1945 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football team

The 1945 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football team represented the Great Lakes Navy Training Station (Great Lakes NTS) during the 1945 college football season The team compiled a 6–4–1 record, and outscored their opponents 221 to 164. Coached by the legendary Paul Brown, the Bluejackets started the season with a 0–4–1, suffering from a loss of talent as many players were shifted to the west coast to help close the pacific theater of World War II, but once the war ended many men from overseas returned to the boot camp, and the team managed to win their final six games, culminating in a 39–7 defeat of top 5 Notre Dame at home.[1]

1945 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football
ConferenceIndependent
Record6–4–1
Head coach
Home stadiumRoss Field
Seasons
← 1944
1946 →
1945 military service football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Army Air Forces League
Third Air Force + 4 1 1 7 2 1
AAF Training Command + 4 1 1 8 3 1
Fourth Air Force 3 2 1 6 3 1
First Air Force 2 2 2 3 2 3
Air Transport Command 2 3 1 6 3 2
Personnel Distribution Command 2 4 0 6 5 0
Second Air Force 1 5 0 3 7 0
Independents
Hutchinson NAS     8 0 0
Fleet City     11 0 1
Corpus Christi NAS     7 1 0
North Camp Hood     7 1 0
Selman Field     7 1 0
Jacksonville NAS     9 2 0
El Toro Marines     8 2 0
Camp Beale     6 1 2
Little Creek     7 2 0
Amarillo AAF     3 1 0
Farragut NTS     6 2 0
South Camp Hood     5 2 0
Santa Barbara Marines     7 3 1
Fort McClellan     4 2 0
San Diego NTS     4 2 0
Eastern Flying Training Command     6 3 1
Atlantic City NAS     4 2 1
Minter Field     4 2 1
Camp Lee     7 4 0
Camp Peary     5 3 0
Olathe NAS     3 2 0
Great Lakes Navy     6 4 1
Hondo AAF     6 4 1
Bainbridge     5 4 0
Fort Benning     5 4 1
Albany Navy     3 3 1
Williams Field     4 4 0
Stockton AAF     4 5 2
Camp Detrick     3 4 0
Kearney AAF     3 4 0
Fort Warren     5 7 0
Bergstrom Field     3 5 1
Barksdale Field     4 7 0
Saint Mary's Pre-Flight     2 4 1
Keesler Field     3 6 1
Camp Blanding     1 2 0
Great Bend AAF     2 4 0
Luke Field     1 2 0
Miami NAS     1 2 0
Fort Pierce     4 9 0
Gulfport AAF     2 5 0
Ellington Field     1 4 1
Miami NTC     1 3 0
Oceana NAS     1 3 0
Fort Riley     1 4 0
Lake Charles AAF     1 4 0
Pensacola NAS     2 7 1
Cherry Point Marines     1 8 0
Dalhart AAF     0 3 0
Homestead AAB     0 3 0
Fort Monroe     0 7 0
  • + – Conference co-champions

The Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets were ranked 20th among the nation's college and service teams in the final Litkenhous Ratings.[2]

Schedule edit

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 8College All–StarsL 0–35
September 15MichiganL 2–2726,076
September 22Wisconsin
  • Ross Field
  • North Chicago, IL
T 0–0
September 29Purdue
  • Ross Field
  • North Chicago, IL
L 6–2022,000
October 6Fort Benning
  • Ross Field
  • North Chicago, IL
L 12–2120,000[3]
October 20MarquetteW 37–27
October 27Western Michigan
W 39–010,000[4]
November 3IllinoisW 12–614,569
November 10Michigan StateW 27–7
November 17Fort Warren
  • Ross Field
  • North Chicago, IL
W 47–1418,000[5]
December 1No. 5 Notre Dame
  • Ross Field
  • North Chicago, IL
W 39–723,000
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

References edit

  1. ^ "1945 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  2. ^ Litkenhous, E. E. (December 19, 1945). "Litkenhouse Rates College, Service Teams of Nation". Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. 20. Retrieved March 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .
  3. ^ "Great Lakes Beaten, 21-12, by Ft. Benning". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. October 7, 1945. p. 4, part 2. Retrieved March 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .
  4. ^ Maurice Shevlin. "Great Lakes Is Victor, 37-27, Over Marquette: Aschenbrenner Leader of Sailor Attack". Chicago Tribune. p. II-2 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Segreti, James (November 18, 1945). "Sailors Swamp Soldiers, 47-14, At Great Lakes". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. p. 2, part 2. Retrieved March 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .