Who was the best team.......

[SteelClip49]

at the end of the 1973 season?

Notre Dame (11-0-0) AP #1; UPI #4

Ohio State (10-0-1) AP #2; UPI #3

Oklahoma (10-0-1) AP #3; UPI #2

Alabama (11-1-0) AP #4; UPI #1

Penn State (12-0-0) AP and UPI #5

Michigan (10-0-1) AP and UPI #6

[stoopified]

D I really have to spell it OUt for yOU?

[DarrellZero]

I'm gonna say ............... um, .................

Us!

Seriously, though, that 1973 team was PDG.

[SteelClip49]

without bias....

[josh09]

We. Us. Ourselves. OU. Oklahoma. I dont know how else to put it.

[NMSooner'80]

OU! And they should have been 11-0 that year. Thoroughly dominated the Condoms, except for turnovers and a couple of missed FG's out at the Coliseum.

[MichiganSooner]

Back then, I would tell you Michigan. That dang 10-10 tie to Ohio State. A high school buddy of mine, Tom Drake, intercepted a pass late in the game to set up the second field goal try. In fact, he was the holder for field goals and PATs. Missed it by inches.

[Crucifax Autumn]

OU is always the answer...Even when we aren't in the discussion!

[TXHornsFan]

at the end of the 1973 season?

Notre Dame (11-0-0) AP #1; UPI #4

Ohio State (10-0-1) AP #2; UPI #3

Oklahoma (10-0-1) AP #3; UPI #2

Alabama (11-1-0) AP #4; UPI #1

Penn State (12-0-0) AP and UPI #5

Michigan (10-0-1) AP and UPI #6

That was when UPI (coaches) had its last poll before the bowls and AP voted after. At the end of the regular season the top 6 teams were all undefeated.
Ala. was 11-0;
ND was 11-0;
OU was 10-0-1 (7-7 tie with USC);
OSU was 9-0-1 (10-10 tie with Mich.);
Mich. was 10-0-1 (tie with OSU);
Penn St. was 11-0.
(This was before overtime rules and conference championship games, but imagine what BCS chaos a season like that would create now.)

Ala. and ND met in Sugar Bowl, ND won 24-23 on late field goal. Ala. was No. 1 in last UPI poll, but ND moved to No. 1 in post-bowl AP poll.

OU was on probation and ineligible for a bowl because of an ineligible player in the 1972 season.

OSU beat USC 42-21 in Rose Bowl.

Penn St. beat LSU 16-9.

I don't think Mich. played in a bowl.

[TXHornsFan]

Back then, I would tell you Michigan. That dang 10-10 tie to Ohio State. A high school buddy of mine, Tom Drake, intercepted a pass late in the game to set up the second field goal try. In fact, he was the holder for field goals and PATs. Missed it by inches.

MS - Why didn't Michigan play in a bowl that year? Did the Big-10 only allow the Rose Bowl for its teams? And why did OSU get the Rose Bowl over Mich?

[AlbqSooner]

Obviously OU. During the season Sports Illustrated had an article on the Sooners that was entitled, "The Best Team You Will Never See".

TV blackout was part of the probation.:D

[SoonerFaninAZ]

Obviously OU. During the season Sports Illustrated had an article on the Sooners that was entitled, "The Best Team You Will Never See".

TV blackout was part of the probation.:D

Actually, that SI was the following season, when the TV probation began. No bowls in '73 and '74, no TV in '74 and '75.

[MichiganSooner]

MS - Why didn't Michigan play in a bowl that year? Did the Big-10 only allow the Rose Bowl for its teams? And why did OSU get the Rose Bowl over Mich?

Michigan got screwed by Michigan State.

For years, the only bowl for the Big 10 was the Rose and the league rule was that if the champ had gone to the Rose the previous year, the runnerup got to go. In 1972, Michigan won the Big 10 but did not go to the Rose due to the no-repeat rule. Ohio State went as runner-up and got beat. So the Big 10 got rid of the rule and decided to send the champion each season. In 1973, Michigan and Ohio State played at Michigan Stadium for the championship-both teams were undefeated. 10-10 tie. Michigan missed 2 field goals of 51 and 52 yards in the 4th quarter but outplayed the Bucks for the game. But starting quarterback Dennis Franklin had injured his collarbone the week before. The backup QB was Larry Cipa; a better passer but not as good at running; he started for New Orleans in the NFL. Anyway, the athletic directors had a vote to decide the representative to the Rose Bowl due to the tie. Everyone figured it would go to Michigan because they had not gone the previous season and M had outplayed Ohio in a head to head tie. But the Michigan State athletic director voted against Michigan out of jealousy. He said it was because Dennis Franklin might not be able to play and the Wolverines would have to play a backup and put the league at a disadvantage.

Bo found out while he was doing the Michigan Replay tv show, live, on Sunday. They couldn't bleep everything off. Man was he pissed.

[MichiganSooner]

Why Michigan did not go to a bowl.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PJPu_XOMgw

[Leroy Lizard]

Bo needed a flyover.

[MichiganSooner]

Bo needed a flyover.

That video link I posted above is pretty tame compared to the live broadcast. It was probably made in the 1990's after Bo had calmed down a bit.

[Leroy Lizard]

Amazing. Back then Michigan didn't even get to go to a bowl at all. In 2008, Texas finished behind OU using a system that was fair and agreed upon before the year began. Texas still got to go to a major bowl.

But the whining was worse in 2008 then it was back then. What a great example of how fans' sniveling only increases the more you try to perfect the system.

[Blues1]

I was in stands in LA for the usc 7 to 7 tie --- The Joe Washington Punt return game (20 yards back and 20 yards Forward) - We coud have beat any team in the nation by Bowl time (IF) we could have gone ~~~~ :)

[SteelClip49]

OU wins the 1974 national title while on probation and no bowl love. Who not give OU any props for 1973 for being on the same level of probation?

[sooner518]

does Bammer claim a MNC that year? im guessing they do

[SoonerShark]

does Bammer claim a MNC that year? im guessing they do

We did in 1950. UT did in 1970.

[OU_Sooners75]

without bias....
OU

[OU_Sooners75]

We did in 1950. UT did in 1970.

We also did in 1975

[olevetonahill]

without bias....

No Bias bro , FACT, 73 sold Me on OU football, Member i was still a babe then .

[SoonerShark]

We also did in 1975

OU in 50 and UT in 70 lost their bowl games but some polls were not taken after the bowls until later in the 70s. After 75's season we at least won our bowl game against a non-Rose Bowl qualifying Michigan team. After the 50 season, Bear Bryant's Kentucky team won the Sugar Bowl 13-7, which was the Sooners first loss in two years. OU's only loss in 48 was the first game to Santa Clara, 20-17, in California, and the last game in 50's season, which means OU went nearly three seasons between losses.

[MichiganSooner]

Amazing. Back then Michigan didn't even get to go to a bowl at all. In 2008, Texas finished behind OU using a system that was fair and agreed upon before the year began. Texas still got to go to a major bowl.

But the whining was worse in 2008 then it was back then. What a great example of how fans' sniveling only increases the more you try to perfect the system.

Because of those 3 Michigan teams being snubbed from bowl opportunities despite a 3 season record of 30-2-1 I still resent a 6-6 team going bowling. Especially when that 6-6 teams plays div 1AA teams on the schedule.

[Leroy Lizard]

Because of those 3 Michigan teams being snubbed from bowl opportunities despite a 3 season record of 30-2-1 and still resent a 6-6 team going bowling.

Something's not right about this sentence.

[XingTheRubicon]

We also did in 1975

http://img52.imageshack.us/img52/9166/photo01hiresv.jpg (http://img52.imageshack.us/i/photo01hiresv.jpg/)

[XingTheRubicon]

Something's not right about this sentence.


Not if you understand college football.

[Frozen Sooner]

does Bammer claim a MNC that year? im guessing they do

Why wouldn't they? The UPI was a legitimate organization that awarded a college football national championship, and the current ESPN poll is a direct descendant. Plenty of teams that lost bowl games claim national championships awarded before the bowl season-including, as noted above, OU.

[MichiganSooner]

Looking back on the whole thing of 1973, the real champion is OU. No doubt.

[Leroy Lizard]

OU was the best team in 1973. They were not the champions.

[MamaMia]

without bias....
OU

[VA Sooner]

OU for sure.

Sportswriters didn't watch enough football then.

Imagine what they could do with ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX all bombarbing the airwaves with games in 1973...

hands down, OU on top.

[Sabanball]

Ashamed that Barry, of all the things he accomplished-- that he could never beat SC--and I think in almost every case you guys had the better team. It's one of those rare ironies in college football history.


Back to the question--It's debatable, but it was definitely not my Crimson Tide--we lost any claim to that when we suffered a 24-23 defeat in the sugar bowl that year. Still, UPI--at the time--handed out a NC trophy to us like they did many years before and after this that was considered legitimate. It may not count toward our AP total, but nonetheless it's still an award that we have in our trophy case based on our regular season performance--which was pretty dang good by the way. It's not like we made it up and awarded it to ourselves...

[boomermagic]

Obviously OU. During the season Sports Illustrated had an article on the Sooners that was entitled, "The Best Team You Will Never See".

TV blackout was part of the probation.:D

Yep, I remember that..:)

[DakotaSooner]

Yep, I remember that..:)

I have seen that SI cover and always wondered why they wrote that title. I guess I sheepishly hate to admit that I didn't know that part of OU history, but regardless thanks for the info.

[Leroy Lizard]

Ashamed that Barry, of all the things he accomplished-- that he could never beat SC--and I think in almost every case you guys had the better team. It's one of those rare ironies in college football history.

In 1973 we tied.
In 1982 (?) USC probably had the better team, but USC won on the final play of the game, which was played in the Coliseum. (Our punt returner muffed the final punt of the game, giving USC the ball deep in our territory.)
In 1988 USC had the better team, as Holieway played after his knee injury and just couldn't move the ball.

Weren't we scheduled to play USC in 1987 and they bailed?