1941 Texas Longhorns football team
American college football season
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The 1941 Texas Longhorns football team was an American football team that represented the University of Texas as a member of the Southwest Conference during the 1941 college football season. In their fifth year under head coach Dana X. Bible, the Longhorns compiled an 8–1–1 record (4–1–1 against conference opponents), were ranked No. 4 in the final AP Poll, and outscored their opponents by a total of 338 to 55.[1]
| 1941 Texas Longhorns football | |
|---|---|
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National champion (Berryman QPRS, James Howell, Williamson System) | |
| Conference | Southwest Conference |
| Ranking | |
| AP | No. 4 |
| Record | 8–1–1 (4–1–1 SWC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | War Memorial Stadium |
Four Longhorns were selected as first-team players on the 1941 All-Southwest Conference football team: fullback Pete Layden, halfback Jack Crain, end Malcolm Kutner, and guard Chal Daniel. Kutner was also selected by the Associated Press, International News Service and Collier's as a first-team All-American and was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
On October 27, 1941, the Longhorns became the first Texas Longhorns football team to reach No. 1 in the AP Poll.[2] They were recognized as national champions by Berryman QPRS, James Howell, and the Williamson System.[3]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 27 | at Colorado* | W 34–6 | 15,000 | [4] | ||
| October 4 | LSU* | W 34–0 | 18,000 | [5] | ||
| October 11 | vs. Oklahoma* | W 40–7 | 42,000 | [6] | ||
| October 18 | Arkansas | No. 2 |
| W 48–14 | 23,000 | [7] |
| October 25 | Rice | No. 2 |
| W 40–0 | 42,000 | [8] |
| November 1 | at No. 20 SMU | No. 1 |
| W 34–0 | 23,000 | [9] |
| November 8 | at Baylor | No. 1 | T 7–7 | [10] | ||
| November 15 | TCU | No. 2 |
| L 7–14 | 23,000 | [11] |
| November 27 | at No. 2 Texas A&M | No. 10 | W 23–0 | 40,000 | [12] | |
| December 6 | Oregon* | No. 4 |
| W 71–7 | 27,000 | [13] |
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Personnel
Coaching staff
| Name | Title | Years at Texas | Alma mater |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dana X. Bible | Head Coach | 1937–1946 | Carson-Newman |
| Blair Cherry | Assistant Coach | 1937–1946, 1947-50 (HC) | TCU |
| Bully Gilstrap | Assistant Coach | 1937–1956 | Texas |
| Jack Gray | Assistant Coach | 1935-1941, 1946-49 | Texas |
| Clyde Littlefield | Assistant Coach | 1920–1948[a] | Texas |
| Ed Price | Assistant Coach | 1936–1941, 1946-50, 1951-56 (HC) | Texas |
Roster
| 1941 Texas Longhorns football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Backfield
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Linemen
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Depth chart
In 1941 the Longhorns ran a single-wing offense under coach Dana X. Bible.[18] The change in rules allowing free substitution prior to the year[19] allowed coach Bible to sub in entire units throughout the game, and in games where the Horns were comfortably in the lead he would typically rest the starters by substituting in the entire 2nd or 3rd string teams.[20][13][8]
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Rankings
| Week | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Final |
| AP | 2 (30) | 2 (33) | 1т (53) | 1 (73.5) | 2 (4) | 9 | 10 | 4 (1) |