The 1946 Los Angeles Dons season was the inaugural season of the Los Angeles Dons in the All-America Football Conference. Led by head coach Dudley DeGroot, the Dons finished 7–5–2,1946 Los Angeles Dons third in the West division, and failed to qualify for the playoffs.
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).
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.
Season schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance Venue Recap Sources 1 Bye 2 Brooklyn Dodgers W 20–14 1–0 19,153 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap 1949 Los Angeles Dons: Press, Radio, Television Guide. Los Angeles: Los Angeles Dons Football Club, 1949; p. 8. 3 Miami Seahawks W 30–14 2–0 19,585 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap 4 September 29 at Buffalo Bisons T 21–21 2–0–1 18,163 Civic Stadium Recap 5 at Chicago Rockets W 21–9 3–0–1 31,076 Soldier Field Recap 6 San Francisco 49ers L 14–23 3–1–1 11,736 Gilmore Stadium (LA) Recap 7 October 20 at Cleveland Browns L 14–31 3–2–1 71,134 Cleveland Municipal Stadium Recap 8 October 27 New York Yankees L 17–31 3–3–1 12,123 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap 9 November 3 Cleveland Browns W 17–16 4–3–1 21,576 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap 10 November 10 at New York Yankees L 12–17 4–4–1 30,765 Yankee Stadium Recap 11 November 17 at Brooklyn Dodgers W 19–14 5–4–1 7,500 Ebbets Field Recap 12 at Miami Seahawks W 34–21 6–4–1 9,987 Miami Orange Bowl Recap 13 December 1 Buffalo Bisons W 62–14 7–4–1 22,496 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap 14 December 8 at San Francisco 49ers L 7–48 7–5–1 25,000 Kezar Stadium Recap 15 December 15 Chicago Rockets T 17–17 7–5–2 17,458 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Division standings
Roster 1946 Los Angeles Dons final rosterQuarterbacks Angelo Bertelli Bob Mitchell DB Charlie O'Rourke DB
Ends/Receivers Joe Aguirre K Dale Gentry Bud Kerr Al Krueger Jack Morton Bob Nowaskey Backs Harry Clarke LB/FB Earl Elsey DB/RB Chuck Fenenbock RB John Kimbrough FB/LB Andy Marefos FB/LB Bus Mertes RB/DB Bud Nygren RB/DB John Polanski FB/LB Bob Seymour DB/RB Bob Sneddon DB/RB Paul Vinnola DB/RB Linemen/Linebackers Lee Artoe T/DT Earl Audet T/DT Gil Duggan T/DT Ray Frankowski G/DG Al Lolotai DG/G Joe Mihal T/DT Paul Mitchell G/DG Bob Nelson LB/C/K Don Nolander C/LB Bill Radovich DG/G Bob Reinhard T/DT Hank Rockwell C Frank Yokas G/DG
rookies in italics
References