Orange Athletic Club

Early years
The Orange Tornadoes can trace their roots back to the Orange Athletic Club. The Orange A.C. was originally an amateur football team that began play in 1887. The team's first ever game was a 36-0 loss to Seton Hall University football team. By the 1890s the Orange became a semi-pro team. In 1892, the team practiced under electric lights at night to prepare for an October 8 game against Rutgers College. The Orange A. C. would go on to win that game 22-10. In 1893, the team went on to win the mythical American Football Union Championship, after posting an 8-2 record. In 1902 the Orange A. C. played against Philadelphia Phillies and the Philadelphia Athletics of the first National Football League. The team also played in World Series of Football in that year, at Madison Square Garden. These games were the first indoor football games. In 1902 Orange lost to All-Syracuse team, 36-0. However the team returned to the World Series of Football in 1903 where the played the Watertown Red & Black and, the eventual champion, the Franklin Athletic Club. Orange lost to Watertown, 11-0, and to Franklin, 12-0. However they did manage to defeat the Oreo Athletic Club of Asbury Park, 22-0, during the 1903 contest.