1944 Richmond Army Air Base Thunderbyrds football team

The 1944 Richmond Army Air Base Thunderbyrds football team represented the United States Army Air Forces's Richmond Army Air Base (Richmond AAB or RAAB) near Richmond, Virginia during the 1944 college football season. Led by head coach John C. Anderson, the Thunderbyrds compiled a record of 0–10–1. Major Anderson was assisted by Captain George Philbrook.^[1] Richmond AAB originally scheduled two games with Camp Peary, on September 23 and October 29, but cancelled those games in early September.^[2]

1944 Richmond Army Air Base Thunderbyrds football
Conference	Independent
Record	0–10–1
Head coach	John C. Anderson (2nd season)
Home stadium	Base gridiron
Seasons ← 1943 1945 →

1944 military service football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Randolph Field			–					11	–	0	–	0
No. 5 Bainbridge			–					10	–	0	–	0
No. 18 Fort Pierce			–					9	–	0	–	0
No. 13 Norman NAS			–					6	–	0	–	0
No. 6 Iowa Pre-Flight			–					10	–	1	–	0
No. 16 El Toro Marines			–					8	–	1	–	0
Hondo AAF			–					7	–	1	–	0
Bunker Hill NAS			–					6	–	1	–	0
Lincoln AAF			–					6	–	1	–	0
Blackland AAF			–					7	–	1	–	1
Keesler Field			–					8	–	1	–	2
No. 17 Great Lakes Navy			–					9	–	2	–	1
No. 10 March Field			–					7	–	2	–	2
Third Air Force			–					8	–	3	–	0
North Carolina Pre-Flight			–					6	–	2	–	1
Atlantic City NAS			–					5	–	2	–	0
Camp Peary			–					5	–	2	–	0
Tonopah AAF			–					5	–	2	–	0
Daniel Field			–					7	–	3	–	0
No. 20 Second Air Force			–					10	–	4	–	1
San Francisco Coast Guard			–					4	–	2	–	1
Ellington Field			–					6	–	3	–	2
Amarillo AAF			–					5	–	3	–	0
Alameda Coast Guard			–					4	–	2	–	2
Coronado Amphibious			–					2	–	1	–	1
Olathe NAS			–					4	–	2	–	2
Selman Field			–					4	–	2	–	2
Galveston AAF			–					5	–	3	–	2
Fleet City			–					6	–	4	–	1
Jacksonville NAS			–					4	–	3	–	0
San Diego NTS			–					4	–	3	–	1
Camp Beale			–					5	–	4	–	0
Lubbock AAF			–					5	–	4	–	0
Fort Warren			–					5	–	4	–	1
Fort Monroe			–					5	–	5	–	0
Klamath Falls Marines			–					2	–	2	–	1
Maxwell Field			–					5	–	5	–	0
Minter Field			–					3	–	3	–	0
No. 19 Saint Mary's Pre-Flight			–					4	–	4	–	0
Fourth Infantry			–					3	–	4	–	2
Georgia Pre-Flight			–					4	–	5	–	0
Third Infantry			–					4	–	5	–	0
Bergstrom Field			–					3	–	4	–	0
Ottumwa NAS			–					3	–	4	–	0
Camp Lee			–					3	–	5	–	0
Cherry Point Marines			–					3	–	6	–	0
Chatham Field			–					2	–	8	–	1
Sampton NTS			–					2	–	7	–	0
Miami NTC			–					2	–	8	–	0
Bryan AAF			–					1	–	7	–	0
Fairfield-Suisun AAB			–					1	–	7	–	0
Richmond AAB			–					0	–	10	–	1
Camp Ellis			–					0	–	5	–	0
South Plains AAF			–					0	–	8	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

In the final Litkenhous Ratings, Richmond AAB ranked 257th among the nation's college and service teams and 54th out of 63 United States Army teams with a rating of 28.7.^[3][4]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 16		at Hampden–Sydney	Venable Field Hampden Sydney, VA	T 0–0	1,200	[5]
September 24		Fort Monroe	Base gridiron Richmond, VA	L 6–7		[6][7]
September 30	8:15 p.m.	at Richmond	City Stadium Richmond, VA	L 0–34		[8][9]
October 7	2:30 p.m.	at Fort Monroe	Hampton, VA	L 0–13		[10][11]
October 15	2:30 p.m.	Camp Lee	Richmond, VA	L 0–18		[12][13]
October 21	2:30 p.m.	at William & Mary	Cary Field Williamsburg, VA	L 0–39	3,000	[14][15]
October 29	2:30 p.m.	at Norfolk Fleet	Fleet Recreation Park Norfolk, VA	L 2–13		[16][17]
November 4	8:15 p.m.	at Catawba	Salisburg, NC	L 0–33	2,000	[18][19]
November 12	2:00 p.m.	at Camp Lee	Camp Lee, VA	L 0–35		[20][21]
November 18		at Navy plebes	Annapolis, MD	L 0–58		[22]
November 26	2:30 p.m.	Camp Detrick	Richmond, VA	L 0–34		[23][24]
All times are in Eastern time

References

1. "Tigers Face RAAB in Grid Opener". The Richmond News Leader. Richmond, Virginia. September 13, 1944. p. 18. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
2. "Thunderbyrds Cancel 2 Game With Peary". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. September 8, 1944. p. 16. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
3. Litkenhous, E. E. (December 10, 1944). "Big Ten Circuit Repeats As King of College Leagues". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City Utah. p. 8B. Retrieved April 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
4. Litkenhous, E. E. (December 17, 1944). "Army, Randolph Field One-Two in Final Litkenhouse Ratings". Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. 4, section 2. Retrieved April 15, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
5. "Tigers Play 0-0 Draw With Richmond Air Base". The Roanoke Times. Roanoke, Virginia. Associated Press. September 17, 1944. p. 16. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
6. "Gunners Go Bird Hunting". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. September 24, 1944. p. 17B. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
7. "Fort Monroe Gunners Eke Out 7-6 Win". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. September 25, 1944. p. 6. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
8. "Spiders Will Be Outweighed By Air Base Eleven Tonight". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. September 30, 1944. p. 11. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
9. "Spiders roll to 34–0 victory over Air Base". Richmond Times-Dispatch. October 1, 1944. Retrieved November 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Fort Monroe Meets Richmond AAB". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. October 7, 1944. p. 7. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
11. "Gunners Trim Richmond AAB". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. October 8, 1944. p. 16B. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
12. "2 Service Games Booked Sunday". The Richmond News Leader. Richmond, Virginia. October 14, 1944. p. 9. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
13. "Lee Defeats Richmond AAB". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. Associated Press. October 16, 1944. p. 6. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
14. "Clowes to Start for Indians Against Airmen". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. October 21, 1944. p. 11. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
15. "William and Mary Swamps Thunderbyrds, 39-0". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. Associated Press. October 22, 1944. p. 10B. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
16. "Fleet '11' Plays Thunderbyrds Here Today, 2:30". Norfolk Virginian-Pilot. Norfolk, Virginia. October 29, 1944. p. 15, part 2. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
17. "Norfolk Fleet 11 Beats Richmond". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. Associated Press. October 30, 1944. p. 6. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
18. "Today's Football". The Charlotte Observer. Charlotte, North Carolina. November 4, 1944. p. 2, section 2. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
19. "Catawba Defeats Richmond". Greensboro Daily News. Greensboro, North Carolina. November 5, 1944. p. 12. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
20. "Lee Favored". The Richmond News Leader. Richmond, Virginia. November 11, 1944. p. 7. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
21. "Camp Lee Win 35-0 Over Thunderbyrds". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. November 13, 1944. p. 13. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
22. "Annapolis Plebes Drub Richmond Air Base". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. November 19, 1944. p. S3. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
23. "Third War Grid Year To End Soon". The Richmond News Leader. Richmond, Virginia. November 25, 1944. p. 7. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
24. "Monroe And Detrick Teams To Play Here". Twin City Sentinel. Winston-Salem, North Carolina. November 27, 1944. p. 12. Retrieved April 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .