6:14 AM
Football
By Kevin T. Anderson
There are very few sporting events that bring in the viewers, fans, and attention that the college football National Championship Game does. After a long football season and watching teams move up and down the polls, most information about the eventual National Champions is widely known among college football fans. But, here are ten things you don't know about the last ten football National Champions.
1. 1998 Tennessee Volunteers - Tennessee had four running backs that saw significant carries during the season; Travis Henry ran the ball 195 times, Travis Stephens rushed 120 times, and Jamal Lewis carried the ball 73 times, but it was Shawn Bryson who had the best per carry average when he averaged 8.63 yards per carry.
2. 1999 Florida State Seminoles - The FSU Seminoles of 1999 were the first college football team to start the season ranked number one, be ranked all throughout the season each and every week, and then win the National Championship to secure their number one ranking.
3. 2000 Oklahoma Sooners - Running back Quentin Griffin led the 2000 Oklahoma Sooners football team in both rushing and receptions. His 51 receptions on the season was just one ahead of teammate Antwone Savage's 50 receptions.
4. 2001 Miami Hurricanes - The Miami Hurricanes of 2001 outscored their opponents by an average of 32.9 points per game. Based on this stat alone, many consider this team to be one of the best in college football history.
5. 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes - The Ohio State Buckeyes started the 2002 season off ranked 13th and they were never ranked number one in the nation until after their National Championship Game victory over the Miami Hurricanes in the Fiesta Bowl.
6. 2003 Louisiana State University Tigers - The 2003 LSU Tigers finished the season 13-1 and in their fourteen games they scored less than twenty points only three times; once in a 17-10 win over Georgia, again in their only loss 19-7 at the hands of Florida, and finally in a 17-14 victory over Ole Miss.
7. 2004 University of Southern California Trojans - When the 2004 USC Trojans defeated the Washington Huskies 38-0 to raise their record to 7-0, they ended the nation's longest active streak of consecutive games without being shut out which had been held by the Huskies who hadn't been shut out since 1981.
8. 2005 Texas Longhorns - The 2005 Texas Longhorns set the record for the largest margin of victory in the Big 12 Championship Game when they defeated the University of Colorado by a score of 70-3.
9. 2006 Florida Gators - The 2006 football season was big by the numbers for the Florida Gators. They not only won the National Championship, it was the ten year anniversary of Florida's first ever football national championship, and was also the 100 year anniversary of football being played at the University of Florida.
10. 2007 Louisiana State University Tigers - The LSU Tigers finished the 2007 season with a record of 12-2. Amazingly both of the team's losses that year (to the University of Kentucky and to the University of Arkansas) came in games that weren't decided until reaching triple overtime.
The National Champion of Division I college football will always be one of the more important titles won in American sports. The story told by college football teams as they navigate their regular season, their conference schedule, and their post season can be truly dramatic in nature. Once a team rises above the rest to win the championship, looking back at the interesting road they took is a large part of the fun.
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There are very few sporting events that bring in the viewers, fans, and attention that the college football National Championship Game does. After a long football season and watching teams move up and down the polls, most information about the eventual National Champions is widely known among college football fans. But, here are ten things you don't know about the last ten football National Champions.
1. 1998 Tennessee Volunteers - Tennessee had four running backs that saw significant carries during the season; Travis Henry ran the ball 195 times, Travis Stephens rushed 120 times, and Jamal Lewis carried the ball 73 times, but it was Shawn Bryson who had the best per carry average when he averaged 8.63 yards per carry.
2. 1999 Florida State Seminoles - The FSU Seminoles of 1999 were the first college football team to start the season ranked number one, be ranked all throughout the season each and every week, and then win the National Championship to secure their number one ranking.
3. 2000 Oklahoma Sooners - Running back Quentin Griffin led the 2000 Oklahoma Sooners football team in both rushing and receptions. His 51 receptions on the season was just one ahead of teammate Antwone Savage's 50 receptions.
4. 2001 Miami Hurricanes - The Miami Hurricanes of 2001 outscored their opponents by an average of 32.9 points per game. Based on this stat alone, many consider this team to be one of the best in college football history.
5. 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes - The Ohio State Buckeyes started the 2002 season off ranked 13th and they were never ranked number one in the nation until after their National Championship Game victory over the Miami Hurricanes in the Fiesta Bowl.
6. 2003 Louisiana State University Tigers - The 2003 LSU Tigers finished the season 13-1 and in their fourteen games they scored less than twenty points only three times; once in a 17-10 win over Georgia, again in their only loss 19-7 at the hands of Florida, and finally in a 17-14 victory over Ole Miss.
7. 2004 University of Southern California Trojans - When the 2004 USC Trojans defeated the Washington Huskies 38-0 to raise their record to 7-0, they ended the nation's longest active streak of consecutive games without being shut out which had been held by the Huskies who hadn't been shut out since 1981.
8. 2005 Texas Longhorns - The 2005 Texas Longhorns set the record for the largest margin of victory in the Big 12 Championship Game when they defeated the University of Colorado by a score of 70-3.
9. 2006 Florida Gators - The 2006 football season was big by the numbers for the Florida Gators. They not only won the National Championship, it was the ten year anniversary of Florida's first ever football national championship, and was also the 100 year anniversary of football being played at the University of Florida.
10. 2007 Louisiana State University Tigers - The LSU Tigers finished the 2007 season with a record of 12-2. Amazingly both of the team's losses that year (to the University of Kentucky and to the University of Arkansas) came in games that weren't decided until reaching triple overtime.
The National Champion of Division I college football will always be one of the more important titles won in American sports. The story told by college football teams as they navigate their regular season, their conference schedule, and their post season can be truly dramatic in nature. Once a team rises above the rest to win the championship, looking back at the interesting road they took is a large part of the fun.
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