1970 McMNC: Nebraska Cornhuskers

AP Top 10: Final Record -- Key Bowl Results

1. Nebraska: 11-0-1 -- W, Orange, 17-12
2. Notre Dame: 10-1-0 -- W, Cotton, 24-11
3. Texas: 10-1-0 -- L, Cotton, 11-24
4. Tennessee: 11-1-0 -- W, Sugar, 34-13
5. Ohio State: 9-1-0 -- L, Rose, 17-27
6. Arizona State: 11-0-0 -- W, Peach, 48-28
7. LSU: 9-3-0 -- L, Orange, 12-17
8. Stanford: 9-3-0 -- W, Rose, 27-17
9. Michigan: 9-1-0 -- NONE
10. Auburn: 9-2-0 -- W, Gator, 35-28

Note: Toledo went 12-0 in 1970, winning the Citrus Bowl, 40-12, over William & Mary. Great season!

We have four teams worthy of consideration this year: Nebraska, Notre Dame, Tennessee and Arizona State. Depending on SOS ratings, etc., it's the Cornhuskers' title to lose, since Texas and Ohio State choked away their perfect seasons in the bowl spotlight.

Arizona State: With an SOS rating of 41%, they have no chance here, but why not look anyway? They beat 6-5 Kansas State at home by 22 points, they beat 6-4 UTEP on the road by 29 points, they beat 6-4 Utah at home by 23 points, they beat 7-3 New Mexico at home by 12 points, and they beat 8-4 North Carolina by 24 points in the Peach Bowl. That's five winning teams on the slate: not bad, but none of those teams were ranked, either. Duds on the schedule included 1-9 Wyoming, 1-10 Washington State and 2-9 San Jose State.

Tennessee: The Vols had a 52% SOS rating, which is very solid. Their only loss was to #10 Auburn on the road, albeit by 13 points in September. They beat #13 Georgia Tech (9-3) on the road by 13 points, they shutout 6-5-1 Alabama at home 24-0, they beat 7-4 Florida by 31 points at home, they beat 6-5 Wake Forest by 35 points at home, they beat 6-5 UCLA by 11 points at home, and they won their bowl game over #16 Air Force (9-3). So even with that schedule rating, they only beat two ranked teams all year. And there's another catch: LSU won the SEC in 1970 with a 5-0 conference record, while Tennessee went 4-1 in league play. Oh well.

Notre Dame: The Irish also have a 52% SOS rating. They beat 6-4 Northwestern by 21 points on the road, they beat #13 Georgia Tech at home by three points, they beat #7 LSU at home by three points, and they beat then-#1 Texas in the Cotton Bowl by 13 points. Their one loss? The last regular season game against #15 USC (6-4-1) in Los Angeles, where they lost by ten points. Damn that rivalry, eh? That's a tough loss, albeit to a ranked team on the road. We'll see why below ... but Notre Dame is the team to beat now.

Nebraska: They had an SOS rating of 49%, which is good enough for this discussion. Their one tie? To #15 USC on the road on September 19 (21-21). The Trojans ruined two perfect seasons in 1970, didn't they? Otherwise, they beat 6-5 Wake Forest at home by 24 points, they beat UPI #16 Colorado (6-5) on the road by 16 points, they beat 6-5 Kansas State by 38 points at home, they beat AP #20 Oklahoma (7-4-1) by seven points at home, and they beat #7 LSU in the Orange Bowl. So they played just as many ranked teams as Notre Dame did, but their bowl win wasn't as impressive and their SOS lacked by a small margin in comparison to the Irish, too.

However, since both teams played USC on the road, we have an interesting comparative there: the Huskers got the tie, the Irish got the loss. USC played a 59% SOS-rated schedule in 1970, and their 6-4-1 mark reflects that. A good team, yes, but Notre Dame had a lot to play for when they lost that last regular season game. It's impressive they recovered to beat Texas in the Cotton Bowl, but they should have beaten USC if they wanted this McMNC.

In the end, Nebraska's SOS is good enough, since the Irish SOS wasn't overwhelmingly better.

McMNC Revisions
1. Nebraska
2. Notre Dame
3. Arizona State
4. Texas
5. Ohio State

RUNNING SCORECARD:
Tennessee: +1938, +1942, +1950, -1951
UCLA: +1965
Arkansas: +1964
Mississippi: +1962
Washington: +1960
Iowa: +1956
Georgia Tech: +1952
Illinois: +1951
Michigan: +1947, =1948
Georgia: +1946
Purdue: +1943
Stanford: +1940
California: +1937
Pittsburgh: +1936, -1937
Nebraska: =1970
Syracuse: =1959
LSU: =1958
Texas A&M: =1939
Michigan State: -1952, +1953
USC: -1962, =1967, +1969
Ohio State: -1942, +1944, =1954, =1968
Oklahoma: +1949, -1950, =1955, -1956, +1957
TCU: -1938
Maryland: -1953
Auburn: -1957
Texas: =1963, -1969
Alabama: +1945, =1961, -1964, -1965
Army: -1944, -1945
Minnesota: -1936, -1940, =1941, -1960
Notre Dame: -1943, -1946, -1947, -1949, =1966