Sports

The Rock Mystique, a college football phenomenon for more than 50 years, can be traced back to a 1936 controversy over which team, Minnesota or Pitt, deserved the No. 1 ranking.

Both the Associated Press and the Dickinson System ranked Minnesota first. The Football Annual and various coaches polls, including the United Press International ranking, picked Pittsburgh.

Slippery Rock beat Westminster, which beat West Virginia Wesleyan, which beat Duquesne, which beat Pitt, which beat Notre Dame, which beat Northwestern, which beat Minnesota.

How could anyone argue with that logic?

Readers of the article, which was reprinted by newspapers all over the country, apparently enjoyed a story that poked fun at big football schools and supported a small one. They loved the name "Slippery Rock." As a name for a typical small school, it seemed almost too good to be true.

https://rockathletics.com/news/2004/3/25/FB_032504aab_650.aspx