The Grey Cup Three-peat

In the 1920s, Queen’s was a football dynasty. Then called the rugby football team, the Gaels were led by men with nicknames like “Curly,” “Bubs,” “Red” and “Pep.” Together, they would win three Grey Cup national championships from 1922 to 1924. As if to remove any doubt about their prowess, the team also racked up 26 consecutive wins between 1922 and 1925.

Football in the 1920s was a far cry from its highly professionalized and commercialized cousin today. There were no forward passes, so the game was essentially about running. The rules were a hybrid of English and American rugby. Touchdowns were worth five points, and four 15-minute quarters were a recent innovation.

The players were still amateurs who played for city or collegiate teams under rugby unions, and they competed each year to raise the Grey Cup. The Cup was given in 1909 by Governor General Lord Grey to celebrate dominion supremacy in sports. In its early years, teams such as the Hamilton Tigers and the University of Toronto Varsity Blues became frequent hoisters of the cup.

In the early 1920s, things began to turn in Queen’s favour. After a winless season in 1921, rugby football at Queen’s entered a building phase. A new stadium named in honour of fallen war hero and one-time Queen’s star athlete George Richardson provided a new venue for games and training. Trainers were hired, a larger budget for food and travel was provided, and a tough new coach, W.P. “Billy” Hughes, was hired. A former boxing coach, Mr. Hughes was serious about getting his team ready to compete, leading them through intensive practice and drills. Although the team was still amateur, they also recruited some top talent to the roster.

These factors had an impressive result. In 1922, nearly 5,000 fans packed into Richardson Stadium to watch Queen’s top the Edmonton Elks 13-1.

The next year, Queen’s clobbered the Regina Roughriders 54-0, the greatest margin of victory in any Grey Cup. After the game, the press scolded Queen’s for its unsportsmanlike running up of the score.