| Tufts Jumbos football | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First season | 1874; 151 years ago |
| Athletic director | John Morris |
| Head coach | Jay Civetti 14th season, 56–55 (.505) |
| Stadium | Ellis Oval (capacity: 4,000) |
| Field | Zimman Field |
| Location | Medford, Massachusetts |
| NCAA division | Division III |
| Conference | NESCAC |
| Past conferences | Northern Intercollegiate Football Association (1885–1886)[1] Independent (1887–1970) |
| Colors | Tufts blue and brown[2] |
| Website | gotuftsjumbos.com |
TheTufts Jumbos football program representsTufts University in the sport ofcollege football. The team competes inDivision III of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a member of theNew England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC).[3] Tufts plays its home games at Ellis Oval, located on the campus inMedford, Massachusetts. The team's head coach isJay Civetti, who has led the Jumbos since 2011.[4]
A Tufts football team has played since the1874–75 season.[5][6][7] The Tufts football team played its first game on June 4, 1875, againstHarvard, which Tufts won by a score of 1–0. This game is considered the first game ofAmerican football between two American colleges, with each team fielding 11 men, the ball being advanced by kicking or carrying it, and tackles of the ball carrier stopping play.[8] During the1875–76 season, Tufts playedBates on theBates campus inLewiston, Maine, for the first organized intercollegiate football game played in Maine.[9]
In one of the largest shutout wins in team history, Tufts defeated the1914 New Hampshire football team by a score of 83–0.[10]
One Tufts player,William Grinnell (1909–1997), a varsity member during the 1930s, has been inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame.[11]
The 1,000th game in team history was played during the 2006 season.[12]
| Season | Head coach | Conference | Finished | Wins | Losses | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1875 | Luman Aldrich | Independent | — | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1876–77 | — | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1877 | Scott Campbell | — | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1884 | Dwight Griswold | — | 2 | 4 | 1 | |
| 1885 | Fred P. Chapman | NIFA | 2nd | 2 | 3[a] | 0 |
| 1886 | James Gallety | 2nd | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| 1887 | Frank W. Durkee | Independent | — | 4 | 6 | 0 |
| 1889 | Martin | — | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1890 | Charles Stover | — | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1891 | Wilfred Russ | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1892 | A. G. Baillet | — | 8 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1893 | Haskell | — | 4 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1894 | H. W. Hamlin | — | 6 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1895 | Marshall Newell | — | 8 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1896 | — | 2 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 1897 | Joshua Damon Upton | — | 6 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1898 | — | 1 | 9 | 0 | ||
| 1899 | E. A. Locke | — | 7 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1900 | Hopkins | — | 3 | 6 | 1 | |
| 1901 | J. C. Pearson | — | 6 | 6 | 1 | |
| 1902 | — | 4 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 1903 | Charles Whelan | — | 5 | 8 | 0 | |
| 1904 | — | 2 | 9 | 1 | ||
| 1905 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1906 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1907 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1908 | Nate Pulsifer | — | 1 | 6 | 1 | |
| 1909 | Edward N. Robinson[13] | — | 2 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1910 | Vin H. Sheehy | — | 1 | 7 | 1 | |
| 1911 | Clark Tobin | — | 3 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1912 | Charles Whelan | — | 5 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1913 | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1914 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1915 | — | 5 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1916 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1917 | — | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1918 | Al Pierotti[14] | — | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1919 | Charles Whelan | — | 2 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1920 | William Parks | — | 2 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1921 | — | 1 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 1922 | Eddie Casey | — | 5 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1923 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1924 | — | 3 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 1925 | — | 1 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 1926 | Arthur Sampson | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1927 | — | 8 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1928 | — | 5 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 1929 | — | 5 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1930 | Lewis Manly | — | 5 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1931 | — | 3 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1932 | — | 5 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1933 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1934 | — | 8 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1935 | — | 1 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 1936 | — | 3 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 1937 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1938 | — | 1 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 1939 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1940 | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1941 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1942 | — | 2 | 5 | 1 | ||
| 1943 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1944 | — | 1 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1945 | — | 4 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1946 | Frederick M. Ellis | — | 1 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1947 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1948 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1949 | — | 5 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 1950 | — | 4 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1951 | — | 0 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 1952 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1953 | — | 4 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1954 | Harry Arlanson | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1955 | — | 5 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1956 | — | 6 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1957 | — | 6 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1958 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1959 | — | 5 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 1960 | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1961 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1962 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1963 | — | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 1964 | — | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 1965 | — | 1 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1966 | Rocco J. Carzo | — | 1 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1967 | — | 1 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 1968 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1969 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1970 | — | 1 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1971 | NESCAC | — | 3 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1972 | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1973 | — | 1 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1974 | Paul Pawlak | — | 3 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1975 | — | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 1976 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1977 | — | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 1978 | Vic Gatto | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1979 | — | 8 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1980 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1981 | — | 5 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 1982 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1983 | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 1984 | — | 0 | 7 | 1 | ||
| 1985 | Duane Ford | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | |
| 1986 | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1987 | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1988 | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 1989 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1990 | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1991 | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1992 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 1993 | — | 1 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1994 | Bill Samko | — | 2 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1995 | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1996 | — | 1 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1997 | — | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 1998 | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1999 | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2000 | T–7th | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2001 | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2002 | T-6th | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2003 | T–3rd | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2004 | T–7th | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2005 | T–7th | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2006 | 5th | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2007 | 4th | 5 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2008 | T–5th | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2009 | T–8th | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2010 | T–9th | 1 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2011 | Jay Civetti | 10th | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 10th | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2013 | T–9th | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2014 | 6th | 4 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2015 | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2016 | 2nd | 7 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2017 | 6th | 5 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2018 | 3rd | 7 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2019 | T–5th | 4 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | Season cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic | |||||
| 2021 | 6th | 4 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2022 | T–3rd | 6 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | T–3rd | 6 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | T–2nd | 7 | 2 | 0 | ||
In 1951, theCollege Football Hall of Fame opened inSouth Bend, Indiana. Since then, Tufts has had 1 player inducted into the Hall of Fame.[18]
| Player | Pos. | Tenure | Inducted |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Grinnell | End | 1932–1934 | 1997 |
