheduled a meeting with DePauw University President William H. Kerstetter, claiming to be representative from the US Information Service in Mexico City. During the meeting with Kerstetter, Shanks was able to convince the president to offer two full scholarships for Mexican students. To "seal the deal" Shanks asked to take photos of various points of interest on campus to show the "prospective" Mexican students more about DePauw University.
One item Shanks asked to photograph was the Monon Bell, in the Tigers' possession after a 22-21 victory in 1964. The dean of the college was the only person on campus who knew the location of the Bell, but was reluctant to tell Shanks of its location. "I don't know whether I should show this to you or not," he said with laugh. "The last time I showed it to someone, they stole it."
Taking Shanks to the second floor of a quonset hut near the football field, Shanks took careful notes that were provided to a group of Wabash students who entered the building and took the Bell back to Crawfordsville. The Bell was eventually "found" by the Wabash administration and returned to DePauw the day before the 1965 game.
Saturday afternoon the Little Giant football team made certain it was a short visit. Wabash defeated DePauw 16-6. At the conclusion of the game Wabash fans stormed the field, many wearing sombreros and ponchos, throwing taco shells onto the field and wielding posters congratulating President Kerstetter for the loss of the Bell and the two scholarship offers.
Other heists
Another famous heist saw DePauw students stealing the bell from themselves. Concerned about the safety of the Bell from Wabash kidnappers, a group of DePauw students stole the bell from its resting place and buried it in the north end zone of DePauw's Blackstock Stadium. Very few students knew of its location, and many mistakenly believed it had been kidnapped by Wabash students. A problem arose on the Monon Bell Classic game day when cold temperature caused the ground to freeze. The DePauw students were barely able to reclaim the Bell in time for the game.
The Bell was last stolen in 1998 by Wabash students on Halloween.
Notably, the rivalry is still very strong: in 1998, after DePauw had secured the Bell, a riot broke out on Wabash's Byron P. Hollett Little Giant Stadium. During the fiasco, DePauw students pulled down one of the Little Giants' goal posts. The Little Giant student body retaliated by charging the field, which was eventually erupted into a brawl. The fights were broken up by the local police, which used pepper spray to contain the crowds. As a result, following Monon Bell Classics have been played with added security and segregated fan sections.
The greatest heist was pulled off not by Wabash students, not by DePauw students, but by a small group of five from the Rose Hulman Insitute of Technology. The group of engineering students pulled the heist off before a basketball a game between DePauw and Rose. According to the plan, the students had set up for the bell to be brought out at half time. However, when suspicions arose that a brawl might erupt from the display, the bell's hidden location in an old janitor closet was given up to the Rose Administration and went back to DePauw.
Failed heists
One other failed heist occurred by DePauw students. They had succeeded in stealing the bell and had the bell loaded into their car when their car wouldn't start. They were caught red-handed with the bell. They assumed that they would only get a slap on the wrist for the attempted heist. However, because DePauw and Wabash are located in different counties and all the judges in Montgomery County (where Wabash is located) are Wabash graduates or fans, the students from DePauw got 1000 hours of community service.
Monon Memories
In 2002, utilizing video and film from DePauw University's archives, the first "Monon Memories" -- short (40 second to 2:30) video summaries of past battles for the Bell -- were produced. The initial goal was to create 15-20 short vignettes which could be used during timeouts of the game's national telecast each year. On October 2, 2008, DePauw's Executive Director of Media Relations, Ken Owen -- who launched the "Memories" project and created each clip -- finished the 1890 segment. As a result there is a video for each of the 115 football battles between DePauw and Wabash. The videos -- which feature vintage photos and, when available, film or videotape -- are available for viewing at DePauw's Web site (link below) and many are included in each year's special edition DVD of the Monon Bell Classic. "Monon Memories" were featured in the November 7, 2008 edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education.
The Ballad of the Monon Bell
The Ballad of the Monon Bell was introduced the week of the 1985 game at DePauw. The music is by Nancy Ford Charles (DePauw 1957), and the lyrics are by Darel Lindquist (DePauw 1968). The concept of the ballad originated with Patrick Aikman (DePauw 1957). The ballad has been recorded by Jim Ibbotson (of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band) (DePauw 1969). A video, originally created in 1985, was recut in 2007 after tape was found containing a stereo version of the song. (See external links below for an MP3 and MOV of the song.)
Long before the cannonball traveled through her towns
The state of Indiana owned the jewel of the crown
The train, they called the Monon, the stories they still tell
The Cavemen and the Tigers playing for her bell
It rode like a masthead on engine ninety-nine
Crawfordsville to Greencastle, then further down the line
The Cavemen came from Wabash, the Tigers from DePauw
Since eighteen-ninety they have played the last game ev’ry fall
Many years they played for pride, oh the stories they could tell
Then in thirty-two the Monon train gave up her precious bell
They said, “Here take this symbol of smoke and fire and grit
And give it to the winner, a symbol not to quit.”
Ring the Bell for Wabash, ring for old DePauw
Ring the bell for victory in the last game ev’ry fall
Ring the Bell for Wabash, ring for old DePauw
Ring the bell for victory in the last game ev’ry fall
Suddenly the boys of autumn had fire in their eyes
Blood and spit, but never quit, fighting for the prize
The medal to the victor, the symbol to the school
Wabash and DePauw became a yearly duel
Ring the Bell for Wabash, ring for old DePauw
Ring the bell for victory in the last game ev’ry fall
Ring the Bell for Wabash, ring for old DePauw
Ring the bell for victory in the last game ev’ry fall
Now history has recorded the players and their games
And to this day they still play for the Bell in Monon’s name
Those who’ve gone before return each November day
Swapping stories and the legends for those who did not play
Ring the Bell for Wabash, ring for old DePauw
Ring the bell for victory in the last game ev’ry fall
Ring the Bell for Wabash, ring for old DePauw
Ring the bell for victory in the last game ev’ry fall
©DePauw University, 1985
References
- ^ Monon Bell Classic, "Monon Bell and Rivalry Facts", DePauw University, retrieved October 14, 2008.
- ^ a b Monon Bell Classic, "All-Time Football Results", DePauw University, retrieved October 14, 2008.
- ^ College News, "DePauw-Wabash-HDNet Ink Three-Year Deal for Monon Bell Classic", CollegeNews.org, May 4, 2007.