1961 Syracuse Orangemen football team

The 1961 Syracuse Orangemen football team was an American football team that represented Syracuse University as an independent during the 1961 college football season. In their 13th year underhead coach Ben Schwartzwalder, the Orangemen compiled an 8–3 record, outscored opponents by a total of 253 to 117, and defeated Miami (FL) in the 1961 Liberty Bowl. They were ranked No. 14 in the final AP poll and No. 16 in the final UPI poll.^[2]

1961 Syracuse Orangemen football
Liberty Bowl champion
Liberty Bowl, W 15–14 vs. Miami (FL)
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 16
AP	No. 14
Record	8–3
Head coach	Ben Schwartzwalder (13th season)
Captain	Dick Easterly[1]
Home stadium	Archbold Stadium
Seasons ← 1960 1962 →

1961 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Middlebury			–					5	–	1	–	1
Villanova			–					8	–	2	–	0
Southern Connecticut State			–					7	–	2	–	0
Alfred			–					6	–	2	–	0
Montclair State			–					6	–	2	–	0
Delaware Valley			–					6	–	2	–	0
No. 17 Penn State			–					8	–	3	–	0
No. 14 Syracuse			–					8	–	3	–	0
Trinity (CT)			–					5	–	2	–	1
Holy Cross			–					7	–	3	–	0
C. W. Post			–					6	–	3	–	0
Army			–					6	–	4	–	0
Merchant Marine			–					6	–	4	–	0
Tufts			–					5	–	3	–	0
Rochester			–					5	–	3	–	0
Hamilton			–					4	–	3	–	0
Cortland State			–					4	–	3	–	0
American International			–					5	–	4	–	0
Colgate			–					5	–	4	–	0
Northeastern			–					4	–	4	–	0
Coast Guard			–					4	–	4	–	0
Ithaca			–					4	–	4	–	0
Boston University			–					4	–	5	–	0
Buffalo			–					4	–	5	–	0
Bridgeport			–					4	–	5	–	0
Norwich			–					3	–	4	–	1
Worcester Tech			–					3	–	4	–	0
Boston College			–					4	–	6	–	0
Union (NY)			–					3	–	5	–	0
Pittsburgh			–					3	–	7	–	0
Nichols			–					2	–	3	–	0
Trenton State			–					1	–	6	–	0
King's (PA)			–					1	–	8	–	0
Springfield			–					0	–	7	–	1
Brockport			–					0	–	7	–	0
RPI			–					0	–	7	–	0
Hobart			–					0	–	8	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Running back Ernie Davis rushed for 823 yards and 12 touchdowns, was selected as a consensus All-American, and became the first African-American player to win the Heisman Trophy.

The team played its home games at Archbold Stadium in Syracuse, New York.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 23	at Oregon State	No. 10	Multnomah Stadium Portland, OR	W 19–8	35,729
September 30	West Virginia	No. 5	Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	W 29–14	25,000	[3]
October 7	at Maryland	No. 7	Byrd Stadium College Park, MD	L 21–22	35,000	[4]
October 14	at Nebraska		Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	W 28–6	35,387
October 21	at Penn State		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	L 0–14	44,390	[5]
October 28	Holy Cross		Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY	W 34–6	31,000	[6]
November 4	Pittsburgh		Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	W 28–9	40,000	[7]
November 11	Colgate		Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	W 51–8	25,000	[8]
November 18	at Notre Dame	No. 10	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN	L 15–17	49,246	[9]
November 25	at Boston College		Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	W 28–13	17,600
December 16	vs. Miami (FL)	No. 14	Philadelphia Municipal Stadium Philadelphia, PA (Liberty Bowl)	W 15–14	15,712	[10]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[1]

Statistics

Quarterback Dave Sarette was the team's passing leader. He completed 56 of 106 passes (51.9%) for 813 yards for nine touchdowns and eight interceptions.^[11]

Ernie Davis led the team in rushing with 823 yards on 150 carries for an average gain of 5.5 yards per attempt. Davis also caught 16 passes for 157 yards. He also led the team in scoring with 84 points on 14 touchdowns.^[11]

Davis was followed by Gary Fallon (299 yards, 66 carries, 4.5-yard average) and Bill Meyers (163 yards, 23 carries, 7.1-yard average).^[11]

The team's leading receivers were John Mackey (15 receptions, 321 yards) and Dick Easterly (12 receptions, 207 yards).^[11] Mackey later played tight end for the Baltimore Colts and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Awards and honors

Halfback Ernie Davis received numerous awards at the end of the 1961 season including the following:

• On November 28, 1961, Davis was announced at the winner of the Heisman Trophy as college football's player of the year. He was the first black player to receive the award. At the time, Davis called it "the thrill of a lifetime," "something you dream about but you never really believe it can happen to you."^[12]
• Davis was a unanimous first-team pick on the 1961 All-America college football team.^[13] He received first-team honors from the Associated Press (AP), United Press International (UPI), American Football Coaches Association, Football Writers Association of America, and The Sporting News, among others.
• He was also selected as the Associated Press Player of the Year^[14] and received the Chic Harley Award from the Touchdown Club of Columbus as the college football player of the year.

Davis was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 1962 NFL draft, but he was diagnosed with leukemia, never played professional football, and died in May 1963. He was posthumously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979.^[15][14]

Four Syracuse players received honors from the AP or UPI on the 1961 All-Eastern football team: halfback Ernie Davis (AP-1, UPI-1), tackle John Brown, end John Mackey (AP-2, UPI-3), and center Bob Stern (UPI-2).^[16][17]

1962 NFL draft

Player	Round	Pick	Position	Club
Ernie Davis	1	1	Running back	Washington Redskins
Pete Brokaw	8	107	Back	Baltimore Colts
George Francovitch	10	131	Guard	St. Louis Cardinals
Gary Fallon	12	157	Halfback	Minnesota Vikings
Dick Easterly	14	190	Back	San Francisco 49ers
Bob Stem	19	265	Center	New York Giants

^[18]

Ernie Davis was the first black player to be chosen first overall in the NFL Draft.^[19][20] Davis was drafted by the Washington Redskins then traded to the Clevand Browns in the first round of the 1962 American Football League draft.^[21][22] However, he never played in the NFL; he was diagnosed with leukemia shortly before he was to enter the league, and he died in May 1963, less than a year after his diagnosis.

References

1. "2017 Syracuse football media guide" (PDF).. pg. 148
2. "1961 Syracuse Orange Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
3. "SU takes to the air". Sunday Press. October 1, 1961. Retrieved January 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Maryland nips Orange". Sunday Call-Chronicle. October 8, 1961. Retrieved January 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Syracuse Ailing, Hall Operating: State, 14-0, Holds Ernie To 36 Yards". The Sunday Press (Binghamton, NY). October 22, 1961. p. D1 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Syracuse Crushes H.C., 34-6". The Boston Globe. October 29, 1961. p. 63 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Syracuse Rolls, 28-9; Davis Eclipses Brown". New York Daily News. November 5, 1961. p. 35C – via Newspapers.com.
8. Werden, Lincoln A. (November 12, 1961). "Syracuse Routs Colgate, 51 to 8". The New York Times. New York, N.Y. p. S1.
9. Joe Doyle (November 19, 1961). "Irish Stun Orange, 17-15: Second-Shot Field Goal Electrifying; Perkowski Boots 41-Yarder After Time Runs Out". The South Bend Tribune. pp. 1, 39 – via Newspapers.com.
10. John Dell (December 17, 1961). "Syracuse Shades Miami in 2d Half, 15-14". The Philadelphia Inquirer. pp. 1S, 8S – via Newspapers.com.
11. "1961 Syracuse Orange Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
12. "Syracuse Back Enrie Davis Captures Heisman Trophy". Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. November 29, 1961. p. 41 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 9. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
14. "Ernie Davis Dies Of Leukemia". The Ithaca Journal. May 18, 1963. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "Ernie Davis". National Football Foundation. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
16. "Kroll and Simms Are Voted To AP All-East First Team". The Daily Home News. December 1, 1961. p. 22 – via Newspapers.com.
17. "Penn State Puts Three on All-Eastern Team". The Beaver County Times. December 7, 1961. p. 18.
18. "Reference at www.pro-football-reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
19. "Washington Picks 1st Negro on Team". Petaluma Argus-Courier. AP. December 4, 1961. p. 4. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
20. Sports Illustrated, October 13, 2008, p.24
21. "Ernie Davis Joins Cleveland Browns". Syracuse Post-Standard. Syracuse, New York. December 23, 1961. p. 9. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
22. Rockin’ the Rockpile: The Buffalo Bills of the American Football League, p.564, Jeffrey J. Miller, ECW Press, 2007, ISBN 978-1-55022-797-0