 Though his only head coaching experience was at Massillon's Longfellow Junior High School, Widdoes was appointed acting head coach by the OSU Athletic Board on April 14.The 1944 team fielded only thirteen upperclassmen and 31 freshmen, and lost standout halfback Dean Sensenbaugher to an appointment to West Point.However, in August it received a tremendous boost when the U.S. Army's ASTP training program was discontinued at Ohio State and the Big Ten granted dental school student Les Horvath, discharged from ASTP, a fourth year of eligibility.