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Los Angeles Dons logo

Los Angeles Dons
Season Records 1946-1949 (4 seasons)

  • Franchise Overview
  • Seasons
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Teams Los Angeles Dons History Season Records

Recap

In 1946, a new professional football league was launched to do battle with the long-established National Football League (NFL). This new league, the All-America Football Conference (AAFC), included eight teams—an Eastern Division with three teams based in the state of New York and another in Miami, and a Western Division with teams in Cleveland, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. The AAFC's southern California franchise, which was to compete directly with the newly-relocated Rams of the NFL, was known as the Los Angeles Dons.

The leader of the ownership group was Fernando Gonzalez III, a California businessman & longtime football fan. Other owners included Hollywood notables Louis B. Mayer, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, and actor Don Ameche.

The Dons' head coach was "Dud" DeGroot, a Stanford football player who had gone on to earn a PhD from that institution. He was the head coach of the NFL's Washington Redskins in 1944 and 1945 before jumping over to the rival AAFC for its debut 1946 season.

The Dons shared the Coliseum with the Rams for home games. Although never filling the mammoth facility, the club made a show of offering vast numbers of tickets for sale at reasonable prices, including 40,000 reserved seats for each home contest priced at $2.50, 15,000 general admission seats costing $1.50, and 8,000 children's tickets priced at just sixty cents.

The team played its first regular season home game in 1946 on against the Brooklyn Dodgers on September 13 in before a Friday night crowd of 18,955 — the first time professional football had ever been played in the Coliseum. The Dons took a first quarter lead on a 55-yard pass from quarterback "Chuckin' Charlie" O'Rourke to Bernie Nygren and never looked back, triumphing 20–14 over the visitors from New York. The Dons opened the inaugural season with three wins and a tie before a rough spell; they finished in third place in the AAFC's Western Division with a record of 7–5–2, out of the playoffs.

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Dons Season Records
Interceptions

1
Profile photo of Walt Heap

Walt Heap

1947

10

 

2
Profile photo of Bob Mitchell

Bob Mitchell

1946

6

 

3
Profile photo of Bill Reinhard

Bill Reinhard

1947

5

 

4
Profile photo of John Brown

John Brown

1947

5

 

5
Profile photo of Bob Kelly

Bob Kelly

1947

5

 

6
Profile photo of Robert Nelson

Robert Nelson

1946

4

 

7
Profile photo of Jim Spavital

Jim Spavital

1949

4

 

8
Profile photo of Bob Seymour

Bob Seymour

1946

4

 

9
Profile photo of Bob Nowaskey

Bob Nowaskey

1946

3

 

10
Profile photo of Dick Woodard

Dick Woodard

1949

2

 

11
Profile photo of Harper Davis

Harper Davis

1949

2

 

12
Profile photo of Len Ford

Len Ford

1948

2

 

13
Profile photo of Harry Clarke

Harry Clarke

1946

2

 

14
Profile photo of Bernie Nygren

Bernie Nygren

1946

2

 

15
Profile photo of Shorty McWilliams

Shorty McWilliams

1949

2

 

16
Profile photo of Burr Baldwin

Burr Baldwin

1949

2

 

17
Profile photo of Earl Elsey

Earl Elsey

1946

2

 

18
Profile photo of Walt Clay

Walt Clay

1948

2

 

19
Profile photo of Jeff Durkota

Jeff Durkota

1948

1

 

20
Profile photo of Ab Wimberly

Ab Wimberly

1949

1

 

21
Profile photo of Bob Sneddon

Bob Sneddon

1946

1

 

22
Profile photo of Don Nolander

Don Nolander

1946

1

 

23
Profile photo of Lin Sexton

Lin Sexton

1948

1

 

24
Profile photo of Bob Hoffman

Bob Hoffman

1949

1

 

25
Profile photo of Bus Mertes

Bus Mertes

1946

1

 

26
Profile photo of Harry Hopp

Harry Hopp

1947

1

 

27
Profile photo of Mike Graham

Mike Graham

1948

1

 

28
Profile photo of Bert Piggott

Bert Piggott

1947

1

 

29
Profile photo of Bob Reinhard

Bob Reinhard

1947

1

 

30
Profile photo of Dan Dworsky

Dan Dworsky

1949

1

 

31
Profile photo of Glenn Dobbs

Glenn Dobbs

1948

1

 

32
Profile photo of Jack Morton

Jack Morton

1946

1

 

33
Profile photo of John Polanski

John Polanski

1946

1

 

34
Profile photo of Paul Vinnola

Paul Vinnola

1946

1

 

35
Profile photo of Bill Kerr

Bill Kerr

1946

1

 

36
Profile photo of Bob Kennedy

Bob Kennedy

1949

1

 

List only includes players that met minimum statistical requirements

More Season Records

Passing Yards   ·   Passing Attempts   ·   Passing Yards per Game   ·   Passing TD   ·   Completion %   ·   Rushing Yards   ·   Rushing Attempts   ·   Rushing TD   ·   Yards per Rush   ·   Rushing Yards per Game   ·   Receiving Yards   ·   Receiving TD   ·   Yards per Catch   ·   Receiving Yards per Game   ·   Sacks   ·   Tackles   ·   Tackles for Loss   ·   Extra Point %   ·   Field Goal %   ·   Field Goal % 50+ Yards   ·   Longest Field Goal   ·   Punts   ·   Yards per Punt   ·   Yards Punting   ·   Longest Punt   ·   Kickoff Return Yards   ·   Kickoff Return TD   ·   Yards per Kickoff Return   ·   Longest Kickoff Return   ·   Punt Return Yards   ·   Punt Return TD   ·   Yards per Punt Return   ·   Longest Punt Return   ·   Points Scored   ·   Touchdowns Scored

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Dons History

  • Franchise Overview
  • Seasons
  • Team Stats
  • Franchise Leaders
  • Season Records
  • Draft Picks
  • Head Coaches
  • General Managers
  • Owners
  • Stadium History
  • Logo History
  • Audio & Video Clips
  • Articles & Photos
  • Links Wikipedia
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