The captain of the 1901 Lafayette football team, the late
Walter "Scrappy" Bachman was the developer of the "roving
center" concept in college football. The backbone of the 1899,
1900, 1901 Leopard offensive lines, Scrappy is regarded as
one of the greatest linemen in Lafayette history.
|
|
In 1900 and 1901, Bachman was named a second-team All-America by
Walter Camp, one of the first players from outside the "Big
Four" of Penn, Princeton, Harvard and Yale to be chosen by
Camp. A native of Phillipsburg, NJ., Bachman was also a
consensus first-team selection on several other All-America
teams. In 1901, he was the fourth leading scorer for the
Leopards, with 25 goals from touchdowns, before the modern
scoring system was implemented. He also played baseball at
Lafayette. Following his graduation, Bachman served as an
assistant football coach at Allegheny College in Meadville, PA,
and at Texas A&M University. He later returned to the Lehigh
Valley, serving as assistant yardmaster and yardmaster for the
Lehigh Valley Railroad from 1906 until his retirement in 1944.
