1951 Maryland Terrapins football team

1951 Maryland Terrapins football
Team photograph in front of Byrd Stadium
National champion (five selectors)[1]
SoCon co-champion
Sugar Bowl champion
Sugar Bowl, W 28–13 vs. Tennessee
ConferenceSouthern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 3
Record10–0 (5–0 SoCon)
Head coach
Offensive schemeSplit-T
CaptainBob Ward, Dave Cianelli and John Alderton
Home stadiumByrd Stadium
Seasons
← 1950
1952 →
1951 Southern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 3 Maryland + 5 0 0 10 0 0
VMI + 5 0 0 7 3 0
Washington and Lee 5 1 0 6 4 0
William & Mary 5 1 0 7 3 0
No. 19 Clemson 3 1 0 7 3 0
Duke 4 2 0 5 4 1
South Carolina 5 3 0 6 4 0
Wake Forest 5 3 0 6 4 0
George Washington 2 3 1 2 6 1
North Carolina 2 3 0 2 8 0
West Virginia 2 3 0 5 5 0
NC State 2 6 0 3 7 0
Richmond 2 6 0 3 8 0
The Citadel 1 3 0 4 6 0
Furman 1 4 1 3 6 1
Davidson 1 5 0 1 8 0
VPI 1 7 0 2 8 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1951 Maryland Terrapins football team represented the University of Maryland in 1951 college football season as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon). Maryland outscored its opponents, 381–74, and finished the season with a 10–0 record, including three shut outs, and held seven opponents to seven points or less. It was the school's first perfect undefeated and untied season since 1893. Maryland also secured its first berth in a major postseason bowl game, the 1952 Sugar Bowl, where it upset first-ranked Tennessee under head coach Robert Neyland.

Maryland was led by fifth-year head coach Jim Tatum, whom Time magazine called "the most successful major college coach in the game" during his nine-year tenure at College Park.[2] To date, Tatum remains the winningest Maryland football coach of the modern era, with a winning percentage of 0.819.[3] The team returned experienced junior quarterback Jack Scarbath, who was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in the following season. Other key returning players included Ed Modzelewski, Ed Fullerton, Bob Ward, and Bob Shemonski.

The team was selected national champion by NCAA-designated major selectors of Dunkel, Football Research, National Championship Foundation, Sagarin, and Sagarin (ELO-Chess).[4][a]

  1. ^ Several selectors have named Maryland the 1951 national champion. At the time, the Associated Press and United Press wire services selected the championship team before the postseason bowl games.
  2. ^ The Coach, Time, August 3, 1959.
  3. ^ Records Archived 2011-05-23 at the Wayback Machine(PDF), 2007 Maryland Terrapins Football Media Guide, University of Maryland, p. 55, retrieved 14 January 2009. 2009-05-07.
  4. ^ 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). Indianapolis: National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2017. p. 113. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
  5. ^ "Maryland Terrapins College Football History, Stats, Records". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 8, 2023.


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