Canton Bulldogs–Massillon Tigers betting scandal

Although Massillon could not prove that Canton had indeed thrown the second game and it remains unknown if there was ever a match-fixing agreement, the scandal tarnished the Bulldogs name and reportedly helped ruin professional football in Ohio until the mid-1910s.

In fact the Bulldogs, or Canton Athletic Club as they were called at the time, formed their football team in 1905 with the sole objective of beating the Tigers, who had won every Ohio League championship since 1903.

[1] In the off-season prior to the 1906 season, a news story in The Plain Dealer alleged that the Canton Athletic Club was financially broke and could not pay its players for the final game of 1905.

Meanwhile, Sherburn Wightman, who played under Amos Alonzo Stagg, while attending the University of Chicago, was named the team's new coach.

[2] An earlier agreement between the two clubs called for each home team to receive 60 percent of the gate admission and reserved seating rights.

This led the Tigers to ask that the game, to be held in Massillon, be played on Thanksgiving Day, when every football fan would attend regardless of the weather.

There he scheduled a Thanksgiving Day game against the Latrobe Athletic Association, who was the top team in Pennsylvania, and one of the toughest squads in the country.

To ensure that the Thanksgiving Day game between Latrobe and Canton was legitimate, the gate money from the second Bulldogs-Tigers was also kept on hold, this time at Merchants' National Bank in Massillon.

[2] To prepare for their series against Massillon, Blondy Wallace took his team on the campus of Penn State University to conduct drills and practices.

There Nittany Lions coach, Tom Fennell, gave Canton, now officially called the "Bulldogs", special instructions in the use of the forward pass.

The Tigers vowed to defeat Canton with their same roster from November 16, while Bell Telephone again announced it would telegraph a play-by-play account of the second game.

The only roster change occurred when the Bulldogs signed Eddie Wood, a regular end from the Latrobe Athletic Association, to play in the rematch for an injured player named Gilchrist.

However, Massillon outplayed Canton and won the rematch 13–6 and was named the Ohio League's 1906 champions for the fourth straight year.

[2][4][5] Once the game was over, Canton's coach, Blondy Wallace, in a show of sportsmanship, joined the Massillon celebration and congratulated the Tigers on their championship.

[2] Canton denied the charges, maintaining that Massillon only wanted to ruin the club's reputation before their final game against the Latrobe Athletic Association on Thanksgiving Day.

Canton's counter-charge was that the scandal was designed by the Tigers to cripple the Bulldogs financially by destroying the gate revenue for the Latrobe game.

Massillon could not prove the charge, however, the stands were almost empty for the Thanksgiving Day Latrobe-Canton game, leaving Canton unable to pay their players.

[7] The author of this book was Harry March, a former player at Mount Union College, an executive for the New York Giants from 1925 to 1936 and later an organizer of the second American Football League.

Not to mention that when Wood returned on the following Thursday with the Latrobe team, he was not attacked by the fans or his ex-Canton teammates.

According to Stewart, Massillon players, Tiny Maxwell and Bob Shiring had been solicited to throw the first game by Walter East, a baseball player-turned end, who claimed to be backed by $50,000.

Maxwell and Shiring then reported the offer to Tigers' coach Sherburn Wightman and the scandal ended before it began.

[2] In an interview to The Plain Dealer, Wightman stated that the contract signed by himself, East and Windsor was done in accordance with instruction from Ed Stewart and the backers of the Massillon team.

He stated that he reported East's scheme to Stewart, and was told to go along with deal to see which Massillon players would agree to throwing the game and then remove them from the team.

Stewart defended the coach, agreeing that Wightman had entered into the contract with East and Windsor at the behest of the Tiger backers in order to get the goods on the fixers.

As for the scandal, the lack of a trial left the details of the events still disputed by historians and football fans alike.

A benefit game between Massillon and Canton to help pay the Bulldog players only drew 500 fans and resulted in a 5–5 tie.

However, the argument can be made that the expense of placing all-star teams on the field each week, also put a hamper on the sport.

The Canton Morning News put a $20,000 price tag on the Massillon Tigers 1906 team, while many speculate that the cost of the Bulldogs probably even higher.

Many towns in Ohio still fielded clubs over the next several years, and these new pros were consisted more of hometown talent, with only the occasional ringer.

The diminished stature of Ohio pro football led to other areas of the country building top professional teams, including the Washington Vigilants.