re: 1969 football season final rankings

Just for the record, below was our schedule and the AP Final poll. We really had a weak schedule. Even if we played and beat Tx, Penn State certainly would have been tapped #1.


1969-Louisiana State (SEC)

9/20 vs. Texas A&M (3-7) W 35 6
9/27 @ Rice (3-7) W 42 0
10/4 vs. Baylor (0-10) W 63 8
10/10 @ Miami (Florida) (4-6) W 20 0
10/18 @ *Kentucky (2-8) W 37 10
10/25 vs. *Auburn (8-3) W 21 20
11/1 vs. *Mississippi (8-3) L 23 26 @ Jackson, MS
11/8 vs. *Alabama (6-5) W 20 15
11/15 vs. *Mississippi State (3-7) W 61 6
11/22 vs. Tulane (3-7) W 27 0

AP Final Poll

1 Texas 11-0-0
2 Penn State 11-0-0
3 Southern California 10-0-1
4 Ohio State 8-1-0
5 Notre Dame 8-2-1
6 Missouri 9-2-0
7 Arkansas 9-2-0
8 Mississippi 8-3-0
9 Michigan 8-3-0
10 LSU 9-1-0
11 Nebraska 9-2-0
12 Houston 9-2-0
13 UCLA 8-1-1
14 Florida 9-1-1
15 Tennessee 9-2-0
16 Colorado 8-3-0
17 West Virginia 10-1-0
18 Purdue 8-2-0
19 Stanford 7-2-1
20 Auburn 8-3-0

quote:

---

LSU finished the season with a 9-1 record

---

We got left out. Screwed by Notre Dame, who randomly decided to start playing bowl games again and got invited over LSU.

quote:

---

Texas wanted no part of LSU in the Cotton Bowl, having been shut out in their previous bowl game with LSU,

---

That was seven years earlier. Would you really be scared to play, say, Penn State because they beat us in a bowl game eight years ago?

quote:

---

Mac was probably the best defensive coach in CFB history.

---

Against teams that couldn't throw the ball, yes. Spurrier and Manning were effective against him, relatively speaking. With Manning, Ole Miss scored 27 in 1968, 26 in 1969 and 17 in 1970. With Spurrier, Florida scored 14, 28 and 20, I think, although I forget which years. I think it was '64-'66. That might not seem like a lot of points, but it was pretty respectable back then, and unheard of for anybody against LSU. With Sullivan, Auburn scored 20 (had an extra point blocked) in 1969.

That's what did Mac in. He couldn't adapt to the increasing impact of the passing game. He couldn't (or wouldn't) use it effectively on offense, and his defense couldn't stop it well enough to keep winning games with single digit scores.

I was a freshman that year. Made all the games at home. Just a great football team. Gave up no rushing touchdowns that year. Would have loved to see that defence against the wishbone of Texas. Then I got to watch Pistol Pete play basketball. What a year.

quote:

---

Actually it was six years earlier.

---

The win over Texas was in the 1963 Cotton Bowl, which was played at the end of the 1962 season, seven years before the 1969 season.

quote:

---

But LSU beat an undefeated Arkansas team just three years before that

---

LSU beat Arkansas in the 1966 Cotton Bowl, which was played at the end of the 1965 season, four years before the 1969 season.

quote:

---

that game combined with the earlier win over Texas definitely caught their eye.

---

I doubt games played four and seven years earlier could have had much impact on the Cotton Bowl committee or the Texas coach. Seven years ago, in 2010, LSU beat Alabama and lost to Arkansas. Four years ago, in 2013, LSU was ranked in the top six and lost to a 4-touchdown underdog Ole Miss. None of those games have anything to do with this year's games against those three teams.

The '69 team was one of my favorite LSU teams. LSU really screwed the pooch by losing to Ole Miss. Had they won that game, a Cotton Bowl matchup against Texas would have probably happened. Then you would have had the #1 rushing offense against the #1 rushing defense.
If you look at LSU's schedule that year, they played 4 teams that Texas played and the margins were about the same.
Unfortunately things didn't work out.
My opinion is that LSU had more team speed and would have beaten Texas.
We will never know.

quote:

---

No. LSU turned down several bowl games (including the Sugar I believe) because they were in line to play the winner of that Texas/Arkansas game for the NC. Well, Notre Dame decided to cease their own rule to not play the in bowl games and, of course, the cotton bowl jumped all over that. This left LSU out to dry as there were no bowl games left available. Hence, LSU fans HATE Notre Dame to this day.

---

This, also LSU's defense that year was the best in the nation, preseason they were picked in the middle of the Sec

quote:

---

The following year LSU won 28-8 in Baton Rouge.

---

I was there !!!!

some 1969 highlights

LINK