Jim Tatum
After World War II, Tatum accepted a position as the head coach at the University of Oklahoma. He compiled an 8–3 in 1946 record before accepting the head coaching position at the University of Maryland. Bud Wilkinson, a fellow assistant coach at the Iowa Pre-Flight School, was one of his assistants at Oklahoma and was promoted to head coach when Tatum left for Maryland.
1956 Maryland Terrapins football team
Maryland entered 1956 ranked number-six in the Associated Press preseason poll. The previous year, the freshman Terrapins finished with an undefeated record, and "Sports Illustrated" had called it the "best freshman team in the entire South." Before resigning his post as head coach, Jim Tatum had said before the 1956 Orange Bowl, "Our 1956 squad will have the greatest potential of all, despite the loss of ten seniors."