Conference Big Six Conference Offensive scheme T formation | 1945 record 4–5 (2–3 Big 6) Home stadium Memorial Stadium | |
Head coach George Clark (1st year) | ||
The 1945 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team was the representative of the University of Nebraska and member of the Big 6 Conference in the 1945 college football season. The team was coached by George Clark and played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.
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Before the season
Head coach Clark arrived, hired by athletic director Adolph J. Lewandowski as his own replacement in charge of the football program, and with him came a completely new staff of five assistants. George "Potsy" Clark's playing and coaching career stretched back to 1912, included both college and professional teams, and by the time he arrived at Nebraska he had also served in both world wars, once in the Army and then later in the Navy Reserve. Coach Clark was exactly the kind of leader that Nebraska hoped could bring the troubled football program back from their unprecedented four-year slide. Now that World War II was drawing to a close, servicemen were returning home in large numbers, returning to school, and once again bolstering the quality of players on team rosters nationwide. Even with the increased pool of players to choose from, coach Clark was more selective in his choices, and the 1945 Nebraska roster was reduced by twenty from that of the previous year.
After the season
Although Nebraska had set a new record of disappointment by losing the first five games in a row, the outcome of the campaign's contests told a tale of two seasons. Over the first five games, Nebraska was outscored an average of 6–36, but upon turning the corner they finished the final four games ahead of the opposition with an average of 29–5. Hopes were high that despite a fifth straight losing season, that the clear transition midseason to winning form meant that the program was on the path back to success.
Coach Clark's first year moved Nebraska to 309–127–31 (.695), which was the first time the program's winning percentage had slipped below .700 since 1902. The Big 6 record also slipped slightly, to 113–28–11 (.780). Coach Clark somewhat unexpectedly opted to depart Nebraska after his first year, to coach elsewhere, casting a small measure of doubt on Nebraska's future. The groundwork had been laid, however, and it was hoped that a capable coach could come in and continue where coach Clark left off.