1946 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

The 1946 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was an American football team that represented Ohio State University in the 1946 Big Nine Conference football season. In Paul Bixler's only season as head coach, the Buckeyes compiled a 4–3–2 record (2–3–1 against conference opponents) and were outscored by a total of 170 to 166. The Buckeyes were ranked No. 12 in the AP Poll on November 4, 1946, but lost the final two games of their season against No. 9 Illinois and No. 8 Michigan.[1] Right guard Warren Amling, a veterinary student, was elected as team captain.[2]

1946 Ohio State Buckeyes football
ConferenceBig Nine Conference
Record4–3–2 (2–3–1 Big Nine)
Head coach
MVPCecil Souders
CaptainWarren Amling
Home stadiumOhio Stadium
Seasons
← 1945
1947 →
1946 Big Nine Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 5 Illinois $ 6 1 0 8 2 0
No. 6 Michigan 5 1 1 6 2 1
No. 20 Indiana 4 2 0 6 3 0
Iowa 3 3 0 5 4 0
Minnesota 3 4 0 5 4 0
Ohio State 2 3 1 4 3 2
Northwestern 2 3 1 4 4 1
Wisconsin 2 5 0 4 5 0
Purdue 0 5 1 2 6 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

Ohio State was ranked at No. 25 in the final Litkenhous Difference by Score System rankings for 1946.[3]

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 28Missouri*T 13–1365,004[4]
October 5at USC*W 21–080,047[5]
October 12at WisconsinNo. 14L 7–2045,000[6]
October 19Purdue
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
T 14–1476,025[7]
October 26Minnesota
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 39–976,611[8]
November 2at No. 6 NorthwesternW 39–2746,000[9]
November 9Pittsburgh*No. 12
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 20–1374,743[10]
November 16at No. 9 IllinoisNo. 13L 7–1661,519[11]
November 23No. 8 Michigan 
L 6–5878,634[12][13]
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked
Week
Poll12345678Final
AP141213

Awards and honors

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Tackle Warren Amling was a consensus first-team pick on the 1946 All-America college football team.[14] Three Ohio State players received honors from the Associated Press (AP) or United Press (UP) on the 1946 All-Big Nine Conference football team: end Cecil Souders (AP-1, UP-1); Amling (AP-1, UP-2); and fullback Joe Whisler (UP-1).[15][16] Souders was also selected by his teammates as the team's most valuable player.[17]

Statistics

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On offense, the Buckeyes averaged 94.2 passing yards and 199.4 rushing yards. On defense, they allowed an average of 106.6 passing yards and 176.9 rushing yards.[18] The team's statistical leaders included quarterback George Spencer with 398 passing yards, fullback Joseph Whisler with 544 rushing yards, and Bob Brugge with 193 receiving yards.[18]

Personnel

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Players

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  • Warren Amling, tackle
  • Dave Bonnie
  • Bob Brugge
  • Michael Cannavino
  • Jameson Crane
  • Traian Dendiu
  • William Doolittle
  • Charles Gandee
  • Tommy James
  • Carlton Kessler
  • Jerry Krall
  • Richard Palmer
  • Ernest Parks
  • Pete Perini
  • Thomas Phillips
  • Richard Slager
  • Cecil Souders, end
  • George Spencer, quarterback
  • Rodney Swinehart
  • Alex Verdova
  • Joe Whisler, fullback
  • Russell Wolfe

Coaching staff

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NFL draft

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The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Buckeyes were selected.[19]

Round Pick Player Position NFL Club
2 12 Russ Thomas Tackle Detroit Lions
12 103 Dante Lavelli End Los Angeles Rams
12 105 Tony Adamle Linebacker Chicago Bears
17 146 Tommy James Defensive back Detroit Lions
30 283 Hal Dean Guard Los Angeles Rams

References

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  1. ^ "1946 Ohio State Buckeyes Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
  2. ^ "Warren Amling Will Lead Buck Gridders in '46". The Sandusky Register. November 27, 1945. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Dr. E. E. Litkenhous (December 15, 1946). "Rice Rated Fifth Best, Tennessee 12th by Lit". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. p. B4 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Don Stull (September 29, 1946). "Missouri Holds Ohio State To Tie: Buckeyes and Tigers Wage 13-13 Draw". Springfield News-Sun. pp. 1D, 4D – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Braven Dyer (October 6, 1946). "Buckeyes Run Over Trojans:: Whisler Gets Three Touchdowns in Victory Before 80,047 Fans". The Los Angeles Times. p. II-5, II-6 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Hank Casserly (October 13, 1946). "Badgers Wallop Ohio State, 20 to 7: Great Rally in Second Half Upsets Buckeyes Before 45,000 Crowd; Maves, Kindt, Bendrick Cross Ohio Goal Line; Wisconsin Line Sparkles As Underdog Badgers Triumph". The Capital Times. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Corky Lamm (October 20, 1944). "Purdue Ties Ohio State: 2 Plays Work Perfectly For Isbell's Team; Cody Scores Both Riveter Markers For 14-14 Draw". The Indianapolis Star. pp. 41, 44. Retrieved April 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Charles Johnson (October 27, 1946). "Ohio State Wallops Gophers 39-9". Minneapolis Sunday Tribune. pp. 1S, 2S. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Irving Vaughan (November 3, 1946). "Ohio State Upsets Northwestern, 39-27: Buckeyes Stun Wildcats With 2d Half Spurt; Schwall Scores on 81 Yard Run". Chicago Tribune. pp. II-1, II-4 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Ben Garlikov (November 10, 1946). "Spencer Passes Ohio State To 20-13 Victory: Hurls Three Touchdown Aerials For Touchdowns; Pitt Scores First In Thrilling Game". Dayton Daily News. p. II-1, II-5 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Edward Burns (November 17, 1946). "Illinois Defeats Ohio, 16-7; Keeps Lead; Rykovich Goes 98 Yards Over Muddy Field; It's Fifth Victory in Big Nine". Chicago Tribune. pp. II-1, II-7 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Si Burick (November 24, 1946). "Michigan Routs State, 58-6: Illini, UCLA In Rose Bowl". Dayton Daily News. pp. 1, 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Wilfrid Smith (November 24, 1946). "Michigan Routs Ohio, 58 to 6; Wolverines Turn On Power Before 78,634; Buckeyes Score in Final Minute". Chicago Tribune. p. 2-1.
  14. ^ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 8. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  15. ^ "Indiana Places Three on Big Ten All-Stars". The Milwaukee Journal (AP story). November 26, 1946. p. 6. Archived from the original on May 6, 2016. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  16. ^ "Michigan Gets Three Places On UP Team". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (UP story). November 30, 1946. p. 13.
  17. ^ "Cy Souders Named Most Valuable". Mansfield News-Journal. Mansfield, Ohio. December 2, 1946. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ a b "1946 Ohio State Buckeyes Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
  19. ^ "1947 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 29, 2020.