The 1946 Northwest Conference football season was the season of

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

played by the seven member schools of the Northwest Conference (NWC) as part of the

1946 college football season The 1946 college football season was the 78th season of intercollegiate football in the United States. Competition included schools from the Big Ten Conference, the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC), the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the Big Six C ...

. The Willamette Bearcats won the NWC championship with a 6–2–1 record (6–0 against conference opponents) and outscored all opponents by a total of 129 to 94. The College of Idaho Coyotes finished in second place, compiled a 6–4 record, and led the conference in scoring offense with an average of 15.7 points per game. The

Puget Sound Loggers The University of Puget Sound (UPS or Puget Sound) is a private university in Tacoma, Washington. The university draws approximately 2,600 students from 44 states and 16 countries. It offers 1,200 courses each year in more than 50 traditional an ...

tied for third place with a 3–4–1 overall record, but led the conference in scoring defense, giving up an average of only 6.5 points per game.

Conference overview

Teams

Willamette

The 1946 Willamette Bearcats football team epresented the Willamette University of

Salem, Oregon Salem ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County, Oregon, Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river ...

. In their first and only season under head coach

Walt Erickson Walt is a masculine given name, generally a short form of Walter, and occasionally a surname. Notable people with the name include: People Given name * Walt Arfons (1916-2013), American drag racer and competition land speed record racer * Walt Be ...

, the team compiled a 6–2–1 record (6–0 against NWC opponents) and outscored opponent by a total of 129 to 94. Three Willamette players were unanimous selections to the 1946 All-Northwest Conference football team: Marv Goodman at end; Garrell Deiner at tackle, and Larry McKeel at back. End Bill Reder and back Bob Douglas received second-team honors.

College of Idaho

The 1946 College of Idaho Coyotes football team represented the

College of Idaho The College of Idaho (C of I) is a private liberal arts college in Caldwell, Idaho. Founded in 1891, it is the state's oldest private liberal arts college and has an enrollment of over 1,000 students. The college's alumni include eight Rhode ...

Caldwell, Idaho Caldwell (locally CALL-dwel) is a city in and the county seat of Canyon County, Idaho. The population was 59,996 at the time of the 2020 United States census. Caldwell is considered part of the Boise metropolitan area. Caldwell is the location of ...

. In their sixth year under head coach Clem Parberry, the team compiled a 6–4 record (5–2 against NWC opponents), finished in second place in the Northwest Conference, and outscored opponents by a total of 157 to 125.

Linfield

The 1946 Linfield Wildcats football team represented the Linfield University of McMinnville, Oregon. Led by head coach Wayne Harn, the team compiled a 4–3–1 record (3–2–1 against NWC opponents), tied for third place in the Northwest Conference, and outscored opponents by a total of 102 to 72.

Puget Sound

The 1946 Puget Sound Loggers football team represented the

University of Puget Sound The University of Puget Sound (UPS or Puget Sound) is a private university in Tacoma, Washington. The university draws approximately 2,600 students from 44 states and 16 countries. It offers 1,200 courses each year in more than 50 traditional an ...

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...

. Led by head coach Frank W. Patrick, the team compiled a 3–4–1 record (3–2–1 against NWC opponents), tied for third place in the Northwest Conference, and outscored opponents by a total of 106 to 52.

Pacific

The 1946 Pacific Badgers football team represented the Pacific University of Forest Grove, Oregon. Led by head coach Oswald D. Gates, the team compiled a 4–3–1 record (3–3 against NWC opponents), finished in fifth place in the Northwest Conference, and were outscored by a total of 60 to 58.

Whitman

The 1946 Whitman Fighting Missionaries football team represented Whitman College of Walla Walla, Washington. In their 32nd season under head coach

Vincent Borleske Raymond Vincent "Nig" Borleske (January 8, 1887 – January 2, 1957) was an American professional baseball player and college football player and coach. Borleske was one of a number of American athletes in the first half of the 20th century to be ...

, the team compiled a 2–5 record (1–5 against NWC opponents), finished in sixth place in the Northwest Conference, and were outscored by a total of 79 to 34.

British Columbia

The 1946 British Columbia Thunderbirds football team represented the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. Led by head coach

Greg Kabat Gregory Stanley Kabat (May 21, 1911 – January 12, 1994) was an American gridiron football player and coach. He played Canadian football professionally as a running back for eight seasons with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football Le ...

, the Thunderbirds compiled a 0–7 record (0–6 against NWC opponents), finished in seventh place in the Northwest Conference, and were outscored by a total of 169 to 39.

Lewis & Clark

All-conference team

The 1946 All-Northwest conference football team was selected by coaches and faculty of the conference schools. Players named to the first team were: * Ends – Arnold Torgenson (or Thorgerson), Pacific; Marvin Goodman, Willamette * Tackles – Garrell (or Gerald) Deiner, Willamette; Steuben Thomas, College of Idaho * Guards – Bill Dahlgren, Pacific; William Currier, Linfield * Center – Maitland Anderson, Pacific * Backs – Larry McKeel (or McKell), Willamette; Warren Wood, Puget Sound; Jon Seeley, Linfield; Tom Oxman, College of Idaho

References

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