1936 college football season

The 1936 college football season was the first in which the Associated Press writers' poll selected a national champion. The first AP poll, taken of 35 writers, was released on October 20, 1936. Each writer listed his choice for the top ten teams, and points were tallied based on 10 for first place, 9 for second, etc., and the AP then ranked the twenty teams with the highest number of points.[2] In the first poll, Minnesota received 32 first place votes, and 3 votes for an additional 25 points, for a total of 345 altogether.

1936 college football season
First AP No. 1 of seasonMinnesota[1]
Number of bowls6
Champion(s)Minnesota (AP)
Pittsburgh (various)
HeismanLarry Kelley (end, Yale)
football seasons

The 1936 season also saw the addition of another major New Year's Day bowl game, as Dallas hosted the first Cotton Bowl Classic.

Conference and program changes

Conference changes
  • One conference began play in 1936:
  • One conference played its final season in 1936:

Membership changes
School1935 Conference1936 Conference
The Citadel BulldogsSIAASouthern
Davidson WildcatsIndependentSouthern
Furman PaladinsSIAASouthern
George Washington ColonialsIndependentSouthern
Richmond SpidersVirginiaSouthern
St. Francis (NY) TerriersIndependentDropped Program
Virginia CavaliersSouthernIndependent
Wake Forest Demon DeaconsIndependentSouthern
William & Mary IndiansVirginiaSouthern

September

September 19 TCU opened with a 6–0 win at Howard Payne College at Brownwood, Texas.

September 26 In Seattle, Minnesota opened its season with a 14–7 win over Washington.

Defending champ (under the Dickinson ratings) SMU had a tough time in beating North Texas, 6–0, and Rose Bowl winner Stanford lost its opener to visiting Santa Clara 13–0. Sugar Bowl winner TCU lost at Texas Tech 7–0. LSU beat visiting Rice 20–7. Alabama beat Samford 34–0 and Pittsburgh beat Ohio Wesleyan 53–0.

October

October 3 Santa Clara beat Loyola Marymount 13–6 LSU and Texas played to a 6–6 tie. Alabama defeated Clemson 32–0 Northwestern opened with an 18–7 win over Iowa. Pittsburgh beat West Virginia 34–0

October 10 Minnesota beat visiting Nebraska 7–0. Pittsburgh won at Ohio State 6–0 Washington won at UCLA 14–0 Santa Clara beat San Francisco 15–7. Alabama beat Mississippi State 7–0. Northwestern beat North Dakota State 40–7.

October 17 Minnesota defeated Michigan 26–0. Santa Clara won at San Jose State 20–0 In Birmingham, Alabama and Tennessee played to a 0–0 tie. Northwestern edged Ohio State 14–13. In a meeting between Pittsburgh's two unbeaten (3–0–0) and untied schools, Pittsburgh was beaten by Duquesne, 7–0. Washington beat Oregon State 19–7.

The first AP Poll was released on October 20, with Minnesota being the majority favorite, with 32 of 35 first place votes, and 345 out of 350 points. The Gophers were followed by 2.Duke 3.Army 4.Northwestern and 5.Purdue. USC, ranked No. 6, received one first place vote.

October 24 No. 1 Minnesota hosted No. 5 Purdue, in a meeting of unbeaten (3–0–0) schools. Minnesota proved the AP voters right by winning 33–0. No. 2 Duke (5–0–0) lost to (1–2–1) Tennessee, 15–13. No. 3 Army beat Springfield College 33–0. No. 4 Northwestern won at Illinois 13–2. No. 8 Washington beat California 13–0. No. 9 Pittsburgh beat visiting, and previously unbeaten, No. 7 Notre Dame 26–0. No. 16 Fordham edged visiting No. 12 St. Mary's 7–6. The next top five was 1.Minnesota 2.Pitt 3.Northwestern 4. Washington 5.Fordham

October 31 In a Friday night game, No. 1 Minnesota and No. 3 Northwestern, both unbeaten (4–0–0), met in a Big Ten conference game at Evanston. The Gophers had not lost a game in more than three years, and the game was scoreless after three quarters, until Northwestern's line "ripped a gaping hole in the Gophers' forward wall" and Steve Toth drove across the goal line. With five minutes left, Minnesota's Rudy Gmitro was in the clear for a touchdown before being brought down by Fred Vanzon, and Northwestern held on for the 6–0 win.[3]

At the Polo Grounds in New York, No. 2 Pittsburgh and No. 5 Fordham played to a 0–0 tie. In Portland, No. 4 Washington beat Oregon 7–0, but dropped to 6th. No. 10 Marquette beat visiting No. 20 St. Mary's 20–6 and rose to 4th place (the Warriors would give up football after 1960). The next top five was 1.Northwestern 2.Minnesota 3.Fordham 4.Marquette 5.Pitt.

November

November 7 No. 1 Northwestern beat Wisconsin 26–18. No. 2 Minnesota beat Iowa 52–0 No. 3 Fordham defeated visiting Purdue 15–0. No. 4 Marquette narrowly won in Omaha against Creighton, 7–6. No. 5 Pittsburgh beat Penn State 34–7.

No. 14 Alabama and No. 10 Tulane, both 5–0–1, met at Tuscaloosa. Alabama's 34–7 win was followed by its rise to 4th place in the poll.

November 14 No. 1 Northwestern won 9–0 at Michigan to clinch the Big Ten title, while No. 2 Minnesota beat Texas 47–19. No. 3 Fordham was idle. No. 4 Alabama beat Georgia Tech in Atlanta, 20–16. No. 5 Pittsburgh won at Nebraska 19–6 In Birmingham, No. 7 LSU beat Auburn 19–6 to extend its record to 7–0–1.

November 21 No. 1 Northwestern lost at No. 11 Notre Dame, 26–6, while No. 2 Minnesota won at Wisconsin 24–0 No. 3 Fordham and visiting Georgia played to a 7–7 tie. No. 4 Pittsburgh was idle. No. 5 LSU beat Lafayette College of Louisiana 93–0. No. 9 Santa Clara won in San Francisco at St. Mary's, 19–0. In the poll that followed, Northwestern—which had been one game away from a perfect season—fell to seventh place and Minnesota regained the top spot: 1.Minnesota 2.LSU 3.Alabama 4.Pitt 5.Santa Clara.

On November 26, Thanksgiving Day, No. 3 Alabama beat Vanderbilt 14–6 in Birmingham. No. 4 Pittsburgh beat its other crosstown rival, Carnegie Tech, 31–14. No. 6 Washington beat No. 20 Washington State 40–0. At Yankee Stadium Fordham, which had fallen to 8th, (5–0–2) lost to NYU, 7–6.

November 28 No. 2 LSU clinched the SEC title with a 33–0 win over No. 19 Tulane. No. 5 Santa Clara lost to No. 18 TCU, 9–0.

Conference standings

Major conference standings
1936 Big Six Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 9 Nebraska $ 5 –0 –0  7 –2 –0
Missouri 3 –1 –1  6 –2 –1
Kansas State 2 –1 –2  4 –3 –2
Oklahoma 1 –2 –2  3 –3 –3
Iowa State 1 –3 –1  3 –3 –2
Kansas 0 –5 –0  1 –6 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 7 Northwestern $ 6 –0 –0  7 –1 –0
No. 1 Minnesota 4 –1 –0  7 –1 –0
Ohio State 4 –1 –0  5 –3 –0
Indiana 3 –1 –1  5 –2 –1
Purdue 3 –1 –1  5 –2 –1
Illinois 2 –2 –1  4 –3 –1
Chicago 1 –4 –0  2 –5 –1
Iowa 0 –4 –1  3 –4 –1
Wisconsin 0 –4 –0  2 –6 –0
Michigan 0 –5 –0  1 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Border Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Arizona $ 3 –0 –1  5 –2 –3
Texas Mines 2 –1 –1  5 –3 –1
New Mexico A&M 3 –2 –0  6 –4 –1
Texas Tech 0 –0 –1  5 –4 –1
Arizona State–Flagstaff 2 –2 –1  3 –4 –1
Arizona State 2 –4 –0  4 –5 –0
New Mexico 1 –4 –0  2 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • Reference[4]
1936 Middle Three Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Lehigh $ 2 –0 –0  6 –2 –0
Rutgers 0 –1 –0  1 –6 –1
Lafayette 0 –1 –0  1 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Missouri Valley Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Creighton + 3 –0 –0  4 –4 –0
Tulsa + 3 –0 –0  5 –2 –2
Drake 3 –2 –0  4 –4 –2
Washington University 1 –1 –0  3 –7 –0
Oklahoma A&M 1 –2 –0  1 –9 –0
Washburn 1 –4 –0  2 –6 –1
Grinnell 0 –3 –0  2 –7 –0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Pacific Coast Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 5 Washington $ 7 –0 –1  7 –2 –1
Washington State 6 –2 –1  6 –3 –1
USC 3 –2 –2  4 –2 –3
California 4 –3 –0  6 –5 –0
UCLA 4 –3 –1  6 –3 –1
Stanford 2 –3 –2  2 –5 –2
Oregon State 3 –5 –0  4 –6 –0
Montana 1 –3 –0  6 –3 –0
Oregon 1 –6 –1  2 –6 –1
Idaho 0 –4 –0  3 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Rocky Mountain Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Utah State $ 6 –0 –1  7 –0 –1
Denver 6 –1 –1  7 –1 –1
Utah 5 –2 –0  6 –3 –0
Colorado 4 –2 –0  4 –3 –0
Colorado State–Greeley 4 –3 –0  5 –4 –0
BYU 4 –4 –0  4 –5 –0
Colorado A&M 3 –4 –1  4 –4 –1
Colorado College 3 –4 –0  3 –4 –1
Wyoming 2 –4 –1  2 –5 –1
Montana State 1 –4 –0  3 –5 –0
Western State (CO) 1 –5 –0  1 –6 –0
Colorado Mines 0 –6 –0  2 –6 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 2 LSU $ 6 –0 –0  9 –1 –1
No. 4 Alabama 5 –0 –1  8 –0 –1
Auburn 4 –1 –1  7 –2 –2
No. 17 Tennessee 3 –1 –2  6 –2 –2
Mississippi State 3 –2 –0  7 –3 –1
Georgia 3 –3 –0  5 –4 –1
Georgia Tech 3 –3 –1  5 –5 –1
Tulane 2 –3 –1  6 –3 –1
Vanderbilt 1 –3 –1  3 –5 –1
Kentucky 1 –3 –0  6 –4 –0
Florida 1 –5 –0  4 –6 –0
Ole Miss 0 –3 –1  5 –5 –2
Sewanee 0 –5 –0  0 –6 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Southern Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 11 Duke $ 7 –0 –0  9 –1 –0
North Carolina 6 –1 –0  8 –2 –0
Furman 4 –1 –0  7 –2 –0
VMI 4 –2 –0  6 –4 –0
Maryland 3 –2 –0  5 –5 –0
Clemson 3 –3 –0  5 –5 –0
Davidson 4 –3 –0  5 –4 –0
Washington and Lee 2 –2 –0  4 –5 –0
Wake Forest 2 –2 –0  5 –4 –0
NC State 2 –4 –0  3 –7 –0
VPI 4 –5 –0  5 –5 –0
South Carolina 2 –5 –0  5 –7 –0
Richmond 1 –3 –0  4 –4 –2
Virginia 1 –5 –0  2 –7 –0
The Citadel 0 –4 –0  4 –6 –0
William & Mary 0 –5 –0  1 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Middle Tennessee + 4 –0 –0  7 –1 –0
The Citadel + 4 –0 –0  4 –6 –0
Miami (FL) 3 –0 –0  6 –2 –2
Centenary 2 –0 –0  6 –4 –2
Centre 2 –0 –0  5 –4 –0
Howard (AL) 2 –0 –1  5 –3 –1
Union (TN) 5 –1 –1  6 –4 –1
Rollins 4 –1 –0  7 –1 –0
Louisiana Tech 4 –1 –1  6 –2 –1
Morehead State 4 –1 –2  4 –1 –2
Eastern Kentucky 4 –2 –0  7 –2 –0
Mississippi State Teachers 4 –2 –1  7 –2 –1
Mississippi College 2 –1 –1  5 –3 –1
Western Kentucky 3 –2 –0  6 –3 –0
Presbyterian 3 –2 –0  3 –7 –0
Erskine 3 –2 –0  4 –5 –0
Louisiana Normal 3 –2 –1  5 –4 –1
Murray State 4 –4 –0  5 –4 –0
Mercer 1 –1 –1  3 –6 –1
Louisiana College 2 –3 –1  3 –4 –1
Louisville 2 –3 –0  4 –4 –0
Millsaps 1 –2 –2  3 –5 –2
Transylvania 1 –3 –1  3 –4 –1
Tennessee Tech 1 –5 –0  2 –5 –1
Georgetown (KY) 1 –5 –1  2 –5 –1
Loyola (LA) 0 –1 –0  4 –6 –0
Stetson 0 –3 –1  2 –5 –1
Union (KY) 0 –3 –2  2 –4 –2
SW Louisiana 0 –4 –1  2 –7 –1
Wofford 0 –4 –1  1 –7 –1
Newberry 0 –4 –1  1 –10 –1
West Tennessee State 0 –7 –0  0 –9 –0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Southwest Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 18 Arkansas $ 5 –1 –0  7 –3 –0
No. 16 TCU 4 –1 –1  9 –2 –2
Texas A&M 3 –2 –1  8 –3 –1
Baylor 3 –2 –1  6 –3 –1
SMU 2 –3 –1  5 –4 –1
Rice 1 –5 –0  5 –7 –0
Texas 1 –5 –0  2 –6 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

Independents
1936 Eastern college football independents records
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Saint Anselm   –    6 –0 –1
No. 3 Pittsburgh   –    8 –1 –1
No. 10 Penn   –    7 –1 –0
No. 12 Yale   –    7 –1 –0
No. 13 Dartmouth   –    7 –1 –1
Franklin & Marshall   –    7 –1 –1
No. 14 Duquesne   –    8 –2 –0
Boston College   –    6 –1 –2
No. 15 Fordham   –    5 –1 –2
Holy Cross   –    7 –2 –1
Villanova   –    7 –2 –1
Army   –    6 –3 –0
Colgate   –    6 –3 –0
Drexel   –    6 –3 –0
Temple   –    6 –3 –2
Buffalo   –    5 –3 –0
Columbia   –    5 –3 –0
NYU   –    5 –3 –1
Princeton   –    4 –2 –2
Manhattan   –    6 –4 –0
La Salle   –    6 –4 –1
Northeastern   –    5 –4 –0
Bucknell   –    4 –4 –1
CCNY   –    4 –4 –0
Tufts   –    3 –3 –1
Harvard   –    3 –4 –1
Cornell   –    3 –5 –0
Penn State   –    3 –5 –0
Brown   –    3 –7 –0
Carnegie Tech   –    2 –6 –0
Massachusetts State   –    2 –6 –0
Syracuse   –    1 –7 –0
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Midwestern college football independents records
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
DePaul   –    7 –2 –0
No. 20 Marquette   –    7 –2 –0
Michigan State   –    6 –1 –2
Michigan State Normal   –    6 –2 –0
Akron   –    6 –2 –1
No. 8 Notre Dame   –    6 –2 –1
Wayne   –    5 –2 –1
Detroit   –    7 –3 –0
Xavier   –    6 –4 –0
Saint Louis   –    5 –4 –1
Central Michigan   –    3 –4 –1
Western State (MI)   –    2 –4 –0
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Southern college football independents records
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
George Washington   –    7 –1 –1
Hardin–Simmons   –    9 –2 –0
Georgetown   –    6 –2 –1
Western Maryland   –    7 –3 –1
No. 18 Navy   –    6 –3 –0
West Virginia   –    6 –4 –0
East Carolina   –    3 –2 –0
Catholic University   –    4 –4 –0
Oklahoma City   –    4 –4 –0
William & Mary Norfolk Division   –    4 –4 –0
Delaware   –    2 –6 –0
South Georgia Teachers   –    2 –8 –0
Rankings from AP Poll
1936 Western college football independents records
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 6 Santa Clara   –    8 –1 –0
Humboldt State   –    6 –3 –0
Loyola (CA)   –    6 –3 –0
Saint Mary's   –    6 –3 –1
Gonzaga   –    5 –3 –0
Pomona   –    6 –4 –0
Cal Poly   –    5 –4 –0
San Jose State   –    5 –4 –0
Idaho Southern Branch   –    4 –4 –0
San Francisco   –    4 –4 –2
Portland   –    3 –4 –0
San Francisco State   –    2 –3 –1
Hawaii   –    3 –5 –0
Rankings from AP Poll

Minor conferences
Conference Champion(s) Record
Alamo Conference Texas A&I 1–1
Central Intercollegiate Athletics Association Virginia State College 6–0–2
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Kansas State Teachers–Hays 4–0
Far Western Conference Pacific 6–0
Indiana Intercollegiate Conference Wabash 7–0
Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Parsons 6–0
Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Kansas Wesleyan 4–0–1
Lone Star Conference North Texas State Teachers 4–0
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Kalamazoo 7–0–1
Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference Carleton
Coe		 3–0
4–0
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Gustavus Adolphus
Saint John's (MN)		 5–0
4–0
Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association Northeast Missouri State Teachers 5–0
Nebraska College Athletic Conference Hastings 4–0
Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Association Nebraska State Teachers 3–0
North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference North Dakota 4–0
North Dakota College Athletic Conference North Dakota Science 6–0–0
Northern Teachers Athletic Conference St. Cloud State Teachers 4–0
Ohio Athletic Conference Marietta 8–0
Oklahoma Collegiate Athletic Conference Central State Teachers (OK) 6–0
Pacific Northwest Conference Willamette 6–0
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Lock Haven State Teachers 6–0–2
South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference Augustana (SD) 4–0
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference San Diego State 5–0
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tuskegee —
Southwestern Athletic Conference Langston
Texas College		 4–1–1
Texas Collegiate Athletic Conference Howard Payne 5–0–1
Tri-Normal League State Normal–Cheney 2–0
Wisconsin State Teachers College Conference North: Superior State Teachers
South: Stevens Point State Teachers		 4–0
2–1–1

Minor conference standings
1936 Alamo Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
St. Mary's (TX) + 1 –1 –0  7 –3 –2
Texas A&I + 1 –1 –0  6 –4 –0
Sul Ross + 1 –1 –0  4 –3 –1
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Central Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Fort Hays State $ 4 –0 –0  6 –3 –0
Pittsburg State 3 –1 –0  3 –5 –0
Emporia Teachers 2 –2 –0  6 –4 –0
Wichita 1 –3 –0  4 –5 –0
Southwestern (KS) 0 –4 –0  1 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Virginia State $ 7 –0 –2  9 –0 –2
Morgan 5 –0 –2  6 –0 –2
Bluefield State 3 –0 –3  3 –2 –4
Hampton 5 –2 –0  5 –2 –1
North Carolina College 3 –3 –1  4 –3 –1
North Carolina A&T 4 –4 –0  5 –4 –0
Shaw 3 –3 –0  3 –3 –0
Johnson C. Smith 1 –2 –1  2 –3 –3
Saint Paul's (VA) 2 –5 –1  2 –5 –1
Virginia Union 2 –5 –1  2 –5 –1
Lincoln (PA) 1 –4 –0  1 –4 –0
St. Augustine's 0 –4 –0  0 –4 –0
Howard 0 –4 –0  0 –5 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Dixie Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Howard (AL) $ 4 –1 –1  5 –3 –1
Southwestern (TN) 3 –1 –1  7 –2 –1
Chattanooga 3 –1 –1  5 –2 –1
Birmingham–Southern 4 –3 –0  4 –5 –0
Mississippi College 2 –2 –0  5 –3 –1
Loyola (LA) 2 –2 –0  4 –6 –0
Millsaps 2 –3 –0  3 –5 –2
Mercer 0 –2 –1  3 –5 –1
Spring Hill 0 –5 –0  3 –6 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Far Western Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Pacific (CA) $ 4 –0 –0  5 –4 –1
Fresno State 2 –1 –0  5 –3 –1
Nevada 2 –2 –0  4 –4 –0
Cal Aggies 1 –2 –0  3 –4 –0
Chico State 0 –4 –0  1 –6 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Illinois Wesleyan + 5 –0 –1  5 –3 –1
St. Viator + 3 –0 –0  5 –2 –0
Bradley 6 –2 –0  6 –3 –0
North Central 3 –1 –1  4 –2 –1
Lake Forest 2 –1 –0  4 –2 –1
Wheaton (IL) 2 –1 –2  3 –2 –2
Southern Illinois 3 –2 –1  2 –7 –0
Western Illinois 3 –2 –1  3 –2 –2
Northern Illinois State 3 –2 –1  4 –3 –1
Illinois College 2 –2 –1  4 –3 –1
Monmouth (IL) 2 –2 –0  4 –4 –0
Augustana (IL) 3 –3 –0  3 –5 –0
Illinois State 2 –3 –1  3 –4 –2
Millikin 2 –4 –0  3 –5 –0
Eastern Illinois 2 –4 –0  4 –4 –0
Knox (IL) 1 –2 –0  3 –5 –0
Eureka 2 –5 –1  2 –5 –1
Elmhurst 1 –3 –1  3 –3 –1
Carthage 1 –4 –1  2 –5 –1
Shurtleff 0 –1 –0  0 –4 –0
McKendree 0 –4 –0  2 –6 –0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Indiana Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Butler $ 5 –0 –0  6 –0 –2
Indiana State 2 –0 –1  2 –3 –2
Wabash 6 –1 –0  7 –1 –0
Saint Joseph's (IN) 3 –1 –1  3 –1 –1
Central Normal 4 –2 –0  4 –3 –0
DePauw 3 –2 –2  3 –3 –2
Manchester 5 –3 –0  5 –3 –0
Ball State 3 –3 –1  3 –4 –1
Franklin (IN) 3 –4 –0  3 –5 –0
Evansville 2 –3 –2  3 –3 –2
Valparaiso 1 –3 –1  1 –6 –1
Hanover 1 –3 –0  1 –6 –0
Earlham 1 –4 –0  2 –4 –1
Rose Poly 1 –5 –0  2 –5 –0
Oakland City 0 –6 –0  0 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Kansas Wesleyan $ 4 –0 –1  7 –1 –1
McPherson 3 –1 –1  5 –3 –1
Bethany (KS) 3 –1 –1  4 –2 –2
Ottawa 1 –2 –2  3 –4 –2
Baker 1 –4 –0  2 –6 –0
College of Emporia 0 –4 –1  5 –4 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Lone Star Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
North Texas State $ 4 –0 –0  6 –2 –1
East Texas State 3 –1 –0  8 –2 –0
Stephen F. Austin 2 –2 –0  4 –3 –1
Southwest Texas State 1 –3 –0  2 –5 –2
Sam Houston State 0 –4 –0  2 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Gustavus Adolphus + 5 –0 –0  5 –1 –0
Saint John's (MN) + 4 –0 –0  5 –2 –0
Concordia (MN) 3 –2 –0  3 –5 –0
St. Olaf 2 –2 –0  3 –3 –1
Hamline 1 –3 –0  1 –6 –0
Saint Mary's (MN) 1 –3 –0  1 –8 –0
Macalester 1 –4 –0  1 –6 –0
St. Thomas (MN) 1 –4 –0  1 –7 –0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Missouri College Athletic Union football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Missouri Valley + 3 –1 –0  5 –3 –0
William Jewell + 3 –1 –0  4 –3 –0
Tarkio 2 –1 –0  4 –3 –1
Culver–Stockton 1 –2 –0  5 –4 –0
Central Methodist 0 –4 –0  0 –9 –0
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Kirksville State $ 5 –0 –0  7 –0 –0
Central Missouri State 4 –1 –0  6 –2 –0
SE Missouri State 3 –2 –0  4 –5 –0
NW Missouri State 1 –3 –1  4 –4 –1
Missouri Mines 0 –3 –2  1 –4 –2
SW Missouri State 0 –4 –1  1 –5 –2
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Nebraska College Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Hastings $ 4 –0 –0  8 –1 –0
Nebraska Wesleyan 3 –1 –0  5 –3 –0
Midland 2 –2 –0  5 –3 –0
York (NE) 1 –3 –0  6 –3 –0
Doane 0 –4 –0  0 –5 –2
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Association football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Kearney State $ 3 –0 –0  7 –2 –0
Chadron State 2 –1 –0  4 –3 –0
Peru State 1 –2 –0  2 –5 –1
Wayne State (NE) 0 –3 –0  3 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 New England Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Connecticut State $ 2 –0 –0  7 –2 –0
Maine 1 –0 –0  4 –3 –0
Rhode Island State 1 –2 –0  5 –4 –0
New Hampshire 0 –1 –0  3 –3 –2
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 North Central Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
North Dakota $ 4 –0 –0  9 –2 –0
South Dakota 3 –1 –0  4 –3 –2
North Dakota Agricultural 2 –2 –0  4 –5 –0
Morningside 2 –3 –0  3 –4 –0
Omaha 1 –2 –2  2 –3 –2
Iowa State Teachers 1 –2 –1  5 –2 –2
South Dakota State 1 –4 –1  3 –6 –1
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 North State Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Elon $ 3 –0 –0  6 –5 –0
Appalachian State 3 –1 –0  5 –2 –2
Catawba 3 –2 –0  5 –5 –0
Lenoir–Rhyne 2 –3 –0  3 –6 –1
Western Carolina 1 –2 –0  2 –7 –0
Guilford 0 –4 –0  2 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Ohio Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Marietta $ 4 –0 –0  5 –2 –0
Baldwin–Wallace 2 –0 –0  7 –1 –0
Muskingum 5 –1 –0  6 –3 –0
Case 4 –1 –0  5 –4 –0
Mount Union 3 –1 –0  7 –1 –1
Kent State 4 –2 –0  5 –4 –0
Toledo 2 –1 –0  2 –6 –0
Ohio Northern 4 –2 –1  4 –2 –2
Wittenberg 3 –2 –0  4 –5 –0
Capital 3 –2 –1  4 –2 –1
Bowling Green 2 –1 –3  4 –2 –3
Heidelberg 3 –3 –1  3 –4 –1
Wooster 3 –4 –0  3 –6 –0
Kenyon 1 –3 –0  3 –4 –0
Oberlin 1 –3 –0  3 –5 –0
Ashland 2 –6 –0  2 –6 –0
John Carroll 1 –3 –0  2 –7 –0
Otterbein 0 –7 –0  1 –7 –0
Findlay 0 –5 –0  0 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Oklahoma Collegiate Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Central State (OK) $ 6 –0 –0  8 –1 –0
Northeastern State 4 –1 –1  6 –2 –1
SE Oklahoma State 3 –3 –0  4 –7 –0
East Central 2 –3 –0  5 –4 –0
Oklahoma Baptist 1 –2 –1  4 –4 –2
NW Oklahoma State 1 –4 –0  1 –7 –0
SW Oklahoma State 0 –4 –2  1 –7 –3
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Pennsylvania State Teachers Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Lock Haven $ 6 –0 –2  0 –0 –0
Shippensburg 6 –1 –0  7 –1 –0
Mansfield 4 –1 –0  4 –3 –0
Slippery Rock 3 –1 –0  6 –3 –0
Indiana (PA) 4 –2 –1  4 –2 –1
West Chester 1 –1 –0  4 –4 –1
Kutztown 1 –1 –1  5 –2 –1
California (PA) 3 –4 –0  3 –4 –1
Edinboro 1 –3 –0  1 –4 –0
Millersville 1 –4 –0  3 –4 –0
Bloomsburg 1 –6 –0  1 –7 –0
East Stroudsburg 0 –3 –0  2 –6 –0
Clarion 0 –4 –0  0 –6 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Smoky Mountain Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Carson–Newman $ 7 –0 –0  10 –0 –0
Appalachian State 4 –0 –0  8 –1 –0
Maryville 4 –2 –0  5 –5 –0
Teachers College (TN) 4 –3 –0  5 –3 –0
Milligan 3 –3 –0  5 –4 –0
King 3 –3 –0  5 –5 –0
Cumberland (TN) 1 –3 –0  3 –6 –1
Tusculum 0 –6 –0  2 –7 –0
Western Carolina 0 –6 –0  2 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Augustana (SD) + 4 –0 –0  8 –1 –0
Dakota Wesleyan + 5 –0 –1  5 –2 –1
Northern State 4 –2 –0  6 –2 –0
Spearfish 2 –1 –1  5 –1 –1
Yankton 3 –2 –1  4 –3 –1
Southern Normal 2 –2 –0  5 –2 –0
Huron 2 –4 –0  3 –5 –0
South Dakota Mines 1 –3 –0  1 –6 –1
Eastern Normal 0 –4 –0  0 –5 –0
Sioux Falls 0 –5 –1  0 –7 –1
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Southern California Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
San Diego State $ 5 –0 –0  6 –1 –1
Santa Barbara State 4 –1 –0  9 –1 –0
Whittier 3 –2 –0  5 –5 –0
Redlands 2 –3 –0  2 –6 –0
Occidental 1 –4 –0  3 –5 –1
La Verne 0 –5 –0  1 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
1936 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Texas College +   –      –  
Langston +   –      –  
  • + – Conference co-champions
1936 Texas Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
Howard Payne $ 5 –0 –1  7 –2 –1
Daniel Baker 5 –1 –0  7 –2 –2
McMurry 5 –1 –1  8 –1 –1
Austin 3 –3 –0  4 –4 –2
Southwestern (TX) 1 –4 –1  4 –6 –1
Abilene Christian 1 –4 –1  1 –7 –1
St. Edward's 1 –4 –0  1 –5 –1
Trinity (TX) 0 –4 –2  0 –6 –3
  • $ – Conference champion

Rankings
Main article: 1936 NCAA football rankings

Bowl games
Main article: 1936–37 NCAA football bowl games
Bowl game Winning team Losing team
Rose Bowl No. 3 Pittsburgh 21 No. 5 Washington 0
Sugar Bowl No. 6 Santa Clara 21 No. 2 LSU 14
Orange Bowl No. 14 Duquesne 13 Mississippi State 12
Cotton Bowl Classic No. 16 TCU 16 No. 20 Marquette 6
Sun Bowl Hardin–Simmons 34 Texas Mines 6
Bacardi Bowl Auburn 7 Villanova 7

"There is no longer any blot left on Pittsburgh's Rose Bowl escutcheon", wrote Grantland Rice. "Here was a Panther who belonged to the jungle and not to the zoo-- a fast, hard driving slashing Panther who put both fang and claw to work in beating Washington's Huskies 21 to 0 before 87,200 chilly witnesses.".[5]

Pittsburgh had been ranked No. 3 by the AP, behind No. 2 LSU, which met Santa Clara in the Sugar Bowl. No. 1 ranked Minnesota, like other Big Ten Conference teams, was not allowed to play postseason. LSU had lost the previous Sugar Bowl to TCU, by a 3–2 score. A crowd of 41,000 turned out in New Orleans to see the Tigers lose again. The Santa Clara Broncos took a 14–0 lead in the first quarter and won 21–14.[6]

A crowd of 17,000 turned out in Dallasto watch the first Cotton Bowl. Sammy Baugh of TCU completed only 5 of 13 pass attempts, but had 110 yards and a touchdown as TCU beat Marquette, 16–6.[7]

In the first annual[8] Orange Bowl, 12,000 filled the stands in Miami to see the Duquesne beat the Mississippi State, 13–12. Boyd Brumbaugh scored Duquesne's first touchdown and made the only extra point by either side.[9]

Villanova tied Auburn, 7–7, in the Bacardi Bowl, played before 6,000 spectators in Havana, Cuba, Tuskegee beat Prairie View State, 6–0, in Houston before 3,000, and Hardin–Simmons beat Texas Mines, 34–6, at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas.

Heisman Trophy

1935 had been the first year that the Heisman Trophy was ever awarded, although it was named differently in the first year. It was known simply as the "DAC Trophy" for its inaugural year. In 1936, John Heisman died and the trophy that is awarded to the best college football player in the US was renamed in his honor. Larry Kelley, the second winner of the award was the first man to win it officially named as the "Heisman Trophy."[10]

The Slippery Rock National Championship

Due to the confusion and controversy associated with who should be crowned the 1936 national champion, a number of sportswriters across the country jokingly nominated several small colleges based on a sort of backtracking arithmetic, where the small college would have beaten team B, which defeated team C, which upset team D, which defeated one or several of the real national championship contenders. These were Minnesota (consensus), Pitt (BS, CFRA, HS), Duke (SR, WS), or LSU (BQPRS). The most well prominent and well known claim for the national championship via transitive property, was tiny Slippery Rock college, who made its case by beating Westminster, which defeated West Virginia Wesleyan, which beat No. 14 Duquesne, which upset No. 3 Pitt, which beat former No. 1 Notre Dame, which upset former No. 1 Northwestern, which defeated AP national champion Minnesota. The claim gave Slippery Rock College wide notoriety throughout the country, and is one of the reasons why certain football teams, most notably Michigan and Texas, broadcast the Slippery Rock score during halftime of their football games.[11][12][13][14]

Other claims to the 1936 national championship via transitive property were St. Vincent college of Latrobe, PA, which followed much of Slippery Rock's line of successive wins, beating West Virginia Wesleyan 6 to 0 early in the 1936 season. A case was made for Indiana State Teachers college, which tied Lock Haven, who beat West Chester, which defeated Waynesburg, which connected to the Slippery Rock and St. Vincent's claims by defeated West Virginia Wesyleyan 14 to 7.[15] A week before Thanksgiving, St. Thomas college of Pennsylvania was given national championship recognition after defeating St. Vincent 13 to 6.[16]

See also

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2009-01-20.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. "Gophers Given Big Edge Over Other Grid Squads", The Sheboygan (Wis.) Press, Oct. 20, 1936, p10
  3. "Wildcats Smash Gophers' Long Gridiron Dynasty, 6–0", Wisconsin State Journal, Oct. 31, 1936, p9
  4. "1936 Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association Year Summary". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
  5. Grantland Rice, from North American News syndicate, quoted in "Panthers Turn Rose Bowl into 21 to 0 Rout", Lincoln (Neb.) State Journal, Jan. 2, 1937, p7
  6. "Santa Clara Scores Twice First Period To Trip L.S.U. 21-14", Lincoln (Neb.) State Journal, Jan. 2, 1937, p7
  7. "Slingin' Sam Rifles Texas Christian to 16-6 Bowl Conquest", Lincoln (Neb.) State Journal, Jan. 2, 1937, p7
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-11-29. Retrieved 2011-12-02.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. "Dukes' Passes Down Mississippi, 13 to 12", Lincoln (Neb.) State Journal, Jan. 2, 1937, p7
  10. "Heisman Trophy". heisman.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2008. Retrieved 2015-12-03.
  11. "The 10 most controversial champions in college football history". Saturday Down South. 2014-10-28. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  12. "Fixing the 1936 AP Poll". tiptop25.com. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  13. "The Funniest Name in Football : Colleges: Slippery Rock officials know it could be worse. The school could have been named Wechachochapohka". Los Angeles Times. 1989-11-24. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  14. "The Rock Mystique". Slippery Rock University Athletics. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  15. "Mathematically St. Vincent Champion". The Indiana Gazette. 1936-12-01. p. 18. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  16. "ALL HATS OFF TO LITTLE ST. THOMAS NATIONAL CHAMP (?)". The Gazette and Daily. 1936-11-24. p. 10. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
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