University of Michigan
In 1945, Tomasi enrolled at the University of Michigan where he played both football for Fritz Crisler and baseball for Ray Fischer. Tomasi was a four-year starter for the 1945, 1946, 1947 and 1948 Michigan Wolverines football teams that won 23 straight games (including undefeated seasons in 1947 and 1948), defeated USC, 49-0, in the 1948 Rose Bowl. During his sophomore year, Tomasi's photograph was published in newspapers across the country with a caption calling him "a charging block of granite for the Michigan Wolverines," [3] and he was selected as a second-team All-Big Ten guard by the conference coaches. [4]
Before the 1947 season got underway, one writer noted that Tomasi "is back for more and will give anyone a race for All-America honors." [5] The 1947 Michigan Wolverines team completed the season undefeated. The Wolverines outscored their opponents 394-53, and Coach Fritz Crisler credited Tomasi "for much of his team's offensive punch." [6] Tomasi was again named to the second-team All-Big Ten team. [7] Tomasi's blocking in the 1948 Rose Bowl helped Michigan outscore the USC Trojans 49-0, and in March 1948, his teammates elected him to be captain of the 1948 team—the first time a guard had been selected as Michigan's captain in 33 years. [6] [8] [9]
In 1948, Tomasi was both team captain and one of the top performers on Michigan's second consecutive undefeated team. In October 1948, one columnist described Tomasi's role as follows:
"As long as Michigan has operatives like Dominic Tomasi, the hard-hitting guard who captains the team, the Wolverines will give a good account of themselves. Tomasi isn't big as linemen of the Western Conference run, but he is one of the very best guards in intercollegiate circles. He stands only five, ten and weighs 180 pounds, tops, yet he has been a regular since he began playing as a 17-year-old freshman. Extremely fast, and a deadly blocker, 'Tommy' is the key man of the Wolverine offense. His ability to 'turn corners' at full speed and block with split-second precision means as much yardage to Michigan as if he were an All-America ball carrier. Tomasi is also an outstanding second baseman on Michigan's championship baseball team and his work has attracted several big league scouts. As in football, he has been a regular since 1946. He shows the same hustle and keen competitive instinct on the diamond as he does on the gridiron." [10]
The 1948 Wolverine team was undefeated for the second consecutive season and was selected as the National Championship team in the final Associated Press poll. [11] At the conclusion of the 1948 season, Tomasi was selected as the team's Most Valuable Player, [12] [13] a first-team All-Big Ten guard, and a third-team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America, and the Central Press Association and Newspaper Enterprise Association. [14] [15] [16]
Herbert Orin "Fritz" Crisler was an American college football coach who is best known as "the father of two-platoon football", an innovation in which separate units of players were used for offense and defense. Crisler developed two-platoon football while serving as head coach at the University of Michigan from 1938 to 1947. He also coached at the University of Minnesota (1930–1931) and Princeton University (1932–1937). Before coaching, he played football at the University of Chicago under Amos Alonzo Stagg, who nicknamed him Fritz after violinist Fritz Kreisler.
The 1948 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan during the 1948 Big Nine Conference football season. In its first year under head coach Bennie Oosterbaan, Michigan compiled a 9–0 record, defeated six ranked opponents by a combined score of 122–17, won the Big Nine Conference and repeated as national champions. In the final AP Poll, Michigan received 192 first place votes, twice as many as second-place Notre Dame which garnered 97 first place votes. This remained the last unanimous national title won by the Wolverines until 2023.
The 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1947 Big Nine Conference football season. In its tenth year under head coach Fritz Crisler, Michigan compiled a perfect 10–0 record, won the Big Ten Conference championship, and defeated the USC Trojans by a score of 49–0 in the 1948 Rose Bowl game. Although ranked second in the AP Poll at the end of the regular season, the Wolverines were selected as the nation's No. 1 team by a 226–119 margin over Notre Dame in an unprecedented AP Poll taken after the bowl games. The 1947 team outscored its opponents, 394–53, and has been selected as the best team in the history of Michigan football.
Bruce L. Hilkene was the captain and starting left tackle of the undefeated 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team. The team defeated the USC Trojans 49-0 in the 1948 Rose Bowl and has been selected as the greatest Michigan football team of all time. Hilkene was named captain of the 1945 team but missed the season due to wartime service in the U.S. Navy. In 1947 he returned as captain. Hilkene later served for many years as an executive at General Motors. He was posthumously inducted into the University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor in 1992.
Richard James Kempthorn was an American collegiate athlete, Air Force pilot, and businessman from Canton, Ohio, US. He played college football on the undefeated national champion 1947 and 1948 Michigan Wolverines football teams and was the Most Valuable Player on the 1949 team. He later served as a jet fighter pilot in the Korean War where he received the Distinguished Flying Cross. He turned down an opportunity to play professional football to join his father in the automobile business. Over the next 50 years, Kempthorn built a series of automobile dealerships in Canton, Ohio.
George Frank Ceithaml was an American football quarterback and coach. He was the starting quarterback for Fritz Crisler's University of Michigan football teams in 1941 and 1942. Crisler later called Ceithaml "the smartest player he ever taught." Ceithaml was selected as the quarterback on the 1942 All-Big Ten Conference team, the captain of the 1942 All-American Blocking Team, and was the 19th player selected in the 1943 NFL Draft. He later served as an assistant football coach at Michigan and the University of Southern California.
Howard Frederick Yerges Jr. was an American college football player who played quarterback for the Ohio State Buckeyes football team in 1943 and the University of Michigan Wolverines football teams from 1944 to 1947. He was the starting quarterback of the 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team that went undefeated, beat USC 49–0 in the Rose Bowl and is considered by some to be the greatest Michigan football team of all time. As of 2009, Yerges was one of three players to play on both sides of the Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry.
Robert Lee Wiese was an American football player. He played college football for Fritz Crisler's University of Michigan Wolverines football teams in 1942, 1943, 1944 and 1946—missing the 1945 season due to military service. He also played professional football for the Detroit Lions in 1947 and 1948.
The 1946 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1946 Big Nine Conference football season. In their ninth year under head coach was Fritz Crisler, the Wolverines compiled a 6–2–1 record, outscored opponents 233 to 73, and finished the season in second place in the Big Nine Conference and ranked No. 6 in the final 1946 AP poll. The team's two losses came against an undefeated Army team that was ranked No. 2 in the final AP poll and against an Illinois team that won the Big Nine championship and was ranked No. 5 in the final AP poll. Michigan won its last four games by a combined score of 162 to 19, starting a 25-game winning streak that continued for nearly three years until October 8, 1949. In the final game of the 1946 season, Michigan defeated Ohio State, 58–6, the Buckeyes' worst defeat since joining the conference in 1913.
The 1945 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1945 Big Ten Conference football season. In their eighth year under head coach was Fritz Crisler, the Wolverines compiled a 7–3 record and finished the season ranked #6 in the final Associated Press Poll. Quarterback Joe Ponsetto was the team captain, and center Harold Watts won the Most Valuable Player award and was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten Conference player.
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 1938 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1938 Big Ten Conference football season. After the firing of Harry Kipke in December 1937, Fritz Crisler took over as Michigan's head coach in February 1938. In the first year of the Crisler era, the Wolverines compiled a 6–1–1 record and outscored opponents 131 to 40, allowing an average of only five points per game. The team's only setbacks were a 7-6 loss to Minnesota and a scoreless tie with Northwestern. The Wolverines finished the season ranked No. 16 in the final AP Poll. In the post-season rankings compiled by Frank Dickinson, the University of Illinois professor who developed the Dickinson System, Michigan ranked sixth in the country.
F. Stuart "Stu" Wilkins was an American football player, lawyer, and businessman. He played at the guard position for the University of Michigan football team from 1945 to 1948 and was a starter on the Wolverines undefeated teams in 1947 and 1948. He practiced law for more than 50 years in Canton, Ohio. He was one of the leaders behind the establishment of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, serving on the steering committee that prepared the presentation to the NFL, and serving for more than 40 years on its board of trustees. He also served as the chairman of the board of the American Automobile Association from 1989 to 1991.
John Verle Ghindia was an American football player, high school coach, educator, and municipal recreation director.
Quentin Brian "Quent" Sickels was a former American football player. He played college football for the University of Michigan in 1944 and from 1946 to 1948. He played on Michigan's undefeated 1947 and 1948 national championship teams. His college football career was interrupted by service in the United States Coast Guard during the 1945 football season.
James F. Brieske was an American football placekicker. He played college football for the University of Michigan in 1942, 1946 and 1947. He set Michigan, Rose Bowl, Big Ten Conference, and national collegiate placekicking records and was the second leading scorer on Michigan's undefeated 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team. For more than two decades, he held the Michigan records for most successful point after touchdown ("PAT") conversions in a career (107), season (52), and game (9). Brieske's college football career was interrupted by service in the United States Navy during the 1944 and 1945 football seasons. His kicking foot was amputated in 1967 due to cancer. He died the following year at age 45 following surgery to remove growths from his lungs.
William Pritula was an American football player. He played college football as the starting right tackle for Fritz Crisler's Michigan Wolverines football teams in 1942, 1946, and 1947. He was one of Michigan's "Seven Oak Posts" line in 1942, made famous for their durability and two-way playing, and was also a key blocker for the 1947 offensive unit known as the "Mad Magicians."
The history of Michigan Wolverines football in the Kipke years covers the history of the University of Michigan Wolverines football program during the period from the hiring of Harry Kipke as head coach in 1929 through his firing after the 1937 season. Michigan was a member of the Big Ten Conference during the Kipke years and played its home games at Michigan Stadium.
The History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Oosterbaan years covers the history of the University of Michigan Wolverines football program during the period from the promotion of Bennie Oosterbaan as head coach in 1948 through his firing after the 1958 season. Michigan was a member of the Big Ten Conference during the Oosterbaan years and played its home games at Michigan Stadium.
