1945 Idaho Vandals football team

1945 Idaho Vandals football
ConferencePacific Coast Conference
Record1–7 (1–5 PCC)
Head coach
Offensive schemeSingle-wing[1]
Home stadiumNeale Stadium
Seasons
← 1942
1946 →
1945 Pacific Coast Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 11 USC $ 5 – 1 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Washington State 6 – 2 – 1 6 – 2 – 1
Washington 6 – 3 – 0 6 – 3 – 0
Oregon State 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 4 – 1
UCLA 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 4 – 0
California 2 – 4 – 1 4 – 5 – 1
Oregon 3 – 6 – 0 3 – 6 – 0
Idaho 1 – 5 – 0 1 – 7 – 0
Montana 0 – 1 – 0 1 – 4 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1945 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1945 college football season. The Vandals were led by first-year head coach James A. Brown and were members of the Pacific Coast Conference. Home games were played on campus at Neale Stadium in Moscow, with none held in Boise this season.

Idaho was 1–7 overall and won one of their six PCC games. The football program returned after missing the previous two seasons, due to World War II manpower shortages. Composed mostly of freshmen,[2] Idaho met two nearby teams twice, Washington State and the Farragut Naval Training Station,[3][4] their sole non-conference opponent. The Vandals did not venture outside of the Northwest; the longest road trip was to play Oregon in Eugene.

The losing streak in the Battle of the Palouse with neighbor Washington State reached seventeen games, falling 12–43 in the opener at Moscow,[2] and 0–21 in Pullman four weeks later.[5] Idaho tied the Cougars five years later, but the winless streak continued until 1954.[6]

In the rivalry game with Montana, Idaho won 46–0 in Moscow to retain the Little Brown Stein;[7] it was the third of six straight shutouts in the series, with each side winning three.

At Farragut on November 10, eight inches (20 cm) of snow was removed from the field just prior to the game by German prisoners of war.[4]

Alumnus Brown ran the downsized UI athletic department during the war and coached the basketball team for four seasons (1942–46). Due to the death of Francis Schmidt in September 1944, Brown was the interim football coach in 1945; he was named head coach in March 1946, but resigned eight months later.[8][9]

  1. ^ "Idaho-Washington State football game will erase question mark". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 29, 1945. p. 10.
  2. ^ a b "Washington State runs rough shod through Idaho-U to tune of 43-12". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 30, 1945. p. 11.
  3. ^ "Farragut Sailors crush Idaho 18-7 for 3rd loss". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 14, 1945. p. 11.
  4. ^ a b "Farragut Sailors defeat Idaho Vandals 14-6". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 11, 1945. p. 9.
  5. ^ "WSC Cougars roll over Vandals 21-0 for second win of season". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 28, 1945. p. 11.
  6. ^ Boni, Bill (October 24, 1954). "Idaho thumps WSC, 10-0". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
  7. ^ "Vandals trounce Montana Grizzlies 46-0 for first win of season". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 21, 1945. p. 9.
  8. ^ "Babe Brown resigns as varsity football coach at University of Idaho". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. November 29, 1946. p. 11.
  9. ^ "J.A. 'Babe' Brown resigns as head football coach at Idaho". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 30, 1946. p. 8.