Ranking the BCS Champions (and Others)
Any attempt to determine the greatest teams of all-time in any sport is difficult and open to all sorts of conjecture. In college football, at least the sport has become less regional, has had the recent addition of conference championship games, and has done away with the automatic conference tie-ins in bowls with highly ranked teams. Rating the best teams of the BCS era is similarly challenging, but perhaps more relevant given that the system is supposed to give us a matchup of top teams.
To determine the best teams of the BCS era, I looked at several factors: record, average margin of victory, wins versus teams sitting in the top 10 at the end of the season and wins by fewer than 10 points.
1) 2001 Miami - the experts generally rate this team as tops in the BCS era, and I would agree, though it is close. Miami outscored its opponents by an average of 33 points per game, had only one win of fewer than 10 points and sent tons of talent to the NFL. On the flip-side the Hurricanes scored only one win over a top-10 team, played in the weak Big East and drew an inferior Nebraska team in the BCS Championships, a team that wasn't even IN its conference championship game, instead of Oregon or Colorado.
2) 2005 Texas - why this team rates third or fourth in most "experts" polls is beyond me. The Longhorns set BCS champion team records for points (50) and margin of victory (34), beat the consensus #2 and #3 teams in the country and had only two wins of fewer than 10 points. One of those big wins was of course against the "unbeatable" USC Trojans in the BCS title game, a team that had not lost in two years and that had been called the greatest ever. The Horns get down-graded by the perceived weakness of the Big 12 that year, but the conference's bowl record (5-3) proved otherwise. Like Miami, Texas sent an insane amount of talent to the NFL. Given all this, I can make a strong case for Texas as #1.
3) 2004 USC - Outscored opponents by 25 points per gam, beat three top 10 teams and blew out #2 Oklahoma, but had four very close shaves. The 2005 USC team "greatest ever" that lost to Texas was arguably better and probably warrants a 3b here. USC's NFL talent is well documented.
4) 2000 Oklahoma - another team that is underrated by the football pundits, in my opinion. All this team did was beat four top-10 teams including Kansas State twice, who may have been the second best team in the country, and outscore its opponents by 22 points per game. OU went into the title game and proved to be way too much for Florida State, a team that was heavily favored.
5) 1999 Florida State - Impressive average margin of 21 points per game, but beat only one top-10 team, Virginia Tech in the title game.
6) 2008 Florida - the top one-loss team on my poll, the Gators and one Tim Tebow steam-rolled opponents by an average of 31 points, had only one close shave, but inexplicably lost to Mississippi. Also, it is unclear if Florida was even the best team in the country that year, as they drew Oklahoma in the BCS game instead of what many considered to be more deserving Texas, USC or Utah teams.
7) 2011 Alabama - the top BCS era defense which only gave up 8 points per game and was rarely challenged. On the flip-side, only two top-10 wins, mediocre offense, defensive stats padded by playing poor offenses, no quality wins out of the SEC and did not even win its conference. Really hard for me to take this team too seriously.
8) 2009 Alabama - outscored opponents by 20 points per game but had a few close shaves and got a huge break when Texas' Colt McCoy was knocked out of the title game. I will never believe that this team was better than Texas with McCoy.
9) 2003 LSU - outscored opponents by 23 but had one loss and drew an inferior Oklahoma team in the BCS game instead of clearly more deserving USC.
10) 1998 Tennessee - unbeaten but generally pretty fortunate, especially when Arkansas QB Clint Stoerner fumbled late in their game without being touched, leading to the winning score.
11) 2010 Auburn - 14-0 but by far the worst defense of any BCS champ. The masters of the great escape winning seven games by fewer than 10 points, including an overtime game where Clemson dropped a potential game-winning pass. Yeah, this team had Cam Newton but they were alson incredibly lucky.
12) 2002 Ohio State - another master of the great escape, also won seven games by 9 points or less including a miracle versus Purdue. Won a controversial title over heavily-favored Miami, helped by a phantom pass interference call in overtime.
13) 2006 Florida - one loss, only two top-10 wins, six narrow victories. It is not clear at all that this was the best team in the country.
14) 2007 LSU - one of these things is not like the others, LSU is the only two-loss champion. One six tight games and backed into the title game when higher ranked teams dropped like flies during the final weeks of the season.
One quick note on all-time team rankings. I would generally put modern era teams ahead of any from earlier times, as the players are far better, the schemes are more sophisticated, there is far more talent in general, scholarship limitations have leveled the playing field, and the game is more national although schedules are still unbalanced. Sure, 1940's Army, 50's Notre Dame or Oklahoma, 60's Texas, 70's Nebraska or Oklahoma or late 80's/early 90's Miami were great teams in their era, but I just don't see any comparison. Maybe 1971 Nebraska.
I would put one team from just before the BCS era as the greatest ever, however, and that is 1995 Nebraska. All the Huskers did was blitzkrieg opponents by an average of 38 points per game while beating four top-10s and not winning a single game by fewer than 14 points. They dominated the Big 8 in its final year before becoming the Big 12. All the Big 8 did that year was place three teams in the final top 10 and 4 in the top 13. It was clearly the dominant conference that year and Nebraska was not even challenged. Nebraska humiliated Florida in the de-facto title game to top things off.
So my all-time top 5 is -
1) 1995 Nebraska
2) 2001 Miami
3) 2005 Texas
4) 2004/2005 (despite the loss) USC - counting them as one team
5) 1971 Nebraska
To determine the best teams of the BCS era, I looked at several factors: record, average margin of victory, wins versus teams sitting in the top 10 at the end of the season and wins by fewer than 10 points.
1) 2001 Miami - the experts generally rate this team as tops in the BCS era, and I would agree, though it is close. Miami outscored its opponents by an average of 33 points per game, had only one win of fewer than 10 points and sent tons of talent to the NFL. On the flip-side the Hurricanes scored only one win over a top-10 team, played in the weak Big East and drew an inferior Nebraska team in the BCS Championships, a team that wasn't even IN its conference championship game, instead of Oregon or Colorado.
2) 2005 Texas - why this team rates third or fourth in most "experts" polls is beyond me. The Longhorns set BCS champion team records for points (50) and margin of victory (34), beat the consensus #2 and #3 teams in the country and had only two wins of fewer than 10 points. One of those big wins was of course against the "unbeatable" USC Trojans in the BCS title game, a team that had not lost in two years and that had been called the greatest ever. The Horns get down-graded by the perceived weakness of the Big 12 that year, but the conference's bowl record (5-3) proved otherwise. Like Miami, Texas sent an insane amount of talent to the NFL. Given all this, I can make a strong case for Texas as #1.
3) 2004 USC - Outscored opponents by 25 points per gam, beat three top 10 teams and blew out #2 Oklahoma, but had four very close shaves. The 2005 USC team "greatest ever" that lost to Texas was arguably better and probably warrants a 3b here. USC's NFL talent is well documented.
4) 2000 Oklahoma - another team that is underrated by the football pundits, in my opinion. All this team did was beat four top-10 teams including Kansas State twice, who may have been the second best team in the country, and outscore its opponents by 22 points per game. OU went into the title game and proved to be way too much for Florida State, a team that was heavily favored.
5) 1999 Florida State - Impressive average margin of 21 points per game, but beat only one top-10 team, Virginia Tech in the title game.
6) 2008 Florida - the top one-loss team on my poll, the Gators and one Tim Tebow steam-rolled opponents by an average of 31 points, had only one close shave, but inexplicably lost to Mississippi. Also, it is unclear if Florida was even the best team in the country that year, as they drew Oklahoma in the BCS game instead of what many considered to be more deserving Texas, USC or Utah teams.
7) 2011 Alabama - the top BCS era defense which only gave up 8 points per game and was rarely challenged. On the flip-side, only two top-10 wins, mediocre offense, defensive stats padded by playing poor offenses, no quality wins out of the SEC and did not even win its conference. Really hard for me to take this team too seriously.
8) 2009 Alabama - outscored opponents by 20 points per game but had a few close shaves and got a huge break when Texas' Colt McCoy was knocked out of the title game. I will never believe that this team was better than Texas with McCoy.
9) 2003 LSU - outscored opponents by 23 but had one loss and drew an inferior Oklahoma team in the BCS game instead of clearly more deserving USC.
10) 1998 Tennessee - unbeaten but generally pretty fortunate, especially when Arkansas QB Clint Stoerner fumbled late in their game without being touched, leading to the winning score.
11) 2010 Auburn - 14-0 but by far the worst defense of any BCS champ. The masters of the great escape winning seven games by fewer than 10 points, including an overtime game where Clemson dropped a potential game-winning pass. Yeah, this team had Cam Newton but they were alson incredibly lucky.
12) 2002 Ohio State - another master of the great escape, also won seven games by 9 points or less including a miracle versus Purdue. Won a controversial title over heavily-favored Miami, helped by a phantom pass interference call in overtime.
13) 2006 Florida - one loss, only two top-10 wins, six narrow victories. It is not clear at all that this was the best team in the country.
14) 2007 LSU - one of these things is not like the others, LSU is the only two-loss champion. One six tight games and backed into the title game when higher ranked teams dropped like flies during the final weeks of the season.
One quick note on all-time team rankings. I would generally put modern era teams ahead of any from earlier times, as the players are far better, the schemes are more sophisticated, there is far more talent in general, scholarship limitations have leveled the playing field, and the game is more national although schedules are still unbalanced. Sure, 1940's Army, 50's Notre Dame or Oklahoma, 60's Texas, 70's Nebraska or Oklahoma or late 80's/early 90's Miami were great teams in their era, but I just don't see any comparison. Maybe 1971 Nebraska.
I would put one team from just before the BCS era as the greatest ever, however, and that is 1995 Nebraska. All the Huskers did was blitzkrieg opponents by an average of 38 points per game while beating four top-10s and not winning a single game by fewer than 14 points. They dominated the Big 8 in its final year before becoming the Big 12. All the Big 8 did that year was place three teams in the final top 10 and 4 in the top 13. It was clearly the dominant conference that year and Nebraska was not even challenged. Nebraska humiliated Florida in the de-facto title game to top things off.
So my all-time top 5 is -
1) 1995 Nebraska
2) 2001 Miami
3) 2005 Texas
4) 2004/2005 (despite the loss) USC - counting them as one team
5) 1971 Nebraska
Posted by TFP at 1/14/2012 9:58 PM 
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: BCS college football USC Miami Texas Nebraska greatest college football teams
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: BCS college football USC Miami Texas Nebraska greatest college football teams
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