🏈 The 1945 college football season
The champion and its path, the poll race week by week, the honours, the best games and every conference table.
Jump to any season1869–2026
1945 national champion
Named by the selectors, with the road it took.
The path, Army9-0
- Sep 29vsLouisville FieldW32-0
- Oct 6vsWake ForestW54-0
- Oct 13vs#9MichiganW28-7
- Oct 20vsMelville PT BoatsW55-13
- Oct 27vs#19DukeW48-13
- Nov 3vsVillanovaW54-0
- Nov 10vs#2Notre DameW48-0
- Nov 17at#6PennsylvaniaW61-0
- Dec 1vs#2NavyW32-13
The 1945 major bowls
No title game this year. The big bowls of the season, by date.
- Cotton BowlJan 1#10Texas40Missouri27
- Orange BowlJan 1#16Holy Cross6
- Rose BowlJan 1#3Alabama34#11USC14
- Sugar BowlJan 1#5Oklahoma A&M33#7St. Mary's13
The 1945 poll race
Rank by poll week, 1 at the top, or Elo by week. A poll line breaks where a team was unranked.
How this is measured
Tap or drag on the chart to read a team's rank in any week.
AP rank, team by week
| Team | Oct8 | 15 | 22 | 29 | Nov5 | 12 | 19 | 26 | Dec3final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Navy | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Alabama | 7 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Indiana | 8 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Oklahoma A&M | 14 | 15 | 17 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| Michigan | 9 | 13 | 16 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| St. Mary's | 19 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 7 |
| Pennsylvania | 11 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 8 |
| Notre Dame | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 9 |
| Texas | 10 | 10 | 9 | 17 | 17 | 10 | 10 | 10 | |
| USC | 6 | 14 | 20 | 16 | 11 | ||||
| Ohio State | 4 | 4 | 12 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 12 | 12 |
| Duke | 13 | 16 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 20 | 15 | 11 | 13 |
| Tennessee | 18 | 18 | 14 | 17 | 14 | ||||
| LSU | 13 | 17 | 14 | 19 | 15 | ||||
| Holy Cross | 12 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 16 | |
| Tulsa | 16 | 18 | 14 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 17 | |
| Georgia | 12 | 18 | |||||||
| Wake Forest | 19 | ||||||||
| Columbia | 17 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 19 | 20 | |||
| Missouri | 16 | 14 | |||||||
| Clemson | 18 | ||||||||
| Virginia | 20 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 20 | ||||
| UCLA | 12 | ||||||||
| Purdue | 15 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 18 | ||
| Mississippi State | 20 | 20 | 18 | 15 | 16 | 20 | |||
| Penn State | 12 | ||||||||
| Oklahoma | 14 | 14 | |||||||
| Washington | 18 | 18 | |||||||
| Minnesota | 5 | 5 | 5 | 16 | 20 | ||||
| Northwestern | 20 | ||||||||
| Texas A&M | 17 |
Tap a rank to read it and highlight that team on the chart above.
1945 final polls
The last ranking of the season in each poll.
1945 final pollsAP, Elo
Final AP poll, Dec 3.
Show all 20 teams
Elo top 25
rating, z
The 1945 honours
The Heisman vote and the major awards side by side, then the All-Americans.
The 1945 honoursHeisman: Doc Blanchard
Heisman Trophy voting
Consensus All-Americans
A star marks a unanimous selection.
- Vaughn ManchaAlabama
- Doc Blanchard★ unanimousArmy
- Glenn Davis★ unanimousArmy
- Bob FenimoreOklahoma A&M
- Herman Wedemeyer★ unanimousSt. Mary's
- Bob RavensbergIndiana
- Dick DudenNavy
- Max MorrisNorthwestern
- Hubert BechtolTexas
Show all 5 positions
- John GreenArmy
- Warren Amling★ unanimousOhio State
- Tex CoulterArmy
- George SavitskyPennsylvania
- Vaughn ManchaAlabama
- Doc Blanchard★ unanimousArmy
- Glenn Davis★ unanimousArmy
- Bob FenimoreOklahoma A&M
- Herman Wedemeyer★ unanimousSt. Mary's
- Bob RavensbergIndiana
- Dick DudenNavy
- Max MorrisNorthwestern
- Hubert BechtolTexas
- John GreenArmy
- Warren Amling★ unanimousOhio State
- Tex CoulterArmy
- George SavitskyPennsylvania
The best games of 1945
The ten best games of the season by Game Score. Switch to the Elo score for a second opinion.
How this is measured
The best games of 194510 games
Upsets of 1945
The results the ratings gave the winner the least chance of, lowest first.
How this is measured
Upsets of 194510 upsets
1945 standings by conference
Every conference at once: conference and overall record, and the final AP rank. A star marks the conference champion.
1945 standings by conference10 groups
Big Nine
9 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indiana★ conference champion | 5-0-1 | 9-0-1 | #4 |
| 2 | Michigan | 5-1 | 7-3 | #6 |
| 3 | Ohio State | 5-2 | 7-2 | #12 |
| 4 | Purdue | 3-3 | 7-3 | |
| 5 | Northwestern | 3-3-1 | 4-4-1 | |
| 6 | Wisconsin | 2-3-1 | 3-4-2 | |
| 7 | Illinois | 1-4-1 | 2-6-1 | |
| 8 | Minnesota | 1-5 | 4-5 | |
| 9 | Iowa | 1-5 | 2-7 |
Big Six
6 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Missouri★ conference champion | 5-0 | 6-4 | |
| 2 | Oklahoma | 4-1 | 5-5 | |
| 3 | Iowa State | 2-2-1 | 4-3-1 | |
| 4 | Nebraska | 2-3 | 4-5 | |
| 5 | Kansas | 1-3-1 | 4-5-1 | |
| 6 | Kansas State | 0-5 | 1-7 |
Border
3 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Mexico | 1-0-1 | 6-1-1 | |
| 2 | Texas Tech | 1-0-1 | 3-5-2 | |
| 3 | West Texas State | 0-2 | 2-6 |
Missouri Valley
5 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma A&M★ conference champion | 1-0 | 9-0 | #5 |
| 2 | Tulsa | 2-1 | 8-3 | #17 |
| 3 | Wichita | 1-1 | 6-4 | |
| 4 | Drake | 1-2 | 5-4-1 | |
| 5 | Saint Louis | 0-1 | 5-4 |
Mountain States
5 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver | 4-1 | 4-5-1 | |
| 2 | Colorado | 3-1 | 5-3 | |
| 3 | Utah | 3-2 | 4-4 | |
| 4 | Utah State | 1-3 | 4-3 | |
| 5 | Colorado A&M | 0-4 | 2-5-1 |
Pacific Coast
8 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | USC★ conference champion | 5-1 | 7-4 | #11 |
| 2 | Washington State | 6-2-1 | 6-2-1 | |
| 3 | Washington | 6-3 | 6-3 | |
| 4 | Oregon State | 4-4 | 4-4-1 | |
| 5 | UCLA | 2-3 | 5-4 | |
| 6 | California | 2-4-1 | 4-5-1 | |
| 7 | Oregon | 3-6 | 3-6 | |
| 8 | Idaho | 0-5 | 1-7 |
Southeastern
12 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama★ conference champion | 6-0 | 10-0 | #2 |
| 2 | Tennessee | 3-1 | 8-1 | #14 |
| 3 | LSU | 5-2 | 7-2 | #15 |
| 4 | Georgia | 4-2 | 9-2 | #18 |
| 5 | Mississippi | 3-3 | 4-5 | |
| 6 | Georgia Tech | 2-2 | 4-6 | |
| 7 | Mississippi State | 2-3 | 6-3 | |
| 8 | Auburn | 2-3 | 5-5 | |
| 9 | Vanderbilt | 2-4 | 3-6 | |
| 10 | Florida | 1-3-1 | 4-5-1 | |
| 11 | Tulane | 1-3-1 | 2-6-1 | |
| 12 | Kentucky | 0-5 | 2-8 |
Southern
11 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke★ conference champion | 4-0 | 6-2 | #13 |
| 2 | Wake Forest | 4-1-1 | 5-3-1 | #19 |
| 3 | William & Mary | 4-2 | 6-3 | |
| 4 | Clemson | 2-1-1 | 6-3-1 | |
| 5 | Maryland | 3-2 | 6-2-1 | |
| 6 | VMI | 3-2 | 5-4 | |
| 7 | North Carolina | 2-2 | 5-5 | |
| 8 | North Carolina State | 2-4 | 3-6 | |
| 9 | Virginia Tech | 2-5 | 2-6 | |
| 10 | South Carolina | 0-3-2 | 2-4-3 | |
| 11 | Richmond | 0-4 | 2-6 |
Southwest
7 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas★ conference champion | 5-1 | 10-1 | #10 |
| 2 | SMU | 4-2 | 5-6 | |
| 3 | Texas A&M | 3-3 | 6-4 | |
| 4 | TCU | 3-3 | 5-5 | |
| 5 | Rice | 3-3 | 5-6 | |
| 6 | Baylor | 2-4 | 5-5-1 | |
| 7 | Arkansas | 1-5 | 3-7 |
Independent
35 teams| # | Team | Conf | All | AP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Army | - | 9-0 | #1 |
| 2 | Columbia | - | 8-1 | #20 |
| 3 | Temple | - | 7-1 | |
| 4 | Miami (FL) | - | 9-1-1 | |
| 5 | Navy | - | 7-1-1 | #3 |
| 6 | Holy Cross | - | 8-2 | #16 |
| 7 | Virginia | - | 7-2 | |
| 8 | Notre Dame | - | 7-2-1 | #9 |
| 9 | Pennsylvania | - | 6-2 | #8 |
| 10 | St. Mary's | - | 6-2 | #7 |
| 11 | Detroit | - | 6-3 | |
| 12 | Yale | - | 6-3 | |
| 13 | Harvard | - | 5-3 | |
| 14 | Merchant Marine | - | 5-3 | |
| 15 | Penn State | - | 5-3 | |
| 16 | UT-Chattanooga | - | 5-3 | |
| 17 | Michigan State | - | 5-3-1 | |
| 18 | Great Lakes Navy | - | 6-4-1 | |
| 19 | Colorado College | - | 4-3-1 | |
| 20 | Cornell | - | 5-4 | |
| 21 | Marquette | - | 5-4-1 | |
| 22 | Villanova | - | 4-4 | |
| 23 | Brown | - | 3-4-1 | |
| 24 | Colgate | - | 3-4-1 | |
| 25 | Boston College | - | 3-4 | |
| 26 | NYU | - | 3-4 | |
| 27 | Princeton | - | 2-3-2 | |
| 28 | Pittsburgh | - | 3-7 | |
| 29 | Bucknell | - | 2-5 | |
| 30 | West Virginia | - | 2-6-1 | |
| 31 | Dartmouth | - | 1-6-1 | |
| 32 | Lafayette | - | 1-7-1 | |
| 33 | Presbyterian | - | 1-6 | |
| 34 | Syracuse | - | 1-6 | |
| 35 | Coast Guard | - | 0-7-1 |
1945 bowls
One line per game, latest first. A tag marks the playoff and the other major bowls.
1945 bowls8 bowls
Where these numbers come from
Enough to disbelieve this page on purpose rather than by accident.
Champions, polls, standings, bowls, honours and games are read from the Citizen of Nowhere college football database, built from its own workbook one season at a time. Team colours and crests are the current programs’, so a school is drawn the way it looks today even where it played under another name.
The AP poll begins in 1936, so earlier seasons have no poll race and no final poll, but they do have an Elo race, and their champions are those the selectors named. Before 1992 there was no title game, so those seasons list the major bowls instead; from 1992 the title game is shown with the other major bowls, and from 2014 the playoff bracket. Where the database has no entry for a section, the section is left out rather than shown empty.
Elo ratings, the upsets and the best games come from the site’s college football Elo, which rates every game since 1869 and counts games against lower-level opponents. Each season’s ratings are shown on a scale where the average major team ends the season at 1500; z is the distance from that average in standard deviations.