1943 Fort Riley Centaurs football team

The 1943 Fort Riley Centaurs football team represented the Cavalry Replacement Training Center at Fort Riley, a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, as an independent during the 1943 college football season. The team compiled a 6–2–1 record and outscored opponents by a total of 226 to 92.^[1]

1943 Fort Riley Centaurs football
Conference	Independent
Record	6–2–1
Head coach	Fran Welch (1st season)
Seasons ← 1942 1944 →

1943 military service football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 17 Bainbridge			–					7	–	0	–	0
Bunker Hill NAS			–					6	–	0	–	0
Greensboro			–					4	–	0	–	0
Memphis NATTC			–					2	–	0	–	0
No. 2 Iowa Pre-Flight			–					9	–	1	–	0
No. 10 March Field			–					9	–	1	–	0
No. 8 Del Monte Pre-Flight			–					7	–	1	–	0
Randolph Field			–					9	–	1	–	1
Georgia Pre-Flight			–					5	–	1	–	0
No. 6 Great Lakes Navy			–					10	–	2	–	0
Lubbock AAF			–					5	–	1	–	0
Ottumwa NAS			–					5	–	1	–	0
Camp Davis			–					8	–	2	–	0
Sampson NTS			–					7	–	2	–	0
San Diego NTS			–					7	–	2	–	0
Keesler Field			–					3	–	1	–	0
Wright Field			–					1	–	0	–	1
Camp Lejeune			–					6	–	2	–	1
Fort Riley			–					6	–	2	–	1
Kearns Field			–					5	–	2	–	0
Fort Knox			–					4	–	2	–	0
Cherry Point Marines			–					4	–	2	–	1
Alameda Coast Guard			–					4	–	2	–	1
Fort Douglas			–					4	–	2	–	1
300th Infantry			–					5	–	3	–	0
176th Infantry			–					4	–	3	–	0
Blackland AAF			–					4	–	3	–	0
Fort Sheridan			–					4	–	3	–	0
Fort Warren			–					4	–	3	–	0
Norman NAS			–					4	–	3	–	0
Charleston Coast Guard			–					5	–	4	–	0
Salt Lake AAB			–					4	–	3	–	2
124th Infantry			–					2	–	2	–	0
Camp Kilmer			–					2	–	2	–	0
Camp Lee			–					5	–	5	–	0
Logan Navy			–					2	–	2	–	0
Spokane Air Service			–					2	–	2	–	0
Camp Edwards			–					4	–	5	–	0
Curtis Bay Coast Guard			–					4	–	5	–	0
Saint Mary's Pre-Flight			–					3	–	4	–	1
Jacksonville NATTC			–					3	–	4	–	0
Richmond AAB			–					4	–	6	–	1
Atlantic City NAS			–					2	–	3	–	0
North Carolina Pre-Flight			–					2	–	4	–	1
Patterson Field			–					2	–	4	–	1
Bowman Field			–					2	–	4	–	0
Kirtland Field			–					1	–	2	–	0
Lakehurst NAS			–					2	–	4	–	0
Camp Grant			–					2	–	6	–	2
Lowry Field			–					1	–	3	–	0
Fort Monroe			–					3	–	7	–	0
Daniel Field			–					2	–	7	–	0
Camp Gordon			–					1	–	4	–	0
South Plains AAF			–					1	–	4	–	0
Greenville AAB			–					1	–	5	–	0
Ward Island Marines			–					1	–	5	–	0
Bryan AAF			–					1	–	6	–	0
Pocatello AAB			–					0	–	3	–	0
Norfolk Fleet Marines			–					0	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Fran Welch was the team's head coach. Players included Reino Nori (quarterback, Chicago Bears), Bernie Ruman (halfback, Arizona), Bob Ruman (quarterback/halfback), Keith Caywood, Bennie Sheridan, Corwin Clatt (fullback), Leonard Klusman, Daniel Carmichael, Bobby Ford (halfback, Mississippi State), Paul Duhart, Clifton Patton (guard), Sam Goldman, Bob Balaban (end), and George Wendall.

In the final Litkenhous Ratings, Fort Riley ranked 15th among the nation's college and service teams with a rating of 100.7.^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 12	at Great Lakes Navy	Ross Field Great Lakes, IL	L 19–20	15,000	^[3]
September 25	Lowry Field	Fort Riley, KS	W 60–20	10,000	^[4]
October 9	Norman NAS	Fort Riley, KS	W 39–0	1,500	^[5]
October 16	at Denver	Denver, CO	W 47–0	5,000	^[6]
October 23	No. 20 Camp Grant	Fort Riley, KS	T 13–13	10,000	^[7]
October 30	at No. 9 Iowa Pre-Flight	Iowa Stadium Iowa City, IA	L 2–19	< 3,500	^[8]
November 13	Fort Warren	Memorial Stadium Manhattan, KS	W 14–7	2,500	^[9]^[10]
November 20	at Camp Grant	Rockford, IL	W 10–6	7,000	^[11]
November 25	Kansas	Junction City, KS	W 22–7	4,000	^[12]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[13]

References

1. "1943 Fort Riley Centaurs Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
2. Litkenhous, E. E. (December 17, 1943). "Litkenhouse Selects U. S. Grid Leaders". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. p. 18. Retrieved April 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .
3. "Great Lakes Defeats Fort Riley, 20 to 19". Chicago Daily Tribune. September 13, 1943. p. 25 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Ruman Pitches as Fort Riley Swamps Lowry: Centaurs Rout Bombers of Denver by Lopsided 60 to 20 Score". Arizona Daily Star. September 26, 1943. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Rumans Star as Fort Riley Routs Norman Air Base, 39-0". Arizona Daily Star. October 10, 1943. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Ft. Riley Swamps Denver U. 47 to 0". Arizona Daily Star. October 18, 1943. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Fort Riley 13, Camp Grant 13". The Des Moines Register. October 24, 1943. p. 3-3 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Seahawks Toy With Fort Riley Team". The Democrat and Leader. October 31, 1943. p. 29 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Fort Riley Trims Broncos, 14-7". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. November 14, 1943. p. 6B. Retrieved April 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .
10. "Bob Ruman Stars As Fort Riley Beats Fort Warren, 14-7". Arizona Daily Star. November 14, 1943. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Centaurs Down Warriors, 10-6". The Star Press (Muncie, IN). November 21, 1943. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "K.U. Loses Turkey Day Tilt 22 to 7". The Iola Register. November 26, 1943. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
13. Daye, John (2014). Encyclopedia of Armed Forces Football. Haworth, New Jersey: St. Johann Press. p. 143. ISBN 978-1-937943-21-9.