Two of his former players received coaching jobs – Homer Roe at Pittsburgh High School and Frank Van Doren at Waynesburg College.

[16] He had a good nucleus of returning veterans for the 1911 season: captain/end Jack Lindsay, quarterback Tillie Dewar, tackles Henry Blair and James Stevenson, halfbacks George Brown and Charles Quailey, center Ralph Galvin, guards George Gehlert and Ross Feightner and end Hube Wagner.

Pitt faced Carlisle, Cornell, Notre Dame Villanova, Washington & Jefferson and Penn State back-to-back after warming up with Westminster and Ohio Northern.

The crowd size was aided by Graduate Manager Hurst distributing four thousand free tickets to the Pittsburgh Public School Boys' Athletic League and the receipts still covered the expenses of the game.

[22][3][25] Graduate Manager Laurence Hurst was able to contract with Ohio Northern University to fill the October 14 date vacated by Buchtel.

[27][4] The undefeated Carlisle Indians coached by Glen Scobey Warner returned to Pittsburgh on October 21 to seek revenge for the 14 to 3 defeat they suffered in the 1909 season.

The Pitt band and Cheerleaders George Kirk and his assistant Dick Johnson led the students, who were stationed in their newly constructed bleachers along the right field line, in their cheers throughout the game.

[32] The Gazette Times wrote: "The Carlisle Indians defeated the University of Pittsburgh in a spectacular football game yesterday...on the Forbes Field gridiron 17–0.

Thorpe executed a perfect onside kick that bounced away from Tillie Dewar into Hugh Wheelock's grasp on Pitt's five yard line.

Carlisle fullback Stancil "Possum" Powell plunged for the last touchdown and Thorpe kicked the goal after to make the final read 17 to 0.

"[37] Early in the second quarter Ralph Galvin kicked a twenty-five yard field goal to cut the lead to 6 to 3.

Punts, penalties, fumbles and defense dominated the remainder of the contest and Pitt lost for the second straight week.

Even though Captain Jack Lindsay and Henry Blair were unable to play, the Pitt team "looked something like the great aggregation which went through all last season without having a single point scored against it."

The game ended in a 0 to 0 tie, although "Pitt had several good chances to score but were unable to pierce the Notre Dame defense at the crucial moment.

The Pitt offense advanced the ball on their next possession to the twenty-five yard line and Ralph Galvin "moved back to the 33-yard mark and tried a field goal.

[7] At the start of the third quarter, Wayne Smith "again put Pitt within scoring distance by blocking a punt on the Notre Dame 27-yard line."

[7] On November 11 former WUP coach Fred Crolius brought his winless Villanova team west to take on the Pitt eleven.

The Daily Post described the scene:"In what was probably the most spectacular mud-fest ever witnessed at Forbes Field, the University of Pittsburgh football team wallowed through four long, slimy periods yesterday afternoon to a decisive victory over Fred Crolius's Villa Nova eleven...The light rain that was falling when the game commenced became a downpour before the play had progressed very far, and in spite of the fact that the Pitt players changed uniforms between halves, there was not a man on the field that could have been recognized by any but his best friends after the first two or three scrimmages.

[41] Early in the second quarter, Henry Blair blocked a Villanova punt and Perry Graves, "who was in the right spot, picked it up and ran the distance for a touchdown."

Forbes Field was "covered with inches of mud and water, but these conditions did not seem to detract from the immense enthusiasm of the monster crowd that attended the game.

Coach Mor(r)ow bemoaned "We were caught at a time when our backfield was shattered owing to Quarterback Goodwin's absence from the lineup.

[9][44] During the twelve days between the W. & J. game and Thanksgiving, Coach Thompson worked the team hard with the assistance of former players "Tex" Richards, Karl Dallenbach, Frank Van Doren and Norman Budd, in addition to his able assistants Floyd Rose and Alexander Stevenson, for their final game of the season versus Penn State.

[47] Unbeaten Penn State under second year coach Bill Hollenback was out for revenge and needed one more win against Pitt to secure the Spalding Trophy permanently.

(Pete) Mauthe, the white and gold's fullback, kicked a goal from placement in the first quarter....The last act of the annual football drama at the University of Pittsburgh was well staged.

The scenario was the bare hills of Schenley Park as a drop curtain; a dry field, scattered over with straw, was the stage, and the actors were 22 brawny young men, intent on winning for their alma maters the most important game of the year.

[10] Early in the third quarter, Penn State advanced the ball to the Pitt 14-yard line where George Brown intercepted a "Shorty" Miller pass.

Pitt's star left end, who yesterday played the greatest individual game that has ever been seen on Forbes Field, although he and his teammates were defeated by their time honored rivals-Penn State, 3–0.

Wagner may have taken advantage of the opportunities that came his way yesterday, but it is the consensus of opinion that most of these were made by the star end and then taken hold of...Defensively, in one period of the game he made seven consecutive tackles...During the last few seconds of the third quarter, Wagner electrified the crowd when he intercepted a State forward pass on his own 35-yard line and after eluding several opposing tacklers ran to State's 36-yard mark before being brought down by Very.

"[51] The 1913 Owl Yearbook noted: "Joe has recently entered politics, and it is hoped that his new work will not cause him to resign his position as coach.

"[15] The football gate receipts totaled nearly $40,000 and more importantly Manager Hurst ended the season with a five thousand dollar surplus.