1942 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football team

The 1942 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football team represented the United States Navy's Great Lakes Naval Training Station (Great Lakes NTS) during the 1942 college football season. Playing a schedule that included six Big Nine Conference football teams, Notre Dame, Pitt, Michigan State, and Missouri, the team compiled an 8–3–1 record, shut out seven opponents, and outscored all opponents by a total of 222 to 55.[1][2] The team was ranked No. 1 among the service teams in a poll of 91 sports writers conducted by the Associated Press.[3]

1942 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
APNo. 1 (APS)
Record8–3–1
Head coach
Home stadiumSoldier Field
Seasons
← 1941
1943 →
1942 military service football records
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 11 Second Air Force  1101
No. 9 Manhattan Beach Coast Guard  601
No. 17 March Field  1120
No. 3 Georgia Pre-Flight  711
No. 4 North Carolina Pre-Flight  821
No. 6 Jacksonville NAS  930
No. 1 Great Lakes Navy  831
No. 2 Iowa Pre-Flight  731
No. 15 Fort Riley  630
No. 14 Fort Monmouth  522
No. 5 Saint Mary's Pre-Flight  631
No. T–20 Fort Douglas  530
No. 10 Corpus Christi NAS  431
No. 16 Camp Davis  432
Albuquerque AAB  540
No. 13 Lakehurst NAS  441
Santa Ana AAB  440
Will Rogers AB  440
No. 7 Camp Grant  450
No. 8 Pensacola NAS  351
No. T–18 Fort Totten  351
Camp Pickett  160
No. 12 Fort Knox  260
Alameda Coast Guard  171
No. T–18 Spence Field  040
No. T–20 Daniel Field  060
Rankings from AP Service Poll

The team's head coach was Tony Hinkle, who coached football, baseball, and basketball at Butler University before the war.[2] Butler agreed in March 1942 to send Hinkle to Great Lakes NTS to assist in the war effort.[4]

The team was made up of college and professional football players who were serving in the Navy and stationed at Great Lakes NTS. The team was led on offense by Bruce Smith, who won the Heisman Trophy in 1941 while playing for Minnesota. Other players included: Rudy Mucha, a consensus All-American center in 1940 who spent the 1941 season in the NFL, Bob Sweiger (fullback, Minnesota), Pete Kmetovic (halfback, Stanford), Vic Marino (All-Big Ten guard from Ohio State) Bill Radovich (guard, USC/Detroit Lions), Carl Mulleneaux (end, Utah State), and Steve Belichick, father of Bill Belichick who played for the Detroit Lions in 1941.[2]

Schedule

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DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 26at MichiganL 0–917,031[5]
October 3at IowaW 25–08,600[6]
October 10vs. PittsburghW 7–612,315[7]
October 17 No. 7 WisconsinL 7–1330,000[8]
October 24at Michigan StateL 0–1412,000[9]
October 31vs. MissouriW 17–016,627[10]
November 7at PurdueW 42–012,000[11]
November 11at Camp GrantW 33–08,000[12]
November 15at MarquetteW 24–020,000[13]
November 21at IllinoisW 6–010,856[14]
November 26at NorthwesternW 48–018,500[15]
December 5 No. 8 Notre Dame
  • Soldier Field
  • Chicago, IL
T 13–1335,000[16]
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[17]

References

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  1. ^ "1942 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c Jack Scott. "1942 Great Lakes" (PDF). College Football Historical Society Newsletter. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 25, 2016. Retrieved March 1, 2018 – via LA84 Foundation.
  3. ^ "Great Lakes Is Leading Service Team Of Nation". Ashville Citizen-Times. December 6, 1942. p. D2 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Butler Sacrifices Hinkle for War Effort: Tony to Join Great Lakes Staff". The Indianapolis News. March 4, 1942. p. 10.
  5. ^ "Michigan Upsets Great Lakes, 9-0: Aerial Drive to Touchdown in Second Period, Field Goal in the Third Decide; Chappius Paces Attack". The New York Times. September 27, 1942. Retrieved January 14, 2012.
  6. ^ Bert McGrane (October 4, 1942). "Great Lakes Wilts Iowa, 25-0". The Des Moines Register. pp. 5–1, 5–9 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Pitt Loses, 7-6, As Great Lakes Rallies in 4th". Chicago Tribune. October 11, 1942. p. 2-2 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Irving Vaughan (October 18, 1942). "Badger Rally Wins, 13-7, Over Great Lakes". Chicago Tribune. pp. 2–1, 2–8 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Michigan State Wins; State Upsets Favored Navy Team, 14 to 0". Lansing State Journal. October 25, 1942. pp. 17–18 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Great Lakes' Individual Play Overcomes Teamwork of Missouri U. and Sailors Win, 17 to 0, Before 16,627". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 1, 1942. pp. 1D, 2D – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Purdue Routed, 42-0: Bluejackets Have Field Day". The Muncie Sunday Star. November 8, 1942. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Irving Vaughan (November 12, 1942). "Great Lakes Whips Camp Grant Eleven, 33-0". Chicago Tribune. pp. 25, 27 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Marquette Tires, Great Lakes Wins Tilt 24 to 0". Ironwood Daily Globe. November 16, 1942. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Sweiger Score Tips Illini, 6-0". Minneapolis Sunday Tribune and Star Journal. November 22, 1942. p. 29 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Wilfrid Smith (November 27, 1942). "Great Lakes Power Plays Crush N. U. 48-0". Chicago Tribune. pp. 2–1, 2–21 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Wilfrid Smith (December 6, 1942). "Notre Dame Rally Ties Great Lakes, 13 to 13". Chicago Tribune. pp. 2–1, 2–3 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Daye, John (2014). Encyclopedia of Armed Forces Football. Haworth, New Jersey: St. Johann Press. p. 118. ISBN 978-1-937943-21-9.