1945 USC Trojans football team

The 1945 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the 1945 college football season. In their fourth year under head coach Jeff Cravath, the Trojans compiled a 7–4 record (5–1 against conference opponents), won the Pacific Coast Conference championship, lost to Alabama in the 1946 Rose Bowl, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 205 to 150.^[1]

1945 USC Trojans football
PCC champion
Rose Bowl, L 14–34 vs. Alabama
Conference	Pacific Coast Conference
Ranking
AP	No. 11
Record	7–4 (5–1 PCC)
Head coach	Jeff Cravath (4th season)
Home stadium	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Seasons ← 1944 1946 →

1945 Pacific Coast Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 11 USC $	5	–	1	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Washington State	6	–	2	–	1			6	–	2	–	1
Washington	6	–	3	–	0			6	–	3	–	0
Oregon State	4	–	4	–	0			4	–	4	–	1
UCLA	2	–	3	–	0			5	–	4	–	0
California	2	–	4	–	1			4	–	5	–	1
Oregon	3	–	6	–	0			3	–	6	–	0
Idaho	1	–	5	–	0			1	–	7	–	0
Montana	0	–	1	–	0			1	–	4	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 21		at UCLA		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (Victory Bell)	W 13–6	81,000
September 29		at California		California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	W 13–2	52,000
October 6	2:30 p.m.	Saint Mary's Pre-Flight*		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 26–14	25,000	[2][3][4]
October 13		at San Diego NTS*	No. 6	San Diego, CA	L 6–33	6,000	[5]
October 20		Pacific (CA)*	No. 14	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 52–0	10,000
October 27		at Washington	No. 20	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA	L 7–13	40,000
November 3		No. 8 Saint Mary's*		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	L 0–26	76,378	[6]
November 10		California		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 14–0	35,000
November 24		Oregon State		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 34–7	30,000
December 1		UCLA	No. 16	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 26–15	103,000
January 1, 1946		vs. No. 3 Alabama*	No. 11	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	L 14–34	93,000
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

Rankings

See also: 1945 NCAA football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked ( ) = First-place votes

	Week
Poll	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Final
AP	6 (1)	14	20	—	—	—	—	16	11

References

1. "Southern California Yearly Results (1945-1949)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
2. "Trojans Battle Airdevils Today at Coliseum". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. October 6, 1945. p. 8. Retrieved March 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
3. Dyer, Braven (October 7, 1945). "Airdevils Fall Before Trojan Power, 26 to 14". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. 5, part II. Retrieved March 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
4. Dyer, Braven (October 7, 1945). "Trojans Trounce Airdevils, 26-14 (continued)". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. 7, part II. Retrieved March 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
5. "San Diego Navy Plasters USC Trojans By 33 To 6 Score". Nevada State Journal. Reno, Nevada. United Press. October 14, 1945. p. B4. Retrieved March 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
6. "Gaels Crush Trojans, 26-0". The Press-Democrat. November 4, 1945. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.