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UCF Pulls a Pitt

IIRC, after the 1994 season PSU was prohibited from making any claim of a national championship. The outside face of the south scoreboard proclaimed "1994 New York Times National Champion" but I think it was only there for one season.
 
Actually, I am in favor of UCF's banner. I have always thought that Penn State has erred in not claiming past unbeaten seasons as NC years.

Since such titles are nothing more than opinions, there is nothing preventing PSU from claiming a title based on opinions of the Times, or the Dunkel Index, or other media source. Why does anyone think the AP or UPI or USA Today is any better or more accurate?

Until there is a legitimate CFB playoff, any Div.1 school that goes unbeaten and untied should be allowed to award rings and boast of a hypothetical national championship.
 
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I’m glad UCF is making noise about expanding a playoff to 8 (if not 16) teams. The selection committee absolutely gets tunnel vision with about 3 games left in the season and unless you’re in the 6 or so teams they’ve pegged for possible playoff spots you aren’t moving into that group no matter what you do.

That said, UCF’s schedule was really weak and multiple teams would be undefeated if they played it. Maybe PSU should go back now and claim 1994 and all other contested years for a national title. (I think college football data warehouse or some other such site had listed PSU could claim 12 or so titles).
 
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NittPicker said:
IIRC, after the 1994 season PSU was prohibited from making any claim of a national championship. The outside face of the south scoreboard proclaimed "1994 New York Times National Champion" but I think it was only there for one season.
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Prohibited? By whom (who?)?
 
Fine with me.

Until there's a system that gives ALL undefeated FBS teams a path to the National Championship (for instance, every* FCS team qualifies for the playoffs if they go undefeated, no matter how good or lousy their conference), it remains a MYTHICAL National Championship.

The 4-team playoff is better than what we had prior. It's still not good enough.

* - conferences like the MEAC, SWAC, and Ivy voluntarily sit out the FCS playoffs. But those conference champions are technically all invited, they just all choose to say no.
 
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Does anyone have the link handy that breaks down the national championships that Pitt claims? It's pretty funny.

Plus, IIRC, if you use the same criteria PSU has 4 or 5 more NCs (that we don't claim because we are above that).
 
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The only logical way to do it, IMO, is to allow the winners of the Power 5 conferences in and then 3 at large based primarily upon SOS. Yes the number 9 and 10 teams would probably complain but there has to be a cut off point somewhere. Starting with an “elite eight” would be a lot better and more fair than starting with the “final four”.
 
psuro said:
Yeah I dont recall anyone prohibiting Penn State from stating Nationsl Champions.
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I was a student at PSU in 1994. If I recall correctly there was a quote in the Collegian from an AD rep saying they were prohibited. Whether that was said to avoid controversy with the NCAA or not, I don't know.

Regardless, they should declare the 1994 team, and many others, national champions.
 
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NittPicker said:
IIRC, after the 1994 season PSU was prohibited from making any claim of a national championship. The outside face of the south scoreboard proclaimed "1994 New York Times National Champion" but I think it was only there for one season.
Click to expand...
It was there for several seasons. I think it came down when the South upper deck was built.
 
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I think USFs claim is far superior to bama or Georgia. SEC was junk this year and to put two teams from trash is a complete the joke.
 
Roar Lions Roar said:
I was a student at PSU in 1994. If I recall correctly there was a quote in the Collegian from an AD rep saying they were prohibited. Whether that was said to avoid controversy with the NCAA or not, I don't know.

Regardless, they should declare the 1994 team, and many others, national champions.
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I recall Joe was told he could not give the team National Championship rings by NCAA so he made them Undefeated Team Rings. Only recollection.
 
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lionNYC said:
It was there for several seasons. I think it came down when the South upper deck was built.
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this^^

and i never heard anything about the NCAA saying they couldnt have rings

again.... the NCAA has nothing to do with it
 
I like it.. Central Florida was eliminated from the college football invitational before the season even started. None of their games mattered despite the powers that be stating the college football regular season is so great because all games matter. The only criteria set is to be a power 5 conference team. Then you might not even need to win your division.. Heck just look at the lack of fairness between Georgia and Bama.. after Georgia won their division while losing to Auburn, they had to play in the conference championship game and beat Auburn while Alabama lost to Auburn and got to sit on their ass conference championship weekend. Everyone has an answer of what the playoff should be.. mine is all the best teams around the country need to get together and play each other including undefeated teams, conference champions and a handful of other teams that were elite throughout the season, not just a handful of regional teams. Mike Leach nailed it when talking about the playoffs.
 
PSUcup1 said:
Not buying it ... I was there in 1993-97

Never heard that once
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In fairness, like I mentioned above, I do vaguely remember reading about Penn State not being authorized by the NCAA to sell 94 NC items because they weren't voted #1 in the two major polls. I wished I had the article in front of me, but I don't.

With that said I still have a "Pennsylvania's" 1994 National Champions t-shirt I bought in
McLanahan's.

Was there 1992-96.
 
PSUcup1 said:
Not buying it ... I was there in 1993-97

Never heard that once
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Whether you're buying it or not matters not. Because we were NYTimes Saragin Poll NC was enough for Penn State and Joe Paterno to declare a NC. Remember it was the first year of "The Alliance" which the Big Ten and PAC-10 were not part of so their where several NC's. AP(writers), UPI(coaches) & NYT Saragin(computer). The National Championship sign was on the stadium until upgrading was done. I cannot find the reference to the 1994 rings but I found it for the 1973 team. "Several seasons have ended with more than one team claiming to be the champion. After Penn State finished the 1973 season unbeaten, Joe Paterno had championship rings made for his team even though both polls ranked the Nittany Lions No. 5. "What poll did you win?" asked a brave sportswriter. "The Paterno Poll!" Papa Lion replied. No one's ever tried to take those rings away." If I come across a reference for 1994 I'll get it to you. I have similar context as my daughter was a senior that year. We where very engaged that year attending every home game, Michigan on the road and the Rose Bowl. None of which supports my statement regarding the rings however.
 
rohrmd9 said:
Prohibited? By whom (who?)?
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If I had to guess I'd say the big ten after talking it over with the ADs from two schools.

More curious whether they'll actually try and market any National Champion apparel. Nike is their sponsor, along with Georgia and Bama so I doubt it.
 
gslachta said:
Whether you're buying it or not matters not. Because we were NYTimes Saragin Poll NC was enough for Penn State and Joe Paterno to declare a NC. Remember it was the first year of "The Alliance" which the Big Ten and PAC-10 were not part of so their where several NC's. AP(writers), UPI(coaches) & NYT Saragin(computer). The National Championship sign was on the stadium until upgrading was done. I cannot find the reference to the 1994 rings but I found it for the 1973 team. "Several seasons have ended with more than one team claiming to be the champion. After Penn State finished the 1973 season unbeaten, Joe Paterno had championship rings made for his team even though both polls ranked the Nittany Lions No. 5. "What poll did you win?" asked a brave sportswriter. "The Paterno Poll!" Papa Lion replied. No one's ever tried to take those rings away." If I come across a reference for 1994 I'll get it to you. I have similar context as my daughter was a senior that year. We where very engaged that year attending every home game, Michigan on the road and the Rose Bowl. None of which supports my statement regarding the rings however.
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Yes. I know it was on the sign at Beaver Stadium outside the south end zone and the NCAA didn’t make them take it down. It came down with the sign after expansion.

And yes, none of that article supports an idea that the NCAA said they couldn’t have rings. But hey, I hope it’s actually true. Will make me hate the NCAA even more
 
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gslachta said:
Whether you're buying it or not matters not. Because we were NYTimes Saragin Poll NC was enough for Penn State and Joe Paterno to declare a NC. Remember it was the first year of "The Alliance" which the Big Ten and PAC-10 were not part of so their where several NC's. AP(writers), UPI(coaches) & NYT Saragin(computer). The National Championship sign was on the stadium until upgrading was done. I cannot find the reference to the 1994 rings but I found it for the 1973 team. "Several seasons have ended with more than one team claiming to be the champion. After Penn State finished the 1973 season unbeaten, Joe Paterno had championship rings made for his team even though both polls ranked the Nittany Lions No. 5. "What poll did you win?" asked a brave sportswriter. "The Paterno Poll!" Papa Lion replied. No one's ever tried to take those rings away." If I come across a reference for 1994 I'll get it to you. I have similar context as my daughter was a senior that year. We where very engaged that year attending every home game, Michigan on the road and the Rose Bowl. None of which supports my statement regarding the rings however.
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I will echo your recollection concerning PSU being prohibited from calling themselves national champions in 1994. It may have had something to do with putting "National Champions" on officialy license items. But I definitely rememer some prohibition. Hope you can find a source.
 
Roar Lions Roar said:
I was a student at PSU in 1994. If I recall correctly there was a quote in the Collegian from an AD rep saying they were prohibited. Whether that was said to avoid controversy with the NCAA or not, I don't know.

Regardless, they should declare the 1994 team, and many others, national champions.
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The NCAA has nothing to do with a National Championship in football. Nobody owns the rights, PSU could call itself NC today if it wished
 
After meatkichen won the Rose Bowl Floyd said you just went undefeated and won a national championship.JoePa on the other hand said in 94,I don't know,I think we would be hard to beat.
 
stormingnorm said:
Whether or not UCF is the "Best Team in the Nation", or not, no one - no one with any sense - would criticize that program for doing what it can to play the toughest schedule possible.

Like everyone else, the bulk of their schedule is dictated by their own conference membership. And you can only play the OOC games that the "other program" will agree to (and very few highly regarded teams are going to agree to a home-and-home with UCF - - - so getting their "home only" games requires them to look at lower level programs).

That said, here is who UCF DID schedule OOC over the last decade:

** Road Game

2008
Miami **
Boston College **
USF

2009
Texas **
Miami
Bowl Game - Rutgers

2010
NC State
Kansas State **
Bowl Game - Beat Georgia

2011
Boston College
BYU **

2012
Ohio State **
Missouri
Bowl Game - Beat Ball State

2013
Penn State **
South Carolina
Bowl Game - Beat Baylor

2014
Penn State **
Missouri **
BYU
Bowl Game - NC State

2015
Stanford **
South Carolina **

2016
Michigan **
Maryland
Bowl Game - Arkansas State

2017
Maryland **
Bowl Game - Beat Auburn


Personally, when I think of the "Best Team", my primary criteria is "Who would be the toughest team to beat"?, and - IMO - that is NOT UCF.

But, given the fact that there is no "settle it on the field" structure for college football, and UCF did everything that a championship team can be asked to do, they MOST CERTAINLY have as much right as anyone to call themselves "Champions".
And THEIR proclamations mean every bit as much - if not more - than the trumped up proclamations of the endless stream of sports media windbags, or some group of self-important assholes sitting around a buffet table.

So - good for them.
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This could be solved if every member of the committee put up say 25 grand of their own money and select the top teams when they have something personal on the line. Actually with some of their salaries may have to go to 100 grand to be meaningful to them.
 
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