1946 Detroit Titans football team
American college football season
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The 1946 Detroit Titans football team was an American football team that represented the University of Detroit as an independent during the 1946 college football season. In their second season under head coach Chuck Baer, the Titans compiled a 6–4 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 214 to 134.[1]
| 1946 Detroit Titans football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Independent |
| Record | 6–4 |
| Head coach |
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| Captains |
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| Home stadium | University of Detroit Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 Notre Dame | – | 8 | – | 0 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cincinnati | – | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Detroit | – | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | – | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marquette | – | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rankings from AP Poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The team featured one of the top rushing offenses in the country. The Titans' backs tallied 2,632 rushing yards for the third highest total in the nation. Their average of 263.2 yards per game ranked fourth nationally.[2] The team's backfield included halfbacks Bill Haley, Joe Wright, and Jack Kurkowski, quarterback Gene Malinowski, and fullbacks Al Schmidt and Len Rittof.[3]
The team's assistant coaches were Lloyd Brazil (backfield coach and athletic director), John Shada (line coach), Ed J. Barbour (backfield coach), and Dr. Raymond D. Forsyth (team physician and trainer).[4] End Wilbur Hintz and guard Bob Ivory were the team's co-captains.[5]
Detroit was ranked at No. 61 in the final Litkenhous Difference by Score System rankings for 1946.[6]
The team played its home games at University of Detroit Stadium, which had a capacity of 20,000 persons. In the fall of 1946, the university had an enrollment of 5,000 men and 1,200 women.[7]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 20 | Wayne | W 31–0 | 23,800 | [8] | |||
| September 27 | Scranton |
| W 32–13 | 18,650 | [9] | ||
| October 5 | at Holy Cross | L 14–16 | 20,000 | [10] | |||
| October 13 | at San Francisco | W 18–6 | 20,000 | [11] | |||
| October 18 | No. 20 Tulsa |
| W 20–14 | 20,200 | [12] | ||
| October 25 | Drake |
| W 33–6 | 16,572 | [13] | ||
| November 1 | Marquette |
| L 20–21 | 10,350 | [14] | ||
| November 8 | Villanova |
| L 6–23 | 19,350 | [15] | ||
| November 17 | at Saint Louis |
| W 33–14 | 8,712 | [16] | ||
| November 29 | at Miami (FL) | L 7–21 | 24,747 | [17] | |||
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After the season
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Titans were selected.[18]
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 67 | Gene Malinowski | Back | Boston Yanks |
| 11 | 86 | Pete Sullivan | Tackle | Detroit Lions |
| 17 | 148 | Jack Hart | Tackle | Washington Redskins |
| 28 | 256 | Arch Kelly | End | Detroit Lions |