| 1945 Big Ten Conference football season | |
|---|---|
| Sport | Football |
| Number of teams | 9 |
| Top draft pick | Mac Wenskunas |
| Champion | Indiana |
| Season MVP | Ollie Cline |
| 1945 Big Ten Conference football standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1945 Big Ten Conference football season was the 50th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference (also known as the Western Conference) and was a part of the 1945 college football season.
The 1945 Indiana Hoosiers football team, under head coach Bo McMillin, compiled the only undefeated record and won the first Big Ten championship in the program's history. The Hoosiers compiled a 9–0–1 record, led the conference in both scoring offense (27.9 points per game) and scoring defense (5.6 points allowed per game), and finished the season ranked No. 4 in the final AP Poll. The lone blemish on the team's record was a 7-7 tie with Northwestern in the second game of the season. End Bob Ravensberg was a consensus first-team pick on the 1945 College Football All-America Team. Freshman halfback George Taliaferro rushed for 719 yards (the first African-American player to lead the Big Ten in rushing) and received second-team All-American honors.
Michigan, under head coach Fritz Crisler, compiled a 7–3 record and was ranked No. 6 in the final AP Poll. Center Harold Watts won the team's most valuable player award. Michigan's three losses were against No. 1 Army, No. 3 Navy, and No. 4 Indiana.
| Conf. Rank | Team | Head coach | AP final | AP high | Overall record | Conf. record | PPG | PAG | MVP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indiana | Bo McMillin | #4 | #4 | 9–0–1 | 5–0–1 | 27.9 | 5.6 | Howard Brown |
| 2 | Michigan | Fritz Crisler | #6 | #6 | 7–3 | 5–1 | 18.7 | 9.9 | Harold Watts |
| 3 | Ohio State | Carroll Widdoes | #12 | #4 | 7–2 | 5–2 | 21.6 | 7.9 | Ollie Cline |
| 4 | Northwestern | Pappy Waldorf | NR | #20 | 4–4–1 | 3–3–1 | 14.1 | 16.4 | Dick Conners |
| 5 | Purdue | Cecil Isbell | NR | #4 | 7–3 | 3–3 | 19.8 | 12.5 | Norman Maloney |
| 6 | Wisconsin | Harry Stuhldreher | NR | NR | 3–4–2 | 2–3–1 | 14.2 | 14.2 | Clarence Esser |
| 7 | Illinois | Ray Eliot | NR | NR | 2–6–1 | 1–4–1 | 10.3 | 11.6 | Mac Wenskunas |
| 8 | Minnesota | Bernie Bierman | NR | #5 | 4–5 | 1–5 | 19.7 | 17.2 | Bob Fitch |
| 9 | Iowa | Clem Crowe | NR | NR | 2–7 | 1–5 | 8.2 | 34.4 | Arthur Johnson |
Key
AP final = Team's rank in the final AP Poll of the 1945 season [1]
AP high = Team's highest rank in the AP Poll throughout the 1945 season [1]
PPG = Average of points scored per game [1]
PAG = Average of points allowed per game [1]
MVP = Most valuable player as voted by players on each team as part of the voting process to determine the winner of the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy [2]
During the 1945 season, the Big Ten maintained its long-standing ban on postseason games. Accordingly, no Big Ten teams participated in any bowl games.
The following players were picked by the Associated Press (AP) and/or the United Press (UP) as first-team players on the 1945 All-Big Ten Conference football team. [3] [4]
At the end of the 1945 season, Big Ten players secured three of the consensus first-team picks for the 1945 College Football All-America Team. [5] The Big Ten's consensus All-Americans were:
Other Big Ten players who were named first-team All-Americans by at least one selector were:
The following Big Ten players were selected in the first six rounds of the 1946 NFL draft: [6]
| Name | Position | Team | Round | Overall pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mac Wenskunas | Center | Illinois | 2 | 11 |
| Julie Rykovich | Back | Illinois | 2 | 14 |
| Bob Nussbaumer | Back | Michigan | 3 | 21 |
| Russ Thomas | Tackle | Ohio State | 3 | 22 |
| Ed Cody | Back | Purdue | 5 | 36 |
The 1969 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1969.
The 1943 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1943. The eight selectors recognized by the NCAA as "official" for the 1943 season are (1) Collier's Weekly, as selected by Grantland Rice, (2) the Associated Press, (3) the United Press, (4) the All-America Board, (5) Football News, (6) the International News Service (INS), (7) Look magazine, and (8) the Sporting News.
The 1967 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1967.
The 1964 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1964. The six selectors recognized by the NCAA as "official" for the 1964 season are (1) the Associated Press (AP), (2) the United Press International (UPI), (3) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), (4) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), (5) the Central Press Association (CP), and (6) the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA). Other selectors include Time magazine, Football News, and The Sporting News.
The 1945 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1945. The nine selectors recognized by the NCAA as "official" for the 1945 season are (1) Collier's Weekly, as selected by Grantland Rice, (2) the Associated Press, (3) the United Press, (4) the All-America Board, (5) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), (6) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), (7) the International News Service (INS), (8) Look magazine, (9) the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and (10) the Sporting News.
The 1944 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1944 Big Ten Conference football season. Under seventh-year head coach Fritz Crisler, Michigan compiled a record of 8–2, outscored opponents 204 to 91, finished in second place in the Big Ten Conference, and was ranked #8 in the final AP Poll. The team opened the season with a victory over an Iowa-Pre-Flight team that won all of its remaining games and ended the season ranked #6 in the final AP Poll. The Wolverines then shut out four opponents: Marquette (14-0); Northwestern (27-0); Illinois (14-0); and Wisconsin (14-0). The team's two losses came against Indiana and an undefeated Ohio State team that was ranked #2 in the final AP Poll.
The 1941 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players selected to the All-Big Ten Conference team for the 1941 Big Ten Conference football season. The organizations selecting All-Big Ten teams in 1941 were: the Associated Press (AP), selected by the conference coaches; the United Press (UP), chosen by experts from the conference region; and International News Service (INS), selected based on input from scouts and scribes from the conference region.
The 1943 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players selected to the All-Big Ten Conference teams selected by the Associated Press (AP) and United Press (UP) for the 1943 Big Ten Conference football season.
The 1950 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations for All-Big Ten Conference teams for the 1950 Big Nine Conference football season. The selectors for the 1950 season were the Associated Press (AP), based on a vote of the conference coaches, and the United Press (UP). Players selected as first-team players by both the AP and UP are designated in bold.
The 1964 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations for All-Big Ten Conference teams for the 1964 Big Ten Conference football season. The selectors for the 1964 season were the Associated Press (AP), based on a vote by media members, and the United Press International (UPI), based on a vote of the conference coaches. Players selected as first-team players by both the AP and UPI are designated in bold.
The 1945 Indiana Hoosiers football team was an American football team that represented the Indiana University Bloomington in the 1945 Big Ten Conference football season, compiled the only undefeated record and won the first Big Ten Conference championship in the program's history. In their 12th year under head coach Bo McMillin, the Hoosiers compiled a 9–0–1 record, outscored their opponents by a combined total of 279 to 56, and finished the season ranked #4 in the final AP Poll. The lone blemish on the team's record was a 7–7 tie with Northwestern in the second game of the season.
The 1933 Big Ten Conference football season was the 38th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1933 college football season.
The 1932 Big Ten Conference football season was the 37th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1932 college football season.
1922 Big Ten Conference football season was the 27th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1922 college football season.
The 1940 Big Ten Conference football season was the 45th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1940 college football season. The University of Chicago terminated its football program after the 1939 season, leaving only nine conference members fielding football teams. However, Chicago remained a member of the conference and participated in other sports, and the conference remained known generally as the Big Ten.
The 1941 Big Ten Conference football season was the 46th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1941 college football season.
The 1942 Big Ten Conference football season was the 47th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1942 college football season.
The 1943 Big Ten Conference football season was the 48th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1943 college football season.
The 1944 Big Ten Conference football season was the 49th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1944 college football season.
The 1950 Big Ten Conference football season was the 55th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1950 college football season.