The 1954 Baylor Bears football team represented

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

as a member of the

Southwest Conference The Southwest Conference (SWC) was an NCAA Division I college athletic conference in the United States that existed from 1914 to 1996. Composed primarily of schools from Texas, at various times the conference included schools from Oklahoma an ...

(SWC) during the

1954 college football season The 1954 college football season saw three teams finish unbeaten and untied, with Ohio State Buckeyes and the UCLA Bruins sharing the national championship as the No. 1 picks of the AP Poll and the UPI Poll, respectively. Although the winners o ...

. Led by fifth-year head coach

George Sauer George Henry Sauer Sr. (December 11, 1910 – February 5, 1994) was an American football player, coach, college sports administrator, and professional football executive. Career Sauer attended the University of Nebraska where he was an All-Amer ...

, the Bears compiled an overall record of 7–4 with a mark of 4–2 in conference play, tying for third place the SWC. Baylor was invited to the

Gator Bowl The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game held in Jacksonville, Florida, operated by Gator Bowl Sports. It has been held continuously since 1946, making it the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised natio ...

, where the Bears lost to

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

. The team played home games at

Baylor Stadium McLane Stadium is an American football stadium in Waco, Texas owned and operated by Baylor University. Originally named "Baylor Stadium", the facility's name was changed to "McLane Stadium" in December 2013 to honor Baylor alumnus and business ma ...

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

. Halfback

L. G. Dupre Louis George Dupre (September 10, 1932 – August 9, 2001) was a professional American football running back in the National Football League for the Baltimore Colts and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Baylor University. Early ye ...

and tackle

Jim Ray Smith James Ray Smith (born February 27, 1932) is a former American football offensive guard who played nine seasons in the National Football League for the Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Baylor University. Early ye ...

played in the North–South All-Star Game. Smith, quarterback

Billy Hooper Horace Chilton Hooper, Jr. (November 21, 1931 – July 27, 1981), better known as Billy Hooper, was a Canadian football player who played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He played college football at Baylor University Baylor University is ...

, halfback

Del Shofner Delbert Martin Shofner (December 11, 1934 – March 11, 2020) was an American football wide receiver who played for eleven seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and the New York Giants from 1957 to 1967 in the National Football League (NFL). Early ...

and end

Hank Gremminger Charles Henry "Hank" Gremminger (September 1, 1933 – November 2, 2001) was an American football player, a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. He played ten seasons for the Green Bay Packers ( 1956– 1965) and ...

were selected to the All-Southwest Conference team.Baylor University, "Baylor 1955 Round Up" yearbook via the Baylor University Libraries Digital Collections. Accessed April 29, 2013. http://digitalcollections.baylor.edu/cdm/ref/collection/tx-annl/id/29271

Schedule

References

Baylor Baylor Bears football seasons

Baylor Bears football The Baylor Bears football team represents Baylor University in Division I FBS college football. They are a member of the Big 12 Conference. After 64 seasons at the off-campus Baylor Stadium, renamed Floyd Casey Stadium in 1989, the Bears opened ...

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