1948 college football season

The 1948 college football season finished with two unbeaten and untied teams; Michigan and Clemson. Michigan was the first place choice for the majority (192 of the 333) voters in the AP Poll, but didn't play in the postseason because of a no-repeat rule for Big Nine schools. Notre Dame, second in the AP Poll, tied USC 14–14 at the end of the regular season, but did not participate in any bowl per university policy at the time. Northwestern beat California 20–14 in the Rose Bowl, and Clemson defeated Missouri by a point in the Gator Bowl.

1948 college football season
First AP No. 1 of season	Notre Dame[1]
Number of bowls	14
Champion(s)	Michigan (AP)
Heisman	Doak Walker (halfback, SMU)
football seasons

Air travel to away games (as opposed to rail travel) became increasingly popular with college football programs in the late 1940s.[2]

The NCAA began permitting the use of small 1-inch rubber "tees" (not the same tee used for kickoffs) for extra point and field goal attempts beginning this year; they were outlawed in 1989.[3]

Conference and program changes

Conference changes

• One conferences began play in 1948:
  • Ohio Valley Conference – an active NCAA Division I FCS conference; began play with six teams from Kentucky and Indiana.
• One conference played its final season in 1948:
  • Dakota-Iowa Athletic Conference – conference active since the 1946 season
• Two conferences changed their names prior to the season:
  • After the Big Six Conference, still officially known as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association, added Colorado, the conference's unofficial name became the Big Seven Conference.
  • The Washington Intercollegiate Conference changed its name to the Evergreen Conference, the name it would retain until the conference's demise after the 1984 season

Membership changes

School	1947 Conference	1948 Conference
Bradley Braves	Independent	Missouri Valley
Colorado Buffaloes	Skyline (Mountain States)	Big Seven (MVIAA)
Eastern Kentucky State Colonels	KIAC	Ohio Valley
Evansville Purple Aces	Independent	Ohio Valley
Louisville Cardinals	KIAC	Ohio Valley
Morehead State Eagles	KIAC	Ohio Valley
Murray State Racers	KIAC	Ohio Valley
Western Kentucky State Hilltoppers	KIAC	Ohio Valley

September

The Associated Press did not poll the writers until the fourth week of the season. Among the five teams that had been ranked highest in 1947, Notre Dame, Michigan, SMU, Penn State, Texas began play on September 25. Notre Dame edged Purdue 28–27, Michigan won at Michigan State, 13–7, and SMU won at Pittsburgh, 33–14. The Texas Longhorns lost at North Carolina, 34–7. Northwestern beat UCLA, in Los Angeles, 19–0. In Baltimore, California beat Navy, 21–7. Army beat visiting Villanova 28–0.

October

On October 2 In Pittsburgh, Notre Dame shut out Pitt, 40–0, while in Dallas, SMU defeated Texas Tech 41–6. Penn State beat Bucknell 35–0, Michigan beat Oregon 14–0. North Carolina won at Georgia 21–14. Army beat Lafayette 54–7. Northwestern beat Purdue 21–0. When the first poll was issued, Notre Dame had fewer first place votes than North Carolina (50 vs. 55), but ten more points overall (1,200 to 1,190) Northwestern was third, followed by SMU and Army. Though unbeaten, Michigan was ranked 7th, after Georgia Tech.

On October 9 No. 1 Notre Dame beat Michigan State 26–7. No. 2 North Carolina won at Wake Forest, 28–6, and was ranked first in the next poll. No. 3 Northwestern beat No. 8 Minnesota 19–16. No. 4 SMU lost at Missouri, 20–14. No. 5 Army won at Illinois, 26–21. No. 7 Michigan, which had won at No. 15 Purdue, 40–0, rose to 4th.

October 16 No. 1 North Carolina beat N.C. State 14–0, but dropped to third in the next poll. No. 2 Notre Dame won at Nebraska 44–13. In Ann Arbor, Michigan, No. 3 Northwestern faced Big Nine rival No. 4 Michigan, and the home team Wolverines won 28–0. No. 5 Army defeated Harvard 20–7. Michigan moved up to first place in the next poll, and No. 6 California (which beat Oregon State 42–0) replaced Northwestern in the Top Five.

October 23 In Minneapolis, No. 1 Michigan beat No. 13 Minnesota 27–14, and No. 2 Notre Dame won at Iowa 27–12. No. 3 North Carolina beat visiting LSU 34–7. In Seattle, No. 4 California blanked Washington 21–0, and No. 5 Army won at No. 12 Cornell 27–6.

October 30 No. 1 Michigan beat Illinois 28–20, while in Baltimore, No. 2 Notre Dame beat Navy 41–7. No. 3 North Carolina won at Tennessee 14–7. In Los Angeles, No. 4 California beat USC, 13–7. No. 5 Army beat Virginia Tech 49–7. In the next poll, Notre Dame was ranked at the new number one.

November

November 6 No. 1 Notre Dame won at Indiana 42–6. No. 2 Michigan beat visiting Navy 35–0. No. 3 North Carolina was tied by William & Mary, 7–7. No. 4 Army defeated Stanford at Yankee Stadium in New York, 43–0, while No. 5 California beat visiting UCLA 28–13. Replacing North Carolina in the Top Five was No. 14 Penn State, which had shut out Penn in Philadelphia, 13–0.

November 13 No. 1 Michigan beat Indiana 54–0. No. 2 Notre Dame beat No. 8 Northwestern 12–7. No. 3 Army won at Pennsylvania 26–20. No. 4 California beat Washington State 44–14. No. 5 Penn State beat Temple 47–0, but still dropped in the next poll. It was replaced by No. 6 North Carolina, which returned after a win at Maryland 49–20.

November 20 No. 1 Michigan closed its season with a 13–3 win at No. 18 Ohio State. No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Army were both idle. No. 4 California beat Stanford 7–6. No. 5 North Carolina beat Duke 20–0.

November 27 No. 1 Michigan, which had completed its season, had 105 of 190 first place votes. No. 2 Notre Dame defeated Washington 46–0. The annual Army–Navy Game in Philadelphia pitted unbeaten (8–0–0) and No. 3 Army against winless (0–8–0) Navy, and 102,000 fans turned out to watch the mismatch, including President Truman. It was a surprise when the Midshipmen scored first, but Army went ahead 21–14 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, Navy pushed the Cadets back to their own goal line, and took the punt at midfield. In six plays, Navy drove down to the four yard line, and Bill Hawkins crashed into the end zone to make it 21–20. Roger Drew added the point after to ruin Army's perfect record, 21–21.[4] No. 4 North Carolina won at Virginia 34–12, and No. 5 California had finished its season. The final poll was released on November 29, although some colleges had not completed their schedules.

On December 4, No. 2 Notre Dame‘s perfect record was compromised in Los Angeles with a 14–14 tie against unranked USC.

Conference standings

Major conference standings

1948 Big Nine Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 1 Michigan $ 6 – 0 – 0     9 – 0 – 0 No. 7 Northwestern 5 – 1 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 No. 16 Minnesota 5 – 2 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Ohio State 3 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Iowa 2 – 4 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Purdue 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Indiana 2 – 4 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 Illinois 2 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Wisconsin 1 – 5 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll	1948 Big Seven Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 5 Oklahoma $ 5 – 0 – 0     10 – 1 – 0 Missouri 5 – 1 – 0     8 – 3 – 0 Kansas 4 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Colorado 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Iowa State 2 – 4 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Nebraska 2 – 4 – 0     2 – 8 – 0 Kansas State 0 – 6 – 0     1 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll	1948 Border Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Texas Tech $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Texas Mines 4 – 1 – 1     8 – 2 – 1 Arizona 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 5 – 0 Arizona State 3 – 2 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Hardin–Simmons 3 – 2 – 1     6 – 2 – 3 West Texas State 2 – 3 – 0     6 – 5 – 0 Arizona State–Flagstaff 1 – 2 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 New Mexico 1 – 6 – 0     2 – 0 – 0 New Mexico A&M 0 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1948 Middle Three Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Rutgers $ 2 – 0 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Lafayette 1 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Lehigh 0 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Missouri Valley Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Oklahoma A&M $ 2 – 0 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Wichita 2 – 1 – 1     5 – 4 – 1 Drake 1 – 1 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Tulsa 0 – 1 – 1     0 – 9 – 1 Saint Louis 0 – 2 – 0     4 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Pacific Coast Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 4 California ^ + 6 – 0 – 0     10 – 1 – 0 No. 9 Oregon + 7 – 0 – 0     9 – 2 – 0 USC 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 1 Washington State 4 – 3 – 1     4 – 5 – 1 Stanford 3 – 4 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Oregon State 2 – 3 – 2     5 – 4 – 3 Washington 2 – 5 – 1     2 – 7 – 1 UCLA 2 – 6 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Idaho 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Montana 0 – 3 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 + – Conference co-champions ^ – Selected as Rose Bowl representative Rankings from AP Poll
1948 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Colorado State–Greeley $ 3 – 0 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Western State (CO) 2 – 1 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Colorado College 1 – 2 – 0     2 – 7 – 1 Colorado Mines 0 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Montana State 0 – 0 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Skyline Six Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Utah $ 5 – 0 – 0     8 – 1 – 1 Colorado A&M 4 – 1 – 0     8 – 3 – 0 Denver 2 – 2 – 0     4 – 5 – 1 Utah State 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 BYU 1 – 3 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 Wyoming 0 – 5 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Southeastern Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 8 Georgia $ 6 – 0 – 0     9 – 2 – 0 No. 15 Ole Miss 6 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 No. 13 Tulane 5 – 1 – 0     9 – 1 – 0 No. 12 Vanderbilt 4 – 2 – 1     8 – 2 – 1 Georgia Tech 4 – 3 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Alabama 4 – 4 – 1     6 – 4 – 1 Mississippi State 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 1 Tennessee 2 – 3 – 1     4 – 4 – 2 Kentucky 1 – 3 – 1     5 – 3 – 2 Florida 1 – 5 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 LSU 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Auburn 0 – 7 – 0     1 – 8 – 1 $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll
1948 Southern Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 11 Clemson $ 5 – 0 – 0     11 – 0 – 0 No. 3 North Carolina 4 – 0 – 1     9 – 1 – 1 VMI 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 No. 17 William & Mary 5 – 1 – 1     7 – 2 – 2 No. 20 Wake Forest 5 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Maryland 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Duke 3 – 2 – 1     4 – 3 – 2 Richmond 3 – 3 – 1     5 – 3 – 2 Washington and Lee 2 – 2 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Furman 2 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 1 George Washington 2 – 4 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Davidson 2 – 5 – 0     3 – 5 – 1 South Carolina 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 NC State 1 – 4 – 1     3 – 6 – 1 VPI 0 – 6 – 1     0 – 8 – 1 The Citadel 0 – 5 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll	1948 Southwest Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 10 SMU $ 5 – 0 – 1     9 – 1 – 1 Texas 4 – 1 – 1     7 – 3 – 1 Baylor 3 – 2 – 1     6 – 3 – 2 Rice 3 – 2 – 1     5 – 4 – 1 Arkansas 2 – 4 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 TCU 1 – 4 – 1     4 – 5 – 1 Texas A&M 0 – 5 – 1     0 – 9 – 1 $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Independents

1948 Eastern college football independents records Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 6 Army   –       8 – 0 – 1 No. 19 Cornell   –       8 – 1 – 0 Penn State   –       7 – 1 – 1 Buffalo   –       6 – 1 – 1 Villanova   –       8 – 2 – 1 Brown   –       7 – 2 – 0 Dartmouth   –       6 – 2 – 0 Boston College   –       5 – 2 – 2 Pittsburgh   –       6 – 3 – 0 Penn   –       5 – 3 – 0 Franklin & Marshall   –       5 – 3 – 1 Harvard   –       4 – 4 – 0 Princeton   –       4 – 4 – 0 Columbia   –       4 – 5 – 0 Yale   –       4 – 5 – 0 Tufts   –       3 – 4 – 1 Colgate   –       3 – 6 – 0 Fordham   –       3 – 6 – 0 NYU   –       3 – 6 – 0 Temple   –       2 – 6 – 1 Duquesne   –       2 – 7 – 0 Carnegie Tech   –       1 – 7 – 0 Hofstra   –       0 – 6 – 2 Bucknell   –       1 – 8 – 0 Syracuse   –       1 – 8 – 0 Drexel   –       0 – 8 – 0 Rankings from AP Poll	1948 Midwestern college football independents records Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T No. 2 Notre Dame   –       9 – 0 – 1 Bowling Green   –       8 – 0 – 1 Washington University   –       9 – 1 – 0 Ball State   –       6 – 2 – 0 Michigan State   –       6 – 2 – 2 Baldwin–Wallace   –       5 – 2 – 2 Detroit   –       6 – 3 – 0 Indiana State   –       4 – 4 – 0 Wabash   –       4 – 4 – 0 Wayne   –       4 – 4 – 0 Valparaiso   –       4 – 5 – 0 Toledo   –       5 – 6 – 0 Michigan State Normal   –       3 – 5 – 0 Central Michigan   –       3 – 6 – 0 Marquette   –       2 – 8 – 0 Rankings from AP Poll	1948 Southern college football independents records Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Maryland State   –       8 – 1 – 0 Sewanee   –       6 – 1 – 1 Grambling   –       8 – 2 – 0 West Virginia   –       9 – 3 – 0 Western Maryland   –       5 – 2 – 0 Delaware   –       5 – 3 – 0 Virginia   –       5 – 3 – 1 Oklahoma City   –       4 – 5 – 1 Chattanooga   –       4 – 5 – 0 Georgetown   –       3 – 4 – 1 Miami (FL)   –       4 – 6 – 0 Marshall   –       2 – 7 – 1 Catholic University   –       1 – 7 – 0 Navy   –       0 – 8 – 1 Tampa   –         –
1948 Western college football independents records Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Nevada   –       9 – 2 – 0 Santa Clara   –       7 – 2 – 1 Hawaii   –       7 – 4 – 1 Idaho State   –       6 – 1 – 1 Cal Poly San Dimas   –       6 – 4 – 0 Pepperdine   –       4 – 5 – 0 Saint Mary's   –       4 – 6 – 0 Loyola (CA)   –       3 – 5 – 1 La Verne   –       3 – 5 – 0 Portland   –       2 – 5 – 1 San Francisco   –       2 – 7 – 0

Minor conferences

Conference	Champion(s)	Record
California Collegiate Athletic Association	San Jose State	5–0
Central Intercollegiate Athletics Association	West Virginia State Winston-Salem State	6–0
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Kansas State Teachers (Emporia State)	5–0
College Conference of Illinois	Illinois Wesleyan	5–0
Dakota-Iowa Athletic Conference	Buena Vista	3–0–1
Evergreen Conference	Eastern Washington College Puget Sound	5–1
Far Western Conference	Chico State College Southern Oregon College	3–1
Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Dubuque	5–0
Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference	Ottawa (KS)	6–0
Lone Star Conference	Southwest Texas State Teachers	6–0
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Alma	5–0
Mid-American Conference	Miami (OH)	4–0
Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference	Ripon	6–0
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Saint Thomas (MN)	5–0
Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Northwest Missouri State Southwest Missouri State	4–1
Nebraska College Conference	Charon State Wayne State (NE)	6–1
New Mexico Intercollegiate Conference	Sul Ross State College	5–0
North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Iowa State Teachers (Northern Iowa)	5–0
North Dakota College Athletic Conference	Minot State College North Dakota Science	5–0
Ohio Athletic Conference	Heidelberg	5–0
Ohio Valley Conference	Murray State College	3–1
Oklahoma Collegiate Athletic Conference	Central State College (OK) Southeastern State College (OK)	4–1
Pacific Northwest Conference	College of Idaho	5–1
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference	Bloomsburg State Teachers California State Teachers	6–0
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference	Colorado State College	3–0
South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference	Northern State Teachers (SD)	6–0
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Occidental	4–0
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	Florida A&M College	6–0
Southwestern Athletic Conference	Southern	7–0
State Teacher's College Conference of Minnesota	Duluth State Teachers Mankato State Teachers St. Cloud State Teachers	4–1
Texas Collegiate Athletic Conference	McMurry (TX)	4–1
Wisconsin State Teachers College Conference	Eau Claire State Teachers	5–1

Minor conference standings

1948 Badger-Illini Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Lewis + 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Northwestern (WI) + 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Aurora 4 – 2 – 0     5 – 2 – 0 Mission House 3 – 3 – 1     3 – 4 – 1 Milton 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 4 – 0 Wisconsin Tech 1 – 3 – 0     1 – 5 – 0 Wisconsin–Extension 1 – 5 – 1     1 – 5 – 1 Concordia (IL) 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 5 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1948 California Collegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T San Jose State $ 5 – 0 – 0     9 – 3 – 0 Pacific 4 – 1 – 0     7 – 1 – 2 Santa Barbara 2 – 3 – 0     6 – 5 – 0 Fresno State 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 1 San Diego State 1 – 4 – 0     4 – 7 – 0 Cal Poly 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Emporia State $ 5 – 0 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 Fort Hays State 3 – 1 – 1     5 – 4 – 0 Southwestern (KS) 3 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Washburn 2 – 2 – 1     3 – 5 – 1 Pittsburg State 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 2 St. Benedict's 0 – 5 – 0     0 – 9 – 0 Rockhurst 0 – 0 – 0     3 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion
1948 College Conference of Illinois football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Illinois Wesleyan $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Wheaton (IL) 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Lake Forest 4 – 1 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Millikin 3 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Augustana (IL) 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 3 – 1 Illinois College 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Carthage 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 North Central (IL) 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 Elmhurst 0 – 5 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Dakota-Iowa Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Buena Vista $ 3 – 0 – 1     4 – 3 – 1 Dakota Wesleyan 3 – 1 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Huron 2 – 2 – 1     4 – 4 – 1 Westmar 2 – 2 – 1     2 – 6 – 1 Yankton 1 – 2 – 1     3 – 4 – 1 Sioux Falls 0 – 4 – 0     1 – 6 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1948 Dixie Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Florida State $ 4 – 0 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 Mississippi College 2 – 1 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Tampa 1 – 1 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 Stetson 1 – 3 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 Millsaps 0 – 3 – 0     2 – 3 – 1 $ – Conference champion
1948 Evergreen Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Eastern Washington + 5 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 Puget Sound + 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 1 Pacific Lutheran 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 2 – 1 Whitworth 2 – 3 – 1     4 – 4 – 1 Central Washington 2 – 3 – 1     5 – 3 – 1 Western Washington 2 – 4 – 0     ? – ? – ? Saint Martin's 0 – 6 – 0     ? – ? – ? + – Conference co-champions	1948 Far Western Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Chico State + 3 – 1 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Southern Oregon + 3 – 1 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 San Francisco State 2 – 2 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 Humboldt State 1 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Cal Aggies 1 – 3 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1948 Gulf States Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Mississippi Southern $ 4 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Louisiana Tech 4 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 1 Southwestern Louisiana 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 1 Northwestern State 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 3 – 1 Louisiana College 1 – 3 – 0     2 – 8 – 0 Southeastern Louisiana 0 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 1 $ – Conference champion
1948 Hoosier Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Hanover + 6 – 0 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Anderson (IN) + 5 – 0 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Indiana Central 4 – 2 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Canterbury 1 – 3 – 2     2 – 4 – 2 Rose Poly 1 – 3 – 1     3 – 3 – 1 Manchester (IN) 1 – 3 – 1     1 – 6 – 1 Franklin (IN) 1 – 4 – 2     1 – 5 – 2 Earlham 0 – 4 – 0     0 – 8 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1948 Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Eastern Illinois $ 4 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Illinois State 3 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Northern Illinois State 2 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Western Illinois 1 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Southern Illinois 0 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Ottawa $ 6 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Bethany (KS) 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 College of Emporia 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 3 – 1 Kansas Wesleyan 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Baker 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Bethel (KS) 1 – 5 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 McPherson 0 – 6 – 0     0 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1948 Lone Star Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Southwest Texas State $ 6 – 0 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 North Texas State 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Stephen F. Austin 3 – 2 – 1     7 – 2 – 1 Trinity (TX) 2 – 2 – 2     6 – 2 – 2 Houston 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 East Texas State 1 – 4 – 1     3 – 6 – 1 Sam Houston State 0 – 6 – 0     0 – 9 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1948 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Alma $ 5 – 0 – 0     8 – 0 – 0 Kalamazoo 3 – 1 – 1     4 – 4 – 1 Hillsdale 2 – 2 – 1     6 – 2 – 1 Hope 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Adrian 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Albion 0 – 5 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Mid-American Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Miami (OH) $ 4 – 0 – 0     7 – 1 – 1 Western Michigan 3 – 1 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Cincinnati 3 – 1 – 0     3 – 6 – 1 Ohio 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Western Reserve 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 8 – 1 Butler 0 – 4 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1948 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T St. Thomas (MN) $ 5 – 0 – 0     4 – 3 – 0 Gustavus Adolphus 4 – 1 – 0     7 – 1 – 1 Macalester 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Saint John's (MN) 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Hamline 2 – 2 – 2     3 – 2 – 2 St. Olaf 2 – 2 – 1     3 – 4 – 1 Augsburg 0 – 3 – 2     1 – 3 – 2 Concordia (MN) 0 – 4 – 1     3 – 4 – 1 Saint Mary's (MN) 0 – 5 – 0     0 – 8 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Missouri College Athletic Union football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Missouri Valley $ 4 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 1 Culver–Stockton 3 – 1 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Central Methodist 2 – 2 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 William Jewell 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Tarkio 0 – 4 – 0     2 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T SW Missouri State + 4 – 1 – 0     9 – 2 – 0 NW Missouri State + 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Missouri Mines 2 – 1 – 2     4 – 3 – 2 Kirksville State 2 – 2 – 1     4 – 3 – 2 SE Missouri State 0 – 3 – 2     0 – 7 – 2 Central Missouri State 0 – 4 – 1     0 – 7 – 2 + – Conference co-champions
1948 Nebraska College Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Wayne State (NE) + 6 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0 Chadron State + 6 – 1 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 Nebraska Wesleyan 5 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Doane 4 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Kearney State 3 – 3 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Peru State 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 4 – 0 Hastings 1 – 5 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 York (NE) 0 – 5 – 0     2 – 6 – 0 Midland 0 – 6 – 0     0 – 10 – 0 + – Conference co-champions	1948 New Mexico Intercollegiate Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Sul Ross $ 5 – 0 – 0     10 – 1 – 0 Adams State 3 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Eastern New Mexico 5 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 New Mexico Highlands 2 – 3 – 1     ? – ? – ? New Mexico Teachers 2 – 3 – 1     3 – 4 – 1 New Mexico Military 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0 Panhandle A&M 1 – 5 – 1     1 – 7 – 1 St. Michael's (NM) 0 – 3 – 1     0 – 5 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1948 North Central Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Iowa State Teachers $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 South Dakota 4 – 1 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 North Dakota 3 – 3 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 South Dakota State 2 – 4 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Morningside 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 Augustana (SD) 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 North Dakota State 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1948 North State Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Appalachian State $ 7 – 0 – 1     8 – 1 – 1 Western Carolina 3 – 1 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Catawba 5 – 2 – 0     5 – 4 – 1 Lenoir–Rhyne 5 – 2 – 1     6 – 3 – 1 High Point 4 – 3 – 1     5 – 3 – 2 Elon 3 – 4 – 1     4 – 5 – 1 Guilford 1 – 5 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Atlantic Christian 1 – 6 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 East Carolina 0 – 6 – 0     0 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Ohio Valley Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Murray State $ 3 – 1 – 0     9 – 1 – 1 Evansville 3 – 1 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Eastern Kentucky 2 – 2 – 0     8 – 3 – 0 Louisville 1 – 1 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Western Kentucky 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0 Morehead State 0 – 3 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Oklahoma Collegiate Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T SE Oklahoma State + 4 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0 Central State (OK) + 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 East Central 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 NW Oklahoma State 1 – 3 – 1     2 – 5 – 1 SW Oklahoma State 1 – 3 – 1     1 – 7 – 1 Northeastern State 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 + – Conference co-champions
1948 Smoky Mountain Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Milligan * 3 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 1 Emory and Henry 1 – 1 – 0     2 – 8 – 0 Carson–Newman 1 – 2 – 0     4 – 6 – 0 Tusculum 0 – 2 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 * – Milligan was suspended from title eligibility for using an ineligible player.	1948 South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Northern State $ 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 1 – 0 Southern State 4 – 3 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 South Dakota Mines 2 – 2 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 General Beadle 2 – 2 – 1     4 – 3 – 1 Huron 2 – 2 – 0     4 – 4 – 1 Yankton 2 – 3 – 0     3 – 4 – 1 Black Hills 1 – 3 – 0     2 – 7 – 0 Sioux Falls 0 – 3 – 1     1 – 6 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1948 Southern California Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Occidental $ 4 – 0 – 0     9 – 0 – 0 Pomona 3 – 1 – 0     6 – 2 – 0 Whittier 2 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Redlands 1 – 3 – 0     1 – 7 – 0 Caltech 0 – 4 – 0     1 – 6 – 0 $ – Conference champion
1948 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Southern $ 7 – 0 – 0     12 – 0 – 0 Texas College 5 – 2 – 0     8 – 3 – 0 Langston 5 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0 Prairie View A&M 4 – 2 – 1     6 – 4 – 1 Samuel Huston 3 – 4 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Arkansas AM&N 2 – 5 – 0     4 – 5 – 1 Bishop 1 – 5 – 1     2 – 7 – 1 Wiley 0 – 7 – 0     0 – 9 – 1 $ – Conference champion	1948 Texas Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T McMurry $ 4 – 1 – 0     6 – 4 – 0 Abilene Christian 3 – 1 – 1     5 – 3 – 1 Hardin 3 – 1 – 1     4 – 5 – 1 Howard Payne 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Southwestern (TX) 2 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 0 Austin 0 – 5 – 0     2 – 9 – 0 $ – Conference champion	1948 Volunteer State Athletic Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T Austin Peay + 2 – 0 – 0     8 – 2 – 0 Tennessee Tech + 2 – 0 – 0     5 – 6 – 0 Milligan 1 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 1 Middle Tennessee 2 – 2 – 0     5 – 5 – 0 Union (TN) 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 7 – 0 Cumberland (TN) 0 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0 + – Conference co-champions
1948 Yankee Conference football standings Conf     Overall Team W   L   T     W   L   T New Hampshire $ 3 – 1 – 0     5 – 3 – 0 Connecticut 2 – 1 – 0     3 – 5 – 0 Vermont 1 – 1 – 0     4 – 3 – 1 UMass 1 – 1 – 1     3 – 4 – 1 Maine 1 – 2 – 0     4 – 3 – 0 Rhode Island State 1 – 3 – 0     2 – 4 – 1 $ – Conference champion

Rankings

Bowl games

Bowl game	Winning team		Losing team
Rose Bowl	No. 7 Northwestern	20	No. 4 California	14
Sugar Bowl	No. 5 Oklahoma	14	No. 3 North Carolina	6
Orange Bowl	Texas	41	No. 8 Georgia	28
Cotton Bowl	No. 10 SMU	21	No. 9 Oregon	13
Sun Bowl	West Virginia	21	Texas Mines	12
Gator Bowl	No. 11 Clemson	24	Missouri	23
Tangerine Bowl	Murray State	21	Sul Ross	21
Dixie Bowl	Baylor	20	No. 20 Wake Forest	7
Raisin Bowl	Occidental	21	Colorado A&M	20
Harbor Bowl	Villanova	27	Nevada	7
Salad Bowl	Drake	14	Arizona	13
Delta Bowl	No. 17 William & Mary	20	Oklahoma A&M	0
Shrine Bowl	Hardin–Simmons	40	Ouachita Baptist	12
Camellia Bowl	Hardin–Simmons	49	Wichita	12

See also

• 1948 College Football All-America Team
• 1948 NCAA football rankings

References

1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-02-29. Retrieved 2009-01-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
2. "Grid teams use air travel more for game dates". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 5, 1948. p. 15.
3. Litke, Jim (August 20, 1989). "They're Not All Kicking and Screaming Over the Absence of Tee". Los Angeles Times. Associate Press. Retrieved October 3, 2019. It was 1948 before vague rumblings about putting the foot back into the game convinced NCAA officials to allow the use of a 1-inch rubberized tee. Eleven years later, they widened the goal posts to 23-feet-5 from 18-5, and seven years after that, let the tee rise an inch.
4. "Navy Deadlocks Mighty Army Eleven, 21 to 21", The Charleston (WV) Gazette, Nov. 28, 1948, p19