The plan was for Rush Medical, which had attained several experienced football players from their successful 1894 season, to forgo their men to Lake Forest, in return for the university's superior schedule, which included regional powerhouses Wisconsin, Michigan, and Notre Dame.
Unfortunately, this strategy did not seem to play out for either team, and the Rush–Lake Forest experiment lost the majority of their remaining contests for the 1895 season.
[4] The original captain for Rush Medical was Mr. Sager, a longtime fullback for the Chicago Athletic Association, and the coach was Mr. Searie.
Many of the men on the Rush Medical roster had previous experience on collegiate and semi-professional teams, which included the Chicago Athletic Association, Purdue, Grinnell, Lake Forest, Washington &Jefferson, Kalamazoo, Minnesota, and Illinois.
The seconds were captained by Mr. Stoops, a left tackle, and compiled (at least) a 0–2 record against regional academy teams and other collegiate secondaries.