The 1955 Little All-America college football team is composed 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 ...

players from small colleges and universities who were selected by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

(AP) as the best players at each position. For 1955, the AP selected three teams of 11 players each, with no separate defensive platoons. Junior back Nate Clark of

Hillsdale College Hillsdale College is a Private university, private Conservatism in the United States, conservative Christian liberal arts college in Hillsdale, Michigan. It was founded in 1844 by Abolitionism, abolitionists known as Free Will Baptists. Its missio ...

, an African American from

Benton Harbor, Michigan Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is 46 miles southwest of Kalamazoo and 71 miles southwest of Grand Rapids. According to the 2020 census, its population was 9,103. It is the smaller, by population, of ...

, was named to the first team after leading all of college football with 144 points (24 touchdowns) scored.

First team

* Back - Nate Clark (junior, 5'8", 195 pounds), Hillsdale * Back - Gene Scott (senior, 5'11", 180 pounds), Centre * Back - Dave Burnham (senior, 6'2", 180 pounds), Wheaton * Back - Charles Sticka (senior, 6'0", 195 pounds), Trinity (Connecticut) * End - Charles Schultz (junior, 6'1", 185 pounds), Alfred * End - Richard Donlin (senior, 6'5", 205 pounds), Hamline * Tackle - Charles Gibbons (senior, 5'8", 218 pounds),

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

* Tackle - Vincent Vidas (senior, 6'2", 215 pounds), Drexel * Guard - Wixie Robinson (senior, 5'10", 190 pounds),

Pepperdine Pepperdine University () is a private research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California. Pepperdine's main campus consists of 830 acres (340 ha) overlooking the Pacific Ocean and th ...

* Guard -

Steve Myhra Steve Myhra (April 2, 1934 – August 4, 1994) was a professional American football player who played as a guard, linebacker and kicker for six seasons for the Baltimore Colts. Football career After playing at the University of North Dakota, ...

(junior, 6'1", 245 pounds),

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

* Center - Hubert Cook (senior, 6'2", 195 pounds), Trinity (Texas)

Second team

* Back - Elroy Payne, McMurry * Back - William Englehardt, Omaha * Back - William Rhodes, Colorado Western * Back - James Ztiser,

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

* End - George Cilek, Coe * End - Ronald Henry, Hampden-Sydney * Tackle - Roger Siesel, Miami (Ohio) * Tackle - Sherman Plunkett, Maryland State * Guard - Gerry Luth, Pacific Lutheran * Guard - Luther Shealy, Presbyterian * Center - William Vandersteop, Whitworth

Third team

* Back - William Hamilton, Florence State (Alabama) * Back - Jack Schultz, Luther * Back - Don Baker,

North Texas North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wor ...

* Back - James Higgason,

Southwest Louisiana Southwest Louisiana (SWLA) is a five-parish area intersecting the Acadiana and Central Louisiana regions in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is composed of the following parishes (counties): Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Jefferson Davis. ...

* End - Harry Drexler, Juniata * End - Jack Hecker,

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on ...

* Tackle - Joe DeKasar, Upsala * Tackle - Allen Dunham, Texas Lutheran * Guard - Roland Merrifield,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

* Guard - Tom Hofflander, Augsburg * Center - Jerry Angell, Hobart

References

{{Little All-America college football teams

Little All-America college football team The Little All-America team is an honor given annually to the best small college players at their respective positions. The first Little All-America team for college football, selected with assistance from reporters in every region, was announc ...

Little All-America college football teams

First team

Second team

Third team

See also

References