1953 Michigan Wolverines football team

The 1953 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1953 Big Ten Conference football season. In its sixth year under head coach Bennie Oosterbaan, Michigan compiled a 6–3 record (3–3 against conference opponents), tied for fifth place in the Big Ten, outscored opponents by a combined total of 163 to 101, and was ranked No. 20 in the final AP Poll and No. 19 in the Coaches Polls.[1][2]

1953 Michigan Wolverines football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 19
APNo. 20
1953 record6–3 (3–3 Big Ten)
Head coach
MVPTony Branoff
CaptainDick O'Shaughnessy
Home stadiumMichigan Stadium
1953 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 3 Michigan State + 5 1 0  9 1 0
No. 7 Illinois + 5 1 0  7 1 1
No. 15 Wisconsin 4 1 1  6 2 1
Ohio State 4 3 0  6 3 0
Minnesota 3 3 1  4 4 1
No. 20 Michigan 3 3 0  6 3 0
No. 9 Iowa 3 3 0  5 3 1
Purdue 2 4 0  2 7 0
Indiana 1 5 0  2 7 0
Northwestern 0 6 0  3 6 0
  • + Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

Center Dick O'Shaughnessy was the team captain, and right halfback Tony Branoff received the team's most valuable player award.[2] Two Michigan players received All-Big Ten honors: left end Bob Topp was selected by the Associated Press as a first-team player, and left halfback Ted Kress.[2][3]

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Duncan McDonald with 293 passing yards, Tony Branoff with 501 rushing yards, and Bob Topp with 331 receiving yards.[4]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendance
September 26Washington*W 50–044,086
October 3Tulane*No. 4
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 26–751,960
October 10IowaNo. 5
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 14–1349,551
October 17NorthwesternNo. 5
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 20–1264,420
October 24at MinnesotaNo. 5L 0–2262,795
October 31Penn*No. 16
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 24–1456,795
November 7at No. 4 IllinoisNo. 17L 3–1969,507
November 14at No. 4 Michigan StateL 6–1451,421
November 21Ohio State
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)
W 20–087,048
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game

[1][2]

Statistical leaders

Michigan's individual statistical leaders for the 1953 season include those listed below.[4][5]

Rushing

PlayerAttemptsNet yardsYards per attemptTouchdowns
Tony Branoff1005015.05
Ted Kress1013393.45
Bob Hurley472826.01

Passing

PlayerAttemptsCompletionsInterceptionsComp %YardsYds/CompTDLong
Duncan McDonald4620343.529314.7449
Lou Baldacci5121641.228513.6136
Ted Kress4319744.223812.5144

Receiving

PlayerReceptionsYardsYds/RecpTDLong
Bob Topp2333114.4266
Gene Knutson1120118.3133
Tony Branoff1115113.7144

Kickoff returns

PlayerReturnsYardsYds/ReturnTDLong
Ted Kress1020320.3033
Tony Branoff613021.7028

Punt returns

PlayerReturnsYardsYds/ReturnTDLong
Tony Branoff89011.3018
Ted Kress12635.3016

Personnel

Letter winners

Dick O'Shaughnessy, captain of the 1953 team

The following 31 players received varsity letters for their participation on the 1953 team.[6] Players who started at least four games are shown with their names in bold.[2]

  • Fred Baer, 5'11", 180 pounds, junior, LaGrange, IL - fullback
  • Lou Baldacci, 6'0", 205 pounds, sophomore, Akron, OH - started 9 games at quarterback
  • James T. Balog, 6'3", 210 pounds, senior, Wheaton, IL - started 9 games at left tackle
  • Richard E. Balzhiser,[7] 6'0", 186 pounds, senior, Wheaton, IL - started 9 games at fullback
  • Richard A. Beison, 6'0", 200 pounds, senior, East Chicago, IN - started 9 games at right guard
  • Donald C. Bennett, 6'2", 195 pounds, senior, Chicago - tackle
  • Tony Branoff, 5'11", 180 pounds, sophomore, Flint, MI - started 9 games at right halfback
  • Theodore J. Cachey, 5'11", 185 pounds, senior, Chicago - guard
  • J. Daniel Cline, 5'10", 168 pounds, junior, Brockport, NY - halfback
  • Donald Dugger, 5'10", 185 pounds, senior, Charleston, WV - started 9 games at left end
  • George S. Dutter, 6'2", 190 pounds, senior, Fort Wayne, IN - end
  • James W. Fox, 6'0", 185 pounds, sophomore, Saginaw, MI - guard
  • H. Ronald Geyer, 6'2", 220 pounds, junior, Toledo, OH - tackle
  • Edward L. Hickey, 5'8", 160 pounds, senior, Anaconda, MT - halfback
  • Robert S. Hurley, 5'10", 180 pounds, senior, Alamosa, CO- fullback
  • Raymond K. Kenaga, 5'11", 170 pounds, junior, Sterling, IL - quarterback
  • Eugene P. Knutson, 6'4", 210 pounds, senior, Beloit, WI - started 8 games at right end
  • William P. Kolesar, 6'0", 190 pounds, sophomore, Mentor, OH - tackle
  • Ted Kress, 5'11", 175 pounds, senior, Kansas City, MO - started 9 games at left halfback
  • Duncan B. McDonald, 6'0", 175 pounds, junior, Flint, MI - quarterback
  • G. Edgar Meads, 6'0", 190 pounds, sophomore, Oxford, MI - guard
  • John M. Morrow, 6'2", 220 pounds, sophomore, Ann Arbor, MI - started 4 games at center
  • Dick O'Shaughnessy, 5'11", 190 pounds, senior, Seaford, NY - started 5 games at center
  • H. John Peckham Jr., 6'2", 220 pounds, sophomore, Sioux Falls, SD - center
  • Thad C. Stanford, 6'0", 175 pounds, senior, Midland, MI - end
  • Dick Strozewski, 6'0", 205 pounds, senior, South Bend, IN - started 9 games at left tackle
  • Bob Topp, 6'2", 190 pounds, senior, Kalamazoo, MI - started 8 games at left end, 1 game at right end
  • John J. Veselenak, 6'2", 190 pounds, junior, Flint, MI - end
  • Art Walker, 5'11" 200 pounds, junior, South Haven, MI - tackle
  • Gerald H. Williams, 6'2", 188 pounds, sophomore, Flint, MI - started 1 game at left end
  • Ronald M. Williams, 5'9", 185 pounds, senior, Massillon, OH - guard

Coaches and staff

Michigan's 1953 coaching, training, and support staff included the following persons.[2]

Oosterbaan lifted to players' shoulders after 20-0 win over Ohio State
  • Trainer: Jim Hunt
  • Manager: Richard Petrie

Awards and honors

Tony Branoff, 1954 Most Valuable Player

Honors and awards for the 1953 season went to the following individuals.[2]

Notes

  1. "1953 Michigan Wolverines Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  2. "1953 Football Team". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  3. "Coaches Pick Gopher's Giel". Ludington Daily News. November 24, 1953. p. 6.
  4. "1953 Michigan Wolverines Statistics". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  5. "Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2017.(statistics retrieved by entering "1953" in the box for "Games & Totals by Season" and then, at the next screen, choosing "Display Season Totals")
  6. "31 Wolverines Given Major Grid Letters". The Michigan Daily. November 24, 1953. p. 3.
  7. Balzhiser was the first University of Michigan athlete to be inducted into the Academic All-America Hall of Fame.
  8. "Robinson, Orwig In New Grid Jobs". March 26, 1953. p. 3 via Bentley Historical Library.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.