There are many wonderful things about college football.

One of the best things: Until three years ago, the sport's highest level did not have a formal system to declare a national champion. Which means for more than a century, schools have been "sharing" mythical titles and/or calling themselves champions thanks to selective criteria that may, or may not, stand up to objective scrutiny.

Central Florida has dragged this fine tradition back into the spotlight by claiming itself the nation's 2017 champion, complete with a parade and bonus payouts to its coaching staff. Yes, Alabama beat Georgia on Monday night in an overtime thriller, 26-23, to win the actual national title. But UCF is undaunted in its claim, and it actually has a solid case, based on how shaky some other title claims are.

UCF went 13-0 and beat Auburn, 34-27, in the Peach Bowl. Auburn beat Alabama and split two meetings with Georgia. It's not going to stick in the record books, but the Knights have a point. Which got us thinking: Could/should Rutgers look into a similar move?

The Scarlet Knights are considered the 1869 co-national champions with Princeton. It's a pretty airtight claim, considering there were only two college football teams in the nation (the first ones, too), and they split a pair of games. But Rutgers went 9-0 in 1961 and 11-0 in 1976. What about those years? Is there an argument to be made for a retroactive banner, or banners?

Let's take a look:

1961: The Scarlet Knights finished the season ranked 15th in the Associated Press poll. Alabama (9-0) and Ohio State (8-0-1) finished atop the poll at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. Rutgers doesn't have any leg to stand on here, though.

The Scarlet Knights weren't ranked until the final poll, according to College Football Reference, and didn't play any other ranked teams. Rutgers was still playing a modest regional schedule against small schools. If No. 14 Syracuse (7-3) was on the schedule and Rutgers had won that game, or it had gone to a bowl game, there would be an argument.

1976: The lack of a bowl game kills Rutgers with this season. The Scarlet Knights hit the national poll for the first time in mid-November and finished No. 17 in the country, but lacked a signature win. Rutgers' schedule was stronger than in 1961, with victories over Louisville, Navy and Tulane, but those schools were a combined 10-23 in 1976.

There is a slight opening, though. Pitt won the national title at 12-0 that season. The Panthers' scores in wins over Louisville and Navy are interesting. Pitt won 27-6 against Louisville and 45-0 against Navy. Rutgers beat Louisville 34-0 and Navy 13-3. That's a heck of a needle to try to thread.

In closing: Rutgers has no case in 1961. It doesn't have a very good case in 1976, but considering Alabama insanely claims the 1941 national championship despite many reasons why it doesn't add up, and Kentucky was awarded the 1950 title by statistician Jeff Sagarin 40 years later, the standards are pretty low to begin with. We're not saying Rutgers should claim that one, but it wouldn't be any more dubious than other claims that have been made.

James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKratch. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.