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The
Greatest Championship Run in the History of Football
(At any level of Football – pro, college, or high school.) Massillon Tigers 1935-1965 Nine National championships and 20 state championships in 31 seasons. Year Record Points Scored Final Rank Comments 1935 10-0 483 - 13 State Champs National Champs 1936 10-0 443 - 14 State Champs National Champs 1937 8-1-1 228 - 50 State Champs 1938 10-0 302 - 60 State Champs 1939 10-0 460 - 25 State Champs National Champs 1940 10-0 477 - 6 State Champs National Champs 1941 9-0-1 314 - 37 State Champs 1942 9-1 282 - 80 3rd in Ohio footnotes (a), (b), (c) 1943 10-0 278 - 12 State Champs 1944 7-3 175 - 92 footnote (d) 1945 5-0-5 168 - 38 1946 6-2-2 166 - 103 footnote (e) 1947 6-4 138 - 107 19th in Ohio 1948 9-1 271 - 95 State Champs 1949 9-1 395 - 93 State Champs 1950 10-0 407 - 37 State Champs National Champs 1951 9-1 316 - 65 State Champs 1952 10-0 437 - 93 State Champs National Champs 1953 10-0 399 - 55 State Champs National Champs 1954 9-1 295 - 66 State Champs footnote (f) 1955 8-1-1 262 - 99 2nd in Ohio 1956 8-2 237 - 104 8th in Ohio 1957 8-1 221 - 46 2nd in Ohio 1958 8-1-1 220 - 45 4th in Ohio 1959 10-0 431 - 46 State Champs National Champs 1960 10-1 348 - 93 State Champs 7th in Nation 1961 11-0 332 - 64 State Champs National Champs 1962 6-5 269 - 164 footnote (g) 1963 9-1 334 - 47 2nd in Ohio 1964 10-0 297 - 48 State Champs 2nd in Nation 1965 10-0 247 - 78 State Champs 2nd in Nation footnote (h) 274 wins and only 27 losses in 31 football seasons. Win percentage over these 31 seasons is better than 91%. Ranked in top 10 of Ohio 26 times in 31 seasons, with 20 state titles. (More than any team in Ohio in entire history.) Ranked in top 10 of nation 12 times in 31 years, with 9 national titles (More than any team in America, ever.) Outscored opposition 9632 -1975 during this 31 year period period. Average score over these 31 seasons was 31-6. Tigers outscored opposition by roughly a 5-1 ratio. a) End 52 game unbeaten streak. b) Lost only one game in a 79 game streak c) End of 78 Ohio games without a loss d) End streak of 91 games with only 2 losses (e) End streak of 120 games with only 6 losses (1934-1946) (f) End streak of 46 games with 1 loss (g) End streak of 35 game with just 1 loss (h) 32 game unbeaten streak in progress that ended in 1966. NOTE: Massillon was 9-1 in 1934, and ranked 2nd in Ohio, outscoring opponents 427-21 -- however, this fine team was not included in the championship run because it was just before the run started. The Canton McKinley Bulldogs won the state (and national) championship in 1934. ALSO: The Massillon Tigers won more state championships outside this period, and were also highly ranked in the nation on other occasions. The purpose of this web page is to illustrate the amazing 31 year period of Massillon football that has never been equaled by any team at any level in the entire history of football. During this 31 year period, the record of Massillon vs Canton McKinley was: 24-5-2 The champions of the 11 seasons that Massillon fell short were: 1942 Canton McKinley 1944 Canton McKinley 1945 Canton Lincoln & Cleveland Cathedral Latin 1946 Canton McKinley 1947 Barberton 1955 Canton McKinley 1956 Canton McKinley 1957 Cleveland St. Benedictine 1958 Alliance 1962 Toledo Central Catholic 1963 Niles Note that from 1934 to 1965, inclusive, Stark County teams won the state title 28 out of 32 seasons. Virtually all the powerhouses in Ohio were on the Massillon schedule during this period. There were many super showdowns throughout this period, including the great game of 1940 against Toledo Waite (Massillon won 28-0), and the super showdown against Niles in 1964 (Massillon won 14-8, stopping the 48 game win streak of Niles). Almost every year, Massillon and McKinley were battling at the end season for the championship, as both teams frequently eliminated the other top teams of Ohio. It was a glorious period of football for the Massillon Tigers, and it's what put Tigertown on the map as the ultimate high school football power in the nation. An entire book could be written about this golden period. The details of its history are far too deep to be encompassed within a single web page. Fair, or unfair, this era has become "the standard" that older Massillon fans use when measuring the success of Tiger football. It is deeply hoped that we will soon experience another such era. A final note: There was a 20 year period (1935 through 1954, inclusive), during which Massillon won 15 state championships. This is a super era within a super era. Other than Massillon, no football team in any state has ever come close to winning 75% of the state championships over a 20 year span. And this is why Massillon became a storybook football team. Go Massillon Tigers! Massillon Football Forever! |
