| 1946Notre Dame Fighting Irish football | |
|---|---|
AP Poll national champion | |
| Conference | Independent |
| Ranking | |
| AP | No. 1 |
| Record | 8–0–1 |
| Head coach |
|
| Offensive scheme | T formation |
| Captain | Game captains |
| Home stadium | Notre Dame Stadium |
Seasons | |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1Notre Dame | – | 8 | – | 0 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cincinnati | – | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Detroit | – | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | – | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marquette | – | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rankings fromAP Poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team was anAmerican football team that represented theUniversity of Notre Dame as an independent during the1946 college football season. In their fourth year under head coachFrank Leahy, the Irish compiled an 8–0–1 and were ranked No. 1 in the finalAP Poll.[1] The season also produced the1946 Army vs. Notre Dame football game, a scoreless tie between undefeated teams ranked No. 1 and No. 2.
The 1946 Notre Dame team dominated both on defense and offense, ranking first nationally in total offense (441.3 yards per game), rushing offense (340.1 yards per game), and total defense (allowing 141.7 yards per game).[2] Despite ranking as the nation's top rushing offense, no Notre Dame player ranked among the national rushing leaders, as multiple backs shared the rushing load, includingEmil Sitko (54 carries, 346 yards),Terry Brennan (74 carries, 329 yards),Jim Mello (61 carries, 307 yards),Bill Gompers (51 carries, 279 yards), andJohn Panelli (58 carries, 265 yards).[3]
Two Notre Dame players, quarterbackJohnny Lujack and tackleGeorge Connor, were consensus first-team picks for the1946 All-America college football team.[4] CenterGeorge Strohmeyer and guardJohn Mastrangelo also received first-team All-America honors from multiple selectors.[5]
From 1946 to 1949, Notre Dame compiled a 36–0–2 record and claims threenational championships.[1]Sports Illustrated rated these Notre Dame teams as the second bestsports dynasty (professional or collegiate) of the 20th century[6] and second greatest college football dynasty.[7]
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 28 | atIllinois | W 26–6 | 75,119 | [8] | ||
| October 5 | Pittsburgh | W 33–0 | 50,368 | [9] | ||
| October 12 | Purdue | No. 3 |
| W 49–6 | 55,452 | [10] |
| October 26 | at No. 17Iowa | No. 2 | W 41–6 | 52,311 | [11] | |
| November 2 | vs.Navy | No. 2 | W 28–0 | 65,000 | [12] | |
| November 9 | vs. No. 1Army | No. 2 | T0–0 | 74,121 | [13] | |
| November 16 | Northwestern | No. 2 |
| W 27–0 | 58,000 | [14] |
| November 23 | atTulane | No. 2 | W 41–0 | 65,841 | [15] | |
| November 30 | No. 16USC | No. 2 |
| W 26–6 | 56,000 | [16] |
| ||||||
| Week | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Final |
| AP | 3(15⅓) | 2(31) | 2(21¼) | 2(61) | 2(51) | 2(49) | 2(16) | 2(38) | 1(104½) |
| Name | AP | UP | NEA | INS | COL | AA | SN | L | FC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| † John Lujack, QB | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| ‡ George Connor, T | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| John Monstrangelo, G | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| George Strohmeyer, C | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ||||
| † denotes unanimous selection ‡denotes consensus selection | |||||||||
Source:[1]
| Name | Position | Year Inducted |
|---|---|---|
| George Connor | Tackle | 1963 |
| Zygmont "Ziggy" Czarobski | Tackle | 1977 |
| Bill Fischer | Tackle/Guard | 1983 |
| Leon Hart | End | 1973 |
| Frank Leahy | Coach | 1970 |
| Johnny Lujack | Quarterback | 1960 |
| Jim Martin | End/Tackle | 1995 |
| Emil "Red" Sitko | Halfback/Fullback | 1984 |
Notre Dame leads all universities in players inducted.[18]
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Fighting Irish were selected.[19]
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 16 | John Mastrangelo | Tackle | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 6 | 37 | George Sullivan | End | Boston Yanks |
| 13 | 111 | Bob Skoglund | Defensive end | Green Bay Packers |
| 15 | 134 | John Fallon | Tackle | New York Giants |
| 27 | 250 | Bob Palladino | Back | Green Bay Packers |