1951 College Football Final Rankings

With seven unbeaten teams in 1951, which one had the best season and was most deserving of the national championship title? The two major polls picked Tennessee (which then proceeded to lose its bowl game to the Maryland Terrapins). Other polls were split between Maryland and the Michigan State Spartans. We include the bowls in our analysis (unlike the major polls of the time), so Maryland seems like the obvious choice.

1. Maryland Terrapins (10-0) - 1.0
2. Tennessee Volunteers (10-1) - 2.1
3. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (11-0-1) - 3.2
4. San Francisco Dons (9-0) - 4.5
5. Michigan State Spartans (9-0) - 6.1
6. Illinois Fighting Illini (9-0-1) - 6.3
7. Princeton Tigers (9-0) - 6.5
8. Oklahoma Sooners (8-2) - 7.1
9. Kentucky Wildcats (8-4) - 9.7
10. Virginia Cavaliers (8-1) - 9.9
11. Baylor Bears (8-2-1) - 10.4
12. California Golden Bears (8-2) - 12.6
13. Wisconsin Badgers (7-1-1) - 12.9
14. Texas Longhorns (7-3) - 14.7
15. Kansas Jayhawks (8-2) - 14.9
16. Holy Cross Crusaders (8-2) - 15.2
17. Stanford Cardinal (9-2) - 17.3
18. UCLA Bruins (5-3-1) - 18.6
19. Ole Miss Rebels (6-3-1) - 19.6
20. Wyoming Cowboys (7-2-1) - 21.1
21. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-2-1) - 22.0
22. Texas A&M Aggies (5-3-2) - 22.5
23. USC Trojans (7-3) - 22.9
24. Florida Gators (5-5) - 24.4
25. Colorado Buffaloes (7-3) - 24.6
26. Miami Hurricanes (8-3) - 25.7
27. Washington & Lee Generals (6-4) - 26.0
28. TCU Horned Frogs (6-5) - 26.8
29. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-5) - 29.2
30. Washington State Cougars (7-3) - 30.2
31. Cornell Big Red (6-3) - 30.7
32. Texas Tech Red Raiders (7-4) - 33.5
33. LSU Tigers (7-3-1) - 34.2
34. SMU Mustangs (3-6-1) - 35.1
35. Rice Owls (5-5) - 36.2
36. Clemson Tigers (7-3) - 37.2
(tie) Northwestern Wildcats (5-4) - 37.2
38. Pennsylvania Relays (5-4) - 37.5
39. Duke Blue Devils (5-4-1) - 39.9
40. Michigan Wolverines (4-5) - 40.8
41. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (6-4) - 41.7
42. Oregon State Beavers (4-6) - 42.2
43. Ohio State Buckeyes (4-3-2) - 42.5
44. Denver Pioneers (6-4) - 42.7
45. Purdue Boilermakers (5-4) - 43.9
46. William & Mary Tribe (7-3) - 47.2
47. Tulsa Golden Hurricane (9-2) - 48.0
48. South Carolina Gamecocks (5-4) - 50.6
49. Vanderbilt Commodores (6-5) - 50.9
50. Fordham Rams (5-4) - 52.2
51. Utah Utes (7-4) - 52.3
52. Georgia Bulldogs (5-5) - 52.8
53. Tulane Green Wave (4-6) - 52.9
54. Villanova Wildcats (5-3) - 53.8
55. Boston University Terriers (6-4) - 53.9
56. Drake Bulldogs (7-2) - 54.9
57. Syracuse Orange (5-4) - 55.0
58. Pacific Tigers (6-5) - 55.2
59. Alabama Crimson Tide (5-6) - 57.1
60. Colorado State Rams (5-4-1) - 59.4
61. Washington Huskies (3-6-1) - 61.0
62. Penn State Nittany Lions (5-4) - 61.8
63. Navy Midshipmen (2-6-1) - 62.6
64. BYU Cougars (6-3-1) - 63.4
65. Mississippi State Bulldogs (4-5) - 64.7
66. Columbia Lions (5-3) - 65.2
67. VMI Keydets (7-3) - 66.5
68. Auburn Tigers (5-5) - 67.2
69. Pittsburgh Panthers (3-7) - 68.3
70. Arizona State Sun Devils (6-3-1) - 71.2
71. Marquette Golden Eagles (4-6-1) - 71.9
72. Dartmouth Big Green (4-5) - 72.1
73. Houston Cougars (6-5) - 72.2
74. Santa Clara Broncos (3-5-1) - 72.4
75. Indiana Hoosiers (2-7) - 73.0
76. West Virginia Mountaineers (5-5) - 76.8
77. Utah State Aggies (3-5-1) - 77.3
78. Boston College Eagles (3-6) - 78.5
79. North Carolina Tar Heels (2-8) - 78.7
80. Hardin-Simmons Cowboys (6-6) - 79.4
81. Iowa Hawkeyes (2-5-2) - 80.6
82. Iowa State Cyclones (4-4-1) - 81.6
83. Colgate Raiders (4-5) - 83.0
84. Temple Owls (6-4) - 83.6
85. Army Black Knights (2-7) - 85.6
86. Yale Bulldogs (2-5-2) - 86.3
87. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (4-4) - 87.3
88. Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-6-1) - 87.8
89. Furman Paladins (3-6-1) - 88.0
90. Oklahoma State Cowboys (3-7) - 89.0
91. George Washington Colonials (2-6-1) - 92.2
92. Arizona Wildcats (6-5) - 92.3
93. Oregon Ducks (2-8) - 93.0
94. Harvard Crimson (3-5-1) - 95.0
95. Montana Grizzlies (2-7) - 95.1
96. Citadel Bulldogs (4-6) - 95.7
97. New Mexico Lobos (4-7) - 97.5
98. Idaho Vandals (2-7) - 97.7
99. NC State Wolfpack (3-7) - 99.0
100. Loyola Marymount Lions (3-6) - 99.1
101. Bradley Hilltops (4-5) - 101.0
102. Richmond Spiders (3-8) - 102.2
103. Brown Bears (2-7) - 102.3
104. Detroit Mercy Titans (4-7) - 104.0
105. Wichita State Shockers (2-7) - 104.7
106. San Jose State Spartans (2-7-1) - 105.9
107. Missouri Tigers (2-8) - 106.4
108. Nebraska Cornhuskers (1-8-1) - 108.9
109. Virginia Tech Hokies (2-8) - 109.9
110. Kansas State Wildcats (1-7-1) - 111.5
111. UTEP Miners (3-7) - 111.6
112. Davidson Wildcats (1-8) - 113.3
113. New York University Violets (1-7) - 113.8
114. West Texas A&M Buffaloes (2-7) - 114.8
115. New Mexico State Aggies (1-9) - 116.1
116. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (1-7) - 116.9


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