16 Amazing Moments in College Sports History!

Story by Yinzer Crazy Contributor Charlotte Hopkins

2.    This is the 1879 Yale Rugby team. Their team captain, in the center, holding the ball, is Walter Camp.

3.    Women fencing at the University of Iowa in 1890. The first college championship games started in 1941 but were limited to men. Women could not compete until 1981. (thumbnail photo at the top!)

4.    Smith College organized the first female basketball team in 1892. This is a team photo from 1902.

5.    What's your choice for the Pitt vs. Penn State matchup? This historic rivalry, which began on November 6, 1893, is a beloved college sports tradition for Pittsburgh. This Pitt football team photo was taken in 1893. They were also known as the Pittsburgh Athletic Club.

6.    The Cornell Varsity Rowing Team in 1911. Rowing is the oldest college sport played in America. Rowing was introduced in 1852.

7.    The Kendall Green Bike Club in front of Faculty Row at Gallaudet University, in Washington D.C., in 1885.

8.    The University of Kansas basketball team from 1899 with their coach James Naismith. He established the team just six years after he invented the sport.

9.    Lou Gehrig during his Columbia football days in 1922. Along with playing baseball for the Columbia Lions, he also played right halfback for the football team.

10. The Drexel Institute's Girls' Rifle Team in 1925. When these girls showed up to join the rifle team, they proudly announced, “We're not here for the tennis team tryouts.

11. Sandy Koufax at the University of Cincinnati in 1955. He started college under a basketball scholarship and was studying architecture.

12. Wilt Chamberlain sitting in class at the University of Kansas in 1957. In college, he averaged 30 points per game. In his junior year, he left college to play for the Harlem Globetrotters for a year before going on to play for the Philadelphia Warriors.

13. Athletes from the University of Texas Track Club lined up for an article in Sports Illustrated in 1964. The runner in front is Janis Rinehart, she led the team in victories from 1963-1966. The team won the 4x100 relay in 1963 and 1965.

14. Lewis Alcindor, Jr. (soon to be known as Kareem Abdul-Jabar) playing in a 1968 basketball game against Houston. He was offered 100 college scholarships. He would lead UCLA in three national championships.

15. Magic Johnson at the Michigan State campus, 1979. That year, Michigan competed against Indiana State for the championship title. One of the players for Indiana was Larry Bird. This game marked the start of a career-long competition between Magic and Bird.

16. Dan Marino of Pittsburgh's Central Catholic High School signing his letter of intent to attend the University of Pittsburgh in 1979. He honored his commitment to Pitt and went on to play for the Miami Dolphins.