The 1952 Big Ten Conference football season was the 57th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference (also known as the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) and was a part of the 1952 college football season.
The 1952 Wisconsin Badgers football team, under head coach Ivy Williamson, compiled a 6–3–1 record, tied for the Big Ten championship, was ranked No. 10 in the final UP poll and No. 11 in the final AP poll, and lost to USC in the 1953 Rose Bowl. Tackle Dave Suminski was the team's only first-team All-American and was selected as the team's most valuable player. Sophomore Alan Ameche was a first-team All-Big Ten player, set a Wisconsin record with 946 rushing yards, and went on to win the 1954 Heisman Trophy.
The 1952 Purdue Boilermakers football team, under head coach Stu Holcomb, was the Big Ten co-champion and ranked No. 12 in the final UP poll and No. 18 in the final AP poll. Purdue end Bernie Flowers was the Big Ten's only consensus first-team All-American in 1952 and was the first Big Ten player selected in the 1953 NFL draft. Dale Samuels was the first Purdue quarterback to pass for over 1,000 yards in a season.
The conference's statistical leaders included Illinois quarterback Tommy O'Connell with 1,761 passing yards and 1,724 yards of total offense,[1] Alan Ameche with 946 rushing yards,[1] and Indiana's Gene Gedman with 54 points scored.[2]
Key
AP final = Team's rank in the final AP Poll of the 1952 season[3]
AP high = Team's highest rank in the AP Poll throughout the 1952 season[3]
PPG = Average of points scored per game; conference leader's average displayed in bold[3]
PAG = Average of points allowed per game; conference leader's average displayed in bold[3]
MVP = Most valuable player as voted by players on each team as part of the voting process to determine the winner of the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy; trophy winner in bold[4]
The following players were picked by the Associated Press (AP)as first-team players on the 1952 All-Big Ten Conference football team. The AP picked separate offensive and defensive units, whereas the UP selected a single, eleven man unit.
At the end of the 1952 season, only one Big Ten player secured a consensus first-team pick on the 1952 College Football All-America Team.[5] The Big Ten's consensus All-Americans were:
