1944 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team
| 1944 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Independent |
| Ranking | |
| AP | No. 9 |
| Record | 8–2 |
| Head coach |
|
| Captain | Pat Filley |
| Home stadium | Notre Dame Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Miami (OH) | – | 8 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | – | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Notre Dame | – | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central Michigan | – | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wichita | – | 5 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling Green | – | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Michigan | – | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wayne | – | 1 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio Wesleyan | – | 1 | – | 8 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marquette | – | 1 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rankings from AP Poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 1944 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame as an independent during the 1944 college football season. With head coach Frank Leahy serving in the Navy during World War II, Edward McKeever took over as head coach. In their only season under McKeever, the Irish compiled an 8–2 record, outscored opponents by a total of 340 to 69, and were ranked No. 9 in the final AP poll. The Irish their first five games before losing consecutive games to No 6 Navy and No. 1 Army.[1] The loss to Army, by a 59–0 score, was the worst in Notre Dame history.[2]
Halfback Creighton Miller was selected as a consensus first-team player on the 1955 All-America college football team. Guard Pat Filley was the team captain and received second-team All-America honors from the United Press (UP). Halfback Bob Kelly received second-team honors from the UP and International News Service.
The team played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 30 | at Pittsburgh | W 58–0 | 46,069 | |||
| October 7 | Tulane | W 26–0 | 32,909 | [3] | ||
| October 14 | vs. Dartmouth | No. 1 | W 64–0 | 38,167 | [4] | |
| October 21 | Wisconsin | No. 1 |
| W 28–13 | 36,086 | |
| October 28 | at No. 14 Illinois | No. 1 | W 13–7 | 57,122 | ||
| November 4 | vs. No. 6 Navy | No. 2 | L 13–32 | 60,938 | ||
| November 11 | vs. No. 1 Army | No. 5 | L 0–59 | 74,437 | [2] | |
| November 18 | Northwestern | No. 11 |
| W 21–0 | 39,701 | |
| November 25 | at No. 10 Georgia Tech | No. 18 | W 21–0 | 28,662 | [5] | |
| December 2 | No. 12 Great Lakes Navy | No. 9 |
| W 28–7 | 36,900 | |
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Rankings
| Week | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Final |
| AP | 1 (34) | 1 (59.67) | 1 (40) | 2 (15) | 5 | 11 | 18 | 9 | 9 |
References
- ↑ "1944 Notre Dame Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- 1 2 "Army Outclasses Notre Dame, 59 To 0: 74,437 See Irish Meet Worst Gridiron Defeat". New York Daily News. November 12, 1944. p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Powerful Notre Dame eleven triumphs over Tulane, 26–0". The Palladium-Item. October 8, 1944. Retrieved April 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "1944 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
- ↑ "Irish outclass Georgia Tech Jackets, 21–0". The Birmingham News. November 26, 1944. Retrieved October 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "1944 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Schedule and Results".