1946 Los Angeles Dons season

The 1946 Los Angeles Dons season was their inaugural season in the new eight-team All-America Football Conference. Led by head coach Dudley DeGroot, the Dons finished 7–5–2,[1] third in the West division, and failed to qualify for the playoffs.

1946 Los Angeles Dons season
Head coachDudley DeGroot
Home fieldLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Results
Record7–5–2
Division place3rd AAFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Charlie O'Rourke with 1,250 passing yards, John Kimbrough with 473 rushing yards, Dale Gentry with 341 receiving yards, and Joe Aguirre with 55 points scored (31 extra points, four field goals, and two touchdowns).[2]

On September 13, 1946, in the first game in team history, the Dons defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers, 20-14, before a crowd of 18,995 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Bud Nygren scored the first points on a touchdown pass from quarterback Charlie O'Rourke. With the ball at the Don's 40-yard line, Nygren caught the ball at the Brooklyn 30-yard line and ran the remaining distance to the end zone.[3]

Season schedule
Main article: 1946 AAFC season
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 Bye
2 September 13 Brooklyn Dodgers W 20–14 1–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
3 September 20 Miami Seahawks W 30–14 2–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
4 September 29 at Buffalo Bisons T 21–21 2–0–1 Civic Stadium Recap
5 October 5 at Chicago Rockets W 21–9 3–0–1 Soldier Field Recap
6 October 12 San Francisco 49ers L 14–23 3–1–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
7 October 20 at Cleveland Browns L 14–31 3–2–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium Recap
8 October 27 New York Yankees L 17–31 3–3–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
9 November 3 Cleveland Browns W 17–16 4–3–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
10 November 10 at New York Yankees L 12–17 4–4–1 Yankee Stadium Recap
11 November 17 at Brooklyn Dodgers W 19–14 5–4–1 Ebbets Field Recap
12 November 25 at Miami Seahawks W 34–21 6–4–1 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
13 December 1 Buffalo Bisons W 62–14 7–4–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
14 December 8 at San Francisco 49ers L 7–48 7–5–1 Kezar Stadium Recap
15 December 15 Chicago Rockets T 17–17 7–5–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Division standings
AAFC Western Division
W L T PCT DIV PF PA STK
Cleveland Browns 12 2 0 .857 4–2 423 137 W5
San Francisco 49ers 9 5 0 .643 4–2 307 189 W3
Los Angeles Dons 7 5 2 .583 2–3–1 305 290 T1
Chicago Rockets 5 6 3 .455 1–4–1 263 315 T1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings.

Roster

Players shown in bold started at least one game at the position listed as confirmed by contemporary game coverage from the Los Angeles Times.

Los Angeles Dons 1946 roster
Quarterbacks

Fullbacks

Halfbacks

 Ends

Tackles

Guards

Centers

References
  1. 1946 Los Angeles Dons
  2. "1946 Los Angeles Dons Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  3. "Dons Defeat Dodgers". Los Angeles Times. September 14, 1946. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
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