The second installment of this year’s series looking back at the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry takes us to 1955. The Brooklyn Dodgers FINALLY won the World Series, Americans were finally able to enjoy some peace after the conclusion of the Korean War a few years earlier, and the nation was experiencing broad, post-war prosperity. Many young people were leaving cities, buying homes in the suburbs and starting families. The American automobile industry continued to thrive and Ford introduced its new personal luxury car, the Ford Thunderbird. On the pop culture front, rock & roll was beginning to make its presence felt among American youth.
On the gridiron, Michigan raced to a 7-1 start before facing Ohio State in The Game in Michigan Stadium on Nov. 19. With that, the Wolverines were routed 17-0. The game itself can be summed up simply. Ohio State ran left halfback Howard “Hopalong” Cassady time and again, and the Wolverines simply couldn’t stop him. Michigan certainly had some outstanding players on the ’55 squad, most notably All-America tight end Ron Kramer. Still, the Wolverines were unable to succeed at much in that game, as Woody Hayes became only the third Ohio State coach in history to win two games in a row against Michigan.
The result left both teams with matching 7-2 records. Ohio State was ranked fifth in the nation by the Associated Press, and Michigan was ranked 12th.
I wasn’t able to find any video of The Game from 1955, so please enjoy the summary of the 1955 football season below, with credit and thanks to the Bentley Historical Library. As always, I own nothing and I do not profit from this in any way.
http://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/football/fbteam/1955fbt.htm
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