2001 NCAA Division I-A football season

American college football season August 2021 December 2025 November 2008 2001 Rosebowl.JPG The Rose Bowl stadium was the site of the BCS National Championship Game for the 2001 season. 117http://www.jhowell.net/cf/cf2001.htm 2001 NCAA Division IA Football Power Ratings Florida 25 December 18, 2001 January 3, 2002 Bowl Championship Series 2002 Rose Bowl Rose Bowl Stadium,Pasadena, California Miami (FL) Nebraska quarterback Eric Crouch The 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season was the first college football season of the 21st century. It ended with the University of Miami winning the national title for the fifth time. The Hurricanes were led by Larry Coker, who was in his first year as head coach after five years as Miami's offensive coordinator under Butch Davis and became the first head coach since 1989's Dennis Erickson from the University of Miami to win a national title in his first season. Coker had the benefit of inheriting a star-studded program that Davis had rebuilt in the aftermath of NCAA sanctions in the mid-to-late '90s. Miami completed a perfect 12–0 season, which culminated in a 37–14 win over Nebraska in the Rose Bowl BCS National Championship Game. In yet another controversial season for the BCS, (AP) No. 4 Nebraska was chosen as the national title opponent despite not having even played in the Big 12 championship game. The Huskers went into their last regularly scheduled game at Colorado undefeated, but left Boulder having lost the game by a score of 62–36. The Buffaloes went on to win the Big 12 championship game. The BCS computers, among other things, didn't weigh later games any more heavily than earlier games, and one-loss Nebraska came out ahead of two-loss No. 3 Colorado and one-loss, No. 2 Oregon. Some fans chanted "number 4" at the title game held at the Rose Bowl. Florida State did not win the ACC championship for the first time since joining the conference in 1991, losing out to Maryland. Steve Spurrier left the Florida Gators at the end of the season to coach the Washington Redskins, accepting what was then the largest salary for an NFL head coach. The season had one of the more competitive Heisman Trophy races with Eric Crouch of Nebraska winning by only a small margin over Rex Grossman of Florida. All of the five finalists played the quarterback position. Two of the finalists were coached at some point by Oregon offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford. Indiana quarterback Antwaan Randle El earned first-team All-America honors from the FWAA after becoming the first NCAA Division I-A quarterback to throw for 40 touchdowns and rush for 40 touchdowns in a career. He also became the first player in NCAA I-A history to record 2,500 total yards from scrimmage in four consecutive seasons. Joe Paterno needed just 2 victories to pass legendary Alabama Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant as the winningest coach in Division I-A college football, However, after the Nittany Lions started the season 0–4 it looked like Bear Bryant's record would remain intact for at least 1 more year. After a 20–0 drubbing Penn State took against Michigan at home on Oct 6, the Nittany Lions were a dismal 1–6 since Paterno notched his 321st coaching win on October 28, 2000.https://www.thelantern.com/2001/10/nothing-easy-about-win-no-324/ Nothing easy about win No. 324 Estle Sarah ONeil Dave The Lantern October 28, 2001 en-US July 13, 2019 At Northwestern on October 20, the Lions lost a late 31–28 lead to fall behind 35–31 with two minutes to go. With their starting quarterback, Matt Senneca, out with an injury, Penn State put its collective hopes on the shoulders of redshirt freshman quarterback Zack Mills. Mills drove the Lions 69 yards in 1:41, leading Penn State to its first victory of the year by a 38–35 margin. The victory gave Paterno 323 career wins, tying Bear Bryant's record.https://www.pennlive.com/patriotnewssports/2009/10/penn_state_vs_northwestern_the.html Penn State vs. Northwestern: The last 10 meetings Patriot-News The October 30, 2009 pennlive.com en-US July 13, 2019 A week later, Penn State hosted Ohio State, who held on to a small lead for most of the game until the Buckeyes started to pull away with a 27–9 lead following a 44-yard interception return for a touchdown by Derek Ross in the third quarter. Penn State would fight back with a 69-yard touchdown run by Mills and a 26-yard pass to Tony Johnson to cut the lead to 27–22, and they would take the lead early in the fourth quarter with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Eric McCoo.https://www.espn.com/college-football/game?gameId=213000213 Ohio State vs. Penn State – Game Summary – October 27, 2001 – ESPN ESPN.com en July 13, 2019 Penn State's 29–27 win moved Paterno in to first place on the all-time coaching victories list with 324 wins. He would later slip behind Bobby Bowden at Florida State, but he would relinquish the top spot a few years later. Paterno remains the winningest coach in Division I-A college football with a final record of 409–136–3.https://www.deseret.com/2001/10/28/19613845/paterno-passes-the-bear/ Paterno passes the Bear October 28, 2001 DeseretNews.com en July 13, 2019 The newly formed Boise State/Fresno State rivalry would be a major factor in the race to be the "BCS buster" for several seasons. Both teams ultimately lost the race to Utah, who became the first to bust the BCS in 2004, and the first to make a second trip in 2008. The Aloha Bowl and Oahu Bowl lost funding after Chrysler Corporation, which owned the former bowl's sponsor of Jeep, was acquired by Daimler-Benz and became DaimlerChrysler. The Aloha Bowl moved to Seattle and became the Seattle Bowl. The New Orleans Bowl was first held, the host team being the Sun Belt Conference champion. End of season upsets and BCS drama The final three weeks of the regular season saw an incredible amount of drama as several teams were in prime position to earn their way to the national championship game in the Rose Bowl. For most of November, Miami and Nebraska were the only two undefeated teams in the power conferences and clearly the top contenders for the title. But on November 23, the day after Thanksgiving, Nebraska suffered a devastating 62–36 loss to Colorado which seemingly caused their season to fall by the wayside. Conference rival Oklahoma had been ranked third behind Nebraska and Miami in the BCS standings, but the Sooners' hopes dissolved the next day when they were upset at home by Oklahoma State 16–13. These losses affected not only the national championship race but also the Big 12 standings, as the conference championship game would now feature Texas and Colorado instead of the expected Nebraska-Oklahoma matchup. Miami, Florida, and Texas now held the top three spots in the BCS standings heading into their games on December 1, but all three teams would be pushed to the brink in a single thrilling day. Miami barely escaped Virginia Tech 26–24 to finish as the only undefeated team in the nation and clinch a Rose Bowl berth. However, the other clubs were not so fortunate. Florida lost 34–32 to Tennessee in Gainesville; as with Nebraska and Oklahoma, the loss not only ended the Gators' national championship dreams but also kept them out of the conference title game. Later that evening, Texas entered the Big 12 finals against Colorado in prime time television knowing that a win would almost certainly seal their spot in the Rose Bowl, but the Longhorns fell 39–37 in yet another nailbiter. After their victory over Florida, Tennessee stepped into the number two spot going into the following week's SEC Championship against LSU. However, the Volunteers felt the same sting that Nebraska, Oklahoma, Florida, and Texas had all encountered the previous few weeks. After a 31–20 upset by the Tigers, Tennessee's hopes of National Championship appearance were gone as quickly as they had come. Miami was left at the top of all the polls, and the debate began about who deserved to play in the Rose Bowl. Many felt Colorado was the hottest team in the country after dismantling Nebraska and then beating the Longhorns in the Big 12 title game, but their two losses at the beginning of the year were tough to ignore. Others felt Oregon deserved the honor, being ranked in both the AP and Coaches' Polls as the number two team in the country. Ultimately, after all of the upsets, Nebraska ended up as the number two team in the BCS, despite being the team whose loss started all of the drama three weeks earlier. Rules changes The NCAA Rules Committee adopted the following rules changes for the 2001 season: Charged team time-outs are reduced to 30 seconds if the team taking the time-out requests it. Otherwise, team time-outs are 90 seconds in length. Eliminated TV/Radio time-outs during overtime periods. All penalties committed by the offense behind the neutral zone are enforced from the previous spot, completely repealing the 1991 rule that enforced offensive holding, clipping, and illegal use of hands occurring behind the line from the spot of the foul. Stopping the clock once a runner's helmet comes off. Runners are exempt from being called for hurdling. Roughing the passer penalties committed during a two-point conversion will be assessed on the ensuing kickoff or, if committed during overtime, on the succeeding spot. Guidelines for officials on lightning-related game issues are included in the rulebook. Conference and program changes One team upgraded from Division I-AA, thus increasing the number of Division I-A schools from 116 to 117. The Big West Conference stopped sponsoring football after the 2000 season. Its remaining football-playing members departed for the WAC, the Sun Belt (see below), or independence: Boise State joined the WAC Utah State opted to become an Independent. The Sun Belt Conference, previously a non-football conference, began sponsoring football during the 2001 season, absorbing many of the Big West's former members. Arkansas State, New Mexico State and North Texas joined from the Big West. Idaho joined the Sun Belt as a football-only member Louisiana–Lafayette, Louisiana–Monroe, and Middle Tennessee joined after playing as independents. TCU joined Conference USA from the Western Athletic Conference Louisiana Tech joined the Western Athletic Conference after five years as an independent. Two teams joined Division I-A football this season: South Florida and Troy State. School 2000 Conference 2001 Conference Arkansas State Indians Big West Sun Belt Boise State Broncos Big West WAC Idaho Vandals Big West Sun Belt Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns I-A Independent Sun Belt Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks I-A Independent Sun BeltLouisiana Tech BulldogsI-A IndependentWAC Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders I-A Independent Sun Belt New Mexico State Aggies Big West Sun Belt North Texas Mean Green Big West Sun BeltSouth Florida BullsI-AA IndependentI-A IndependentTCU Horned FrogsWACConference USA Troy State Trojans I-AA Independent I-A Independent Utah State Aggies Big West I-A Independent Regular season August–September The preseason AP Poll was led by Florida at No. 1 and Miami at No. 2, followed by three consecutive Big 12 teams: defending champion Oklahoma at No. 3, Nebraska at No. 4, and Texas at No. 5. August 25: No. 3 Oklahoma defeated North Carolina 41-27 in the Hispanic College Fund Football Classic, while No. 4 Nebraska beat Texas Christian 21-7 in the Pigskin Classic. The other leading teams had not yet begun their schedules, and the top five remained the same in the next poll. September 1: All of the top five teams won easily: No. 1 Florida defeated Marshall 49-14, No. 2 Miami won 33-7 at Penn State, No. 3 Oklahoma visited Air Force for a 44-3 victory, No. 4 Nebraska beat Troy State 42-14, and No. 5 Texas won 41-7 over New Mexico State. Miami moved to the top of the next AP Poll: No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Texas, and No. 5 Nebraska. Florida held onto the top spot in the Coaches Poll. September 8: The top teams continued to dominate their opponents. No. 1 Miami shut out Rutgers 61-0, No. 2 Florida beat Louisiana-Monroe 55-6, No. 3 Oklahoma defeated North Texas 37-10, No. 4 Texas won 44-14 over North Carolina, and No. 5 Nebraska was a 27-10 winner over No. 17 Notre Dame. Miami now held the No. 1 spot in both polls, followed in the AP rankings by No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Texas. Games scheduled for September 15 were postponed due to the terrorist attacks four days earlier. One of the affected games was a SEC matchup between No. 2 Florida and No. 8 Tennessee, which was rescheduled for early December and ended up having a major effect on the national championship picture. September 20-22: No. 1 Miami was idle. No. 2 Florida belatedly opened conference play with a 44-10 win at Kentucky. No. 3 Oklahoma was also idle. No. 4 Nebraska breezed past Rice 48-3, and No. 5 Texas won 53-26 at Houston. The top five remained the same in the next AP Poll. September 27-29: No. 1 Miami visited Pittsburgh for a 43-21 win. No. 2 Florida blanked No. 21 Mississippi State 52-0. No. 3 Oklahoma nearly blew a 21-point second-half lead but held on for a 38-37 nailbiter over No. 11 Kansas State. No. 4 Nebraska won 36-3 at Missouri, and No. 5 Texas beat Texas Tech 42-7. The top five again remained the same. October October 6: No. 1 Miami beat Troy State 38-7, but the AP voters were more impressed by No. 2 Florida’s 44-15 defeat of No. 18 LSU. No. 3 Oklahoma squared off against No. 5 Texas in the Red River Shootout, and the Longhorns were kept out of the end zone in a 14-3 Sooners win. No. 4 Nebraska won 48-14 over Iowa State, and No. 7 Oregon blasted Arizona 63-28. The next AP Poll featured No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Oregon, with Miami retaining first place in the Coaches Poll. October 13: No. 1 Florida fell 23-20 to Auburn on a Tigers field goal with time running out. The rivalry between No. 2 Miami and No. 14 Florida State often produced nail-biting finishes, but this time the Hurricanes pulled away in the second half on their way to a 49-27 victory. No. 3 Oklahoma won 38-10 at Kansas, No. 4 Nebraska was a 48-7 victor at Baylor, No. 5 Oregon beat California by the same 48-7 margin, and No. 7 UCLA prevailed 35-13 over No. 10 Washington. Miami returned to the No. 1 spot in both polls, followed by No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 UCLA, and No. 5 Oregon. October 20: No. 1 Miami was idle. No. 2 Oklahoma defeated Baylor 33-17. No. 3 Nebraska was tied at the half with Texas Tech, but the Cornhuskers ultimately managed a 41-31 victory. No. 4 UCLA beat California 51-17. No. 5 Oregon led Stanford by two touchdowns at the start of the fourth quarter, but the Cardinal made a furious comeback to defeat the Ducks 49-42. No. 6 Virginia Tech was idle but moved up in the next poll: No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 UCLA, and No. 5 Virginia Tech. The year’s first BCS standings were released this week, and the computers placed Oklahoma in the top spot with Miami in fourth place. October 25-27: No. 1 Miami, lauded by the pollsters but snubbed by the BCS, improved their resume by blasting West Virginia 45-3. The biggest game of the week took place in Lincoln between No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 3 Nebraska, and the Cornhuskers broke open a defensive struggle with a trick play for a 63-yard touchdown pass and a 20-10 victory. No. 20 Stanford pulled off their second upset in a row, 38-28 over No. 4 UCLA. In another surprise, No. 5 Virginia Tech fell 22-14 to Syracuse. No. 6 Florida beat No. 15 Georgia 24-10, and No. 7 Texas won 35-16 at Missouri. With several undefeated teams losing this week, Miami and Nebraska were now the only two teams in the power conferences without a loss. The AP’s top five were No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Florida, and No. 5 Texas, while the BCS ranked Nebraska at the top and put Michigan (AP No. 6) in place of Florida. November November 3: There was little competition at the top this week. No. 1 Miami shut out Temple 38-0, No. 2 Nebraska won 51-7 at Kansas, No. 3 Oklahoma rebounded from their loss to the Cornhuskers by blanking Tulsa 58-0, No. 4 Florida beat Vanderbilt 71-13, and No. 5 Texas visited Baylor for a 49-10 win. The AP’s top five remained the same; with Michigan losing to Michigan State on a controversial last-second play, the BCS elevated AP No. 6 Tennessee into the Wolverines’ No. 4 spot. November 10: No. 1 Miami found themselves in deep trouble against unranked Boston College, clinging to a five-point lead as the Eagles had a first-and-goal at the Hurricanes’ nine-yard line with 30 seconds left. But a Boston College pass was deflected to Miami’s Matt Walters, who handed off to Ed Reed for an 80-yard touchdown return which clinched an 18-7 Hurricanes victory. No. 2 Nebraska trailed at the half but came back to beat Kansas State 31-21. No. 3 Oklahoma defeated Texas A&M 31-10, No. 4 Florida won 54-17 at No. 14 South Carolina, and No. 5 Texas shut out Kansas 59-0. The AP’s top five again remained the same. Despite the Longhorns’ big win, the BCS dropped Tennessee and Texas from their top five in favor of Oregon (AP No. 7) and Florida. November 17: No. 1 Miami hosted No. 14 Syracuse, with the winner guaranteed at least a share of the Big East title. Recovering from last week’s close call, the Hurricanes overwhelmed their opponents 59-0. No. 2 Nebraska was idle. No. 3 Oklahoma won 30-13 at Texas Tech, No. 4 Florida defeated No. 21 Florida State 37-13, and No. 5 Texas was also idle. The next top five was No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Florida, No. 4 Oklahoma, and No. 5 Texas. November 23-24: Miami and Nebraska, the only undefeated teams in the major conferences, had held the top two spots in the polls throughout November. On Thanksgiving weekend, No. 1 Miami maintained their standard by blasting No. 12 Washington 65-7. However, No. 2 Nebraska received a major shock from No. 14 Colorado. The Buffaloes raced out to a 35-3 lead in the second quarter and cruised to a 62-36 victory, scoring the most points by any opponent in Cornhuskers history (including a record six touchdowns by running back Chris Brown). Since Colorado only had one conference loss, the two teams finished tied atop the Big 12 North and the head-to-head tiebreaker kept Nebraska out of the conference championship game. The Big 12 South title was decided in an equally surprising manner. No. 4 Oklahoma came into their rivalry game against Oklahoma State having outscored their last three opponents 119-23, while the Cowboys had a record of just 3-7. But the two teams engaged in a hard-fought defensive struggle until backup quarterback (and future major league baseball player) Josh Fields led Oklahoma State on a late drive which ended in a touchdown pass and a 16-13 Cowboys win. This opened the door for No. 5 Texas, who earned the right to face Colorado with a 21-7 victory at Texas A&M. No. 3 Florida and No. 6 Oregon were idle, but the chaos in the Big 12 allowed both teams to move up in the next poll. No. 7 Tennessee got the same benefit after shutting out Vanderbilt 38-0. The AP’s new top five were No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Oregon, and No. 5 Tennessee; the BCS agreed on the top three but kept Nebraska in the running at No. 4. December December 1: The late-season drama continued as each of the top five teams played a game decided by three points or less. No. 1 Miami led 20-3 at the half and 26-10 in the fourth quarter, but No. 14 Virginia Tech scored a touchdown, passed for a two-point conversion, and took a blocked punt back 59 yards for another score. This time the Hokies failed to convert the two-point play, leaving the score at 26-24. Virginia Tech got the ball back once more, but Ed Reed made his second game-saving play in less than a month with an interception that sealed Miami’s perfect regular season. No. 2 Florida matched up against No. 5 Tennessee in the game that was delayed due to the September 11 attacks, playing for the SEC East title and a berth in the conference championship game. In a back-and-forth contest with several lead changes, a missed two-point conversion again made the difference as Florida cut the score to 34-32 with 86 seconds left but failed to complete the two-point pass. With the Gators out of the way, No. 3 Texas could earn a shot at the title by winning the Big 12 Championship Game. The Longhorns had beaten No. 9 Colorado 41-7 in October, but this time the Buffaloes rushed out to a 29-10 lead in the second quarter as Texas quarterback Chris Simms committed four turnovers before leaving with an injured finger. Major Applewhite, the Longhorns’ starting QB in 1998 and 1999 who had lost his job to Simms, led the team on a furious comeback that fell just short, with Colorado winning a 39-37 decision for their second shocking upset in as many weeks. Having already clinched at least a share of the Pac-10 title, No. 5 Oregon won the conference outright in a 17-14 defensive struggle against rival Oregon State. No. 6 Nebraska had finished their schedule, but they moved up in the next AP Poll: No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Tennessee, No. 3 Oregon, No. 4 Colorado, and No. 5 Nebraska. However, the BCS ranked Nebraska at No. 3 ahead of Colorado and Oregon. December 8: No. 2 Tennessee was in the driver’s seat for a national title berth as they matched up against No. 21 LSU in the SEC Championship Game. Just like Texas in the Big 12 title game, the Volunteers were playing an opponent they’d defeated earlier in the year. And, just like Texas, they flubbed the opportunity: LSU scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns for a 31-20 comeback win that gave coach Nick Saban his first championship of a major conference. The final AP Poll featured No. 1 Miami, No. 2 Oregon, No. 3 Colorado, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Florida—but the BCS had different plans. Undefeated No. 1 Miami was an obvious choice to play for the national championship in the Rose Bowl, but deciding their opponent was a more difficult matter. In the last three weeks of the season, five teams ranked No. 2 or No. 3—Nebraska, Oklahoma, Florida, Texas, and Tennessee—had suffered upset losses when they were in the driver’s seat for a berth in the title game. In a controversial decision, the BCS computers selected Nebraska despite Oregon’s No. 2 ranking in both human polls and Colorado’s 26-point win over the Cornhuskers. The Ducks and Buffaloes ended up playing each other in the Fiesta Bowl. No. 5 Florida got an at-large BCS berth and faced No. 6 Maryland, the ACC champion, in the Orange Bowl; the Big Ten and SEC winners, No. 7 Illinois and No. 12 LSU, squared off in the Sugar Bowl. Regular season top 10 matchups Rankings reflect the AP Poll. Rankings for Week 8 and beyond will list BCS Rankings first and AP Poll second. Teams that failed to be a top 10 team for one poll or the other will be noted. Week 5 No. 3 Oklahoma defeated No. 5 Texas, 14–3 (Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas) Week 6 No. 7 UCLA defeated No. 10 Washington, 35–13 (Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California) Week 8 No. 2/3 Nebraska defeated No. 1/2 Oklahoma, 20–10 (Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska) Week 13 No. 6/5 Tennessee defeated No. 2/2 Florida, 34–32 (Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida) No. 7/9 Colorado defeated No. 3/3 Texas, 39–37 (2001 Big 12 Championship Game, Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas) Conference standings I-AA team wins over I-A teams Italics denotes I-AA teams. no no September 1 no Sam Houston State UL Monroe Malone Stadium Monroe, Louisiana no 20–9 6,742 FCS wins vs. FBS teams: All-time victories, upsets, wins vs. ranked teams https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/fcs-wins-vs-fbs-teams-all-time-victories-upsets NCAA.com September 7, 2025 October 2, 2025 September 8 no 20 (I-AA) Eastern Washington Connecticut Memorial Stadium Storrs, Connecticut no 35–17 15,723 September 22 no Indiana State Eastern Michigan Rynearson Stadium Ypsilanti, Michigan no 21–14 13,901 September 22 no Jacksonville State Arkansas State Indian Stadium Jonesboro, Arkansas no 31–28 12,126 September 22 no Northern Iowa Ball State Ball State Stadium Muncie, Indiana no 42–39 September 22 no 24 (I-AA) Northwestern State TCU Amon G. Carter Stadium Fort Worth, Texas no 27–24 OT 30,409 November 22 no Nicholls State Arkansas State Indian Stadium Jonesboro, Arkansas no 28–22 November 24 no Idaho 1 (I-AA) Montana Washington–Grizzly Stadium Missoula, Montana Little Brown Stein no 33–27 OT 18,056 Bowl Championship Series rankings 2001 NCAA Division I-A football rankings WEEKNo. 1No. 2EVENTOct 22OklahomaNebraskaNebraska 20, Oklahoma 10Oct 29NebraskaOklahomaMiami 38, Temple 0Nov 5NebraskaMiamiNebraska 31, Kansas St. 21Nov 12NebraskaMiamiMiami 59, Syracuse 0Nov 19NebraskaMiamiColorado 62, Nebraska 36Nov 26MiamiFloridaTennessee 34, Florida 32Dec 3MiamiTennesseeLSU 31, Tennessee 20FINALMiamiNebraska Final BCS standings Miami Nebraska Colorado Oregon Florida Tennessee Texas Illinois Stanford Maryland Oklahoma Washington State LSU South Carolina Washington Source:2001 BCS Standings, BCS Rankings http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/2001_archive_bcs.html https://web.archive.org/web/20130807031123/http://collegefootballpoll.com/2001_archive_bcs.html August 7, 2013 live July 5, 2013 Bowl games 2001–02 NCAA football bowl games BCS bowls Rose Bowl: No. 1 Miami (FL) (BCS No. 1) 37, No. 4 Nebraska (BCS No. 2) 14 Fiesta Bowl: No. 2 Oregon (Pac-10 champ) 38, No. 3 Colorado (Big 12 champ) 16 Sugar Bowl: No. 12 LSU (SEC champ) 47, No. 7 Illinois (Big 10 champ) 34 Orange Bowl: No. 5 Florida (At Large) 56, No. 6 Maryland (ACC champ) 23 Other New Year's Day bowls Cotton Bowl Classic: No. 10 Oklahoma 10, Arkansas 3 Florida Citrus Bowl: No. 8 Tennessee 45, No. 17 Michigan 17 Gator Bowl: No. 24 Florida State 30, No. 15 Virginia Tech 17 Outback Bowl: No. 14 South Carolina 31, No. 22 Ohio State 28 December bowl games Holiday Bowl: No. 9 Texas 47, No. 21 Washington 43 Peach Bowl: North Carolina 16, Auburn 10 Tangerine Bowl: Pittsburgh 34, NC State 19 Sun Bowl: No. 13 Washington State 33, Purdue 27 Independence Bowl: Alabama 14, Iowa State 13 Alamo Bowl: Iowa 19, Texas Tech 16 Insight.com Bowl: No. 18 Syracuse 26, Kansas State 3 Liberty Bowl: No. 23 Louisville (C-USA champ) 28, No. 19 BYU (MWC champ) 10 Humanitarian Bowl: Clemson 49, Louisiana Tech (WAC Champ) 24 Motor City Bowl: No. 25 Toledo (MAC Champ) 23, Cincinnati 16 Seattle Bowl: Georgia Tech 24, No. 11 Stanford 14 Music City Bowl: Boston College 20, No. 16 Georgia 16 Las Vegas Bowl: Utah 10, Southern California 6 GMAC Bowl: Marshall 64, East Carolina 61 (2 OT) Silicon Valley Classic: Michigan State 44, No. 20 Fresno State 35 Galleryfurniture.com bowl: Texas A&M 28, TCU 9 New Orleans Bowl: Colorado State 45, North Texas (Sun Belt Champ) 20 Heisman Trophy voting The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player Player School Position 1st 2nd 3rd Total Eric Crouch Nebraska QB 162 98 88 770 Rex Grossman Florida QB 137 105 87 708 Ken Dorsey Miami (FL) QB 109 122 67 638 Joey Harrington Oregon QB 54 68 66 364 David Carr Fresno State QB 34 60 58 280 Antwaan Randle El Indiana QB 46 39 51 267 Roy Williams Oklahoma S 13 36 35 146 Bryant McKinnie Miami (FL) OT 26 12 14 116 Dwight Freeney Syracuse DE 2 6 24 42 Julius Peppers North Carolina DE 2 10 15 41 Other annual awards Maxwell Award (College Player of the Year) – Ken Dorsey, Miami Walter Camp Award (Back) – Eric Crouch, Nebraska Davey O'Brien Award (Quarterback) – Eric Crouch, Nebraska Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (Senior Quarterback) – David Carr, Fresno State Doak Walker Award (Running back) – Luke Staley, BYU Fred Biletnikoff Award (Wide receiver) – Josh Reed, Louisiana State John Mackey Award (Tight end) – Daniel Graham, Colorado Dave Rimington Trophy (Center) – LeCharles Bentley, Ohio State Bronko Nagurski Trophy (Defensive Player) – Roy Williams, Oklahoma Chuck Bednarik Award – Julius Peppers, North Carolina Dick Butkus Award (Linebacker) – Rocky Calmus, Oklahoma Lombardi Award (Lineman or Linebacker) – Julius Peppers, North Carolina Outland Trophy (Interior Lineman) – Bryant McKinnie, Miami, OT Jim Thorpe Award (Defensive back) – Roy Williams, Oklahoma Lou Groza Award (Placekicker) – Seth Marler, Tulane Ray Guy Award (Punter) – Travis Dorsch, Purdue Paul "Bear" Bryant Award – Larry Coker, Miami The Home Depot Coach of the Year Award: Ralph Friedgen, Maryland Attendances # Team Games Total Average 1 Michigan 6 659,447 109,908 2 Penn State 6 645,457 107,576 3 Tennessee 6 641,059 106,843 4 Ohio State 6 621,192 103,532 5 LSU 7 633,440 90,491 6 Georgia 6 519,120 86,520 7 Auburn 6 512,691 85,449 8 Florida 6 512,590 85,432 9 Texas 5 415,310 83,062 10 Texas A&M 6 496,268 82,711 11 South Carolina 7 578,295 82,614 12 Alabama 7 576,183 82,312 13 Florida State 6 488,645 81,441 14 Notre Dame 6 484,770 80,795 15 Clemson 6 480,911 80,152 16 Wisconsin 7 545,983 77,998 17 Nebraska 8 622,436 77,805 18 Oklahoma 7 527,687 75,384 19 Michigan State 6 442,292 73,715 20 Washington 6 434,811 72,469 21 Iowa 6 387,987 64,665 22 UCLA 5 323,067 64,613 23 Kentucky 6 380,881 63,480 24 Purdue 6 368,831 61,472 25 Arkansas 7 424,934 60,705 26 BYU 6 362,699 60,450 27 Southern California 6 346,465 57,744 28 Virginia 7 393,979 56,283 29 Illinois 6 319,175 53,196 30 North Carolina 6 315,500 52,583 31 Missouri 6 315,337 52,556 32 Stanford 6 309,205 51,534 33 Virginia Tech 6 304,571 50,762 34 North Carolina State 6 295,525 49,254 35 Pittsburgh 6 293,492 48,915 36 Kansas State 6 291,245 48,541 37 West Virginia 6 289,936 48,323 38 Colorado 6 284,848 47,475 39 Miami Hurricanes 6 282,790 47,132 40 Arizona State 7 327,116 46,731 41 Texas Tech 6 276,607 46,101 42 Oregon 6 275,556 45,926 43 Mississippi 6 274,439 45,740 44 Iowa State 6 271,034 45,172 45 Arizona 6 266,299 44,383 46 Maryland 7 304,953 43,565 47 Minnesota 6 258,419 43,070 48 Fresno State 6 256,815 42,803 49 Boston College 6 255,838 42,640 50 Mississippi State 7 296,456 42,351 51 Georgia Tech 6 250,111 41,685 52 Syracuse 6 246,832 41,139 53 Oklahoma State 6 242,157 40,360 54 Louisville 6 237,342 39,557 55 Kansas 7 276,450 39,493 56 Hawaii 8 313,345 39,168 57 Air Force 6 230,631 38,439 58 East Carolina 5 186,875 37,375 59 Oregon State 5 182,060 36,412 60 Indiana 6 204,780 34,130 61 Utah 5 170,347 34,069 62 Vanderbilt 6 203,940 33,990 63 Northwestern 5 168,813 33,763 64 Toledo 5 160,058 32,012 65 Navy 5 157,479 31,496 66 Army 5 155,238 31,048 67 Baylor 7 214,206 30,601 68 New Mexico 6 182,038 30,340 69 California 6 180,736 30,123 70 TCU 4 115,887 28,972 71 UTEP 5 141,800 28,360 72 UNLV 5 140,484 28,097 73 Washington State 5 138,754 27,751 74 Colorado State 5 137,814 27,563 75 Marshall 6 159,469 26,578 76 USF 7 180,737 25,820 77 Southern Miss 5 128,246 25,649 78 Memphis 6 152,676 25,446 79 Boise State 6 142,986 23,831 80 Tulane 5 115,990 23,198 81 Wake Forest 6 138,553 23,092 82 Western Michigan 5 111,978 22,396 83 Cincinnati 6 131,014 21,836 84 Utah State 5 108,922 21,784 85 Ohio 5 104,484 20,897 86 Rutgers 7 143,184 20,455 87 Louisiana Tech 4 81,730 20,433 88 Central Florida 5 98,967 19,793 89 Tulsa 6 117,051 19,509 90 Houston 6 116,744 19,457 91 Duke 6 116,343 19,391 92 New Mexico State 4 75,381 18,845 93 UAB 5 92,500 18,500 94 Temple 6 110,637 18,440 95 Middle Tennessee 5 89,286 17,857 96 Bowling Green 5 89,062 17,812 97 San Diego State 6 106,620 17,770 98 Nevada 5 87,865 17,573 99 SMU 6 104,314 17,386 100 Central Michigan 5 85,323 17,164 101 Wyoming 6 101,732 16,955 102 Rice 5 84,617 16,923 103 Idaho 5 81,150 16,230 104 Ball State 5 80,003 16,001 105 North Texas 5 76,531 15,306 106 Miami RedHawks 5 73,486 14,697 107 Northern Illinois 6 87,622 14,604 108 Eastern Michigan 5 66,382 13,276 109 Akron 4 50,445 12,611 110 Buffalo 5 61,256 12,251 111 Arkansas State 5 53,879 10,776 112 San Jose State 4 40,829 10,207 113 Louisiana-Lafayette 5 47,278 9,456 114 Louisiana-Monroe 5 38,321 7,664 115 Kent State 5 32,976 6,595 Sources:Football Records https://s3.amazonaws.com/fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/Attend.pdf ATTENDANCE RECORDSNCAA Football Attendance – kenn.com blog https://kenn.com/blog/sports-attendance/ncaa-football-attendance/ 2026-02-03 kenn.com References