That 1951 season began the Crimson squash dynasty. Harvard won 31 titles in the latter half the century to become far and away the College's most successful athletic program.

The Crimson's most visible athlete at the international level did not compete for Harvard in his premiere sport. Figure-skater

Dick Button `52 had already won an Olympic gold medal when he came to Harvard in 1948. He went on to win a second

Olympic gold medal in men's singles during his senior year.

More Than Football

The class of 1951 was the last to serve under Athletic Director William J. Bingham `16. Bingham, who was the first to hold the position at the College, was forced out in the winter of '51--a consequence of a growing departmental debt and a losing football team.

Scandal ensued when Bingham--who had no plans for immediate retirement--was handed a press release announcing his resignation by a Boston Globe reporter. Three months later, Bolles, the crew coach, was named as his replacement.

Bingham left Harvard with the disrespect of his administration, but his opinion that a college athletic department should provide educational opportunities, not football revenues, resonated with the student body.

On the day following his resignation, the Crimson editorial staff turned from its typical criticism of Harvard football to laud Bingham's commitment to amateur ideals.

"Students, columnists, and colleges choosing the path of professionalism all were blinded by football won and lost records and football gate receipts," the Crimson wrote. "Mr. Bingham's insights went deeper, and he struggled, often almost alone, to preserve college athletics for the college student."

Bingham's vision that Harvard should provide "athletics for all" remains in the mission statement of the Department of Athletics to this day.