1926 college football season

In the 1926 college football season Stanford, coached by Pop Warner, was the top team in the U.S. under the Dickinson System and was awarded the newly established Rissman Trophy. Unbeaten Stanford (10–0) faced unbeaten Alabama (9–0) in the Rose Bowl, and the two teams played to a 7–7 tie.

Jeff Sagarin's "Elo chess" method ranking retroactive held Stanford to have been the national champion, concurring with the Dickinson System. However, many prominent retrospective rankings instead found Alabama the season's champion, while two (Helms and NCF) found Stanford and Alabama to be co-champions. Two prominent retroactive rankings (Boand System and Houlgate System) have instead recognized Navy (9–0–1) as the season's champion. The retrospective ranking for Spalding's Official Foot Ball Guide by Parke H. Davis (a renowned football historian and football rules committee member) found Lafayette (9–0), a school where he had previously coached, to have been the season's champion (the only prominent ranking to do so). Jeff Sagarin's "Predictor" method retroactively ranked Michigan (7–1) as the season's champion (the only prominent ranking to do so).