Critique of Jim Howell's Retro-Ratings
In checking some of the web site
sources of inventors of math formula rating
system, some can be found who apply their
numbers to seasons of long ago. One such
person is Jim Howell, probably not the same
fellow who coached the New York Giants
form 1954 to 1960, and here are some examples
of
his ratings of previous seasons,
with bowl games included in his tabulations.
- 1923: Syracusee rated #1; Colorado rated over Michigan.
- 1934: Minnesota rated #8 below Pittsburgh #2. The played and
8-0-0 Minnesota defeated 8-1-0 Pittsburgh 13-7.
- 1935: Minnesota rated #12.
- 1936: Duke rated #1; Santa Clara, Duquesne, Utah State and
Marquette all rated over #14 Minnesota.
- 1940: Minnesota rated #7.
- 1956: Oklahoma rated #4.
- 1963: Memphis State rated #3 over Nebraska, Auburn, Navy and Illinois.
- 1984: Brigham Young rated #1. This is
notable since the overwhelming majority of
math rating systems do not have Brigham
Young at the top in 1984.
RECAP: Here we have another example
of someone using a record book or a score
book to rate teams from many years or
decades ago. These ratings have little or nothing
to do with reflecting the contemporary consensus thinking.
The late, great Bob Royce
called this type of pseudo-research "retro-ratings,"
and noted that they only serve to
muddy the waters in terms of historical reality.
The above examples serve to emphasize that
fact.
See also Historical Reality National
College Football Champions.
Parent Directory
Bob Kirlin / cfrabob@hotmail.com