1948 Nevada Wolf Pack football team

American college football season

1948 Nevada Wolf Pack football

Harbor Bowl, L 7–27 vs. Villanova

Conference| Independent
Record| 9–2
Head coach|

* Joe Sheeketski (2nd season)

Home stadium| Mackay Stadium

Seasons

<- 1947

1949 ->

1948 Western college football independents records

* v
* t
* e

| Conf. |  |  | Overall

|
|
|
|

Team | W |  | L |  | T |  |  | W |  | L |  | T
Nevada |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 9  | - | 2  | - | 0
Santa Clara |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 7  | - | 2  | - | 1
Hawaii |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 7  | - | 4  | - | 1
Idaho State |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 6  | - | 1  | - | 1
Cal Poly San Dimas |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 6  | - | 4  | - | 0
Pepperdine |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 4  | - | 5  | - | 0
Saint Mary's |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 4  | - | 6  | - | 0
Loyola (CA) |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 3  | - | 5  | - | 1
La Verne |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 3  | - | 5  | - | 0
Portland |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 2  | - | 5  | - | 1
San Francisco |  |  | - |  |  |  |  | 2  | - | 7  | - | 0

The 1948 Nevada Wolf Pack football team was an American football team that represented the University of Nevada as an independent during the 1948 college football season. In its second season under head coach Joe Sheeketski, the Wolf Pack compiled a 9–2 record, outscored opponents 480 to 133, and lost to Villanova 27–7 in the Harbor Bowl at San Diego.[1][2][3]

Though unranked in the final AP poll, Nevada was ranked at No. 15 in the final Litkenhous Difference by Score System ratings for 1948.[4]

Stan Heath and Alva Tabor played quarterback for Nevada this season. Tabor was one of the first African-Americans to play quarterback for a major college football team. Heath was fifth in the balloting for the Heisman Trophy.[5][6]

## Schedule

[edit]

Date| Opponent| Rank| Site| Result| Attendance| Source

|
|
|
|
|
|

September 24| at San Jose State| |

* Spartan Stadium
* San Jose, CA

| W 39–0| |
October 3| at San Francisco| |

* Kezar Stadium
* San Francisco, CA

| W 26–7| 32,500| [7]
October 9| North Texas State| No. 19|

* Mackay Stadium
* Reno, NV

| W 48–7| 8,600| [8]
October 17| at Saint Mary's| No. 17|

* Kezar Stadium
* San Francisco, CA

| W 48–20| 27,314| [9]
October 23| at Tulsa| No. 15|

* Skelly Stadium
* Tulsa, OK

| W 65–14| |
October 30| Oklahoma City| No. 10|

* Mackay Stadium
* Reno, NV

| W 79–13| |
November 7| vs. Santa Clara| No. 11|

* Charles C. Hughes Stadium
* Sacramento, CA

| L 0–14| 24,876| [10][11]
November 11| at Fresno State| No. 16|

* Ratcliffe Stadium
* Fresno, CA

| W 53–7| 13,500| [12]
November 25| at Wichita| |

* Mackay Stadium
* Reno, NV

| W 42–13| | [13]
December 17| at Hawaii| |

* Honolulu Stadium
* Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii

| W 73–12| 11,000| [14]
January 1, 1949| vs. Villanova| |

* Balboa Stadium
* San Diego, CA (Harbor Bowl)

| L 7–27| 20,000| [15]

* Homecoming
* Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

## Rankings

[edit]

See also: 1948 college football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes| Week

|

Poll| 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| 8| Final
AP| 19| 17| 15т (1)| 10 (3)| 11 (5)| 16| —| —| —

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Nevada Football 2018 Bowl Guide" (PDF). University of Nevada, Reno. 2018. p. 134. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
2. ^ "Nevada Yearly Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
3. ^ "1948 Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
4. ^ "Michigan, Irish Finish 1-2 in Litkenhous Ratings". Wilmington Morning News. December 15, 1948. p. 32 - via Newspapers.com.
5. ^ "Heisman Trophy to be awarded to Doak Walker". St. Petersburg Times. (Florida). United Press. December 1, 1948. p. 21.
6. ^ "Heisman trophy given to Doak Walker". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 1, 1948. p. 14.
7. ^ Curley Grieve (October 4, 1948). "Nevada Defeats Dons, 26-7: Heath in Star Role". San Francisco Examiner. p. 23 - via Newspapers.com.
8. ^ "Powerful Wolfpack claws North Texas State, 48–7". The Salt Lake Tribune. October 10, 1948. Retrieved November 6, 2021 - via Newspapers.com.
9. ^ Bill Dunbar (October 18, 1948). "Heath Leads Nevada Win Over Gaels". Oakland Tribune. pp. 27–28 - via Newspapers.com.27-28&rft.date=1948-10-18&rft.au=Bill+Dunbar&rft_id=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/23270937/heath_leads_nevada_win_over_gaels/&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:1948+Nevada+Wolf+Pack+football+team" class="Z3988">
10. ^ Wilbur Adams (November 8, 1948). "Stan Heath Is Stopped As Broncs Score 14-0 Upset Over Nevada". The Sacramento Bee. p. 24 - via Newspapers.com.
11. ^ "Nevada's Bowl Bubble Breaks as Broncos Maul Pack in Sacramento By 14-0 Count: Pack, Heath Especially, Stopped by Stout Line". Reno Evening Gazette. November 8, 1948. p. 14 - via Newspapers.com.
12. ^ "Pack Bounces Back to Give Fresno State 53-7 Whipping: Long Runs on Kickoff, Interceptions Mark Tilt". Reno Evening Gazette. November 12, 1948. p. 18 - via Newspapers.com.
13. ^ "Nevada Pack Grinds Out Workmanlike 42-12 Victory Over Wichita Shockers: Heath Shatters 2 More National Grid Records". Reno Evening Gazette. November 26, 1948. p. 15 - via Newspapers.com.
14. ^ Andrew Mitsukako (December 18, 1948). "Nevada Overwhelms UH, 73 to 12: Wolfpack Too Strong for Locals". The Honolulu Advertiser. p. 10 - via Newspapers.com.
15. ^ Bill Friel (January 2, 1949). "Nevada Gridders Bow to Rough Villanova Squad, 27-7, In Third Annual Harbor Bowl Game Before 20,000 Fans". Reno Evening Gazette. p. 7 - via Newspapers.com.

* v
* t
* e

Nevada Wolf Pack football

Venues|

* Evans Field (1896–1905)
* Mackay Field and Stadium (I) (1915–1965)
* Mackay Stadium (1966–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Boise State
* UNLV (Fremont Cannon)

Culture & lore|

* Alphie and Wolfie Jr.
* KTHX-FM

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

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*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Conf.]: Conference record
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties