NCAA football dream matches that never were

[Phil C]

Some were because of the conference set ups and others were the faults of other.

I would have liked to have seen these two for example -

1968 Texas vs Ohio State. I think at the end of that year Texas had the best team in the Country. It would have been great to have seen how good against the No. 1 team in the Country.

1969 Texas vs Penn State. Penn State decided to go have fun in the sun at the orange bowl so this great game never got played. It would have been great but I think Texas would have won it.

You get the idea. Add yours.

[Phil C]

Another one in 1965 would have been Alabama against Notre Dame.

[nobogey72]

2007 Liberty Hill vs Celina :D

Whatever year it was that we had co-champs------LSU & USC:)

[jimmyceatworld]

Originally posted by nobogey72
2007 Liberty Hill vs Celina :D

Whatever year it was that we had co-champs------LSU & USC:)

I have never and will never acknowledge USC as co-champion that year. They did not play in the BSC title game so in my mind the best they could have finished would be 3rd.

[Old Tiger]

Originally posted by nobogey72
2007 Liberty Hill vs Celina :D

beat down alert :D

[Old Tiger]

2004 Auburn vs. USC

Auburn got screwed

[bandera7]

I completely agree on the USC co champion thing. They are not. The fact that they try to claim co champions is ridiculous and sets a precedent that would destroy the point of a champion.

[Old Tiger]

www.onepeat.com

[eagles_victory]

Originally posted by jimmyceatworld
I have never and will never acknowledge USC as co-champion that year. They did not play in the BSC title game so in my mind the best they could have finished would be 3rd. How was that not a co national championship? They won the AP national title but not the BCS one and if you remember they were way more deserving then OU to be in the game. Everyone always wants to yell about how Auburn got screwed USC took a pretty good ram in the behind in 03 not getting into the game. IMO people dont want to give USC credit out of bias and dislike for them.

[easttexas3a]

Auburn should of Played USC instead of OU that year in 04 I think. Auburn was much better, but wouldn't of had the fan support and money OU had. And btw, USC wins probably still, but would of been closer.

[eagles_victory]

Originally posted by easttexas3a
Auburn should of Played USC instead of OU that year in 04 I think. Auburn was much better, but wouldn't of had the fan support and money OU had. And btw, USC wins probably still, but would of been closer. All 3 were undefeated someone deserving is going to be left out. Now anyone can look back in hindsight and say Auburn was better because of what happened in the bowl game but if it was reversed everyone would be saying how OU got the short end of the stick and had a way better matchup then Auburn.

People can blame the BCS all day but if you have 3 teams with close to even records and resumes someone deserving is going to be left out no matter what the system is if only 2 teams can play.

[Old Tiger]

Originally posted by eagles_victory
All 3 were undefeated someone deserving is going to be left out. Now anyone can look back in hindsight and say Auburn was better because of what happened in the bowl game but if it was reversed everyone would be saying how OU got the short end of the stick and had a way better matchup then Auburn.

People can blame the BCS all day but if you have 3 teams with close to even records and resumes someone deserving is going to be left out no matter what the system is if only 2 teams can play. Auburn had a tougher schedule and their defense only gave up 134 points(Not including the 13 in the bowl game scored by Virginia Tech.)
Close Games: 10-9 W vs LSU, 21-13 W vs Bama, 38-28 W vs. Tennessee(SEC Championship), 16-13 W vs. Virginia Tech(Sugar Bowl)


While Oklahoma struggled against Aggy and Okie Light and the OU defense gave up 164 points to their opponents(not including the 55 put on them by USC).
Close Games: 12-0 W vs Texas, 38-35 W vs. Oklahoma State, 42-35 W vs. Texas A&M), 19-55 L vs USC

USC Close Games: 31-28 W vs Stanford, 24-13 W vs Virginia Tech, 23-17 W vs Cal, 28-20 W vs. Oregon State, 29-24 W vs UCLA

[Phil C]

USC still claims the 1939 National Championship even though they had two ties during the year and the Aggies had a perfect record. Most serious fans don't pay attention to it and the main poll (AP) gave it to the Aggies. The only poll that gave it to USC went out of business about two years later.

[eagles_victory]

Originally posted by Go Blue
Auburn had a tougher schedule and their defense only gave up 134 points(Not including the 13 in the bowl game scored by Virginia Tech.)
Close Games: 10-9 W vs LSU, 21-13 W vs Bama, 38-28 W vs. Tennessee(SEC Championship), 16-13 W vs. Virginia Tech(Sugar Bowl)


While Oklahoma struggled against Aggy and Okie Light and the OU defense gave up 164 points to their opponents(not including the 55 put on them by USC).
Close Games: 12-0 W vs Texas, 38-35 W vs. Oklahoma State, 42-35 W vs. Texas A&M), 19-55 L vs USC

USC Close Games: 31-28 W vs Stanford, 24-13 W vs Virginia Tech, 23-17 W vs Cal, 28-20 W vs. Oregon State, 29-24 W vs UCLA They dominated Texas's offense all over the field that day I wouldnt really consider that a close game. 3 undefeated teams someone is going to be left out in this system. It had nothing to do with OU bringing more fans and money they just started the years higher in the polls then Auburn.

[Buckeye1980]

I know this is a long time ago but

1982

#1 Penn State 11-1 vs #2 SMU 11-0-1

The unbeaten team did NOT win the National Championship

[Phil C]

Originally posted by Buckeye1980
I know this is a long time ago but

1982

#1 Penn State 11-1 vs #2 SMU 11-0-1

The unbeaten team did NOT win the National Championship

It would have probably been a great game.

[NastySlot]

i guess it would have been the 83 season....texas v. nebraska both undefeated.....a match up and the winner wins the national title and maybe just maybe miami never reaches the level of prominence it has.......texas loses to georgia in cotton bowl and miami shocks nebraska for the title.....and the face of college football changed.

stinking conference/bowl tie ins.

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by Buckeye1980
I know this is a long time ago but

1982

#1 Penn State 11-1 vs #2 SMU 11-0-1

The unbeaten team did NOT win the National Championship


http://www.infoplease.com/ipsa/A0746998.html

Penn State finally got a shot at a “winner take all” game for the national championship in 1982 and won it.

Facing top-ranked and undefeated Georgia in a No.1 vs No.2 Sugar Bowl match-up, the Lions led from the start and upset the Dawgs, 27–23.

A loser to only Alabama (42–21) during the regular season, PSU's climb to the top came after 17 years and 162 victories under Joe Paterno. It was a frustrating wait. Three other years they had gone 11–1 and nobody seemed to notice. This year, they stopped Heisman-winner Herschel Walker & Co. and everybody noticed.

Southern Methodist was the only undefeated team in the Top 20 and ranked second. The Mustangs won their second straight SWC championship, returned to the Cotton Bowl for the first time in 16 years, and beat Pitt. Nebraska won 12 games, the Big Eight and the Orange Bowl to place third. The Huskers' only loss came on a last second field goal against Penn State.

The Play of the Year? Easy: California's last second, “kickoff return to beat the band” against Stanford. Bears won 25–20.

Meanwhile, Alabama (8–4) finished out of the Top 20 for the first time in 11 seasons, but won the Liberty Bowl. The victory pushed Bear Bryant's 38–year record to 323–85–17. He died less than a month later.

[Phil C]

A bowl game with No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Army after the 1946 season. The two teams had played to a tie during the regular season. A rematch would have been great.

[Buckeye1980]

My point was that SMU was UNBEATEN. The only blemish was a tie to a top 10 team, Arkansas, I was at that game and it was a great game. My personal play of the year was kick off return by Booby Leach for SMU against Texas Tech to win game the week before Arkansas game. The tie against Arkansas caused SMU to drop from #2 to #4, so if BCS were around then , there would have been big fuss. SMU rose back to #2 after bowl victory against Dan Marino led Pittsburgh.



Originally posted by Sweetwater Red
http://www.infoplease.com/ipsa/A0746998.html

Penn State finally got a shot at a “winner take all” game for the national championship in 1982 and won it.

Facing top-ranked and undefeated Georgia in a No.1 vs No.2 Sugar Bowl match-up, the Lions led from the start and upset the Dawgs, 27–23.

A loser to only Alabama (42–21) during the regular season, PSU's climb to the top came after 17 years and 162 victories under Joe Paterno. It was a frustrating wait. Three other years they had gone 11–1 and nobody seemed to notice. This year, they stopped Heisman-winner Herschel Walker & Co. and everybody noticed.

Southern Methodist was the only undefeated team in the Top 20 and ranked second. The Mustangs won their second straight SWC championship, returned to the Cotton Bowl for the first time in 16 years, and beat Pitt. Nebraska won 12 games, the Big Eight and the Orange Bowl to place third. The Huskers' only loss came on a last second field goal against Penn State.

The Play of the Year? Easy: California's last second, “kickoff return to beat the band” against Stanford. Bears won 25–20.

Meanwhile, Alabama (8–4) finished out of the Top 20 for the first time in 11 seasons, but won the Liberty Bowl. The victory pushed Bear Bryant's 38–year record to 323–85–17. He died less than a month later.

[NastySlot]

Originally posted by Buckeye1980
My point was that SMU was UNBEATEN. The only blemish was a tie to a top 10 team, Arkansas, I was at that game and it was a great game. My personal play of the year was kick off return by Booby Leach for SMU against Texas Tech to win game the week before Arkansas game. The tie against Arkansas caused SMU to drop from #2 to #4, so if BCS were around then , there would have been big fuss. SMU rose back to #2 after bowl victory against Dan Marino led Pittsburgh.

that play against tech came very late in the game...didn't it...and wasn't it a lateral.....i went to that cotton bowl v. pitt.

[Buckeye1980]

Tech tied the game with 17 seconds left , here is the complete story


On November 13th, 1982, SMU used this same exact play to defeat Texas Tech in what became known as the "Miracle on Fourth Avenue." Bobby Leach's touchdown run earned him the name the "Miracle Man" in one of the 90 Greatest Moments in SMU Football History.

SMU came into the game ranked second in the country with a 9-0 record. The Mustangs had a 13-game winning streak, the longest streak in Division I. A victory over Texas Tech would assure SMU of at least a tie for the Southwest Conference title. They were in control of the conference and looking for a repeat of their conference championship from 1981. However, Texas Tech did not plan on lying down and had hopes of playing spoiler to the Mustang's season. In their previous meetings, Tech had held both Eric Dickerson and Craig James scoreless. They had been the only team in the SWC to hold the duo scoreless in their careers.

As the game unfolded, the Pony Express was able to break their curse against Tech and put points on the board. However, every time SMU would score, the Red Raiders seemed to come up with an answer of their own. The game was a struggle that would not be decided until the very end. With four minutes to go, Tech took control of the ball down on their own 20 yard line trailing 27-24. They marched to the SMU 10 before being forced to kick a game tying field goal with 17 seconds remaining. With the score tied at 27, it appeared that SMU's bid for a perfect season had come to an abrupt halt. And then, a miracle occurred.

Tech came out and squib kicked the ball with hopes of running precious seconds off the clock. The ball ended up in the hands of Blane Smith, who initially bobbled the ball before taking control. Smith turned and fired the ball across the field to Bobby Leach who was waiting at the 9 yard line. Leach caught the ball and raced down the sideline 91 yards for a touchdown. The play earned Leach the nickname, "The Miracle Man." SMU had won 34-27, and the perfect season was still intact.

When the play was called, Leach said, "I thought it would work, because I looked up at the scoreboard, and the score was 27-27-I have this thing about seven the lucky number. There were 17 seconds left, and I had my right foot on the 7-yard line. I said something's gotta happen."

"I always believed in miracles", stated Dickerson. "It was His day. I'm going to church tomorrow. After the play, I looked all over for flags, but it was just a miracle." But Lance McIlhenny knew that it was more than SMU getting lucky. "We work on that every Thursday. It came through for us. I thought Blane was in trouble when he was bobbling the ball," he said. "But, we already had the wall set. Bobby and Blane did a super job. We definitely had some luck today. But our success is not all luck. SMU has had some rough years, and now the work's starting to pay off."

The touchdown lifted SMU to 10-0 and gave them a share of the conference title. The following week, the Mustangs tied Arkansas to clinch the championship outright which sent them to the Cotton Bowl. Coach Bobby Collins stated, "I never lost hope. The players just played a great football game." The "Miracle on Fourth Avenue" by the "Miracle Man" Bobby Leach takes its rightful place as one of the 90 Greatest Moments in SMU Football History.



Originally posted by NastySlot
that play against tech came very late in the game...didn't it...and wasn't it a lateral.....i went to that cotton bowl v. pitt.

[jimmyceatworld]

Originally posted by eagles_victory
How was that not a co national championship? They won the AP national title but not the BCS one and if you remember they were way more deserving then OU to be in the game. Everyone always wants to yell about how Auburn got screwed USC took a pretty good ram in the behind in 03 not getting into the game. IMO people dont want to give USC credit out of bias and dislike for them.

It was not a co-national championship because they did not play in the CHAMPIONSHIP game. We have to put personal opinions aside. Regardless if they were more deserving or not, they didn't make it to ship. I'm not talking about what should have been, I'm talking about what was.

I have no bias against USC and I'm not a LSU or OU fan so I think I'm being pretty objective. AP national title, What is that? Should we also have a cbs sportsline national title, a espn national title, a Lee Corso national title, a discovery channel national title. Where do you draw the line? I say at the national championship game.

[NastySlot]

Originally posted by jimmyceatworld
It was not a co-national championship because they did not play in the CHAMPIONSHIP game. We have to put personal opinions aside. Regardless if they were more deserving or not, they didn't make it to ship. I'm not talking about what should have been, I'm talking about what was.

I have no bias against USC and I'm not a LSU or OU fan so I think I'm being pretty objective. AP national title, What is that? Should we also have a cbs sportsline national title, a espn national title, a Lee Corso national title, a discovery channel national title. Where do you draw the line? I say at the national championship game.

fact is you have an AP final poll and USC was at the top of that poll hence they were also given a championship...........come on we here in texas should be ok with having more then one champion crown....we do it with our high school football...but no other sports.

[jimmyceatworld]

Originally posted by NastySlot
fact is you have an AP final poll and USC was at the top of that poll hence they were also given a championship...........come on we here in texas should be ok with having more then one champion crown....we do it with our high school football...but no other sports.

Okay, the team that wins the BCS title should get the title trophy and the team that wins the AP title should get the title certificate.

[NastySlot]

Originally posted by jimmyceatworld
Okay, the team that wins the BCS title should get the title trophy and the team that wins the AP title should get the title certificate.


your right...i do think the bcs winner gets the (Sears?) trophy...AP and others...they buy themselves rings.