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As mentioned earlier in previous game descriptions, Trinity's 1894 football season started with some doubt; Trinity faculty initially considered canceling football altogether due to the violence of the sport among other objections of distracting from classes, encouraging gambling, and other issues frowned upon by the faculty of the Methodist school. Trinity's football team had not played much football up to this point in the season, despite having some success historically, having gone 3-1--including a 6-4 win over UNC--the previous season.

The Trinity team was coached by S. B. Newton, a former sub from the very successful 1893 Penn Quakers football team (Penn University Archives & Records Center). Newton arrived in Durham around October 7th; by mid-October, it was arranged that UNC would play Trinity on Wednesday, the 24th, and that Trinity would play NC A&M either the following Thursday or Saturday, depending upon which paper you trusted (News and Observer, October 7th, 1894, p. 1; News and Observer, October 23rd, 1894, p. 1). By October 17th, it was arranged that UNC would play Trinity on Wednesday, the 24th, and that they would play NC A&M either the following Thursday or the following Saturday, depending upon which paper you trusted (Wilmington Messenger, October 18th, 1894, p. 1; Asheville Daily Citizen, October 20th, 1894, p. 1).

Trinity had been listed as an opponent on all of the Farmers' early schedules, but no formal date had been published by early- to mid-October. A game had apparently been scheduled to be played on Tuesday, October 23rd, likely for the State Fair, but it was canceled on October 18th so the Trinity squad could be well-rested for their UNC game (Evening Visitor, October 18th, 1894, p. 1). That game between UNC and Trinity was an important game: with Wake Forest not fielding a team for the year and UNC having already defeated A&M team twice, the winner of the game could rightfully claim to be the champion of North Carolina outright. To add to this, the schools had an intense rivalry in football, dating back to 1888. Since then, the Methodists had won 4 contests to UNC's 1, with the 1889 game being a forfeit that both teams consider home wins. However, the 1891 and 1893 games had both been close 6-4 wins for Trinity, and UNC's lone undisputed win had come just two years prior, in 1892.

UNC's team also had some additional incentive to win, if the local gossip was to be believed. "It was reported to-day that the University boys have been promised a seven thousand dollar (about $204,500 in 2019) athletic building if they beat Trinity to-day. The report seems absurd and there is probably no truth in it." That possible consequence--along with the fact that one of Trinity's "star players," Tom Bray, was out of the game due to a sickness--helped motivate the Tar Heels into a 28-0 win over the Trinity lads despite being outweighed by a noticeable margin. (News and Observer, October 26th, 1894, p. 1; The Tar Heel, October 25th, 1894, p. 1).

Following the Trinity-UNC game, the Trinity-A&M game was looked at by most North Carolinians, even in Raleigh, as a game of only "minor importance" due to both teams' losses to UNC. Even so, most agreed that the Durham boys would probably win. "The A. & M. boys hope to win but such a result is not seriously looked for by those 'up on the game'" (Evening Visitor, October 31st, 1894, p. 1).

There was quite a bit of confusion about when and where the game would be played. Though early reports said either Thursday or Saturday, most newspapers eventually settled into reporting that the game would be played on Saturday, November 3rd, in Durham, though some papers did mistakenly write that the game would be in Raleigh (Evening Visitor, November 2nd, 1894, p. 1). However, November 3rd came and went without the playing of a game; though some papers reported that the Farmers planned to leave for Durham on Friday night, others reported that the game would be delayed by another week (News and Observer, November 1st, 1894, p. 1).

By November 7th, a brief note published in the Evening Visitor likely reflected the feelings of annoyed fans, writing "The game of football which was to have been played between Trinity and the A. & M. college has been postponed until Saturday next. The game will positively be played then at Durham" (Evening Visitor, November 7th, 1894, p. 1). An article the following morning in the News and Observer echoed the Visitor's sentiment, writing that a game had "at last" been arranged by the two teams. It also wrote that a second game that had been scheduled between the two teams, which would have been played in Raleigh on the 16th, had been called off by Trinity's team "for reasons best known to them" (News and Observer, November 8th, 1894, p. 1).

As for pre-game workouts, both teams were likely practicing hard to get their first win and a chance to claim second in the state. It was reported on November 5th that Trinity's team was "practicing every afternoon" to get ready for the game (The Durham Daily Globe, November 5th, 1894, p. 1). A&M's team, for reasons beyond their control, was much less prepared for the game: The Farmers' football team was suffering from the loss of three of their star players. Their right end, George Arlington Wright, had sprained his ankle; Joel Whitaker, the team captain and undisputed best member of the team, would be out after an old cut over his eye had reopened on Tuesday, the 6th; and Mark Rodgers Vick, their left end, had also injured his ankle in practice on the 7th. To add to this, A&M had announced that they would play the game using 3 or 4 substitutes instead of starters in protest of the home game in Raleigh Trinity had canceled. All in all, things were looking pretty bleak for the Aggies' chance of winning. "With these men out of the game, the A. & M. has very little chance of winning, but she is plucky enough to try, and the people of Raleigh admire her for it" (News and Observer, November 8th, 1894, p. 1).

A&M's team rode a train into Durham early in the morning of the 10th and arrived at around 6:47 AM on the morning on Southern Railroad's No. 11 train, "the cannon ball." The game was described as "hotly contested on both sides," but ultimately won by Trinity 6-0 (Asheville Daily Citizen, November 12th, 1894, p. 1). One short article of the game from the News and Observer (which managed to report 2 incorrect scores in just 6 sentences) called the game "excellent... closely contested, and well played." The paper remarked that Whitaker and Vick (in addition to Ramsey, who normally started as a sub) played well for A&M, while Trinity's captain, Plato T. Durham, and Sparger, did good work. Reportedly, Trinity made the first and only touchdown of the game after twenty minutes of play and made "an easy goal" kick. The Tech's reportedly took the ball to Trinity's 5-yard line in the second half but fumbled the ball before they could cross the end of the field (News and Observer, November 13th, 1894, p. 1). It was Trinity's last game of the season (Evening Visitor, November 12th, 1894, p. 1). A report from UNC students wrote that though Trinity had the heavier team, "their playing was entirely outclassed by A. & M." (The Tar Heel, November 15th, 1894, p. 1).