1953 Utah Redskins football team

The 1953 Utah Redskins football team was an American football team that represented the University of Utah as a member of the Skyline Conference during the 1953 college football season. In their fourth season under head coach Jack Curtice, the Redskins compiled an overall record of 8–2 with a mark of 5–0 against conference opponents, winning Skyline title for the third consecutive year.

1953 Utah Redskins football
Skyline champion
ConferenceSkyline Conference
Record8–2 (5–0 Skyline)
Head coach
Home stadiumUte Stadium
1953 Skyline Conference football standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
Utah $ 5 –0 –08 –2 –0
Utah State 5 –2 –08 –3 –0
Wyoming 4 –2 –15 –4 –1
New Mexico 3 –2 –15 –3 –1
Colorado A&M 3 –4 –04 –5 –0
Montana 2 –4 –03 –5 –0
Denver 1 –5 –13 –5 –2
BYU 1 –5 –12 –7 –1
  • $ – Conference champion

Utah played its first nationally televised game in the final game of the season, on November 26. NBC Sports televised 12 games during the season, making the BYU–Utah rivalry game played on Thanksgiving Day among the first nationally broadcast college football games. Utah was 7–2, had clinched their third consecutive Skyline Conference title the previous week,[1] and BYU had won only twice. Utah was heavily favored to win the game, by up to 24 points.[2] BYU played tough, though, and Utah prevailed by one point, 33–32.[3][4]

Schedule
DateOpponentSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 19at Arizona*
W 28–7
September 26Idaho*
W 21–017,361[5][6][7]
October 3Hawaii*
  • Ute Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT
W 47–24
October 10at Utah State
W 33–139,631[8]
October 17Denver
  • Ute Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT
W 40–69,162[9]
October 24Wyoming
  • Ute Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT
W 13–12
October 31at Washington*
L 14–2123,389
November 7at Colorado*
L 0–2122,500
November 14Colorado A&Mdagger
  • Ute Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT
W 35–14
November 26BYU
  • Ute Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT (rivalry)
NBCW 33–32
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming

[10][11]

NFL Draft

Four Utah players were selected in the 1954 NFL Draft.[12]

PlayerPositionRoundPickNFL team
Jack CrossBack785Detroit Lions
Charlie GrantCenter16189Philadelphia Eagles
Don RydalchBack19223Pittsburgh Steelers
Jim DurrantGuard20241Detroit Lions

References
  1. Miller, Hack (November 16, 1953). "Ute team celebrates third straight title". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. B2.
  2. Miller, Hack (November 25, 1953). "Utes 24-point favorites over Cougars". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. B2.
  3. Miller, Hack (November 27, 1953). "Redskins win, but nobody loses in tense 33-32 game". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. B2.
  4. Hinckley, Shane (2010). University of Utah Football Vault : The History of the Utes. Atlanta, GA: Whitman Publishing, LLC. pp. 53–54. ISBN 0-7948-2797-7.
  5. "Utah is two-touchdown favorite over Vandals". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). September 26, 1953. p. A-3.
  6. "Utah clubs Idaho 21-0". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 27, 1953. p. 8.
  7. Miller, Hack (September 28, 1953). "Utes meet Hawaii". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 2-B.
  8. "Redskins Down Ags 33 to 13". The Daily Herald (Provo, UT). October 11, 1953. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Jack Schroeder (October 18, 1953). "Lethargic Utes Win, 40-6, on Last Half Spurt". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. B7 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Ute Record Book" (PDF). University of Utah. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 13, 2011. Retrieved July 16, 2010.
  11. "Coaching Records Game by Game Jack C. Curtice 1953". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 4, 2012. Retrieved August 10, 2010.
  12. "1954 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on November 23, 2010. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
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