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1944 Third Air Force Gremlins football team
The 1944 Third Air Force Gremlins football team represented the Third Air Force during the 1944 college football season. The team compiled a 8–3 record. The Third Air Force was part of the United States Army Air Forces and was based in 1944 at Morris Field in Charlotte, North Carolina.
| 1944 Third Air Force Gremlins football |
|---|
| Independent |
| 8–3 |
| J. Quinn Decker (1st season) |
The 1944 Third Air Force Gremlins football team represented the Third Air Force during the 1944 college football season. The team compiled a 8–3 record. The Third Air Force was part of the United States Army Air Forces and was based in 1944 at Morris Field in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The team played a 10-game schedule against other military service teams and defeated the Second Air Force team that was ranked No. 20 in the final 1944 AP poll. Its three losses were against teams ranked in the top 20 in the final poll: Randolph Field (No. 3); Great Lakes (No. 17); and Fort Pierce (No. 18).
J. Quinn Decker, who coached at Centre College before the war, was the team's head coach. The team's key players included backs Charley Trippi (left halfback), Ernie Bonelli (right halfback), Bob Kennedy (fullback), and Frank Gnup (quarterback), and linemen Art Brandau (center), Walt Barnes, and Jack Karwales. Trippi was named as a first-team player on the Associated Press' 1944 Service All-America team.
In the final Litkenhous Ratings, Third Air Force ranked 27th among the nation's college and service teams and sixth out of 63 United States Army teams with a rating of 99.4.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 23 | Charleston Coast Guard | Charlotte, NC | W 31–0 | 12,000 | |||
| October 1 | at Chatham Field | Savannah, GA | W 45–0 | 9,000 | |||
| October 7 | 3:30 p.m. | vs. Third Infantry | Carolina StadiumColumbia, SC | W 22–0 | 12,000 | ||
| October 15 | at Georgia Pre-Flight | Sanford StadiumAthens, GA | W 19–7 | ||||
| October 22 | Cherry Point Marines | Charlotte, NC | W 29–7 | ||||
| October 28 | at No. 3 Randolph Field | No. 19 | Alamo StadiumSan Antonio, TX | L 0–19 | 22,000 | ||
| November 5 | 2:30 p.m. | Georgia Pre-Flight | American Legion Memorial StadiumCharlotte, NC | W 34–12 | |||
| November 11 | at No. 14 Great Lakes Navy | Ross FieldGreat Lakes, IL | L 10–12 | 25,000 | |||
| November 19 | vs. Maxwell Field | Phillips FieldTampa, FL | W 41–7 | 12,000 | |||
| December 3 | vs. Fort Pierce | Phillips FieldTampa, FL | L 6–7 | 11,000 | |||
| December 10 | vs. No. 20 Second Air Force | Grant FieldAtlanta, GA | W 14–7 | 8,000 | |||
| Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |
| Week | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 19т | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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