Top 10 Best Forgotten College Football Teams

These groups of men were outstanding. Unfortunately for them, they didn't necessarily win a BCS bowl or the national championship.

However, these teams should always be remembered for their outstanding performances during the season.

The Top Ten

  1. 2009 Boise State Broncos

    Boise State finished 14-0 under head coach Chris Petersen and won the WAC. The Broncos defeated TCU 17-10 in the Fiesta Bowl and opened the season with a nonconference win over Oregon. Quarterback Kellen Moore led the offense, while the defense ranked among the nation's leaders in scoring defense.

    Kellen Moore, one of the top 5 greatest QBs in NCAA history. His 14-0 Boise State team was snubbed from the title game because they "didn't play in a major conference." They ended up beating a great TCU team 17-10 in the Fiesta Bowl.

    Definitely, Boise State was good and made the playoff, yet no one really gives them credit.

  2. 2007 Missouri Tigers

    Missouri went 12-2, winning the Big 12 North and reaching the Big 12 Championship Game. The Tigers briefly held the No. 1 ranking in the polls late in the season. They defeated Arkansas 38-7 in the Cotton Bowl.

    Okay, hear me out. Is there a little bias here? Maybe, but this '07 Mizzou team was good enough to win the title and even earned our first-ever regular-season #1 ranking! Known as Pinkel's Pack (HC Gary Pinkel), this team featured Heisman finalist Chase Daniel, 1,000-yard rusher Tony Temple, All-Americans Martin Rucker, William Moore, and Jeremy Maclin, All-Big 12 kicker Jeff Wolfert, and future 2008 All-Americans Chase Coffman and Sean Weatherspoon. This was built to be a championship team.

    However, they suffered a nail-biting 10-point loss to Oklahoma mid-season, which seemingly ended our national title hopes, right? Wrong. That was a crazy year where none of the top BCS teams were perfect. After we beat Kansas in the most memorable Border War, we finally earned that #1 ranking. But in the Big 12 Championship, we lost 38-17 to Oklahoma - again. (The game was much closer than the 21-point margin suggests.)

    So our national title hopes ended, but not our BCS hopes, right? I mean, we were a top 5 team essentially the whole season. Nope. Kansas (a good Kansas team, I'll admit) took our spot because they had one loss compared to our two, even though their loss was to Missouri. So, the ill-fated BCS kicked us out of a BCS game, and we settled for the Cotton Bowl against Arkansas and Darren McFadden. Then, like many other previous teams, we lost, right?

    Nope! Wrong again! We destroyed Arkansas 38-7. Tony Temple scored every touchdown except for one, which was a pick-six by William Moore. He scored four touchdowns, a performance still considered the greatest in Cotton Bowl history. Yes, Kansas won their bowl game, but Mizzou definitely deserved the BCS spot.

  3. 2004 Utah Utes

    Utah finished 12-0 and became the first non-BCS conference team to reach a BCS bowl. The Utes defeated Pittsburgh 35-7 in the Fiesta Bowl. Urban Meyer coached the team with Alex Smith at quarterback.

    This team made Alex Smith good! Although he was a complete bust in the NFL, he still had a great season in 2004 and Utah finished undefeated! But as usual, they lost out on their title hopes and will never be remembered by the common fan.

    They went on to beat Alabama in their bowl game a couple of years later too!

  4. 2011 Houston Cougars

    Houston went 13-1 and set multiple school offensive records behind quarterback Case Keenum. The Cougars lost the Conference USA Championship Game to Southern Miss. They defeated Penn State 30-14 in the TicketCity Bowl.

    One of the saddest stories in recent NCAA years (for a team, not personal, like deaths or anything). Case Keenum has a great argument to be the best NCAA QB in history. After all, in 3 of his 4 starting seasons, he threw for over 5,000 yards. He led the Cougars to a 12-0 record and just had to beat Southern Miss. They lost 49-28 and were unfairly dropped from #6 to 17 by the BCS! Maybe dropped to 9th-11th I'd understand, but a team that had the most prolific QB in the game was dropped out of the top 15 as a whole!

    People began to say, as they began to play Penn State in the TicketCity Bowl (pretty big drop-off from a BCS bowl if you ask... anyone), and had Penn State, on the heels of the worst scandal since the rape of Katie Hnida at CU, in NCAA history, winning over the Cougars. Houston crushed Penn State 30-14 as Case Keenum had a great farewell and won MVP. This was arguably one of the last straws football had with the BCS.

  5. 2000 Miami Hurricanes

    Miami finished 11-1 with a Sugar Bowl win over Florida. The Hurricanes defeated Florida State in the regular season but did not play in the BCS title game due to rankings. Their only loss came at Washington in September.

    They had one 5-point loss to a good Washington team and that sunk their title hopes, despite dismantling every team they faced except #1 Florida State. They were snubbed from the BCS Title game and then faced Florida in the Sugar Bowl (where they won by 17).

  6. 2010 Oregon Ducks

    Oregon went 12-1, won the Pac-10, and advanced to the BCS National Championship Game. The Ducks lost 22-19 to Auburn in Glendale. LaMichael James led the offense in Chip Kelly's second season as head coach.

    Many have already forgotten this team. They were overshadowed by the overwhelming superstar season of Cam Newton, who, even I'll admit, was spectacular. Oregon was great as well. They had Casey Matthews, Darron Thomas, Jeremiah Masoli, and LaMichael James and became a powerhouse.

    However, due to a great day by Michael Dyer, Chip Kelly's Ducks lost the championship, and like every other team past and present on this list, will fade into obscurity.

  7. 2009 Cincinnati Bearcats

    Cincinnati finished 12-1 and won the Big East title. The Bearcats lost the Sugar Bowl to Florida after head coach Brian Kelly departed before the game. Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard were major contributors on offense.

    The team Brian Kelly coached before Notre Dame. This Bearcats team was the best in school history. Led by the outstanding tandem of Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard, this Bearcats team finished 12-0 in a conference that had #15 Pitt and #25 West Virginia. But the dirty BCS put them at #3 and they were left out of the title game. Many people forgot the season once they were destroyed in Tim Tebow's final game with Florida, 51-24, in the Sugar Bowl.

  8. 2008 Oklahoma Sooners

    Oklahoma went 12-2, captured the Big 12 title, and played in the BCS National Championship Game. The Sooners lost 24-14 to Florida in Miami. Quarterback Sam Bradford won the Heisman Trophy, and the team set an FBS single-season points record at the time.

    Great team. (They deserved more.)

  9. 2004 Auburn Tigers

    Auburn completed a 13-0 season and won the SEC Championship. The Tigers defeated Virginia Tech 16-13 in the Sugar Bowl. Despite being unbeaten, they did not play in the BCS title game due to rankings.

    This team had it all. NFL stars Ben Grubbs, Cadillac Williams, Ronnie Brown, and a then-decent Jason Campbell. They even finished the pre-bowl season 12-0. Guess what? Yep, that's right, the damn BCS put them at #3 and denied them a spot in the title game. Sounds like the '09 Bearcats, right? Only thing is, Auburn won their Sugar Bowl game, 16-13, over Virginia Tech. Great job, BCS...

  10. 1984 BYU Cougars

    BYU finished 13-0 and was recognized as national champion by major polls. The Cougars beat Michigan 24-17 in the Holiday Bowl. Quarterback Robbie Bosco started after Steve Young's departure and led the offense.

    They were undefeated and easily were the winner. They were 13-0, while the next only had 11 wins.

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    1984 Purdue Boilermakers

    Purdue finished 7-5 under head coach Leon Burtnett. The Boilermakers lost 27-24 to Virginia in the Peach Bowl. Quarterback Jim Everett started and guided the offense.

  12. ?

    1990 Virginia Cavaliers

    Virginia started 7-0 and reached No. 1 in the AP Poll for the first time in program history. The Cavaliers finished 8-4 after a 23-22 loss to Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl. George Welsh served as head coach with Shawn Moore at quarterback.

    13. The Contenders

  13. 1991 Washington Huskies

    Washington completed a 12-0 season and shared the national championship with Miami. The Huskies defeated Michigan 34-14 in the Rose Bowl. Defensive lineman Steve Emtman won major awards, including the Outland and Lombardi.

  14. 2006 LSU Tigers

    LSU went 11-2 under head coach Les Miles. The Tigers defeated Notre Dame 41-14 in the Sugar Bowl. Quarterback JaMarcus Russell led an offense that complemented a top-tier defense.

    JaMarcus Russell was once great (in college). LSU seemingly shut down Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl. It would be cool to see a 2006 LSU vs. Florida game rematch.

  15. 1960 Missouri Tigers

    Missouri's on-field loss to Kansas was later forfeited, and the team is credited with an 11-0 record. The Tigers won the Big Eight title. They defeated Navy 21-14 in the Orange Bowl.

    My Mizzou Tigers. The Dan Devine-led Tigers finished as the non-consensus National Champs after a 10-1 record got turned into an 11-0 record due to Kansas forfeiting their win over Mizzou that year. So I guess they have a title, but you won't find that in the books. They did win the Orange Bowl over #4 Navy. But for a team that was so dominant and probably would've beaten Washington or Minnesota that year.

  16. 2012 Ohio State Buckeyes

    Ohio State finished 12-0 in Urban Meyer's first season. The Buckeyes were ineligible for postseason play due to NCAA sanctions. They won all eight Big Ten games during the regular season.

    They went undefeated but were unnoticed due to a post-season ban. This team began the Urban Meyer era, and this team seems to be forgotten.

  17. 1987 Syracuse Orange

    Syracuse went 11-0-1 and completed an unbeaten regular season. The Orange tied Auburn 16-16 in the Sugar Bowl. Quarterback Don McPherson led an offense that produced multiple all-conference performers.

    Surprisingly went undefeated that year. Oklahoma and Miami both went undefeated also, so they had to face Auburn in the Sugar Bowl which ended in a tie.

  18. 2012 Notre Dame Fighting Irish

    Notre Dame went 12-1 with an undefeated regular season. The Fighting Irish lost 42-14 to Alabama in the BCS National Championship Game. Linebacker Manti Te'o earned several national awards and was a Heisman Trophy finalist.

    Forget the fake girlfriend, forget the title game. This was a great Fighting Irish team, possibly the best fielded this century as of right now. In the regular season, they beat FOUR Top 20 football teams, including #8 Oklahoma. Manti Te'o had a legendary season, but it all fell apart and they lost the title game 42-14. At least they'll be remembered for one of the biggest disappointments in title game history.

  19. 2003 Miami RedHawks

    Miami (OH) finished 13-1 and won the MAC Championship. The RedHawks defeated Louisville 49-28 in the GMAC Bowl. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led a high-output passing attack.

  20. 2017 UCF Knights

    UCF completed a 13-0 season and won the American Athletic Conference title. The Knights defeated Auburn 34-27 in the Peach Bowl. The program claimed a national championship based on the Colley Matrix ranking.

  21. 2013 Michigan State Spartans

    Michigan State finished 13-1, winning the Big Ten Championship. The Spartans defeated Stanford 24-20 in the Rose Bowl. Their only loss came at Notre Dame in September.

  22. 2008 Texas Tech Red Raiders

    Texas Tech went 11-2 and shared a three-way tie atop the Big 12 South standings. The Red Raiders defeated Texas on a last-minute touchdown in Lubbock. They lost to Ole Miss in the Cotton Bowl.

  23. 2013 Missouri Tigers

    Missouri went 12-2, won the SEC East, and played in the SEC Championship Game. The Tigers lost to Auburn in the title game. They beat Oklahoma State 41-31 in the Cotton Bowl.

  24. 1998 Tennessee Volunteers

    Tennessee finished 13-0 and won the first BCS National Championship. The Volunteers defeated Florida State 23-16 in the Fiesta Bowl. They also secured the SEC Championship under head coach Phillip Fulmer.

    They were the best team in Tennessee history. They won their first overtime game vs #13 Florida. They went on a 13-0 season the year after Peyton Manning departed for the NFL.

  25. 1994 Penn State Nittany Lions

    Penn State completed a 12-0 season and won the Big Ten title. The Nittany Lions defeated Oregon 38-20 in the Rose Bowl. Quarterback Kerry Collins and running back Ki-Jana Carter led a prolific offense.

  26. 1980 BYU Cougars

    BYU went 12-1 and won the WAC title. The Cougars defeated SMU 46-45 in the Holiday Bowl after a late-game comeback. Quarterback Jim McMahon set multiple passing records during the season.

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