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ESPN Ranks the Top 150 College Football Games of All Time

Vic Mackey

By Vic Mackey
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Vic Mackey

Vic Mackey 46936

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Definitely not going to copy/paste the whole list here. The link is very user friendly. I will post their top 10 which yes, has Texas/USC. I did go find all the other games on the list that included Texas.

Link to the full list:

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/page/CFB150games/the-150-greatest-games-college-football-150-year-history

1. No. 1 Nebraska 35, at No. 2 Oklahoma 31
Nov. 25, 1971
The Sooners and Huskers presented Americans with a Thanksgiving feast: 829 yards of total offense, four lead changes, only one penalty and a game billed as the Game of the Century that lived up to the billing. Johnny Rodgers' 72-yard punt return wasn't the game winner that people think: It came after Oklahoma's first possession. Oklahoma scored on five drives of at least 69 yards against a defense that didn't allow more than 17 points to anyone else. The last of Huskers fullback Jeff Kinney's four short touchdown runs -- this one with 1:38 to play -- flipped the scoreboard to the visitors.

2. No. 5 Miami 31, No. 1 Nebraska 30
Orange Bowl, Jan. 2, 1984
The Huskers arrived for a coronation as 11-point favorites, but the hometown Hurricanes, backed by a raucous crowd, left with the Huskers' crown. Nebraska never led, but the Huskers rebounded from deficits of 17 and 14 points. The latter, capped by tailback Jeff Smith's 34-yard run with 48 seconds to play, precipitated one of the gutsiest coaching decisions ever. An extra point would have left Nebraska as the nation's only undefeated team. But Tom Osborne didn't want to finish No. 1 that way. Miami defensive back Ken Calhoun tipped Turner Gill's 2-point pass to Smith, and the Hurricanes dynasty was born.

3. Appalachian State 34, at No. 5 Michigan 32
Sept. 1, 2007
The No. 5 Wolverines would have been prohibitive favorites had Las Vegas bothered to set a line. But the Mountaineers, two-time defending FCS champions, had a magician, Armanti Edwards, at quarterback. Two of the game's four lead changes came in the frantic final five minutes. The Mountaineers drove 69 yards for Julian Rauch's 24-yard field goal to retake the lead with 1:11 to play. The Wolverines responded with a long pass to set up a 37-yard field goal attempt with 6 seconds to play. But Appalachian State's Corey Lynch blocked the kick to send this game directly into the history book.

 

4. No. 10 Boston College 47 at No. 12 Miami 45
Nov. 23, 1984
When Doug Flutie scrambled to his right, again confounding the exhausted Hurricane defensive front; when he heaved that 48-yard pass into the end zone scrum with zeroes on the clock; when Gerard Phelan, camped just behind the scrum, caught the ball like it were a punt; when Brent Musburger screamed, "I don't believe it!" into CBS's microphone; when the Eagles accepted the Cotton Bowl's invitation; when Flutie won the 1984 Heisman; when in 2008 Boston College erected a statue of Flutie, shoulders angled as if throwing this very pass: Maybe then we grasped the full meaning of this Hail Mary.

5. No. 2 Penn State 14, No. 1 Miami 10
Fiesta Bowl, Jan. 2, 1987
The Nittany Lions wore navy jerseys and white hats, the heroes in the Morality Play in the Desert. The big, bad Hurricanes swaggered into the Valley of the Sun. They stalked out of a steak fry honoring both teams in part because a Penn State player told a racially tinged joke. The Canes' bravado didn't hold up against the Nittany Lion defense, which harassed Heisman winner Vinny Testaverde into throwing five picks, the last on fourth down at the Penn State end zone in the final seconds. Miami outgained Penn State 445-162 but had little to show for it.

6. At No. 4 Notre Dame 31, No. 1 Miami 30
Oct. 15, 1988
Three decades on, Miami coach Jimmy Johnson still believes that if the replay rule existed on that crisp fall day, the controversy around whether Canes running back Cleveland Gary fumbled, was down or scored would have gone Miami's way. The Canes would have won their 37th consecutive regular-season game, not to mention its second consecutive national championship. But the Catholics v. Convicts game lives on in Notre Dame lore for Pat Terrell batting away Steve Walsh's 2-point conversion attempt with 45 seconds left to thwart the Miami comeback. Instead, Miami finished one play away, but which one? The Canes had seven turnovers.

7. No. 2 Texas 41, No. 1 USC 38
Rose Bowl, Jan. 4, 2006
The Trojans' 35th consecutive victory would have delivered a third straight national championship. The stories about USC being the greatest team ever? The Longhorns didn't appreciate that brand of journalism. Quarterback Vince Young carried a grudge because USC back Reggie Bush had won the Heisman. Young threw for 267 yards and rushed for 200, the last eight coming on fourth-and-5 with 19 seconds to play for the winning score. That capped a two-touchdown comeback in the final 6:42. Between those scores, USC head coach Pete Carroll went for fourth-and-2 near midfield. Decades from now, Trojans still will wonder why Bush was on the bench.

8. No. 2 Penn State 27, No. 1 Georgia 23
Sugar Bowl, Jan. 1, 1983
For nearly two decades, Nittany Lion head coach Joe Paterno knocked on the door on the college football elite. For nearly two decades, the elite refused to answer. Penn State went undefeated three times without finishing No. 1. This time, even with an early 21-point loss to Alabama, Penn State kicked down the door. The Nittany Lions never trailed, Curt Warner (117 yards) outgained Heisman winner Herschel Walker (103) and quarterback Todd Blackledge clinched the victory early in the fourth quarter with a 47-yard pass to Gregg Garrity. Georgia lost for only the third time in Walker's three seasons at tailback.

9. At No. 1 LSU 7, No. 3 Ole Miss 3
Oct. 31, 1959
Thanks to the memorable radio call of LSU announcer J.C. Politz, all anyone remembers of this game is Billy Cannon's 89-yard punt return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Cannon fielded the punt against the wishes of Tigers head coach Paul Dietzel, then broke seven tackles as he raced down the sideline in front of the Rebels' bench. But the Tigers won the game with a goal-line stand. On the last play of the game, fourth-and-goal from the LSU 1, Rebel quarterback Doug Elmore tried to run to his left, where he was stopped by Warren Raab and Cannon.

10. No. 3 Notre Dame 24, No. 1 Alabama 23
Sugar Bowl, Dec. 31, 1973
The first-ever matchup of two historical powers matched its considerable hype: six lead changes, big plays in all phases. The game turned on special teams: the Irish's Al Hunter returned a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown, and Notre Dame made a 2-point conversion; Tide kicker Bill Davis missed an extra point in the fourth quarter. Bear Bryant tried to pin Notre Dame deep and force a late punt. But on third-and-8 from the Irish 3, quarterback Tom Clements threw a 35-yard pass out of his end zone to backup tight end Robin Weber. It was Weber's second catch of the season.

29. No. 1 Texas 15, at No. 2 Arkansas 14
Dec. 6, 1969
More than 50 million Americans watched the Longhorns climb back from a 14-0 deficit in The Big Shootout to win their 19th consecutive game. A 44-yard toss from James Street to Randy Peschel on fourth-and-3 sparked the game-winning drive. President Richard Nixon attended the game and presented the Longhorns with a plaque declaring them national champions -- before postseason bowl games were played.

31. No. 1 Texas 21, No. 9 Notre Dame 17
Cotton Bowl, Jan. 1, 1970
After beating Arkansas in the Game of the Century the previous month, the No. 1 Longhorns affirmed President Nixon's proclamation by finishing 11-0 with a victory over the No. 9 Irish. Texas needed a 17-play drive in the final minutes, which included two fourth-down conversions, to win on Billy Dale's 1-yard TD run with 1:08 left. It was Notre Dame's second-ever bowl game.

36. No. 5 Texas 21, No. 1 Alabama 17
Orange Bowl, Jan. 1, 1965
The first Orange Bowl in prime time wasn't decided until Texas linebacker Tommy Nobis stuffed quarterback Joe Namath short of the goal line late in the fourth quarter. The loss spoiled No. 1 Alabama's perfect season. Namath didn't start because of a knee injury, but he came off the bench to throw for 255 yards with two TDs to earn MVP honors.

49. No. 6 Texas 38, No. 13 Michigan 37
Rose Bowl, Jan. 1, 2005
Texas coach Mack Brown publicly lobbied for his team to play in the Rose Bowl, and the Longhorns proved they belonged by winning on Dusty Mangum's 37-yard field goal as time expired in the first meeting between the schools. Texas quarterback Vince Young ran for 192 yards with four touchdowns and passed for 180 with one score.

63. No. 8 Arkansas 14, at No. 1 Texas 13
Oct. 17, 1964
The Razorbacks snapped the top-ranked and defending national champion Longhorns' 15-game win streak when Texas' 2-point try failed after a Ted Koy touchdown run with 1:27 left. Ken Hatfield's 81-yard punt return gave Arkansas an early lead and Freddie Marshall's 34-yard TD pass to Bobby Crockett in the fourth put the Hogs ahead to stay. Arkansas finished the season with a share of the national title.

66. No. 3 Texas 13, No. 22 Nebraska 12
Big 12 championship, Dec. 6, 2009
Hunter Lawrence booted a 46-yard field goal on the final play of the game after a review put one second back on the clock. The Huskers celebrated on the field when Colt McCoy's pass sailed out of bounds and the clock ran to to all zeros on the previous play. Nebraska DT Ndamukong Suh dominated the Longhorns, registering 4.5 sacks. Texas advanced to the BCS title game with the win, where the Horns lost to Alabama.

72. At No. 7 Texas Tech 39, No. 1 Texas 33
Nov. 2, 2008
No. 1 Texas rallied from 16 down in the third quarter to take a 33-32 lead on Vondrell McGee's TD run with 1:29 left. But that just set the stage for a thrilling finish. Michael Crabtree caught a 28-yard toss from Graham Harrell, shook off a defender and raced into the end zone for the winning touchdown with only one second on the clock.

75. No. 16 Texas 15, No. 2 Oklahoma 14
Oct. 11, 1958
Behind a 13-play, 74-yard touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter, Texas ended a six-game losing streak to the Sooners and handed OU its only loss of the season. QB Bobby Lackey threw the winning score for the Horns. The win over the Sooners was the first of eight straight that Texas would win in the series under coach Darrell Royal.

81. At No. 24 Texas A&M 20, No. 7 Texas 16
Nov. 26, 1999
Eight days after the Aggie Bonfire collapse that killed 12 and injured 27, the Big 12 archrivals met in a somber Kyle Field. The usual hate had been replaced by love -- Texas held a campus blood drive and played the "Aggie War Hymn" on the carillon in the campus tower. Ja'Mar Toombs led the Aggies back from a 10-point deficit by rushing for 126 yards and two scores on 37 carries.

114. TCU 6, at No. 1 Texas 0
Nov. 18, 1961
The Horned Frogs, 24-point underdogs, stunned the No. 1 Longhorns in one of the biggest upsets in series history. TCU's defense stopped UT on three drives inside the Horned Frogs' 5 and knocked out Texas star James Saxton, and QB Sonny Gibbs connected with Buddy Iles on a 50-yard TD pass. The devastating loss caused UT coach Darrell Royal to later compare the Horned Frogs to cockroaches. "It's not what they eat and tote off," he said. "It's what they fall into and mess up that hurts."

123. No. 9 Colorado 39, No. 3 Texas 37
Big 12 championship game, Irving, Texas, Dec. 1, 2001
The Buffaloes scored 26 points off four Chris Simms turnovers in the first half, then held off a late rally behind UT backup quarterback Major Applewhite to win the Big 12 championship game. The loss knocked the Longhorns out of the BCS National Championship Game at the Rose Bowl. Colorado's Chris Brown ran for three touchdowns.

 

Edited by Vic Mackey
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dcar00

dcar00 14036

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#7 lol.  I guess they have to change it up a bit.  there is no way it isn't #1

USC going for 3rd straight title, long winning streak

2 heisman trophy winners and runner up in game

Texas has no chance

it was the last official Rose Bow game to be the National Championship game. 

VY willed the team to victory with what is likely the single greatest QB performances of all time in an NC

 

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ousux

ousux 5587

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App State beating meatchicken is 4 spots ahead of the 2006 Rose Bowl..really?


Outside of appy state fans and oddly enough a few wolverines, if you asked anyone on the street to name their top 10 cfb games of all time, would anyone even think of that game?

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markstanco

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App State beating meatchicken is 4 spots ahead of the 2006 Rose Bowl..really?


Outside of appy state fans and oddly enough a few wolverines, if you asked anyone on the street to name their top 10 cfb games of all time, would anyone even think of that game?
I saw them as well at #3 and laughed, espn doing espn things.

Nobody gave a damn about that game until the 3rd quarter. Nobody recorded that game outside of a 200 mile radius of Detroit.

Yes it was an upset. But they should do an upset list.
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mulletpelini

mulletpelini 5210

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On 11/4/2019 at 11:16 AM, DaysOff said:

No. 9 is just dumb. It had a single moment. No. 5 as well.

Yeah that fiesta bowl was a piece of shit snoozefest

4 hours ago, EuroHorn said:

I would have thought the 1996 big 12 championship game would have been on the list 

I would have too.  It's kind of a big deal when you beat a team that to that point had gone 47-2 in the previous 4 seasons

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Armybrat

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#114

It should be noted that James Saxton was kicked in the back of his head on the sidelines by a toad defender as he was getting up well after after the play was dead. One of the dirtiest plays I have ever seen in 60 years of watching Texas games.

The All American back still has the UT record for season average yards per carry.

Cockroaches indeed.

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SwanderedTalent

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1 hour ago, Iceman said:

It should be way the fuck higher.

it loses points for Greg Davis' overly charitable playcalling

if we'd played better and lost, it would be higher, but we were terrible for about two-thirds of the game

also if you guys hadn't driven the bus off the cliff at the end of the season and ended up outside the Top Ten, it would have remained more meaningful-- as it is, it's really more of a Great Texas Tech Moment than anything significant to college football history

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DeadArmadillo

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16 hours ago, markstanco said:

I saw them as well at #3 and laughed, espn doing espn things.

Nobody gave a damn about that game until the 3rd quarter. Nobody recorded that game outside of a 200 mile radius of Detroit.

Yes it was an upset. But they should do an upset list.

It wasn't even that big of an upset.  Michigan was about the 20th best team in the country.  App State was probably the 40 or 45th best team.  They won the FCS title that season.  That game belongs nowhere on that list

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Treefidy

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13 hours ago, Armybrat said:

#114

It should be noted that James Saxton was kicked in the back of his head on the sidelines by a toad defender as he was getting up well after after the play was dead. One of the dirtiest plays I have ever seen in 60 years of watching Texas games.

The All American back still has the UT record for season average yards per carry.

Cockroaches indeed.

Cheap shots aside, games back in the late 70s to early 80's were something.  Cheap shots weren't always penalties back then, things that would get you kicked out of football today.  

There was no such thing as horse collar, clothesline tackles still took heads off, and who else remembers a UT DB tergeting a ball carrier to the ground and Jerry Gray launching head first like an ICBM and spearing the guy 2 seconds later.   No penalties, just how different football was between then and now.  

And OU didn't get called for holding back then either.  

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