Today, MNC Wednesday takes on the college football season that followed the Summer of Love. That’s right, it’s time for 1967! It is an interesting year, once again, as the sport entered an era of confusion with polls and rankings.

Which team will emerge from the fray with the mythical title?

The 1967 MNC: Confusing on the surface, but simple in reality

Here is the Associated Press Top 10, including final record with key bowl results.

1. USC: 10-1-0 — W, Rose, 14-3
2. Tennessee: 9-2-0 — L, Orange, 24-26
3. Oklahoma: 10-1-0 — W, Orange, 26-24
4. Indiana: 9-2-0 — L, Rose, 3-14
5. Notre Dame: 8-2-0 — NONE
6. Wyoming: 10-1-0 — L, Sugar, 13-20
7. Oregon State: 7-2-1 — NONE
8. Alabama: 8-2-1 — L, Cotton, 16-20
9. Purdue: 8-2-0 — NONE
10. Penn State: 8-2-1 — T, Gator, 17-17

The Trojans advance to our final analysis, on the basis of the Pac-8 title and the Rose Bowl victory. The Sooners also move on, thanks to their Big 8 title and the Orange Bowl win. Who else joins these big boys?

The Fighting Irish lost to the Trojans by 17 points, so they do not get consideration here. The poor Cowboys lost that Sugar Bowl matchup to unranked LSU, to lose their shot at immortality.

What about the Nittany Lions? They lost to UCLA early in the year, and USC beat the Bruins, so that knocks out Penn State. Several teams not shown above could make a case, right? Well, it depends.

Army posted a nice 8-2 record, but the strength of schedule just wasn’t there. Same for North Texas (7-1-1) when we look at its SOS rating. Toledo’s 9-1 record came against a terrible schedule, as well, and Yale (8-1) played one of the worst slates in the sport.

So, it really is just down to two teams—and the respective strengths of schedule, based on the Simple Rating System:

  • USC: 11 Division I-A opponents, 6.88 SOS rating, 17th of 118
  • Oklahoma: 11 Division I-A opponents, 2.52 SOS rating, 56th of 118

This is pretty straightforward for the Trojans. In addition, the Sooners lost to Texas—and the Longhorns lost to USC. That is a double whammy on Oklahoma here.

Without further fuss, this is all about the Trojans, as they win their second MNC of the decade—and their second MNC overall, as well.

Congratulations to the 1967 USC Trojans, the mythical national champion!

Check in every Wednesday for a new feature on the mythical national championship in college football on The Daily McPlay.