On October 7, 1916, Georgia Tech and Cumberland College played the most lopsided game in sports history, ending in an unbelievable final score of 222–0.
The story behind this absolute destruction is an unbelievable case of petty revenge.
Earlier that year, Georgia Tech's legendary head coach, John Heisman (the man the Heisman Trophy is named after), also coached his school's baseball team. They got embarrassed by Cumberland in a 22–0 blowout. Heisman was convinced Cumberland cheated by using secret professional players, and he spent the whole summer looking for a way to get even.
By the time the fall football season arrived, Cumberland actually cancelled its football program. But Heisman noticed they were still legally under contract to play Georgia Tech. He threatened them with a massive 3,000 dollar lawsuit—about 84,000 dollars today—if they did not show up.
To avoid the fine, a Cumberland student manager scrambled and recruited 14 random fraternity brothers and law students who barely knew how to play football.
When they arrived in Atlanta, Heisman showed zero mercy. Georgia Tech scored 63 points in the first quarter alone. They scored 32 touchdowns, averaging a score roughly every 90 seconds. Cumberland never gained a single first down and turned the ball over 15 times.
It got so bad that exhausted Cumberland players reportedly tried to hide on the Georgia Tech bench, only for Heisman to find them and order them back onto the field. Heisman got his revenge, and Cumberland got a permanent spot in the record books for the worst beating in sports history.
