CFB51 College Football Fan Community
The Power Five => Big Ten => Topic started by: medinabuckeye1 on January 08, 2019, 10:28:50 AM
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Back in November @rolltidefan (https://www.cfb51.com/index.php?action=profile;u=12) created a thread (https://www.cfb51.com/index.php?topic=6864.new#new) to commemroate Ohio State's 900th appearance in the AP Poll.
I am currently waiting for College Poll Archive (http://collegepollarchive.com/football/ap/app_total.cfm?sort=totapp&from=1936&to=2018) to update for the final 2018 poll but the major moves for 2018 appear to be:
- Bama passed Ohio State to take over #1 in appearances at #1
- Ohio State became the first school to pass 900 AP appearances
Once it updates I'll add a more complete report but:
- Bama is #1 in appearances at #1 with 118. Ohio State (105), Oklahoma (101), Notre Dame (98), and USC (91) round out the top-5.
- Oklahoma is #1 in top-5 appearances.
- Ohio State is #1 in top-10 appearances.
- Ohio State is #1 in total appearances.
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I got tired of waiting (I know that is ridiculous) so I manually updated the #1, top-5, and top-10.
Here is appearances at #1 (for each of these I have listed the top-25 and all B1G schools):
1936-2017 #1 | 2018 | 1936-2018 Appearances |
Rank | Team | App | Pct | App | Rank | App | Pct |
2 | Alabama | 103 | 9.1% | 15 | 1 | 118 | 10.3% |
1 | Ohio State | 105 | 9.3% | 0 | 2 | 105 | 9.1% |
3 | Oklahoma | 101 | 8.9% | 0 | 3 | 101 | 8.8% |
4 | Notre Dame | 98 | 8.6% | 0 | 4 | 98 | 8.5% |
5 | USC | 91 | 8.0% | 0 | 5 | 91 | 7.9% |
6 | Florida State | 72 | 6.3% | 0 | 6 | 72 | 6.3% |
7 | Nebraska | 70 | 6.2% | 0 | 7 | 70 | 6.1% |
8 | Miami, FL | 68 | 6.0% | 0 | 8 | 68 | 5.9% |
9 | Texas | 45 | 4.0% | 0 | 9 | 45 | 3.9% |
10 | Florida | 41 | 3.6% | 0 | 10 | 41 | 3.6% |
11 | Michigan | 34 | 3.0% | 0 | 11 | 34 | 3.0% |
12 | LSU | 30 | 2.6% | 0 | 12 | 30 | 2.6% |
13 | Michigan State | 29 | 2.6% | 0 | 13 | 29 | 2.5% |
14 | Army | 27 | 2.4% | 0 | 14 | 27 | 2.3% |
15 | Penn State | 21 | 1.9% | 0 | 15 | 21 | 1.8% |
16 | Pitt | 21 | 1.9% | 0 | 16 | 21 | 1.8% |
17 | Minnesota | 18 | 1.6% | 0 | 17 | 18 | 1.6% |
18 | Tennessee | 18 | 1.6% | 0 | 18 | 18 | 1.6% |
19 | Georgia | 15 | 1.3% | 0 | 19 | 15 | 1.3% |
20 | Washington | 15 | 1.3% | 0 | 20 | 15 | 1.3% |
22 | Clemson | 10 | 0.9% | 1 | 21 | 11 | 1.0% |
21 | Iowa | 11 | 1.0% | 0 | 22 | 11 | 1.0% |
23 | Auburn | 9 | 0.8% | 0 | 23 | 9 | 0.8% |
24 | Oregon | 8 | 0.7% | 0 | 24 | 8 | 0.7% |
25 | Colorado | 7 | 0.6% | 0 | 25 | 7 | 0.6% |
29 | Maryland | 6 | 0.5% | 0 | 26 | 6 | 0.5% |
30 | Northwestern | 5 | 0.4% | 0 | 27 | 5 | 0.4% |
30 | Purdue | 5 | 0.4% | 0 | 28 | 5 | 0.4% |
41 | Wisconsin | 1 | 0.1% | 0 | 29 | 1 | 0.1% |
Illinois (highest ever rank was #2), Indiana (highest ever rank was #4), and Rutgers (highest ever rank was #7) are not listed because they have never been ranked #1.
Alabama passed Ohio State to claim the most ever appearances at #1. Clemson moved into a tie with Iowa for 21st most appearances with 11. Nothing else changed because no other teams were ranked #1 this year.
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Here are appearances in the top-5:
1936-2017 Top-5 | 2018 | 1936-2018 Appearances |
Rank | Team | App | Pct | App | Rank | App | Pct |
1 | Oklahoma | 406 | 35.8% | 5 | 1 | 411 | 35.7% |
2 | Alabama | 381 | 33.6% | 16 | 2 | 397 | 34.5% |
3 | Ohio State | 362 | 31.9% | 10 | 3 | 372 | 32.3% |
5 | Notre Dame | 291 | 25.6% | 10 | 4 | 301 | 26.2% |
4 | Nebraska | 296 | 26.1% | 0 | 5 | 296 | 25.7% |
6 | Michigan | 286 | 25.2% | 5 | 6 | 291 | 25.3% |
7 | USC | 282 | 24.8% | 0 | 7 | 282 | 24.5% |
8 | Texas | 267 | 23.5% | 0 | 8 | 267 | 23.2% |
9 | Florida State | 243 | 21.4% | 0 | 9 | 243 | 21.1% |
10 | Miami, FL | 204 | 18.0% | 0 | 10 | 204 | 17.7% |
11 | Florida | 184 | 16.2% | 0 | 11 | 184 | 16.0% |
12 | Penn State | 168 | 14.8% | 0 | 12 | 168 | 14.6% |
13 | Auburn | 130 | 11.5% | 0 | 13 | 130 | 11.3% |
14 | Tennessee | 122 | 10.7% | 0 | 14 | 122 | 10.6% |
15 | LSU | 115 | 10.1% | 5 | 15 | 120 | 10.4% |
18 | Georgia | 108 | 9.5% | 11 | 16 | 119 | 10.3% |
16 | UCLA | 110 | 9.7% | 0 | 17 | 110 | 9.6% |
17 | Michigan State | 108 | 9.5% | 0 | 18 | 108 | 9.4% |
24 | Clemson | 66 | 5.8% | 16 | 19 | 82 | 7.1% |
19 | Washington | 76 | 6.7% | 0 | 20 | 76 | 6.6% |
20 | Army | 75 | 6.6% | 0 | 21 | 75 | 6.5% |
21 | aTm | 73 | 6.4% | 0 | 22 | 73 | 6.3% |
22 | Pitt | 70 | 6.2% | 0 | 23 | 70 | 6.1% |
23 | Oregon | 69 | 6.1% | 0 | 24 | 69 | 6.0% |
25 | Mississippi | 61 | 5.4% | 0 | 25 | 61 | 5.3% |
28 | Iowa | 53 | 4.7% | 0 | 28 | 53 | 4.6% |
29 | Wisconsin | 47 | 4.1% | 2 | 29 | 49 | 4.3% |
32 | Minnesota | 46 | 4.1% | 0 | 32 | 46 | 4.0% |
34 | Maryland | 45 | 4.0% | 0 | 34 | 45 | 3.9% |
37 | Illinois | 37 | 3.3% | 0 | 37 | 37 | 3.2% |
42 | Purdue | 27 | 2.4% | 0 | 42 | 27 | 2.3% |
44 | Northwestern | 25 | 2.2% | 0 | 44 | 25 | 2.2% |
65 | Indiana | 7 | 0.6% | 0 | 65 | 7 | 0.6% |
The big news here is that Notre Dame passed Nebraska for 4th most top-5 appearances.
The big mover was Clemson moving from #24 with 66 top-5 appearances to #19 with 82 top-5 appearances. They will not move up any more for a while though because #18 is MSU with 108 top-5 appearances which is 22 more than Clemson and there are only ~16 polls per year.
Here is a fun statistical oddity:
- Michigan is #6, they started the year five spots behind #5 Notre Dame and ended the year five spots behind #5 Nebraska.
- Michigan started the year 10 spots behind #4 Nebraska and ended the year 10 spots behind #4 Notre Dame.
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Here are appearances in the top-10:
1936-2017 Top-10 | 2018 | 1936-2018 Appearances |
Rank | Team | App | Pct | App | Rank | App | Pct |
1 | Ohio State | 607 | 53.5% | 15 | 1 | 622 | 54.0% |
2 | Oklahoma | 572 | 50.4% | 15 | 2 | 587 | 51.0% |
3 | Alabama | 534 | 47.0% | 16 | 3 | 550 | 47.8% |
4 | Notre Dame | 533 | 47.0% | 15 | 4 | 548 | 47.6% |
6 | Michigan | 510 | 44.9% | 8 | 5 | 518 | 45.0% |
5 | Nebraska | 518 | 45.6% | 0 | 6 | 518 | 45.0% |
7 | USC | 473 | 41.7% | 0 | 7 | 473 | 41.1% |
8 | Texas | 443 | 39.0% | 5 | 8 | 448 | 38.9% |
9 | Penn State | 371 | 32.7% | 4 | 9 | 375 | 32.6% |
10 | Florida State | 368 | 32.4% | 0 | 10 | 368 | 32.0% |
11 | Florida | 323 | 28.5% | 3 | 11 | 326 | 28.3% |
12 | Tennessee | 321 | 28.3% | 0 | 12 | 321 | 27.9% |
14 | LSU | 293 | 25.8% | 10 | 13 | 303 | 26.3% |
13 | Miami, FL | 302 | 26.6% | 1 | 14 | 303 | 26.3% |
16 | Georgia | 276 | 24.3% | 16 | 15 | 292 | 25.4% |
15 | Auburn | 280 | 24.7% | 6 | 16 | 286 | 24.8% |
17 | UCLA | 222 | 19.6% | 0 | 17 | 222 | 19.3% |
18 | Arkansas | 198 | 17.4% | 0 | 18 | 198 | 17.2% |
19 | aTm | 193 | 17.0% | 0 | 19 | 193 | 16.8% |
20 | Michigan State | 182 | 16.0% | 0 | 20 | 182 | 15.8% |
21 | Washington | 168 | 14.8% | 8 | 21 | 176 | 15.3% |
22 | Wisconsin | 162 | 14.3% | 3 | 22 | 165 | 14.3% |
23 | Clemson | 146 | 12.9% | 16 | 23 | 162 | 14.1% |
24 | GaTech | 146 | 12.9% | 0 | 24 | 146 | 12.7% |
25 | Colorado | 143 | 12.6% | 0 | 25 | 143 | 12.4% |
29 | Iowa | 123 | 10.8% | 0 | 29 | 123 | 10.7% |
37 | Purdue | 83 | 7.3% | 0 | 37 | 83 | 7.2% |
39 | Minnesota | 79 | 7.0% | 0 | 39 | 79 | 6.9% |
39 | Maryland | 79 | 7.0% | 0 | 39 | 79 | 6.9% |
41 | Illinois | 77 | 6.8% | 0 | 41 | 77 | 6.7% |
45 | Northwestern | 73 | 6.4% | 0 | 45 | 73 | 6.3% |
74 | Indiana | 15 | 1.3% | 0 | 74 | 15 | 1.3% |
100 | Rutgers | 2 | 0.2% | 0 | 100 | 2 | 0.2% |
Not much movement here because the top four teams were all in the top-10 in at least 15 of the 16 polls. Alabama gained by one on the Buckeyes, Sooners, and Irish. Michigan moved into a tie with Nebraska for 5th most top-10 appearances with 518.
LSU moved into a tie with Miami, FL for 13th most top-10 appearances. Georgia passed Auburn to move into the top-15.
Clemson didn't pass anybody (they did break out of their tie with GaTech) but they are now nipping at the heels of Wisconsin for 22nd.
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I was pretty upset last year when OSU entered the bowls ranked 5th, easily won their game, and two teams above them lost and they remained 5th.
I am stoked this year that OSU entered the bowls 6th, 3 teams ahead of them got beat soundly, and they moved up to 3rd.
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The Poll Archive site updated to include the final 2018 poll so here is the update for total appearances:
1936-2017 Appearances | 2018 | 1936-2018 Appearances |
Rank | Team | App | Pct | App | Rank | App | Pct |
1 | Ohio State | 886 | 78.1% | 16 | 1 | 902 | 78.4% |
2 | Michigan | 833 | 73.4% | 16 | 2 | 849 | 73.8% |
3 | Oklahoma | 814 | 71.7% | 16 | 3 | 830 | 72.1% |
4 | Notre Dame | 783 | 69.0% | 16 | 4 | 799 | 69.4% |
5 | Alabama | 775 | 68.3% | 16 | 5 | 791 | 68.7% |
6 | USC | 764 | 67.3% | 3 | 6 | 767 | 66.6% |
7 | Nebraska | 728 | 64.1% | 0 | 7 | 728 | 63.2% |
8 | Texas | 707 | 62.3% | 13 | 8 | 720 | 62.6% |
9 | Penn State | 614 | 54.1% | 16 | 9 | 630 | 54.7% |
10 | LSU | 601 | 53.0% | 16 | 10 | 617 | 53.6% |
11 | Florida | 588 | 51.8% | 12 | 11 | 600 | 52.1% |
12 | Tennessee | 582 | 51.3% | 0 | 12 | 582 | 50.6% |
13 | Georgia | 563 | 49.6% | 16 | 13 | 579 | 50.3% |
15 | Auburn | 559 | 49.3% | 7 | 14 | 566 | 49.2% |
14 | Florida State | 559 | 49.3% | 1 | 15 | 560 | 48.7% |
16 | UCLA | 532 | 46.9% | 0 | 16 | 532 | 46.2% |
17 | Miami, FL | 483 | 42.6% | 7 | 17 | 490 | 42.6% |
19 | Washington | 432 | 38.1% | 15 | 18 | 447 | 38.8% |
18 | aTm | 436 | 38.4% | 8 | 19 | 444 | 38.6% |
20 | Clemson | 419 | 36.9% | 16 | 20 | 435 | 37.8% |
21 | Arkansas | 417 | 36.7% | 0 | 21 | 417 | 36.2% |
22 | Michigan State | 390 | 34.4% | 8 | 22 | 398 | 34.6% |
23 | Wisconsin | 367 | 32.3% | 9 | 23 | 376 | 32.7% |
24 | Iowa | 314 | 27.7% | 4 | 24 | 318 | 27.6% |
30 | West Virginia | 290 | 25.6% | 16 | 25 | 306 | 26.6% |
25 | GaTech | 306 | 27.0% | 0 | 25 | 306 | 26.6% |
39 | Purdue | 236 | 20.8% | 0 | 39 | 236 | 20.5% |
45 | Maryland | 192 | 16.9% | 0 | 46 | 192 | 16.7% |
48 | Illinois | 181 | 15.9% | 0 | 48 | 181 | 15.7% |
49 | Northwestern | 176 | 15.5% | 4 | 49 | 180 | 15.6% |
54 | Minnesota | 160 | 14.1% | 0 | 55 | 160 | 13.9% |
73 | Indiana | 55 | 4.8% | 0 | 74 | 55 | 4.8% |
87 | Rutgers | 37 | 3.3% | 0 | 88 | 37 | 3.2% |
There was very little movement in this one and that is typical from year to year. Alabama started the year #5 in total appearance and was ranked every week but did not gain at all on the four teams ahead of them because the Buckeyes, Wolverines, Sooners, and Fighting Irish were also ranked in each of the 16 polls this year.
Within the top-10 the big losers were #6 USC and #7 Nebraska. They held their respective spots but the #6 Trojans started the year just 11 spots behind the Alabama and they now trail the Tide by 24 spots. Similarly, the Cornhuskers started the year 21 spots ahead of #8 Texas and they now lead the Longhorns by only eight appearances (728-720).
Auburn now holds #14 alone, they were previously tied with FSU.
Washington passed aTm for 18th.
#20 Clemson didn't move any spots but they went from barely ahead of #21 and way behind #19 to barely behind #19 and way ahead of #21.
West Virginia was the big mover, moving from #30 and not on the list to tied for #25 with their 16 appearances this year.
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There have now been 1,151 AP Polls released. Looking just at the top few schools in each category:
If you picked up a random AP Poll:
- There is a nearly 4-in-5 chance that Ohio State will be ranked
- There is a nearly 3-in-4 chance that Michigan will be ranked
- There is better than 7-in-10 chance that Oklahoma will be ranked
- There is a nearly 11-in-20 chance that Ohio State will be ranked in the top-10
- There is a better than 50/50 chance that Oklahoma will be ranked in the top-10
- There is a nearly 50/50 chance that Alabama will be ranked in the top-10
- There is a better than 7-in-20 chance that Oklahoma will be ranked in the top-5
- There is a better than 1-in-3 chance that Alabama will be ranked in the top-5
- There is a nearly 1-in-3 chance that Ohio State will be ranked in the top-5
- There is a better than 1-in-10 chance that Alabama will be #1
- There is a nearly 1-in-10 chance that Ohio State will be #1
- There is almost a 1-in-10 chance that Oklahoma will be #1
Combining the top teams, there is a better than 50/50 chance that #1 will be either Bama, tOSU, OU, ND, USC, or FSU and a better than 2-in-3 chance that it will be one of those or UNL, Miami, or Texas.
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It’s always weird seeing Florida above UM for times ranked #1, when we’re so far behind them in top 5 and top 10.
No offense, but the more you study college football history, the more apparent it is that Michigan is the king of falling short, all-time.
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It’s always weird seeing Florida above UM for times ranked #1, when we’re so far behind them in top 5 and top 10.
No offense, but the more you study college football history, the more apparent it is that Michigan is the king of falling short, all-time.
I think I just heard every Ohio State fan everywhere smile at the same time...and fans of several other Big Ten universities, too.
Maybe this should be added to "the Speech." :57:
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Michigan is sort of the un-Miami, so to speak.
It's not a dig, the Wolverines are on this all-time list and that all-time list and you see it over and over and you're left wondering....where are the championships?
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It’s always weird seeing Florida above UM for times ranked #1, when we’re so far behind them in top 5 and top 10.
No offense, but the more you study college football history, the more apparent it is that Michigan is the king of falling short, all-time.
Hey, c'mon now. They were awesome, clear back before the Civil War.
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Weird I am copying a tweet by local reporters
The only Big Ten team to ever beat Clemson in football is the 1985 Golden #Gophers (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Gophers?src=hash) in the Independence Bowl!! (h/t @SamRichter (https://twitter.com/SamRichter)) Gopher great and fan favorite @RFoggie (https://twitter.com/RFoggie) was named MVP after going 9-of-12 for 123 yards and 60 yards rushing on 18 carries.
Since 2000, the only Big Ten teams to beat the Alabama #RollTide (https://twitter.com/hashtag/RollTide?src=hash) are the 2014 #Buckeyes (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Buckeyes?src=hash) and the 2004 Golden #Gophers (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Gophers?src=hash)!! Led by @BTNGlenMason (https://twitter.com/BTNGlenMason), Minnesota rushed for 276 yards and Alabama rushed for 21 in the 2004 Music City Bowl.
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Nebraska wasn't in the Big Ten in 2008, but Bo beat Dabo on New year's day in 2009
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It’s always weird seeing Florida above UM for times ranked #1, when we’re so far behind them in top 5 and top 10.
One of my FSU law school professors in the early 1980s would tell a riddle during rivalry week.
"What do the University of Florida, and Ohio State University football have in common?"
And so, like you, it surprises me Florida is ranked #1 more times than UM, the all-time leader in wins in D-1.
And the answer to the riddle, in the early 1980s was, that neither team had ever won the SEC conference championship.
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I was looking at this and it made me realize just how difficult it is to climb the ladder. Looking at all-time appearances:
- West Virginia was ranked in all 16 polls this year and moved up to appearing in 26.6% of the polls, up from 25.6%, an increase of 1.0%.
- Ohio State was also ranked in all 16 polls this year and moved up to appearing in 78.4% of the polls, up from 78.1%, an increase of just 0.3%.
Similarly, West Virginia's 16 appearances this year moved them up to #25 on the list from #30. Meanwhile, within the top-10 appearing in every poll just basically keeps you even with the other top-10 teams because seven of the 10 appeared in all 16 polls this year.
In total appearances:
- Ohio State started and ended the year ahead of #2 Michigan by 53 appearances and simply went from leading 886-833 to leading 902-849.
- Ohio State started and ended the year ahead of #3 Oklahoma by 72 appearances and simply went from leading 886-814 to leading 902-830.
- Ohio State started and ended the year ahead of #4 Notre Dame by 103 appearances and simply went from leading 886-783 to leading 902-799.
- Ohio State started and ended the year ahead of #5 Alabama by 111 appearances and simply went from leading 886-775 to leading 902-791.
- Ohio State did gain on #6 USC. They started the year leading USC by 122 (886-764) and ended the year leading by 135 (902-767).
- Ohio State did gain on #7 Nebraska. They started the year leading UNL by 158 (886-728) and ended the year leading by 174 (902-728).
- Ohio State barely gained on #8 Texas. They started the year leading UT by 179 (886-707) and ended the year leading by 182 (902-720).
- Ohio State started and ended the year ahead of #9 Penn State by 272 appearances and simply went from leading 886-614 to leading 902-630.
- Ohio State started and ended the year ahead of #10 LSU by 285 appearances and simply went from leading 886-601 to leading 902-617.
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This gets me back to a thread I started probably just before Harbaugh became coach, on whether Michigan could be the new Minnesota.
Well, probably not. But, maybe Michigan is the new Iowa, Wisconsin, or Nebraska. Well, Wisconsin might be a bit high, and Iowa a bit low. After Lloyd Carr, Michigan seems to have gone downhill. I expected more from Boy Wonder. Maybe next (this) year.
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One of my FSU law school professors in the early 1980s would tell a riddle during rivalry week.
"What do the University of Florida, and Ohio State University football have in common?"
And so, like you, it surprises me Florida is ranked #1 more times than UM, the all-time leader in wins in D-1.
And the answer to the riddle, in the early 1980s was, that neither team had ever won the SEC conference championship.
Yeah, Florida had always dropped that one game (often to UGA) to prevent any championships, then they actually won one in '84, only for it to be retroactively vacated in May the following year. Even Spurrier's '90 team's best record was ineligible, so the first official, permanent SEC title didn't happen for Florida until 1991.
Vanderbilt remains the only longtime SEC member to never win the conference.
Most jokes about Florida football are that college football didn't start in 1990, as many Florida fans like to cite, "since 1990" - the arrival of Spurrier and our winning ways. And it's true, since that year, the Gators are 3rd in win % in major college football and tied for 2nd in national championships, I believe, with 3. (Alabama has a bunch, then Florida, FSU, and Nebraska have 3, then all the other usual suspects have 2)
But if you go back to that 1984 team, Florida is still 6th nationally in win%. Hell you can go back to Florida's last winless season - 1979, and since then, the Gators are still 6th.
Anyways, the point is, Florida has played a helluva game of catchup, and its improvement has coincided with Wisconsin's. Just as OU and Texas' swoons were in the early-mid 90s, they've come roaring back. Wisconsin had a whole lot of nothing pre-1993, but have been a top-15 program since then. Now you have Miami and Nebraska trying to remain relevant, through multiple coaches. That's my real litmus test, whether it's a program being truly strong or truly struggling - does the success or struggle extend through multiple coaches. Florida's successful run included 3 HC, with 2 of them being elite. Our recent struggles have been through 2 coaches, and we maybe/probably have a good one now and are exiting the struggle.
Miami has struggled through 3 HCs lately, same with UNL.
And you have to be a program of a certain level to consider HCs with a .650 win% "struggling" - whether you call them helmets or big-boy programs or whatever - Temple and Iowa State would give their first born sons for a 3-year stretch of .650-ball. At these programs, you have to be .800 or above for the fans to stay enamored with you. .650 "sucks".
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OAM's post got me wondering about the history of these leader-boards and whatnot. I looked at 1990-2018, here is the top-5 (out of 481 polls):
- 435 Ohio State, 90.4%
- 404 Florida, 84%
- 392 Florida State, 81.5%
- 376 Michigan, 78.2%
- 363 Oklahoma, 75.5%
I also wondered when Ohio State took over #1 in total appearances so I found it:
Short version:
- 9/8/09-present: Ohio State
- 8/22/09-9/8/09: Ohio State and Michigan
- 9/23/01-8/22/09: Michigan
- 9/24/00-9/9/01: Michigan and Notre Dame
- 11/2/1942-9/24/00: Notre Dame
- 10/26/1942-11/2/1942: Notre Dame and Duke
- ? - 10/26/42: Duke*
As of the end of the 1941 season there had been 47 AP Polls. Duke had been ranked in 43 of them, Notre Dame in 41, Fordham in 39, Minnesota in 38, Northwestern and Santa Clara in 33, Alabama in 32, Tennessee in 31, aTm and Michigan in 30 each. Looking back prior to that it is difficult to figure out the leader. You have to look at each individual week because the leaders were all so close together.
Long version:
- Ohio State was ranked #8 in the September 8, 2009 poll. It was the 755th time that Ohio State was ranked. Michigan was unranked in that poll (they had a few votes). Michigan was the previous #1 in total appearances with 754. The final poll of 2008 marked Ohio State's 753rd time being ranked. Michigan was unranked in that poll but had been ranked 754 times so they led Ohio State until the pre-season 2009 poll in which Ohio State pulled into a tie with the Wolverines.
- Michigan took over #1 in total appearances from Notre Dame. From 1936-1999 the Irish had the most appearances with 637 and the Wolverines were nipping at their heels with 634. Then, during 2000 Michigan was ranked in all 17 polls while Notre Dame was ranked in all but three. The Irish were unranked in the pre-season poll and the quasi-pre-season poll released on August 27. Then they jumped into the rankings only to fall out of the September 24, 2000 poll. Thus, Michigan tied Notre Dame by being ranked in the 9/24/00 poll while the Irish were unranked. However, Michigan did not pass the Irish that year because the Irish jumped back into the rankings the next week and were ranked in every poll the rest of that year. Consequently, Michigan and Notre Dame were tied for #1 in poll appearances for the rest of 2000 and with the release of the final 2000 poll each of them had been been ranked 651 times (FWIW, tOSU was third with 634 appearances). Both teams were ranked and remained tied in total appearances through the first four polls of 2001. Notre Dame dropped out with the release of the 9/23/01 poll and was unranked for the rest of the year while Michigan remained ranked for the rest of the year. Thus, Michigan took sole possession of #1 in appearances on 9/23/01 and held it until they lost it to Ohio State on 9/8/09.
- Notre Dame caught Duke with 43 appearances as of the release of the 10/26/42 poll then took over sole possession of #1 in AP Poll appearances the next week on 11/2/1942. Notre Dame then held the #1 spot in total appearances for almost 60 years before losing it to Michigan.
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And you have to be a program of a certain level to consider HCs with a .650 win% "struggling" - whether you call them helmets or big-boy programs or whatever - Temple and Iowa State would give their first born sons for a 3-year stretch of .650-ball.
Which brings me full circle. I now use the same riddle here in Iowa, but insert Iowa State, and Big 8 and Big 12. Iowa State has never won the Big 8 or Big 12 conference championship.