Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1165179
1949 ROSE BOWL | BY: SKIP MYSLENSKI 20 n o r t h w e s t e r n f o o t b a l l • D I G I T A L P R O G R A M • N O R T H W E S T E R N v s . U N L V The 'Cats struck first with Frank Aschenbrenner, who burst over the right tackle and rumbled 73 yards for a touchdown. California responded on its first play after the kickoff with star running back Jackie Jensen dashing 67 yards for a tying score. The game remained level at seven until Northwestern fullback Art Murakowski plunged two yards into the end zone early in the second quarter. NU unfortunately missed its extra point and when Cal scored late in the third quarter, the 'Cats trailed by one. This was the Rose Bowl of 1949, the 35th edition of the 'granddaddy of them all', and the 'Cats were in trouble. "We were as flat as a pancake during the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth quarter," recalls Ed Tunnicliff, whom was one of Wildcats playing in Pasadena, Calif. that day. "I don't know if it was the weather, or being out there so long, or what it was. But we were just flat." But now, with under five minutes remaining, Aschenbrenner accepted a punt from the Bears' Frank Brunk and the 'Cats had one more chance. Head coach Bob Voigts' side would start their drive from their own 12-yard line. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• In 1949, NATO was established, the People's Republic of China was proclaimed by Mao Zedong, heavyweight champion Joe Louis retired, George Orwell's "1984" was published, William Faulkner won the Nobel Prize in literature and a little stop-motion piece called "Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer," was released. But it began as this football season begins on this Saturday, with the 'Cats meeting Cal, which is why we today honor the surviving members of that Rose Bowl team. Those Wildcats were an eclectic, varied group comprised of fresh-faced youth, grown men and veterans steeled by the conflict that was World War II. Alex Sarkissian, Northwestern's 26-year-old captain and center, had been born in Constantinople (now Istanbul) and was the son of an Armenian immigrant who would labor as a steelworker in East Chicago. Aschenbrenner, NU's left halfback, had trained as a Navy Air Pilot and played for Great Lakes under the legendary head coach Paul Brown. Tunnicliff, their right halfback, had served on a tank crew in George Patton's Third Army and lost a finger on his right hand after it was crushed. Murakowski, their fullback, had been a Fireman First Class on a destroyer that was involved in the Battle of Okinawa. In this infamous clash, a Japanese kamikaze crashed his plane into the boat's superstructure, killing 19 in the process, but Murakowski survived unscathed. "I felt funny, he would later recall. I was below handling the 5-inch ammunition." "It was easy," Tunnicliff said when asked if it was difficult for such a desperate group to congeal as a team. "We had a lot of sophomores that really contributed not only in the Rose Bowl, but also during the season. I credit our captain (Sarkasian). Sarkie was a real take-charge guy. He was just in command. He made it happen. In fact, he never stopped being our captain until he died. If we had a reunion, he would be leading it."