The MNC Wednesday miniseries continues with the prequel years, those before the onset of the Associated Press polling era that began in 1936. This season we explore today is odd, as the even the experts before us could not decide on a singular champion. That is a first in the pre-polling era. However, we are here to settle such debates, with more information available to us than was previously out there for others to use. Enjoy!

The 1926 MNC: Alabama & Stanford (Helms, NCF—tie); Michigan (DMP)

Well, this is a mess, so let’s start with which team won’t be able to keep its half honors: the Stanford Indians. Yes, they tied Alabama in the Rose Bowl, and maybe that’s why we have what we have here, but … no way, no day. Stanford played the No. 55 SOS, which included six opponents that didn’t have major-college status! That means it basically the team reached the Rose Bowl on the strength of just four real opponents, really.

How did that happen? Well, the Indians won the Pacific Coast Conference with a 4-0 record, so that’s why. But overall, Stanford ended up No. 11 in the SRS rankings, so we have to push them aside right now, in favor of any conference champion with a better SRS/SOS combination. That should not be too hard, so … sorry to those on the Farm today who find this violating, but it’s just facts, math, and reality. Take it in stride, okay?

So what about Alabama? The Crimson Tide finished No. 2 in the SRS against the No. 15 SOS, so with a 9-0-1 record, the team looks good here. Alabama only played one small-school opponent, and that’s a reason the SOS looks so much better than Stanford’s mark, even if the Southern Conference wasn’t very strong overall in this specific season. The Crimson Tide defense gave up just 27 points all season against that schedule.

That tie being broken, which teams have been overlooked, historically, here? Well, Michigan and Northwestern tied for the Western Conference title with perfect 5-0 league records, having not played each other and each finishing with a 7-1 record. The Wolverines—who presumably did not cheat during this campaign—only lost on the road to Navy (SRS #8), while the Wildcats lost at home to Notre Dame (SRS #4).

In the SRS, Michigan actually finished No. 1 while playing the top SOS in the country. Wow! How did Helms and the NCF miss this data? Meanwhile, Northwestern was No. 3 in the SRS against the No. 21 SOS, giving the edge to the Wolverines, obviously, since literally no team can top what they did during the season. Playing eight major-college teams, Michigan outscored the opponents 191-38 on the year. Is this a debate?

The SRS shows the Wolverines with a three-point edge on the No. 2 Crimson Tide if playing on a neutral field. It’s hard to refute such math, nor would we try to do so. We really are not sure why Alabama (and Stanford, for that matter) got the nods here from the “experts” when we see no data supporting that decision. Yes, the Navy loss for Michigan is not great, but the overall profile is impossible to beat. So be it.

By our revised count, this is the fifth mythical national championship for the Wolverines overall, since we never will count the 2023 sham.