Top 10 College Football Games of the 1980s

With the college football season approaching, I figured it was time to do a series on the greatest college football games from each decade. Here is a list of the best college football games from the 1980s.

The Top Ten

  1. 1988: #4 Notre Dame - 31, #1 Miami - 30

    Notre Dame beats Miami in the "Catholics vs. Convicts" game.

  2. 1984 Orange Bowl: Miami - 31, Nebraska - 30

    Miami shocks top-ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl after the Cornhuskers fail to convert a two-point conversion.

  3. 1984: Boston College - 47, Miami - 45

    Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie throws a memorable Hail Mary pass to beat Miami.

  4. 1987 Fiesta Bowl: #2 Penn State - 14, #1 Miami - 10

    Miami wears fatigues off the plane, but Penn State shocks the Hurricanes to win the national championship.

  5. 1980 Holiday Bowl: BYU - 46, SMU - 45

    Jim McMahon and BYU overcome a 20-point deficit in the final four minutes to beat SMU in a thrilling Holiday Bowl classic.

  6. 1982: California-Berkeley - 25, Stanford - 20

    Cal pulls off a miraculous kickoff return with a few laterals and runs through Stanford and its band to beat the Cardinal 25-20. John Elway's last game ends in heartbreaking fashion.

  7. 1985 Iron Bowl: Alabama - 25, Auburn - 23

    Bo Jackson's last regular-season game at Auburn ends in heartbreak as Alabama secures the victory with a 52-yard field goal at the buzzer.

  8. 1982: Penn State - 27, Nebraska - 24

    After seeing a 21-7 lead disappear, the Nittany Lions were able to come back and defeat Nebraska, but not without controversy. A key 15-yard pass from Todd Blackledge to Mike McCloskey was ruled a catch despite replays showing that McCloskey was out of bounds before he caught the ball. Penn State would score the winning touchdown moments later and use that victory to spark a run to a national championship.

  9. 1984: Maryland - 42, Miami - 40

    Led by future NFL backup quarterback Frank Reich, the Terrapins erased a 31-0 halftime deficit, completing the largest comeback in college football history at the time. Of course, Reich would be best remembered for leading the Bills to a historic 32-point comeback in the playoffs against the Oilers.

  10. 1980: Georgia - 26, Florida - 21

    Lindsay Scott secures a 93-yard game-winning touchdown reception to knock off Florida. The Bulldogs would finish the season undefeated as national champions.

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