The 1956 Michigan Wolverines football team was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

team that represented the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in the

1956 Big Ten Conference football season The 1956 Big Ten Conference football season was the 61st season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference (also known as the Western Conference) and was a part of the 1956 NCAA University Division football season. ...

. In their ninth year under head coach was

Bennie Oosterbaan Benjamin Oosterbaan ( ; February 24, 1906 – October 25, 1990) was a three-time first team College Football All-America Team, All-American American football, football End (gridiron football), end for the Michigan Wolverines football team, two-tim ...

, the Wolverines compiled a 7–2 record (5–2 Big Ten), outscored opponents 233 to 123, and finished the season in second place in the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

and ranked No. 7 in the final 1956 AP poll. The team played five of its nine games against ranked opponents, losing to No. 2

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

by a 9–0 score and No. 15

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 ...

by a 20–7 score, but defeating No. 15

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

by a 48–14 score, No. 7

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

by a 17–14 score, and No. 12

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 ...

by a 19–0 score. End

Ron Kramer Ronald John Kramer (June 24, 1935 – September 11, 2010) was a multi-sport college athlete and professional American football player. Kramer attended the University of Michigan from 1953 to 1957, winning a total of nine varsity letters in fo ...

was selected as a consensus All-American and a first team All-Big Ten player. Guard Dick Hill was selected as the team's Most Valuable Player and was named 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. ne ...

(AP) as a first-team All-Big Ten player. Halfback Terry Barr averaged 6.1 yards per carry rushing and 19.7 yards per punt return and was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten player by the

United Press United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20t ...

(UP).

Schedule

Game summaries

Game 1: UCLA

On September 29, 1956, Michigan opened its season with a 42–13 victory over

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 ...

. The Bruins were ranked #4 in the final AP Poll in 1955, but lost a number of players due to sanctions imposed by the Pacific Coast Conference. Michigan rushed for 234 yards against UCLA, including 67 yards by junior halfback

Jim Pace James Edward Pace (January 1, 1936 – March 4, 1983) was an American running back in the National Football League. He was also an All-American halfback who played for the University of Michigan Wolverines teams from 1955 to 1957. Youth Alt ...

. In the air, Michigan completed four of nine passes for 103 yards, including a 13-yard touchdown pass from

Bob Ptacek Robert J. Ptacek, Jr. (born April 23, 1937) is a former professional American and Canadian football player. He played college football at the halfback and quarterback positions for the University of Michigan from 1956 to 1958. He later played ...

to Jim Van Pelt and a 70-yard touchdown pass from Terry Barr to

. Barr also set up a touchdown with a 51-yard punt return to the UCLA 15-yard line in the first quarter. Halfback

John Herrnstein John Ellett Herrnstein (March 31, 1938 – October 3, 2017) was an American baseball and football player. He played Major League Baseball from 1962 to 1966 for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and Atlanta Braves. He also played co ...

scored two touchdowns for Michigan on runs of six and four yards. Ed Shannon and Jim Dickey also scored touchdowns for Michigan. Kramer and Maddock each kicked three extra points for Michigan.

Game 2: Michigan State

On October 6, 1956, Michigan (ranked No. 5 in the AP Poll) lost to

(ranked No. 2), 9–0, before a crowd of 101,001 at Michigan Stadium. After a scoreless first half in which Michigan dominated statistically, turnovers led to two Michigan State scores. In the third quarter,

was intercepted at Michigan's 38-yard line, setting up a 20-yard field goal by John Matsko. In the fourth quarter, Herrnstein fumbled, and Michigan State recovered the ball at Michigan's 21-yard line, leading to a Spartan touchdown shortly thereafter.

Game 3: Army

On October 13, 1956, Michigan (ranked No. 12 in the AP Poll) defeated

(ranked No. 15), 48–14, before a crowd of 93,101 at Michigan Stadium. Army fumbled eight times with Michigan recovering six times. Michigan led, 27-0, at halftime, and none of Michigan's starters played in the second half. Michigan totaled 246 rushing yards and 124 passing yards. Seven different Wolverines scored touchdowns:

, Terry Barr,

, Gary Prahst,

, Jim Van Pelt, and Jim Maddock.

Game 4: Northwestern

On October 20, 1956, Michigan (ranked No. 8 in the AP Poll) defeated Northwestern, 34–20, before a crowd of 81,227 at Michigan Stadium.

scored three touchdowns. Jim Maddock scored on a 15-yard pass from

, and

also scored on a 15-yard pass from Terry Barr. Michigan totaled 283 rushing yards and 156 passing yards.

Game 9: Ohio State

On November 24, Michigan defeated Ohio State, 19-0, before a crowd of 82,223 in Columbus, Ohio. Senior back Terry Barr, playing in his final game for Michigan, scored two touchdowns. Quarterback Jim Maddock also scored a touchdown. Ron Kramer converted one of three extra point kicks. On defense, the Wolverines allowed only one completed pass and intercepted two.

Postseason

In the final polls released in early December, Michigan was ranked No. 7 by both the

and

. End

was a unanimous pick for the 1956 All-America college football team. He received first-team honors from all seven official selectors: ''Collier's''/

American Football Coaches Association The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...

(AFCA),

(AP), ''Look'' magazine/ Football Writers Association of America (FWAA),

International News Service The International News Service (INS) was a U.S.-based news agency (newswire) founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.

(INS),

Newspaper Enterprise Association The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) is an editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1902. The oldest syndicate still in operation, the NEA was originally a secondary news ...

(NEA), ''The Sporting News'' (TSN), and

(UP). Five Michigan players received honors on the

1956 All-Big Ten Conference football team The 1956 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations to the All-Big Ten Conference teams for the 1956 Big Ten Conference football season. All-Big Ten selections Quarterbacks * Ken P ...

: * Ron Kramer, end - AP (first team), UP (first team) * Terry Barr, halfback - UP (first team) * Dick Hill, guard - AP (first team), UP (third team) *

, fullback - AP (second team), UP (second tea) *

Tom Maentz Tom Maentz (born c. 1934) is a former American football player who played end for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1954-1956. Maentz played on offense and defense and also served as the punter for the Michigan football team. Maentz a ...

, end - AP (second team), UP (third team) Guard Dick Hill won the team's award as most valuable player. Fullback John Herrnstein won the Meyer Morton and John Maulbetsch Awards.

Personnel

Varsity letter winners

The following players won varsity letters for their participation on the 1956 Michigan football team. Players who started at least half of Michigan's games are shown in bold. * Terry Barr, halfback, senior,

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...

– started 7 games at right halfback * Thomas E. Berger, guard, junior,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

* Alex Bochnowski, guard, junior,

Munster, Indiana Munster is a suburban town in North Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is in the Chicago metropolitan area, approximately southeast of the Chicago Loop, and shares municipal boundaries with Hammond to the north, Highland to th ...

* David C. Bowers, end, junior,

Traverse City, Michigan Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population wa ...

* Charles Books, end, senior,

Marshall, Michigan Marshall is a U.S. city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Calhoun County. The population was 7,088 at the 2010 census. Marshall is best known for its cross-section of 19th- and early 20th-century architecture. It has been referred to by t ...

* James Byers, fullback, sophomore,

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

* Clement Corona, guard, senior,

Berwick, Pennsylvania Berwick is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania and is located southwest of Wilkes-Barre. As of the 2020 census, Berwick had a population of 10,355. It is one of the two principal c ...

* James H. Davies, tackle, senior,

Muskegon Heights, Michigan Muskegon Heights is a city in Muskegon County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 10,856 at the 2010 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land. The city is surrounded o ...

* James A. Dickey, fullback, junior,

Miamisburg, Ohio Miamisburg ( ) is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio. The population was 20,181 at the time of the 2010 census. A suburb of Dayton. It is part of the Dayton metropolitan area. Miamisburg is known for its large industry (mainly for its nuclea ...

* Lawrence Faul, guard, junior,

River Forest, Illinois River Forest is a suburban village adjacent to Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, U.S. Per the 2020 census, the population was 11,717. Two universities make their home in River Forest, Dominican University and Concordia University Chicago. The ...

* John Greenwood, halfback, senior,

Bay City, Michigan Bay City is a city and county seat of Bay County in the U.S. state of Michigan, located near the base of the Saginaw Bay on Lake Huron. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 34,932, and it is the principal city of the Bay City Metrop ...

, fullback, sophomore, Chillicothe, Ohio – started 9 games at fullback * Richard B. Heynen, tackle, senior,

* Dick Hill, guard, sophomore,

Gary, Indiana Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city has been historically dominated by major industrial activity and is home to U.S. Steel's Gary Works, the largest steel mill complex in North America. Gary is located along the sou ...

– started 9 games at left guard * Walter N. Johnson, end, sophomore, Dearborn, Michigan *

, end, senior,

East Detroit, Michigan Eastpointe (formerly East Detroit) is a city on the southern edge of Macomb County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 32,442. Eastpointe forms a part of the Metro Detroit area. It borders 8 Mile Road on th ...

– started 9 games at left end *

Jack Lousma Jack Robert Lousma (born February 29, 1936) is an American astronaut, aeronautical engineer, retired United States Marine Corps officer, former naval aviator, NASA astronaut, and politician. He was a member of the second crew, Skylab-3, on ...

, quarterback, sophomore, Ann Arbor, Michigan * Jim Maddock, quarterback, senior,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, end, senior,

Holland, Michigan Holland is a city in the western region of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated near the eastern shore of Lake Michigan on Lake Macatawa, which is fed by the Macatawa River (formerly known locally as the Black Ri ...

– started 9 games at right end * Jerry Marciniak, fullback, sophomore, Chicago * Marvin R. Nyren, guard, junior,

Des Plaines, Illinois Des Plaines is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 60,675. The city is a suburb of Chicago and is located just north of O'Hare International Airport. It is situated on and is named after the ...

– started 9 games at right guard * James B. Orwig, tackle, senior,

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

– started 9 games at left tackle *

, halfback, junior,

Little Rock, Arkansas ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

– started 7 games at left halfback * Gary Prahst, end, sophomore,

Berea, Ohio Berea ( ) is a city in Cuyahoga County in the U.S. state of Ohio and is a western suburb of Cleveland. The population was 19,093 at the 2010 census. Berea is home to Baldwin Wallace University, as well as the training facility for the Cleveland ...

, halfback, sophomore,

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

– started 2 games at left halfback * David F. Rentschler, halfback, junior, Detroit * Mike Rotunno, center, senior, Canton, Ohio – started 8 games at center * Edward J. Shannon, running back, senior, River Forest, Illinois – started 2 games at right halfback * Michael Shatusky, halfback, senior,

Menominee, Michigan Menominee ( ) is a city in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,599 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Menominee County. Menominee is the fourth-largest city in the Upper Peninsula, behind Marquett ...

* Lionel Albert Sigman, tackle, senior, Ann Arbor, Michigan – started 9 games at right tackle * Eugene Sisinyak, fullback, sophomore,

Monroe, Michigan Monroe is the largest city and county seat of Monroe County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Monroe had a population of 20,462 in the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the south by Monroe Charter Township, but the two are administered auton ...

* Willie Smith, tackle, sophomore,

Little Rock, Arkansas ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

– tackle * Eugene "Gene" Snider, center, junior,

Hamtramck, Michigan Hamtramck ( ) is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 28,433. Hamtramck is surrounded by the city of Detroit except for a small portion that borders the fellow enclave city of ...

– started 1 game at center * John Spidel, quarterback, sophomore,

Greenville, Ohio Greenville is a city in and the county seat of Darke County, Ohio, United States, located near the western edge of Ohio about 33 miles northwest of Dayton. The population was 13,227 at the 2010 census. History Historic Native American tribes in ...

* Jim Van Pelt, quarterback, junior,

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...

– started 9 games at quarterback * Raymond L. Wine, center, sophomore, Port Huron, Michigan

Coaching staff

* Head coach:

* Assistant coaches: :* ''Backfield'': Don Robinson :* ''Line'': Jack Blott, assisted by

Don Dufek Donald Patrick Dufek Jr. (born April 28, 1954) is a former American football player who played safety and special teams for eight seasons with the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He had previously played for the Michigan W ...

:* ''Ends'': Matt Patanelli :* ''Freshmen'': Wally Weber :* ''Scout'': Pete Kinyon :* ''Others'': Bob Hollway,

Cliff Keen Clifford Patrick Keen (June 13, 1901 – November 4, 1991) was an American coach who served as the head coach of the University of Michigan collegiate wrestling team from 1925 to 1970. He led the Michigan Wolverines to 13 Big Ten Conference cha ...

* Trainer: Jim Hunt * Manager: Dave Lundquist

Statistical leaders

Rushing

Passing

Receiving

Kickoff returns

Punt returns

References

External links

1956 Football Team -- Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan Athletics History
{{Michigan Wolverines football navbox

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

Michigan Wolverines football seasons Michigan Wolverines football