Halfback Willie Heston was the only member of the team selected as a first-team All-American, receiving the honor from both Walter Camp in Collier's Weekly and Caspar Whitney in Outing magazine.

In April 1903, David Starr Jordan, the president of Stanford University, accused Michigan coach Fielding Yost of sinning against the spirit of amateur athletics.

A report issued by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools in April 1903 advocated stricter regulation to protect the amateur nature of the games.

The open letter advocated the adoption of a one-year residency rule requiring a year of satisfactory scholarship for all players on college teams.

[10] The squad returned to Ann Arbor on September 26 and joined a separate body of recruits training under the direction of assistant coach Dan McGugin.

[8][11] The most promising new players on the 1903 squad included Joe Curtis, a 212-pounder from Pueblo, Colorado, Tom Hammond, a fullback from Hyde Park, Illinois, and John Garrels, a speedster from Detroit who went on to win the silver medal in the 110 meter hurdles at the 1908 Summer Olympics.

With only eight veterans returning team captain Curtis Redden wrote that "[n]o season in the history of Michigan football has opened with a gloomier outlook" than that of 1903.

[12] The Michigan Alumnus opined that a repetition of the extraordinary scores of 1902 was too much to expect, but expressed hope that the 1903 team would be able to "cope honorably" with its "most dreaded rivals," Chicago and Minnesota.

The Michigan Alumnus praised the team effort on offense and singled out Gooding who "once carried Heston over the line for a touchdown."

The Detroit Free Press noted that Yost's team narrowly missed averaging two points per minute against Beloit.

The Michigan Alumnus noted that the Wolverines' play was "at times over-zealous and severe penalties for foul interference and off-side resulted.

Curtis Redden was credited with the "prettiest run of the day" for recovering a half-blocked punt and returning it 65 yards for Michigan's third touchdown.

"[25]When the Michigan team returned to Ann Arbor on November 1, the players were greeted by a crowd of 5,000 singing and yelling at the depot.

At a rally near the law building, Willie Heston told the crowd that the Minnesota players were "the roughest lot of sluggers I ever went up against.

"[28] Several in attendance reported that Minnesota assistant coach Pudge Heffelfinger had been heard yelling from the sidelines, "Kill off Heston in the first ten minutes, or you'll lose.

When the Michigan team arrived in Minneapolis, Yost reportedly instructed student manager Thomas B. Roberts to purchase a water jug.

[33][34] Michigan drove to the Ohio State five-yard line on the opening drive of the second half, but lost the ball on a fumble.

Later in the second half, Jones of Ohio recovered a fumble by Fred Norcross, and ran the ball over a clear field toward the Michigan goal.

Herb Graver accounted for Michigan's only long runs, and the sole touchdown was scored by Joe Maddock on a "mass play" from the five-yard line.

The Michigan Alumnus noted that the game was marked by "thorough sportsmanship" and played in "propitious weather" in front of a crowd of approximately 8,0000 estimated to be the second largest ever assembled at Ferry Field.

University of Chicago coach Amos Alonzo Stagg attended the game and opined afterward that he picked Michigan as a slight favorite against his own team on Thanksgiving Day.

[41] Stagg's 1903 team featured three future College Football Hall of Fame inductees: Walter Eckersall at quarterback, Hugo Bezdek at right halfback, and Tiny Maxwell at right tackle.

"[46] Michigan's captain, Curtis Redden, opined that the spectators saw "the finest exhibition of speed and team work ever seen in the West.

Prior to the Chicago game, Fielding Yost announced that he had consented to coach the Michigan football team for another year in 1904.

Every loyal Michigan man will hail Mr. Yost's decision with delight, and count his stay a guarantee of a fourth season of clean and successful football.

"[47] The 1903 season saw the final appearance of several players, including Curtis Redden, Joe Maddock, George Gregory, and Herb Graver.

Nevertheless, with Willie Heston, Joe Curtis, Tom Hammond, and Fred Norcross returning, The Michigan Alumnus noted that the promise for the 1904 season was good.

[52] Following his death, The Michigan Alumnus wrote: "He had striven conscientiously to perfect himself in the game and earned the respect of coaches, players and spectators.

"[53] In the spring of 1904, a controversy arose over allegations published in the San Francisco Chronicle that Yost had promised Ralph Rose, a 6-foot, 6-inch, 250-pound athlete from California, a job in the library and membership in a fraternity if he enrolled at Michigan.

Yost denied the charges, and The Michigan Alumnus wrote that student positions in the library paid no more than 12+1⁄2 cents per hour, and Rose had received no such job in any event.