1943 McMNC: Purdue University

AP Top 15: Final Record -- Key Bowl Results

1. Notre Dame: 9-1-0 -- None
2. Iowa Pre-Flight: 9-1-0 -- None
3. Michigan: 8-1-0 -- None
4. Navy: 8-1-0 -- None
5. Purdue: 9-0-0 -- None
6. Great Lakes NTS: 10-2-0 -- None
7. Duke: 8-1-0 -- None
8. DelMonte Pre-Flight: 7-1-0 -- None
9. Northwestern: 6-2-0 -- None
10. March Field: 9-1-0 -- None
11. Army: 7-2-1 -- None
12. Washington: 4-1-0 -- L, Rose, 0-29
13. Georgia Tech: 8-3-0 -- W, Sugar, 20-18
14. Texas: 7-1-1 -- T, Cotton, 7-7
15. Tulsa: 6-1-1 -- L, Sugar, 18-20

I went a little deeper in the AP Poll this year, for reasons that should be obvious. I want to make something clear here: I am not against the military at all, but these military-base teams were basically All-Star teams made up of the best and brightest who got drafted for World War II service. To consider them for the McMNC just is not right, and that is not a statement on their patriotism or bravery for what they did for our country. I'm going to include Army and Navy in this equation for the war years, since they, too, were basically fielding All-Star teams. It will be an issue to discuss in post-WWII seasons, too, but specifically for the WWII years, they are not under my consideration for the McMNC. If you don't like that or agree with it, I'm sorry: we'll have to agree to disagree.

So the teams that I am going to consider are Notre Dame, Michigan, Purdue, Duke and Texas. The Longhorns tied their bowl game against 1-1-1 Randolph Field, so that bowl game is kind of weird to assess. An All-Star team that played only two games before getting invited to the Sugar Bowl? Whatever. Travel restrictions, etc., were in effect, as USC beat Washington in the Rose Bowl. The Trojans were 8-2-0, but somehow didn't rate in the AP Poll at all. Go figure. This is a messed-up season, for sure.

Michigan and Purdue shared the Western Conference title, both with 6-0 conference records. Obviously, they didn't play each other. Michigan's only loss was to Notre Dame, at home, by 23 points, so that eliminates them from the McMNC picture automatically, right? But Purdue, with its unblemished record overall, would be the Western Conference representative, anyway, in any McMNC debate. For the record, Michigan beat Ohio State at home by 38 points, while Purdue beat the Buckeyes on the road by 23 points. Michigan beat Minnesota at home by 43 points, while Purdue beat the Gophers on the road by seven points. Michigan beat Illinois on the road by 36 points, while Purdue beat the Illini at home by 19 points. But Purdue did beat Wisconsin on the road by 32 points, while Michigan beat the Badgers at home by 27 points. Comparative scores aside, Purdue went undefeated, and Michigan did not. Purdue even played six games on the road, while only getting three at home. That's impressive, even for a war year. Michigan? Six games at home, only three on the road. Purdue gets the edge here, despite a weaker OOC schedule. Besides, Michigan cannot win the McMNC against Notre Dame, so they're out anyway.

That leaves us with Notre Dame, Texas and Duke. The only Irish loss was their last game of the year, a 19-14 loss on the road to the aforementioned Great Lakes NTS. Is it fair to penalize the Irish for that loss against an All-Star team? Since Notre Dame also played Army, Navy and Iowa Pre-Flight, they did beat a lot of good teams in 1943. Texas gets the axe here, because their one loss was to Southwestern University (TX), at home -- and that's just inexcusable. As for Duke, their only loss was by one point to Navy on the road. So both Notre Dame and Duke lost on the road to military All-Star teams, and both played pretty tough schedules. The Irish opponents had a winning percentage of .667, while Duke's opponents won 61% of their games. The Irish outscored their opponents 340-69, while Duke outscored its opponents 335-34. In the end, though, Notre Dame beat Navy, 33-6, while Duke lost to the Middies, 14-13. That says a lot to me. Sorry, Duke, but you lose this one.

So it comes down to Purdue or Notre Dame. The Irish definitely played the tougher schedule, since Purdue's opponents only won 40% of their games. But Purdue did beat Great Lakes NTS, 23-13, on the road -- exactly where the Irish lost to them. Purdue's OOC was weak, otherwise, as they faced 3-4-1 Marquette and 2-6-2 Camp Grant. Notre Dame also played six road games in 1943, so both these teams are really worthy of the McMNC. Both teams played at Wisconsin and shut the Badgers out: Notre Dame won by 50, Purdue won by 32. Both teams beat Illinois at home: Notre Dame won by 47, Purdue won by 19. In the end, it comes down to two things: Purdue went undefeated, and the Boilermakers beat the team that beat Notre Dame.

Congratulations, Purdue. You're the 1943 McMNC and champion of one of the weirdest seasons of college football we'll ever see. And don't worry, Notre Dame, you're going to get a lot of these McMNCs by the time I'm through with the process.

McMNC Revisions
1. Purdue
2. Notre Dame
3. Michigan
4. Duke
5. Texas


RUNNING SCORECARD:
Tennessee: +1938, +1942
Purdue: +1943
Stanford: +1940
California: +1937
Texas A&M: =1939
Pittsburgh: +1936, -1937
TCU: -1938
Ohio State: -1942
Notre Dame: -1943
Minnesota: -1936, -1940, =1941