The 1948 Oregon State Beavers football team represented Oregon State College in the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) during the 1948 college football season. In their fourteenth season under head coach Lon Stiner, the Beavers compiled a 5–4–3 record (2–3–2 in PCC, sixth) and outscored their opponents 249 to 236.
Oregon State was ranked at No. 54 in the final Litkenhous Difference by Score System ratings for 1948.E.E. Litkenhous, Michigan, Irish Finish 1-2 in Litkenhous Ratings," Wilmington Morning News, Dec. 15, 1948, p. 32.
The team played its home games on campus at Bell Field in Corvallis and at Multnomah Stadium in Portland. The Beavers were invited to participate in the 1949 Pineapple Bowl on New Year's Day, where they defeated the home team from the University of Hawaii by a score of 47–27.
Schedule
Background The 1947 season had been a bitter one for fans of the Oregon State College Beavers, a significant power in the ten team Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (PCC). A close second-place finish to UCLA in 1946 had given way to a 3–4 conference record and a sixth place finish for the Orangemen of coach Lon Stiner, dean of the conference's coaches.E.C. Krieger (ed.), The Official National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Guide, Including the Official Rules, 1948. New York: A.S. Barnes & Co., 1948, p. 127.
Even worse, another year of mediocrity appeared to be in the offing, with national football journalist Paul Zimmerman projecting the Beavers for a fifth place finish in 1948, with only "an outside chance of...figuring in the final reckoning."Paul Zimmerman, "Coast Fans Look to California's Bears to Lead Pacific Football from the Wreckage of Successive Rose Bowl Debacles," in Street and Smith's 1948 Football Pictorial Yearbook. New York: Street and Smith Publications, 1948; pp. 68–77. The 1948 edition of national preview magazine Illustrated Football Annual noted that "graduation took a thick slick out of the Orange line" of the middling 1947 squad, leaving "unsung reserves, plus a sprinkling of precocious sophs" to "plug some cavernous gaps if Lon Stiner's big boys are to plunk their outsize feet in the middle of the pie."Bill Leiser, "The Coast," in Jack Byrne and Malcolm Reiss (eds.), 1948 Illustrated Football Annual. New York: Fiction House, 1948; pp. 54–62.
In short, another disappointing middle-of-the-pack finish was anticipated going into the season, the 14th of Lon Stiner's OSC coaching career.
Preseason Spring practice
Spring practice for Oregon State opened in earnest in Corvallis on Friday, April 30, when two intersquad teams ran onto the grass at Bell Field."Orange Shirts Top Foes, 20–0: Oregon Staters Hold Grid Test," Portland Oregonian, May 1, 1948, p. 15. The "Orange squad", dominated by upperclassmen, dominated the sophomore-laden "White squad" by a score of 20 to 0, with the Orange backfield consisting of single-wing left halfback Dick Gray, right halfback Don Samuel, and fullback Dick Twenge proving too much for the younger players to handle.
A second spring scrimmage game was held May 7, with the domination of the older lettermen only amplified, with the Orange this time winning by a one-sided score of 33–0."OSC Scrimmage Held," Salem Statesman, May 8, 1948, p. 6. In a contest held in the pounding rain, left half Dick Gray was again the star, spinning a 15-yard touchdown to quarterback Rudy Ruppe and racing 42-yards for another in an intrasquad game that was never close."OSC Orange Win Grid Tilt 33–0," Oregon Daily Journal, May 8, 1948, p. 11.
The final intrasquad game, held at Bell Field on May 14, offered the best showing by the OSC varsity's white-clad newcomers, with the sophomores threatening an upset before ultimately falling to former Portland Roosevelt High School star Dick Gray and the Orange team, 27–13. Gray was said to have offered "an excellent exhibition of passing and running" in leading the upperclassmen to their third straight victory."'Regulars' Win on OSC Gridiron," Oregon Daily Journal, May 14, 1948, p. 19. Dick was the third Gray brother to play halfback for OSC, following in the footsteps of his older brothers Joe (from 1936) and Al (from 1941).Matt Kramer, "Gray Brothers Have Put Life into Oregon State Since 1936," Oregon Daily Journal, Oct. 2, 1948, p. 13.
With a lack of leadership believed to be the chief failing of the 1947 team, Portland Oregonian sports editor L.H. Gregory touted halfback Gray as a key piece of the 1948 equation. The performance and leadership of Gray — a somewhat fragile player who had already undergone meniscus operations to both knees — was believed to be a key element of the team in 1948. "What he did this spring practice held the key to the fall Oregon State football outlook," Gregory wrote.L.H. Gregory, "Greg's Gossip: Dick Gray Sparks Orange Spring Practice," Sunday Oregonian, May 23, 1948, section 4, pp. 1, 3.
Gray had been the star in a 1947 Beaver victory over Nebraska, throwing three touchdown passes in the effort, and appeared poised to go off as a legitimate star. One unnamed Corvallis observer gushed that Gray had done "about everything" in spring practice: "called signals, passed, run, punted, and showed great form on defense." The observer added that Gray "throws passes two ways, hard and soft, with full accuracy" and that he was so athletic that he was able to high jump 5'6" in full football garb following a strenuous two-hour practice.Quoted in Gregory, "Greg's Gossip: Dick Gray Sparks Orange Spring Practice," Sunday Oregonian, May 23, 1948.
Fall practice
Coach Stiner opened up fall practice for the Orangemen the afternoon of Wednesday, September 1, with an optimistic projection of the team's chances in 1948.Associated Press, "Beaver Coach Slates Modified Scrimmage," Capital Journal, Sept. 1, 1948, p. 8. A total of 55 prospective players took the field to be led in a series of conditioning exercises and drills in passing and punting, concluding with a short scrimmage session."Stiner Starts Grid Sessions," Oregon Daily Journal, Sept. 2, 1948, p. 20.
Stiner announced that he would be modifying his "deep wing" offense slightly in 1948 to make the quarterback more of an offensive weapon, he having previously used that position primarily as a blocking back for his halfback-centric offensive attack.United Press, "College Grid Briefs," Albany Democrat-Herald, Sept. 4, 1948, p. 6. After four days of "daily double" practices to build conditioning, Stiner began to install new offensive plays for the September 18 season opener in Corvallis.
With the season opener against Idaho just over two weeks away, immediate attention was paid to rebuilding the line, which had suffered the loss of four of seven starters to graduation — the left tackle, left guard, right guard, and right end.George Bertz, "Newcomers, Especially Sub Linemen, Hold Key to Beaver Grid Fortunes," Oregon Daily Joournal, Sept. 10, 1948, p. 17. Additionally, four reserve linemen were similarly lost to graduation, adding to the complexity of line coach Jim Dixon's restructuring task."Oregon State Grid Squad Ends Daily Double Drills," Sunday Oregonian, Sept. 5, 1948, p. 20. Dixon took a look at 13 prospects coming from the ranks of last year's reserves, new sophomores, and transfers to the program trying to plug the massive gap.
Dixon ultimately solved the problem by converting two returning juniors, Tom DeSylvia and Ed Carmichael — the latter the second heaviest player on the team at 222 pounds — from tackle to guard, thereby plugging the center of his line with experienced players.
The thin line was offset by a bountiful backfield, judged by one sportswriter as "two and three deep for almost every backfield position. This included the critical left halfback position. Fall practice brought forward a new name — Ken Carpenter, a 6-foot, 185-pound junior from Seattle that was a triple threat of such a magnitude that the strong spring session of Dick Gray was all but forgotten.In Stiner's "deep single wing" offense the ball was shotgun snapped to the left halfback, who controlled the action much like a quarterback in modern offenses. See the game film linked here as an external link. Going into the season Carpenter was being penned in as the starting left half, which Gray his substitute.Note: Although unlimited substitution was permitted during the 1948 season, many teams continued to play a starting 11 both offensively and defensively. Both would supply OSC with a one-two punch over the course of the coming year.
While the offense seemed promising as the season approached, misgivings began to be expressed about the defensive capabilities of OSC, with an Associated Press reporter near the team noting that Stiner had stared "bleakly" during defensive drills and to have later stated that everything was "bad", with the exception of pass defense, which was proclaimed "extra bad".Associated Press, "Northern Division Grid Hopefuls Hit Early by Annual Injury Hex," Oregon Daily Journal, Sept. 8, 1948, p. 18.
Regular season Week 1: Idaho Vandals
A newly renovated Bell Field in Corvallis was the site for the season-opener between the Oregon State College Beavers and the Idaho Vandals, with a kickoff scheduled for 2 pm."Orange, Idaho Await Contest," The Oregonian, Sept. 18, 1948, sect. 2, pp. 1, 3. The Vandals returned a nearly full complement of players from the 1947 squad that shocked West coast powerhouse Stanford by three points, and, while remaining underdogs on the road against OSC, were still reckoned to be among the strongest teams in school history.
The Beavers easily overmatched their guests, however, tearing apart Idaho with a passing attack led by southpaw halfback Don Samuel, a senior from Hood River.George Pasero, "Beavers Win, 27–12: Aerial Attack Too Powerful for Idaho '11'," Oregon Journal, Sept. 18, 1948, pp. B1, B3. OSC backs combined to complete 16 passes on 22 attempts for 269 yards — regarded as exceptional both for accuracy and yardage for a team of this era with a history steeped in the running game.
The Beavers took the initiative from the opening kickoff, starting from their own 31 yard line and taking it to the Idaho 20 before bogging down. After stopping the Vandals and forcing them to punt, OSC began its second drive around midfield and marched in for the initial score with just over six minutes off the clock. The 6–0 score held until halftime.
In the third quarter, the Beavers and Vandals matched touchdowns, with Idaho finally breaking ice late in the period off an intercepted pass by Don Ditz. A touchdown run by Don Samuel and pass from Dick Gray to fullback Dick Twenge for seven more points broke the game open for the Orangemen in the final quarter. The Vandals managed a garbagetime touchdown with 30 seconds on the clock via an OSC fumble to reduce the margin of their defeat to 27–12.
Despite losing the turnover battle 5 to 2, the Beavers dominated Idaho in total offense, 445 yards to 177, forcing the Vandals to punt the ball 8 times.
The following Thursday, September 23, OSC was invited to provide the opposition to the University of Hawaii in their annual "Pineapple Bowl". Oregon State athletic director Roy "Spec" Keen was quick to accept the offer to play in the New Year's Day game in Honolulu, declaring that the Beavers were "happy to be invited."Associated Press, "OSC to Play in Honolulu," Oregon Journal, Sept. 24, 1948, p. 13. A final contract was said to be forthcoming shortly.
Week 2: at USC Trojans