National championships
NCAA Division I FBS
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season
SportAmerican football
Founded1869 (1869)
Inaugural season1869
CountryUnited States
Most recent
champion(s)
Michigan
(2023)
Most titlesPrinceton (28 titles)
Level on pyramid1
Related
competitions
Division I (FCS)
Official websitencaa.com/football/fbs

A national championship in the highest level of college football in the United States, currently the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), is a designation awarded annually by various organizations to their selection of the best college football team. Division I FBS football is the only National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sport for which the NCAA does not sanction a yearly championship event. As such, it is sometimes referred to as a "mythical national championship".[1][2][3][4][5]

Due to the lack of an official NCAA title, determining the nation's top college football team has often engendered controversy.[6] A championship team is independently declared by multiple individuals and organizations, often referred to as "selectors".[7] These choices are not always unanimous.[6] In 1969 even President of the United States Richard Nixon made a selection by announcing, ahead of the season-ending "game of the century" between No. 1 Texas and No. 2 (AP) Arkansas, that the winner would receive a presidential plaque commemorating them as national champions.[8] Texas went on to win, 15–14.[8]

While the NCAA has never officially endorsed a championship team, it has documented the choices of some selectors in its official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records publication.[7][9] In addition, various analysts have independently published their own choices for each season. These opinions can often diverge with others as well as individual schools' claims to national titles, which may or may not correlate to the selections published elsewhere. Historically, the two most widely recognized national championship selectors are the Associated Press (AP), which conducts a poll of sportswriters, and the Coaches Poll, a survey of active members of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA).[10][11][5]

Since 1992, various consortia of major bowl games have aimed to invite the top two teams at the end of the regular season (as determined by internal rankings, or aggregates of the major polls and other statistics) to compete in what is intended to be the de facto national championship game. The current iteration of this practice, the College Football Playoff, selects four teams to participate in national semifinals hosted by two of six partner bowl games, with their winners advancing to the College Football Playoff National Championship.

History

National championship trophies
The Sun was among the first to publish year-end college football rankings

The concept of a national championship in college football dates to the early years of the sport in the late 19th century.[12] Some of the earliest contemporaneous rankings can be traced to Caspar Whitney in Harper's Weekly, J. Parmly Paret in Outing,[13] Charles Patterson,[14] and New York newspaper The Sun.[15]

"Football, however, is not a game where a great national championship is possible or desirable. The very nature of the sport would forbid anything like such a series of contests as are played in baseball."

Walter Camp, 1919[16]

Claimed intercollegiate championships were limited to various selections and rankings, as the nature of the developing and increasingly violent full-contact sport made it impossible to schedule a post-season tournament to determine an "official" or undisputed champion.[16] National championships in this era were well understood to be "mythical".[13]

Beyond rankings in newspaper columns, awards and trophies began to be presented to teams. In 1917 members of the 9–0 Georgia Tech squad were given gold footballs with the inscription "National Champions" by alumni at their post-season banquet.[17] The Veteran Athletes of Philadelphia put up the Bonniwell Trophy for the national championship in 1919[18] under the stipulation that it was only "to be awarded in such years as produces a team whose standing is so preeminent as to make its selection as champion of America beyond dispute." Notre Dame was the first to be awarded the trophy, in 1924.[19]

Professor Frank G. Dickinson of Illinois developed the first mathematical ranking system to be widely popularized. Chicago clothing manufacturer Jack F. Rissman donated a trophy for the system's national championship in 1926 onward, first awarded to Stanford prior to their tie with Alabama in the Rose Bowl. A curious Knute Rockne, then coach of Notre Dame, convinced Dickinson and Rissman to backdate the Rissman Trophy two seasons; thus Notre Dame is engraved on the trophy for 1924 and Dartmouth for 1925.[20] The Rissman Trophy was retired by Notre Dame's three wins in 1924, 1929, and 1930; the Knute Rockne Memorial Trophy was put into competition for 1931 following the untimely death of the legendary coach. The popularity of the Dickinson System kicked off a succession of mathematical rankings carried in newspapers and magazines such as the Houlgate System, Azzi Ratem rankings, Dunkel Power Index, Williamson System, and Litkenhous Ratings.[13]

Two short-lived national championship trophies were contemporaries of the Dickinson System awards. The Albert Russel Erskine Trophy was won twice by Note Dame in 1929 and 1930, as voted by 250 sportswriters from around the country.[21][22] The large silver Erskine trophy was last awarded to USC on the field in Pasadena following their "national championship game" victory over Tulane in the 1932 Rose Bowl.[23] The Toledo Cup[24] was meant to be a long-running traveling trophy, but was promptly permanently retired by Minnesota's threepeat in 1934, 1935, and 1936.[25][26]

College football's foremost historian Parke H. Davis compiled a list of "National Champion Foot Ball Teams"[27] for the 1934 edition of Spalding's Official Foot Ball Guide.[13] Davis selected national champions for each year dating back to college football's inaugural season in 1869, for which he selected the sole competitors Princeton and Rutgers as co-champions.[13] Similar retrospective analysis was undertaken in the 1940s by Bill Schroeder of the Helms Athletic Foundation and in Deke Houlgate's The Football Thesaurus in 1954.[28][13]

The Associated Press (AP) began polling sportswriters in 1936 to obtain rankings. Alan J. Gould, the creator of the AP Poll, named Minnesota, Princeton, and SMU co-champions in 1935, and polled writers the following year, which resulted in a national championship for Minnesota.[20] The AP's main competition, United Press (UP), created the first Coaches Poll in 1950. For that year and the next three, the AP and UP agreed on the national champion. The first "split" national championship between the major polls occurred in 1954, when the writers selected Ohio State and the coaches chose UCLA.[29] The two polls have disagreed 11 times since 1950.[29]

Both wire services originally conducted their final polls at the end of the regular season and prior to any bowl games being played.[13] This changed when the AP Poll champion was crowned after the bowls for 1965 and then in 1968 onward. The Coaches Poll began awarding post-bowl championships in 1974. National champions crowned by pre-bowl polls who subsequently lost their bowl game[30] offered an opportunity for other teams to claim the title based on different selectors' awards and rankings,[13] such as the post-bowl FWAA Grantland Rice Award[31] or Helms Athletic Foundation title.[32]

Post-bowl polls allowed for the possibility of a "national championship game" to finally settle the question on the gridiron.[33] But a number of challenges made it difficult to schedule even the season's top two teams to play in a single post-season bowl game,[34] let alone all of the deserving teams.[35] Calls for a college football playoff were frequently made by head coach Joe Paterno of Penn State, whose independent teams finished the 1968, 1969, and 1973 seasons unbeaten, untied, and with Orange Bowl victories yet were left without a single major national title.[36][37]

The 1980s were marked by a succession of satisfying national championship games in the Orange Bowl and Fiesta Bowl,[34] but the 1990s began with consecutive split AP Poll and Coaches Poll national titles in 1990 and 1991. The Bowl Coalition[38] and then Bowl Alliance[39] were formed to more reliably set up a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup in a bowl game on New Year's Day, but their efforts were hampered by the Rose Bowl's historic draw and contractual matchup between the Big Ten and Pac-10 conference champions.[39]

The Bowl Championship Series in 1998 succeeded in finally bringing the Big Ten and Pac-10 into the fold with the other conferences for a combined BCS National Championship Game rotated among the Fiesta, Sugar, Orange, and Rose bowls and venues.[20] BCS rankings originally incorporated the two major polls as well as a number of computer rankings to determine the end of season No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup.[40] Although the BCS era did regularly produce compelling matchups, the winnowing selection of the top two teams resulted in many BCS controversies, most notably 2003's split national championship caused by the BCS rankings leaving USC, No. 1 in both human polls, out of the Sugar Bowl.[41] The BCS victors were annually awarded The Coaches' Trophy "crystal football" on the field immediately following the championship game.

In 2014 the College Football Playoff made its debut, facilitating a multi-game single-elimination tournament for the first time in college football history. Four teams are seeded by a 13–member selection committee rather than by existing polls or mathematical rankings.[42] The two semifinal games are rotated among the New Year's Six bowl games, and the final is played a week later. The competition awards its own national championship trophy.[43]

NCAA records book

Although the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has never bestowed national championships in college football at the topmost level, it does maintain an official records book for the sport. The records book, with consultation from various college football historians,[44] contains a list of "major selectors"[7] of national championships from throughout the history of college football, along with their championship selections.[9]

Major selectors

While many people and organizations have named national champions throughout the years, the selectors below are listed in the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book as being "major selectors" of national championships. The criterion for the NCAA's designation is that the poll or selector be "national in scope, either through distribution in newspaper, television, radio and/or computer online".[7] Former selectors, deemed instrumental in the sport of college football, and selectors that were included for the calculation of the BCS standing, are listed together.[7]

The NCAA records book divides its major selectors into three categories: those determined by mathematical formula, human polls, and historical research. The BCS is additionally categorized as a hybrid between math and polls, and the CFP as a playoff system.

Math

Litkenhous Ratings Championship trophy, 1934–1962[45]

Many of the math selection systems were created during the 1920s and 1930s, beginning with Frank Dickinson's system, or during the dawn of the personal computer age in the 1990s. Selectors are listed below with years selected retroactively in italics.

SelectorNameSeasonsTrophy
A&HAnderson & Hester [n1 1]1997–present
ASAlderson System1994–1998
B(QPRS)Berryman (QPRS)1920–1989, 1990–2011
BRBillingsley Report [n1 2]1869–1969, 1970–2019
BSBoand System[46]1919–1929, 1930–1960Boand trophy[47]
CCRCongrove Computer Rankings1993–present
CMColley Matrix1992–present
CWCaspar Whitney1905–1907
DeSDeVold System1939–1944, 1945–2006
DiSDickinson System1924[48][49]–1940Rissman trophy (1924–1925, 1926–1930)
Rockne trophy (1931–1940)
DuSDunkel System1929–2019
ERSEck Ratings System1987–2005
HSHoulgate System1885–1926, 1927–1958[50]Foreman & Clark trophy[51]
LLitkenhous Ratings1934–1978, 1981–1984Litkenhous trophy[45] (1934–1962)
MCFRMassey College Football Ratings1995–present
MGRMatthews Grid Ratings1966–1972, 1974–2006
NYTThe New York Times1979–2004
PSPoling System1924–1934, 1935–1984
R(FACT)Rothman (FACT)1968–c.1970,[52] c.1971–2006
SRSagarin Ratings1919–1977, 1978–present
WWolfe1992–present [n1 3]
WSWilliamson System1932–1963
Notes
  1. The NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book shows Anderson & Hester listed as "Seattle Times."
  2. The NCAA records books have contained four distinct sets of Billingsley Report national champions since the system's inclusion as a "major selector" in 1995. Billingsley made several changes to his system's formula over the years, most notably eliminating "Margin of Victory" as a BCS ranking component prior to the 2001 season. The details of the changes can be found at the system's dedicated article; all four sets of champions are included in the table below.
  3. Wolfe did not provide rankings for the 2020 season, stating that there were not "enough games played to allow meaningful analysis," due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[53]

Poll

The poll has been the dominant national champion selection method since the inception of the AP Poll in 1936. The National Football Foundation merged its poll with UPI from 1991 to 1992, with USA Today from 1993 to 1996, and with the FWAA since 2014.

For many years, the national champions of various polls were selected before the annual bowl games were played, by AP (1936–1964 and 1966–1967), Coaches Poll (1950–1973), FWAA (1954), and NFF (1959–1970). In all other latter-day polls, champions were selected after bowl games.[54]:112–119

During the BCS era, the winner of the BCS Championship Game was automatically awarded the national championship of the Coaches Poll and the National Football Foundation.

Selectors are listed below with years selected retroactively in italics. Poll selections that constitute a "Consensus National Championship"[55] in 1950 or later, as designated by the NCAA, are listed in bold.[55]

SelectorNameSeasonsTrophy
APAssociated Press1936–presentAssociated Press Trophy
  Williams Trophy (1941–1947)
  O'Donnell Trophy (1948–1956)
  Bryant Trophy (1957–1965)
  AP Trophy (1966–1977)[56]
  Bryant Trophy (1978–1989)
  AP Trophy (1990–present)
COACHES
  BRC
  UP
  UPI
  USAT/CNN
  USAT/ESPN
  USAT
AFCA Coaches Poll
  Blue Ribbon Commission
  United Press
  United Press International
  USA Today/CNN
  USA Today/ESPN
  USA Today
1950–present, 1922–1949
  1922–1949[n2 1]
  1950–1957[n2 2]
  1958–1990[n2 2]
  1991–1996[n2 3]
  1997–2004[n2 3]
  2005–present[n2 3]
United Press Cup (1956–1958)
UPI Trophy (1959–1985)
The Coaches' Trophy (1986–present)
CFRACollege Football Researchers Association1919–1981, 1982–1992, 2009–present
FNFootball News1958–2002
FWAA
  FWAA
  FWAA-NFF
Football Writers Association of America
  FWAA
  FWAA-NFF Super 16
1954–present
  1954–2013
  2014–present[n2 4]
Grantland Rice Award (1954–2013)
HICFPHarris Interactive2005–2013[n2 5]
HAFHelms Athletic Foundation1883–1940, 1941–1982
INSInternational News Service1952–1957[n2 2]
NCFNational Championship Foundation1869–1979, 1980–2000
NFF
  NFF
  UPI/NFF
  USAT/NFF
  NFF
  FWAA-NFF
National Football Foundation
  NFF
  United Press International/NFF
  USA Today/NFF
  NFF
  FWAA-NFF Super 16
1959–present
  1959–1990
  1991–1992[n2 2]
  1993–1996[n2 3]
  1997–present[n2 6]
  2014–present[n2 4]
MacArthur Bowl[61]
SNSporting News1975–2006
TOP25
  USAT
  USAT/CNN
Top 25
  USA Today
  USA Today/CNN
1982–1990
  1982[n2 3]
  1983–1990[n2 3]
Top 25 trophy[62]
UPIUnited Press International1993–1995[n2 2]
Notes
  1. At the request of several schools, the AFCA established a "Blue Ribbon Commission" in 2016 to begin retroactively selecting Coaches' Trophy winners for 1922 through 1949.[57] The trophy is awarded upon application by individual schools.[58] Trophies have been awarded to TCU for 1935 and 1938, Texas A&M for 1939, and Oklahoma State for 1945.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 United Press first published their poll of coaches in 1950. International News Service published a separate poll between 1952–1957. In 1958 the two news agencies merged, and the Coaches Poll was published by United Press International from 1958–1990 until it was taken over by USA Today in 1991. UPI then published the National Football Foundation poll from 1991–1992 until it too was taken over by USA Today. Finally, UPI published a poll from 1993–1995 that was unaffiliated with either the Coaches Poll or NFF.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 USA Today published its own Top 25 college football poll when the national magazine launched in 1982. In 1983 the poll took on CNN as a voting and broadcast partner. In 1991 USA Today / CNN took over the Coaches Poll from UPI. Between 1993–1996 USA Today additionally published the National Football Foundation poll. USA Today has published the Coaches Poll since 1991, with partners CNN from 1991–1996 and ESPN from 1997–2004.
  4. 1 2 Since the beginning of the College Football Playoff era in 2014, the Football Writers Association of America and National Football Foundation have partnered to conduct the weekly FWAA-NFF Super 16 poll.[59] The final FWAA-NFF poll is taken at the end of the regular season with the intention of influencing the CFP Selection Committee's playoff team selections.[59] No poll is taken after the bowl games or CFP National Championship game and the FWAA-NFF poll does not award or name a national champion. The FWAA's Grantland Rice Award was retired following the 2013 season and the end of the BCS era.[59] The NFF's MacArthur Bowl is awarded after the season to the CFP national champion.
  5. The Harris Interactive College Football Poll was contracted by the BCS to help formulate its standings. It did not conduct a final poll following the BCS National Championship Game or award or name a national champion on its own, so is not included in the table of national championship selections.[7]
  6. From 1998–2013, the MacArthur Bowl was presented to the Bowl Championship Series national champion.[60] Since 2014, it has been presented to the College Football Playoff national champion.[60]

Research

College football historian Parke H. Davis is the only selector considered by the NCAA to have primarily used research in his selections.[54]:117 Davis published his work in the 1934 edition of Spalding's Foot Ball Guide,[27] naming retroactive national champions for the years 1869 to 1932 while naming Michigan and Princeton (his alma mater) contemporary co-champions for the 1933 season. In all, he selected 94 teams over 61 seasons as "National Champion Foot Ball Teams".[27] For 21 of these teams (at 12 schools), he was the only major selector to choose them. Their schools use 17 of Davis' singular selections to claim national titles. His work has been criticized for having a heavy Eastern bias, with little regard for the South and the West Coast.[63]

SelectorNameSeasonsTrophy
PDParke H. Davis1869–1932, 1933

Hybrid

The Bowl Championship Series used a mathematical system that combined polls (Coaches and AP/Harris) and multiple computer rankings (including some individual selectors listed above) to determine a season ending matchup between its top two ranked teams in the BCS Championship Game. The champion of that game was contractually awarded the Coaches Poll and National Football Foundation championships.

SelectorNameSeasonsTrophy
BCSBowl Championship Series1998–2013The Coaches' Trophy

Playoff

Unlike all selectors prior to 2014, the College Football Playoff does not use math, polls or research to select the participants. Rather, a 13-member committee selects and seeds the teams.[64] The playoff system marked the first time any championship selector arranged a bracket competition to determine whom it would declare to be its champion.

SelectorNameSeasonsTrophy
CFPCollege Football Playoff2014–presentCFP National Championship Trophy[43]

Yearly national championship selections from major selectors

Below is a list of the national champions of college football since 1869 chosen by NCAA-designated "major selectors" listed in the official Football Bowl Subdivision Records publication.[7]

Many teams did not have coaches as late as 1899. The first contemporaneous poll to include teams across the country and selection of a national champions can be traced to Caspar Whitney in 1901.[14] The tie was removed from college football in 1995 and the last consensus champion with a tie in its record was Georgia Tech in 1990.

As designated by the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records publication:

A letter next to any season, team, record, coach or selector indicates a footnote that appears at the bottom of the table.

SeasonChampion(s)RecordCoachSelector(s)[9]
1869Princeton1–1BR, NCF, PD
Rutgers1–1PD
1870Princeton1–0BR, NCF, PD
1871NoneNo games played
1872Princeton1–0BR, NCF, PD
Yale1–0PD
1873Princeton2–0BR, NCF, PD
1874Harvard1–1PD
Princeton2–0BR, PD
Yale3–0NCF, PD
1875Columbia4–1–1PD
Harvard4–0NCF, PD
Princeton2–0BR, PD
1876Yale3–0BR, NCF, PD
1877Princeton2–0–1BR, PD
Yale3–0–1BR,[65] NCF, PD
1878Princeton6–0Woodrow Wilson[27]BR, NCF, PD
1879Princeton4–0–1BR, NCF, PD
Yale3–0–2PD
1880Princeton4–0–1NCF, PD
Yale4–0–1BR, NCF, PD
1881Princeton7–0–2BR, PD
Yale5–0–1NCF, PD
1882Yale8–0BR, NCF, PD
1883Yale9–0BR, HAF, NCF, PD
1884Princeton9–0–1BR, PD
Yale8–0–1BR,[65] HAF, NCF, PD
1885Princeton9–0BR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1886Princeton7–0–1BR, PD
Yale9–0–1BR,[65] HAF, NCF, PD
1887Yale9–0BR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1888Yale13–0Walter CampBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1889Princeton10–0BR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1890Harvard11–0George C. Adams, George A. StewartBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1891Yale13–0Walter CampBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1892Yale13–0Walter CampBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1893Princeton11–0BR, HAF, HS, NCF
Yale10–1William RhodesPD
1894Penn12–0George Washington WoodruffPD
Princeton8–2HS
Yale16–0William RhodesBR, HAF, NCF, PD
1895Penn14–0George Washington WoodruffBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
Yale13–0–2John A. HartwellPD
1896Lafayette11–0–1Parke H. DavisNCF, PD
Princeton10–0–1Franklin MorseBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1897Penn15–0George Washington WoodruffBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
Yale9–0–2Frank ButterworthPD
1898Harvard11–0William Cameron ForbesBR, HAF, HS, NCF
Princeton11–0–1PD
1899Harvard10–0–1Benjamin DibbleeBR,[65] HAF, HS, NCF
Princeton12–1BR, PD
1900Yale12–0Malcolm McBrideBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1901Harvard12–0Bill ReidBR, PDa[27]
Michigan11–0Fielding H. YostBR,[65] HAF, HS, NCF
1902Michigan11–0Fielding H. YostBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
Yale11–0–1Joseph Rockwell SwanPD
1903Michigan11–0–1Fielding H. YostBR,[65] NCF
Princeton11–0Art HillebrandBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1904Michigan10–0Fielding H. YostBR,[65] NCF
Minnesota13–0Henry WilliamsBR
Penn12–0Carl S. WilliamsHAF, HS, NCF, PD
1905Chicago10–0Amos Alonzo StaggBR, HAF, HS, NCF
Yale10–0Jack OwsleyCW, PD
1906Princeton9–0–1Bill RoperHAF, NCF
Vanderbilt8–1Dan McGuginBR[65]
Yale9–0–1Foster RockwellBR, CW, PD
1907Penn11–1Carl S. WilliamsBR[65]
Yale9–0–1William F. KnoxBR, CW, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1908Harvard9–0–1Percy HaughtonBR
LSU10–0Edgar WingardNCF
Penn11–0–1Sol MetzgerBR,[65] HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1909Yale10–0Howard JonesBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1910Auburn6–1Mike DonahueBR[65]
Harvard8–0–1Percy HaughtonBR, HAF, HS, NCF
Michigan3–0–3Fielding H. YostBR[66]
Pittsburgh9–0Joseph H. ThompsonNCF
NonePD[27]
1911Minnesota6–0–1Henry L. WilliamsBR
Penn State8–0–1Bill HollenbackNCF
Princeton8–0–2Bill RoperBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
Vanderbilt8–1Dan McGuginBR[65]
1912Harvard9–0Percy HaughtonBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
Penn State8–0Bill HollenbackNCF
Wisconsin7–0William JuneauBR[65]
1913Auburn8–0Mike DonahueBR
Chicago7–0Amos Alonzo StaggBR, PD
Harvard9–0Percy HaughtonHAF, HS, NCF, PD
1914Army9–0Charles DalyHAF, HS, NCF, PD
Illinois7–0Robert ZuppkeBR, PD
Texas8–0Dave AllerdiceBR
1915Cornell9–0Albert SharpeHAF, HS, NCF, PD
Minnesota6–0–1Henry L. WilliamsBR
Nebraska8–0Ewald O. StiehmBR[65]
Oklahoma10–0Bennie OwenBR
Pittsburgh8–0Glenn "Pop" WarnerPD
1916Army9–0Charles DalyPD
Georgia Tech8–0-1John HeismanBR
Pittsburgh8–0Glenn "Pop" WarnerBR, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
1917Georgia Tech9–0John HeismanBR, HAF, HS, NCF
1918Michigan5–0Fielding H. YostBR, NCF
Pittsburgh4–1Glenn "Pop" WarnerHAF, HS, NCF
1919Centre9–0Charley MoranSR
Harvard9–0–1Bob FisherCFRA, HAF, HS, NCF, PD
Illinois6–1Robert ZuppkeBR, BS, CFRA, PD, SR
Notre Dame9–0Knute RockneNCF, PD
Texas A&M10–0Dana X. BibleBR, NCF
1920California9–0Andy SmithCFRA, HAF, HS, NCF, SR
Georgia8–0–1Herman StegemanB(QPRS)
Harvard8–0–1Bob FisherBS
Notre Dame9–0Knute RockneBR, PD
Princeton6–0–1Bill RoperBS, PD
1921California9–0–1Andy SmithBR, BS, CFRA, SR
Cornell8–0Gil DobieHAF, HS, NCF, PD
Iowa7–0Howard JonesBR, PD
Lafayette9–0Jock SutherlandBS, PD
Vanderbilt7–0–1Dan McGuginB(QPRS)
Washington & Jefferson10–0–1Greasy NealeBS
1922California9–0Andy SmithBR, HS, NCF, SR
Cornell8–0Gil DobieHAF, PD
Iowa7–0Howard JonesBR
Princeton8–0Bill RoperBS, CFRA, NCF, PD, SR
Vanderbilt8–0–1Dan McGuginB(QPRS)
1923California9–0–1Andy SmithHS
Cornell8–0Gil DobieSR
Illinois8–0Robert ZuppkeBS, CFRA, HAF, NCF, PD, SR, B(QPRS)
Michigan8–0Fielding H. YostBR, NCF
Yale8–0Tad JonesB(QPRS)
1924Notre Dame10–0Knute RockneBR, BS, CFRA, DiS,[49] HAF, HS, NCF, PS, SR, B(QPRS)
Penn9–1–1Lou YoungPD
1925Alabama10–0Wallace WadeBR, BS, CFRA, HAF, HS, NCF, PS, SR, B(QPRS)
Dartmouth8–0Jesse HawleyDiS,[48] PD
Michigan7–1Fielding H. YostSR
1926Alabama9–0–1Wallace WadeBR, CFRA, HAF, NCF, PS, B(QPRS)
Lafayette9–0Herb McCrackenPD
Michigan7–1Fielding H. YostSR
Navy9–0–1Bill IngramBS, HS
Stanford10–0–1Glenn "Pop" WarnerDiS, HAF, NCF, SR
1927Georgia9–1George Cecil WoodruffBS, PS, B(QPRS)
Illinois7–0–1Robert ZuppkeBR, DiS, HAF, NCF, PD
Notre Dame7–1–1Knute RockneHS
Texas A&M8–0–1Dana X. BibleSR
Yale7–1Thomas JonesBS,[46] CFRA
1928Detroit9–0Gus DoraisPD
Georgia Tech10–0William AlexanderBR, BS, CFRA, HAF, HS, NCF, PD, PS, SR, B(QPRS)
USC9–0–1Howard JonesDiS, SR
1929Notre Dame9–0Knute RockneBR, BS, CFRA, DiS, DuS, HAF, NCF, PS, SR
Pittsburgh9–1Jock SutherlandPD
USC10–2Howard JonesHS, SR, B(QPRS)
1930Alabama10–0Wallace WadeCFRA, PD, SR, B(QPRS)
Notre Dame10–0Knute RockneBR, BS, DiS, DuS, HAF, HS, NCF, PD, PS
1931Pittsburgh8–1Jock SutherlandPD
Purdue9–1Noble KizerPD
USC10–1Howard JonesBR, BS, CFRA, DiS, DuS, HAF, HS, NCF, PS, SR, B(QPRS)
1932Colgate9–0Andrew KerrPD
Michigan8–0Harry KipkeDiS, PD, SR
USC10–0Howard JonesBR, BS, CFRA, DuS, HAF, HS, NCF, PD, PS, SR, WS, B(QPRS)
1933Michigan7–0–1Harry KipkeBR, BS, CFRA, DiS, HAF, HS, NCF, PD, PS, SR, B(QPRS)
Ohio State7–1Sam WillamanDuS
Princeton9–0Fritz CrislerPD
USC10–1–1Howard JonesWS
1934[27]Alabama10–0Frank ThomasBR,[65] DuS, HS, PS, WS, B(QPRS)
Minnesota8–0Bernie BiermanBR, BS, CFRA, DiS, HAF, L, NCF, SR
1935[67]Minnesota8–0Bernie BiermanBR, BS, CFRA, HAF, L, NCF, PS
Princeton9–0Fritz CrislerDuS
SMU12–1Matty BellDiS, HS, SR, B(QPRS)
TCU12–1Dutch MeyerBRC,[68] WSo[69]
1936[70]Duke9–1Wallace WadeB(QPRS)
LSU9–1–1Bernie MooreSR
Minnesota7–1Bernie BiermanAP, BR, DiS, DuS, HAF, L, NCF, PS, WSp[71]
Pittsburgh8–1–1Jock SutherlandBS, CFRA, HS
1937California10–0–1Stub AllisonDuS, HAF, WSq[72]
Pittsburgh9–0–1Jock SutherlandAP, BR, BS, CFRA, DiS, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR, B(QPRS)
1938Notre Dame8–1Elmer LaydenDiS
TCU11–0Dutch MeyerAP, BRC,[73] HAF, NCF, WSr[74]
Tennessee11–0Robert NeylandB(QPRS), BR, BS, CFRA, DuS, HS, L, PS, SR, WSr[74]
1939Cornell8–0Carl SnavelyBR,[66] L, SR
Texas A&M11–0Homer NortonAP, BR, BRC,[75] BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, NCF, PS, SR, WS, B(QPRS)
USC8–0–2Howard JonesDiS
1940Minnesota8–0Bernie BiermanAP, B(QPRS), BR,[65] BS, CFRA, DeS, DiS, HS, L, NCF, SR
Stanford10–0Clark ShaughnessyBR, HAF, PS, WSs[76]
Tennessee10–1Robert NeylandDuS
1941Alabama9–2Frank ThomasHS
Minnesota8–0Bernie BiermanAP, BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, L, NCF, PS, SR
Texas8–1–1Dana X. BibleB(QPRS), WS
1942Georgia11–1Wally ButtsB(QPRS), BR, DeS, HS, L, PS, SR, WS
Ohio State9–1Paul BrownAP, BR,[65] BS, DuS, CFRA, NCF
Wisconsin8–1–1Harry StuhldreherHAF
1943Notre Dame9–1Frank LeahyAP, B(QPRS), BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR, WS
1944Army9–0Earl BlaikAP, B(QPRS), BR,t[77] BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR, WS
Ohio State9–0Carroll WiddoesBR,t[77] NCF, SR
1945Alabama10–0Frank ThomasNCF
Army9–0Earl BlaikAP, B(QPRS), BR,t[77] BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR, WS
Oklahoma A&M9–0Jim LookabaughBRC[78]
1946Army9–0–1Earl BlaikBR, BS, CFRA, HAF, HS, PS
Georgia11–0Wally ButtsWS
Notre Dame8–0–1Frank LeahyAP, B(QPRS), BR,[65] BS, DeS, DuS, HAF, L, NCF, PS, SR
1947Michigan10–0Fritz CrislerB(QPRS), BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR
Notre Dame9–0Frank LeahyAP, HAF, WS
1948Michigan9–0Bennie OosterbaanAP, B(QPRS), BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR, WS
1949Notre Dame10–0Frank LeahyAP, B(QPRS), BR, BS, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS, L, NCF, PS, SR, WS
Oklahoma11–0Bud WilkinsonBR,[65] CFRA
1950Kentucky11–1Paul "Bear" BryantSR
Oklahoma10–1Bud WilkinsonAP, B(QPRS), HAF, L, UP, WS
Princeton9–0Charley CaldwellBS, PS
Tennessee11–1Robert NeylandBR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HS,[50] NCF, SR
1951[79]Georgia Tech11–0–1Bobby DoddB(QPRS), BS, HS[50]
Illinois9–0–1Ray EliotBS
Maryland10–0Jim TatumBR,[65] CFRA, DeS, DuS, NCF, SR
Michigan State9–0Biggie MunnBR, HAF, PS
Tennessee10–1Robert NeylandAP, L, UP, WS
1952[80]Georgia Tech12–0Bobby DoddB(QPRS), BR, HS,[50] INS, PS, SR
Michigan State9–0Biggie MunnAP, BR,[65] BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, HAF, L, NCF, SR, UP, WS
1953[81]Maryland10–1Jim TatumAP, INS, UP
Notre Dame9–0–1Frank LeahyBR, BS, DeS, DuS, HAF, HS,[50] L, NCF, PS, SR, WS
Oklahoma9–1–1Bud WilkinsonB(QPRS), CFRA
1954[82]Ohio State10–0Woody HayesAP, B(QPRS), BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, HAF, HS,[50] INS, NCF, PS, SR, WS
UCLA9–0Henry SandersBR,[65] CFRA, DuS, FWAA, HAF, L, NCF, UP
1955[83]Michigan State9–1Duffy DaughertyBS
Oklahoma11–0Bud WilkinsonAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FWAA, HAF, HS,[50] INS, L, NCF, PS, SR, UP, WS
1956[84]Georgia Tech10–1Bobby DoddB(QPRS), HS,[50] SR
Iowa9–1Forest EvashevskiCFRA
Oklahoma10–0Bud WilkinsonAP, BR, BS, DeS, DuS, FWAA, HAF, INS, L, NCF, PS,[85] SR, UP, WS
Tennessee10–1Bowden WyattSR
1957[86]Auburn10–0Ralph JordanAP, BR, CFRA, HAF, HS,[50] NCF, PS, SR, WS
Michigan State8–1Duffy DaughertyBR,[65] DuS
Ohio State9–1Woody HayesBS, DeS, FWAA, INS, L, UP
Oklahoma10–1Bud WilkinsonB(QPRS)
1958[87]Iowa8–1–1Forest EvashevskiFWAA
LSU11–0Paul DietzelAP, B(QPRS), BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, HAF, HS,[50] L, NCF, PS, SR, UPI, WS
1959[88]Ole Miss10–1Johnny VaughtB(QPRS), BR,[65] DuS, SR
Syracuse11–0Ben SchwartzwalderAP, BR, BS, CFRA, DeS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, NCF, NFF, PS, SR, UPI, WS
1960[5]Iowa8–1Forest EvashevskiB(QPRS), BR,[65] BS, L, SR
Minnesota8–2Murray WarmathAP, FN, NFF, UPI
Ole Miss10–0–1Johnny VaughtBR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FWAA, NCF, WS
Missouri11–0uDan DevinePS
Washington10–1Jim OwensHAF
1961[89]Alabama11–0Paul "Bear" BryantAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, HAF, L, NCF, NFF, SR, UPI, WS
Ohio State8–0–1Woody HayesFWAA, PS
1962[90]Alabama10–1Paul "Bear" BryantBR[65]
LSU9–1–1Charles McClendonB(QPRS)
Ole Miss10–0Johnny VaughtBR, L, SR
USC11–0John McKayAP, B(QPRS), CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, PS, UPI, WS
1963[91]Texas11–0Darrell RoyalAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, NCF, NFF, PS, SR, UPI, WS
1964[92]Alabama10–1Paul "Bear" BryantAP, B(QPRS), L, UPI
Arkansas11–0Frank BroylesBR, CFRA, FWAA, HAF, NCF, PS, SR
Michigan9–1Bump ElliottDuS
Notre Dame9–1Ara ParseghianDeS, FN, NFF
1965[93]Alabama9–1–1Paul "Bear" BryantAP, BR,[65] CFRA, FWAA, NCF
Michigan State10–1Duffy DaughertyB(QPRS), BR, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, NFF, PS, SR, UPI
1966[94]Alabama11–0Paul "Bear" BryantB(QPRS), SR
Michigan State9–0–1Duffy DaughertyCFRA, HAF, NFF, PS
Notre Dame9–0–1Ara ParseghianAP, BR, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, MGR, NCF, NFF, PS, SR, UPI
1967[95]Notre Dame8–2Ara ParseghianDuS
Oklahoma10–1Chuck FairbanksPS
USC10–1John McKayAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, FN, FWAA, HAF, MGR, NCF, NFF, SR, UPI
Tennessee9–2Doug DickeyL
1968[96]Georgia8–1–2Vince DooleyL
Ohio State10–0Woody HayesAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SR, UPI
Texas9–1–1Darrell RoyalDeS, MGR, SR
1969[97]Ohio State8–1Woody HayesMGR
Penn State11–0Joe PaternoR(FACT), SR
Texas11–0Darrell RoyalAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SR, UPI
1970[98]Arizona State11–0Frank KushPS
Nebraska11–0–1Bob DevaneyAP, BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, R(FACT), SR
Notre Dame10–1Ara ParseghianMGR, R(FACT), SR
Ohio State9–1Woody HayesNFF
Texas10–1Darrell RoyalB(QPRS), L, NFF, R(FACT), UPI
1971[99]Nebraska13–0Bob DevaneyAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, MGR, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SR, UPI
1972[100]USC12–0John McKayAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, MGR, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SR, UPI
1973[101]Alabama11–1Paul "Bear" BryantB(QPRS), L,[102] UPI
Michigan10–0–1Bo SchembechlerNCF, PS
Notre Dame11–0Ara ParseghianAP, BR, FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF
Ohio State10–0–1Woody HayesNCF, PS, R(FACT), SR
Oklahoma10–0–1Barry SwitzerBR,[103] CFRA, DeS, DuS, SR
1974[104]Ohio State10–2Woody HayesMGR
Oklahoma11–0Barry SwitzerAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, HAF, L, NCF, PS, R(FACT), SR
USC10–1–1John McKayFWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, UPI
1975[105]Alabama11–1Paul "Bear" BryantMGR
Arizona State12–0Frank KushNCF, SN
Ohio State11–1Woody HayesB(QPRS), HAF, L,[106] MGR, PS, R(FACT)
Oklahoma11–1Barry SwitzerAP, BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, R(FACT), SR, UPI
1976Michigan10–2Bo SchembechlerL[107]
Pittsburgh12–0Johnny MajorsAP, BR,[103] FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI
USC11–1John RobinsonB(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, MGR
1977Alabama11–1Paul "Bear" BryantCFRA
Arkansas11–1Lou HoltzR(FACT)
Notre Dame11–1Dan DevineAP, BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, MGR, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI
Texas11–1Fred AkersB(QPRS), L,[108] R(FACT), SR
1978Alabama11–1Paul "Bear" BryantAP, CFRA, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, R(FACT)
Oklahoma11–1Barry SwitzerBR,[103] DeS, DuS, HAF, L, MGR, PS, R(FACT), SR
USC12–1John RobinsonB(QPRS), BR, FN, HAF, NCF, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI
1979Alabama12–0Paul "Bear" BryantAP, B(QPRS), BR, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, PS, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI
USC11–0–1John RobinsonCFRA
1980Florida State10–2Bobby BowdenR(FACT)
Georgia12–0Vince DooleyAP, B(QPRS), BR, FN, FWAA, HAF, NCF, NFF, PS, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI
Nebraska10–2Tom OsborneR(FACT)
Oklahoma10–2Barry SwitzerBR,[103] DuS, MGR
Pittsburgh11–1Jackie SherrillCFRA, DeS, NYT, R(FACT), SR
1981[109]Clemson12–0Danny FordAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, FN, FWAA, HAF, L, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, PS, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI
Nebraska9–3Tom OsborneNCF
Penn State10–2Joe PaternoDuS
Pittsburgh11–1Jackie SherrillNCF
SMU10–1Ron MeyerNCF
Texas10–1–1Fred AkersNCF
1982[110]Nebraska12–1Tom OsborneB(QPRS), L[111]
Penn State11–1Joe PaternoAP, BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, HAF, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, PS, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT
SMU11–0–1Bobby CollinsHAF
1983[112]Auburn11–1Pat DyeBR, CFRA, NYT, R(FACT), SR
Miami (FL)11–1Howard SchnellenbergerAP, BR,[103] DuS, FN, FWAA, NCF, NFF, SN, UPI, USAT/CNN
Nebraska12–1Tom OsborneB(QPRS), DeS, L, MGR, PS, R(FACT), SR
1984[113]BYU13–0LaVell EdwardsAP, BR, CFRA, FWAA, NCF, NFF, PS, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN
Florida9–1–1Galen HallBR,[103] DeS, DuS, MGR, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR
Nebraska10–2Tom OsborneL
Washington11–1Don JamesB(QPRS), FN, NCF
1985[114]Florida9–1–1Galen HallSR
Michigan10–1–1Bo SchembechlerMGR
Oklahoma11–1Barry SwitzerAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, UPI, USAT/CNN
1986[115]Miami (FL)11–1Jimmy JohnsonR(FACT)
Oklahoma11–1Barry SwitzerBR,[103] B(QPRS), CFRA, DeS, DuS, NYT, SR
Penn State12–0Joe PaternoAP, BR,[103] FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, NFF, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN
1987[116]Florida State11–1Bobby BowdenB(QPRS)
Miami (FL)12–0Jimmy JohnsonAP, BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN
1988[117]Miami (FL)11–1Jimmy JohnsonB(QPRS)
Notre Dame12–0Lou HoltzAP, BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN
1989[118]Florida State10–2Bobby BowdenBR[103]
Miami (FL)11–1Dennis EricksonAP, BR,[103] CFRA, DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, UPI, USAT/CNN
Notre Dame12–1Lou HoltzB(QPRS), ERS, R(FACT), SR
1990[119]Colorado11–1–1Bill McCartneyAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, NFF, R(FACT), SN, USAT/CNN
Georgia Tech11–0–1Bobby RossDuS, NCF, R(FACT), SR, UPI
Miami (FL)10–2Dennis EricksonBR,[103] ERS, NYT, R(FACT), SR
Washington10–2Don JamesR(FACT)
1991[120]Miami (FL)12–0Dennis EricksonAP, BR, CFRA, ERS, NCF, NYT, SN, SR
Washington12–0Don JamesB(QPRS), BR,[103] DeS, DuS, FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, R(FACT), SR, UPI/NFF, USAT/CNN
1992[121]Alabama13–0Gene StallingsAP, B(QPRS), BR, CFRA, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MGR, NCF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI/NFF, USAT/CNN
Florida State11–1Bobby BowdenSR
1993[122]Auburn11–0Terry BowdenNCF
Florida State12–1Bobby BowdenAP, B(QPRS), BR, CCR,[123] DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, NCF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN, USAT/NFF
Nebraska11–1Tom OsborneNCF
Notre Dame11–1Lou HoltzMGR, NCF
1994[124]Florida State10–1–1Bobby BowdenDuS
Nebraska13–0Tom OsborneAP, AS, B(QPRS), BR,[103] FN, FWAA, NCF, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN, USAT/NFF
Penn State12–0Joe PaternoBR,[103] CCR,[125] DeS, ERS, MGR, NCF, NYT, R(FACT), SR
1995[103]Nebraska12–0Tom OsborneAP, AS, B(QPRS), BR, CCR,[126] DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR,[127] MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, UPI, USAT/CNN
1996[65]Florida12–1Steve SpurrierAP, B(QPRS), BR, CCR,[128] DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR,[127] MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT/CNN
Florida State11–1Bobby BowdenAS
1997[129]Michigan12–0Lloyd CarrAP, BR, FN, FWAA, NCF, NFF, SN
Nebraska13–0Tom OsborneA&H, AS, B(QPRS), BR, CCR,[130] DeS, DuS, ERS, MCFR,[127] MGR, NCF, NYT, R(FACT), SR, USAT/ESPN
1998[131]Ohio State11–1John CooperSRb
Tennessee13–0Phillip FulmerA&H, AP, AS, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, USAT/ESPN
1999[132]Florida State12–0Bobby BowdenA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR, MGR, NCF, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT/ESPN
2000[66]Miami (FL)11–1Butch DavisNYT
Oklahoma13–0Bob StoopsA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR, MGR, NCF, NFF, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT/ESPN
2001[133]Miami (FL)12–0Larry CokerA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DeS, DuS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR, MGR, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT/ESPN, W
2002[134]Ohio State14–0Jim TresselA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DeS, ERS, FN, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT/ESPN, W
USC11–2Pete CarrollDuS, MGR, SR
2003[135]LSU13–1Nick SabanA&H, BCS, BR, CM, DeS, DuS, MCFR, NFF, R(FACT), SR, USAT/ESPN, W
Oklahoma12–2Bob StoopsB(QPRS)
USC12–1Pete CarrollAP, CCR,f[136] ERS, FWAA, MGR, NYT, SN
2004[137]USCc11–0dPete CarrollA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BR, CCR, CM, DeS, DuS, ERS, MCFR, MGR, NFF, NYT, R(FACT), SN, SR, W
VacatedcBCS, FWAA, USAT/ESPN
2005[138]Texas13–0Mack BrownA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DeS, DuS, ERS, FWAA, MCFR, MGR, NFF, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT, W
2006[139]Florida13–1Urban MeyerA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, MGR, NFF, R(FACT), SN, SR, USAT, W
Ohio State12–1Jim TresselDeS,g[140] R(FACT)h[141]
2007[142]LSU12–2Les MilesAP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT, W
Missouri12–2Gary PinkelA&Hm[143]
USC11–2Pete CarrollDuSe[144]
2008[145]Florida13–1Urban MeyerAP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CM, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT
Utah13–0Kyle WhittinghamA&H, Wi[146]
2009[147]Alabama14–0Nick SabanA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CCR, CFRA, CM, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT, W
2010[148]Auburn14–0Gene ChizikA&H, AP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CFRA, CM, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT, W
TCU13–0Gary PattersonCCR
2011[149]Alabama12–1Nick SabanAP, B(QPRS), BCS, BR, CFRA, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT, W
LSU13–1Les MilesA&H,n[150] CCRk[151]
Oklahoma State12–1Mike GundyCM
2012[152]Alabama13–1Nick SabanA&H, AP, BCS, BR, CCR, CFRA, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT, W
Notre Dame12–1Brian KellyCM
2013[153]Florida State14–0Jimbo FisherA&H, AP, BCS, BR, CCR, CFRA, CM, DuS, FWAA, MCFR, NFF, SR, USAT, W
2014[154]Ohio State14–1Urban MeyerA&H, AP, BR, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, DuS, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2015[155]Alabama14–1Nick SabanA&H, AP, BR, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, DuS, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2016[156]Alabama14–1Nick SabanCM
Clemson14–1Dabo SwinneyA&H, AP, BR, CCR, CFP, CFRA, DuS, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2017[157]Alabama13–1Nick SabanA&H, AP, BR, CCR, CFP, CFRA, DuS, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
UCF13–0Scott FrostCM
2018[158]Clemson15–0Dabo SwinneyA&H, AP, BR, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, DuS, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2019[159]LSU15–0Ed OrgeronA&H, AP, BR, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, DuS, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2020[160]Alabama13–0Nick SabanA&H, AP, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT
2021[161]Georgia14–1Kirby SmartA&H, AP, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2022[162]Georgia15–0Kirby SmartA&H, AP, CCR, CFP, CFRA, CM, NFF, MCFR, SR, USAT, W
2023[163]Michigan15–0Jim HarbaughA&H,[164] AP,[165] CCR,[166] CFP,[167] CFRA,[168] CM,[169] NFF,[170] MCFR,[171] SR,[172] USAT[173]

aParke H. Davis' selection for 1901, as published in the 1934 edition of Spalding's Foot Ball Guide, was Harvard.[27] The NCAA Records Book states "Yale" for 1901, which is an error that has been perpetuated since the first appearance of Parke H. Davis' selections in the 1994 NCAA records book.[124]
bThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists Sagarin as having selected Tennessee,[9] while Sagarin's official website gives Ohio State as its 1998 selection.[174]
cThe FWAA stripped USC of its 2004 Grantland Rice Trophy and vacated the selection of its national champion for 2004. The BCS also vacated USC's participation in the 2005 Orange Bowl and USC's 2004 BCS National Championship, and the AFCA Coaches Poll Coaches' Trophy was returned.[175][176]
dRecord does not count wins against UCLA, or against Oklahoma in the BCS Championship game on January 4, 2005, as they were vacated by the NCAA.[177]
eThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists Dunkel as having selected LSU,[9] while Dunkel's official website gives USC as its 2007 selection.[144]
fThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists CCR as having selected LSU,[9] while CCR's official website gives USC as its 2003 selection.[136]
gThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists DeVold (DeS) as having selected Florida,[9] while DeVold's official website gives Ohio State as its 2006 selection.[140]
hThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists R(FACT) as having selected Florida,[9] while R(FACT)'s official website gives co-champions Ohio State and Florida as its 2006 selection.[141]
iThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists Wolfe as having selected Florida,[9] while Wolfe's official website gives Utah as its 2008 selection.[146]
kThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists CCR as having selected Alabama,[9] while CCR's official website gives LSU as its 2011 selection.[151]
mThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists Anderson & Hester (A&H) as having selected LSU,[9] while A&H's official website gives Missouri as its 2007 selection.[143]
nThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists Anderson & Hester (A&H) as having selected Alabama,[9] while A&H's official website gives LSU as its 2011 selection.[150]
oThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists the Williamson System as having selected TCU and LSU as co-champions for 1935. However the system's post-bowl final rankings published in January 1936 show TCU first, SMU second, and LSU third.[69] The accompanying column written by Paul B. Williamson states "There was no undisputable national champion in 1935".[69]
pThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists the Williamson System as having selected LSU in 1936. However the system's post-bowl final rankings show Minnesota first and LSU fourth.[71]
qThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists the Williamson System as having selected Pittsburgh in 1937. However the system's post-bowl final rankings show California first and Pittsburgh second.[72]
rThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists the Williamson System as having selected TCU alone in 1938. However the system's post-bowl final rankings show a tie between TCU and Tennessee.[74]
sThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists the Williamson System as having selected Tennessee in 1940. However the system's post-bowl final rankings show Stanford first and Tennessee sixth.[76]
tThe NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book lists the Billingsley Report as having selected Army in 1944 and Ohio State and Army in 1945. According to Billingsley's official website, these selection years are reversed.[77]
uKansas' 1960 defeat of Missouri was overturned by the Big Eight Conference on December 8 (ineligible player). The reversal erased the only loss on Missouri's record.[178]

Total championship selections from major selectors by school

The national title count listed below is a culmination of all championship awarded since 1869, regardless of "consensus"[55] or non-consensus status, as listed in the table above according to the selectors deemed to be "major"[7] as listed in the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records.[9]

The totals can be said to be disputed. Individual schools may claim national championships not accounted for by the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records or may not claim national championship selections that do appear in the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (see National championship claims by school below).

ChampionshipsSchools
28
Princeton
27
Yale
24
Alabama
22
Notre Dame
19
Michigan
17
Oklahoma, USC
16
Ohio State
12
Harvard, Nebraska
11
Pittsburgh
9
Florida State, Miami (FL), Minnesota, Texas
8
Georgia, LSU
7
Georgia Tech, Penn, Penn State, Tennessee
6
Auburn, Michigan State
5
Army, California, Cornell, Florida, Illinois, Iowa
4
Vanderbilt, Washington
3
Clemson, Lafayette, Ole Miss, SMU, TCU, Texas A&M
2
Arizona State, Arkansas, Chicago, Maryland, Missouri, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Wisconsin
1
BYU, Centre, Colgate, Colorado, Columbia, Dartmouth, Detroit, Duke, Kentucky, Navy, Purdue, Rutgers, Syracuse, UCF, UCLA, Utah, Washington & Jefferson

Major polls

Map of U.S. college football champions, 1936–2019

National championship selectors came to be dominated by two competing news agencies in the later half of the 20th century: the Associated Press (AP) and United Press International (UPI).[11]

These wire services began ranking college football teams in weekly polls, which were then promptly published in the sports sections of each agency's subscribing newspapers across the country. The team ranking No. 1 in each agency's final poll of the season was awarded that agency's national championship.

National championships are often stated to be "consensus" when the two major polls are in agreement with their selections.[179]

AP Poll

The AP college football poll has a long history. The news media began running their own polls of sports writers to determine who was, by popular opinion, the best football team in the country at the end of the season. One of the earliest such polls was the AP College Football Poll, first run in 1934 (compiled and organized by Charles Woodroof, former SEC Assistant Director of Media Relations, but not recognized in the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records) and then continuously from 1936. The first major nationwide poll for ranking college football teams, the Associated Press is probably the most well-known and widely circulated among all of history's polls.[180] Due to the long-standing historical ties between individual college football conferences and high-paying bowl games like the Rose Bowl and Orange Bowl, the NCAA has never held a tournament or championship game to determine the champion of what is now the highest division, NCAA Division I, Football Bowl Subdivision (the Division I, Football Championship Subdivision and lower divisions do hold championship tournaments). As a result, the public and the media began to take the leading vote-getter in the final AP Poll as the national champion for that season.

In the AP Poll's early years, the final poll of sportswriters was taken prior to any bowl games and sometimes even prior to the top teams' final games of the regular season.[181][182] In 1938, the poll was extended for one week[181] after Notre Dame, No. 1 in the scheduled "final" poll,[183] subsequently lost to rival USC.[181]

Following the 1947 season the AP held a special post-bowl poll[184] with only two teams on the ballot, Notre Dame and Michigan, but stated that the result would not supersede that of the final poll conducted following the end of the regular season.[184][185] The rivals, both unbeaten and untied, had been ranked No. 1 and No. 2 respectively in the final poll. January voters were impressed by Michigan's 49–0 win over common opponent USC in the Rose Bowl and elevated the Wolverines above the Irish in the special post-bowl poll.[185]

The AP champion would lose its bowl game five times, following the 1950, 1951, 1953, 1960, and 1964 seasons.[30]

In 1965 the AP decided to delay the season's final poll until after New Year's Day, citing the proliferation of bowl games and the involvement of eight of the poll's current top ten teams in post-season play.[186][187] In the next season, 1966, neither of the top two teams (Notre Dame and Michigan State) were attending bowl games so no post-bowl poll was taken,[188] even after two-time defending AP national champion No. 3 Alabama won the Sugar Bowl and finished the season unbeaten and untied. In 1967 the final poll crowning USC national champion was taken before No. 2 Tennessee or No. 3 Oklahoma had even played their final games of the regular season,[182] and well before those two teams met in the Orange Bowl.

In 1968 the final poll was again delayed until after the bowl games so that No. 1 Ohio State could meet No. 2 USC in a "dream match" in the Rose Bowl.[33] Every subsequent season's final AP Poll would be released after the bowl games. UPI did not follow suit until the 1974 season;[189] in the overlapping years, the Coaches Poll champion lost their bowl game in 1965, 1970, and 1973. The AP's earlier move to crown a post-bowl champion paid off, as in all three years the losing team had also been the No. 1 team in the pre-bowl penultimate AP rankings.

The AP Poll was used as a component of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) computer ranking formula starting in 1998, but without any formal agreement in place like the contract made between the BCS and the Coaches Poll.[41] For the 2003 season the AP Poll caused a split national title and BCS controversy when it awarded its national championship to No. 1 USC instead of BCS champion LSU.[41] In December 2004 the AP opted out of the BCS formula, requesting that the BCS "discontinue its unauthorized use of the AP poll as a component of BCS rankings", in response to three AP voters from Texas elevating Texas above California into the Rose Bowl in the last regular season AP Poll.[41]

In the College Football Playoff era, the Associated Press has continued to award the AP Trophy to the No. 1 team in the final AP Poll. AP rankings are not incorporated in the CFP selection committee's seeding, and voting AP sportswriters are not obligated to award their title to the winner of the CFP national championship game.[42] In 2015 the Associated Press's global sports editor stated that "it is not out of the realm of possibility that a team could win the AP national championship without winning the College Football Playoff's national championship", although that scenario has yet to occur.[42]

Coaches Poll

News agency United Press (UP), the main competitor to the Associated Press, began conducting its own college football ratings during the 1950 season.[190] The wire service came to be known as United Press International (UPI) following a merger with International News Service in 1958.

The weekly ranking was a joint polling effort between the news agency and the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), with UP/UPI sports writers gathering and tabulating the coaches' votes and publishing the results in newspapers across the nation.[191]

The UP/UPI rankings were originally conducted by polling 35 of the nation's college football coaches.[190] The coaches were chosen to represent every major football conference, with 5 coaches from each of 7 regions, in an apparent effort to combat the perceived East Coast bias of the rival AP Poll's constituent sports writers.

Their votes will provide the only football rating based on the opinion of the men who know the sport best. The nature of the board, giving each section of the country equal representation, avoids the sectional bias and ballot box stuffing for which other football polls have been criticized.

United Press Football Ratings announcement, September 1950[190]

Each season's final Coaches Poll was initially published following the regular season and did not take bowl game results into account; the UP/UPI national champion lost its bowl game 8 times between 1950 and 1973. Since the 1974 season the poll has awarded its national championship following the postseason bowls.[192] That same year the AFCA voted to thereafter not rank any team currently under NCAA or conference-sanctioned probation.[192][193]

Following the decline of UPI in the 1980s, the AFCA ended their 42-year relationship with the wire service in 1991.[194][191] The Coaches Poll continued, with new sponsorship and distribution partners, as the USA Today/CNN poll (1991–1996), USA Today/ESPN poll (1997–2004) and USA Today poll (2005–present).

The Bowl Championship Series included the Coaches Poll as a major factor in its ranking formula.[195] In return, voting AFCA members were contractually obligated to award their Coaches Poll national championship selections to the winner of the BCS National Championship Game. Lacking its own dedicated trophy, the BCS champion was awarded The Coaches' Trophy on the field immediately following the game.

Poll era national championships by school (1936–present)

The following table contains the national championships that have been recognized by the final AP or Coaches Poll. Originally both the AP and Coaches poll champions were crowned after the regular season, but since 1968 and 1974 respectively, both polls crown their champions after the bowl games are completed (with the exception of the 1965 season). The BCS champion was automatically awarded the Coaches Poll championship. Of the current 120+ Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS, formerly Division I-A) schools, only 30 have won at least a share of a national title by the AP or Coaches poll. Of these 30 teams, only 20 teams have won multiple titles. Of the 20 teams, only 7 have won five or more national titles: Alabama, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, USC, Miami (FL), Nebraska, and Ohio State. The years listed in the table below indicate a national championship selection by the AP or Coaches Poll. The selections are noted with (AP) or (Coaches) when a national champion selection differed between the two polls for that particular season, which has occurred in twelve different seasons (including 2004, for which the coaches selection was rescinded) since the polls first came to coexist in 1950.

School Championships Seasons
Alabama
13
1961, 1964, 1965 (AP), 1973 (Coaches), 1978 (AP), 1979, 1992, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2020
Notre Dame
8
1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1966, 1973 (AP), 1977, 1988
Oklahoma
7
1950, 1955, 1956, 1974 (AP), 1975, 1985, 2000
USC
7
1962, 1967, 1972, 1974 (Coaches), 1978 (Coaches), 2003 (AP), 2004 (AP)†
Ohio State
6
1942, 1954 (AP), 1957 (Coaches), 1968, 2002, 2014
Miami (FL)
5
1983, 1987, 1989, 1991 (AP), 2001
Nebraska
5
1970 (AP), 1971, 1994, 1995, 1997 (Coaches)
LSU
4
1958, 2003 (Coaches), 2007, 2019
Texas
4
1963, 1969, 1970 (Coaches), 2005
Minnesota
4
1936, 1940, 1941, 1960
Clemson
3
1981, 2016, 2018
Florida
3
1996, 2006, 2008
Florida State
3
1993, 1999, 2013
Georgia
3
1980, 2021, 2022
Michigan
3
1948, 1997 (AP), 2023
Army
2
1944, 1945 (AP)
Auburn
2
1957 (AP), 2010
Michigan State
2
1952, 1965 (Coaches)
Penn State
2
1982, 1986
Pittsburgh
2
1937, 1976
Tennessee
2
1951, 1998
TCU
1
1938
BYU
1
1984
Colorado
1
1990 (AP)
Georgia Tech
1
1990 (Coaches)
Maryland
1
1953
Syracuse
1
1959
Texas A&M
1
1939
UCLA
1
1954 (Coaches)
Washington
1
1991 (Coaches)

† USC's 2004 BCS National Championship was vacated by the BCS and their AFCA Coaches' Trophy was returned.[196]

Split national championships

The AP Poll and Coaches Poll have picked different final national poll leaders at the end of 11 different seasons since their first concurrent polls in 1950.[29] This situation is referred to as a "split" national championship.[197]

Season[29]ChampionRecordWire service poll
1954Ohio State10–0AP
UCLA9–0Coaches
1957Auburn10–0AP
Ohio State9–1Coaches
1965Alabama9–1–1AP
Michigan State10–1Coaches
1970Nebraska11–0–1AP
Texas10–1Coaches
1973Notre Dame11–0AP
Alabama11–1Coaches
1974Oklahoma11–0AP
USC10–1–1Coaches
1978Alabama11–1AP
USC12–1Coaches
1990Colorado11–1–1AP
Georgia Tech11–0–1Coaches
1991Miami (FL)12–0AP
Washington12–0Coaches
1997Michigan12–0AP
Nebraska13–0Coaches
2003USC12–1AP
LSU13–1Coaches

National championship games

College football fans and administrators have long sought to match the No. 1 vs. No. 2 teams in an end-of-season national championship game to determine an undisputed national champion on the gridiron.[38]

Historic occurrences

Throughout most of the 20th century, a number of challenges made it impossible to ordinarily schedule the two top teams for a single post-season title fight:

  • Some schools, most notably Notre Dame, declined to play in bowl games for many years.[35]
  • Conference tie-ins prevented certain conference champions from ever meeting in a post-season bowl game.
  • "No repeat" rules prevented teams from playing in their conference's bowl two seasons in a row.[198]
  • At-large bowl game invitations were extended in mid-November, locking in teams with subsequent late-season losses.[199]

Through luck and fortuitous scheduling, a "national championship game" was occasionally able to settle the matter on the field, as described in some contemporaneous reports.[34]

Season National championship game Winning team Score Losing team Notes
1931Rose Bowl[200][201] No. 2 USC21–12No. 1 TulaneTitle game for Erskine Trophy[203]
1943Notre Dame vs. Iowa Pre-Flight[204][205]No. 1 Notre Dame14–13No. 2 Iowa Pre-FlightGame played November 20. Each played another regular season game November 27, which for Notre Dame was a loss to Great Lakes Navy.
1944Army–Navy Game[206]No. 1 Army23–7No. 2 NavyFinal regular season game. Navy finished 6–3 ranked No. 4.
1945Game of the Century[207]No. 1 Army32–13No. 2 Navy
1962Rose Bowl[208][209][210]No. 1 USC42–37No. 2 WisconsinFWAA only; USC had already been named No. 1 in the final AP and Coaches Polls four weeks earlier. [211]
1963Cotton Bowl[212][209][210]No. 1 Texas28–6No. 2 NavyFWAA only; Texas had already been named No. 1 in the final AP and Coaches Polls three weeks earlier.[213]
1965Orange Bowl[214][215]No. 4 Alabama39–28No. 3 NebraskaBecame AP Poll championship game after No. 1 and 2 teams lost the Rose and Cotton Bowl games earlier in the day.
1966Game of the Century[216][217]No. 1 Notre Dame10–10No. 2 Michigan StateThe following week Notre Dame defeated USC in its last regular season game.[220]
1967Game of the Century[221][222]No. 4 USC21–20No. 1 UCLAGame played November 18. UCLA played another regular season game November 25.
1968Rose Bowl[223][210]No. 1 Ohio State27–16No. 2 USC
1969Game of the Century[8]No. 1 Texas15–14No. 2 (AP) ArkansasWinner was to be awarded a presidential plaque by game attendee Richard Nixon declaring them "the number-one college football team in college football's one-hundredth year."[8] This was the final regular season game, and it determined the Coaches Poll title. Entering the game, Arkansas ranked No. 3 in the Coaches Poll and remained #3.[224][225]
1971Game of the CenturyNo. 1 Nebraska35–31No. 2 OklahomaGame played November 25 for Coaches Poll title, compiled before bowl games and released December 6. Each played another regular season game December 4.[226]
Orange Bowl[227][228]No. 1 Nebraska38–6No. 2 AlabamaTitle game for NFF MacArthur Bowl[229]
1972Rose Bowl[230]No. 1 USC42–17No. 3 Ohio StateOne-loss Oklahoma, #2 in final regular season polls, won the Sugar Bowl and remained #2 after the bowls.
1973Sugar Bowl[231][232]No. 3 Notre Dame24–23No. 1 AlabamaTitle game for NFF MacArthur Bowl; #2 Oklahoma finished 10–0–1, was on probation and ineligible for a bowl game.[233]
1978Sugar Bowl[209][234]No. 2 Alabama14–7No. 1 Penn StateNational championship was split; #3 USC finished atop Coaches Poll.[235]
1982Sugar Bowl[236]No. 2 Penn State27–23No. 1 Georgia
1983Orange Bowl[237]No. 5 Miami (FL)31–30No. 1 NebraskaNo. 2 Texas and No. 4 Illinois had lost earlier in the day.[237] No. 3 Auburn won the Sugar Bowl played at the same time.
1984Orange Bowl[238][239]No. 4 Washington28–17No. 2 OklahomaBYU won national titles in both AP and Coaches Polls. [240]
1985Orange Bowl[241]No. 2 Oklahoma25–10No. 1 Penn State
1986Fiesta Bowl[34]No. 2 Penn State14–10No. 1 Miami (FL)
1987Orange Bowl[34]No. 2 Miami (FL)20–14No. 1 Oklahoma
1988Fiesta Bowl[242]No. 1 Notre Dame34–21No. 3 West Virginia[243]

Bowl Coalition (1992–1994)

Following back-to-back years of split AP and Coaches Poll national champions in 1990, between Colorado (AP) and Georgia Tech (Coaches), and 1991, between Miami (FL) (AP) and Washington (Coaches), the Bowl Coalition was formed in 1992 to increase the probability of a No. 1 vs. No. 2 national championship game matchup in one of the Coalition's participating bowls.[38]

The Coalition's rules retained traditional bowl game conference tie-ins but provided some flexibility for scheduling a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup between two teams selected from among the champions of the ACC, Big East, Big Eight, SEC, and SWC conferences, or independent Notre Dame, in the Cotton Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl, or Sugar Bowl.

The Big Ten and Pac-10 conferences were notably not members of the Bowl Coalition, with their champions retaining their traditional and contractual matchup in the Rose Bowl. Likewise, mid-major teams had no route to the Bowl Coalition National Championship Game.

Season Bowl Winning team Score Losing team Notes
1992Sugar BowlNo. 2 Alabama34–13No. 1 Miami (FL)
1993Orange BowlNo. 1 Florida State18–16No. 2 Nebraska
1994Orange BowlNo. 1 Nebraska24–17No. 3 Miami (FL)[244]

Bowl Alliance (1995–1997)

In 1995 the Bowl Alliance replaced the Bowl Coalition.[39] Going further than the Coalition, the Alliance guaranteed a postseason matchup of the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams of its same five conference champions plus Notre Dame. Beginning in 1996, the Big 12 champion joined the Alliance in place of the champions of the disbanded Big Eight and Southwest conferences.

Unlike the Coalition, the Alliance eliminated traditional conference tie-ins to its associated bowls. The Bowl Alliance national championship game would be rotated amongst the Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and Orange Bowl, with the Cotton Bowl dropped from the slate. The Bowl Alliance also awarded its own trophy to the winner of its national championship game.[245]

The Rose Bowl remained independent of the Alliance, leaving open the possibility of a national title going to the Big Ten or Pac-10 Rose Bowl champion rather than the Alliance's champion.[246] This occurred in 1997, when No. 1 Michigan won the Rose Bowl and retained their top ranking in the AP Poll.[246] The Bowl Alliance National Championship Game[246] winner Nebraska split the championship when they passed Michigan in the final Coaches Poll (a result denied by the Coaches Poll to Penn State three years earlier in the same situation).

Season Bowl Winning team Score Losing team Notes
1995Fiesta BowlNo. 1 Nebraska62–24No. 2 Florida
1996Sugar BowlNo. 3 Florida52–20No. 1 Florida State[247]
1997Orange BowlNo. 2 Nebraska42–17No. 3 Tennessee[248]

Bowl Championship Series (1998–2013)

The Bowl Championship Series (BCS), starting in 1998, finally succeeded in bringing the Big Ten and Pac-10 conferences together with the former Coalition and Alliance members for a combined national championship game.

Following the regular season, the BCS paired its No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams to play for the title in the BCS National Championship Game. This designation initially rotated in order between four BCS Bowls: the Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Rose Bowl. For the 2006 season onward the BCS National Championship Game became its own separate contest, played one week later at the site of the bowl in the same rotation.

The original BCS formula incorporated the AP Poll and Coaches Poll along with an average of various computer rankings.[40] The formula underwent many adjustments over the years, including a large overhaul following the 2004 season in which the AP Poll was replaced with the Harris Interactive College Football Poll.[249]

The winners of the BCS National Championship Game were crowned the Coaches Poll national champions and were awarded the Coaches' Trophy on the field following the game. They were also awarded the MacArthur Bowl by the National Football Foundation.

BCS National Championships by school

School Championships Seasons
Alabama32009, 2011, 2012
Florida22006, 2008
Florida State21999, 2013
LSU22003, 2007
Auburn12010
Miami (FL)12001
Ohio State12002
Oklahoma12000
Tennessee11998
Texas12005
USC0†2004

† USC's victory in the 2005 Orange Bowl and corresponding 2004–05 BCS National Championship was vacated by the BCS.[176][196]

College Football Playoff (2014–present)

The College Football Playoff (CFP) was designed as a replacement for the BCS. While the NCAA still does not officially sanction the event, organizers sought to bring a playoff system similar to all other levels of NCAA football to the Football Bowl Subdivision.

The College Football Playoff relies on a 13-member selection committee to choose the top four teams to play in a two-round single-elimination playoff bracket.[42] The winner of the final game is awarded the College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy.[43]

CFP National Championships by school

School Championships Seasons
Alabama32015, 2017, 2020
Clemson22016, 2018
Georgia22021, 2022
Michigan12023
LSU12019
Ohio State12014

National championship claims

Tennessee's national championship claims, as posted in their Neyland Stadium

The following tables list schools' known national championship claims at the highest level of play in college football. Some of these schools no longer compete at the highest level, which is currently NCAA Division I FBS, but nonetheless maintain claims to titles from when they did compete at the highest level.

Because there is no one governing or official body that regulates, recognizes, or awards national championships in college football, and because many independent selectors of championships exist, many of the claims by the schools listed below are shared, contradict each other, or are controversial.[6][250]

"There is no official standard because there is no official national champion. It all depends on the standard the school wishes to utilize. The national champion is in the eye of the beholder."

Kent Stephens, historian, College Football Hall of Fame[250]

The majority of these claims, but not all, are based on championships awarded from selectors listed as "major" in the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records publication.[7][9] Not all championships awarded by third party selectors, nor all those listed in the NCAA records book, are necessarily claimed by each school.[n3 1] Therefore, these claims represent how each individual school sees their own history on the subject of national championships.

The tables below include only national championship claims originating from each particular school and therefore represent the point-of-view of each individual institution. Each total number of championships, and the years for which they are claimed, are documented by the particular school on its official website, in its football media guide, on a prominent stadium sign, or in other official publications or literature (see Source). If a championship is not mentioned by a school for any particular season, regardless of whether it was awarded by a selector or listed in a third-party publication such as the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records, it is not considered to be claimed by that institution.

Claims by school

School Claims Claimed national championship seasons Source
Princeton
28
1869, 1870, 1872, 1873, 1874, 1875, 1877, 1878, 1879, 1880, 1881, 1884, 1885, 1886, 1889, 1893, 1894, 1896, 1898, 1899, 1903, 1906, 1911, 1920, 1922, 1933, 1935, 1950[252]
Yale
27
1872, 1874, 1876, 1877, 1879, 1880, 1881, 1882, 1883, 1884, 1886, 1887, 1888, 1891, 1892, 1893, 1894, 1895, 1897, 1900, 1901,[n3 2] 1902, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1909, 1927[253][254]
Alabama
18
1925, 1926, 1930, 1934, 1941, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1973, 1978, 1979, 1992, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2020[255]
Michigan
12
1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1918, 1923, 1932, 1933, 1947, 1948, 1997, 2023[256][257]
Notre Dame
11
1924, 1929, 1930, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1966, 1973, 1977, 1988[258][259]
USC
11
1928, 1931, 1932, 1939, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1974, 1978, 2003, 2004[n3 3][261][262]
Pittsburgh
9
1915, 1916, 1918, 1929, 1931, 1934,[n3 4] 1936, 1937, 1976[263][264]
Ohio State
8
1942, 1954, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1970, 2002, 2014[265][266]
Harvard
7
1890, 1898, 1899, 1910, 1912, 1913, 1919[267][268]
Minnesota
7
1904, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1940, 1941, 1960[269][270]
Oklahoma
7
1950, 1955, 1956, 1974, 1975, 1985, 2000[271][272]
Penn
7
1894, 1895, 1897, 1904, 1907,[n3 5] 1908, 1924[273]
Michigan State
6
1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1965, 1966[274][275]
Tennessee
6
1938, 1940, 1950, 1951, 1967, 1998[276][277]
California
5
1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1937[278]
Cornell
5
1915, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1939[279][280]
Illinois
5
1914, 1919, 1923, 1927, 1951[281][282]
Iowa
5
1921, 1922, 1956, 1958, 1960[283]
Miami
5
1983, 1987, 1989, 1991, 2001[284][285]
Nebraska
5
1970, 1971, 1994, 1995, 1997[286][287]
Georgia
4
1942, 1980, 2021, 2022[288][289]
Georgia Tech
4
1917, 1928, 1952, 1990[290][291]
LSU
4
1958, 2003, 2007, 2019[292][293]
Texas
4
1963, 1969, 1970, 2005[294][295]
Army
3
1944, 1945, 1946[296][297]
Clemson
3
1981, 2016, 2018[298][299]
Florida
3
1996, 2006, 2008[300][301]
Florida State
3
1993, 1999, 2013[302][303]
Lafayette
3
1896, 1921, 1926[304]
Ole Miss
3
1959, 1960, 1962[31][305]
SMU
3
1935, 1981, 1982[306]
Texas A&M
3
1919, 1927, 1939[307][308]
Auburn
2
1957, 2010[309][310]
Chicago
2
1905, 1913[311]
Columbia
2
1875, 1933[n3 6][312]
Penn State
2
1982, 1986[313][314]
Stanford
2
1926, 1940[315][316]
TCU
2
1935, 1938[317][318]
Washington
2
1960, 1991[32][319]
Arkansas
1
1964[320]
Boston College
1
1940[n3 7][325]
BYU
1
1984[326][327]
Centre
1
1919[328]
Colorado
1
1990[329][330]
Dartmouth
1
1925[331]
Detroit
1
1928[332]
Kentucky
1
1950[333]
Maryland
1
1953[334][335]
Navy
1
1926[336]
Oklahoma State
1
1945[337]:[57][338]
Rutgers
1
1869[339]
Syracuse
1
1959[340][341]
UCF
1
2017[342][343]
UCLA
1
1954[344][345]
Notes
  1. The following schools either make no apparent statement or claim regarding national championships, or clearly state no claims on a national championship, despite the listing of a national championship for that school in the official NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records: Arizona State, Colgate, Duke, Missouri, Purdue, Utah,[251] Vanderbilt, and Washington & Jefferson.
  2. No major selectors chose Yale for 1901. The original source for Parke H. Davis' "National Champion Foot Ball Teams" states "1901 Harvard".[27]
  3. USC's January 4, 2005 win over Oklahoma in the BCS Championship Game was vacated as mandated by the NCAA, its 2004 BCS National Championship vacated by the BCS, and its AFCA Coaches' Trophy returned. NCAA sanctions mandate that "any reference to the vacated results, including championships, shall be removed." USC still retains the 2004 Associated Press National Championship and has not abandoned its claim to a 2004 national championship.[196][260]
  4. No major selectors chose Pittsburgh for 1934. Parke H. Davis died in June, 1934; his successor selected Pitt but is not designated as a major selector by the NCAA.
  5. The Billingsley Report originally named Penn as champions for 1907 and the team was listed in the 1996[65]–2003[135] NCAA records books. However the team was dropped from subsequent NCAA records books when Billingsley updated his system's formula to remove the Margin of Victory component.
  6. No major selectors chose Columbia for 1933. Columbia's media guide states that the team "was referred to as a national champ."[312]
  7. No major selectors chose Boston College for 1940. Final AP Poll and several other selections preceded bowl games. Boston College defeated Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl in a battle of unbeatens.[321][322][323][324]

Claims by year

SeasonClaimsClaimants[346]Record
18692Princeton1–1
Rutgers1–1
18701Princeton1–0
18710None
18722Princeton1–0
Yale1–0
18731Princeton2–0
18742Princeton2–0
Yale3–0
18752Columbia4–1–1
Princeton2–0
18761Yale3–0
18772Princeton2–0–1
Yale3–0–1
18781Princeton6–0
18792Princeton4–0–1
Yale3–0–2
18802Princeton4–0–1
Yale4–0–1
18812Princeton7–0–2
Yale5–0–1
18821Yale8–0
18831Yale9–0
18842Princeton9–0–1
Yale8–0–1
18851Princeton9–0
18862Princeton7–0–1
Yale9–0–1
18871Yale9–0
18881Yale13–0
18891Princeton10–0
18901Harvard11–0
18911Yale13–0
18921Yale13–0
18932Princeton11–0
Yale10–1
18943Penn12–0
Princeton8–2
Yale16–0
18952Penn14–0
Yale13–0–2
18962Lafayette11–0–1
Princeton10–0–1
18972Penn15–0
Yale9–0–2
18982Harvard11–0
Princeton11–0–1
18992Harvard10–0–1
Princeton12–1
19001Yale12–0
19012Michigan11–0
Yale11–1–1
19022Michigan11–0
Yale11–0–1
19032Michigan11–0–1
Princeton11–0
19043Michigan10–0
Minnesota13–0
Penn12–0
19052Chicago10–0
Yale10–0
19062Princeton9–0–1
Yale9–0–1
19072Penn11–1
Yale9–0–1
19081Penn11–0–1
19091Yale10–0
19101Harvard8–0–1
19111Princeton8–0–2
19121Harvard9–0
19132Chicago7–0
Harvard9–0
19141Illinois7–0
19152Cornell9–0
Pittsburgh8–0
19161Pittsburgh8–0
19171Georgia Tech9–0
19182Michigan5–0
Pittsburgh4–1
19194Centre9–0
Harvard9–0–1
Illinois6–1
Texas A&M10–0
19202California9–0
Princeton6–0–1
19214California9–0–1
Cornell8–0
Iowa7–0
Lafayette9–0
19224California9–0
Cornell8–0
Iowa7–0
Princeton8–0
19234California9–0–1
Cornell8–0
Illinois8–0
Michigan8–0
19242Notre Dame10–0
Penn9–1–1
19252Alabama10-0
Dartmouth8–0
19264Alabama9–0–1
Lafayette9–0
Navy9–0–1
Stanford10–0–1
19273Illinois7–0–1
Texas A&M8–0–1
Yale7–1
19283Detroit9–0
Georgia Tech10–0
USC9–0–1
19292Notre Dame9–0
Pittsburgh9–1
19302Alabama10–0
Notre Dame10–0
19312Pittsburgh8–1
USC10–1
19322Michigan8–0
USC10–0
19333Columbia8–1–1
Michigan7–0–1
Princeton9–0
19343Alabama10–0
Pittsburgh8–1
Minnesota8–0
19354Minnesota8–0
Princeton9–0
SMU12–1
TCU12–1
19362Minnesota7–1
Pittsburgh8–1–1
19372California10–0–1
Pittsburgh9–0–1
19382TCU11–0
Tennessee11–0
19393Cornell8–0
Texas A&M11–0
USC8–0–2
19404Boston College11–0
Minnesota8–0
Stanford10–0
Tennessee10–1
19412Alabama9–2
Minnesota8–0
19422Georgia11–1
Ohio State9–1
19431Notre Dame9–1
19441Army9–0
19452Army9–0
Oklahoma A&M9–0
19462Army9–0–1
Notre Dame8–0–1
19472Michigan10–0
Notre Dame9–0
19481Michigan9–0
19491Notre Dame10–0
19504Kentucky11–1
Oklahoma10–1
Princeton9–0
Tennessee11–1
19513Illinois9–0–1
Michigan State9–0
Tennessee10–1
19522Georgia Tech12–0
Michigan State9–0
19531Maryland10–1
19542Ohio State10–0
UCLA9–0
19552Michigan State9–1
Oklahoma11–0
19562Iowa9–1
Oklahoma10–0
19573Auburn10–0
Michigan State8–1
Ohio State9–1
19582Iowa8–1–1
LSU11–0
19592Ole Miss10–1
Syracuse11–0
19604Iowa8–1
Minnesota8–2
Ole Miss10–0–1
Washington10–1
19612Alabama11–0
Ohio State8–0–1
19622Ole Miss10–0
USC11–0
19631Texas11–0
19642Alabama10–1
Arkansas11–0
19652Alabama9–1–1
Michigan State10–1
19662Michigan State9–0–1
Notre Dame9–0–1
19672USC10–1
Tennessee9–2
19681Ohio State10–0
19691Texas11–0
19703Nebraska11–0–1
Ohio State9–1
Texas10–1
19711Nebraska13–0
19721USC12–0
19732Alabama11–1
Notre Dame11–0
19742Oklahoma11–0
USC10–1–1
19751Oklahoma11–1
19761Pittsburgh12–0
19771Notre Dame11–1
19782Alabama11–1
USC12–1
19791Alabama12–0
19801Georgia12–0
19812Clemson12–0
SMU10–1
19822Penn State11–1
SMU11–0–1
19831Miami11–1
19841BYU13–0
19851Oklahoma11–1
19861Penn State12–0
19871Miami12–0
19881Notre Dame12–0
19891Miami11–1
19902Colorado11–1–1
Georgia Tech11–0–1
19912Miami12–0
Washington12–0
19921Alabama13–0
19931Florida State12–1
19941Nebraska13–0
19951Nebraska12–0
19961Florida12–1
19972Michigan12–0
Nebraska13–0
19981Tennessee13–0
19991Florida State12–0
20001Oklahoma13–0
20011Miami12–0
20021Ohio State14–0
20032LSU13–1
USC12–1
20041USC13–0
20051Texas13–0
20061Florida13–1
20071LSU12–2
20081Florida13–1
20091Alabama14–0
20101Auburn14–0
20111Alabama12–1
20121Alabama13–1
20131Florida State14–0
20141Ohio State14–1
20151Alabama14–1
20161Clemson14–1
20172Alabama13–1
UCF13–0
20181Clemson15–0
20191LSU15–0
20201Alabama13–0
20211Georgia14–1
20221Georgia15–0
20231Michigan15–0

Other selectors

Howard Jones Memorial Foundation national championship trophy

In addition to the NCAA-designated "major selectors" listed above, various other people and organizations have selected national champions in college football. Selections from such notable selectors are listed below.

Unique championship selections from non-major selectors

Teams in the following table were selected by people or organizations not listed as a "major selector" in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records book.

In the interest of brevity, this table contains only teams that were not also selected by any NCAA-designated major selector for the given year. Some are contrarian selections or protests against the choices of the major polls and the BCS.

SeasonChampion(s)RecordCoachSelector(s)
1903Minnesota (co-champion)14–0–1Henry L. WilliamsJim Koger (JK)[347]
1904Yale10–1Charles D. RaffertyCaspar Whitney[348]
1910Washington6–0Gil DobieBill Libby (BL)[349]
1911Carlisle11–1Glenn "Pop" WarnerBL
1913Notre Dame7–0Jesse HarperBL, JK
1914Harvard7–0–2Percy HaughtonWorld Almanac,[350][351]
Alexander Weyand (AW)[352][353]
1915Washington State7–0William "Lone Star" DietzWashington State Senate[354]
1917Pittsburgh (co-champion)10–0Glenn "Pop" WarnerAW[355]
1921Notre Dame10–1Knute RockneAW[356]
1929Tulane9–0Bernie BiermanBL
Utah7–0Ike ArmstrongFrank E. Wood[357]
1931Tennessee9–0–1Robert NeylandBL
Tulane11–1Bernie BiermanWood[358]
1934Pittsburgh8–1Jock SutherlandSpalding's Foot Ball Guide[67] (editor Walter R. Okeson)
Stanford9–1–1Tiny ThornhillHoulgate System (HS)[359]
1935 Stanford8–1Tiny ThornhillKenneth Massey (MCFR)[360]
1936Northwestern7–1Pappy WaldorfBL
Saint Vincent5–3Red EdwardsAssociated Press sportswriter via transitive property[361][362]
Santa Clara8–1Buck ShawMCFR
1939Tulane8–1–1Red DawsonHS[363]
1941 Duquesne8–0Aldo Donelli/Steve SinkoMCFR
1942 Georgia Navy Pre-Flight7–1–1Raymond WolfMCFR
1943March Field9–1Paul J. SchisslerMCFR
1944Randolph Field12–0Frank TriticoDr. L. H. Baker[364]
1947 Texas10–1Blair CherryMCFR
1953 Michigan State9–1Biggie MunnMCFR
1955 Ole Miss10–1Johnny VaughtMCFR
1963Navy9–2Wayne HardinWashington Touchdown Club[365][366]
1974Alabama11–1Paul "Bear" BryantWashington Touchdown Club[366]
1978Penn State11–1Joe PaternoWashington Touchdown Club[366]
2004Auburn13–0Tommy TubervilleEufaula Tribune,[367] Golf Digest,[368] People's National Championship[369]
2010Oregon (co-champion)12–1Chip KellyR(FACT)[370]
2014Alabama (co-champion)12–2Nick SabanR(FACT)[371]
Oregon (co-champion)12–1Chip Kelly
TCU (co-champion)12–1Gary Patterson
  • Teams listed in italics indicate retroactively applied championships.

See also

References

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  182. 1 2 Written at Los Angeles. "USC, Vols 1–2 in AP poll". Honolulu Star–Bulletin. Honolulu, Hawaii. Associated Press. November 30, 1967. p. 71. Retrieved August 25, 2022. Southern California is king of 1967 college football. [...] Tennessee, 8–1 with one regular season game remaining before its Orange Bowl date with Oklahoma, received 11 first-place votes.
  183. Fullerton, Hugh S. Jr. (November 29, 1938). Written at New York. "Irish Still Top Scribes' Ballot". The Indianapolis News. Indianapolis. Associated Press. Retrieved August 22, 2022. In the final Associated Press football ranking poll of the year, ninety sports writers and editors chose Notre Dame as the nation's No. 1 team with Duke in third place. Texas Christian, which hoped for a Rose bowl bid, came in between them.
  184. 1 2 Written at New York. "AP Conducts Special Poll; Only Notre Dame, Michigan In Running". The La Crosse Tribune. La Crosse, Wisconsin. Associated Press. January 3, 1948. Retrieved August 21, 2022. The AP's final poll of the top ten teams, released Dec. 8 at the conclusion of the regulation season, resulted in Notre Dame Winning first place with 1,410 points. Michigan was second with 1,289. While the latest poll—which will be released to afternoon papers of Tuesday, Jan. 6—will not supersede the regular season-end poll, it is intended to serve as a final summing up of the opinion on the two teams.
  185. 1 2 Chandler, John (January 7, 1948). Written at New York. "Scribes of Nation Pick Michigan". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City. Associated Press. Retrieved August 21, 2022. This post-season poll, conducted by the Associated Press by popular demand after Michigan thumped Southern California in the Rose bowl, 49–0, doesn't supersede the weekly A. P. poll held during the regular season. The final poll released Dec. 8 gave Notre Dame 1410 points for first place, with Michigan 1289 for second. The Irish had just polished off Southern California 38–7.
  186. Grimsley, Will (November 23, 1965). "MSU Tightens No. 1 Grip". St. Cloud Times. Associated Press. Retrieved August 21, 2022. Another poll will be staged after this week's few remaining games and the final balloting, determining the national championship, will be held after the bowl games on New Year's Day. The decision to delay the final poll until after the New Year was made because of the broad growth of the post-season attractions and the involvement of most of the teams in the Top Ten. Actually, eight of the Top Ten will be in action after the regular season.
  187. Green, Bob (January 4, 1966). "Crimson Tide Named National Collegiate Football Champions — Third Title in Five Years". Fort Collins Coloradoan. Associated Press. Retrieved August 17, 2022. Ironically, when the Tide won last year, the poll was taken at the close of the regular season and 'Bama went on to lose to Texas in the Orange Bowl. This year the final poll of the season was conducted after the New Year's bowl games—the first time it had been held until after the bowls—because the six top teams were in action New Year's Day.
  188. Rapoport, Ron (December 31, 1966). "Bear Bryant Still Figures His Team Is Best in Land". Sun-Journal. Lewiston, Maine. Associated Press. Retrieved August 24, 2022. Last year, the AP took a post-Bowl game poll because Michigan State and Alabama were involved in Bowl games. This year, with the No. 1 and 2 teams not in Bowl games, so no post-season poll is planned.
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  190. 1 2 3 Petersen, Leo H. (September 13, 1950). "United Press Will Poll Coaches for Ratings on Leading College Elevens". Coshocton Tribune. Vol. XLII, no. 21. New York. United Press. p. 8. Retrieved August 13, 2022. Thirty-five of the nation's foremost football coaches will rate the country's top collegiate football teams each week for the United Press this coming season.
  191. 1 2 "UPI to Exclude Coaches' Votes From National Football Poll". Los Angeles Times. United Press International. June 4, 1991. Retrieved August 13, 2022. "After more than six months' discussion, UPI and AFCA have ended the joint polling effort which began in 1950," said Milt Capps, senior vice president for UPI, a wire service agency. For more than 40 years, UPI sportswriters gathered votes from coaches each week, tallied the results and reported them. But UPI's rankings now will be determined by the votes of the sportswriters independent of the AFCA, which will produce its own, separate coaches rankings.
  192. 1 2 "Sports News Briefs — U.P.I. Poll to Include Bowl Results". The New York Times. January 17, 1974. Retrieved August 14, 2022. The American Football Coaches Association, acting on a proposal by United Press International, has voted to permit member coaches to extend their future U.P.I. rankings of the top 10 teams to include results of postseason bowl games. Since their Inception in 1950, rankings by the U.P.I. board of 35 coaches—five from each of the nation's seven geographical areas—have ended each year with the final Saturday of the regular season. This action will conform with the practice of the Associated Press, whose final ratings based on the votes of sports writers and broadcasters, include the bowl results. — A.F.C.A. members for many years expressed preference for including only regular-season games in the U.P.I. board's final rankings, A factor in the decision was the circumstance of first-ranked Alabama losing to fourth-ranked Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl this season. — In a separate action, the A.F.C.A. recommended that no votes be cast by them or anyone else for football teams the National Collegiate A.A. has placed on probation, with sanctions, for violating the N.C.A.A. code.
  193. "Amway Coaches Poll". American Football Coaches Association. Archived from the original on May 24, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  194. Written at Dallas. "'USA Today' gets UPI coaches' poll". Austin American-Statesman. Austin. Associated Press. June 3, 1991. p. D2. Retrieved August 13, 2022. The college football coaches poll, carried by United Press International since 1950, will now be distributed by USA Today.
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  197. Shapiro, Leonard (January 3, 1992). "Miami, Washington Earn Split Decision for No. 1". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 15, 2022. The triumphant Miami and Washington teams exulted on separate coasts yesterday, each celebrating the outcome of at least one major poll that proclaimed it the national college football champion for 1991.
  198. Written at Chicago. "Leahy Says Bruins Should Play Bucks in Rose Bowl for National Championship". Los Angeles Evening Citizen News. Los Angeles. United Press. November 30, 1954. Retrieved February 26, 2023. The clause prohibits a team from playing in the [Rose Bowl] more than once in two years
  199. Lee, Victor (November 18, 1990). Written at Miami. "Notre Dame's loss is Orange Bowl's loss". The Palm Beach Post. West Palm Beach, Florida. Retrieved February 26, 2023. This is a classic example of the Orange Bowl extending the invitation too early when they could have had the national championship game. The Orange Bowl has done this two years in a row.
  200. 1 2 Written at New York. "Rose Bowl Winner Will be Awarded Erskine Trophy". The Tampa Times. Tamp, Florida. December 26, 1931. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  201. Roberts, Don (January 1, 1932). "Trojans, Tulane Fight for National Crown". Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. Los Angeles. Retrieved February 28, 2023. With the Albert Russell Erskine national football championship at stake, Tulane University's Green Wave today met the University of Southern California Trojans at the Pasadena Rose Bowl.
  202. "Tulane Leads Erskine Voting — Trojans Close Behind". The South Bend Tribune. December 18, 1931. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  203. The Erskine poll's preliminary ballot ranked No. 1 Tulane and No. 2 USC.[202] Rather than hold a final vote, it was decided that the teams would compete for the Albert Russel Erskine Trophy at the Rose Bowl;[200] the trophy was presented to USC on the field following the game.
  204. Written at Chicago. "Irish and Seahawks Pointing for Game — Undefeated Opponents of Saturday Meet in Unofficial National Championship Game at South Bend, Ind". The Knoxville News–Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. Associated Press. November 18, 1943. Retrieved February 20, 2023. The result should establish one or the other definitely as the country's greatest football team—college or service. A crowd of 50,000 is expected to watch this unofficial championship battle at Notre Dame Stadium.
  205. Game of the Year of the Day, 1943: Notre Dame 14, Iowa Pre-Flight 13 " This was college football's national title game in 1943."
  206. Sabo, John N.; Chandler, John F. (December 2, 1944). Written at Baltimore. "75,000 Await Army–Navy Title Clash". Detroit Free Press. Detroit. Detroit Free Press; Associated Press. Retrieved February 20, 2023. ...the big battle for the service championship and, with it, the undisputed National collegiate grid gonfalon for 1944.
  207. On This Date in Sports December 1, 1945: Army-Navy for the Nation "For the second straight season, the fate of the National Championship is on the line in the Army-Navy Game in Philadelphia."
  208. Los Angeles Times "The national championship was at stake - USC was ranked No. 1 and Wisconsin No. 2"
  209. 1 2 3 1979 Sugar Bowl (Television production). Louisiana Superdome: ABC. January 1, 1979. The Game for the National Championship — No. 1 Penn State vs. No. 2 Alabama [...] Bowl Games for the National Championship: 1963 Rose Bowl, 1964 Cotton Bowl, 1969 Rose Bowl, 1972 Orange Bowl
  210. 1 2 3 Jenkins, Dan (December 23, 1968). "Bouquets of Roses for No. 1". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 29, no. 26. Chicago. pp. 22–23. Retrieved March 16, 2016. The nation's two top teams, Ohio State and Southern California, get a rare opportunity to settle which is the best as an entire season of undefeated play comes down to their face-to-face clash in Pasadena.
  211. After the Rose Bowl, USC received the FWAA's Grantland Rice national championship trophy.[13]
  212. Washingtonian "the Middies (Navy) in that year's Army game–an invitation to the Cotton Bowl and a chance to play Texas for the national championship."
  213. After the Cotton Bowl, Texas received the FWAA's Grantland Rice national championship trophy.[13]
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  219. Meyers, Jeff (November 29, 1966). "Notre Dame is No. 1 in final UPI balloting". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). UPI. p. 26.
  220. After the 10–10 tie, Notre Dame and Michigan State retained their No. 1 and No. 2 rankings in the final AP and Coaches Polls.[218][219]
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  222. "A Run for the Roses : O.J. Simpson's 64-Yarder Against UCLA Helped Send USC on to Pasadena and a National Championship". Los Angeles Times. November 19, 1992.
  223. Written at Pasadena, California. "Collegiate Football Title At Stake In Rose Bowl". Palladium–Item. Richmond, Indiana. Associated Press. January 1, 1969. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  224. "State in top billing battle". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. United Press International. December 2, 1969. p. 32. Texas, the nation's No. 1 team, will play Arkansas the No. 3 club, while Penn State, ranked second, waits for either to falter. The UPI national championship will be decided next Tuesday. Ratings are based on regular season performances and do not include post season play.
  225. "Final No. 1". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. United Press International. December 9, 1969. p. 36.
  226. The final Coaches Poll was released prior to the bowl games, in early December.
  227. "College 'Super Bowl' Set Up: Nebraska, Alabama Rank 1–2 in Both Polls". Lincoln Journal Star. Compiled from News Wires. November 30, 1971. Retrieved February 26, 2023. ...college football's version of the Super Bowl. It will take place on New Year's Night in Miami's Orange Bowl when the two leaders clash for the national championship.
  228. 1 2 Written at New York. "Award for top team delayed". The Times-News. Twin Falls, Idaho. United Press International. December 7, 1971. Retrieved March 8, 2023. ...it was decided not to award a championship by ballot but rather to let these teams meet on the field and play for the MacArthur Bowl.
  229. National Football Foundation announced on December 7 that the winner of the Orange Bowl would receive the MacArthur Bowl, and that Nebraska and Alabama would be co-champions in the case of a tie.[228] The trophy was awarded to Nebraska on the field following the game.
  230. Prugh, Jeff (January 1, 1973). "ROSE BOWL COACHES AGREE: Trojans, Bukeyes Battle for No. 1". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 29, 2022. Well, the college football world can stop arguing about who will be No. 1 after today's Rose Bowl game.
  231. 1 2 Written at New York. "Title at Stake in Sugar Bowl". The Kansas City Times. Kansas City, Missouri. Associated Press. December 3, 1973. Retrieved March 8, 2023. "A championship can only truly be settled on the playing field." Richard Kazmaier, chairman of the awards committee, said in announcing that this year the committee would not vote for the MacArthur Bowl winner.
  232. Nissenson, Herschel (December 31, 1973). "In Sugar Bowl Grid Title Decided Tonight". The Palladium–Item. Richmond, Indiana. Associated Press. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
  233. National Football Foundation announced on December 2 that the winner of the Sugar Bowl would receive the MacArthur Bowl, and that Alabama and Notre Dame would be co-champions in the case of a tie.[231]
  234. 1 2 3 Written at New York. "UPI Coaches Select USC No. 1". The Crowly Post–Signal. Crowley, Louisiana. UPI. January 3, 1979. Retrieved February 25, 2023. Alabama, 11–1, toppled previously top-ranked Penn State, 14–7, in the Sugar Bowl game that was billed as the battle for the championship because the Nittany Lions went into the game ranked No. 1 and Alabama was rated No. 2.
  235. Game was billed as the national championship game for both major polls, each ranking Penn State No. 1 and Alabama No. 2.[234] The AP Poll consequently awarded their national championship to the winner.

    Despite the No. 1 vs. No. 2 showdown in their own poll, the Coaches Poll instead selected No. 3 USC (who in September had handed Alabama their only loss of the season) following the bowls.

    After hearing the news a disappointed Bear Bryant stated: "The UPI Board of Coaches demonstrated a lack of consistency with this vote, as their No. 1 and No. 2 teams played in what the vast majority of the nation viewed as their national championship game."[234]
  236. Written at Dallas. "Mustangs Not Counting Out National Title Bid". The Times Recorder. Zanesville, Ohio. Associated Press. January 1, 1983. Retrieved February 20, 2023. No. 1–ranked unbeaten and untied Georgia and No. 2–ranked once-beaten Penn State meet in the Sugar Bowl New Year's night for what is being billed as "the national championship game."
  237. 1 2 1984 Orange Bowl (Television production). Miami Orange Bowl: NBC. January 2, 1984. Orange Bowl Next — For the National Championship — #4 Miami vs #1 Nebraska
  238. Nissenson, Herschel (December 16, 1984). "Who's No. 1? The controversy abounds". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Associated Press. Retrieved October 24, 2022. Brigham Young's opponents as a group have a losing record; how can a team like that be the national champion?" said Nick Crane, chairman of the team selection committee. "As far as the Orange Bowl is concerned, we think ours is a national championship game (between No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 4 Washington).
  239. Gastineau, Mike. Fear No Man: Don James, the '91 Huskies, and the Seven-year Quest for a National Football Championship. University of Washington Press. p. 7.
  240. No. 1 Brigham Young won the Holiday Bowl on December 21. No. 3 Florida would not play in a bowl game due to NCAA sanctions.
  241. Davis, Ken (January 1, 1986). Written at Miami. "Numbers Game Comes Down To One-on-One". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Connecticut. Retrieved February 20, 2023. In the minds of most people, tonight's Orange Bowl game between No. 1 Penn State and No. 3 Oklahoma will decide the national championship. ... here in sunny and warm Miami everyone is calling the Orange Bowl the national championship game.
  242. 1 2 Wine, Steven (January 2, 1989). Written at Miami. "'Canes need big win to have shot". The Times–News. Twin Falls, Idaho. Associated Press. Retrieved February 19, 2023. Monday afternoon's Fiesta Bowl between No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 3 West Virginia, both 11–0, is billed as the national championship game.
  243. Winner would be the season's only undefeated team; one-loss No. 2 Miami held out slim hope to be voted No. 1 in the case of a West Virginia win.[242]
  244. No. 2 Penn State won the Rose Bowl.
  245. 1998 Orange Bowl (Television production). Miami Orange Bowl: CBS. January 2, 1998. Also here, commissioner of the Big-12 conference, Steve Hatchell to present the Alliance trophy.
  246. 1 2 3 4 5 Rosenblatt, Richard (December 8, 1997). "Bowl Alliance hopes for best: Without Michigan, Orange Bowl cheers for Washington State". The Daily News–Journal. Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Associated Press. Retrieved October 31, 2022. We're billing this as the alliance national championship, which it is. Obviously if Michigan loses, it becomes the national championship. If they win, we're hoping for a split in the polls.
  247. No. 2 Arizona State lost the Rose Bowl on January 1, making the January 2 Sugar Bowl a true national championship game.[246]
  248. No. 1 Michigan won the Rose Bowl and would be voted national champions by the AP Poll. Lacking the No. 1 team, the Orange Bowl was billed as the "Alliance National Championship".[246]
  249. Wieberg, Steve. "New Harris poll to replace AP in BCS formula". USA Today Sports. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  250. 1 2 Coyne, Tom (December 30, 2012). Written at South Bend, Indiana. "National titles: Who decides? Mostly, the schools". Hattiesburg American. Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Associated Press. Retrieved November 1, 2022. No wonder "mythical" is the word that often precedes national title. "There is no official standard because there is no official national champion," said Kent Stephens, historian at the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend. "It all depends on the standard the school wishes to utilize. The national champion is in the eye of the beholder."
  251. "Utes Finish No. 2 in AP Rankings" (Press release). Salt Lake City: University of Utah. January 9, 2009. Retrieved August 8, 2022. On Not Finishing No. 1 – "While there is certainly some disappointment about not finishing No. 1, we prefer to look on the positive side."
  252. "Princeton Football National Championships". Go Princeton Tigers. Princeton University. Archived from the original on February 4, 2018. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  253. Conn, Steve (2009). 2009 Yale Football Media Guide (PDF). Yale University. pp. 106–112. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  254. "Yale Official Athletic Site – Football by Year". Archived from the original on September 12, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  255. Maxon, Josh; Moore, Cami; Paré, Jessica; Thompson, Alex (2021). 2021 Alabama Football Media Guide (PDF). University of Alabama. pp. 3, 108–128. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 28, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022. National Championships – 18 – 1925, 1926, 1930, 1934, 1941, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1973, 1978, 1979, 1992, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2020
  256. Eisendrath, Zach; Satterfield, Derek, eds. (2014). 2014 University of Michigan Football Media Guide (PDF). University of Michigan. pp. 2, 183. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  257. Michigan Stadium scoreboard National Champions 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1918, 1923, 1932, 1933, 1947, 1948, 1997 (Stadium Sign). Michigan Stadium: University of Michigan. November 24, 2001. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  258. Bertsch, Michael; Masters, Chris; Torbin, Leigh (2014). Notre Dame Football 2014 Media Guide. University of Notre Dame. pp. 2, 157. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  259. Notre Dame Fighting Irish football National Champions 1924, 1929, 1930, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1966, 1973, 1977, 1988 (Stadium Sign). Notre Dame Stadium locker room: University of Notre Dame. 2014. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  260. "NCAA University of Southern California Public Infractions Report" (PDF). Indianapolis: National Collegiate Athletic Association. June 10, 2010. p. 58. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 7, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  261. USC Sports Information Office (2014). 2014 USC Football Media Guide (PDF). University of Southern California. p. 114. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  262. USC Trojans National Champions 1928, 1931, 1932, 1939, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1974, 1978, 2003, 2004 (Stadium Sign). Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: University of Southern California. October 24, 2009. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  263. Borghetti, E.J.; Feeley, Ted; Welsh, Celeste; et al., eds. (2014). 2014 Pitt Football Media Guide (PDF). Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh. p. 130. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 30, 2018. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  264. Pitt Football Nine-Time National Champions (Stadium Sign). Heinz Field: University of Pittsburgh. 2009. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  265. "Ohio State Football Championship Teams & National Award Winners" (PDF). The Ohio State University Department of Athletics. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 12, 2022. Retrieved March 12, 2022. Ohio State's National Champion Teams: 2014, 2002, 1970, 1968, 1961, 1957, 1954, 1942
  266. Ohio State Buckeyes football National Champions 1942, 1954, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1970, 2002, 2014 (Stadium Sign). Ohio Stadium: Ohio State University. 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  267. "Media Center: Harvard Crimson Football – National Championships". Official Website of Harvard Athletics. Harvard University. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  268. Harvard Crimson football National Champions 1890, 1898, 1899, 1910, 1912, 1913, 1919 (Stadium Sign). Harvard Stadium: Harvard University. 2004. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
  269. "Golden Gophers National Champions – University of Minnesota Athletics". University of Minnesota Athletics Department. Archived from the original on December 15, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  270. Minnesota Golden Gophers football National Championships 1904, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1940, 1941, 1960 (Stadium Sign). Huntington Bank Stadium: University of Minnesota. 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  271. "OU History & Tradition – 7 National Championships". SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Department of Intercollegiate Athletics. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  272. University of Oklahoma National Champions 1950, 1955, 1956, 1974, 1975, 1985, 2000 (Stadium Sign). Memorial Stadium: University of Oklahoma. 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  273. Cunha, Steve (September 14, 2021). 2021 Penn Football Fact Book (PDF). University of Pennsylvania Office of Athletic Communications. pp. 6, 60–61. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 10, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022. Seven-Time National Champions
  274. "National Champions - Michigan State University Athletics". msuspartans.com. Michigan State Athletics. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  275. Michigan State Spartans football 6 National Championships 1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1965, 1966 (Stadium Sign). Spartan Stadium: Michigan State University. 2013. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  276. "Tennessee National Championships — Football (6) — 1938, 1940, 1950, 1951, 1967, 1998". University of Tennessee Athletics. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  277. Tennessee Volunteers football National Champions 1938, 1940, 1950, 1951, 1967, 1998 (Stadium Sign). Neyland Stadium: University of Tennessee. 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
  278. "Cal National Champions — National Team Champions — Football (5)". Cal Athletics. April 17, 2013. Archived from the original on July 3, 2016. Retrieved May 1, 2023. 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1937
  279. Over a Century of Tradition (PDF). Cornell Athletics Communications Office. 2015. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  280. Cornell University — Football Champions — 1915, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1939 (Trophies). Schoellkopf Field: Cornell University. August 17, 2015. Archived from the original on October 7, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  281. Brown, Kent, ed. (2014). 2014 Illinois Football Record Book (PDF). University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics. p. 114. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 15, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  282. Illinois Fighting Illini football National Champions 1914, 1919, 1923, 1927, 1951 (Stadium Sign). Memorial Stadium: University of Illinois. 2013. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  283. 2022 Iowa Football Media Guide (PDF). University of Iowa Athletic Department. 2022. pp. 2, 151, 196, 202. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 4, 2022. Retrieved August 7, 2022. Iowa Quick Facts – National Champions: 1921, 1922, 1956, 1958, 1960 | the Hawkeyes were named national champions by the Football Writers Association in 1958, and by various rating services in 1921, 1922, 1956, and 1960. | Mythical National Champions – Iowa football has been voted mythical national champions by different media services on five occasions. 1921, 1922, 1956, 1958, 1960
  284. "Hurricanes Football History & Records". University of Miami Athletics. Archived from the original on November 2, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  285. Miami Hurricanes football National Champions 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991, 2001 (Stadium Sign). Orange Bowl: University of Miami. 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  286. "Nebraska's Five National Titles". University of Nebraska Athletic Department. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  287. Nebraska Cornhuskers football National Champions 1970, 1971, 1994, 1995, 1997 (Stadium Sign). Memorial Stadium: University of Nebraska. 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  288. "Georgia National Championships — Football (4) — 1942, 1980, 2021, 2022". georgiadogs.com. Archived from the original on April 16, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023. The 1927, 1946, 1968 teams were also recognized as National Champions but these were not consensus and thus not officially recognized as National Championships.
  289. Georgia Bulldogs football National Champions 1942, 1980, 2021, 2022 (Stadium Sign). Sanford Stadium: University of Georgia. 2023. Archived from the original on April 16, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023.{{cite sign}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  290. "2018 Information Guide" (PDF). ramblinwreck.com. Georgia Tech Athletics. pp. 149–150. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 25, 2018. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  291. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football National Champions 1917, 1928, 1952, 1990 (Stadium Sign). Bobby Dodd Stadium: Georgia Institute of Technology. 2004. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  292. Bonnette, Michael, ed. (2014). 2014 LSU Football Media Guide (PDF). LSU Sports Information Office. pp. 16–18. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  293. LSU Tigers football National Champions 1958, 2003, 2007, 2019 (Stadium Sign). Tiger Stadium: Louisiana State University. 2021. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  294. Bianco, John (2014). 2014 Texas Football AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl Guide (PDF). University of Texas at Austin. p. 120. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  295. Texas Longhorns football National Champions '63, '69, '70, '05 (Stadium Sign). Texas Memorial Stadium: University of Texas. 2010. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  296. Faulkner, Matt, ed. (2014). 2014 Army Football Media Guide. U.S. Military Academy Office of Athletic Communications. p. 126. Archived from the original on March 19, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  297. Army football National Champions '44, '45, '46 (Stadium Sign). Michie Stadium: United States Military Academy. 2012. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  298. "Clemson National Champions 1981 | 2016 | 2018" (PDF). Clemson University. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 12, 2022. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  299. Clemson Tigers football: 1981, 2016, 2018 (Stadium Sign). Memorial Stadium: Clemson University. 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  300. "GatorZone.com: Gator Football History". University Athletic Association. Archived from the original on May 6, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  301. Florida Gators football National Champions 1996, 2006, 2008 (Stadium Sign). Ben Hill Griffin Stadium: University of Florida. 2009. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  302. "2018 Media Guide" (PDF). seminoles.com. Florida State Athletics. pp. 183–184. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 2, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  303. Florida State Seminoles football National Champions 1993, 1999, 2013 (Stadium Sign). Doak Campbell Stadium: Florida State University. 2017. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  304. LaBella, Phil (2014). 2014 Lafayette Football Media Guide (PDF). Lafayette Athletics Communications. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 22, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  305. Ole Miss Rebels football National Champions '59, '60, '62 (Stadium Sign). Vaught–Hemingway Stadium: University of Mississippi. 2017. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  306. Olsen, Lindsey; Sutton, Brad; Hudson, Herman, eds. (2022). 2022 SMU Football Media Guide (PDF). Southern Methodist University Athletics. pp. 1, 96, 113. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 17, 2023. Retrieved April 17, 2023. National Championships: 3 (1935, 1981 & 1982)
  307. "2018 Media Guide" (PDF). 12thman.com. Texas A&M Athletics. pp. 45–47. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018.
  308. Texas A&M Aggies football National Champions 1919, 1927, 1939 (Stadium Sign). Kyle Field: Texas A&M University. 2012. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  309. "Auburn National Championships". Auburn University Athletics. 2019. Archived from the original on March 6, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022. 2 - Football: 2010, 1957
  310. Auburn Tigers National Champions 1957 2010 (Stadium Sign). Jordan-Hare Stadium: Auburn University. 2018. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  311. "Feature Story: Chicago Football Eras". University of Chicago Campus and Student Life. October 8, 2012. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  312. 1 2 "Columbia Football 2021 Record Book" (PDF). Columbia University Athletics. pp. 240–241, 244. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 9, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2022. Columbia has claimed two mythical national championships: in 1875 and 1933. The 1875 team went 4-1-1 and was named national champions, while the 1933 squad defeated Stanford and was referred to as a national champ.
  313. "Championship History - Penn State University Athletics". Pennsylvania State Athletics. Archived from the original on December 15, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  314. Penn State Nittany Lions football honored seasons, including 1982 and 1986 national championships (Stadium Sign). Beaver Stadium: Pennsylvania State University. 2007. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  315. "Stanford Football History". Stanford University Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on April 11, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  316. Swegan, Scott; Lowery, Nate (2021). 2021 Stanford Football Media Guide (PDF). Stanford University Athletic Communications Department. p. 76. Retrieved March 18, 2022. National Championships – 1926, 1940
    The 1926 team was declared national champions by the Dickinson System, Helms Athletic Foundation, National Championship Foundation and Sagarin Ratings. Although Minnesota was declared national champions in the final 1940 Associated Press Poll, which was the best-known and most widely circulated poll of sportswriters and broadcasters in determining the national champion, Stanford was recognized as national champions by the Billingsley Report, Helms Athletic Foundation and Poling System.
  317. Cohen, Mark (2014). 2014 TCU Football Fact Book. TCU Athletics Media Relations Office. pp. 2, 129. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  318. TCU Horned Frogs football National Champions 1935, 1938 (Stadium Sign). Amon G. Carter Stadium: Texas Christian University. 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  319. Washington Huskies football National Champions 1960, 1991 (Stadium Sign). Husky Stadium: University of Washington. 2007. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  320. Parkinson, Kyle; Grigg, Oliver; Tafolla, Grace, eds. (2022). "1964 National Champions". Arkansas Razorbacks 2022 Media Guide (PDF). University of Arkansas and Learfield. pp. 4, 114. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
  321. Oslin, Reid (November 10, 2015). "The 1940 Team of Destiny". bceagles.com. Boston College Athletics. Retrieved June 1, 2022. Boston College, Minnesota and Stanford were all crowned as "National Champions" by various media outlets – and each school has a case for the right to fly the 1940 championship banner. In the East and South, sentiment was strong in favor of the Eagles: the sports editor of the New York Herald Tribune wrote that the victory over Tennessee "entitled Boston College to be the undefeated champions of the United States." Twenty-five years after the Sugar Bowl game, in 1966, The Boston Globe sponsored a gala downtown honoring the declared 1940 National Champions. [...] But now – 75 years later – let's all raise our glasses and our voices to a National Championship pennant that can fly proudly and rightfully in Chestnut Hill.
  322. Harris, Otis (December 2, 1940). "As we were saying". The Shreveport Journal. Vol. 44, no. 285. Shreveport, Louisiana. p. 14. Retrieved March 5, 2023 via Newspapers.com. [T]he game will come closer than any other that will be played to identifying the national champion.
  323. Digby, Fred (January 1, 1941). "The Game Today". Seventh Annual Sugar Bowl Classic Souvenir Program. pp. 27, 71. Retrieved March 5, 2023 via Digital Public Library of America. Each will be out to the limit in speed, stamina and spirit to capture the honors in this classic which could rightfully be heralded as for the national football championship.
  324. Written at New Orleans. "Boston College homebound after joyous celebration in New Orleans following Sugar Bowl win". The Shreveport Times. Vol. LXVIII, no. 213. Shreveport, Louisiana. January 3, 1941. p. 10. Retrieved March 5, 2023 via Newspapers.com. 'The Eagles not only earned the national championship but they proved the greatest team ever to play in the Sugar Bowl,' said Fred Digby of the New Orleans Item.
  325. "Boston College Football 2021 Record Book" (PDF). Boston College Athletics Department. 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 5, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2022. 1940 — An undefeated (11-0) season, capped by the Sugar Bowl championship and the claim of a national championship made this arguably the greatest season in Eagle football annals. [...] On Jan. 1, the Eagles would lay claim to the national championship with a 19-13 victory over Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl.
  326. "1984 National Championship". BYUCougars.com: The Official Site of Brigham Young Athletics. 2011. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  327. BYU Cougars football 1984 National Champions (Stadium Sign). LaVell Edwards Stadium: Brigham Young University. 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  328. "Centre College to be inducted into Kentucky Pro Football Hall of Fame". January 1, 2014. Archived from the original on December 16, 2018. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
  329. "1990 National Champions". CUBuffs.com. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
  330. Colorado Buffaloes football 1990 National Champions (Stadium Sign). Folsom Field: University of Colorado. 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  331. "Dartmouth — National Champions (Teams) — Football — 1925". Dartmouth College Athletics. September 27, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
  332. "Detroit Titans Football". University of Detroit Mercy Athletics. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022. The undefeated 1928 U-D squad was deemed a Co-national champion, along with Georgia Tech, by Parker [sic] Davis.
  333. "2015 Football Media Guide". University of Kentucky Athletics. August 2015. p. 100. Archived from the original on August 6, 2015. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  334. "Terrapin Team Titles: University of Maryland National Championships". Maryland Athletics, University of Maryland. 2015. Archived from the original on October 10, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  335. Maryland Terrapins football National Championships 1953 (Stadium Sign). Maryland Stadium: University of Maryland. 2015. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  336. 2021 Navy Football Media Guide (PDF). Naval Academy Athletic Association. 2021. pp. 8–9. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 21, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2022. In today's modern era, three undefeated teams with nearly identical records would cause a stir among fans and pollsters alike. This was the case when Navy earned its lone national championship in 1926, as the Midshipmen shared the honor with Stanford and Alabama.
    A 7-7 tie between Alabama and Stanford in the 1926 Rose Bowl gave the Cardinal a 10-0-1 mark, while the Crimson Tide and the Mids each had identical 9-0-1 records.
    The [Army–Navy Game] tie gave the Midshipmen a share of the national championship, as a pair of polls (sic), Boand and Houlgate, named Navy the national champion.
  337. "AFCA Recognizes Oklahoma State as 1945 National Champion". October 13, 2016. Archived from the original on March 12, 2022. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  338. Oklahoma State 1945 National Champions (Stadium Sign). Boone Pickens Stadium: Oklahoma State University. 2019. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  339. "National Championships". Rutgers University Athletics. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  340. Edson, Sue Cornelius, ed. (2014). 2014 Syracuse University Football Media Guide (PDF). Syracuse University Athletic Communications Department. pp. 6, 107. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  341. Syracuse Orange football National Champions 1959 (Stadium Banner). Carrier Dome: Syracuse University. 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  342. "2018 Football Media Guide" (PDF). UCFKnights.com. UCF Athletics. p. 89. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 22, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  343. UCF Knights 2017 National Champions (Stadium Sign). Spectrum Stadium: University of Central Florida. 2018. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
  344. 2014 UCLA Football Media Guide (PDF). UCLA Sports Information Office. 2014. pp. 90, 108. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  345. UCLA National Champions 1954 (Stadium Sign). Rose Bowl press box: University of California, Los Angeles. September 1, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  346. This table uses the same sources as those listed in the Claims by school table above.
  347. Koger, Jim (1970). "The history of the National Intercollegiate Football Championship ... 1900–1969". National Champions. Columbus, Georgia: Atlantic Publishing Company. 1903: Michigan, Minnesota, Princeton | 1913: Chicago, Harvard, Notre Dame
  348. "Yale's was the best football eleven". Harrisburg Star-Independent. December 31, 1904. p. 4. Retrieved June 1, 2022 via Newspapers.com.
  349. Libby, Bill (1975). Champions of College Football. Hawthorne Books, Inc. pp. 11–14. ISBN 0-8015-1196-8.
  350. "World Almanac Selections". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on March 15, 2016. Retrieved May 20, 2022. Data created by: World Almanac
  351. "Football, Intercollegiate Season, 1914.". The World Almanac (1915). 1915. p. 865.
  352. "Alexander Weyand Selections". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on March 24, 2016. Retrieved May 20, 2022. Data created by: Alexander M. Weyand — Data obtained from: "The Real National Champions"
  353. Weyand, Alexander M. (1926). American Football, Its History and Development. New York: D. Appleton and Company. p. 278. Harvard and the Army Powerful, 1914 | Although the Army was the only one of the larger teams to win all games, the majority of the critics favored Harvard for the championship. (Note: The author, Alexander Weyand, was an All-American player on the Army team in 1914.)
  354. "SR 8715 — Honoring the 99th Anniversary of the National Champion 1915 Washington State College Football Team". Resolution of March 7, 2014. Washington State Senate.
  355. Weyand, Alexander M. (1926). American Football, Its History and Development. New York: D. Appleton and Company. p. 321. 1917 The famous 'Golden Tornado' of Georgia 'Tech.' coached by John W. Heisman (Pennsylvania) gained national recognition through the overwhelming defeat of Pennsylvania, and was entitled to rank with Pittsburgh as the best in the nation.
  356. Weyand, Alexander M. (1926). American Football, Its History and Development. New York: D. Appleton and Company. p. 381. Undoubtedly the most spectacular team was Notre Dame, ranked by some critics as the strongest team in the country at the close of the season.
  357. Wood, Frank E. (December 4, 1929). "National Football Standings: Utah, Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Tulane". Somerset Daily Herald. Central Press Association. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  358. Wood, Frank E. (December 8, 1931). "Tulane Is National Champion, Wood Says". Wisconsin State Journal. Central Press. Retrieved February 28, 2023. Tulane University, the pride of the south, is gridiron champion of the United States, the national football standings show.
  359. Levandusky, J. F. (January 11, 1935). "Here's a little incident that happened after the Rose Bowl game". Waukegan News-Sun. Waukegan, Illinois. Retrieved January 31, 2023. Last year Stanford was [Houlgate's] choice and the presentation of the trophy was scheduled to take place after the Alabama–Stanford battle.
  360. "Massey Ratings (1930–1998)". MasseyRatings.com. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  361. Michelson, Paul (November 30, 1936). Written at New York. "Gridiron Hits Dizziest Year; Bearcats Win Title". Arizona Republic. Phoenix, AZ. Associated Press. p. 11. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  362. Written at New York. "Mathematically St. Vincent Champion". The Indiana Gazette. Indiana, PA. Associated Press. December 1, 1936. p. 6. Retrieved July 1, 2023. the St. Vincent College Bearcats of Latrobe, Pa., are the undisputed national champions: By arithmetic
  363. "Houlgate Lists Tulane First". Chattanooga Daily Times. December 17, 1939. Retrieved August 12, 2023. Final ratings: 1. Tulane, B, 36
  364. Baker, Dr. L. H. (1945). "The Nation's Leading Teams, 1869–1944 | College and Service Teams' 1944 Ratings and Ranks (Compiled by Dr. L. H. Baker)". Football: Facts & Figures. New York: Farrar & Rinehart. pp. 644–645. No. 1 Randolph Field 958, No. 2 Army 951 — The ratings listed here have been computed by a method devised by the author. It consists of a combination of a modification of the Dickinson method plus one used by the author for several years. This combination has proved highly accurate.
  365. "Washington Touchdown Club Selections". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on March 15, 2016. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  366. 1 2 3 "DC Touchdown Club Award Winners". DC Touchdown Club. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  367. "NATIONAL CHAMPS — Auburn wins Trib national crown". The Eufaula Tribune. Eufaula, Alabama. January 5, 2005. Archived from the original on August 30, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2023. Auburn received all six first place votes in The Eufaula Tribune's post season football poll, making them national champions.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  368. Strege, John (December 29, 2016). "Former Auburn football coach still thrilled that Tigers were Golf Digest's mythical national champions". Golf Digest. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  369. Szvetitz, Mike (January 27, 2005). Written at Auburn, Alabama. "Auburn University football team awarded People's Championship". Opelika-Auburn News. Opelika, Alabama. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  370. "2010 Foundation for the Analysis of Competitions and Tournaments Selections ("FACT")". Archived from the original on September 30, 2011. Retrieved May 17, 2022. 1 Auburn — 72.49 — Co-Champion* | 2 Oregon — 71.42 — Co-Champion* | *David Rothman wrote: "Teams within 1.8 points of the leader automatically share FACT's title. Any other teams within 3.0 points of the leader share at my discretion."
  371. "2014 Foundation for the Analysis of Competitions and Tournaments Selections ("FACT")". Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved July 10, 2022. 1 Ohio State — 81.81 — FACT Cochampion* | 2 Oregon — 80.67 — FACT Cochampion* | 3 Alabama – 79.45 – FACT Cochampion* | 4 TCU – 79.35 – FACT Cochampion* | *David Rothman wrote: "Teams within 1.8 points of the leader automatically share FACT's title. Any other teams within 3.0 points of the leader share at my discretion."
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