| 1938 NCAA football rankings | |
|---|---|
| Season | 1938 |
| Bowl season | 1938–39 bowl games |
| End of season champions | TCU |
One human poll comprised the 1938 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football rankings. Unlike most sports, college football's governing body, the NCAA, does not bestow a national championship, instead that title is bestowed by one or more different polling agencies. There are two main weekly polls that begin in the preseason—the AP Poll and the Coaches' Poll. The Coaches' Poll began operation in 1950; in addition, the AP Poll did not begin conducting preseason polls until that same year.
Legend
| Increase in ranking | ||
| Decrease in ranking | ||
| Not ranked previous week | ||
| National champion | ||
(#–#)
|
Win–loss record | |
(Italics)
|
Number of first place votes | |
т
|
Tied with team above or below also with this symbol |
AP Poll
The scheduled final AP Poll was released on November 29, with Notre Dame No. 1, prior to their season-end game against Southern California. [1]
The poll was extended for one week due to the "select quality of last Saturday's games, three of which had a direct bearing on the ranking". [2]
The revised final AP Poll was released on December 6, [2] at the end of the regular season, still weeks before the major bowls. The AP would not release a post-bowl season final poll regularly until 1968.
| Week 1 Oct 17 [3] | Week 2 Oct 24 [4] | Week 3 Oct 31 [5] | Week 4 Nov 7 [6] | Week 5 Nov 14 [7] | Week 6 Nov 21 [8] | Week 7 (Scheduled final) Nov 28 [9] | Week 8 (Extended final) Dec 6 [2] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Pittsburgh (4–0) (83) | Pittsburgh (5–0) (90) | Pittsburgh (6–0) (105) | TCU (7–0) (48) | Notre Dame (7–0) (60) | Notre Dame (7–0) (48) | Notre Dame (8–0) (48) | TCU (10–0) (55) | 1. |
| 2. | Minnesota (4–0) (6) | Minnesota (4–0) (1) | TCU (6–0) (8) | Notre Dame (6–0) (41) | TCU (8–0) (19) | TCU (9–0) (28) | TCU (10–0) (23) | Tennessee (10–0) (16) | 2. |
| 3. | California (5–0) (1) | California (6–0) (3) | California (7–0) | Pittsburgh (6–1) (14) | Tennessee (8–0) (5) | Duke (8–0) (3) | Duke (9–0) (15) | Duke (9–0) (11) | 3. |
| 4. | Dartmouth (4–0) (1) | TCU (5–0) (3) | Notre Dame (5–0) | Tennessee (7–0) (6) | Duke (7–0) (5) | Pittsburgh (8–1) (2) т | Tennessee (9–0) (4) | Oklahoma (10–0) | 4. |
| 5. | Notre Dame (3–0) | Santa Clara (4–0) (1) | Dartmouth (6–0) | Dartmouth (7–0) | Pittsburgh (7–1) (2) | Tennessee (8–0) (3) т | Oklahoma (9–0) | Notre Dame (8–1) (4) | 5. |
| 6. | Santa Clara (3–0) | Dartmouth (5–0) | Tennessee (6–0) (1) | Carnegie Tech (5–1) | Carnegie Tech (6–1) | Oklahoma (8–0) | Carnegie Tech (7–1) | Carnegie Tech (7–1) | 6. |
| 7. | TCU (4–0) (3) | Notre Dame (4–0) (1) | Northwestern (4–0–1) | Duke (6–0) | Oklahoma (7–0) (1) | Carnegie Tech (6–1) | Pittsburgh (8–2) | USC (8–2) (1) | 7. |
| 8. | Tennessee (4–0) | Tennessee (5–0) | Santa Clara (5–0) | Santa Clara (6–0) (1) | Cornell (5–1) | Minnesota (6–2) | USC (7–2) | Pittsburgh (8–2) | 8. |
| 9. | Duke (4–0) | Fordham (3–0–1) (1) | Duke (6–0) | USC (6–1) (2) | California (8–1) | California (9–1) | Holy Cross (8–1) | Holy Cross (8–1) | 9. |
| 10. | Syracuse (3–0) | Oklahoma (4–0) | Fordham (3–1–1) | Oklahoma (6–0) (1) | Holy Cross (7–1) | Cornell (5–1) | Minnesota (6–2) | Minnesota (6–2) | 10. |
| 11. | Fordham (2–0–1) | Duke (5–0) | Oklahoma (5–0) | Holy Cross (6–1) | Santa Clara (6–1) | Holy Cross (7–1) | Cornell (5–1–1) | Texas Tech (10–0) | 11. |
| 12. | Michigan (2–1) | Northwestern (3–0–1) | Minnesota (4–1) | Minnesota (5–1) | Wisconsin (5–2) | Michigan (6–1–1) | California (9–1) | Cornell (5–1–1) | 12. |
| 13. | Carnegie Tech (3–0) | Michigan (3–1) | Holy Cross (5–1) т | Fordham (4–1–1) | USC (6–2) | Dartmouth (7–1) | Fordham (6–1–2) | Alabama (7–1–1) | 13. |
| 14. | Oklahoma (3–0) | Holy Cross (4–1) | USC (5–1) т | California (7–1) | Dartmouth (7–1) | USC (6–2) | Texas Tech (10–0) | California (10–1) | 14. |
| 15. | Alabama (3–1) | Villanova (4–0) | Alabama (5–1) | Wisconsin (4–2) | Villanova (6–0–1) | Northwestern (4–2–2) | Villanova (8–0–1) | Fordham (6–1–2) | 15. |
| 16. | Vanderbilt (4–0) | Carnegie Tech (3–1) | Cornell (4–1) т | Alabama (6–1) | Northwestern (4–1–2) | Villanova (7–0–1) | Michigan (6–1–1) | Michigan (6–1–1) | 16. |
| 17. | Baylor (4–0) | Cornell (3–1) | Michigan (4–1) т | Northwestern (4–1–1) | Michigan (5–1–1) | Texas Tech (9–0) | Alabama (7–1–1) | Northwestern (4–2–2) | 17. |
| 18. | Northwestern (2–0–1) | Alabama (4–1) | Iowa State (6–0) | Michigan (5–1) (1) | Fordham (4–1–2) | Fordham (5–1–2) | Tulane (7–2–1) | Villanova (8–0–1) | 18. |
| 19. | North Carolina (3–1) | USC (4–1) | Carnegie Tech (4–1) т | Villanova (5–0–1) | Texas Tech (8–0) | Santa Clara (6–1) | Northwestern (4–2–2) | Tulane (7–2–1) | 19. |
| 20. | Villanova (3–0) | Ohio State (2–1–1) | Texas A&M (3–2–1) т | Cornell (4–1) | Alabama (6–1–1) | Georgetown (8–0) | Dartmouth (7–2) | Dartmouth (7–2) | 20. |
| Week 1 Oct 17 [3] | Week 2 Oct 24 [4] | Week 3 Oct 31 [5] | Week 4 Nov 7 [6] | Week 5 Nov 14 [7] | Week 6 Nov 21 [8] | Week 7 (Scheduled final) Nov 28 [9] | Week 8 (Extended final) Dec 6 [2] | ||
Dropped:
| Dropped:
| Dropped:
| Dropped:
| Dropped:
| Dropped:
| None |
Houlgate System
| Week Final
[10] December 6 | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Tennessee (A 35) | 1. |
| 2. | Notre Dame (B 30) | 2. |
| 3. | Duke (A 27) | 3. |
| 4. | Oklahoma (A 25) | 4. |
| 5. | Texas Christian (A 24) | 5. |
| 6. | Southern California (C 23) | 6. |
| 7. | California (B 22) | 7. |
| 8. | Pittsburgh (C 22) | 8. |
| 9. | Holy Cross (B 21) | 9. |
| 10. | Alabama (C 20) | 10. |
| Week Final
[10] December 6 | ||
Litkenhous Ratings
The top teams in the Litkenhous Ratings for 1938 were as follows:
1. Tennessee
2. TCU
3. USC
4. Notre Dame
5. Holy Cross
6. Pittsburgh
7. Cornell
8. Fordham
9. Minnesota
10. Michigan
11. Northwestern
12. California
Boand/Azzi Ratem
1. Tennessee
2. Notre Dame
3. TCU
4. USC
5. California
6. Oklahoma
7. Duke
8. Pittsburgh
9. Holy Cross
10. Minnesota
11. Villanova
12. Michigan
Poling
1. Tennessee
2. TCU
3. USC
4. Notre Dame
5. California
6. Oklahoma
7. Duke
8. Holy Cross
9. Pittsburgh
10. Minnesota
11. Alabama
12. Carnegie Tech
Williamson
1-2. Tennessee
1-2. TCU
3. Notre Dame
4. Carnegie Tech
5. Holy Cross
6. Alabama
7. USC
8. Duke
9. Oklahoma
10. Pittsburgh
11. Minnesota
12. Villanova
References
-
^ Fullerton, Hugh S. Jr. (November 29, 1938). Written at New York.
"Irish Still Top Scribes' Ballot". The Indianapolis News. Indianapolis. Associated Press. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
In the final Associated Press football ranking poll of the year, ninety sports writers and editors chose Notre Dame as the nation's No. 1 team with Duke in third place. Texas Christian, which hoped for a Rose bowl bid, came in between them.
- ^
a
b
c Middleton, Drew (December 6, 1938).
"Texas Christian Places On Pinnacle In Final AP Poll". Associated Press. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
The poll was extended for another week because of the select quality of last Saturday's games, three of which had a direct bearing on the ranking.
- ^ "October 17, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "October 24, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "October 31, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "November 7, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "November 14, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "November 21, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "November 28, 1938 AP Football Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
- ^ "Houlgate Rates Tennessee No. 1 Team". Daily News. Los Angeles. December 6, 1938. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Football Rankers Place U.T. No. 1". Chattanooga Sunday Times. January 22, 1939. p. II-1 – via Newspapers.com.
-
^
"Boand Gives Grid Top to Tennessee Eleven". Omaha World-Herald. Chicago Tribune Press Service. January 3, 1939. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
1. Tennessee; 2. Notre Dame; 3. Texas Christian;