1951 College Football National Championship

Maryland 1951

Maryland's Season

The Sugar Bowl

#1 Tennessee was carrying a 20 game winning streak into the Sugar Bowl. They were the defending national champions, and no one had come within a touchdown of them this season (average score 37-9). For Maryland's part, they had a 14 game unbeaten streak going (which would reach 22 games), and they had smashed all but one of their opponents this season (average score 39-7). The Washington Post called this game a second "Game of the Century" (Army-Notre Dame '46 presumably considered the first here, though other games had carried the moniker before that). Most writers, however, were predicting a rout for Tennessee, and the Volunteers were a 7 point favorite.

The game was a rout all right, but for Maryland. Jim Tatum installed an 8-in-the-box defense, as they call it today, with lots of stunts, to shut down Tennessee's running game and to pressure the passer should they go to the air. This defense was spectacularly successful. Tennessee hadn't passed much this season, and when Maryland shut down their running game and they had to pass, their lack of experience with the passing game combined with the aggressive pass rush from Maryland resulted in plenty of lost yardage and 4 interceptions.

Maryland opened a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter. Tennessee fumbled away the ensuing kickoff at their own 13, Maryland tossed a touchdown pass from there, and it was 14-0. Maryland soon added a 46 yard interception return for a touchdown, and the game was pretty much over at 21-0. Tennessee didn't quit, though, throwing a short touchdown pass late in the first half to make it 21-6.



This is a great photograph. As you can see on the scoreboard in the background, Maryland was up 21-0 when this picture was snapped on their sideline, but this is not a team celebrating (you can see what they look like celebrating a couple photos down). Just look at the intensity on their faces as they watch Tennessee about to cut into their lead right before the half. Hall of Fame guard Bob Ward is in the center, with his hand on Hall of Fame quarterback Jack Scarbath's knee.



Maryland drove to a touchdown dive by quarterback Jack Scarbath (pictured above, and also at the top of this article) to make it 28-6 in the 3rd quarter, and the Volunteers scored in the 4th quarter to make the final score 28-13. Maryland outgained Tennessee 351 yards to 156, and they outrushed them 289 to 81. It was a stunning performance, though Maryland wasn't perfect: they fumbled 7 times, losing 3, and they were penalized 12 times for 120 yards (Tennessee 2-20). Maryland halfback Ed Fullerton scored touchdowns on a run and an interception return, and he threw a touchdown pass. Fullback Ed Modzelewski rushed for 153 yards.



That finished Tennessee at 10-1, and I have them ranked #2 for 1951. 10-0 Maryland is #1, and 9-0 Michigan State is #3.

Michigan State 1951

Michigan State was coached by Clarence "Biggie" Munn (pictured at left), a Minnesota grad who took Michigan State from nowhere to the top of the college football world rather quickly. Prior to Munn, Michigan State's football history was rather thin, though not so thin as Maryland's. MSU had fielded top 25 caliber teams 1908-1914, and they had even produced a strong MNC candidate in 1913, but between 1914 and Munn's hiring in 1947, MSU fielded just one top 25 caliber team, with a 7-1 finish in 1932. They also went 8-1 in 1934, but that team beat no one of value, struggled to get by weak opponents, and lost to the only good team they played (6-2 Syracuse).

Munn went 7-2 in his first season at MSU, 1947, and I have that team ranked #25 in that season's fixed and expanded AP poll top 25. All of the rest of his teams finished ranked in the original AP poll. His last 4 teams finished ranked in the top 10, and his 1952 team finished #1. His head coaching career was short but spectacular, 54-9-2 at MSU 1947-1953. The school claims 2 MNCs for him, this season and the next, both 9-0 campaigns, part of a 28 game winning streak 1950-1953. He won the Big 10 in the school's debut season in the conference in 1953. He then retired as coach and became the athletic director 1954-1971, overseeing more national championships won by his former assistant coach, Duffy Daugherty. 1950-1966 was the golden age for Michigan State football, and the only time it has been an elite program

Michigan State's Season

While Maryland's season was nearly drama-free, Michigan State's road to 9-0 was fraught with drama, especially in the first half of the season. The trouble began right out of the gate, in their opener hosting 4-6 Oregon State. Michigan State won just 6-0 on a broken play in the 2nd quarter. On 4th and goal from the OSU 1 yard line, the snap hit MSU fullback Dick Panin in the chest and bounced high in the air. Quarterback Al Dorow retrieved the ball and continued the called play, a lateral to halfback Don McAuliffe, who went wide for the winning touchdown (pictured above). In the 3rd quarter, OSU drove 63 yards to the MSU 11 before they were stopped. Another promising Beaver drive was halted by a Jim Ellis interception at the MSU 1 yard line. Ellis collected 2 more interceptions on Michigan State's side of the field before the game was over, and he also did his part for MSU field position by returning punts for 30 and 40 yards in this game.

The game was statistically even, Michigan State gaining 215 yards of offense, Oregon State 207. Michigan State was plagued by fumbles, 8 of them, but they only lost 2, and that enabled them to win the turnover battle 5-4. Finishing 4-6, Oregon State was obviously not good, but they were often trouble for Michigan State. They upset MSU 25-20 in 1949, and in 1952, when MSU would go 9-0 again, the Spartans' closest game was 17-14 over Oregon State.



Michigan State had much less trouble winning 25-0 in their next game at rival 4-5 Michigan (the game pictured above), but they found themselves right back in the frying pan at Ohio State the week after that.

The Transcontinental Pass

This was the first season for Hall of Fame coach Woody Hayes at Ohio State. The Buckeyes featured 1950 Heisman-winning halfback Vic Janowicz, but Hayes switched OSU to the T-formation this season, and both Janowicz and the team struggled with the transition. This was only the second-ever football meeting between the 2 schools, the previous being a 35-20 win for MSU in 1912. Michigan State was ranked #1 in the AP poll, and 82,000 fans filled Ohio Stadium hoping to see their team pull off a big upset. The Buckeyes didn't quite get that done, but they did give Michigan State their toughest game of the year.

Michigan State end Bob Carey kicked a 26 yard field goal in the opening quarter. Ohio State came right back through the air, driving 72 yards in 5 plays, the last a 19 yard touchdown pass, and the Buckeyes led 7-3. An 83 yard Michigan State drive was halted at the OSU 5 early in the 2nd quarter, but the field position gain soon led to a 37 yard drive to regain the lead 10-7. Don McAuliffe scored that touchdown on a plunge into the line. Ohio State came right back again, driving 73 yards to a Janowicz touchdown for a 13-10 halftime lead. The key play in that drive was a Janowicz catch for 40 yards that put OSU at the MSU 6 yard line.

Early in the 4th quarter, Ohio State intercepted a pass at midfield, then drove to a 24 yard touchdown pass for a 20-10 lead. At this point, things looked very grim for Michigan State. Undaunted, MSU quarterback Al Dorow hit passes of 17, 9, 27, and 11 yards, and on 4th down he hit a 1 yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 20-17. OSU still looked good to close out the game for the win, but they lost a fumble at their own 46, and that opened the door for Michigan State to pull out a miracle in the game's closing minutes. On 4th down at the Ohio State 28 yard line, fullback Evan Slonac took the snap and faked a line plunge, then handed the ball to quarterback Al Dorow. Dorow lateraled the ball to sophomore halfback Tom Yewcic, who ran right, taking the OSU defenders with him. But Yewcic stopped and threw the ball back all the way across the field to Al Dorow (pictured catching the pass below), who had made his way left to the 11 yard line. He evaded 2 late-arriving defenders down the sideline and fell into the end zone for the 24-20 win.



This play became known as the "Transcontinental Pass," and it is one of the most famous plays in Michigan State football history. Biggie Munn told the press after the game that he concocted the play on the bench right before it was run, but in an interview years later, Tom Yewcic said that they had run the play a few times in practice beforehand. This was Yewcic's first collegiate pass, and in fact it was his first play on offense for MSU. He would be MSU's quarterback for their 9-0 run in 1952. Interestingly, the Transcontinental Pass is extremely similar to the most famous play in Minnesota football history. Minnesota had used the play to beat Pittsburgh in 1934, also on 4th down, from a similar spot on the field, and late in the game. This was a few years after MSU coach Biggie Munn had graduated from Minnesota, but I am sure that that is where the play came from. Minnesota went on to finish 8-0 and win the MNC that year.

Michigan State outgained OSU 401 yards to 370, though they gave that advantage away with 113 yards of penalties to 36 for OSU. They had just 1 turnover, OSU 3. Ohio State was very erratic this season. They tied 7-1-1 Wisconsin (#7) on the road in their next game, then lost 32-10 at home to 2-7 Indiana the week after that. They later tied 9-0-1 Illinois (#4), but followed that up with a loss to 4-5 Michigan (unranked), finishing them at 4-3-2. Michigan State did not play an opponent that finished ranked in the original AP poll this season, but 3 of their opponents are ranked in my fixed and expanded AP poll top 25 for 1951, and Ohio State is one of them, thanks to a 3-0 win over 5-4 Northwestern (#22). I have OSU ranked right ahead of the Wildcats, at #21.

Surviving More Drama to 9-0

Michigan State had their fans sweating again the next week, putting on their worst performance of the season before rallying to beat 4-6-1 Marquette 20-14 at home. MSU halfback Billy Wells ripped a 69 yard touchdown run in the 2nd quarter, but Marquette led 14-6 going into the 4th. Quarterback Al Dorow connected with Wells for a 46 yard touchdown pass, cutting the lead to 14-13, and on their next possession, MSU drove 75 yards for the win. The key play was a 49 yard pass from Al Dorow that moved the ball to the 8. Michigan State scored the touchdown 4 plays later.



Michigan State finally got rolling after that, winning 32-21 at 5-4 Penn State and 53-26 over 3-7 Pittsburgh. Jim Ellis returned a punt 57 yards against Penn State and 54 yards against Pitt, the latter return pictured above. Then the Spartans mauled Notre Dame 35-0 at home (Jim Ellis pictured embarrassing a couple of their players below), their biggest win of the year, and Michigan State replaced Tennessee at the top of the next AP poll. Unfortunately, though they finished 7-2-1, Notre Dame wasn't particularly good this year. They had already lost to 3-6-1 Southern Methodist, they tied 2-5-2 Iowa 2 weeks after their loss to MSU, and they did not finish ranked in the original AP poll. However, they did beat 7-3 Southern Cal (#17 in fixed AP poll) in their finale, and I have Notre Dame ranked #19 in the fixed AP poll for 1951. But whether they were ranked or unranked, they were MSU's toughest opponent, and this was MSU's best performance.



Michigan State's stay at the top of the AP poll didn't last long, because as happens so often, they followed their best performance with one of their worst, a 30-26 win at 2-7 Indiana. This game was played in snow and high winds, but the weather didn't seem to affect the offenses at all. The game started as expected, MSU leading 14-0 in the opening quarter, but Indiana came back for a 14-14 halftime deadlock. MSU halfback Billy Wells got the lead back with an 83 yard touchdown run. Wells, who would

Maryland vs. Michigan State

Awards Ceremony

Grading the Selectors