1950 McMNC: Tennessee Volunteers

AP Top 10: Final Record -- Key Bowl Results

1. Oklahoma: 10-1-0 -- L, Sugar, 7-13
2. Army: 8-1-0 -- None
3. Texas: 9-2-0 -- L, Cotton, 14-20
4. Tennessee: 11-1-0 -- W, Cotton, 20-14
5. California: 9-1-1 -- L, Rose, 6-14
6. Princeton: 9-0-0 -- None
7. Kentucky: 11-1-0 -- W, Sugar, 13-7
8. Michigan State: 8-1-0 -- None
9. Michigan: 6-3-1 -- W, Rose, 14-6
10. Clemson: 9-0-1 -- W, Orange, 15-14

Just an interesting note: California went 29-0-1 in the 1948, 1949 and 1950 seasons, only to lose the Rose Bowl each time (by a combined 17 points total). They could have been three-time McMNCs by now. But no ... perhaps we need to change RSFC's secret password to "calsucks".

Second note: seven of the Top 10 teams played in a bowl game. This is progress!

But I digress.

This is a discussion between Tennessee, Kentucky and Clemson. The Sooners blew their shot at a second McMNC by losing the Sugar Bowl to Kentucky, and Texas dropped the ball by losing the Cotton Bowl to Tennessee. So a team will rise from outside the Top 3 to take the title.

[Another digression: Princeton's best win? Over UPI #19 Navy, which went 3-6 ... enough said, along with their already-weak opponents' WP of .430!]

But who will it be?

Clemson: They finished 8th in the Southern Conference with a 3-0-1 record. Yes, they finished EIGHTH. Talk about an asinine conference: as far as I can tell, there were 17 teams in the Southern Conference in 1950 (the ACC wouldn't be formed until the 1953 season). Washington & Lee won the Southern Conference with a 6-0 league record, while Virginia Tech finished 17th with an 0-8 league mark. Whatever! Anyway, once again, Clemson played a weak schedule: opponents won only 39% of their games. Clemson only played three winning teams in 1950: North Carolina State (5-4-1), Wake Forest (6-1-2), and #15 Miami (9-1-1) in the Orange Bowl. In the end, the weak schedule outdoes their W-L record. Plus, the tie was against 3-4-2 South Carolina. As USC can tell you, that's inexcusable for a McMNC.

Tennessee: They played a great schedule, as opposing teams won 60% of their games. The only loss was to 4-5 Mississippi State on the road on September 30. They beat 7-3 Duke, #16 Alabama (9-2), #18 Washington & Lee (8-3), #7 Kentucky (11-1), 7-4 Vanderbilt and #3 Texas (9-2). That's a pretty good slate of games. However, the Vols were not the SEC champs in 1950. Kentucky is the 1950 SEC champion of record.

Kentucky: Like the Vols, the Wildcats also played a great schedule with the same SOS rating. They beat 8-2 North Texas, 8-4 Cincinnati (coached by Sid Gillman) and #1 Oklahoma (10-1). They scored 83 points against North Dakota! And, of course, they were the SEC champs in 1950.

So wait -- we have a problem here. Tennessee beat Kentucky, 7-0, on November 25. But Kentucky "won" the SEC. Why? Uneven schedules. The Wildcats were 5-1 in SEC play, while the Vols were only 4-1 in conference games. Both teams finished 11-1, both won major bowl games over Top 5 teams, and both played great schedules.

Kentucky's bowl win is better than Tennessee's, albeit not by much. To beat the unblemished #1 team by six points is better than beating the one-loss #3 team by six points. And Tennessee played more games against winning teams in 1950.

And finally, of course, the Vols beat Kentucky in the head-to-head matchup. That's all it takes, guys.

McMNC Revisions
1. Tennessee
2. Kentucky
3. Clemson
4. Oklahoma
5. California

RUNNING SCORECARD:
Tennessee: +1938, +1942, +1950
Michigan: +1947, =1948
Georgia: +1946
Alabama: +1945
Purdue: +1943
Stanford: +1940
California: +1937
Oklahoma: +1949, -1950
Pittsburgh: +1936, -1937
Texas A&M: =1939
Ohio State: -1942, +1944
TCU: -1938
Army: -1944, -1945
Minnesota: -1936, -1940, =1941
Notre Dame: -1943, -1946, -1947, -1949