The 1954 college football season was the 86th season of intercollegiate football in the United States. It saw three major college teams finish unbeaten and untied: *

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

compiled a 10–0 record in its fourth season under

Woody Hayes Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes (February 14, 1913 – March 12, 1987) was an American college football coach and player. He served as the head football coach at Denison University from 1946 to 1948, Miami University in Oxford, Ohio from 1949 to 195 ...

and defeated

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

in the Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes were ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press (AP) poll and No. 2 in the final United Press (UP) coaches poll. Halfback

Howard Cassady Howard Albert "Hopalong" Cassady (March 2, 1934 – September 20, 2019) was an American professional American football, football Halfback (American football), halfback and Wide receiver, split end who played in the National Football League (NF ...

was named the team's most valuable player. *

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

compiled a 9–0 record in its sixth season under

Red Sanders Henry Russell "Red" Sanders (May 7, 1905 – August 14, 1958) was an American college football player and coach. He was head footnall coach at Vanderbilt University (1940–1942, 1946–1948) and the University of California, Los Angeles (1949 ...

. The Bruins were ranked No. 1 in the UP poll and No. 2 in the AP poll. The Bruins were also ranked No. 1 by the

Football Writers Association of America The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...

(FWAA). Despite winning the

Pacific Coast Conference The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a collegiate athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members (includin ...

championship, UCLA did not play in the Rose Bowl due to a "no repeat" rule (UCLA having played in the game the prior year). *

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

compiled a 10–0 record in its 10th season under Bud Wilkinson and was ranked No. 3 in the final AP and UP polls. The Sooners ranked seventh nationally in total offense (382.7 yards per game) and fifth in total defense (186.3 yards per game). The 1954 season was part of a 47-game winning streak that ran from October 10, 1953, to November 9, 1957.

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

played all three of the undefeated teams. They lost in week 1 to Oklahoma in Berkeley 27-13, they lost in week 3 to Ohio State in Columbus 21-13, and they lost in week 7 to UCLA in Berkeley 27-6.

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

fullback Alan Ameche won the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

, and

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

end Ron Beagle won the

Maxwell Award The Maxwell Award is presented annually to the college football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best all ...

. Individual statistical leaders in major college football included

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

tailback Art Luppino with 1,359 rushing yards and 166 points scored,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

quarterback George Shaw with 1,536 yards of total offense,

quarterback Paul Larson with 1,537 passing yards, and California end Jim Hanifan with 44 receptions. Small college teams with perfect seasons included

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

(10–0 Tangerine Bowl champion), Juniata (three consecutive undefeated seasons), Trinity (CT) (consecutive perfect seasons), and Whitworth (part of a 21-game winning streak).

Conference and program changes

*The ACC voted to add

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

as its eighth football-playing member in December 1953.

September

In the preseason poll released on September 13, 1954, No. 1 Notre Dame had the most points, although No. 2 Oklahoma had more first place votes (74 vs. 52). Rounding out the Top Five were defending champion No. 3 Maryland, No. 4 Texas and No. 5 Illinois. As the regular season progressed, a new poll would be issued on the Monday following the weekend's games. September 18, No. 2 Oklahoma won at No. 12 California 27–13, and No. 3 Maryland won at Kentucky, 20–0. Notre Dame and Texas, No. 1 and No. 4, were preparing to meet at South Bend to open their seasons. Oklahoma replaced Notre Dame as No. 1 in the first regular poll. No. 7 Georgia Tech, which beat Tulane 28–0 in Atlanta, replaced Illinois in the Top Five. Defying high expectations, the Illini would lose their opener to Penn State, 14–12, and finish the season with a 1–8–0 record. The next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Notre Dame, No. 3 Maryland, No. 4 Texas, and No. 5 Georgia Tech. September 25 No. 2 Notre Dame hosted No. 4 Texas and won 21–0. No. 1 Oklahoma beat No. 20 Texas Christian (TCU) 21–16. No. 3 Maryland was idle, and No. 5 Georgia Tech lost to Florida, 13–12. Notre Dame took back over the top spot from O.U., and Texas, Maryland and Georgia Tech were replaced by No. 8 UCLA (32–7 over Kansas), No. 10 Wisconsin (52–14 over Marquette) and No. 11 Iowa (14–10 over No. 7 Michigan State). The poll: No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Iowa, No. 4 UCLA, and No. 5 Wisconsin.

October

In a Friday game, No. 4 UCLA beat defending national champion No. 6 Maryland 12–7. The next day, October 2, No. 1 Notre Dame was upset by No. 19 Purdue, 27–14. No. 2 Oklahoma which was idle, moved to the top as Notre Dame dropped to eighth. No. 3 Iowa defeated visiting Montana, 48–6, and No. 5 Wisconsin beat No. 13 Michigan State 6–0. The next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 4 Iowa, and No. 5 Purdue. October 9 No. 1 Oklahoma won its annual game in Dallas against No. 15 Texas, 14–7. No. 2 UCLA edged Washington 21–20. No. 3 Wisconsin beat No. 11 Rice 13–7. No. 4 Iowa lost to unranked Michigan, 14–13, and No. 5 Purdue was tied by No. 6 Duke, 13–13. No. 10 Ohio State, which had won at Illinois 40–7, entered the Top Five: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Wisconsin, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Ohio State, and No. 5 Purdue. October 16 No. 2 Wisconsin hosted No. 5 Purdue and won 20–6. No. 1 Oklahoma visited Kansas and annihilated it, 65–0, while No. 3 UCLA went one better in beating Stanford 72–0. No. 4 Ohio State beat No. 13 Iowa 20–14. No. 7 Ole Miss, which had beaten Tulane 34–7, entered the Top Five: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Wisconsin, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Ohio State, and No. 5 Mississippi. October 23 No. 2 Wisconsin faced its second high-ranked opponent in a week, visiting Big Ten rival and No. 4 Ohio State. OSU won, 31–14, to take the No. 1 spot. No. 1 Oklahoma beat Kansas State 21–0, and No. 3 UCLA beat Oregon State 61–0. No. 5 Mississippi lost to No. 7 Arkansas at Little Rock, 6–0. No. 9 Army, which had won 67–12 at Columbia, moved up. The next poll: No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Arkansas, and No. 5 Army. October 30 No. 1 Ohio State won at Northwestern, 14–7. No. 2 Oklahoma won 13–6 at Colorado. No. 3 UCLA won at California 27–6 and was given top billing in the next poll. No. 4 Arkansas won 14–7 at Texas A&M. No. 5 Army, which got to stay home, edged Virginia 21–20. No. 6 Notre Dame, which beat No. 15 Navy 6–0 in Baltimore, moved up. The next poll: No. 1 UCLA, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Arkansas, and No. 5 Notre Dame.

November

November 6 No. 1 UCLA won at Oregon 41–0. No. 2 Ohio State beat visiting No. 20 Pittsburgh, 26–0. No. 3 Oklahoma won at Iowa State 40–0. No. 4 Arkansas, playing at Little Rock, beat No. 15 Rice 28–15, and No. 5 Notre Dame won at Penn, 42–7. The top five remained the same. November 13 No. 1 UCLA had the week off, while No. 2 Ohio State won at Purdue 28–6 and got back the top rung. No. 3 Oklahoma beat Missouri 34–13. No. 4 Arkansas lost to No. 19 SMU, 21–14. No. 5 Notre Dame beat North Carolina, 42–13. No. 6 Army, which at won at Penn 35–0, came back to the Top Five: No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Notre Dame, and No. 5 Army. November 20 No. 1 Ohio State beat No. 12 Michigan 21–7. In Los Angeles, No. 2 UCLA beat its crosstown rival, No. 7 USC, 34–0. No. 3 Oklahoma beat Nebraska 55–7. No. 4 Notre Dame won at No. 19 Iowa 34–18. No. 5 Army had the day off, preparing for the Army-Navy game. The top five remained the same. November 27 No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 UCLA had finished their seasons, both of them undefeated and untied. No. 3 Oklahoma also finished with a perfect record, winning its annual season-closer at Oklahoma A&M 14–0. No. 4 Notre Dame beat No. 17 USC 23–17. In Philadelphia, No. 5 Army was beaten by No. 6 Navy, 27–20. The AP's final top five were No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Notre Dame, and No. 5 Navy, although the Coaches Poll selected UCLA as its top team. Under normal circumstances the Buckeyes and Bruins would have met in the Rose Bowl for a national championship showdown, but the Pacific Coast Conference's short-lived "no-repeat" rule forced UCLA to stay home because they had played in the previous year's Rose Bowl. Instead, Ohio State matched up with No. 17 USC, whom they defeated 20–7.

Conference standings

Major conference standings

Independents

Minor conferences

Minor conference standings

Rankings

Final AP poll

AP ranked Ohio State as No. 1, while the UPI coaches' poll gave the top spot to UCLA. Both wire services' rankings were made at the end of the regular season, and were unaffected by the postseason bowl games. Ohio State and UCLA had two common opponents in 1954; Cal and USC. Ohio State defeated Cal 21–13 and USC 20–7, while UCLA defeated Cal 27–6 and USC 34–0.

Final Coaches Poll

The United Press International poll, taken from a panel of 35 coaches, had UCLA as the number one team beginning with the poll released on October 26. A rival to the AP poll, the UPI prefaced its release with the statement, "The men who know the game the best, the coaches themselves, voted UCLA to the top spot by the slender margin of seven points over Ohio State, the perfect record champions of the Big 10 Conference," The UPI poll was a Top Ten, with a first place vote by a coach being worth 10 points, second worth 9 points, etc. With 350 being the maximum number of points, and 315 being the total for 35 second place votes, the panel was split on whether UCLA or Ohio State was the best team in the nation. The UPI Top Ten Ohio State and UCLA had two common opponents in 1954; Cal and USC. Ohio State defeated Cal 21–13 and USC 20–7, while UCLA defeated Cal 27–6 and USC 34–0.

Undefeated seasons

Other undefeated teams: Ashland, Carleton, Carnegie Tech, Hastings (NE), Hobart, Luther, Pennsylvania Military, Pomona, Southeastern Louisiana, Trinity (CT), Western Colorado, Worcester Tech

Bowl games

Major bowls

:No. 2

(9–0) and No. 3

(10–0) were idle in bowl season due to conference "no-repeat" rules.

Other bowls

Heisman Trophy voting

''The

is given to the year's most outstanding player'' Source:

Statistical leaders

Individual

Total offense

The following players were the individual leaders in total offense among major college football players during the 1954 season:
1. George Shaw, Oregon, 1,536 yards
2. Paul Larson, California, 1,485 yards
3.

Len Dawson Leonard Ray Dawson (June 20, 1935 – August 24, 2022) was an American professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with the K ...

, Purdue, 1,384 yards
4. Art Luppino, Arizona, 1,359 yards
5. Gary Glick, Colorado A&M, 1,269 yards
6. Ralph Guglielmi, Notre Dame, 1,257 yards
7. Bobby Freeman, Auburn, 1,132 yards
8. Pete Vann, Army, 1,097 yards
9.

Lenny Moore Leonard Edward Moore (born November 25, 1933) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a Halfback (American football), halfback and wide receiver, flanker for the Baltimore Colts of the National Football Leag ...

, Penn State, 1,082 yards
10. Eagle Day, Ole Miss, 1,051 yards

Passing

The following players were the individual leaders in pass completions among major college football players during the 1954 season:
1. Paul Larson, California, 125 of 195 (64.1%), 1,537 yards, 8 interceptions, 10 touchdowns
2. George Shaw, Oregon, 91 of 196 (56.5%), 1,358 yards, 11 interceptions, 10 touchdowns
3.

, Purdue, 87 of 167 (52.1%), 1,464 yards, 8 interceptions, 15 touchdowns
4.

John Brodie John Riley Brodie (born August 14, 1935) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. He had a second career as a ...

, Stanford, 81 of 163 (49.7%), 937 yards, 16 interceptions, 2 touchdowns
5. Ken Ford, Hardin-Simmons, 78 of 146 (53.4%), 948 yards, 9 interceptions, 7 touchdowns
6. Bill Beagle, Dartmouth, 76 of 145 (52.4%), 867 yards, 10 interceptions, 5 touchdowns
7. David Dungan, Utah, 74 of 128 (57.8%), 862 yards, 4 interceptions, 5 touchdowns
8. Jack Stephans, Holy Cross, 73 of 149 (49.0%), 800 yards, 11 interceptions, 8 touchdowns
9. Mackie Prickett, South Carolina, 68 of 116 (58.6%), 682 yards, 9 interceptions, 1 touchdown
9. Ralph Guglielmi, Notre Dame, 68 of 127 (53.4%), 1,162 yards, 7 interceptions, 6 touchdowns

Rushing

The following players were the individual leaders in rushing yards among major college football players during the 1954 season:
1. Art Luppino, Arizona, 1,359 yards on 179 carries (7.59 average)
2.

, Penn State, 1,082 yards on 136 yards (7.96 average)
3. Tommy Bell, Army, 1,020 yards on 96 carries (10.62 average)
4. Sam Pino, Boston University, 933 yards on 154 carries (6.06 average) 5. Dicky Moegle, Rice, 905 yards on 144 carries (6.28 average)
6. Dick Imer, Montana, 889 yards on 111 carries (8.01 average)
7. Joe Childress, Auburn, 836 yards on 148 carries (5.65 average)
8. John Bayuk, Colorado, 824 yards on 145 carries (5.68 average)
9. Fred Mahaffey, Denver, 813 yards on 143 carries (5.69 average)
10.

Tom Tracy John Thomas "the Bomb" Tracy (September 7, 1934 – January 24, 1996) was an American professional gridiron football, football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions, Pittsburgh Steelers and Wa ...

, Tennessee, 794 yards on 116 carries (6.84 average)

Receiving

The following players were the individual leaders in receptions among major college football players during the 1954 season:
1. Jim Hanifan, California, 44 receptions, 569 yards, 7 touchdowns
2. John Stewart, Stanford, 36 receptions, 577 yards, 2 touchdowns
3. Jim Carmichael, California, 33 receptions, 420 yards, 2 touchdowns
4. Carl Brazell, South Carolina, 29 receptions, 241 yards, 1 touchdown
5. Jerry Mertens, Drake, 28 receptions, 495 yards, 4 touchdowns
5. Jim Pyburn, Auburn, 28 reception, 460 yards, 4 touchdowns
7. Andy Nacrelli, Fordham, 25 receptions, 493 yards, 2 touchdowns
7. Max Pierce, Utah, 25 receptions, 457 yards, 3 touchdowns
7. Larry Ross, Denver, 25 receptions, 378 yards, 4 touchdowns
7. Robert H. Dee, Holy Cross, 25 receptions, 236 yards, 2 touchdowns

Scoring

The following players were the individual leaders in scoring among major college football players during the 1954 season:
1. Art Luppino, Arizona, 166 points (24 TD, 22 PAT)
2. Buddy Leake, Oklahoma, 79 points (9 TD, 25 PAT)
3. Tommy Bell, Army, 78 points (13 TD)
3.

,Penn State, 78 points (13 TD)
5. Fred Mahaffey, Denver, 73 points (12 TD, 1 PAT)
6. Dicky Moegle, Rice, 72 points (12 TD)
7. Harold "Rusty" Fairly, Denver, 70 points (9 TD, 16 PAT)
8. Carroll Hardy, Colorado, 68 points (9 TD, 14 PAT)
9. Bob Davenport, UCLA, 66 points (11 TD)
9. John Bayuk, Colorado, 66 points (11 TD)
9. Joe Miller, Cincinnati, 66 points (11 TD)
9. Bob McNamara, Minnesota, 66 points (11 TD)
9. Dick James, Oregon, 66 points (11 TD)
9. Earl Smith Jr., Iowa, 66 points (11 TD)

Team

Total offense

The following teams were the leaders in total offense in major college football during the 1954 season:
1.

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

, 448.7 yards per game
2. Texas Tech, 422.3 yards per game
3.

, 402.0 yards per game
4.

, 393.8 yards per game
5. Ole Miss, 386.8 yards per game
6. Notre Dame, 385.3 yards per game
7.

, 382.7 yards per game
8.

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, 371.8 yards per game
9.

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

, 367.1 yards per game
10.

, 366.6 yards per game

Total defense

The following teams were the leaders in total defense in major college football during the 1954 season:
1. Ole Miss, 172.3 yards per game
2. Richmond, 174.4 yards per game
3. Clemson, 176.1 yards per game
4.

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

, 184.6 yards per game
5.

, 186.3 yards per game
6.

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, 186.7 yards per game
7.

, 188.6 yards per game
8.

, 189.8 yards per game
9.

, 190.4 yards per game
10.

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, 198.4 yards per game

References

{{1954–55 NCAA championships navbox

Conference and program changes

September

October

November

Conference standings

Major conference standings

Independents

Minor conferences

Minor conference standings

Rankings

Final AP poll

Final Coaches Poll

Undefeated seasons

Bowl games

Major bowls

Other bowls

Heisman Trophy voting

Statistical leaders

Individual

Total offense

Passing

Rushing

Receiving

Scoring

Team

Total offense

Total defense

See also

References