1944 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

The 1944 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented Ohio State University in the 1944 Big Ten Conference football season. The Buckeyes compiled a 9–0 record. The Buckeyes also outscored opponents 287–79 during the season. The team was named a national champion by the National Championship Foundation and the Sagarin Ratings, but this championship is not claimed by Ohio State.

1944 Ohio State Buckeyes football
National champion (NCF, SR & Br) Big Ten champion
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Ranking
AP	No. 2
Record	9–0 (6–0 Big Ten)
Head coach	Carroll Widdoes (1st season)
MVP	Les Horvath
Home stadium	Ohio Stadium
Seasons ← 1943 1945 →

1944 Big Ten Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 Ohio State $	6	–	0	–	0			9	–	0	–	0
No. 8 Michigan	5	–	2	–	0			8	–	2	–	0
Purdue	4	–	2	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
Minnesota	3	–	2	–	1			5	–	3	–	1
Indiana	4	–	3	–	0			7	–	3	–	0
No. 15 Illinois	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	4	–	1
Wisconsin	2	–	4	–	0			3	–	6	–	0
Northwestern	0	–	5	–	1			1	–	7	–	1
Iowa	0	–	6	–	0			1	–	7	–	0
+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 30	Missouri*		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	W 54–0	29,908
October 7	Iowa		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	W 34–0	35,358
October 14	at No. 19 Wisconsin	No. 8	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	W 20–7	40,000
October 21	No. 6 Great Lakes Navy*	No. 4	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	W 26–6	73,477
October 28	Minnesota	No. 4	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	W 34–14	43,563
November 4	Indiana	No. 3	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	W 21–7	56,380
November 11	Pittsburgh*	No. 2	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	W 54–19	26,158–26,566	[1][2][3]
November 18	vs. Illinois	No. 4	Cleveland Stadium Cleveland, OH (Illibuck Trophy)	W 26–12	83,627
November 25	No. 6 Michigan	No. 3	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (rivalry)	W 18–14	71,958
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

See also: 1944 college football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes

	Week
Poll	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Final
AP	8 (2)	4 (4)	4 (14)	3 (17)	2 (18)	4 (3)	3 (5)	3т (18)	2 (5)

Coaching staff

• Carroll Widdoes, head coach, first year

Awards and honors

• Les Horvath, Heisman Trophy^[4]

First-Team All Americans

• Jack Dugger, End (All-America Board, FWAA, INS, Sporting News, UP, Walter Camp)
• Bill Hackett, Guard (All-America Board, AP, Collier's, Football News, FWAA, CPA, Walter Camp)
• Les Horvath, Quarterback (All-America Board, AP, Collier's, Football News, FWAA, INS, Look, NEA, Sporting News, UP, CPA, Walter Camp)
• Bill Willis, Tackle (Look, Sporting News, UP)

1945 NFL draftees

Player	Round	Pick	Position	NFL club
Jack Dugger	2	12	Tackle	Pittsburgh Steelers
Gordon Appleby	3	26	Center	New York Giants
Gene Fekete	6	49	Fullback	Detroit Lions
Bill Hackett	13	131	Guard	Green Bay Packers
Bob Jabbusch	17	174	Guard	New York Giants
Cecil Souders	25	259	End	Washington Redskins
John Priday	31	324	Back	Green Bay Packers