Dominant SEC Football Teams

GSOJacket

Jolly Good Fellow
Messages
249
If you were just scanning the AJC headlines, you might have missed the article linked below. Note Tech’s positions relative to UGA’s. The ’52 team stood tall (#9 0n the list). Interesting that the Tech '56 team was ranked and the Tenn team that beat us (ranked #2 in the final AP and Coaches polls that year*) was not - recognition that our ’56 team was better, just unlucky that day. The early-to-mid ‘50s were really Tech’s and Dodd’s glory years.

https://www.ajc.com/sports/football...the-bulldogs-miss-cut/pZlpBP1tv3jg1Qkt46K3OL/

I was happy to see the ’59 Ole Miss team recognized here - fabulous team!

* Back then final AP and Coaches rankings came before bowl games, thus did not reflect bowl results. The ’56 Tenn team lost their bowl game. The ’59 Ole Miss team lost to LSU during the regular season (on Billy Cannon's late Heisman winning punt return) but beat them decisively in a bowl rematch.
 

MWBATL

Helluva Engineer
Messages
6,589
GSOJacket said:
The ’59 Ole Miss team lost to LSU during the regular season (on Billy Cannon's late Heisman winning punt return) but beat them decisively in a bowl rematch.
Click to expand...

As a life-long LSU fan, we choose to believe that our team was bored with the bowl game, since we had already beaten Ole Miss once that year...

;-)
 
jacketup

jacketup

Helluva Engineer
Messages
1,551
I've always thought that the 1980 Georgia team was the worst national champion of all time. This ranking provides evidence for that opinion. 1990 Colorado was the least deserving.
 

stinger 1957

Helluva Engineer
Messages
1,528
MWBATL said:
As a life-long LSU fan, we choose to believe that our team was bored with the bowl game, since we had already beaten Ole Miss once that year...

;-)
Click to expand...

I always thought it was a mistake on LSU's part to agree to play in that bowl game, you almost knew what was going to happen before it was ever played.
Wasn't the regular season game played in a quagmire(sp?), I remember being in Ft. Smith, AR at a party that night and a bunch of the men went back in a bedroom and listened. Ole miss seem to be the dominant team but the "bandits" kept them in the game and I made a couple of bets with the guys during the game that LSU would win it, boy were they pissed after Canon's run.
 

stinger 1957

Helluva Engineer
Messages
1,528
I started school in fall '53 and "got out" summer '57. There were many people who were on the team during that era that thought the '51 team was actually better than the '52 team and I'm one of those although '51's record had a tie with Duke and it took longer for recognition by the National press then than now which help set up for '52 recognition.
I actually thought the '56 team was as good as the '52 team, but 6-0 loss to TN was a fluke IMO and cost them a possible NC.
 
Supersizethatorder-mutt

Supersizethatorder-mutt

Banned
Messages
13,443
Location
Augusta, GA
stinger 1957 said:
I started school in fall '53 and "got out" summer '57. There were many people who were on the team during that era that thought the '51 team was actually better than the '52 team and I'm one of those although '51's record had a tie with Duke and it took longer for recognition by the National press then than now which help set up for '52 recognition.
I actually thought the '56 team was as good as the '52 team, but 6-0 loss to TN was a fluke IMO and cost them a possible NC.
Click to expand...
I heard years ago that that '56 game with the vols was considered the best college football game ever played. I'm sure that designation has changed, probably several times, over the years. But how cool is it that it had that distinction, even though the Jackets lost it.
 

GSOJacket

Jolly Good Fellow
Messages
249
stinger 1957 said:
I started school in fall '53 and "got out" summer '57. There were many people who were on the team during that era that thought the '51 team was actually better than the '52 team and I'm one of those although '51's record had a tie with Duke and it took longer for recognition by the National press then than now which help set up for '52 recognition.
I actually thought the '56 team was as good as the '52 team, but 6-0 loss to TN was a fluke IMO and cost them a possible NC.
Click to expand...
I saw the '51 Duke game, our only blemish, as a kid. Being an outnumbered North Carolinian, I grew to hate Duke (who had some strong teams back then). The '51 team was distinguished by All American Darrell Crawford, one of Tech's greatest QBs. I thought the '56 team was on par withe the '52 Jackets, but it was a different era - one platoon vs. two platoon. The '56 Tenn game was probably decided by a single fluke play when our two best defensive backs, Wade Mitchell and Paul Rotenberry, collided, enabling Johnny Majors to complete a long third down pass that lead to the only score of the game. Statistically Tech dominated but lost.
 

GSOJacket

Jolly Good Fellow
Messages
249
HurricaneJacket said:
The 1938 Tennessee team he ranked #2 went unbeateen, untied, and unscored upon. I would love to see a team do that again.
Click to expand...
The 1938 Vols were scored upon by three teams (Suwannee, Clemson and LSU). The 1938 Duke team was unscored upon during the regular season but lost 3 - 7 to USC in the Rose Bowl (which Duke did not want to go to.... long train ride). This team is known to Dookies as the Iron Dukes.
 
Top