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Indiana football ends longest Power Five AP Poll drought; who’s next?

By John Scimeca

LINCOLN, NE - OCTOBER 26: Wide receiver Whop Philyor #1 of the Indiana Hoosiers avoids the tackle of cornerback Lamar Jackson #21 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
LINCOLN, NE - OCTOBER 26: Wide receiver Whop Philyor #1 of the Indiana Hoosiers avoids the tackle of cornerback Lamar Jackson #21 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Chris Thelen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Chris Thelen/Getty Images) /

The longest AP poll droughts overall (last appearance, ranking)

  1. Louisiana (1943, No. 15)
  2. Cornell (1951, No. 12)
  3. North Texas (1959, No. 16)
  4. New Mexico State (1960, No. 17)
  5. Rice (1961, No. 7)
  6. Wyoming (1998, No. 25)
  7. Tulane (1998, No. 7)
  8. Miami (OH) (2003, No. 10)
  9. Bowling Green (2005, No. 25)
  10. UTEP (2005, No. 24)

The longest AP poll droughts by a Power Five team

  1. Purdue (2007, No. 23)
  2. Kansas (2009, No. 24)
  3. Illinois (2011, No. 23)
  4. Rutgers (2012, No. 21)
  5. Oregon State (2013, No. 25)

Who is most likely to end their unranked stretch?

It’s remarkable that the Louisiana (formerly Louisiana-Lafayette) Ragin’ Cajuns were last ranked in 1943, a 76-year stretch that continues still today.

Among the top teams in the list, the contenders seem few and far between. New Mexico State has experienced one winning season since 2003. Wyoming has only been to two bowl games since 2012. Rice, though winless so far this season, actually won 10 games two different times in the past dozen years. Cornell currently competes at the FCS level as a member of the Ivy League.

Two of the best candidates are verdant in nickname: the Mean Green and the Green Wave.

North Texas actually won nine games in each of the past two seasons under head coach Seth Littrell, though it has struggled through 2019. Tulane, under fourth-year boss Willie Fritz, qualified for its second bowl in 16 seasons last year and had received AP votes earlier this season before losses to Memphis and Navy.

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Among the Power Five schools, Illinois could be the one to break its eight-year stretch of as an unranked team. The program is in the midst of an impressive turnaround under head coach Lovie Smith and is currently 6-4 (4-3 Big Ten). The Fighting Illini, winners of four in a row (including then-No. 6 Wisconsin), received one vote in Week 12’s AP poll.

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