1945 College Football All-America Team

The 1945 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1945. The nine selectors recognized by the NCAA as "official" for the 1945 season are (1) Collier's Weekly, as selected by Grantland Rice, (2) the Associated Press, (3) the United Press, (4) the All-America Board, (5) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), (6) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), (7) the International News Service (INS), (8) Look magazine, (9) the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) and (10) the Sporting News.

Consensus All-Americans

For the year 1945, the NCAA recognizes 10 published All-American teams as "official" designations for purposes of its consensus determinations. The following chart identifies the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans and displays which first-team designations they received.

Name	Position	School	Number	Official selectors	Other selectors
Glenn Davis	Halfback	Army	10/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL, FWAA, INS, LK, NEA, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NL, NYS, OF, WC, YA
Doc Blanchard	Fullback	Army	10/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL, FWAA, INS, LK, NEA, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NL NYS, OF, WC, YA
Tex Coulter	Tackle	Army	9/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL FWAA, INS, NEA, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NL, NYS, OF, WC
Warren Amling	Guard	Ohio State	9/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL, FWAA, INS, LK, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NL, NYS, OF, WC
Herman Wedemeyer	Halfback	St. Mary's (CA)	9/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL, FWAA, INS, LK, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NL, OF, WC
John Green	Guard	Army	7/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL, FWAA, SN, UP	CNS, NYS, OF, WC
George Savitsky	Tackle	Penn	7/10	AAB, AFCA, COL, FWAA, LK, SN, UP	CNS, CP, WC
Bob Fenimore	Halfback	Oklahoma St.	7/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, FWAA, INS, SN, UP	WC
Dick Duden	End	Navy	6/10	AAB, AFCA, AP, COL, FWAA, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NL, NYS, OF WC, YA
Vaughn Mancha	Center	Alabama	6/10	AP, COL, FWAA, INS, SN, UP	CNS, CP, NYS, OF, YA
Max Morris	End	Northwestern	3/10	AAB, AFCA, INS	WC, YA
Hub Bechtol	End	Texas	3/10	AP, COL, LK	CNS
Bob Ravensberg	End	Indiana	3/10	FWAA, LK, SN	CP
Harry Gilmer^[1]	Quarterback	Alabama	3/10	COL, LK, SN	CNS, NL, NYS, OF

All-American selections for 1945

Ends

Dick Duden, Navy (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-2; SN; UP-1; YA; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; NYS; OF-1; WC-1)
Hub Bechtol, Texas (College Football Hall of Fame) (AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-2; LK; CNS-1; CP-2)
Bob Ravensberg, Indiana (UP-2; FWAA-1; SN; CP-1; INS-2; LK; CNS-2)
Max Morris, Northwestern (AAB; AFCA; AP-2; FWAA-2; INS-1; UP-2; YA; CP-2; WC-1)
Hank Foldberg, Army (AP-2; INS-1; NEA-1; UP-1; CNS-2; CP-3; NYS; OF-1)
Henry Walker, Virginia (AP-3)
Neill Armstrong, Oklahoma A&M (AP-3)
Paul Walker, Yale (CP-3; NL)
Richard Pitzer, Army (NEA-1)

Tackles

Tex Coulter, Army (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; NEA-1; SN; UP-1; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; NYS; OF-1; WC-1)
George Savitsky, Penn (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-3; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-2; LK; SN; UP-1; CNS-1; CP-1; WC-1)
Albert Nemetz, Army (AP-1; FWAA-2; INS-2; NEA-1; UP-2; YA; NYS; CNS-2)
Tom Hughes, Purdue (LK; FWAA-2; UP-2; CP-2; OF-1; CNS-2; NL)
Thomas Dean, Southern Methodist Univ. (AP-2; YA)
Mike Castronis, Georgia (INS-1)
Jim Kekeris, Missouri (AP-2; CP-2)
Clarence Esser, Wisconsin (AP-3)
Buster McClure, Nevada (CP-3)
Monte Moncrief, Texas A&M (CP-3)

Guards

Warren Amling, Ohio State (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; LK; SN; UP-1; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; NYS; OF-1; WC-1)
John Green, Army (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; SN; UP-1; CNS-1; CP-3; NEA-1; YA; NYS; OF-1; WC-1)
Al Sparlis, UCLA (College Football Hall of Fame) (AP-3; INS-2; LK; CNS-2; CP-1)
John Mastrangelo, Notre Dame (AP-2; FWAA-2; INS-1; UP-2; YA; CNS-2; CP-2)
James Carrington, Navy (FWAA-2; INS-2; UP-2)
Joseph Dickinson, Penn (AP-2; CP-2)
Jim Lecture, Northwestern (AP-3; CP-3)
Arthur Gerometta, Army (NEA-1)
Hills, Georgia Tech (NL)

Centers

Vaughn Mancha, Alabama (College Football Hall of Fame) (AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; SN; UP-1; YA; CNS-1; CP-1; NYS; OF-1)
Dick Scott, Navy (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-2; FWAA-2; INS-2; LK; UP-2; CNS-2; CP-2; NL; WC-1)
Ralph Jenkins, Clemson (AP-3)
Harold Watts, Michigan (CP-3)
Herschel Fuson, Army (NEA-1)

Quarterbacks

Harry Gilmer, Alabama (College Football Hall of Fame) (AP-2; COL-1; INS-2; LK; UP-2; FWAA-2; SN; UP-2; CNS-1; CP-2; NL; NYS; OF-1 [qb])
Frank Dancewicz, Notre Dame (AP-2; FWAA-2; UP-2; CNS-2; CP-1)
Arnold Tucker, Army (College Football Hall of Fame) (CP-3; INS-2; NEA-1)
Gene Rossides, Columbia (CP-3)

Halfbacks

Glenn Davis, Army (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; LK; NEA-1; SN; UP-1; YA; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; NYS; OF-1; WC-1)
Herman Wedemeyer, St. Mary's (Calif.) (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; LK; SN; UP-1; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; OF-1; WC-1)
Bob Fenimore, Oklahoma State (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; SN; UP-1; CP-2; CNS-2; WC-1)
Jake Leicht, Oregon (YA; NYS)
George Taliaferro, Indiana (AP-3; INS-2; CP-3; CNS-2)
Clyde Scott, Navy (College Football Hall of Fame) (AP-3; UP-2)
Stan Kozlowski, Holy Cross (AP-3; CP-2)
Robert Evans, Penn (AP-3)
Shorty McWilliams, Army (NEA-1)

Fullbacks

Doc Blanchard, Army (College Football Hall of Fame) (AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; LK; NEA-1; SN; UP-1; YA; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; NYS; OF-1; WC-1)
Pete Pihos, Indiana (College and Pro Football Hall of Fame) (AP-2; FWAA-2; UP-2; CNS-2; CP-2; YA)
Ollie Cline, Ohio State (AP-2; FWAA-2)
Walt Schlinkman, Texas Tech (INS-2)
Ed Cody, Purdue (CP-3)

Black college All-Americans

During the 1940s, African-Americans were excluded from many college football programs and played the game at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). The major All-America selectors in these years did not include players from HBCUs. However, The Pittsburgh Courier each year selected its own All-America team from players at the HBCUS. The players chosen for 1946 were:

Clarence Harkings, Langston, end
Talmadge Owen, Clark, end
James Moore, Wilberforce, tackle
Wilfred Rawl, West Virginia State, tackle
Richard Bolton, Clark, guard
Willie Moses, Wiley, guard
Isaiah Wilson, West Virginia State, center
Leroy Cromartie, Florida A&M, back
Bill Bass, Tennessee A&I, back
Shelly Ross, Wiley, back
Bernard Ingraham, Florida A&M, back

^[2]

Key

Bold – Consensus All-American^[3]
-1 – First-team selection
-2 – Second-team selection
-3 – Third-team selection

Official selectors

AAB = All-America Board^[4]
AFCA = American Football Coaches Association^[4]
AP = Associated Press^[5]
COL = Collier's Weekly as selected by Grantland Rice^[6]
FWAA = Football Writers Association of America^[7]
INS = International News Service, "selected on the basis of ballots and information gathered from International News Service sports writers and football authorities all over the nation"^[8]
LK = Look magazine^[9]
NEA = Newspaper Enterprise Association. In a departure from normal practice, the NEA named the starters from the Army football team, which had won 17 straight games, as its All-American team for 1945I^[10]
SN = Sporting News, selected by a poll of 163 sports writers and sportscasters^[11]
UP = United Press^[12]

Other selectors

CNS = Consensus All-American team picked based on assigning points to players selected as All-Americans by Oscar Fraley, Christy Walsh, United Press, Look, New York Sun, New York News, International News, Associated Press, Sporting News, and Collier's-Rice^[9]
CP = Central Press Association, selected for the 15th straight year with the aid of the captains of the leading college teams^[13]
NL = Navy Log^[14]
NYS = New York Sun^[9]
OF = Oscar Fraley, United Press sports writer^[15]
WC = Walter Camp Football Foundation^[16]
YA = Yank, the Army Weekly, based on a poll of 25 of the country's most widely known college football coaches^[17]

References

^ The NCAA does not recognize Gilmer, or any other quarterback, as a consensus All-American for 1945.
^ "Pittsburgh Courier's All-America for 1945". The Pittsburgh Courier. December 22, 1945. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 8. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
^ ^a ^b ESPN College Football Encyclopedia. ESPN Books. 2005. p. 1200. ISBN 1401337031.
^ "Here's AP All-America". Abilene Reporter-News. December 11, 1945.
^ "Army Dominates Colliers' 'All' Team". Dunkirk Evening Observer. December 7, 1945.
^ "Blanchard Top Man in Critics' Poll". Los Angeles Times. December 18, 1945.
^ Lawton Carver (December 2, 1945). "Warren Amling On INS '45 All-American Football Team". Lima News.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Army Wins 4 Posts On Consensus All-America Team". Ogden Standard-Examiner. December 23, 1945.
^ "Army's All Star Team is All American For NEA". Chester Times. November 27, 1945.
^ "Wedemeyer Also Makes Sporting News Eleven". Oakland Tribune. December 5, 1945.
^ Leo H. Peterson (December 5, 1945). "Wedemeyer on United Press All-American". Oakland Tribune.
^ Walter Johns (December 5, 1945). "Army Given Three Places on Captains' All-American". The Wisconsin State Journal.
^ "All-America Addendum" (PDF). College Football Historical Society Newsletter. May 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 13, 2010. Retrieved March 5, 2010.
^ Oscar Fraley (November 7, 1945). "Today's Sports Parade". Middlesboro Daily News.
^ "Walter Camp Football Foundation". Archived from the original on March 30, 2009.
^ "Yank Magazine Has All-American Team". Morning Herald. Hagerstown, MD. December 21, 1945.

[1] The NCAA does not recognize Gilmer, or any other quarterback, as a consensus All-American for 1945.

[2] "Pittsburgh Courier's All-America for 1945". The Pittsburgh Courier. December 22, 1945. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.

[CAA-3] "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 8. Retrieved October 21, 2017.

[ESPN-4] ESPN College Football Encyclopedia. ESPN Books. 2005. p. 1200. ISBN 1401337031.

[5] "Here's AP All-America". Abilene Reporter-News. December 11, 1945.

[6] "Army Dominates Colliers' 'All' Team". Dunkirk Evening Observer. December 7, 1945.

[7] "Blanchard Top Man in Critics' Poll". Los Angeles Times. December 18, 1945.

[8] Lawton Carver (December 2, 1945). "Warren Amling On INS '45 All-American Football Team". Lima News.

[CNS-9] "Army Wins 4 Posts On Consensus All-America Team". Ogden Standard-Examiner. December 23, 1945.

[10] "Army's All Star Team is All American For NEA". Chester Times. November 27, 1945.

[11] "Wedemeyer Also Makes Sporting News Eleven". Oakland Tribune. December 5, 1945.

[12] Leo H. Peterson (December 5, 1945). "Wedemeyer on United Press All-American". Oakland Tribune.

[13] Walter Johns (December 5, 1945). "Army Given Three Places on Captains' All-American". The Wisconsin State Journal.

[CF5-14] "All-America Addendum" (PDF). College Football Historical Society Newsletter. May 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 13, 2010. Retrieved March 5, 2010.

[15] Oscar Fraley (November 7, 1945). "Today's Sports Parade". Middlesboro Daily News.

[16] "Walter Camp Football Foundation". Archived from the original on March 30, 2009.

[17] "Yank Magazine Has All-American Team". Morning Herald. Hagerstown, MD. December 21, 1945.

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v t e 1945 College Football All-America Team consensus selections
Backfield	HB Glenn Davis HB Bob Fenimore HB Herman Wedemeyer FB Doc Blanchard
Line	E Hub Bechtol E Dick Duden E Max Morris E Bob Ravensberg T Tex Coulter T George Savitsky G Warren Amling G John Green C Vaughn Mancha