1948 San Francisco 49ers season

Head coach Lawrence "Buck" Shaw.
1948 San Francisco 49ers season
OwnerTony Morabito
General managerJohn Blackinger
Head coachBuck Shaw
Home fieldKezar Stadium
Results
Record12–2
Division place2nd AAFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The 1948 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's third season in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). The 49ers, hoped to improve upon their 8–4–2 output from the previous season. They began the season 10–0, and finished 12–2,[1] both losses coming to eventual season champions, the Cleveland Browns.

Program for the Forty-Niners' October 10 game at Baltimore.

The 49ers' offense was historically prolific: they scored 495 points[2] in 1948 (averaging over 35 points per game), which was more than 100 points more than the next best output (389 points by the Browns). Despite their 12–2 record, the 49ers did not qualify for the playoffs, due to the Browns 14–0 record.

The 1948 49ers had a record-setting rushing attack: the team rushed for a staggering 3,653 yards in only fourteen games, a professional football record that still stands.[3][4]

The team's statistical leaders included Frankie Albert with 1,990 passing yards, Johnny Strzykalski with 915 rushing yards, and Alyn Beals with 591 receiving yards and 84 points scored.[5]

Preseason

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 August 18 at Los Angeles Dons W 42–24 1–0 Rose Bowl 58,207
2 August 22 Baltimore Colts W 42–14 2–0 Kezar Stadium 35,139

[6]

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Source
1 August 29 Buffalo Bills W 35–14 1–0 Kezar Stadium 33,946 [7]
2 September 5 Brooklyn Dodgers W 36–20 2–0 Kezar Stadium 32,606 [8]
3 September 12 New York Yankees W 41–0 3–0 Kezar Stadium 60,927 [9]
4 September 19 Los Angeles Dons W 36–14 4–0 Kezar Stadium 45,420 [10]
5 September 26 at Buffalo Bills W 38–28 5–0 Civic Stadium 31,103 [11]
6 October 1 at Chicago Rockets W 31–14 6–0 Soldier Field 14,553 [12]
7 October 10 at Baltimore Colts W 56–14 7–0 Memorial Stadium 22,359 [13]
8 October 17 at New York Yankees W 21–7 8–0 Yankee Stadium 29,743 [14]
9 October 24 Baltimore Colts W 21–10 9–0 Kezar Stadium 27,978 [15]
10 Bye
11 November 7 Chicago Rockets W 44–21 10–0 Kezar Stadium 25,308 [16]
12 November 14 at Cleveland Browns L 7–14 10–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 82,769 [17]
13 November 21 at Brooklyn Dodgers W 63–40 11–1 Ebbets Field 9,336 [18]
14 November 28 Cleveland Browns L 28–31 11–2 Kezar Stadium 59,785 [19]
15 December 5 at Los Angeles Dons W 38–21 12–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 51,460 [20]
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

AAFC Western Division
W L T PCT DIV PF PA STK
Cleveland Browns 14 0 0 1.000 6–0 389 190 W14
San Francisco 49ers 12 2 0 .857 4–2 495 248 W1
Los Angeles Dons 7 7 0 .500 2–4 258 305 L2
Chicago Rockets 1 13 0 .071 0–6 202 439 L11
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings.
AAFC Eastern Division
W L T PCT DIV PF PA STK
Buffalo Bills 7 7 0 .500 4–2 360 358 L1
Baltimore Colts 7 7 0 .500 5–1 333 327 W2
New York Yankees 6 8 0 .429 3–3 265 301 W1
Brooklyn Dodgers 2 12 0 .143 0–6 253 387 L6
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings.

Roster

San Francisco's in-season roster included the following players.[21]

References

  1. ^ 1948 San Francisco 49ers
  2. ^ 1948 AAFC Standings Archived September 21, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1940 to 2011, in the regular season, sorted by descending Rushing Yds as of 2011 season
  4. ^ The next-highest total, set in a 16-game schedule by the 1978 Patriots, is 488 yards short of the record. The next-highest total in a 14-game schedule, set by the 1973 Bills, is 565 yards shy.
  5. ^ "1948 San Francisco 49ers Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  6. ^ "1948 San Francisco 49ers (AAFC)". Pro Football Archives. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  7. ^ Kenneth R. Crippen and Matt Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference: Players, Coaches, Records, Games, and Awards, 1946–1949. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 2018; pp. 119–120.
  8. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 120.
  9. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, pp. 121–122.
  10. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 122.
  11. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 123.
  12. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, pp. 123–124.
  13. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 124.
  14. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 126.
  15. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 126.
  16. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 128.
  17. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 129–130.
  18. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 130.
  19. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 132.
  20. ^ Crippen and Reaser (eds.), The All-America Football Conference, p. 133.
  21. ^ Baltimore Colts vs. Frisco Forty-Niners, Oct 10. Baltimore, MD: Baltimore Colts Football Club, Inc., 1948; pp. 20–21.