Georgia Tech Football Team of 1928

Digital image created at the Georgia Tech Library, 2010. Scanned at 600ppi.||Physical Condition: Fair. (Torn, bent, cracked, scratches, worn edges, writing on back).This is a photo of the starting offensive team of the Tech football team of 1928. The caption reads "Georgia Tech's Golden Tornado, 1928", referring to the tradition of calling Tech's best teams the "Golden Tornado" in addition to its official nickname, the "Yellow Jackets". (This sobriquet was given to Tech by members of the national sports media in about 1917 when it won its first national championship.) The players are posed in two rows (line and backfield), outdoors, in front of a grandstand. They are wearing football uniforms. Names of individuals are included in the caption. Complete names, positions, and Georgia Tech classes are: Frank Orun Waddey, B.S. '29, End; Jack Griffin Stumpy Thomason, Halfback; Frank Roy Speer, '30, Tackle ; Ronald Joseph "Bob" Durant, E.E. '29, Quarterback; Raleigh Eugene Drennon, B.S. '29, Guard; Henry Rudolph "Peter" Pund, Com '28, Center; Roy L. "Father" Lumpkin, '30, Fullback; Luke Warner Mizell, Com '30, Halfback; John Joseph Westbrook, Com '29, Guard; Robert Lee Randolph, '29, Fullback; G. Lavance Maree, Com '31, Tackle; Thomas Gilmer Jones, '30, End.||The football team of 1928 occupies a place in Tech athletic tradition second to none. Coached by Bill Alexander and brimming with All-American talent it compiled a 10-0-0 record, won the Southern Conference Championship, and was a Co-National Champion. The season culminated in Tech's appearance in the 1929 Rose Bowl game against California. The game has become one of the most colorful of all time because of the "Wrong Way" run by California's Roy Riegels. In the first few minutes of the game Riegels picked up a Tech fumble and began running toward the Tech goal. He suddenly spun around and started for his own goal. Teammate Benny Lom turned him around at the one yard line, but shortly thereafter Tech blocked California's punt for a safety and won by a final score of 8-7. Not only Tech but the whole of Atlanta was ecstatic. When the team got back to Atlanta it was greeted by 100,000 cheering fans on Peachtree Street