1959 College Football Final Rankings

In 1959, the major polls (the AP and UPI polls) both ranked undefeated Syracuse as the #1 team in the nation, despite the fact that Ole Miss had blown out practically everyone they played. Mississippi's only loss came to the team the polls ranked #3, the LSU Tigers, a team they had a chance to play again in the Sugar Bowl and beat 21-0. LSU doesn't rank #3 in our analysis, but Ole Miss does get our #1 nod. Here's how the rest of the rankings turn out:

1. Ole Miss Rebels (10-1) - 1.2
2. Syracuse Orange (11-0) - 1.8
3. Washington Huskies (10-1) - 3.4
4. LSU Tigers (9-2) - 3.9
5. Texas Longhorns (9-2) - 5.7
6. Penn State Nittany Lions (9-2) - 6.8
7. Wyoming Cowboys (9-1) - 7.2
8. Georgia Bulldogs (10-1) - 7.5
9. TCU Horned Frogs (8-3) - 8.9
10. USC Trojans (8-2) - 10.3
11. Pennsylvania Relays (7-1-1) - 11.3
12. Clemson Tigers (9-2) - 13.0
13. Auburn Tigers (7-3) - 13.7
14. Arkansas Razorbacks (9-2) - 14.4
15. New Mexico State Aggies (8-3) - 15.6
16. Oregon Ducks (8-2) - 16.4
17. North Texas Mean Green (9-2) - 17.8
18. Oklahoma Sooners (7-3) - 17.9
19. Northwestern Wildcats (6-3) - 19.4
20. VMI Keydets (8-1-1) - 20.9
21. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (6-5) - 22.2
22. Iowa Hawkeyes (5-4) - 22.5
23. Purdue Boilermakers (5-2-2) - 23.4
24. Alabama Crimson Tide (7-2-2) - 25.8
25. Illinois Fighting Illini (5-3-1) - 26.7
26. Arizona State Sun Devils (10-1) - 27.7
(tie) Kentucky Wildcats (4-6) - 27.7
28. Washington State Cougars (6-4) - 28.4
29. Air Force Falcons (5-4-1) - 30.4
30. Iowa State Cyclones (7-3) - 32.2
(tie) New Mexico Lobos (7-3) - 32.2
32. Yale Bulldogs (6-3) - 32.5
33. Navy Midshipmen (5-4-1) - 32.7
34. Pittsburgh Panthers (6-4) - 34.0
35. SMU Mustangs (5-4-1) - 34.4
36. Tennessee Volunteers (5-4-1) - 34.7
37. Wisconsin Badgers (7-3) - 34.9
38. Miami Hurricanes (6-4) - 35.4
39. Florida Gators (5-4-1) - 36.8
40. UCLA Bruins (5-4-1) - 39.8
41. Kansas Jayhawks (5-5) - 41.4
42. Indiana Hoosiers (4-4-1) - 41.9
(tie) Missouri Tigers (6-5) - 41.9
44. Michigan State Spartans (5-4) - 42.1
45. Army Black Knights (4-4-1) - 43.4
46. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-5) - 45.1
47. Harvard Crimson (6-3) - 46.5
48. Vanderbilt Commodores (5-3-2) - 46.7
49. Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-4) - 49.2
50. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (6-4) - 51.2
51. Ohio State Buckeyes (3-5-1) - 52.4
52. Dartmouth Big Green (5-3-1) - 52.7
53. Maryland Terrapins (5-5) - 52.9
54. North Carolina Tar Heels (5-5) - 55.9
55. Stanford Cardinal (3-7) - 56.7
56. Boston College Eagles (5-4) - 57.6
57. South Carolina Gamecocks (6-4) - 58.1
(tie) Tulane Green Wave (3-6-1) - 58.1
59. Utah Utes (5-5) - 58.7
60. Citadel Bulldogs (8-2) - 60.8
61. Michigan Wolverines (4-5) - 61.4
62. Colorado Buffaloes (5-5) - 61.6
63. Cincinnati Bearcats (5-4-1) - 62.7
64. Tulsa Golden Hurricane (5-5) - 63.3
65. Holy Cross Crusaders (6-4) - 64.0
66. Baylor Bears (4-6) - 64.9
67. Florida State Seminoles (4-6) - 66.7
68. Texas Tech Red Raiders (4-6) - 68.2
69. Colorado State Rams (6-4) - 69.7
(tie) Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-7) - 69.7
71. Detroit Mercy Titans (6-4) - 70.7
72. Duke Blue Devils (4-6) - 71.5
73. Princeton Tigers (4-5) - 71.9
74. Texas A&M Aggies (3-7) - 72.7
75. San Jose State Spartans (4-6) - 73.7
76. Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-6) - 76.1
77. Pacific Tigers (5-4) - 76.3
78. Virginia Tech Hokies (6-4) - 76.9
79. California Golden Bears (2-8) - 79.6
(tie) Wichita State Shockers (5-4-1) - 79.6
81. Oregon State Beavers (3-7) - 79.7
82. Cornell Big Red (5-4) - 81.0
83. Houston Cougars (3-7) - 81.4
84. Marquette Golden Eagles (3-7) - 83.3
85. Boston University Terriers (4-5) - 85.1
86. Richmond Spiders (4-5-1) - 86.0
87. Rice Owls (1-7-2) - 88.8
88. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-7) - 89.0
89. NC State Wolfpack (1-9) - 90.3
90. Hardin-Simmons Cowboys (3-7) - 90.6
91. West Virginia Mountaineers (3-7) - 91.3
92. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (6-3) - 91.5
93. Utah State Aggies (5-6) - 92.0
94. William & Mary Tribe (4-6) - 92.3
95. UTEP Miners (3-7) - 93.3
96. Arizona Wildcats (4-6) - 95.4
97. Denver Pioneers (2-8) - 97.5
98. BYU Cougars (3-7) - 98.0
99. Colgate Raiders (2-7) - 98.2
100. Kansas State Wildcats (2-8) - 100.0
101. Columbia Lions (2-7) - 100.6
102. Brown Bears (2-6-1) - 101.7
103. Dayton Flyers (3-7) - 103.0
104. Furman Paladins (3-7) - 104.7
105. West Texas A&M Buffaloes (1-9) - 106.3
106. Xavier Musketeers (4-6) - 106.4
107. George Washington Colonials (1-8) - 107.3
108. Idaho Vandals (1-9) - 109.4
109. Montana Grizzlies (1-8) - 109.8
110. Davidson Wildcats (1-8) - 111.0
111. Villanova Wildcats (1-9) - 111.6
112. Virginia Cavaliers (0-10) - 112.9

Special thanks to James Howell's College Football Scores, which provided the data for our analysis.