The 1948 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in the 1948 Big Nine Conference football season. The Wildcats won their first Rose Bowl in school history. Northwestern finished the season with an 8–2 record, losing only to perennial powerhouses

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, 28–0, and Notre Dame, 17–12. Northwestern blanked

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, 19–0,

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, 21–0, and

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, 48–0. The Wildcats rallied from three turnovers and a 16-point deficit to defeat

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, 19–16, and beat

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

, 21–7, Wisconsin team, 16–7, and

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, 20–7.

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rules prevented conference champion Michigan from making a successive trip to the Rose Bowl, so second-place Northwestern won the bid instead.

Schedule

Roster

#10 Bob Nelson #11 Loran "PeeWee" Day (halfback and safety) #14 Gene Miller #15 Ed Tunnicliff(halfback) #16 Tom Worthington (halfback) #19 Bob Meeder #20 Lloyd Hawkinson #21 Don Burson (quarterback) #22 Frank Aschenbrenner (halfback) #23 Pat Keefe (quarterback) #25 John Yungwirth #26 Jim Farrar (extra points) #29 Dick Flowers (quarterback) #30 Art Murakowski (fullback) #32 Armandy Cureau #33 Ralph Rossi #34 Gasper Perricone (fullback) #36 George Hlebasko #37 George Sundheim #42 Johnny Miller #54 Alex Sarkisian (center). (team captain) #55 Chuck Petter #56 Ray Wietecha #57 Dick Price #60 Lawrence "Fatso" Day (linemen) #61 Francis De Pauw #62 Richard Anderson #63 Bob Nowicki(guard) #67 Ed Nemeth (left guard) #68 Jim Parseigan #69 LeRoy Pantera #70 Joe Sewell #73 Bill Ford #71 Bill Forman (tackle) #74 Steve Sawle (tackle) #75 Rudy Cernoch (tackle) #77 George Maddock (kick offs) #78 Paul Barkal #79 Dick Eggers #80 Charles Hagmann (end) #82 Burton Keddie (end) #83 Don Stonesifer (end), #85 Joe Zuravleff (end) #87 Al Thomas #88 Littrell Clark #97 Paul Balog

Awards and honors

Art Murakowski Arthur Raymond Murakowski (March 15, 1925 – September 13, 1985) was an American football player. He played fullback for the Northwestern University football team from 1946 to 1949. He was selected as a first-team All-American and won the Ch ...

Chicago Tribune Silver Football The Chicago Tribune Silver Football is awarded by the ''Chicago Tribune'' to the college football player determined to be the best player from the Big Ten Conference. The award has been presented annually since 1924, when Red Grange of Illinois wa ...

1949 NFL Draft

References

{{Northwestern Wildcats football navbox Northwestern Northwestern Wildcats football seasons Rose Bowl champion seasons

Northwestern Wildcats football The Northwestern Wildcats football team represents Northwestern University as an NCAA Division I college football team and member of the Big Ten Conference based near Chicago in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern began playing fo ...