In the second week of the season, the Wolverines defeated Michigan State, 14–7. The game was the only loss of the season for Michigan State which was ranked No. 2 in the final AP and UPI polls. The Wolverines were ranked No. 2 in the country after defeating the Spartans and rose to No. 1 after defeating the No. 6-ranked Army football team by a 26–2 score the following week. In late October 1955, quarterback Jim Maddock threw touchdown passes of 65 and 60 yard in the fourth quarter to lead a come-from-behind victory over Iowa in a nationally televised game. After starting the season 6–0, the team lost to Illinois on November 5. In the final game of the season, the Wolverines were favored but lost to Ohio State on November 19.
Left end Ron Kramer was a consensus first-team All-American. Kramer and right end Tom Maentz were nicknamed the "touchdown twins,"[1] became the first Michigan football players to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated,[2] and were both first-team selections for the All-Big Ten team. Left halfback Terry Barr was selected as the team's most valuable player.[3] The team's statistical leaders were Tony Branoff with 387 rushing yards, Jim Maddock with 343 passing yards, and Tom Maentz with 253 receiving yards.
The 1954 Michigan Wolverines football team compiled a 6–3 record (5–2 Big Ten), finished in third place in the conference, and was ranked No. 15 in the final AP and UP polls.[13] At the end of the 1954 season, right guard Ed Meads, a junior from Oxford, Michigan, was selected by his teammates to be captain of the 1955 team.[14]
In May 1955, freshman quarterback Jim Van Pelt received the team's Meyer W. Morton trophy as the most improved player in spring practice.[15]
Mike Rotunno 81-yard interception return (Van Pelt kick)
MICH 42–7
On September 23, Michigan opened its season with a 42–7 victory over Don Faurot's Missouri Tigers. The game was played before a crowd of 55,608 at Michigan Stadium. Left end Ron Kramer scored 23 points for Michigan on three touchdowns and five extra points. The Wolverines out-gained the Tigers by 318 yards (164 rushing, 154 passing) to 115 yards (48 rushing, 67 passing).[4][16]
On October 1, Michigan defeated Michigan State, 14–7, before a crowd of 97,239 at Michigan Stadium. Michigan's first touchdown was set up when Michigan halfback Tony Branoff intercepted the first pass thrown by Michigan State quarterback Earl Morrall. Branoff returned the ball 38 yards to the Spartans' 20-yard line and scored the touchdown six plays later on a short run.[5][17]
After a poor 24-yard punt by Ron Kramer, Michigan State tied the game in the third quarter on a short run and extra-point kick by fullback Jerry Planutis. Later in the third quarter, John Morrow blocked an Earl Morrall punt, and Michigan took over at the Spartans' 21-yard line. Quarterback Jim Maddock scored on a short run, and Kramer kicked the extra point to give Michigan a 14–7 lead.[17] The Spartans out-gained the Wolverines by totals of 215 yards to 151 yards and had twice as many first downs.[5]
John Greenwood safety (tackled by Flay Goodwin in end zone)
MICH 26–2
On October 8, Michigan (ranked No. 2) defeated Army (ranked No. 6) by a score of 26–2 before a crowd of 97,239 at Michigan Stadium. Junior halfback Terry Barr led Michigan's offense and also scored on an 82-yard punt return in the second quarter. Army had scored 116 points in its first two games, but stalled against the Wolverines. The Cadets fumbled the ball nine times with Michigan recovering on eight. Adding to Army's offensive woes, the Cadets completed only one of 10 passes.[6] It was Michigan's first victory against Army after five prior losses. It was also the worst defeat for an Army football team since 1952.[18]
Michigan end Ron Kramer sustained a bruised chest in the second quarter, collapsed in the tunnel, and was rushed to University Hospital in an ambulance.[18]
The game was also marked by a halftime incident when Secretary of the Army Wilber M. Brucker and top military brass attempted to cross the field and became tangled with the Michigan Marching Band. The Michigan Daily reported that the band was supposed to wait for the military contingent to cross the field, but Michigan band director William Revelli said he had not been informed of the trip.[19]
On October 15, Michigan defeated Lou Saban's Northwestern Wildcats, 14–2, before a crowd of 76,703 at Michigan Stadium. Terry Barr's 46-yard touchdown run was the highlight for Michigan. In a defensive struggle, Northwestern out-gained Michigan by 173 yards (128 rushing, 45 passing) to 168 yards (150 rushing, 18 passing). It was the third consecutive week in which the Wolverines won despite being out-gained. The Wolverines converted only six first downs and completed only two of seven passes and threw an interception.[7][20] Tommy Devine of the Detroit Free Press wrote that the Wolverines won despite being "flat, feeble and uninspired."[7]
On October 22, Michigan (ranked No. 1) defeated Murray Warmath's Minnesota Golden Gophers by a 14–13 score in the annual Little Brown Jug game before a crowd of 64,434 at Memorial Stadium in Minneapolis. Minnesota took a 13–0 lead with two touchdowns in the first quarter. Terry Barr closed the gap with a five-yard touchdown run near the end of the second quarter. Michigan took the lead in the third quarter on a nine-yard touchdown pass from Jim Van Pelt to Tom Maentz.[8][21][22] Michigan dropped to No. 3 in the AP poll after the game.
On October 29, Michigan defeated Forest Evashevski's Iowa Hawkeyes by a score of 33–21 before a homecoming crowd of 72,096 and a national television audience at Michigan Stadium. Iowa took a 14–0 lead at halftime and 21–13 at the start of the fourth quarter.[9][23]
Quarterback Jim Maddock came into the game in the fourth quarter and led the Wolverines to three touchdowns. On Maddock's first drive, Michigan was backed up to its 35-yard line after a sack. Maddock then threw a long pass to Ron Kramer; Kramer caught the ball at Iowa's 38-yard line and managed to stay in bounds as he ran along the sideline for a 65-yard touchdown. Kramer then kicked the extra point to bring the Wolverines within one point (21–20) with 8:50 remaining.[9]
After Kramer's touchdown, Iowa drove to Michigan's 28-yard line with a time-consuming ground attack. On fourth-and-one, Michigan's defense stopped Iowa's Jerry Reichow for a one-yard loss. Michigan took over with 3:37 remaining. After a pass interference penalty moved the ball to Michigan's 40-yard line, Maddock threw a long pass to Tom Maentz; Maentz caught the pass at the Iowa 25-yard line and ran into the end zone untouched. Kramer again kicked the extra point, and Michigan led, 26–21, with 3:24 remaining.[9]
After the Maentz touchdown, Iowa threw four incomplete passes, and Michigan then took over with two-and-a-half minutes remaining. Tony Branoff ran 30 yards for Michigan's final touchdown. Kramer's kick was blocked, and Michigan won by a 33–21 score. The Michigan Daily described it as "perhaps the most thrilling game ever to be played in the Michigan Stadium."[23] The Detroit Free Press called it "one of the greatest comebacks of this, or any, football season."[9] The victory was Michigan's sixth straight.[9]
On November 5, Michigan (ranked No. 3) lost to Illinois by a 25–6 score before a crowd of 58,968 at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois. The game was tied, 6–6, at halftime, but the Illini scored three unanswered touchdowns in the second half. Sophomore halfback Bobby Mitchell gained 173 yards, including runs of 54 and 64 yards, on 10 carries for Illinois.[10][24][25] After the loss, Michigan dropped to No. 7 in the AP poll.
On November 12, Michigan defeated Indiana, 30–0, before a crowd of 60,613 at Michigan Stadium. Michigan's defense held the Hoosiers to minus 26 rushing yards in the first half and 61 yards of total offense in the game. On offense, Michigan totaled 302 rushing yards and 71 passing yards.[11][26]
On November 19, Michigan (ranked No. 6) lost to Ohio State (No. 9) by a 17–0 score before a record crowd of 97,369 at Michigan Stadium. Heisman Trophy winner Howard "Hopalong" Cassady, playing in his final game for the Buckeyes, rushed for 146 yards on 28 carries. The Buckeyes out-gained the Wolverines by 333 rushing yards to 95. Neither team tallied significant yardage in the air: Michigan completed three of nine passes for 14 yards and gave up two interceptions; Ohio State completed one of three passes for four yards.[27] A Michigan victory would have given the Wolverines a conference championship and sent the team to the 1956 Rose Bowl. Instead, Ohio State won the conference championship, and Michigan State received the conference's Rose Bowl invitation.
It was the Buckeyes' first victory at Michigan Stadium since 1937. The Michigan Daily called it "one of the darkest days in Michigan football history." At the end of the game, "18,000 fanatical Buckeye rooters . . . swept to the field in a thunderous display of hysteria."[27]
In the final AP Poll, Michigan was ranked No. 12. Michigan State was ranked No. 2, and Ohio State No. 5.[28]
At a meeting of the team's lettermen held on November 28, left halfback Terry Barr was selected by as the team's most valuable player. At the same meeting, right end Tom Maentz was selected as captain of the 1956 team.[29]
Left end Ron Kramer received numerous honors, including:
Kramer finished eighth in the balloting for the 1955 Heisman Trophy.[30]
End Tom Maentz also received multiple post-season honors including a second-team All-America designation from the AP,[33] and a first-team All-Big Ten honors from the AP and UP,[34][36] and first-team All-Midwest honors from the UP.[37]
Other Michigan player receiving All-Big Ten honors were halfback Tony Branoff (UP-1), center James Bates (UP-2), guard Dick Hill (UP-3), and fullback Lou Baldacci (UP-3).[36]
A total of 38 players received varsity letters for their participation on the 1955 football team. In addition to the starters referenced above, the following players also received varsity letters:[38]
Frederick Krueger, end, sophomore, Allen Park, Michigan
Jack Lousma, quarterback, sophomore, Ann Arbor, Michigan - Lousma became a NASA astronaut and politician. He was a member of the Skylab 3 crew in 1973 and the commander of STS-3, the third Space Shuttle mission in 1983.
William MacPhee, center, sophomore, Grand Haven, Michigan
All-Conference: Ron Kramer (AP and UP first team), Tom Maentz (AP and UP first team), Tony Branoff (UPI first team and AP honorable mention), Jim Bates (UP second team and AP honorable mention)[39][40]
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