1955 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

1955 Pittsburgh Panthers football
Eastern champion
Sugar Bowl, L 0–7 vs. Georgia Tech
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 11
AP	No. 11
Record	7–4
Head coach	John Michelosen (1st season)
Home stadium	Pitt Stadium
Seasons ←  1954 1956  →

1955 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Alfred			–					8	–	0	–	0
Drexel			–					8	–	0	–	0
Trinity (CT)			–					7	–	0	–	0
Juniata			–					8	–	0	–	1
Carnegie Tech			–					5	–	1	–	1
Tufts			–					5	–	2	–	0
Boston College			–					5	–	2	–	1
No. 20 Army			–					6	–	3	–	0
Colgate			–					6	–	3	–	0
No. 11 Pittsburgh			–					7	–	4	–	0
Holy Cross			–					6	–	4	–	0
Syracuse			–					5	–	3	–	0
Penn State			–					5	–	4	–	0
Buffalo			–					4	–	4	–	1
Hofstra			–					3	–	6	–	0
Bucknell			–					2	–	6	–	1
Boston University			–					2	–	6	–	0
Franklin & Marshall			–					2	–	6	–	0
Villanova			–					1	–	9	–	0
Temple			–					0	–	8	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1955 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 1955 college football season. The Panthers were led by first-year head coach John Michelosen and played their home games at Pitt Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In a season that included upsets over top-ten teams Duke and rival West Virginia, Pitt had their most successful season in years. The Panthers finished ranked in the polls for the first time since 1938 and were invited to their first bowl game since the 1937 Rose Bowl.

Pittsburgh was invited to the 1956 Sugar Bowl, played against Georgia Tech. Intense controversy surrounded the bowl game, as Pittsburgh had a black player, Bobby Grier, at a time when the sport was not fully integrated. Many people opposed Pittsburgh playing in the bowl, and having desegregated seating sections in the stands, including Georgia governor Marvin Griffin. Georgia's Governor publicly threatened Georgia Tech's president Blake R. Van Leer in an attempt to bar Grier or stop the game. ^[1] The game ultimately was played without incident, and marked the first integrated Sugar Bowl. ^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 17	California		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 27–7	33,999 - 34,976	[3] [4]
September 24	at Syracuse	No. 7	Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY		W 22–12	14,952	[4]
October 1	at No. 5 Oklahoma	No. 12	Owen Field Norman, OK		L 14–26	55,412 - 56,907	[5] [6] [4]
October 8	vs. No. 12 Navy		Memorial Stadium Baltimore, MD		L 0–21	13,229	[4]
October 15	Nebraska		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 21–7	19,350	[4]
October 22	at No. 5 Duke		Duke Stadium Durham, NC		W 26–7	19,451 - 31,000	[7] [4]
October 29	Miami (FL)	No. 16	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		L 7–21	37,230	[4]
November 5	Virginia	No. 6	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 18–7	18,867 - 21,938	[8] [4]
November 12	No. 6 West Virginia	No. 17	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 26–7	55,772 - 57,996	[9] [4]
November 19	at Penn State	No. 15	New Beaver Field University Park, PA (rivalry)		W 20–0	28,361	[4]
January 2	vs. No. 7 Georgia Tech	No. 11	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl)	ABC	L 0–7	76,535 - 80,175	[10] [11]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Coaching staff

1955 Pittsburgh Panthers football staff
	Coaching staff John Michelosen – head coach Jack Wiley – head line coach Victor Fusia – backfield coach Robert Timmons – end coach Ernie Hefferle – offensive line coach Steve Petro – freshman coach Walter Cummins– assistant freshman coach			Support staff Thomas J. Hamilton – Athletic Director Walter P. Cummins – Assistant Athletic Director Robert Wycoff – Athletic News Service Director Howard Waite – Trainer Roger McGill – Assistant Trainer Barry Fisher – student manager

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
John Paluck	Defensive end	2	24	Washington Redskins
Bill Schmitt	Guard	17	196	Pittsburgh Steelers
Fred Glatz	Back	20	231	Pittsburgh Steelers
Ray DiPasquale	Back	22	255	Pittsburgh Steelers
Pete Neft	Quarterback	23	268	Pittsburgh Steelers
Glen Tunning	Guard	25	300	Los Angeles Rams

^[12]

References

1. Jake Grantl (November 14, 2019). "Rearview Revisited: Segregation and the Sugar Bowl". Georgia Tech. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
2. Thamel, Pete (January 1, 2006). "Grier Integrated a Game and Earned the World's Respect". New York Times.
3. "Pittsburgh vs California Summary of Football Game Statistics" (PDF). NCAA Football Statistics. NCAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 2, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
4. "19555 Pitt Football Attendance". Pitt 1956 For Press And Radio. University of Pittsburgh Athletic Department: 27. September 22, 1956.
5. "1955 OU Football Season Schedule - SoonerStats - Historical scores, records, and stats for Oklahoma Sooners football, basketball, baseball, and softball".
6. Jerry Magee (October 2, 1955). "58,000 See OU Smack Ponderous Pitt 26-14: McDonald Earns Spot With Greats". The Norman Transcript. pp. 1, 7 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Panthers win, 26 to 7, for Devils' first loss". Richmond Times-Dispatch. October 23, 1955. Retrieved January 5, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Pitt passes trip Cavaliers, 18–7". The Progress-Index. November 6, 1955. Retrieved January 5, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Pitt storms to 26–7 triumph". The Arizona Daily Star. November 13, 1955. Retrieved January 5, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Georgia Tech beats Pitt in Sugar Bowl tilt, 7–0". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 3, 1956. Retrieved October 7, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Past Sugar Bowl Game Information". AllState Sugar Bowl. Sidearmsports.
12. "Reference at www.pro-football-reference.com". Archived from the original on November 26, 2010. Retrieved March 30, 2018.