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Frank Dickinson was an alum and professor in Economics at the University of Illinois starting back in 1917. Dickenson used his knowledge of math and statistics to create a ranking system for college football, where previously different magazines would rank teams and declare a champion. This method of ranking football teams lasted until 1940 and is still the basis for ranking used today. A version of Dickenson’s system was also in training military technicians during the second World War.
- David Kinley Hall is the current home of the Economics Department that Dickinson was a part of
- Memorial Stadium was newly constructed when Dickinson started his ranking system.
Department of Economics (n.d.) Dickinson, Frank G. University of Illinois. https://economics.illinois.edu/spotlight/historical-faculty/dickinson-frank-g
Evensen, D. (2020, January 8). The First to Rank the Best. University of Illinois College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. https://las.illinois.edu/news/2020-01-08/first-rank-best
Frank Dickinson. (1938). Found in 39/2/26 Faculty, Staff and Student Portraits, 1933-. University of Illinois Archives. https://archon.library.illinois.edu/index.php?p=digitallibrary/digitalcontent&id=11788