1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

The 1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team was an American football team that represented the University of Notre Dame as an independent during the 1946 college football season. In their fourth year under head coach Frank Leahy, the Irish compiled an 8–0–1 and were ranked No. 1 in the final AP Poll.^[1] The season also produced the 1946 Army vs. Notre Dame football game, a scoreless tie between undefeated teams ranked No. 1 and No. 2.

1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
AP Poll national champion
Conference	Independent
Ranking
AP	No. 1
Record	8–0–1
Head coach	Frank Leahy (4th season)
Offensive scheme	T formation
Captain	Game captains
Home stadium	Notre Dame Stadium
Seasons ← 1945 1947 →

1946 Midwestern major college football independents records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Notre Dame			–					8	–	0	–	1
Detroit			–					6	–	4	–	0
Michigan State			–					5	–	5	–	0
Marquette			–					4	–	5	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1946 Notre Dame team dominated both on defense and offense, ranking first nationally in total offense (441.3 yards per game), rushing offense (340.1 yards per game), and total defense (allowing 141.7 yards per game).^[2] Despite ranking as the nation's top rushing offense, no Notre Dame player ranked among the national rushing leaders, as multiple backs shared the rushing load, including Emil Sitko (54 carries, 346 yards), Terry Brennan (74 carries, 329 yards), Jim Mello (61 carries, 307 yards), Bill Gompers (51 carries, 279 yards), and John Panelli (58 carries, 265 yards).^[3]

Two Notre Dame players, quarterback Johnny Lujack and tackle George Connor, were consensus first-team picks for the 1946 All-America college football team.^[4] Center George Strohmeyer and guard John Mastrangelo also received first-team All-America honors from multiple selectors.^[5]

From 1946 to 1949, Notre Dame compiled a 36-0-2 record and claims three national championships.^[1] Sports Illustrated rated these Notre Dame teams as the second best sports dynasty (professional or collegiate) of the 20th century^[6] and second greatest college football dynasty.^[7]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 28	at Illinois		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 26–6	75,119	^[8]
October 5	Pittsburgh		Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	W 33–0	50,368	^[9]
October 12	Purdue	No. 3	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	W 49–6	55,452	^[10]
October 26	at No. 17 Iowa	No. 2	Iowa Stadium Iowa City, IA	W 41–6	52,311	^[11]
November 2	vs. Navy	No. 2	Municipal Stadium Baltimore, MD (rivalry)	W 28–0	65,000	^[12]
November 9	vs. No. 1 Army	No. 2	Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY (rivalry)	T 0–0	74,121	^[13]
November 16	Northwestern	No. 2	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	W 27–0	58,000	^[14]
November 23	at Tulane	No. 2	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	W 41–0	65,841	^[15]
November 30	No. 16 USC	No. 2	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	W 26–6	56,000	^[16]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

See also: 1946 NCAA football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes

	Week
Poll	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Final
AP	3 (15⅓)	2 (31)	2 (21¼)	2 (61)	2 (51)	2 (49)	2 (16)	2 (38)	1 (104½)

Post-season

Award winners

• George Connor - Outland Trophy^[17]

All-Americans:

Name	AP	UP	NEA	INS	COL	AA	SN	L	FC
† John Lujack, QB	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
‡ George Connor, T	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	1
John Monstrangelo, G	2	2		1	1		1
George Strohmeyer, C		2		1			1	1	3
†denotes unanimous selection ‡denotes consensus selection       Source:^[1]

College Football Hall of Fame Inductees:

Name	Position	Year Inducted
George Connor	Tackle	1963
Zygmont "Ziggy" Czarobski	Tackle	1977
Bill Fischer	Tackle/Guard	1983
Leon Hart	End	1973
Frank Leahy	Coach	1970
Johnny Lujack	Quarterback	1960
Jim Martin	End/Tackle	1995
Emil "Red" Sitko	Halfback/Fullback	1984

Notre Dame leads all universities in players inducted.^[18]

1947 NFL draft

Main article: 1947 NFL Draft

The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Fighting Irish were selected.^[19]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
3	16	John Mastrangelo	Tackle	Pittsburgh Steelers
6	37	George Sullivan	End	Boston Yanks
13	111	Bob Skoglund	Defensive end	Green Bay Packers
15	134	John Fallon	Tackle	New York Giants
27	250	Bob Palladino	Back	Green Bay Packers

References

1. . und.cstv.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2008. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
2. W.J. Bingham, ed. (1947). The Official National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Guide including the Official Rules 1947. A.S. Barnes and Company. pp. 73–74.
3. "1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
4. "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 8. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
5. ESPN College Football Encyclopedia. ESPN Books. 2005. p. 1204. ISBN 1401337031.
6. "SI's Top 20 Dynasties of the 20th Century". sportsillustrated.cnn.com. June 3, 1999. from the original on January 29, 2009. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
7. "College Football's 12 Greatest Dynasties". sportsillustrated.cnn.com. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
8. Bert Bertine (September 29, 1946). "Notre Dame Halts Young, Overpowers Illinois, 26-6: Record 75,119 Watches Irish Dominate Battle". Decatur Sunday Herald and Review. pp. 29, 30 – via Newspapers.com.
9. Jim Costin (October 6, 1946). "N.D. Is Unimpressive in Trampling Pitt 33-0: Running Game Is Throttled by Young Rivals; Irish Forced to Take to Air to Win in Home Opener". The South Bend Tribune. p. III-1 – via Newspapers.com.
10. Harold Harrison (October 13, 1946). "Notre Dame Raps Purdue: Irish Use 4 Elevens For 49-6 Verdict; Lacing Worst Of 18-Game Series Between Schools". The Indianapolis Star. pp. 41, 42. Retrieved April 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
11. Bert McGrane (October 27, 1946). "Notre Dame Punishes Iowa, 41-6: Lujack Fires Irish Blasts With Passes; Fumbles Foil Few Hawk Chances". The Des Moines Register. pp. 1S, 2S. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Craig E. Taylor (November 3, 1946). "Notre Dame Eleven Tops Navy by 28-0: 65,000 See Irish Team's Strength Overwhelm Middies in Stadium". The Baltimore Sun. pp. Main 1, Sports 2 – via Newspapers.com.
13. Gene Ward (November 10, 1946). "Army, Irish Battle To Scoreless Tie". New York Daily News. p. 96 – via Newspapers.com.
14. Wilfrid Smith (November 17, 1946). "Notre Dame Whips N. U., 27 to 0: Irish Power Drives Crush Wildcat Hopes; 58,000 Defy Rain at South Bend". Chicago Tribune. pp. II-1, II-3 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "Fighting Irish overwhelms Green Wave, 41–0, before 70,000". Evansville Press. November 24, 1946. Retrieved April 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
16. Jim Costin (December 1, 1946). "Notre Dame Eleven Wins National Title: Defeats USC, 26-6, To Remain Unbeaten". The South Bend Tribune. pp. III-1, III-8 – via Newspapers.com.
17. "ALL-TIME OUTLAND TROPHY WINNERS". Football Writers Association of America. from the original on January 2, 2009. Retrieved January 1, 2009.
18. "Hall of Fame: Select group by school". College Football Hall of Fame. Football Foundation. Retrieved December 30, 2008.
19. "1947 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 29, 2020.