1956 college football season
Encyclopedia
The 1956 college football season saw the Sooners
of the University of Oklahoma
finish a third consecutive season unbeaten and untied to again win the national championship.
During the 20th century, the NCAA
had no playoff for the college football
teams that would later be described as "Division I-A". The NCAA did recognize a national champion based upon the final results of "wire service" (AP and UPI) polls. The extent of that recognition came in the form of acknowledgment in the annual NCAA Football Guide of the "unofficial" national champions. The AP poll in 1956 consisted of the votes of as many as 198 sportswriters. Though not all writers voted in every poll, each would give their opinion of the twenty best teams. Under a point system of 20 points for first place, 19 for second, etc., the "overall" ranking was determined. Although the rankings were based on the collective opinion of the representative sportswriters, the teams that remained "unbeaten and untied" were generally ranked higher than those that had not. A defeat, even against a strong opponent, tended to cause a team to drop in the rankings, and a team with two or more defeats was unlikely to remain in the Top 20. Generally, the top teams played on New Year's Day in the four major postseason bowl games: the Rose Bowl (near Los Angeles at Pasadena), the Sugar Bowl (New Orleans
), the Orange Bowl (Miami
), and the Cotton Bowl Classic (Dallas
). Because the rules of the time for Oklahoma's conference (at that time, Big 7) did not permit consecutive bowl appearances , #1 Oklahoma did not play in the postseason, with runner up Colorado going to the Orange Bowl instead.
of Oklahoma University were the first place choice for 116 of 149 writers casting votes, followed by Michigan State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech and Ohio State. As the regular season progressed, a new poll would be issued on the Monday following the weekend's games.
On September 22, #1 Oklahoma
and #2 Michigan State were idle. #3 Notre Dame lost in Dallas to unranked Southern Methodist University (SMU), 19-13 and dropped out of the Top 5 permanently (it would finish 2-8-0), while SMU would rise to #5.
#4 Georgia Tech won at Kentucky, 14-6. #5 Ohio State, which had not started play, fell out of the Top 5 and was replaced by #7 Texas Christian University (TCU
), which had opened with a 32-0 win at Kansas. The first regular AP poll was 1.Oklahoma 2.Georgia Tech 3.Michigan State, 4.TCU and 5.SMU.
September 29, #1 Oklahoma
opened its season with a 36-0 win over North Carolina. In Dallas, #2 Georgia Tech visited #5 SMU
and narrowly won 9-7. #3 Michigan State won at #12 Stanford, 21-7.
#4 TCU
was idle and dropped to 8th, while #8 Ohio State rose to 4th after a 34-7 win hosting Nebraska. #13 Michigan, which had beaten UCLA 42-13, rose to 5th. The next poll was 1.Oklahoma 2.Michigan State 3.Georgia Tech 4.Ohio State 5.Michigan.
registered another shutout, beating Kansas State 66-0. #2 Michigan State met #5 Michigan
in the rain before a crowd of 101,001 at Ann Arbor, and MSU Coach Duffy Daugherty's "umbrella defense" forced two Michigan turnovers that led to their 9-0 win #3 Georgia Tech was idle, and #4 Ohio State won 32-20 at home before 82,881 over Stanford . The poll saw Michigan drop to 12th, while #8 TCU (which beat Arkansas 41-6 on national television) returned to the top five: 1.Oklahoma 2.Michigan State 3.Georgia Tech 4.TCU 5.Ohio State
October 13 At Dallas, #1 Oklahoma
beat Texas 45-0, having outscored its opposition 147-0 in three games. A commentator of the day wrote, "The overpowering charge of the big red-shirted Oklahoma line ahead of adroit Quarterback Jimmy Harris is just one of the reasons bhy Oklahoma may be the greatest college football team of all time... They showed it in the sudden, lifting charge of a line which moved all of a piece, like a wave breaking evenly along a beach."
#2 Michigan State defeated Indiana 53-6 at home. #3 Georgia Tech beat LSU, 39-7. #4 TCU
won at Alabama 23-6, and #5 Ohio State won 26-6 at Illinois. The poll remained unchanged: 1.Oklahoma 2.Michigan State 3.Georgia Tech 4.TCU 5.Ohio State
October 20 #1 Oklahoma
gave up its first points of the season, but registered its fourth win, 34-12, at Kansas. #2 Michigan State stayed unbeaten with a 47-14 win at Notre Dame. #3 Georgia Tech beat Auburn 28-7. In a game that would ultimately determine the SWC championship, #4 TCU
lost at #14 Texas A&M, 7-6. #5 Ohio State lost to Penn State by the same 7-6 score. #7 Tennessee, which had beaten Alabama 24-0 rose to 4th, and #8 Michigan returned to the Top 5 after its 34-20 win over Northwestern. The poll: 1.Michigan State 2. Oklahoma 3.Georgia Tech 4.Tennessee 5.Michigan.
October 27 The new #1, Michigan State went to Champaign, and had a 13-0 lead over the unranked Illini at halftime. Abe Woodson
plunged for a score to cut the lead to 13-6 after three quarters. In the fourth, Woodson ran 70 yards from scrimmage to help tie the game 13-13. After an MSU field goal was short, Woodson ran the ball up to the Illini 18. Woodson, who had once held the world record in the 50 yard high hurdles, took a short pass and dashed 82 yards for a touchdown, leaping over State's Art Johnson 30 yards from goal, to pull off the 20-13 upset.
#2 Oklahoma
was determined to prove itself number 1, and Coach Bud Wilkinson
directed the team to six touchdowns for a 40-0 win at Notre Dame. #3 Georgia Tech beat #15 Tulane by the same 40-0 marvgin. #4 Tennessee
beat Maryland 34-7 to stay unbeaten. #5 Michigan
had its second loss, falling to unranked Minnesota at home, 20-7. #7 Texas A&M, which had extended its record to 5-0-1 with a 19-13 win at #8 Baylor, replaced the Wolverines. The poll: 1.Oklahoma 2.Georgia Tech 3.Tennessee 4.Michigan State 5.Texas A&M.
, met the once-beaten (5-1-0) Colorado Buffaloes on the road, and were losing 19-6 at halftime to a team that was four-touchdown underdog, but came back with touchdowns by Tommy McDonald and Clendon Thomas for a difficult 27-19 win. #2 Georgia Tech won at Duke, 7-0. #3 Tennessee
beat North Carolina 20-0.
#4 Michigan State crushed Wisconsin 33-0. #5 Texas A&M
beat Arkansas 27-0. The poll remained unchanged.
November 10
While #1 Oklahoma
registered its fifth shutout in seven games, trouncing Iowa State 44-0, #2 Georgia Tech and #3 Tennessee
met in Atlanta for a game that proved to determine the SEC title. There were 23 punts altogether, and no score until midway through the third quarter, when Tennessee end Buddy Cruze noticed that Tech had stopped double-teaming him. Quarterback Johnny Majors
(who would later be head coach for UT) passed to Cruze at the 35 yard line, and Cruze ran 64 yards down to the Tech goal line, setting up the touchdown that won the game, 6-0 . In the poll that followed, Tennessee was the new #1 by a margin of 2 points (1,446 to 1,444) over Oklahoma. #4 Michigan State narrowly beat Purdue, 12-9. #5 Texas A&M
beat SMU 33-7 in Dallas, and increased its record to 7-0-1, with the Southwest Conference title and a trip to the Cotton Bowl Classic, and on November 12, was still fifth in the poll. Though on probation since 1955 for recruiting violations, the Aggies had appealed to the NCAA to allow them to play postseason. The next day, however, the NCAA announced that Texas A&M was still banned, because of an additional recruiting violation of a basketball player . The poll: 1.Tennessee 2.Oklahoma 3.Michigan State 4.Georgia Tech 5.Texas A&M.
November 17
#1 Tennessee
beat visiting #19 Ole Miss, 27-7, while #2 Oklahoma
showed off its offense in beating Missouri 67-14, sufficiently enough to regain the top spot in the next poll. #3, Michigan State traveled to Minnesota, which had been #6 a week before, but dropped to #17. The MSU visitors lost, 14-13, and dropped to 10th place in the next poll. #4 Georgia Tech beat Alabama 27-0. #5 Texas A&M
beat visiting Rice, 21-7. #7 Iowa, which had beaten #6 Ohio State 6-0, took Michigan State's place in the poll that followed. The Top 5 was 1.Oklahoma 2.Tennessee 3.Iowa 4.Texas A&M 5.Georgia Tech.
November 24
#1 Oklahoma
gained 656 net yards in a defeat of visiting Nebraska 54-6. #2 Tennessee
beat Kentucky 20-7. #3 Iowa
, which had captured the Big Ten title with a 5-1-0 conference record, finished its season with a 48-8 non-league win over Notre Dame, then accepted a bid to the Rose Bowl, where it would face Oregon State. #4 Texas A&M
was idle as it prepared for its Thanksgiving Day game with Texas (which it would win 34-21). In Jacksonville, #5 Georgia Tech beat #13 Florida 28-0, and traded places with A&M. Tech would be invited back to the city for the Gator Bowl at season's end. The poll: 1.Oklahoma 2.Tennessee 3.Iowa 4.Georgia Tech 5.Texas A&M.
December 1 #1 Oklahoma
closed its season with a 53-0 win over Oklahoma State, finishing 10-0-0, and with a 466-51 finish in points. Only one of its ten opponents (Colorado) finished 1956 with a winning record. In Nashville, #2 Tennessee
beat Vanderbilt 27-7 to close with a 10-0 record and a spot in the Sugar Bowl, where it would face 9-1-0 Baylor. #4 Georgia Tech closed with a 35-0 win at Georgia. Unbeaten and once-tied (9-0-1), #5 Texas A&M
did win the Southwest Conference title, but the ban against post-season play sent the SWC runner-up, TCU, to the Cotton Bowl Classic instead.
(9-0-0) and the Florida A & M Rattlers (8-0-0) were considered to be the #1 and #2 teams "among the nation's Negro grid powers" . The teams from the two historically black universities played at the Orange Bowl stadium in Miami, which hosted the Orange Blossom Classic
as well as the New Year's Day, historically white universities, Orange Bowl game. A crowd of 41,808 watched Tennessee State win 41-39.
Unbeaten Montana State University
met Saint Joseph's College, Indiana
in the Aluminum Bowl
at Little Rock in the first playoff to determine the NAIA
small college championship, and played to a scoreless tie. Both were declared champions, and a coin flip allowed St. Joseph's to have the trophy for six months, followed by Montana State.
Other schools that finished their seasons unbeaten and untied were Lenoir Rhyne College, the University of Wyoming
, New Haven Teachers College
, Hillsdale College
, Central Michigan University
, Kearney State College, Redlands College
, Sam Houston State
, Westminster College (Pennsylvania), St. Thomas (Minn.) College
, Alfred University
and Milton College
(Wisconsin).
Other bowl games played in 1956 were the Orange Blossom Classic (Tennessee State 41, Florida A&M 39); the Tangerine Bowl (Orlando) Mississippi Southern vs. West Texas State ; the Sun Bowl (El Paso) GWU vs. Texas Western; and the Aluminum Bowl (Little Rock), with unbeaten Montana State 10-0 vs. St. Joseph's College of Indiana.. The Refrigerator Bowl (Evansville, IN) was Sam Houston State 27, Middle Tennessee State 13.
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
of the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
finish a third consecutive season unbeaten and untied to again win the national championship.
During the 20th century, the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
had no playoff for the college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
teams that would later be described as "Division I-A". The NCAA did recognize a national champion based upon the final results of "wire service" (AP and UPI) polls. The extent of that recognition came in the form of acknowledgment in the annual NCAA Football Guide of the "unofficial" national champions. The AP poll in 1956 consisted of the votes of as many as 198 sportswriters. Though not all writers voted in every poll, each would give their opinion of the twenty best teams. Under a point system of 20 points for first place, 19 for second, etc., the "overall" ranking was determined. Although the rankings were based on the collective opinion of the representative sportswriters, the teams that remained "unbeaten and untied" were generally ranked higher than those that had not. A defeat, even against a strong opponent, tended to cause a team to drop in the rankings, and a team with two or more defeats was unlikely to remain in the Top 20. Generally, the top teams played on New Year's Day in the four major postseason bowl games: the Rose Bowl (near Los Angeles at Pasadena), the Sugar Bowl (New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
), the Orange Bowl (Miami
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
), and the Cotton Bowl Classic (Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
). Because the rules of the time for Oklahoma's conference (at that time, Big 7) did not permit consecutive bowl appearances , #1 Oklahoma did not play in the postseason, with runner up Colorado going to the Orange Bowl instead.
September
In the preseason poll released on September 17, 1956, the defending champion Oklahoma SoonersOklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
of Oklahoma University were the first place choice for 116 of 149 writers casting votes, followed by Michigan State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech and Ohio State. As the regular season progressed, a new poll would be issued on the Monday following the weekend's games.
On September 22, #1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
and #2 Michigan State were idle. #3 Notre Dame lost in Dallas to unranked Southern Methodist University (SMU), 19-13 and dropped out of the Top 5 permanently (it would finish 2-8-0), while SMU would rise to #5.
#4 Georgia Tech won at Kentucky, 14-6. #5 Ohio State, which had not started play, fell out of the Top 5 and was replaced by #7 Texas Christian University (TCU
TCU Horned Frogs football
The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, but will move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. TCU began playing football...
), which had opened with a 32-0 win at Kansas. The first regular AP poll was 1.Oklahoma 2.Georgia Tech 3.Michigan State, 4.TCU and 5.SMU.
September 29, #1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
opened its season with a 36-0 win over North Carolina. In Dallas, #2 Georgia Tech visited #5 SMU
SMU Mustangs football
The SMU Mustangs football program is a college football team that represents Southern Methodist University . The team competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member Conference USA...
and narrowly won 9-7. #3 Michigan State won at #12 Stanford, 21-7.
#4 TCU
TCU Horned Frogs football
The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, but will move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. TCU began playing football...
was idle and dropped to 8th, while #8 Ohio State rose to 4th after a 34-7 win hosting Nebraska. #13 Michigan, which had beaten UCLA 42-13, rose to 5th. The next poll was 1.Oklahoma 2.Michigan State 3.Georgia Tech 4.Ohio State 5.Michigan.
October
October 6 #1 OklahomaOklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
registered another shutout, beating Kansas State 66-0. #2 Michigan State met #5 Michigan
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
in the rain before a crowd of 101,001 at Ann Arbor, and MSU Coach Duffy Daugherty's "umbrella defense" forced two Michigan turnovers that led to their 9-0 win #3 Georgia Tech was idle, and #4 Ohio State won 32-20 at home before 82,881 over Stanford . The poll saw Michigan drop to 12th, while #8 TCU (which beat Arkansas 41-6 on national television) returned to the top five: 1.Oklahoma 2.Michigan State 3.Georgia Tech 4.TCU 5.Ohio State
October 13 At Dallas, #1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
beat Texas 45-0, having outscored its opposition 147-0 in three games. A commentator of the day wrote, "The overpowering charge of the big red-shirted Oklahoma line ahead of adroit Quarterback Jimmy Harris is just one of the reasons bhy Oklahoma may be the greatest college football team of all time... They showed it in the sudden, lifting charge of a line which moved all of a piece, like a wave breaking evenly along a beach."
#2 Michigan State defeated Indiana 53-6 at home. #3 Georgia Tech beat LSU, 39-7. #4 TCU
TCU Horned Frogs football
The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, but will move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. TCU began playing football...
won at Alabama 23-6, and #5 Ohio State won 26-6 at Illinois. The poll remained unchanged: 1.Oklahoma 2.Michigan State 3.Georgia Tech 4.TCU 5.Ohio State
October 20 #1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
gave up its first points of the season, but registered its fourth win, 34-12, at Kansas. #2 Michigan State stayed unbeaten with a 47-14 win at Notre Dame. #3 Georgia Tech beat Auburn 28-7. In a game that would ultimately determine the SWC championship, #4 TCU
TCU Horned Frogs football
The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, but will move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. TCU began playing football...
lost at #14 Texas A&M, 7-6. #5 Ohio State lost to Penn State by the same 7-6 score. #7 Tennessee, which had beaten Alabama 24-0 rose to 4th, and #8 Michigan returned to the Top 5 after its 34-20 win over Northwestern. The poll: 1.Michigan State 2. Oklahoma 3.Georgia Tech 4.Tennessee 5.Michigan.
October 27 The new #1, Michigan State went to Champaign, and had a 13-0 lead over the unranked Illini at halftime. Abe Woodson
Abe Woodson
Abraham Benjamin Woodson is a former American football cornerback and kick returner who played nine seasons in the National Football League, mainly with the San Francisco 49ers. He also spent two years with the St. Louis Cardinals. As a kick returner, there were few who were better...
plunged for a score to cut the lead to 13-6 after three quarters. In the fourth, Woodson ran 70 yards from scrimmage to help tie the game 13-13. After an MSU field goal was short, Woodson ran the ball up to the Illini 18. Woodson, who had once held the world record in the 50 yard high hurdles, took a short pass and dashed 82 yards for a touchdown, leaping over State's Art Johnson 30 yards from goal, to pull off the 20-13 upset.
#2 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
was determined to prove itself number 1, and Coach Bud Wilkinson
Bud Wilkinson
Charles Burnham "Bud" Wilkinson was an American football player, coach, broadcaster, and politician. He served as the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1947 to 1963, compiling a record of 145–29–4. His Oklahoma Sooners won three national championships and 14...
directed the team to six touchdowns for a 40-0 win at Notre Dame. #3 Georgia Tech beat #15 Tulane by the same 40-0 marvgin. #4 Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
beat Maryland 34-7 to stay unbeaten. #5 Michigan
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
had its second loss, falling to unranked Minnesota at home, 20-7. #7 Texas A&M, which had extended its record to 5-0-1 with a 19-13 win at #8 Baylor, replaced the Wolverines. The poll: 1.Oklahoma 2.Georgia Tech 3.Tennessee 4.Michigan State 5.Texas A&M.
November
November 3 Unbeaten (5-0-0) and #1 OklahomaOklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
, met the once-beaten (5-1-0) Colorado Buffaloes on the road, and were losing 19-6 at halftime to a team that was four-touchdown underdog, but came back with touchdowns by Tommy McDonald and Clendon Thomas for a difficult 27-19 win. #2 Georgia Tech won at Duke, 7-0. #3 Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
beat North Carolina 20-0.
#4 Michigan State crushed Wisconsin 33-0. #5 Texas A&M
Texas A&M Aggies football
The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in college football. The Aggies have competed in the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. They will join the Southeastern Conference in July 2012. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 18...
beat Arkansas 27-0. The poll remained unchanged.
November 10
While #1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
registered its fifth shutout in seven games, trouncing Iowa State 44-0, #2 Georgia Tech and #3 Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
met in Atlanta for a game that proved to determine the SEC title. There were 23 punts altogether, and no score until midway through the third quarter, when Tennessee end Buddy Cruze noticed that Tech had stopped double-teaming him. Quarterback Johnny Majors
Johnny Majors
Johnny Majors is a former American football player and coach. A standout halfback at the University of Tennessee, he was an All-American in 1956 and a two-time winner of the Southeastern Conference Most Valuable Player award, in 1955 and 1956. He finished second to Paul Hornung in voting for...
(who would later be head coach for UT) passed to Cruze at the 35 yard line, and Cruze ran 64 yards down to the Tech goal line, setting up the touchdown that won the game, 6-0 . In the poll that followed, Tennessee was the new #1 by a margin of 2 points (1,446 to 1,444) over Oklahoma. #4 Michigan State narrowly beat Purdue, 12-9. #5 Texas A&M
Texas A&M Aggies football
The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in college football. The Aggies have competed in the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. They will join the Southeastern Conference in July 2012. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 18...
beat SMU 33-7 in Dallas, and increased its record to 7-0-1, with the Southwest Conference title and a trip to the Cotton Bowl Classic, and on November 12, was still fifth in the poll. Though on probation since 1955 for recruiting violations, the Aggies had appealed to the NCAA to allow them to play postseason. The next day, however, the NCAA announced that Texas A&M was still banned, because of an additional recruiting violation of a basketball player . The poll: 1.Tennessee 2.Oklahoma 3.Michigan State 4.Georgia Tech 5.Texas A&M.
November 17
#1 Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
beat visiting #19 Ole Miss, 27-7, while #2 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
showed off its offense in beating Missouri 67-14, sufficiently enough to regain the top spot in the next poll. #3, Michigan State traveled to Minnesota, which had been #6 a week before, but dropped to #17. The MSU visitors lost, 14-13, and dropped to 10th place in the next poll. #4 Georgia Tech beat Alabama 27-0. #5 Texas A&M
Texas A&M Aggies football
The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in college football. The Aggies have competed in the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. They will join the Southeastern Conference in July 2012. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 18...
beat visiting Rice, 21-7. #7 Iowa, which had beaten #6 Ohio State 6-0, took Michigan State's place in the poll that followed. The Top 5 was 1.Oklahoma 2.Tennessee 3.Iowa 4.Texas A&M 5.Georgia Tech.
November 24
#1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
gained 656 net yards in a defeat of visiting Nebraska 54-6. #2 Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
beat Kentucky 20-7. #3 Iowa
Iowa Hawkeyes football
The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
, which had captured the Big Ten title with a 5-1-0 conference record, finished its season with a 48-8 non-league win over Notre Dame, then accepted a bid to the Rose Bowl, where it would face Oregon State. #4 Texas A&M
Texas A&M Aggies football
The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in college football. The Aggies have competed in the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. They will join the Southeastern Conference in July 2012. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 18...
was idle as it prepared for its Thanksgiving Day game with Texas (which it would win 34-21). In Jacksonville, #5 Georgia Tech beat #13 Florida 28-0, and traded places with A&M. Tech would be invited back to the city for the Gator Bowl at season's end. The poll: 1.Oklahoma 2.Tennessee 3.Iowa 4.Georgia Tech 5.Texas A&M.
December 1 #1 Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
closed its season with a 53-0 win over Oklahoma State, finishing 10-0-0, and with a 466-51 finish in points. Only one of its ten opponents (Colorado) finished 1956 with a winning record. In Nashville, #2 Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
beat Vanderbilt 27-7 to close with a 10-0 record and a spot in the Sugar Bowl, where it would face 9-1-0 Baylor. #4 Georgia Tech closed with a 35-0 win at Georgia. Unbeaten and once-tied (9-0-1), #5 Texas A&M
Texas A&M Aggies football
The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in college football. The Aggies have competed in the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. They will join the Southeastern Conference in July 2012. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 18...
did win the Southwest Conference title, but the ban against post-season play sent the SWC runner-up, TCU, to the Cotton Bowl Classic instead.
Conference standings
The following is an incomplete list of conference standings:Final AP Top 20
| 1. Oklahoma | (10-0-0) | Big 7 |
| 2. Tennessee | (10-0-0) | SEC |
| 3. Iowa | ( 8-1-0) | Big 10 |
| 4. Georgia Tech | (9-1-0) | SEC |
| 5. Texas A&M | (9-0-1) | SWC |
| 6. Miami | (8-0-1) | Indep. |
| 7. Michigan | (7-2-0) | Big 10 |
| 8. Syracuse | (7-1-0) | Indep. |
| 9. Michigan State | (7-2-0) | Big 10 |
| 10. Oregon State | (7-2-1) | Pac 8 |
| 11. Baylor | (8-2-0) | SWC |
| 12. Minnesota | (6-1-2) | Big 10 |
| 13. Pittsburgh | (6-2-1) | Indep. |
| 14. TCU | (7-3-0) | SWC |
| 15. Ohio State | (6-3-0) | Big 10 |
| 16. Navy | (6-1-2) | Indep. |
| 17. GWU | (7-1-1) | Southern |
| 18. USC | (8-2-0) | Pac 8 |
| 19. Clemson | (7-1-2) | ACC |
| 20. Colorado | (7-2-1) | Big 7 |
Other champions
The Tennessee State TigersTennessee State University
Tennessee State University is a land-grant university located in Nashville, Tennessee. TSU is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennessee.-History:...
(9-0-0) and the Florida A & M Rattlers (8-0-0) were considered to be the #1 and #2 teams "among the nation's Negro grid powers" . The teams from the two historically black universities played at the Orange Bowl stadium in Miami, which hosted the Orange Blossom Classic
Orange Blossom Classic
The Orange Blossom Classic was an annual postseason college football game held between 1933 and 1978. Each year, it featured Florida A&M and another historically black school in an unofficial de facto championship game., The New York Times, February 3, 2007, retrieved February 7, 2009. It was seen...
as well as the New Year's Day, historically white universities, Orange Bowl game. A crowd of 41,808 watched Tennessee State win 41-39.
Unbeaten Montana State University
Montana State University - Bozeman
Montana State University – Bozeman is a public university located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's land-grant university and primary campus in the Montana State University System, which is part of the Montana University System...
met Saint Joseph's College, Indiana
Saint Joseph's College, Indiana
Saint Joseph's College is a coeducational, private, Catholic liberal arts college located in Rensselaer, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1889 by the Missionaries of the Precious Blood...
in the Aluminum Bowl
Aluminum Bowl
The Aluminum Bowl was a one-time postseason college football bowl game held in 1956 as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics championship game. It featured the Montana State University-Bozeman and St. Joseph's College...
at Little Rock in the first playoff to determine the NAIA
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
small college championship, and played to a scoreless tie. Both were declared champions, and a coin flip allowed St. Joseph's to have the trophy for six months, followed by Montana State.
Other schools that finished their seasons unbeaten and untied were Lenoir Rhyne College, the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
, New Haven Teachers College
University of New Haven
The University of New Haven is a private university that combines a liberal arts education with professional training. The university comprises five colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business, the Tagliatela College of Engineering, the Henry C...
, Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States, is a co-educational liberal arts college known for being the first American college to prohibit in its charter all discrimination based on race, religion, or sex; its refusal of government funding; and its monthly publication, Imprimis...
, Central Michigan University
Central Michigan University
Central Michigan University is a public research university located in Mount Pleasant in the U.S. state of Michigan...
, Kearney State College, Redlands College
University of Redlands
The University of Redlands is a private liberal arts and sciences university located in Redlands, California. The university's campus sits on near downtown Redlands. The university was founded in 1907 and was associated with the American Baptist Church. The land for the university was donated by...
, Sam Houston State
Sam Houston State University
Sam Houston State University was founded in 1879 and is the third oldest public institution of higher learning in the State of Texas. It is located in Huntsville, Texas. It is one of the oldest purpose-built institutions for the instruction of teachers west of the Mississippi River and the first...
, Westminster College (Pennsylvania), St. Thomas (Minn.) College
University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)
The University of St. Thomas is a private, Catholic, liberal arts, and archdiocesan university located in St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States...
, Alfred University
Alfred University
Alfred University is a small, comprehensive university in the Village of Alfred in Western New York, USA, an hour and a half south of Rochester and two hours southeast of Buffalo. Alfred has an undergraduate population of around 2,000, and approximately 300 graduate students...
and Milton College
Milton College
Milton College was a private college located in Milton, Wisconsin. Founded in 1844 as the Milton Academy, it closed in 1982. Its campus is now part of the Milton Historic District....
(Wisconsin).
Bowl games
| SUGAR BOWL | #11 Baylor Bears Baylor Bears football The Baylor Bears football team represents Baylor University in Division I FBS college football. They are a member of the Big 12 Conference. The team plays its home games at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco, Texas.-History:... |
13 | #2 Tennessee Volunteers Tennessee Volunteers football The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference .... |
7 |
| ROSE BOWL | #3 Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa Hawkeyes football The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association... |
35 | #10 Oregon State Beavers Oregon State Beavers football The Oregon State Beavers football team represents Oregon State University in NCAA Division I-A college football. The team first fielded an organized football team in 1893 and is currently a member of the Pacific-12 Conference. The head coach is Mike Riley, with Danny Langsdorf as the offensive... |
19 |
| ORANGE BOWL | #20 Colorado Buffaloes Colorado Buffaloes football The Colorado Buffaloes football program represents the University of Colorado at Boulder in college football at the NCAA Division I FBS level. The team is currently a member of the Pacific-12 Conference, having previously been a charter member of the Big 12 Conference. Before joining the Big 12,... |
27 | #19 Clemson Tigers | 21 |
| COTTON BOWL | #14 TCU Horned Frogs TCU Horned Frogs football The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, but will move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. TCU began playing football... |
28 | #8 Syracuse Orangemen | 27 |
Other bowl games played in 1956 were the Orange Blossom Classic (Tennessee State 41, Florida A&M 39); the Tangerine Bowl (Orlando) Mississippi Southern vs. West Texas State ; the Sun Bowl (El Paso) GWU vs. Texas Western; and the Aluminum Bowl (Little Rock), with unbeaten Montana State 10-0 vs. St. Joseph's College of Indiana.. The Refrigerator Bowl (Evansville, IN) was Sam Houston State 27, Middle Tennessee State 13.