Throwback Thursday: Virginia Paid How Much to Lose to Rutgers?

1958 was simpler time: Breakfast required lard and doctors would blow smoke into your face when they checked your cholesterol. And Virginia was paying Rutgers $100 -- plus lodging -- to come to Charlottesville to play lacrosse:

Some interesting notes about this:

• Ballparking: This contract is 500 words long. I write pieces about schedules longer than this deal.
• The contract is for Rutgers to visit Virginia, but Virginia's records on their website indicate that the Cavaliers made a trip to Piscataway. Rutgers' records do not indicate whether this was a home or road game for the Scarlet Knights. Intrigue! Pile as many lawyers and historians as possible into the Mystery Machine! There are clues to be found and meddling to be done!
• In 2014 dollars, Virginia paid Rutgers $821 -- plus lodging -- for the right to lose to the Scarlet Knights. I'm not sure whether that's a good bargain in 1958 or in 2014.
• Rutgers finished fourth in the nation in 1958 with a 9-2 record; Virginia would finish the season with a 4-5 record, part of an ugly stretch of 'Hoos lacrosse history. The Scarlet Knights featured four USILA All-Americans -- John Howland (Attack, Second Team), Ross Farquaharson (Defense, Second Team), Bob Naso (Midfield, Third Team), and Bill Austin (Midfield, Honorable Mention) -- while Virginia featured five guys that earned All-American status -- Joe Dyer (Attack, Honorable Mention), Ray Stearns (Midfield, Honorable Mention), Bert Haus (Defense, Honorable Mention), Jay Wheatley (Defense, Honorable Mention), and Bob Hoover (Goalie, Honorable Mention).
• Detail is given around radio rights, but there is only one small provision about television: If any revenue is derived from live television, it'll be distributed in accordance with conference regulations. It's like, "If anyone even wants to show this on something that people may not even own, it's the conference's problem to work through the issue. BUT RUTGERS BETTER NOT MAKE A RADIO BROADCAST AVAILABLE IN THE CHARLOTTESVILLE AREA OR BLOOD WILL BE SPILLED!" The implicit understanding that television revenue mattered less than radio control and rights is outstanding, a ridiculous deviation from the nonsense that dominates 2014 contracts and the importance of television and streaming rights.
• This game -- played on March 31, 1958 -- was the second for Virginia that season (it opened with Williams on March 27, 1958); the game was also Rutgers' second date in 1958, opening with Johns Hopkins on March 29, 1958. Why, 56 years later, are games starting on February 1st? The 1950's had a better handle of what's a spring sport than the 2010's.
• It looks like Virginia limited Rutgers to traveling only 25 guys (or at least supporting only 25 guys from a lodging standpoint). The contract doesn't delineate whether this is 25 players or 25 total people. This is kind of crazy as the Cavaliers are willing to lodge 22 men in baseball and only nine idiots play that stupid game.
• Straight cash, homey. Rutgers doesn't accept checks.