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As of June 2022, Stewart Mandel officially has Iowa as one of CFB's Barons

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Sep 12, 2006
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Iowa finally gets promoted to Baron in Mandel's latest rendition of Kings/Barons/Knights/Peasants

His semi-decadal updates are no longer on SI (now they're on The Athletic) but even without a membership it's pretty easy to find out who's who as of 2022. Pretty cool to see the Hawks finally move up a rung and be on the same level as Wisconsin.

And I do think he has a point about Bama being a class unto itself. And I'm not sure 'Emperor' does it justice. Maybe 'demigod' is more fitting.
 
Iowa finally gets promoted to Baron in Mandel's latest rendition of Kings/Barons/Knights/Peasants

His semi-decadal updates are no longer on SI (now they're on The Athletic) but even without a membership it's pretty easy to find out who's who as of 2022. Pretty cool to see the Hawks finally move up a rung and be on the same level as Wisconsin.

And I do think he has a point about Bama being a class unto itself. And I'm not sure 'Emperor' does it justice. Maybe 'demigod' is more fitting.
Iowa > Bama, so then would that make us Supreme Rulers of the Universe?
 
It's all about the brand.

Until maybe very recently, I would wager that Nebraska had a larger fanbase than Alabama. Obviously Alabama benefits from having historically unparalleled success so of course a large portion of its fans are bandwagoners, but even with a horrendous on-field product N still attracts eyeballs. And many of those eyeballs have never stepped one foot in the state of Nebraska.
 
Funny to see ISU still in the lowest tier.

Stewart's comment:

If I had to guess, the fan base I’m going to hear the most complaints from is Iowa State. Which, again: Beware recency bias. The past five years represent the best run in program history, but I’m not sure it’s completely erased a century of futility from the public consciousness.
 
Funny to see ISU still in the lowest tier.

Stewart's comment:

If I had to guess, the fan base I’m going to hear the most complaints from is Iowa State. Which, again: Beware recency bias. The past five years represent the best run in program history, but I’m not sure it’s completely erased a century of futility from the public consciousness.
He's not wrong. It took Mississippi State twelve straight bowl games to warrant inclusion as a Knight. If ISU can remain in the top half of the revamped B12 every year until 2027 (making two assumptions: the first being that Mandel will do his next update then, the second and bigger one is that the B12 remains a power conference), then maybe he'll reconsider. But until then, it's not nearly enough for a bump. Hell, I think Purdue has a better case than ISU.
 
"The list is only partially tied to actual on-field performance. It’s more a measuring stick of which programs’ brands carry the most national cachet."

How does Mandel justify Nebraska as a Baron?

I agree, you would think that Nub's national cachet has to have taken a serious hit over the past 15 years...at least enough to drop them down a rung.
 
Funny to see ISU still in the lowest tier.

Stewart's comment:

If I had to guess, the fan base I’m going to hear the most complaints from is Iowa State. Which, again: Beware recency bias. The past five years represent the best run in program history, but I’m not sure it’s completely erased a century of futility from the public consciousness.

 
How does Mandel justify Nebraska as a Baron?
hanging on by a thread. 20+ years ago they still would have been a King. Perhaps he's hesitant to drop them more than one level. But I'd say a generation has passed, their kingdom has "burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp" to quote Monty Python. For how long...can you cash in the last generation's chips?
 
He's not wrong. It took Mississippi State twelve straight bowl games to warrant inclusion as a Knight. If ISU can remain in the top half of the revamped B12 every year until 2027 (making two assumptions: the first being that Mandel will do his next update then, the second and bigger one is that the B12 remains a power conference), then maybe he'll reconsider. But until then, it's not nearly enough for a bump. Hell, I think Purdue has a better case than ISU.
It is quite obvious Mandel had never heard of the 5* culture happenings in Ames, Iowa.

And those tv ratings, to boot?
 
Why would anyone give a damn about what Nebraska football was like in the 70s and 80s? The Huskers' utter futility for a generation has moved them to mediocre. It's difficult for me to believe that anyone outside Nebraska wants to watch that team play. Why would they? Because they once had Johnny Rodgers? LOL
 
Texas at king feels like a stretch. Maybe USC as well.
I even have some doubts about Michigan. Last year seems to be a one-off, I highly doubt they'll win the B1G again anytime soon.

That said, SM admitted that their rankings are only partially based on performance. USC, Texas, and Michigan are performing like - at best - Barons, but have the recognition of a King. Same thing goes for Nebraska, people outside the state still recognize the brand. In the next quarter century when most Boomers are gone and Gen Xers are geriatrics, they'll be what Minnesota is now.
 
Matty said it is all about trust and working through the bad times and the good times. He has watched too much Ted Lasso.
It's kind of a phenomenon how he never gets questioned by Clone fans when things go south.

I guess there are advantages of coaching a program with such low expectations.

That's why I've changed my opinion to him ever leaving Ames CC.

Why would he?
 
It's kind of a phenomenon how he never gets questioned by Clone fans when things go south.

I guess there are advantages of coaching a program with such low expectations.

That's why I've changed my opinion to him ever leaving Ames CC.

Why would he?
He for sure won't while his kids are in school there in my view. He is living like a King in central Iowa.
 
Iowa finally gets promoted to Baron in Mandel's latest rendition of Kings/Barons/Knights/Peasants

His semi-decadal updates are no longer on SI (now they're on The Athletic) but even without a membership it's pretty easy to find out who's who as of 2022. Pretty cool to see the Hawks finally move up a rung and be on the same level as Wisconsin.

And I do think he has a point about Bama being a class unto itself. And I'm not sure 'Emperor' does it justice. Maybe 'demigod' is more fitting.
Between Iowa moving up to Baron and Iowa State continuing to scrape at the dirt as peasants, I'm happy with that list. Lol.

In all seriousness, I think it's a pretty good list.
 
Why would anyone give a damn about what Nebraska football was like in the 70s and 80s? The Huskers' utter futility for a generation has moved them to mediocre. It's difficult for me to believe that anyone outside Nebraska wants to watch that team play. Why would they? Because they once had Johnny Rodgers? LOL
More like the 90s, but your point is valid.
 
How I'd rank the Big Ten:

King- the

Prince- Michigan

Dukes- Iowa, Penn State, Wisconsin

Barons/Lords- Michigan State

Knights- Minnesota, Purdue, Northwestern

Peasants- Rutgers, Maryland, Illinois, Indiana

Servants- Nebraska

I'm pretty sure a Servant ranks above a Peasant ...they get to reside inside the castle any way. ;)
 
RankSchoolWin%WinsN.C.sWeeks in AP Poll
T1Ohio State.7319428950
T1Alabama.73194218841
3Michigan.72997611887
4Notre Dame.73092911849
5Oklahoma.7289287877
6USC.69585611787
7Texas.7029284748
8Nebraska.6849085730
9Penn State.6869092665
10LSU.6538234640
11Georgia.6598533629
12Tennessee.6708566588
13Florida.6307493641
14Auburn.6287882602
15Florida State.665558*3560
16Miami.6397075509
17Texas A&M.6057663482
18UCLA.5776131537
19Clemson.6227783477
20Washington.6147492456
21Michigan State.6017216416
22Arkansas.5797291427
23Wisconsin.5867280412
24Pittsburgh.5757499308
25IOWA.5436775357
26Georgia Tech.5837444307
27Virginia Tech.6057630311
28Oregon.5716820335
29Ole Miss.5476573304
30West Virginia.5967690306
31Stanford.5786642303
32Colorado.5757181305
33Arizona State.6056320291
34North Carolina.5587120262
35Oklahoma State.5246211271
36BYU.5816041260
37TCU.5396662243
38Minnesota.5727187174
39California.5506845200
40Missouri.5446960255
*stats are from Winsipedia.com


Above is the list of Top 40 "P5" Level CFB Programs historically w/ a min 600 wins.

This ranking factors in the program's entire history, so some schools may be a little higher up on the list than if we were to only factor in the past 40 or 50 years. Even more so if we only factor in the last 20-25...definitely looking at you bug-eaters!

Regardless, from a historical perspective the Top 5 are the unquestionable Emperor/Kings and the 6 thru 25 are the Dukes/Barons with probably a few Knights sprinkled in. (I feel USC can make a strong argument for Emperor/King status, but definitely not the consistently overrated Longhorns.)
 
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I'm sure when many of you get to #8 on that list it will feel a lot like this...


isosQq.gif
 
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RankSchoolWin%WinsN.C.sWeeks in AP Poll
T1Ohio State.7319428950
T1Alabama.73194218841
3Michigan.72997611887
4Notre Dame.73092911849
5Oklahoma.7289287877
6USC.69585611787
7Texas.7029284748
8Nebraska.6849085730
9Penn State.6869092665
10LSU.6538234640
11Georgia.6598533629
12Tennessee.6708566588
13Florida.6307493641
14Auburn.6287882602
15Florida State.665558*3560
16Miami.6397075509
17Texas A&M.6057663482
18UCLA.5776131537
19Clemson.6227783477
20Washington.6147492456
21Michigan State.6017216416
22Arkansas.5797291427
23Wisconsin.5867280412
24Pittsburgh.5757499308
25IOWA.5436775357
26Georgia Tech.5837444307
27Virginia Tech.6057630311
28Oregon.5716820335
29Ole Miss.5476573304
30West Virginia.5967690306
31Stanford.5786642303
32Colorado.5757181305
33Arizona State.6056320291
34North Carolina.5587120262
35Oklahoma State.5246211271
36BYU.5816041260
37TCU.5396662243
38Minnesota.5727187174
39California.5506845200
40Missouri.5446960255
*stats are from Winsipedia.com


Above is the list of Top 40 "P5" Level CFB Programs historically w/ a min 600 wins.

This ranking factors in the program's entire history, so some schools may be a little higher up on the list than if we were to only factor in the past 40 or 50 years. Even more so if we only factor in the last 20-25...definitely looking at you bug-eaters!

Regardless, from a historical perspective the Top 5 are the unquestionable Emperor/Kings and the 6 thru 25 are the Dukes/Barons with probably a few Knights sprinkled in. (I feel USC can make a strong argument for Emperor/King status, but definitely not the consistently overrated Longhorns.)
Interesting that both the new SEC and the new big ten have nine of the top 25 on that list
 
Anyone else take a lot of pride in seeing the tiger hawk d@mn near smack dab in the center of it all!!?? It’s just fitting!
The tiger hawk is a very strong mark. When designing logos we often place in a board with our competitors to see how the logos read in a variety of instances/environments. The tiger hawk excels at this. It pops off the page in comparison to other school’s marks.
 
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