1949 National High School Football Rankings

Wichita Falls edges Capitol Hill, Hopewell for No. 1.

One of the top dynasties in Texas high school football history got its start in the late 1940s and it won its first state championship in 1949. Under the guidance of Hall of Fame coach Joe Golding, Wichita Falls was the easy choice for national champion in 1949.

Finishing the year as the only 14-0 team in the country, Wichita Falls edged out several teams that were undefeated in the regular season to claim the state championship. Art Johlfs, who began retroactively selecting national champions in the early 1960s, pegged the Coyotes as the nation’s top team and High School Sports History agrees.

The Coyotes edge a number of other teams that had dynastic runs in the late 1940s and early 1950s, including Capitol Hill (Oklahoma City), Hopewell (Va.), Lowell (Mass.) and Dobyns-Bennett (Kingsport, Tenn.).

1949 Top 50 National High School Football Rankings

1. Wichita Falls (Texas), 14-0
In the spring of 2024, one of the legendary high school football programs in the state of Texas closed its doors when Wichita Falls shut down in order to make way for two new schools, Wichita Falls Legacy and Wichita Falls Memorial. The Coyotes won six state championships in the school’s history and it put together one of the greatest runs in state history under coach Joe Golding from 1947 to 1961. During that span, Golding won four state championships and posted a record of 152-26-2. Twice Golding led the Coyotes to a 14-0 season, including his last year in 1961 and his first state title in 1949. The latter team is the easy choice as the No. 1 for the 1949 school year. Four Texas teams were undefeated in Class AA heading into the playoffs: Corsicana, Lubbock, Port Arthur and Wichita Falls. By the end of the postseason, Wichita Falls was the last team standing. While the Coyotes didn’t defeat any of those undefeated teams, they did beat all of the teams that did, including the Austin Maroons, 14-13, in the championship game. End Jerry Fouts was the only all-state first team player for Wichita Falls, but he was named the state player of the year by the Sports Writers Association. Quarterback Bill Waggoner made the second team. Ironically Waggoner was second team Wigwam Wiseman All-American while Fouts was not selected on any of the seven All-American teams. Fouts was inducted into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame in 1973. Golding was also named the state coach of the year.
Season Log
Denison, 32-6
Breckenridge, 14-7
Abilene, 33-7
Pampa, 14-7
Electra, 53-0
Highland Park, 14-7
Quanah, 59-0
Childress, 36-0
Vernon, 21-14
Graham, 39-7
Pampa, 20-12
Austin (El Paso), 58-6
Highland Park, 21-0
Austin, 14-13

2. Capitol Hill (Oklahoma City, Okla.), 12-0
While times have been tough for Capitol Hill the past 50 years, at one time the Red Wolves were the team to beat in Oklahoma. Under coach John Miskovsky, Capitol Hill went 45-10 between 1946 and 1950 with the 1949 team going 12-0 with a state championship. Meeting little resistance in the playoffs, Capitol Hill outscored opponents 107-34 including 28-14 over an undefeated Seminole team in the finals. Jack Van Pool made the All-State South Team at quarterback along with teammate John Koch at running back. Van Pool also made the Tulsa World All-State 33 team along with receiver Jerry Jewell. Van Pool earned all-state honors in basketball and baseball as well and went on to play football and baseball at the University of Oklahoma. He led the Sooners to an Orange Bowl win over Maryland in 1954. A third-string quarterback, Van Pool entered the game due to injuries and led Oklahoma to a 7-0 win over No. 1-ranked Maryland. He then spent 28 years in the Army. Van Pool was also a Wigwam Wiseman All-American on the fourth team.
Season Log
Borger, 12-7
Ardmore, 26-6
Classen, 20-0
Shawnee, 27-7
Enid, 25-12
Northeast, 59-13
Central Marlow, 39-13
Idabel, 54-6
Norman, 33-19
Ardmore, 44-0
Clinton, 35-20
Seminole, 28-14

3. Hopewell (Va.), 10-0
At the time, the 1949 season was the greatest in school history for the Red Devils. Going up against schools two and three times its size, Hopewell went undefeated in Class A with a 10-0 record while outscoring opponents 373-25 with eight shutouts. As it turns out, the 1949 season was just a sign of things to come for the Red Devils, who went on to win three straight state championships and capture 34 straight wins. Quarterback Johnny Dean earned All-Southern honors as a junior and was named by Max Ailor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch as the state player of the year. It was an honor he won again in 1950 when he earned Wigwam Wiseman All-American first team honors. Other all-state players for Hopewell included end Walter Brodie, guard Bud Jones, and back Nick Klonis.
Season Log
Victoria, 38-0
Highland Springs, 57-0
Granger (NC), 39-0
Petersburg, 26-18
Granby, 52-0
Benedictine, 35-7
John Marshall, 18-0
Woodrow Wilson Portsmouth, 28-0
Newport News, 54-0
Thomas Jefferson, 26-0

4. Lowell (Mass.), 11-0
The Red Raiders dynastic run during the 1950s got its start in 1949 when Lowell won its first state championship. Finishing 10-0 during the regular season, Lowell went on to defeat Landon (Fla.) in the Gator Bowl 14-7. The Red Raiders scored on the first play from scrimmage on an 80-yard pass from Gary Folsom to Charlie Morant. Lowell finished tied with Arlington at 10-0 and were awarded “co-champions” of Class A, although Lowell’s ranking was 9.80 to Arlington’s 9.78. The final rankings were before Lowell and Arlington played their bowl games. While Lowell defeated Landon, Arlington lost to Warren Easton of Louisiana, 27-13 to finish 9-1. Waltham and Saugus finished No. 3 and 4 in the Class A rankings. Lowell placed three players on the All-Scholastic, including two on the first team. Menil Mavraides made the team at end and was also a Wigwam Wiseman All-America first team pick. Brian Reynolds also made the All-Scholastics squad at running back. Tackle Bob Ready was a second team selection. Mavraides and Ready went on to play at Notre Dame for Frank Leahy, who coached Lowell coach Ray Riddick at Fordham. Riddick was one of the “Seven Blocks of Granite” on the line for Fordham, a unit that included future Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi. Mavraides also played two seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles. Reynolds won nine letters in three years at Lowell and led the team in scoring in 1949 with 102 points. He went on to play football, baseball and track and field at Harvard.
Season Log
Lynn English, 19-0
Peabody, 33-6
Nashua, 21-7
Manchester Central, 28-0
Salem, 35-6
Haverhill, 26-0
Keith, 27-0
Lynn Classical, 34-13
Quincy, 27-13
Lawrence, 55-0
Landon (Fla.), 14-7

5. Dobyns-Bennett (Kingsport, Tenn.), 10-0
The five-year run between 1945 and 1949 is the greatest five-year stretch in the history of the Dobyns-Bennett program. The Indians went 51-1 during that run with four undefeated, untied seasons. Dobyns-Bennett only has five undefeated, untied seasons in its history (9-0 in 1955). The 10-0 season in 1949 was the end of the run and it was the third straight state championship via the Litkenhous rankings. Although Dobyns-Bennett needed a last-minute win over Young in the final game of the season to stay undefeated, the Indians finished with a 106.0 rating, to finish nearly six points ahead of No. 2 Paris Grove (100.2). After playing bowl games against Marist (Ga.) in 1947 and Miami in 1948, Dobyns-Bennett voted to decline any bowl game offers at the conclusion of the 1949 season. The Indians finished with a 35-game win streak, which was regarded as the longest in state history at the time. The Kingsport team placed only one player on the all-state first team in running back Roy Duncan. End Karl Ketron and tackle Leon Duncan made the third team.
Season Log
Coalfield, 77-6
Chattanooga Central, 20-2
Erwin, 19-0
Jefferson (Va.), 12-0
Stair Tech, 6-0
Knoxville, 28-14
Bristol, 19-0
Elizabethton, 38-0
Johnson City, 54-0
Young, 25-20

6. Central Jackson (Jackson, Miss.), 11-0
Central Jackson has just three 11-0 seasons in its history, but two of them came in back-to-back seasons and produced two of the greatest teams in Mississippi high school football history. The Tigers were 11-0 in 1949 and 1950 and also went 11-0 in 1954. The school closed in 1976. Central Jackson won the Big 8 Conference with a 10-0 record, finishing ahead of Hattiesburg, which went 8-1-1. While Central Jackson did not play Hattiesburg during the season (The Big 8 had 18 schools and they did not all play each other during a given year), the Indians did defeat four other teams - Laurel, Tupelo, Greenville and Greenwood - that finished in the top six. Houston Oakes and John Crechale made the All-Southern Team by the Orlando Sentinel. Oakes led the team in scoring with 135 points and went on to play at Mississippi Southern. Crechale went on to play at Mississippi State.
Season Log
Drew, 26-0
Tupelo, 26-6
McComb, 31-13
Clarksdale, 25-7
Laurel, 25-0
Greenville, 21-13
Meridian, 21-6
Biloxi, 46-0
Greenwood, 20-13
Lee, 26-7
Vicksburg, 41-13

7. Turlock (Calif.), 10-0
The San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco Examiner had a tough time choosing between undefeated Turlock and undefeated Vallejo in 1949. The Examiner ended up calling it a tie at the top of their Northern California rankings, putting both Turlock and Vallejo at No. 1. The Chronicle endeavored to avoid the tie with writer Darrel Wilson calling the coaches from Stockton and Lodi - the two common opponents for both teams - to get their opinion. Both chose Turlock as the better team. While Vallejo was the highest scoring team in the north state with 394 points, Turlock played in the tougher league and posted six shutouts to start the season. Turlock placed center Don Cederlind and back Paul Larson on the Examiner’s All-NorCal team while end Steve Burnett made the second team. Larson went on to play at Cal-Berkeley and earned All-American honors at quarterback in 1954. Joe Debely coached the Turlock team from 1933 to 1941 and again from 1946 to 1953. The stadium at the school is named in his honor.
Season Log
Manteca, 27-0
Oakdale, 38-0
Lodi, 6-0
Modesto, 28-0
McClatchy, 33-0
Woodland, 38-0
Sacramento, 47-13
Stockton, 20-12
Grant, 34-6
Modesto, 26-7

8. Vallejo (Calif.), 10-0
If not for the emergence of Dick Bass in the 1950s, Jerry Hinton might have been known as the greatest player in Vallejo history. In leading the Apaches to a 10-0 record and a Northern California-best 394 total points, Hinton led the northstate in scoring with 135 points. He landed on the All-Northern California first team by both the Examiner and the Chronicle. Although he attended Cal-Berkeley, injuries curtailed his career. Later a coach at Vallejo, Hinton stayed active in sports, playing softball into his 80s. Running back Bob Rodrigo made the All-NorCal second team. He later earned Little All-American honors at San Francisco State and was the head football coach at Cal-State Hayward from 1971-74.
Season Log
Lodi, 26-20
Stockton, 33-0
Bellarmine, 34-0
Petaluma, 55-13
Tamalpais, 43-12
Analy, 49-12
Santa Rosa, 34-6
San Rafael, 35-0
Napa, 55-0
Eureka, 30-14

9. Tuscaloosa (Ala.), 9-0
Few teams in the 1920s can match the record of the Tuscaloosa Black Bears. Coached by Paul Burnum, Tuscaloosa won 64 straight games from 1925 to 1931. The Black Bears were less successful during the 1930s and 40s, but they did return to glory in 1949 when they posted the next, and last, undefeated and untied season in school history. Tuscaloosa was ranked No. 1 in the state, edging Decatur (9-0-1) for the top spot. The Black Bears featured one of the top linemen in the nation in tackle Jack Smalley, who made the Wigwam Wiseman All-American first team and the All-Southern Team by the Orlando Sentinel. He went on to play at Alabama and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers, but ultimately served 20 years in the Armed Forces.
Season Log
Aliceville, 48-6
Holt, 33-6
Sidney Lanier, 19-0
Woodlawn, 13-0
Tuscaloosa County, 24-19
Parrish Selma, 32-12
Coffee, 32-7
Deshler, 20-6
University City (Mo.), 16-6

9. Evanston (Ill.), 8-0
The Wildkits finished the season undefeated and were considered the top team in Illinois in 1949, but Evanston wasn’t even favored to win its final game of the season. In the battle for the Suburban League championship, undefeated New Trier was the slight favorite heading into the season finale against Evanston. However, led by league-leading scorer Baird Stewart, Evanston defeated defending league champion New Trier, 12-0, to win the league championship for the first time since 1940. The win allowed Evanston to move from No. 5 to No. 3 in the Chicago Sun Times “Big 10” rankings of the Chicago area, behind only No. 1 Fenwick and No. 2 Austin. Although Evanston didn’t play another game, the Wildkits slowly moved up the rankings over the next month. Austin lost to Schurz in the Public League finale, pushing Evanston up to No. 2 with Schurz, whose only loss was to New Trier, coming in at No. 4. Schurz then upset No. 1 Fenwick in the Prep Bowl finals, 20-7, to move Evanston to No. 1 in the final rankings. Coached by Bob Reihsen, Evanston employed the new Split T formation and knocked off defending Wisconsin champion Madison East to start the season, 38-6. Stewart, who scored 60 points on 10 touchdowns during the season, made the all-state team by the Champaign Gazette along with tackle Dean Perrin.
Season Log
East (Madison, Wisc.), 38-6
Morton, 36-7
Highland Park, 47-0
Proviso, 32-6
Oak Park, 36-21
Waukegan, 45-6
York, 47-0
New Trier, 12-0

10. East Chicago Roosevelt (Ind.), 10-0
Between 1945 and 1957, there might not have been a better high school football program in Indiana than the Roughriders. Over the course of 12 years, East Chicago Roosevelt went 102-9-5 with six undefeated seasons and seven mythical state championships. The 1949 season was the fourth state title in five years and the third 10-0 season. Bill Holzbach led the offensive attack with 82 points and made the all-state first team at running back along with Jack Wendlinger at tackle and Bob Hanrahan at guard. All totaled, Roosevelt placed nine players on the Associated Press first, second and third teams combined. Holzbach also earned all-state honors in basketball and returned to Roosevelt to coach basketball. He had a record of 211-82 and was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
Season Log
Hammond Tech, 26-0
Hammond Clark, 27-0
Gary Mann, 31-0
Evansville Reitz, 20-12
Hammond, 26-14
Chicago Harrison (Ill.), 34-7
Whiting, 45-0
South Bend Washington, 28-7
East Chicago Washington, 28-0
South Bend Riley, 32-6

11. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (Mich.), 9-0
Catholic Central was the second straight Grand Rapids school to finish at the top of the state rankings by the Detroit Free Press, joining Union (champion in 1948), as the winners of the Free Press Trophy. Catholic Central knocked off Union in city league play, 32-6, and also shut out state powerhouse Muskegon. The Cougars also topped out-of-state teams Toledo Scott of Ohio and LaPorte of Indiana in finishing 9-0. Ted Sowle coached the Cougars and won 11 league championships and four state titles during his tenure while racking up a record of 136-30-7. Quarterback Jim Koelzer earned all-state first team honors for the Cougars.
Season Log
Muskegon, 20-0
Muskegon Heights, 16-0
Union, 32-6
Toledo Scott, 42-13
South, 27-7
Central, 27-12
Creston, 34-7
Ottawa, 27-6
LaPorte, 40-28

12. Decatur (Ga.), 13-0
Charles Waller only coached four seasons at Decatur, but he is easily the most successful coach in school history. His four-year record of 45-3 gives him a .937 winning percentage and no other coach is close. The school has also won double-digit game totals in only eight seasons since the school began playing football in 1914. Waller had three of those seasons, including back-to-back undefeated seasons of 13-0 in 1949 and 12-0 in 1950. Waller eventually went on to coach in the NFL in the late 1960s through the 1980s and also coached in the USFL for three seasons. He was named the Georgia coach of the year in 1949 by the Atlanta Touchdown Club. Decatur placed three on the Class A all-state team, including captain Courts Redford at quarterback, Butch Dowman at end and Bobby Doan at tackle. Redford also made the All-Southern team.
Season Log
Murphy, 20-6
Spalding County, 31-12
Robert E. Lee, 21-7
North Fulton, 13-0
Gainesville, 12-7
Russell, 21-12
Griffin, 26-0
Benedictine, 47-6
Rome, 28-6
West Fulton, 34-13
LaGrange, 9-8
Marietta, 21-7
Tifton, 21-19

13. Montclair (N.J.), 9-0
Clary Anderson won 16 state championships and had 12 undefeated seasons at Montclair and the 1949 team was the first to go over 300 points in a season with 302. Montclair scored 747 points in the Colliton ranking system, putting it well ahead of Phillipsburg, which also went 9-0 but scored 694 in the Colliton rankings. Ironically, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association named Montclair and Phillipsburg “co-champions” of Group 4, Section 2. The Mounties placed quarterback Joe Fortunato on the all-state first team. Joe was the cousin of assistant coach Butch Fortunato and he went on to play quarterback at Yale, where he earned honorable mention All-American honors.
Season Log
Orange, 26-13
Barringer, 25-2
Kearny, 28-0
Nutley, 33-13
East Orange, 27-13
Columbia, 39-7
West Orange, 24-2
Clifton, 55-28
Bloomfield, 45-13

14. Washington (Massillon, Ohio), 9-1
To say that the 1949 season was coach Chuck Mather’s “worst” team while at Massillon is up for debate, but it also shows how absurdly successful he was during his six seasons with the team. Yes, the Tigers lost a game in 1949 to Mansfield, just one of three during Mather’s Massillon career. They also finished behind Mansfield in the Ohio Scholastic League standings. However Washington also finished as the No. 1 team in the state by the Associated Press, thanks in part to a 6-0 win over previously unbeaten Canton McKinley. Irvin “Ace” Crable was first team all-Ohio after averaging 11.3 yards per carry and gaining 1,129 yards rushing on the season.
Season Log
Cathedral Latin, 40-6
Lincoln (Canton), 60-0
Barberton, 34-6
Steubenville, 63-0
Alliance, 48-14
Mansfield, 12-16
Warren Harding, 35-19
Toledo Waite, 59-19
Youngstown South, 38-13
McKinley (Canton), 6-0

15. Bremerton (Wash.), 10-0
Two years after going unbeaten and winning a state championship in 1947, the Wildcats were at it again in 1949 with a 10-0 record and a state title. One player who played on both of those teams was Ron “Tiny” Madlin, a 6-foot-2, 218-pound fullback who earned Wigwam Wiseman All-America first team honors and scored 20 touchdowns during the season. Bremerton won every game by at least 17 points with five shutouts. Yet Rogers (Spokane) was considered the possible mythical state champions based on comparative scores. However, the final count by the Associated Press on Dec. 5 had Bremerton as the unanimous choice with 88 points. Lincoln (Seattle) was second at 58 points while Rogers was third with 50.
Season Log
Lincoln (Portland), 34-0
Puyallup, 26-0
LIncoln (Tacoma), 33-6
Everett, 26-6
South Kitsap, 33-0
Seattle Prep, 41-0
Stadium, 50-19
Yakima, 26-9
Bellingham, 35-6
Lewis and Clark, 19-0

16. Visalia (Calif.), 9-0
Now known as Redwood, Visalia was the only school in town in 1949 and it ruled the San Joaquin Valley in 1949. Defeating Merced 13-0 in the valley championship game was significant because Merced had defeated a very strong Roosevelt (Fresno) team that had blanked Santa Barbara, 6-0, which finished second to Compton in the Southern Section championship. Merced finished No. 7 in the Northern California rankings by the San Francisco Examiner, but Visalia was not considered part of the Northern California coverage area and wasn’t ranked. The Pioneers placed four players on the All-Valley team by the Bakersfield Californian, including running backs Joe Hannah and Francis Weddle, guard Harold Silvani and end Joe Alfaro.
Season Log
Exeter, 40-7
Hanford, 27-6
Porterville, 40-6
Wasco, 19-7
Taft, 28-6
East Bakersfield, 31-28
Delano, 7-6
Tulare, 14-0
Merced, 13-0

17. New Castle (Pa.), 11-0
The Red Hurricanes were the team to beat in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League during the 1920s through the 1940s. Under coach Phil Bridenbaugh, New Castle won seven state championships, three of them in playoffs, between 1922 and 1955, the 33 years Bridenbaugh spent at the school. Nicknamed “The Fox”, Bridenbaugh had a record of 265-65-25, which included 11 unbeaten seasons. The 1949 teams might have been the best of those teams as it allowed just 34 points with six shutouts. Not blessed with any star players, New Castle was known for its rugged offensive line. The Red Hurricanes were the defending WPIAL champions in 1949 and they were able to avenge their only loss of the 1948 campaign with a 26-7 win over Warren (Ohio). Battling likewise undefeated McKeesport in the WPIAL championship game, the Hurricanes trailed 7-0 at halftime, but got a safety and a short touchdown run from Johnny Roussos to pull out the win. New Castle finished with a score of 556 in the Saylor team ratings to lead the state. Don Tate, a 6-foot-1, 207-pound junior tackle, was the only all-state player for New Castle. He was also the largest player on the first team. He also made first team all-state as a senior in 1950 and is the only New Castle player to ever make all-state first team twice.
Season Log
Erie Tech, 19-0
Carrick, 13-6
John Adams, 41-7
Sharon, 41-0
Erie Academy, 12-7
Farrell, 13-0
Har-Brack, 19-0
Washington, 33-0
Aliquippa, 18-0
Warren (Ohio), 26-7
McKeesport, 8-7

18. McKeesport (Pa.), 10-1
The 1949 edition of the Tigers was one of the most successful in school history to that point. Finishing undefeated at 10-0 in the regular season for the third time in school history, The 1949 squad was also the second to reach the championship game. Like New Castle, McKeesport’s opponent in the Class AA state final, the Tigers were led by a legendary coach in Harold “Duke” Weigle. However, while New Castle’s Phil Bridenbaugh was near the end of his coaching career (he stepped down in 1955), Weigle was just beginning. He coached his first team in 1943 and didn’t stop until 1967. Coincidentally, Weigle finished with the exact same number of career wins in building a record of 265-79-13. The game against New Castle was McKeesport’s only championship game appearance under Weigle. The Tigers took a 7-0 halftime lead against the Red Hurricanes, but three costly penalties in the second half resulted in a safety and touchdown for New Castle. Running back Francis Paterra was the only all-state player for the Tigers, earning second team honors. Paterra played at Notre Dame and was drafted in the fourth round by the Chicago Bears in the 1954 NFL draft.
Season Log
Glassport, 27-13
Central Catholic, 20-7
Lorain (Ohio), 19-14
Clairton, 27-7
Donora, 20-6
Johnstown, 12-6
Duquesne, 13-7
Allentown, 20-7
Jeannette, 19-13
Ambridge, 20-0
New Castle, 7-8

19. Compton (Calif.), 10-1
Compton’s loss to St. Anthony’s might seem at first glance like the type of defeat that would keep a team out of the national rankings, since the Saints finished the season 5-4. However St. Anthony (Long Beach) was the defending Southern Section champion, tying Santa Barbara 7-7 for the championship but earning the title based on first downs (16-12). The 1949 version of the Saints didn’t have future NFL 10-year veteran Johnny Olszewski in the backfield, but they were still a formidable program as Compton found out in the season opener with a 12-6 loss. The Tarbabes didn’t lose a game the rest of the season, knocking off teams from the Central Valley (Bakersfield), Nevada, Arizona and powerful San Diego before beating Santa Barbara in the Southern Section finals. Guard Mike Aguilar and quarterback James Contratto made the All-CIF Southern Section first team while running back Joseph Rose made third team. Contratto went on to play quarterback at USC.
Season Log
Saint Anthony’s, 6-12
Bakersfield, 13-0
Pasadena, 38-0
Las Vegas (Nev.), 33-7
Yuma (Ariz.), 27-12
San Diego, 18-13
Hoover (San Diego), 27-6
Grossmont, 26-12
Chaffey, 48-7
Mark Keppel, 21-7
Santa Barbara, 19-13

20. Mansfield (Ohio), 8-1
Mansfield holds the distinction of doing one thing that only two other teams did between 1948 and 1953 when Chuck Mather was coach of the Tigers - it defeated Massillon. Mansfield outscored Massillon 9-0 in the fourth quarter thanks to a touchdown pass and a safety on a punt attempt en route to the 16-12 win. Prior to the 1949 win, Mansfield had defeated Massillon exactly zero times in 17 attempts with two ties. Mansfield was shut out in nine of those games and had scored just 56 points total. Massillon had scored 87 points in the 1912 game alone! Mansfield opened the season with a loss to Akron South and was rated No. 7 in the state by the Associated Press and No. 6 by International News Service (INS) heading into the Massillon game. After Mansfield’s win, it moved up to No. 2, Massillon dropped to No. 3 and Canton McKinley went up to No. 1. The ratings stayed that way until Nov. 8, when Massillon moved to No. 2 after a 59-19 win over Toledo Waite, a team Mansfield defeated 7-0. When Massillon defeated unbeaten McKinley, 6-0, that caused a quandary for state sportswriters as to who should be the state champion. The INS handed the state championship to Mansfield after the Tygers and Massillon tied with 324 votes. Mansfield, however, had 24 first-place votes to Massillon’s 12. The Associated Press, however, gave the title to Massillon, 350 votes to 332.5, over Mansfield. Back A.C. Jenkins made the INS all-state first team along with end Ed Demyan. Augie Morningstar, the Massillon coach in 1945 (a team with the unique record of 5-0-5) coached the Mansfield team, but he left the school the next year to return to Massillon as a teacher. Morningstar is the only former Massillon coach to later defeat Massillon.
Season Log
Akron South, 27-34
Cleveland East, 33-15
Alliance, 28-14
Warrens, 20-0
Euclid, 42-6
Massillon, 16-12
Springfield, 26-12
Toledo Waite, 7-0
Kent, 48-0

22. Jacksonville Lee (Fla.), 8-0-1
The Week 8 matchup between unbeatens Landon and Robert E. Lee, both of Jacksonville, proved to be the game of the year in Florida as it figured to determine the bragging rights for the city of Jacksonville, the Big 10 conference and the state of Florida. In front of over 32,000 fans at the Gator Bowl, however, the two teams tied 0-0. Lee ended up winning the Big 10 conference championship, however, with a 7-0 win over Jackson (Jacksonville) the following week. Based on the Dickinson rating system, Lee finished higher than Landon due to beating more first division teams. Tackle Bob Towers made the all-state first team along with fullback Sonny May.
Season Log
Roosevelt (Atlanta)
Orlando, 26-12
Miami Edison, 32-0
Miami Jackson, 26-7
Miami Senior, 27-0
West Palm Beach, 21-6
HIllsborough, 6-0
Landon (Jacksonville), 0-0
Jackson (Jacksonville), 7-0

23. Byrd (Shreveport, La.), 12-1
Byrd rebounded from an opening game loss to Sulphur to defeat Sulphur in the state semifinals and trounce Holy Cross for the championship. Byrd posted seven shutouts during the season, including regular powerhouses Istrouma and Fair Park. Following the win in the finals, Byrd principal Grove Koffman told the players in the locker room that they could have “anything they wanted.” A week or so later, a group of players asked the principal for $25. They told him it was for a sign. When Koffman said he hadn’t ordered any sign to be made, the players told him the sign said “Louisiana AA State Football Champions” and was to be displayed in front of the school. Koffman reportedly happily paid the bill. Dickie Murray made the all-state first team at end while M.K. Woolbert made the squad at tackle. Quarterback Edgar Galloway made the second team along with running back Willard Rachal, who led the team in scoring with 78 points. Rachal went on to play at LSU.
Season Log
Sulphur, 0-6
Natchitoches, 20-0
Bastrop, 32-6
Homer, 34-0
Bossier, 34-0
Istrouma, 21-0
Bolton, 47-14
Haynesville, 27-7
Ouachita, 41-13
Ruston, 26-0
Fair Park, 14-0
Sulphur, 6-0
Holy Cross, 34-13

24. New Trier (Winnetka, Ill.), 7-1
The Terriers were unbeaten and a slight favorite over likewise unbeaten Evanston heading into the final game of their Suburban League showdown. Evanston won 12-0, but New Trier still managed to finish No. 2 in the Chicago Sun Times “Big 10” rankings at the end of the season. Fenwick had been No. 1 with Evanston No. 2 and New Trier No. 3. However Schurz defeated Fenwick in the Public League final game. Since New Trier had a 32-0 win over Schurz, the Terriers moved up to No. 2 in the state, finishing behind Evanston. Tackle Stewart Currie made the all-state team by the Champaign Gazette while his twin brother Caird Currie was an all-conference running back.
Season Log
Schurz, 32-0
Lyons Township, 20-6
Morton, 40-0
Oak Park, 47-13
Proviso, 28-6
Highland Park, 52-0
Waukegan, 46-7
Evanston, 0-12

25. Christian Brothers (St. Joseph, Mo.), 8-0-1
Winner of the St. Joseph city championship, CBC posted a convincing win over eventual Kansas City Catholic League champion Rockhurst and tied Pony Express League champion North Kansas City before whipping unbeaten Raytown in the inaugural Santa Fe Express Bowl at the end of the season. The Golden Eagles had a 25-game unbeaten streak, including jamboree games, heading into the Raytown matchup. Christian Brothers, which had won the conference championship in 1948, eventually closed in 1970.
Season Log
Central, 20-7
Rockhurst, 26-12
Mercy Academy, 55-6
Immaculata, 21-2
Lafayette, 20-0
Benton, 19-13
De La Salle, 39-13
North Kansas City, 13-13
Raytown, 34-20

26. Landon (Jacksonville, Fla.), 9-1-1
Landon’s chances of finishing the season undefeated looked pretty good in the opening minutes of their Kiwanis Bowl game against Lowell (Mass.) as it scored on the first play from scrimmage on an 80-yard pass from Gary Folsom to Jimmy Burton. However Lowell ended up winning the game 14-7 to hand the Lions their only loss of the season. Landon had tied Jacksonville Lee for the mythical state championship after tying 0-0 early in the season. Tackle Al Hargly made the first team while end Al Purcell, center Lee Haygood and running back Gordon Thompson made the second team.
Season Log
Jackson, 28-0
Lee, 0-0
West Palm Beach, 26-13
Plant, 41-6
Fort Lauderdale, 39-12
Charlotte (N.C.), 20-19
Chattanooga, 14-6
Miami Jackson, 19-0
Orlando, 27-7
St. Petersburg, 21-0
Lowell (Mass.), 7-14

27. Rock Island (Ill.), 9-0
Harold “Shorty” Almquist had the rare coaching career where he started out as a successful college coach and then became a successful high school coach. After winning All-American honors as a quarterback on a Minnesota team that included Bronko Nagurski, Almquist went on to coach Augustana College for 13 seasons and compiled a 67-31-10 record. He moved on to Rock Island in 1941 and coached football until 1961. According to his obituary in 1994, Almquist won championships in 20 of his 21 seasons as head coach at Rock Island with a record of 133-43-11 and five mythical state titles. The 1949 team might have been one of those teams, although there was no official overall state championship awarded that year (the Chicago Sun Times ranked teams in the Chicago area in its Big 10 rankings). End Joe Collier earned all-state honors by the Chicago Tribune along with back Dick Thomas. Collier earned All-American honors at Northwestern and coached in the NFL for many years, including head coach of the Buffalo Bills from 1966 to 1968.
Season Log
Foreman, 33-6
Quincy, 47-6
West Rockford, 19-14
Davenport, 7-0
Kewanee, 25-6
Moline, 14-7
Galesburg, 23-20
East Moline, 27-0
Clinton, 33-7

28. Durham (N.C.), 12-0-1
A powerhouse in North Carolina during the late 1930s and all through the 1940s and early 1950s, Durham eventually closed in 1993. After finishing 11-0-1 with a state AA championship win over Burlington, Durham was invited to a postseason game in Florida. The Bulldogs used an explosive passing attack in the Kiwanis Bowl Game against Miami Senior at the Orange Bowl to win 19-14. Quarterback Worth Lutz and end Van Weatherspoon helped Durham build a 19-0 lead early in the game. Lutz went on to play at Duke and was an All-Southern Conference pick in 1952. Weatherspoon, meanwhile, went on to play at North Carolina. Both Lutz and Weatherspoon were all-state choices for Durham.
Season Log
Hillsboro, 39-0
Durham County, 45-6
Raleigh, 12-0
High Point, 32-7
Charlotte, 30-13
Wilson, 12-6
Fayetteville, 31-0
Rocky Mount, 26-0
Winston Salem, 14-6
Wilmington, 7-7
Goldsboro, 44-0
Burlington, 21-13
Miami Senior (Fla.), 19-14

29. Canton McKinley (Ohio), 9-1
The Bulldogs were simply dominant for much of the season, racking up three wins with 60 or more points while climbing to a No. 1 ranking in the state heading into the final game of the season against Washington (Massillon). Newspaper scribes pegged the annual rivalry game as the matchup to decide the mythical state championship. The irked Mansfield fans, whose team had defeated Massillon 16-12 earlier in the season. McKinley would have rightfully claimed the state championship with a win, however the Tigers pulled off the 6-0 victory. Associated Press, in a vote of sports writers and radio broadcasters, gave the championship to Massillon with Mansfield at No. 2 and McKinley at No. 3. Herman “Bup” Rearick coached the Bulldogs, posting a record of 118-21-10 in his career at Dover and McKinley. He also coached basketball and had a record of 428-130. Quarterback John Rogers earned all-state first team honors by the Associated Press.
Season Log
Cleveland Lincoln, 60-0
Warren, 45-0
Canton Tinken, 62-0
Lincoln, 26-0
Alliance, 19-13
Toledo Waite, 7-0
Steubenville Wells, 62-6
Lakewood, 39-13
Columbus East, 40-7
Massillon, 0-6

30. Schurz (Chicago), 11-1
If not for a lopsided loss to New Trier in the season opener, Schurz might have been the top team in Illinois for 1949. An upset win over Fenwick, led by future Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Lattner, in the Public League championship game allowed Schurz to finish No. 3 in the Big 10 rankings by the Chicago Sun Times behind Evanston and New Trier. Running back Ken Swienton earned all-state honors by the Champaign Gazette. Swienton went on to play at Illinois.
Season Log
New Trier, 0-32
Lake View, 38-0
Sullivan, 47-7
Amundsen, 32-0
Lane, 20-6
Roosevelt, 54-7
Taft, 33-0
Steinmetz, 33-7
PHillips, 32-7
Tilden, 19-6
Austin, 31-6
Fenwick, 20-7

31. Austin (Texas), 12-2
The Maroon finished just two points away from an undefeated season, losing in the regular season to Arlington Heights and in the state finals to Wichita Falls. The Maroons reached the finals after an upset win over Port Arthur, which was considered the heavy favorite to win the championship. Austin stunned Port Arthur early with a blocked punt on the third play of the game that was recovered for a touchdown. The championship game appearance was the first for Austin since 1942 when it beat Dallas Sunset for the title. The Maroons came close to pulling off the come-from-behind win against the Coyotes. After pulling within a point in the fourth quarter, Austin recovered a Wichita Falls fumble at the Coyote 34. A fourth-down pass got Austin down to the 3-yard line, but an offsides penalty on Austin negated the play and the Maroons turned the ball over on an unsuccessful fake field goal. Guard Stanley Studer and center JT Seaholm earned all-state honors for Austin. Seaholm was the first team center on the Wigwam Wiseman All-American team.
Season Log
Thomas Jefferson, 27-6
Brackenridge, 20-7
Waco, 21-7
San Jacinto, 14-6
Arlington Heights, 6-7
Galveston, 19-6
Temple, 18-13
Victoria, 40-0
Kerrville, 14-0
Corsicana, 33-19
Corpus Christi, 27-7
Alice, 28-7
Port Arthur, 20-14
Wichita Falls, 13-14

32. Grant (Portland, Ore.), 11-0
Heading into the finals against LaGrande, the team from the Eastern part of the state was given good odds to beat the team from Portland. LaGrande was likewise undefeated and had actually outscored Grant 319-258 heading into the championship game. But LaGrande proved to be no match for the Generals. Grant so thoroughly won the title game that sportswriters decreed the 1949 squad to be the best in the state in the past decade. The Generals had an overwhelming running game, but also had the state’s best quarterback in junior George Shaw. The future No. 1 pick in the 1955 NFL draft went on to lead Grant to back-to-back 11-0 seasons in 1950. He threw for 188 yards in the finals against LaGrande.
Season Log
Klamath Union, 7-0
Washington, 40-0
Lincoln, 27-0
Franklin, 13-0
Cleveland, 38-0
Jefferson, 30-7
Benson, 27-7
Roosevelt, 18-7
Central Catholic, 14-0
Hillsboro, 33-0
La Grande, 24-0

33. Seminole (Okla.), 12-1
Facing Capitol Hill in the finals of the Class A state championship, the winner was destined to be the first team in state history to finish the season undefeated since the playoff system began six years earlier. Seminole entered the game with 12 straight wins and was led by running back Bobby Miller, who had 14 touchdowns on the season. Coach Gene Corrotto was in his seventh season and had a record of 51-15-7 entering the championship game. Played in a mudbath due to heavy rain, the championship game saw Capitol Hill scored twice in the final four minutes for the 28-14 win. Joe Gorley made all-state at end while Miller made the team at running back. Only a junior, Gorley was ineligible to play the following year as a senior because he had already turned 20.
Season Log
Sulphur, 12-0
Shawnee, 14-13
Holdenville, 31-13
Pauls Valley, 39-7
Henryetta, 52-14
Ada, 25-2
Wewoka, 13-0
Durant, 32-7
McAlester, 13-7
Hollis, 46-6
Muskogee, 13-7
Miami, 39-7
Capitol Hill, 14-28

34. Lincoln (East St. Louis, Ill.), 10-0-1
In 1949, Lincoln was an all-black school that dominated all-black competition from four different states. The Tigers had a rich athletic history before closing in 1998, including the girls track team that won 14 state championships and was the alma mater of Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner Kersee. McNary Waters led the football team in 1949, scoring 10 touchdowns and 63 total points. The Tigers gave up just three touchdowns all season and posted eight shutouts.
Season Log
Henderson (Ky.), 13-0
Pearl (Nashville, Tenn.), 25-0
Mt. Olive, 0-0
Evansville (Ind.), 26-6
Kinloch, Martin (Tenn.), 55-0
Pana, 26-7
Sumner, 7-0
Washington Tech, 34-0
Vashon (Mo.), 18-0
Douglass,, 12-0
Central (Louisville, Ky.), 12-7

35. Raytown (Mo.), 10-1
Winners of the Mid West Conference, Raytown met Christian Brothers (St. Joseph) in the Santa Fe Bowl at the end of the season. The loss to CBS was the only blemish for a Raytown team that posted seven shutouts. Raytown went undefeated in 1948 and lost a season-ending bowl game to Smith Cotton. Coach Tim Chittwood was in his third season as head coach at Raytown. He went on to serve 31 years as the head coach, posting an overall record of 231-100-13. Running back Gail Kroenke led the offense with 129 points on the season while running back Russell Parker had 104 points
Season Log
Grandview, 26-0
Blue Springs, 40-0
Pleasant Hill, 39-0
Harrisonville, 40-0
William Chrisman, 26-6
Warrensburg, 14-6
Lee’s Summit, 13-0
Center, 19-13
Buckner, 65-0
Ruskin, 28-0
Christian Brothers, 20-34

36. Omaha Tech (Neb.), 8-0
The Maroons were the easy choice as state team of the year in Nebraska in 1949, winning every game by at least two touchdowns with only 13 points allowed and six shutouts. Omaha Tech also defeated four teams ranked in the Top 10 by the Omaha World Herald. Quarterback Ray Novak made the all-state team selected by writers from the Omaha World Herald and Lincoln Journal Star, while Ralph Brown and Leonard Singer made it at the tackle spots. Novak is a member of the Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame and is considered one of the greatest athletes to come from the Omaha area. He lettered four years in basketball and baseball, three years in football and one year in track. He played both football and baseball at the University of Nebraska.
Season Log
Abraham Lincoln, 28-0
North, 13-0
South, 46-0
Benson, 34-6
Central, 28-0
Creighton Prep, 38-0
Lincoln Central, 33-7
Sioux City Central, 33-0

37. Highland Park (Dallas, Texas), 11-2
The Scots had little trouble with any of its opponents in 1949 except for Wichita Falls. Highland Park lost to the eventual state champions 14-7 at mid-season and then again in the semifinals by a 21-0 shutout. The 1949 season marked the ninth straight time the Scots won the district championship, a streak they extended to 10 straight in 1950. The season also marked the sixth time in eight seasons that Highland Park had won at least 10 games. Ironically, Highland Park did not have any all-state selections, although end Malcolm Bowers, moved to quarterback in 1950 and became an All-American selection.
Season Log
Adamson, 6-0
Paschal, 7-0
Sherman, 32-0
Waco, 13-6
North Dallas, 45-0
Wichita Falls, 7-14
Denton, 34-7
Grand Prairie, 13-6
McKinney, 32-0
Sulphur Springs, 57-13
Abilene, 20-6
Paris, 33-0
Wichita Falls, 0-21

38. Phillipsburg (N.J.), 9-0
The Stateliners finished No. 2 in the state rankings according to the Colliton Ratings, finishing behind Montclair. Phillipsburg put Russ Dilts on the Star-Ledger’s all-state team at running back while Ron Exley made the team at tackle. Dilts went on to play at the University of Florida. The 1949 Phillipsburg team is considered the greatest team in school history. Phillipsburg is one of the winningest teams in high school football history with 748 wins.
Season Log
West Philadelphia, 13-0
Bethlehem, 13-7
New Brunswick, 40-12
Allentown, 25-0
Morristown, 13-7
McKinley Tech, 49-35
Collingswood, 29-0
Passaic, 20-13
Easton, 33-7

39. Port Arthur (Texas), 12-1
By late November, the No. 1 team in Texas was not Wichita Falls, nor Austin nor even Highland Park. It was Port Arthur with a 10-0 record that included a number of lopsided wins. The Yellowjackets scored 50 or more points four times during the season including a high of 72. In the playoffs, Port Arthur blanked Marshall, a team ranked No. 6 in the state, by a score of 13-0. However the Yellowjackets’ season came to an end with the 20-14 loss to Austin in the semifinals. Running back Gail Mills made the all-state team along with guard Darrell Lafitte.
Season Log
Miller, 33-0
Odessa, 27-13
Fortier (New Orleans), 7-0
Milby (Houston), 50-6
San Jacinto, 41-6
Pasadena, 21-0
Orange Stark, 56-6
South Park (Beaumont), 34-7
Beaumont, 72-13
Port Neches-Groves, 54-7
Ball (Galveston), 26-7
Marshall, 13-0
Austin, 14-20

40. Little Rock Central (Ark.), 10-1
When the Tigers won the state championship in 1949, it marked the 15th time in state history Central had been crowned as the state’s best. The Tigers played teams from four different states, losing only to Male (Louisville, Ky.) by a touchdown. In his third season as head coach, Wilson Matthews went on to post a 118-17-3 record with nine state championships and a national title in 1957. Quarterback Ken Carter made the All-Big Six team along with Bobby Spann, G.W. McVay and tackle Eddie Bradford.
Season Log
Pine Bluff, 13-6
Fort Smith, 14-13
Fordyce, 65-6
Hot Springs, 46-7
Hope, 35-7
Blytheville, 49-19
El Dorado, 13-7
Male (Louisville, Ky.), 7-14
Oklahoma City Classen (Okla.), 12-0
Tupelo (Miss.), 21-20
North Little Rock, 28-0

41. Manual (Peoria, Ill.), 10-0
With a 45-0 win over Peoria, the largest margin of victory in the 38-year history of the rivalry, Manual tied Champaign for first place in the Big 12, although the two teams did not face each other during the season. Manual makes the list over Champaign since it finished undefeated and Champaign had a loss to Moosheart. Manual posted seven shutouts on the season and allowed just 28 points. Manual was one year removed from an 8-1-1 season under coach Tony Juska, who left to coach at Bradley. Bob Jauron replaced Juska and had immediate success, winning his first 22 games with a pair of 10-0 seasons. Jauron later coached in Swampscott (Mass.) and he is the father of NFL safety and head coach Dick Jauron. Dick Echard was quarterback and earned all-state honorable mention from the Chicago Sun-Times. He went on to play at Navy. Manual also had an exceptional baseball team in 1949-50, finishing 22-0 and earning retroactive selection by MaxPreps as the mythical national champion.
Season Log
East Peoria, 20-0
Canton, 26-7
Kewanee, 7-0
Lincoln, 14-0
Pekin, 7-0
Woodruff, 49-19
Spalding, 6-2
Streator, 27-0
Mattoon, 20-0
Peoria, 45-0

42. Sikeston (Mo.), 10-0
For the second straight season, Sikeston finished undefeated and won the Big Eight Conference. The Bulldogs went unbeaten in 52 games, posting a 49-0-3 mark before losing during the 1952 season. Coach Kenneth Knox began his coaching career at Sikeston in 1948 and never lost a game (35-0-3) before taking the head coaching job at Southeast Missouri State.
Season Log
Chaffee, 34-7
Caruthersville, 21-0
Cairo, 25-6
Kennett, 18-0
Perryville, 48-0
East Prairie, 55-0
Cape Central, 19-0
Jackson, 39-0
Charleston, 59-6
Festus, 14-0

43. Cincinnati Purcell Marian (Ohio), 10-0
In the final Ohio state rankings by the Associated Press during the 1949 season, only one team had a 10-0 season, and that team was Purcell Marian. The Cincinnati club finished in the No. 4 spot in the rankings with 277.5 points and 8.5 first-place votes. However the three teams ahead of Purcell, Massillon, Mansfield and McKinley, all had one loss each. Running backs Jim Bolger and Roger Franz led the offensive attack and were named All-Ohio first and second teams respectively. Bolger was also a candidate for state player of the year. Bolger did not play football in college, instead accepting a contract from the Cincinnati Reds. He made the Reds’ Major League team by June of 1950 when he was the youngest player in the league at the time. He played seven years at the Major League level.
Season Log
Newport Catholic, 26-6
Hughes, 62-6
Chaminade, 34-7
Western Hills, 27-7
Withrow, 49-0
Lawrenceburg, 54-0
Hamilton, 53-12
Elder, 27-7
St. Xavier, 41-6
Roger Bacon, 39-0

44. Fenwick (Chicago), 10-1
Behind the play of All-American quarterback Johnny Lattner, Fenwick was the top team in the Chicago area throughout the season. The Friars won the Catholic League championship under the guidance of coach Tony Lawless. In a battle for the All-Chicago crown, however, Fenwick lost to Schurz, 20-7. The loss dropped Fenwick to No. 4 in the Chicago area rankings. Lattner made the all-state team for the second year in a row and went on to star at Notre Dame. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1953. He played just one season in the NFL (with the Steelers) before a severe knee injury ended his career.
Season Log
Weber, 28-0
DePaul, 33-13
Leo, 34-13
Mt. Carmel, 13-6
De La Salle, 50-20
Loyola, 27-0
St. Rita, 45-0
Green Bay, 27-6
St. Elizabeth, 42-6
St. George, 42-13
Schurz, 7-20

45. Weir (Weirton, W.Va.), 11-0
In the state rankings on Nov. 8 of 1949, Milton was the top team and Weir was ranked No. 3. However, by the time the two teams were slated to meet in the state finals after Thanksgiving, Weir had become a two-touchdown favorite over Milton. Part of the reason was a 25-7 win over Parkersburg and another reason was a 34-6 win over Ohio powerhouse Steubenville, 34-6. Weir went on to beat undefeated Milton in the finals and was tabbed as one of the greatest teams in West Virginia history to date. Guard Stan Tsapsis earned all-state honors. He went on to play at Cornell.
Season Log
Follansbee, 40-6
Stonewall Jackson, 21-0
Toronto (Ohio), 26-0
Wellsburg, 52-0
Roosevelt-Wilson, 61-6
Huntington Central, 32-7
Fairmont, 50-6
Wheeling, 26-7
Parkersburg, 25-7
Steubenville, 34-6
Milton, 27-13

46. South St. Paul (Minn.), 8-0
The Packers edged Austin and Edison by less than a point in securing the Minnesota state championship based on the Litkenhous ratings. South St. Paul scored 75.7 while Austin, the 1948 state champion, scored 75.1 and Edison scored 75. The Packers did not have a single player make Ted Peterson’s all-state team listed in the Star Tribune, however none of the players on the all-state team came from St. Paul or Minneapolis.
Season Log
Northfield, 20-0
Robbindale, 20-12
Anoka, 14-6
White Bear, 20-12
Hastings, 13-6
Stillwater, 20-0
St. Paul Academy, 38-12
Columbus Heights, 41-9

47. Greenwood (S.C.), 12-0
The 1949 season ended a tremendous three-year run for Greenwood and seventh-year coach Pinky Babb. Starting in 1947, Greenwood went 33-1-1 capped by the 12-0 1949 season. The undefeated season was not the last for Babb, who went on to win a national record 336 games by the time he retired in 1981. The Eagles finished undefeated in Conference AA with a 5-0 record, 12-0 overall and the No. 1 ranking by the Piedmont Poll. Greenwood was not the overwhelming choice, however, as Chester finished just one point behind in the ratings with a 10-0-1 record. Don Hilley was the only first team all-state selection for Greenwood, but he was a unanimous selection.
Season Log
Dreher, 21-7
Anderson, 16-0
Carlisle Military, 27-7
Boys Catholic (Ga.), 14-0
Charleston, 14-6
Spartanburg, 19-0
Liberty, 34-13
Parker, 19-0
Easley, 49-0
Gaffney, 14-0
Brookland-Cayce, 48-12
Mainland (Fla.), 26-7

48. East (Denver, Colo.), 10-0
The Cherubs had little trouble winning the City championships in 1949, going 8-0 in league play while the second-place team had a record of 4-3-1. The city title was the 10th in school history, but the state championship, won with a victory over Fort Collins, was the first in school history. The title was the first in the long career of Denver East coach Pat Panek. Although he coached a few more years at East, winning another state title and finishing his career with 15 league championships, Panek went on to coach at Machebeuf. By the time he retired in 1977, Panek had coached 52 seasons and had the most wins of any coach in high school history with a record of 328-117-29. East placed five players on the Denver Post All-City team, including end Kirk Hinderlider, tackle Tom Lindquist, center Harry Taggart, back Bill Horton, and back Don Descombes. Hinderlider went on to play at Colorado A&M and was drafted by the Detroit Lions.
Season Log
South, 7-0
Manual, 27-6
West, 7-0
North, 18-0
South, 26-6
Manual, 44-0
West, 32-13
North, 21-0
Grand Junction, 14-0
Fort Collins, 27-6

49. Mt. St. Joseph (Baltimore, Md.), 8-0-0
In defeating Loyola 34-0 in the final game of the season, the Gaels won three titles - the Maryland Scholastic Association, Private and Parochial school championships. Following the win, coach Vic Wojcihovski dubbed the 1949 team the “greatest I’ve ever coached.” The title was the first for Mt. St. Joseph since 1926. The Baltimore Sun named Wojcihoski as the Maryland state coach of the year and it placed end Leonard Mahoney, guard Bill Stallings and running back Joe Ares on the all-state team. All three are members of the Mount St. Joseph Hall of Fame with Stallings earning Wigwam Wiseman All-American fifth team honors.
Season Log
St. Paul, 35-7
McDonogh, 21-0
Forest Park, 27-7
Southern, 27-6
City, 12-7
Patterson, 24-0
Calvert Hall, 41-14
Loyola, 34-0

50. California Community (Pa.), 10-0
In only its second year of existence, the Trojans had not lost a game and had only a tie during the 1948 season that kept them from being unbeaten and untied. Coached by Jim Underwood, California won the Class A state championship with a 38-6 win over Dormant. John Konek, who scored 16 touchdowns, made the Wigwam Wiseman All-American first team and he was a standout in basketball and baseball. The team is a part of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
Season Log
Hurst, 34-0
Midland, 12-0
Canonsburg, 31-13
Rostraven, 40-0
Centerville, 33-0
Georges Township, 39-14
Elizabeth, 37-21
North Union, 21-7
Clark, 19-6
Dormant, 38-6