1945 Oklahoma A&M Cowboys football team
| 1945 Oklahoma A&M Cowboys football | |
|---|---|
AFCA national champion Missouri Valley champion | |
Sugar Bowl, W 33–13 vs. Saint Mary's (CA) | |
| Conference | Missouri Valley Conference |
| Ranking | |
| AP | No. 5 |
| 1945 record | 9–0 (1–0 Missouri Valley) |
| Head coach | Jim Lookabaugh (7th season) |
| Home stadium | Lewis Field |
| 1945 Missouri Valley Conference football standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 Oklahoma A&M $ | 1 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 0 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 17 Tulsa | 2 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wichita | 1 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Saint Louis | 1 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Drake | 0 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1945 Oklahoma A&M Cowboys football team represented Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College (later renamed Oklahoma State University–Stillwater) in the Missouri Valley Conference during the 1945 college football season. In their seventh year under head coach Jim Lookabaugh, the Cowboys compiled a 9–0 record (1–0 against conference opponents), won the Missouri Valley championship, defeated Saint Mary's in the 1946 Sugar Bowl, were ranked No. 5 in the final AP Poll, and outscored all opponents by a combined total of 285 to 76.[1][2] The 1945 season remains the only undefeated season in school history.[3]
On offense, the 1945 team averaged 31.7 points, 286.9 rushing yards, and 133.5 passing yards per game.[4] On defense, the team allowed an average of 8.4 points, 108.6 rushing yards and 79.6 passing yards per game.[5]
The team's statistical leaders included halfback Bob Fenimore with 1,048 rushing yards, 593 passing yards, 72 points scored, and seven interceptions, and end Neill Armstrong with 312 receiving yards.[6] Fenimore was selected as a consensus first-team halfback on the 1945 College Football All-America Team.[7] He was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Three Oklahoma A&M players received first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in 1945: Bob Fenimore, Neill Armstrong, and lineman J.C. Colhouer.[8]
The team played its two home games at Lewis Field in Stillwater, Oklahoma. In 2016, the American Football Coaches Association, the organization which conducts the Coaches' Poll, awarded Oklahoma A&M the 1945 national championship.[9]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent# | Rank# | Site | Result | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 29 | at Arkansas* | Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, Arkansas | W 19–14 | ||||||
| October 6 | at Denver* | DU Stadium • Denver | W 31–7 | ||||||
| October 12 | vs. SMU* | No. 15 | Taft Stadium • Oklahoma City | W 26–12 | |||||
| October 20 | at Utah* | No. 15 | Ute Stadium • Salt Lake City | W 46–6 | |||||
| October 27 | at TCU* | No. 17 | Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas | W 25–12 | |||||
| November 10 | No. 19 Tulsa |
No. 11 | Lewis Field • Stillwater, Oklahoma | W 12-6 | |||||
| November 17 | Texas Tech* | No. 8 | Lewis Field • Stillwater, Oklahoma (rivalry) | W 46–6 | |||||
| November 24 | at Oklahoma* | No. 6 | Memorial Stadium • Norman, Oklahoma (Bedlam Series) | W 47–0 | |||||
| January 1, 1946 | vs. No. 7 Saint Mary's (CA)* | No. 5 | Tulane Stadium • New Orleans (Sugar Bowl) | W 33–13 | |||||
| *Non-conference game. | |||||||||
References
- ↑ "1945 Oklahoma State Cowboys Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
- ↑ "Oklahoma State Cowboy Football 2016 Guide" (PDF). Oklahoma State University. p. 172. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
- ↑ 2016 Football Guide, p. 144.
- ↑ 2016 Football Guide, p. 138.
- ↑ 2016 Football Guide, p. 140.
- ↑ 2016 Football Guide, pp. 168, 170.
- ↑ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 8. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ↑ 2016 Football Guide, p. 154.
- ↑ Culpepper, Chuck (2016-10-13). "Oklahoma State just won the 1945 college football national championship". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-01-16.