1955 Michigan Wolverines football team

The 1955 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1955 Big Ten Conference football season. In their eighth season under head coach Bennie Oosterbaan, the Wolverines finished in third place in the Big Ten Conference with a record of 7–2. The team was ranked No. 12 and No. 13 in the final AP and UPI Polls. Left end Ron Kramer was selected as a first-team All-American.[1] Kramer and right end Tom Maentz were nicknamed the "touchdown twins,"[2] became the first Michigan football players to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated,[3] and were both first-team selections for the All-Big Ten team. Left halfback Terry Barr was selected as the team's most valuable player.[1]

1955 Michigan Wolverines football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 13
APNo. 12
1955 record7–2 (5–2 Big Ten)
Head coach
MVPTerry Barr
CaptainEd Meads
Home stadiumMichigan Stadium
1955 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 5 Ohio State $ 6 0 0  7 2 0
No. 2 Michigan State 5 1 0  9 1 0
No. 12 Michigan 5 2 0  7 2 0
Purdue 4 2 1  5 3 1
Illinois 3 3 1  5 3 1
Wisconsin 3 4 0  4 5 0
Iowa 2 3 1  3 5 1
Minnesota 2 5 0  3 6 0
Indiana 1 5 0  3 6 0
Northwestern 0 6 1  0 8 1
  • $ Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

In the second week of the season, the Wolverines defeated Michigan State, 14–7.[4] The game was the only loss of the season for Michigan State which was ranked No. 2 in the final AP and UPI polls. The Wolverines were ranked No. 2 in the country after defeating the Spartans and rose to No. 1 after defeating the No. 6 ranked Army football team by a 26–2 score the following week.[5] In late October 1955, quarterback Jim Maddock led a come-from-behind victory in a nationally televised game that included a 65-yard touchdown pass to Ron Kramer and a 60-yard touchdown pass to Tom Maentz.[6] After starting the season 6-0, the team lost to Illinois on November 5, 1955.[7] In the final game of the season, the Wolverines were favored but lost to Ohio State by a 17–0 score.[8]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 24Missouri*No. 4W 42–751,801[9]
October 1Michigan StateNo. 2
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)
W 14–797,239[10]
October 8No. 6 Army*No. 2
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 26–297,366[11]
October 15NorthwesternNo. 1
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 14–267,074[12]
October 22at MinnesotaNo. 1W 14–1364,434[13]
October 29IowaNo. 3
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 33–2173,275[14]
November 5at IllinoisNo. 3L 6–2558,968[15]
November 12IndianaNo. 7
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI
W 30–060,613[16]
November 19No. 9 Ohio StateNo. 6
  • Michigan Stadium
  • Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)
L 0–1797,369[17]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game

Players

Varsity letter winners

The following 39 players received varsity letters for their participation on the 1955 football team.[18]

Reserves

The following additional players were awarded reserve letters.[18]

Statistical leaders

Rushing

PlayerAttemptsNet yardsYards per attemptTouchdowns
Tony Branoff863874.53
Terry Barr632453.94
Lou Baldacci692183.24

Passing

PlayerAttemptsCompletionsInterceptionsComp %YardsYds/CompTDLong
Jim Maddock5220338.534317.1265
Jim Van Pelt219142.913915.4236
Terry Barr166237.511919.8057

Receiving

PlayerReceptionsYardsYds/RecpTDLong
Tom Maentz1125323.0360
Ron Kramer1222418.7465
Terry Barr47418.5040

Kickoff returns

PlayerReturnsYardsYds/ReturnTDLong
Tony Branoff614023.3027
Terry Barr48421.0025
Ed Hickey36321.0028

Punt returns

PlayerReturnsYardsYds/ReturnTDLong
Terry Barr1421915.6182
Jim Pace46917.3034
Tony Branoff8587.3011

Awards and honors

  • Captain: Ed Meads
  • All-Americans: Ron Kramer
  • All-Conference: Ron Kramer (AP and UPI first team), Tom Maentz (AP and UPI first team), Tony Branoff (UPI first team and AP honorable mention), Jim Bates (UPI second team and AP honorable mention)[19][20]
  • Most Valuable Player: Terry Barr
  • Meyer Morton Award: Jim Van Pelt

Coaching staff

References

  1. "1955 Football Team". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.
  2. John Barbour (October 30, 1955). "Coaches Heap Praise Upon Great Ends". Council Bluffs Nonpareil.
  3. Ernie Harwell (June 7, 2004). "Michigan Has Covered SI 67 Times". Detroit Free Press.
  4. "Michigan Defeats Michigan State in Big Ten Contest Before 97,239 Fans". The New York Times. October 2, 1955.
  5. "Michigan Routs Army Jinx, 26-2: Fumbles Fatal To Cadets". The Miami News (AP story). October 9, 1955.
  6. Edward Prell (October 30, 1955). "Michigan Beats Iowa, 33-21; Badgers, Illini Lose: WOLVERINES WIN WITH 4TH PERIOD RALLY; Maddock Tosses 2 Scoring Passes What a Finish! Michigan's 4th Period Rally Overcomes Iowa, 33 to 21". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. A1.
  7. "Rampaging Illini Upset Mighty Michigan: No. 3 Team Handed First Loss of Year". The Spencer Sunday Times (AP story). November 6, 1955.
  8. "Ohio State Upsets Michigan, 17-0". The New York Times. November 20, 1955.
  9. Lyall Smith (September 25, 1955). "Kramer 'Shows 'Em' As M Rips Missouri". Detroit Free Press. pp. C1, C5 via Newspapers.com.
  10. Hal Middlesworth (October 2, 1955). "U-M Frustrates Inspired Spartans". Detroit Free Press. pp. C1, C3 via Newspapers.com.
  11. Tommy Devine (October 9, 1955). "Even Davy Couldn't Pin This Barr: Barr's 2 Tallies Pace M". Detroit Free Press. pp. C1, C4 via Newspapers.com.
  12. Tommy Devine (October 16, 1955). "Michigan's Defense Beats Northwestern". Detroit Free Press. pp. C1, C4 via Newspapers.com.
  13. Charles Johnson (October 23, 1955). "Michigan 14, Minnesota 13: Wolverines Rally from 13-0 First Quarter Deficit for Victory". Minneapolis Sunday Tribune. pp. Sports 1, 5 via Newspapers.com.
  14. Lyall Smith (October 30, 1955). "20 Points in 9 Minutes; U-M by a Miracle, 33-21!". Detroit Free Press. pp. D1, D3 via Newspapers.com.
  15. Fred Young (November 6, 1955). "Illinois Stuns Michigan With 25-6 Upset Victory". The Pantagraph. p. 29 via Newspapers.com.
  16. Tommy Devine (November 13, 1955). "Wolverines Conquer Indiana Like Champs". Detroit Free Press. pp. D1, D4 via Newspapers.com.
  17. "Ohio State Humbles Michigan, 17-0: 97,369 See Contest". Democrat and Chronicle. November 20, 1955. p. D1 via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Coaches Award 38 Varsity Letters". The Michigan Daily. November 23, 1955. p. 7 via Bentley Historical Library.
  19. Ed Sainsbury (November 22, 1955). "Ohio State Dominates Big Ten All-Conference". Warsaw Times Union (UPI story).
  20. "'55 All-Big Ten Team". The Portsmouth Times (AP story). November 22, 1955.
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