The Dixie Conference did not allow scholarships, but they allowed freshmen and transfers to play. FSU had all four of its football conference opponents on it's 1948 schedule.
In 1949, Lambuth, Stetson and Tampa left the Dixie Conference and Florida Southern joined.
In 1951, FSU left the Dixie Conference.
Dr. Howard G. Danford, Florida State University director of athletics, revealed today that the Seminole school has taken the lead in the formation of a purely amateur athletic conference, and has written some 10 southern colleges and universities inviting them to attend an organization meeting in Birmingham, Ala. early in March.
Florida State University, which does not issue any form of athletic scholarship, has been interested in banding together with schools of similar "simon-pure" standards since it adopted intercollegiate athletics last September. And Dr. Danford's letter urges "the formation of a conference that will develop athletic relationships among institutions which look upon intercollegiate athletics as an integral part of the total program of education and which so conduct their athletics as to realize educational outcomes."
With most of the nation's schools still grumbling over the "rigors" of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's recently enhanced "purity code," which is aimed toward curbing the commercialism in collegiate athletics, FSU's proposed action clearly marks its sane and ultra sanitary athletic stand.
In calling a spade a spade and coming out for total "amateurism" the local institution clearly indicated its sound and realistic grasp of the problem. Dr. Danford's letter, which was directed to such publicly amateur schools as Mercer University, Macon, Ga. and John B. Stetson in Deland, pointed to the proposed circuit as being of great aid in the building of schedules in all fields of intercollegiate sports.
Looking the old bugaboo of money squarely in the eye the letter added that a college loop "would assist in the development of a greater degree of interest among both players and spectators since all games would have a bearing upon a conference championship. While championships have no particular educational significance, as long as intercollegiate athletics must depend, to some extent, upon gate receipts all legitimate means of stimulating a wholesome interest among spectators should be utilized."
As a final point the FSU proposal pointed out that the uniform eligibility requirements would naturally eliminate the undesirable disadvantages that often occur in contests between non-conference intitutions.
In addition to Stetson and Mercer, Danford directed his letter to Millsaps college, Jackson, Miss; Mississippi college, Clinton, Miss; Maryville University, Maryville, Tenn; University of the South, Sewanee, Tenn; Howard college, Birmingham, Ala and Wofford college, Spartanburg, SC.
The Seminoles met Stetson in football last year, and have basketball games slated with Stetson, Mercer, Spring Hill and Wofford this season.
The Florida State University proposal comes on the heels of a public commendation the school and its grid squad received from Governor Millard F. Caldwell at the Tallahassee Kiwanis club's first annual football banquet Tuesday night. Caldwell, whose remarks opened the entertainmentat the grid feast, stated "the best football I saw played last season was played by Florida State University. They proved that top rate football can be played on a non-commercial basis. And their amateur schedule was a breath of fresh air in the commercialized football situation."
ATLANTA, GA (AP) - Reactions, mostly favorable, were registered today to the theory advanced by Florida State University that intercollegiate games, including football, might be played for fun.
By coincidence, most likely, the Florida school's proposal came just as the coaches and athletic directors of the Southeastern conference were wrestling with a problem: how to meet the purity regulations of the new National Collegiate Athletic Association code?
This code wants to keep football's rewards relatively uniform throughout the country.
In brief, deserving athletes can be given scholarships, but no grants-in-aid. The latter is an SEC practice of giving the boys a little cash - about $15 a month.
So while Florida State, just recently turned co-ed, was disclosing it had suggested the little schools band together and play strictly amateur games, the SEC heads were emerging from a six-hour closed session.
From this session they brought a four-line statement in longhand which read:
"The athletic directors and coaches of the Southeastern conference discussed the NCAA purity code and our present grants-in-aid policy. We intend to give our presidents this information for their consideration at the February meeting."
For once the coaches didn't have a prediction on the outcome. In fact, they didn't even have a comment.
Florida State disclosed last night it had written letters to 10 little colleges - in size only - in six southern states suggesting they form a conference of their own.
Athletic directors or coaches of five of the schools said they would consider such a conference favorably. Only two said they couldn't see their way clear to join in such a union, while the others either wouldn't comment or hedged.
Coach Stanley Robinson of Mississippi college at Clinton said, "We would look with a great deal of favor in forming such a conference." Coach Doby Bartling at Milsaps in Jackson, Miss. agreed with his colleague.
Dr. Walter K. Greene, president of Wofford college at Spartanburg, SC said he hadn't received the letter, but "it would be a fine thing if all colleges and universities could run their athletics on an amateur basis."
Father Mulherin of Spring Hill college at Mobile, Ala. commented, "We would be interested in some organization of that kind." Spring Hill has not returned to football after a wartime lapse.
Dr. J.Q. Edmunds, president of Stetson college, Deland, Fla, said his school would attend a meeting to organize such a conference.
Athletic Director Gordon Clark of the University of the South at Sewanee, Tenn. said his schedules were made up two years in advance, but his school would probably attend a meeting to "do everything we can to promote amateur athletics."
Coach L.S. Honaker of Marryville, Tenn. college and Athletic director Al Clemens of Southwestern at Memphis rejected the proposal on the grounds that such a conference would be expensive and students would have to be absent from classes too much.
Dr. C.E. McCarver, athletic director at Howard college, Birmingham, Ala. said, "I am strongly in favor of the plan, but unsure how it would work out here." Howard hasn't played football since 1945.
Officials at Mercer university, Macon, Ga. declined comment.
The Florida State proposal was made public by Athletic Director Howard G. Danford who said that if replies were sufficiently favorable a meeting to organize the conference would be held in Birmingham early in March.
BIRMINGHAM, AL - A new athletic conference - strictly amateur - was formed today by nine Southern colleges.
A rigid code, which bars finacial aid in any way to college athletes, was adopted at the organizational meeting. The new group selected Dixie conference as its name.
Purpose of the conference, the constitution says, is to further "the spirit and practice of amateurism in inter-collegiate athletics."
The nine schools included this phrase in their constitution:
"An college athlete who takes pay in any form for participation in inter-collegiate athletics ... does not meet this definition of an amateur and is ineligible."
Schools forming the new group are:
Howard College, Birmingham; Florida State University, Tallahassee; Stetson University, Deland; Tampa University, Tampa; Lambuth College, Jackson, Tenn; Mercr University, Macon, Ga; Oglethorpe University, Atlanta; Millsaps College, Jackson, Miss and Mississippi College, Clinton, Miss.
Stanley Robinson, veteran Mississippi College coach, was elected president of the conference, and Dr. H. G. Danford of Florida State was named secretary. Both will serve until the annual meeting, to be held Dec. 13 in Birmingham.
The conference charter opens the way for colleges in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee to join.
A basketball tournament, site undecided, will be held the week of Feb. 28 next year.
Conference track, tennis and golf meets also will be held, probably in the same city the same weekend, next spring. A baseball play-off, at the same site and time, is under consideration.
The boy who makes the varsity volleyball team at Florida State University gets just as big a letter to wear on his sweater as the football star.
So does the golfer, the tennis player and the swimmer.
It's part of the university's plan to prevent over-emphasis of football and other so-called major sports.
"We don't have any major or minor sports here," athletic director Howard G. Danford explains. "In most colleges a major sport is simply one that brings in the most gate receipts. We feel we have no business going into the field of commercial amusement.
"The only justiication for intercollegiate athletics in an educational institution is the contribution which they make to the purposes of education - and we don't have our tongues in our cheeks when we say that."
FSU, a girls' college until a year ago, is just getting into intercollegiate athletics on a full scale.
Although it has 4,800 students - 3,000 of them women - it is a charter member of the new ultra-amateur Dixie conference of small colleges.
The ticket price for home games of the Seminole football team this fall will range from 90 cents to $2.40, including tax. Danford says that won't meet expenses, but he would like to see it cut to point at which a ticket would be no more than a means for controlling the crowd.
He would prefer to have the university budget carry the sport as a function of education.
The former Madison, Wis, recreation director and doctor of philosophy sees the athletic program primarily as a means of developing health, teaching fairplay and other characteristics of good citizenship, and of developing skills for use in later life.
"Who plays football or engages in track events after he graduates?" he asks. As an educational proposition he feels golf, tennis, volleyball and such sports are better for later life.
Volleyball is Danford's special pet. He coaches the team himself, and last year took it on trips totaling moer than 3,000 miles to play in tournaments.
So far as he knows, FSU is the only southern college playing volleyball on more than an intramural basis. The Seminoles so far have had to confine their schedule to YMCA and AAU teams, but Danford is trying to get other Dixie conference teams interested.
"It's one of the best of team games if it's played right," he says, "and it's one of the few team games men can play way up into their sixties."
Danford is interested in winning football and basketball teams, too - but he says he isn't interested to the point of playing boys on back-breaking schedules and putting them back into lineups before injuries heal.
"And we don't expect our boys to be sissies, but we don't want them to go into a game and kick and slug whenever they get the chance."
TALLAHASSEE, FL, December 16, 1950 - Florida State University today announced it is dropping out of the Dixie Athletic Conference at the end of the school year and will begin a program of assistance to athletes in September.
The move will make FSU teams independent non-conference members.
FSU was a charter member of the Dixie Conference which includes smaller Southern colleges and has a strict non-subsidization policy.
Football fans have complained all year about the quality of FSU's opposition. The Seminoles bowled over opponent after opponent and finished their eight game season unbeaten and untied, giving them a four year football record of 24 victories, seven defeats and no ties.
Five of the seven defeats came in 1947 when FSU had just become coeducational and fielded a hastily organized squad.
Under its new setup, FSU will operate under the National Collegiate Athletic Association "sanity code." It permits schools to pay athletes tuition, give them one meal a day while in training and get them jobs with pay commensurate with services.
FSU, which already had a conference game scheduled with Howard for next year may still meet it as an independent.
A statement from the university said the Seminoles are withdrawing from the Dixie "because of the inability to schedule a sufficient number of contests with members of the conference."
FSU's enrollment of 6,000 full time students is several times that of any other conference member. Football playing members of the Dixie besides FSU include Howard, Mississippi College and Millsaps.
Even before its change in athletic policy, FSU had scheduled an October 5, 1951 game with the University of Miami in the Orange Bowl, the Seminoles first step into big time football.
FSU Head Coach Don Veller, always a pessimist, promises no upset, however.
"We'll be way overmatched and I have no thought of being able to defeat them," he said when the game was announced last month.
Other opponents on FSU's 1951 schedule before the subsidization policy was announced were Troy State, Wofford, Stetson, Sewanee, Tampa and Howard. However, the engagement with Sewanee may be cancelled.