1945 Northwestern Wildcats football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record4–4–1 (3–3–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
MVPDick Conners
CaptainMax Morris[1]
Home stadiumDyche Stadium
Seasons
← 1944
1946 →
1945 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4 Indiana $ 5 – 0 – 1 9 – 0 – 1
No. 6 Michigan 5 – 1 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
No. 12 Ohio State 5 – 2 – 0 7 – 2 – 0
Northwestern 3 – 3 – 1 4 – 4 – 1
Purdue 3 – 3 – 0 7 – 3 – 0
Wisconsin 2 – 3 – 1 3 – 4 – 2
Illinois 1 – 4 – 1 2 – 6 – 1
Minnesota 1 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 0
Iowa 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 7 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1945 Northwestern Wildcats team was an American football team that represented Northwestern University in the Big Ten Conference during the 1945 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 11th year under head coach Pappy Waldorf, the Wildcats compiled a 4–4–1 record (3–3–1 against Big Ten opponents), finished in fourth place in the Big Ten, and were outscored by a total of 148 to 127.[2]

Four Northwestern players received honors from the Associated Press (AP) or United Press (UP) on the 1945 All-Big Ten Conference football team: Max Morris at end (AP-1, UP-1); Jim Lecture at guard (AP-1 UP-1); Dick Conners at halfback (UP-2); and Paul Schuetz at Northwestern (UP-2).[3][4] Morris was also selected as a consensus first-team All-American.[5] Conners ranked 14th in the nation with 671 rushing yards.[6]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendance
September 22Iowa State*
W 18–634,725
September 29Indiana
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL
T 7–730,000
October 6Michigan
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL (rivalry)
L 7–2032,772
October 20at No. 5 Minnesota
L 7–3055,940
October 27No. 4 Purdue
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL
W 26–1442,000
November 3at No. 6 Ohio StateNo. 20
L 14–1674,079
November 10at Wisconsin
W 28–14
November 17No. 7 Notre Dame*
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL (rivalry)
L 7–3446,294
November 24Illinois
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL (rivalry)
W 13–735,000
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

See also: 1945 NCAA football rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked
Week
Poll12345678Final
AP———20—————

References

  1. ^ "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). 2007. p. 147. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  2. ^ "1945 Northwestern Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  3. ^ "All-Big Ten Grid Team Selected". The Decatur Herald. Associated Press. November 27, 1945. p. 9. Retrieved April 26, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Walter Byers (November 26, 1945). "Indiana and Ohio State Each Get Three Men on United Press All Star Big Ten Team". The Daily Register (Harrisburg,Illinois). p. 5.
  5. ^ "2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2014. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2014. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  6. ^ W.J. Bingham, ed. (1946). The Official National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Guide including the Official Rules 1946. A.S. Barnes and Company. p. 34.


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