College Football: 150 years as America’s greatest game

It’s 9 am on a Saturday morning. You just got out of bed and flip on the TV to College GameDay to see what’s happening in college football today. In a few hours you’ll drive to the stadium to tailgate before a 3:30 kickoff against a conference foe.

Until then, you pour yourself a cup of coffee and listen to Rece Davis and Lee Corso exchange talk about the day ahead in college football, while Desmond Howard and Kirk Herbstreit go in-depth about America’s greatest game.

In 1869, Rutgers and Princeton (then New Jersey) came together on an early November day in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The Rutgers Queensmen defeated the Tigers 6-4, kicking off the beginning of a sport that only took a break in 1871.

Through both World Wars and the Great Depression college football never had a year off, even while thousands of college-age athletes were forced to choose fighting in a war over football.

Through 150 years of college football history, many of the earliest teams (mostly Ivy League) have since been folded or demoted to a lower division, but most teams from before 1900 are still in existence to this day.

The Michigan Wolverines joined Rutgers in 1879 as the second FBS team to be established. The University of Kentucky (then Kentucky State) and Penn State were next in 1881, and since then, 126 more teams have been added to the NCAA Division 1 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

The pageantry and tradition found in the history of college football and its teams has combined with the no-huddle high-speed tempo of today and excitement and passion of a stadium atmosphere to turn college football game day into the most exhilarating experience in sports.

As college football has grown throughout the years, the forward pass was added, touchdowns turned to six points, and teams like Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas from the South and Ohio State, Notre Dame and Michigan from the Midwest racked up the championships.

Recent years have seen power shift more to the South, as the Big Three in Florida (Miami, Florida, and Florida State) have picked up 11 championships since 1983. Clemson is the most recent upstart with two titles out of four consecutive College Football Playoff appearances.

While teams from the Midwest and South were winning championships year after year, teams from the West Coast began to use an offensive system with the same name. The West Coast offense, which saw origins at BYU under LaVell Edwards before being popularized by Bill Walsh in Cincinnati, kickstarted the air raid offense that is still being used by college and NFL teams alike.

Of the programs on the West Coast, not all have stuck to the air raid offense. Two schools stand out for their own unique ways of earning success.

Oregon and Southern California have both used their own unique methods to put themselves consistently among the best in college football.

Oregon’s fancy facilities, flashy uniforms and frenetic offenses have attracted talent at an unexpected rate that was heightened from 2011 to 2014 when the Ducks built a team that made it all the way to the inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

While Oregon has used the glitz and glamour, USC has used the allure of Los Angeles and it’s history of football to build a team that has racked up 11 championships.

Running backs like O.J. Simpson and Reggie Bush have vaulted USC to glory, while Oregon shows off athletes like De’Anthony Thomas or phenomenal Quarterback Marcus Mariota led the way for phenomenal teams.

Being a part of any team, not just the ones that succeeded in victory, creates a familial-like brotherhood among the players. Teams with players of all levels grow together and form bonds that last the rest of their lives. Talent and wins often overshadow this bond, but it is most certainly there.

Throughout the years, certain teams have stood out because of their concentration of future NFL talent and college superstars alike. The 2001 Miami team, the Nebraska teams of the 90’s and the historic 1945 Army team, led by 10 All-Americans, each one became legends in their own right.

From legends like John Heisman and Pop Warner, to Bear Bryant and Tony Dorsett, to Nick Saban and Tim Tebow, college football players and coaches have transcended any expectations that existed back in 1869.

Coaches like Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler, Bobby Bowden and Ara Parseghian have etched their names into the history books at iconic schools like Ohio State, Michigan, Florida State and Notre Dame.

While these coaches built legacies at these schools, players that forged their own legacies are exemplified by superstar athletes like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, who showed that college players weren’t limited to just football.

Legends like Red Grange and Jim Thorpe set the historic impact of college football in motion one hundred years ago. Over the years, legendary running backs like Barry Sanders, Earl Campbell and Herschel Walker ran over defenses to fame and glory, while Quarterbacks and Wideouts like Davey O’Brien and Cris Carter racked up impressive careers through the air.

Defensive stars like Charles Woodson, Brian Bosworth and Dick Butkus are in the history books for their prowess and ability to limit All-Americans around the country.

Bronco Nargurski, Chuck Bednarik, Butkus and Thorpe were so talented that the national awards for best defensive player of the year, outstanding linebacker and outstanding defensive back were named after these four.

Awards and championship trophies like the Heisman Trophy and the BCS Crystal Ball have always been the goal for these legends.

Archie Griffin is still the only player to win the Heisman twice, while Alabama is tied with Notre Dame for the most championships from a major selector for a current FBS team with 22 titles (Alabama only claims 17, Notre Dame 11; Michigan and USC also claim 11).

Even as the system went from polls to the Bowl Championship Series to the College Football Playoff, crowning a champion has rarely been without some controversy.

From 1936 to the early 90s when the Bowl Coalition was founded (also the Bowl Alliance and BCS), the AP Poll was considered the determining factor for who would be crowned a champion, but many times a team with one loss (or even two) would be crowned over an undefeated team.

After the selectors shifted from the polls, Michigan and Nebraska were granted a co-championship in 1997, the third such time in the 1990s, as both teams went undefeated and dominated along the way. Michigan won most of the minor polls and the AP Poll, but Nebraska won the equally important Coaches’ poll to split the college football landscape.

In 2003, LSU and USC both had one loss, and another split occurred, as the Coaches’ went with LSU and the Associated Press (AP) voted for USC.

Even in years when the champion was clear, the BCS and CFP have both struggled with the other team(s) that should be represented in the final game(s).

In 2011, one-loss Alabama (who lacked a conference championship) was chosen to face LSU over one-loss conference champion Oklahoma State, who many considered to be more deserving.

In 2014 the CFP Committee put Ohio State in the playoff over Baylor and TCU, and in 2016 had the one-loss Buckeyes over two-loss conference champion Penn State Nittanly Lions, which raised questions about the importance of a conference championship.

These examples are only some of the ones that stand out recently, and both the BCS and CFP and even the Poll era have had their share of controversy in their selections of teams.

Even in a sport as great as college football, controversies are simply part of a sport that has galvanized fans for generations. The Penn State scandal (and other similar disgraces at other schools), constant NCAA violations and the pay-for-play issue have caused turmoil throughout the college football atmosphere.

Nonetheless, college football has done its best to push through, and even though former legends like Joe Paterno or O.J. Simpson have been shrouded by their mistakes. Legendary teams, players and coaches create stories that exist from around the college football landscape which often, for better or worse, drown out the bad ones.

Perhaps even greater than the controversies that shroud college football, the glory of championships and the grandeur of team history is the atmosphere that exists at a college football game. The inspiring impact of this great game, which transcends all else mentioned previously.

From the tailgates in the morning to the pre-game pep rallies and the walk to the stadium, where memories are made for life.

From “dotting the i” in Columbus to “Midnight Yell” at Texas A&M and running down the hill at Clemson, pre-game traditions bring stadiums to life.

From the Shoe and Big House in the North, to astonishing Autzen Stadium and the famed LA Coliseum out west.

From Army’s beautifully historic Michie Stadium and Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend to the Swamp and both Death Valleys in the South, stadiums like the legendary Rose Bowl are the cathedrals where the history of the sport lives and new history is made on Saturdays in the fall.

From the National Anthem and the opening kickoff to stunning half-time performances which inspire generations of fans and bands, college football influences millions around the country.

From the dramatic twists and turns in a single game to a clutch play late in the fourth, college football continues to show just how incredible one sport can be.

From plays like Doug Flutie‘s Hail Mary in 1984, Vince Young‘s scamper into the endzone to beat USC at the Rose Bowl for the Crystal Ball in 2006, the Kick Six and Miracle at Jordan-Hare that fueled Auburn’s 2013 campaign. And who can forget the event known simply as “The Play” in 1982, when Stanford’s band stormed the field prematurely and Cal used laterals to literally knock down Stanford (sorry trombone guy) showed the excitement and jubilation that is college football.

While individual plays have shaped the outcomes of many great games, there are games like the aforementioned 2006 Rose Bowl that stand out simply for being triumphant for the winners, heartbreaking for the losers, and awe-inspiring for the fans.

1971’s Nebraska-Oklahoma game pitted the No. 1 Cornhuskers on a 20-game winning streak against the No. 2 Sooners. It ended in a 35-31 Nebraska win, and was considered by some to be the “perfect game”.

The 2006 version of “The Game” between Ohio State and Michigan was an example of two heavyweights battling for the Big Ten, the No. 1 ranking nationally and a spot in the BCS Championship Game. The game itself exhibited amazing offense and a shift of power from the Wolverines to the Buckeyes who have won 11 out of 12 match-ups since then.

2011’s 1-vs-2 LSU-Alabama matchup exemplified the great defenses of the south, as the Tigers snuck away from Bryant-Denny with a 9-6 overtime victory and bragging rights (for a couple of months).

Combined with the raucous atmosphere of a college campus, late game heroics and “Game(s) of the Century” make college football America’s most exciting game.

When asked about the importance of college football in perspective of its 150th anniversary, three-time champion coaching legend Urban Meyer said:

"College Football and college athletics in general is often the face of universities. It is the opportunity for the students, faculty, alumni and fans to come together in person and in spirit to support their school. 150 years of college football is a celebration of all those who have made sacrifices for their teammates and for their university in this great game."

All sacrifices made in college football’s history and all the influence that radiates from a college football team contributes to the amazing experience and history that surrounds it.

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Perhaps even more important is the incredible role that college football plays in the inspiration of millions of fans. Foundations that support the community show that football can be a game-changer in the cities, towns and campuses where it is played.

The players visiting fans in hospitals, taking trips to food banks, and coaches initiating fundraisers that raise money to aid the community show that college football is incredibly important in shaping the characteristics of our country as a whole.

Through the good and bad that our country has gone through the last century and a half, college football has played an important role in providing an example of the strength and diversity that makes our country so incredibly special.

College football has faced its share of controversies and shortcomings over the years. But because of the legends of the game who have inspired generations for 150 years, the camaraderie and brotherhood among the players and coaches, the great cathedrals where the game is played and the awesome experience that is Gameday itself, college football stands alone as America’s Greatest Game.