2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season

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2007 NCAA Division I FBS season
Regular season August 30 - December 1
Bowl games December 20, 2007 - February 2, 2008
National Championship Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Champions LSU Tigers
Heisman Tim Tebow
List of NCAA Division I FBS football seasons
«2006 2008»

The 2007 NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) football season, or the college football season, began on August 30, 2007,[1] progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and (aside from all-star exhibition games that followed) concluded with the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship Game in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 7, 2008, where the top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes were defeated by the second ranked Louisiana State Tigers, who became the BCS National Champions and undisputed national champions (topping all the major year-end football polls). The season ended, for the first time since 2003-2004 and only the second in the BCS era, with no teams finishing their campaign undefeated.

Contents

[edit] Preseason rankings

See also: 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings#Preseason polls

Many publications release their predictions of the top teams prior to the beginning of the season. For 2007, numerous publications chose the University of Southern California as the top ranked team. These included; Real Football 365,[2] ESPN,[3], Rivals.com[4] College Football News.[5] They were also ranked first in the Coaches Poll[6] and AP Poll.[7] The Coaches' Poll plays an important part in the season because the final ballot represents one-third of the ranking to determine which two teams play in the BCS National Championship Game. Rounding out the top five in the Coaches Poll were: LSU, Florida, Texas, and Michigan.[6]

[edit] Rules changes for 2007

The clock rules adopted in the 2006 season were reversed, after coaches in all divisions disapproved of them.[8] The attempt to reduce the time of games sought by those rules were successful, reducing the average college football page from 3:21 hours in 2005 to 3:07 hours in 2006.[8] However, the reduced game time also reduced the average number of plays in a game by 13, 66 fewer offensive yards per game and average points per game by 5.[8] Rules changes for the 2007 season include:

  • Moving the kick-off yard-line from 35 to 30, which matches the yard-line used in the National Football League, to reduce the number of touchbacks.[8]
  • Paring the 25-second play clock to 15 seconds after TV timeouts.[8]
  • Shortening teams' three allotted timeouts per half by 30 seconds each, from 1:25 to 55 seconds.[8]
  • Allowing penalties against the kicking team on kickoffs to be assessed at the end of the runback, avoiding a re-kick, also matching the NFL rule.[8]

[edit] Key matchups, upsets, and "The Curse of #2"

Date Visitor Home Source Significance
September 1 Appalachian State 34 Michigan 32 ESPN.com[9] In the game that set the tone for the rest of the season, the two-time D-I FCS national champions shocked the fifth-ranked Wolverines in the Big House. It was the first time a D-I FCS team had defeated a ranked Div-I FBS team.
September 3 Florida State 18 Clemson 24 ESPN[10]
SI.com[11]		 The Bowden Bowl debut for the new FSU offensive staff including coordinator Jimbo Fisher. Clemson jumped out to a 24-3 halftime lead and held on for the win.
September 8 Virginia Tech 7 LSU 48 ESPN.com[12]
SI.com[11]
Lindy's[13]		 This early SEC-ACC showdown promised to be a defensive battle, but quickly became lopsided, as the Hokies were torched for 298 yards rushing and 302 passing.
September 8 Miami (FL) 13 Oklahoma 51 ESPN.com[12]
SI.com[11]		 The Hurricanes get blown out in the first major road test for new head coach Randy Shannon.
September 15 Tennessee 20 Florida 59 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]		 In this key SEC East matchup, the Gators thrash the Vols behind two passing and two rushing TDs from quarterback Tim Tebow.
September 29 California 31 Oregon 24 ESPN.com[14] Cal temporarily stamped itself as USC's main contender for the Pac-10 title, but can only seal the win when Oregon fumbles the ball out of the end zone in the last minute of play.
October 6 Florida 24 LSU 28 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]
Lindy's[13]		 In front of a record home crowd, LSU comes from behind to complete the sweep of its top ranking, adding the USA Today Coaches and Harris Interactive polls to the AP writers' poll they earned the previous week.
October 6 Nebraska 6 Missouri 41 ESPN[10]
Rivals.com[15]		 What promised to be a Big 12 North showdown turned into a Mizzou blowout, thanks to 403 yards passing, two passing TDs, and two rushing TDs from Chase Daniel, plus a strong performance from the Tigers' maligned defense.
October 6 Oklahoma 28 Texas 21 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]
Lindy's[13]		 Oklahoma wins the Red River Shootout in Dallas, keeping itself atop the Big 12 South and on the fringes of the national championship picture.
October 6 Stanford 24 Southern California 23 ESPN[10]
Lindy's[13]		 In a season littered with upsets, Stanford pulls off perhaps the most shocking upset of the year when they stun the Trojans 24-23 on a fourth and goal TD pass by Stanford quarterback Tavita Pritchard to WR Mark Bradford with 49 seconds left to play. USC quarterback John David Booty breaks his finger during this game.
October 13 LSU 37 Kentucky 43 (3 OT) FoxSports.com[16] The Wildcats claim their first Number 1 scalp since 1964 in a three-overtime thriller in Lexington, helping erase memories of the final play of LSU's last visit in 2002.
October 13 Missouri 31 Oklahoma 41 FoxSports.com [16] This game between top 15 teams proved to be a preview of the Big 12 Championship Game. Oklahoma proved their worth by taking advantage of several Mizzou mistakes, including returning a Jeremy Maclin fumble for the go-ahead touchdown.
October 18 South Florida 27 Rutgers 30 ESPN.com[17] For the second straight year, the Scarlet Knights knock off an unbeaten top-5 Big East rival on a Thursday night in Piscataway, thanks in no small part to 181 yards on the ground from Ray Rice.
October 20 Auburn 24 LSU 30 Rivals.com[18] LSU had the ball in field goal range at the end of the game, but did not use its remaining timeout, instead calling a pass into the end zone, which goes for the winning TD with 1 second left, keeping their national championship hopes alive.
October 20 Florida 45 Kentucky 37 Rivals.com[18] The Gators take charge of the SEC East race for the time being, defeating the Wildcats for the 21st straight time behind Tim Tebow's 4 total TDs. Andre' Woodson also improves his Heisman stock, throwing for 5 scores in a losing cause.
October 20 Tennessee 17 Alabama 41 Rivals.com[18] On the Third Saturday in October, John Parker Wilson throws for a career-high 363 yards and three TDs to lead the Tide to a spanking of the Vols.
October 25 Boston College 14 Virginia Tech 10 ESPN.com[17] Held scoreless until the final 2:11 at Blacksburg, the Eagles stay in the midst of the national title race thanks to a Matt Ryan TD pass, a recovered onside kick, and a second Ryan TD pass. This also proved to be a preview of the ACC Championship Game.
October 27 West Virginia 31 Rutgers 3 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]		 Steve Slaton's three rushing TDs and Pat White's 156 rushing yards lead the Mountaineers to an unexpected blowout.
October 27 Florida 30 Georgia 42 ESPN[10] Georgia stays in the SEC East race with a win in the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.
October 27 South Carolina 24 Tennessee 27 (OT) ESPN[10] The Vols blow a 21-0 halftime lead, but tie the game with a last-second field goal, and win in overtime after the Gamecocks miss a field goal that would have sent the game to a second overtime. Tennessee stays in the thick of the SEC East race.
October 27 California 20 Arizona State 31 ESPN.com[17] The unbeaten Sun Devils come from behind to win and put themselves in the midst of the national title race.
October 27 Southern California 17 Oregon 24 ESPN.com[17] The Ducks keep themselves in the national title race and knock out the Trojans.
November 3 Arizona State 23 Oregon 35 ESPN.com[19] The Ducks convincingly win at home, knocking the Sun Devils from the unbeaten ranks and taking control of the Pac-10 race for the time being.
November 3 Navy 46 Notre Dame 44 (3 OT) ESPN.com[17] In a triple-overtime thriller, the Midshipmen defeat the Irish for the first time since 1963, when Roger Staubach was at the controls for Navy. This ends a 43-game Irish winning streak in the series, the longest between annual opponents in Division I history.
November 3 LSU 41 Alabama 34 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10][17][19]
Lindy's[13]		 In Nick Saban's first outing for the Tide against his former team, the Tide have the lead in the fourth, but LSU scores two TDs in the final four minutes to stay in the thick of the national title race.
November 8 Louisville 31 West Virginia 38 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]
Lindy's[13]		 The Mountaineers survive a scare from the Cardinals to stay in the national title race.
November 10 Virginia 48 Miami 0 ESPN.com[20] With dozens of former Miami players returning for the final game Miami would ever play in the historic Orange Bowl, Virginia spoiled the party by sending them off with a 48 to 0 shellacking. Ironically, the majority of the capacity crowd had already left the stadium when the final whistle blew as a huge "Thanks for the Memories" banner was unfurled.
November 10 Connecticut 3 Cincinnati 27 ESPN.com[21] In a matchup between two of the country's most surprising teams, the Bearcats get an easier-than-expected upset win.
November 10 Florida 51 South Carolina 31 ESPN.com[17] In his annual game against his former team, the Ol' Ball Coach has no answer to Tim Tebow, who runs for five TDs and passes for two more.
November 10 Southern California 24 California 17 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]		 The Trojans continue the Bears' late-season tailspin and stay in contention for a BCS bowl berth.
November 17 Boston College 20 Clemson 17 ESPN.com[22] In a showdown for a place in the ACC Championship Game, Matt Ryan strikes with a late TD pass to give the Eagles the lead, and they hold on to punch their ticket to Jacksonville.
November 17 Ohio State 14 Michigan 3 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10][17][19]		 On a rainy day in The Big House, the Buckeyes get 220 yards on the ground from Chris Wells and a dominant defensive effort to win their fourth straight game in the storied rivalry and assured themselves of no worse than a trip to Pasadena, but with events that followed, it became New Orleans while the Buckeyes were "in the clubhouse" as the Big Ten season ended.
November 17 Oklahoma 27 Texas Tech 34 ESPN.com[19] A bad night on the South Plains for the Sooners: First they lose quarterback Sam Bradford to a first-quarter concussion, then their national title hopes disappear behind 420 passing yards from Graham Harrell.
November 22 Southern California 44 Arizona State 24 ESPN.com[19] The Trojans win over the Sun Devils and create a logjam atop the Pac-10.
November 23 Texas 30 Texas A&M 38 ESPN[10] A&M wins consecutive games against their archrivals for the first time since 1994, sending coach Dennis Franchione out on a high note. The result essentially assured Oklahoma of the Big 12 South title; the Sooners removed any doubt the next day with a shellacking of their own in-state rivals, Oklahoma State.
November 23 Boise State 27 Hawaiʻi 39 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10][17][19]
Lindy's[13]		 Thanks to 495 passing yards from Colt Brennan, the Warriors beat the Broncos for the first time ever in WAC play, and win the outright WAC title for the first time ever. The following week, they came back from a 21-0 first-quarter hole against Washington to completed an unbeaten regular season, ultimately following in the footsteps of the previous year's Broncos and earning a BCS berth.
November 24 Alabama 10 Auburn 17 ESPN[10]
Lindy's[13]		 Not even Nick Saban's $4 million a year salary is enough to keep Auburn from winning their sixth straight Iron Bowl.
November 24 Connecticut 21 West Virginia 66 ESPN.com[19] In a battle for the Big East title, the Mountaineers destroy the Huskies behind 517 yards rushing, 186 of them from Pat White, and state their case for a berth in the BCS championship game... at least until a shocking home loss to archrival Pitt the following week.
November 24 Missouri 36 Kansas 28 ESPN.com[17] The Tigers take a 21-0 lead in the third quarter, and hold on to book a rematch with Oklahoma for the Big 12 title and a chance to make the BCS championship game.
November 24 Virginia Tech 33 Virginia 21 ESPN.com[23] The Hokies take home the Commonwealth Cup and win a trip to Jacksonville for a rematch with Boston College, this time for the ACC title and a BCS berth.
December 1 UCLA 7 Southern California 24 SI.com[11]
ESPN[10]		 Southern California got a measure of revenge for last year's upset and earned another trip to "The Grandady of 'Em All".
December 1 Pittsburgh 13 West Virginia 9 ESPNU.com [24] Prior to the 100th edition of the Backyard Brawl, the Mountaineers had all but guaranteed themselves a spot in the National Championship. With one game remaining against the rival Panthers at 4-7, West Virginia was expected to secure their position. But with a 13-9 victory, the Panthers eliminated the Mountaineers from championship contention, putting a good end to their disappointing season.

[edit] Year of the upset

The media has dubbed this season as the "Year of the Upset".[25] An unranked or lower-ranked opponent has defeated a higher-ranked team 59 times this season.[citation needed] This list does not include other upsets involving two unranked teams. A record setting 12 unranked teams defeated top 5 teams during the regular season.[citation needed] The #2 ranked team has lost 7 times throughout the season, as of December 1.[citation needed]

Games in which the lower-ranked or unranked team was the betting favorite are in italics.

  • Rutgers 30, #2 South Florida 27 (October 18)
  • Vanderbilt 17, #6 South Carolina 6 (October 20)
  • Pitt 24, #23 Cincinnati 17 (October 20)
  • Alabama 41, #20 Tennessee 17 (October 20)
  • UCLA 30, #10 California 21 (October 20)
  • #14 Florida 45, #8 Kentucky 37 (October 20)
  • Oklahoma State 41, #25 Kansas State 39 (October 20)
  • Mississippi State 31, #14 Kentucky 14 (October 27)
  • Connecticut 22, #11 South Florida 15 (October 27)
  • #20 Georgia 42, #9 Florida 30 (October 27)
  • NC State 29, #21 Virginia 24 (October 27)
  • Tennessee 27, #15 South Carolina 24, OT (October 27)
  • Virginia 17, #21 Wake Forest 16 (November 3)
  • Cincinnati 38, #20 South Florida 33 (November 3)
  • Arkansas 48, #23 South Carolina 36 (November 3)
  • Florida State 27, #2 Boston College 17 (November 3)
  • Wisconsin 37, #13 Michigan 21 (November 10)
  • Mississippi State 17, #21 Alabama 12 (November 10)
  • Illinois 28, #1 Ohio State 21 (November 10)
  • Cincinnati 27, #16 Connecticut 3 (November 10)
  • Maryland 42, #8 Boston College 35 (November 10)
  • Arizona 34, #2 Oregon 24 (November 15)
  • #17 Boston College 20, #15 Clemson 17 (November 17)
  • Texas Tech 34, #4 Oklahoma 27 (November 17)
  • #11 USC 44, #7 Arizona State 24 (November 22)
  • Arkansas 50, #1 LSU 48, 3 OT (November 23)
  • Texas A&M 38, #13 Texas 30 (November 23)
  • UCLA 16, #9 Oregon 0 (November 24)
  • #3 Missouri 36, #2 Kansas 28 (November 24)
    • This was the second time this year that the #1 and #2 teams in the Associated Press poll were defeated on the same weekend.
  • Oregon State 38, #18 Oregon 31 (December 1)
  • Pittsburgh 13, #2 West Virginia 9 (December 1)
  • #9 Oklahoma 38, #1 Missouri 17 (December 1)
    • This was the third time this year that the #1 and #2 teams in the Associated Press poll were defeated on the same weekend.

A particularly telling statistic was pointed out by ESPN on November 10. At that point of the season, nine teams ranked in the top five of the AP Poll had lost to unranked teams (or in the case of Michigan, an FCS team). This had never happened in the history of the AP Poll, which was first conducted in 1936, in a season when at least 20 teams were ranked.[26] The only other season to see more such upsets was 1967, which was one of seven seasons when the AP Poll ranked only 10 teams.[26] Arizona added to the total November 15 against Oregon, and Texas Tech made it 11 against Oklahoma two days later. The day after Thanksgiving saw unranked Arkansas beat LSU, bringing the total to 12. On December 1, Pitt defeated WVU 13-9, making the total 13.

The "Curse of the #2" has been apparent this season. The first #2 team to lose was USC, 24-23 to Stanford. The next weekend, California lost to Oregon State, followed the next week by South Florida's loss to Rutgers. Boston College fell to Florida State, making the total four. Oregon then lost to Arizona, and Kansas lost to #4 Missouri. Maybe the most shocking loss of all was in the final week of the season, when West Virginia's loss to Pitt kicked them out of the national championship, bringing the total of victims to the curse to seven.

Note: Since 1996, there had not been a weekend when #1 and #2 lost on the same day.[citation needed] In 2007 alone, #1 and #2 fell three times during the season. The first time was when LSU fell to Kentucky in three overtimes, and Cal lost to Oregon State. Then, LSU stumbled again against Arkansas in three OTs, and Kansas followed with a loss to Missouri. In the final weekend of the season, not only did #2 West Virginia lose to Pitt, but, in the Big 12 Championship, Missouri fell to #9 Oklahoma, opening up the BCS Championship.

[edit] Conference Standings

Note: In the Mid-American Conference, only division games count toward the divisional championship.

Atlantic Coast Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
Atlantic
#10 Boston College 6 2 11 3 396 285
#21 Clemson 5 3 9 4 430 243
Wake Forest 5 3 9 4 362 289
Florida State 4 4 7 6 303 298
Maryland 3 5 6 7 313 280
North Carolina State 3 5 5 7 249 339
Coastal
#9 Virginia Tech 7 1 11 3 402 225
Virginia 6 2 9 4 317 256
Georgia Tech 4 4 7 6 341 271
North Carolina 3 5 4 8 254 294
Miami (Fla.) 2 6 5 7 247 312
Duke 0 8 1 11 215 398
Championship: Virginia Tech 30, Boston College 16
Big 12 Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
North
#4 Missouri 7 1 12 2 558 326
#7 Kansas 7 1 12 1 556 213
Colorado 4 4 6 7 355 383
Kansas State 3 5 5 7 422 370
Nebraska 2 6 5 7 401 455
Iowa State 2 6 3 9 218 381
South
#8 Oklahoma 6 2 11 3 592 284
#10 Texas 5 3 10 3 484 329
#22 Texas Tech 4 4 9 4 532 337
Texas A&M 4 4 7 6 363 337
Oklahoma State 4 4 7 6 450 384
Baylor 0 8 3 9 218 444
Championship: Oklahoma 38, Missouri 17
Big East Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
#6 West Virginia 5 2 11 2 515 235
Connecticut 5 2 9 4 344 237
#17 Cincinnati 4 3 10 3 472 244
South Florida 4 3 9 4 451 304
Rutgers 3 4 8 5 426 292
Louisville 3 4 6 6 422 377
Pittsburgh 3 4 5 7 274 291
Syracuse 1 6 2 10 197 418
Big Ten Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
#5 Ohio State 7 1 11 2 408 166
#18 Michigan 6 2 9 4 354 278
#20 Illinois 6 2 9 4 362 283
#24 Wisconsin 5 3 9 4 383 301
Penn State 4 4 9 4 394 228
Iowa 4 4 6 6 222 225
Purdue 3 5 8 5 446 345
Michigan State 3 5 7 6 430 346
Indiana 3 5 7 6 412 370
Northwestern 3 5 6 6 310 372
Minnesota 0 8 1 11 315 440
Conference USA
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
East
Central Florida 7 1 10 4 502 372
East Carolina 6 2 8 5 403 395
Memphis 6 2 7 6 380 419
Southern Mississippi 5 3 7 6 361 314
Marshall 3 5 3 9 298 411
UAB 1 7 2 10 235 421
West
Tulsa 6 2 10 4 576 467
Houston 6 2 8 5 449 379
Tulane 3 5 4 8 293 375
Rice 3 5 3 9 377 515
UTEP 2 6 4 8 403 445
Southern Methodist 0 8 1 11 340 477
Championship: Central Florida 44, Tulsa 25
Mid-American Conference
Div Conf Overall
Team W L W L W L PF PA
East
Miami (Ohio) 4 2 5 2 6 7 250 333
Bowling Green 4 2 6 2 8 5 392 417
Buffalo 4 2 5 3 5 7 291 331
Ohio 3 3 4 4 6 6 366 359
Temple 3 3 4 4 4 8 197 315
Akron 2 4 3 5 4 8 254 350
Kent State 1 5 1 7 3 9 259 350
West
Central Michigan 4 1 6 1 8 6 487 517
Ball State 4 1 5 2 7 6 409 368
Eastern Michigan 3 2 3 4 4 8 290 374
Western Michigan 2 3 3 4 5 7 323 347
Toledo 2 3 3 5 5 7 395 470
Northern Illinois 0 5 1 6 2 10 229 370
Championship: Central Michigan 35, Miami (Ohio) 10
Mountain West Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
#14 Brigham Young 8 0 11 2 391 241
Air Force 6 2 9 4 389 274
Utah 5 3 9 4 341 219
New Mexico 5 3 9 4 321 247
Texas Christian 4 4 8 5 339 243
San Diego State 3 5 4 8 301 413
Colorado State 2 6 3 9 304 369
Wyoming 2 6 5 7 233 311
UNLV 1 7 2 10 218 343
Pacific-10 Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
#3 Southern California 7 2 11 2 424 208
#16 Arizona State 7 2 10 3 420 293
#25 Oregon State 6 3 9 4 362 294
UCLA 5 4 6 7 291 290
#23 Oregon 5 4 9 4 496 307
Arizona 4 5 5 7 336 322
California 3 6 6 6 381 348
Washington State 3 6 5 7 308 389
Stanford 3 6 4 8 235 339
Washington 2 7 4 9 380 411
Southeastern Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
East
#12 Tennessee 6 2 10 4 455 382
#2 Georgia 6 2 11 2 424 262
#13 Florida 5 3 9 4 552 331
South Carolina 3 5 6 6 313 282
Kentucky 3 5 8 5 475 385
Vanderbilt 2 6 5 7 260 271
West
#1 Louisiana State 6 2 12 2 541 279
#15 Auburn 5 3 9 4 315 220
Arkansas 4 4 8 5 485 345
Mississippi State 4 4 8 5 279 301
Alabama 4 4 7 6 352 286
Mississippi 0 8 3 9 241 342
Championship: Louisiana State 21, Tennessee 14
Sun Belt Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
Florida Atlantic 6 1 8 5 405 432
Troy 6 1 8 4 408 295
Middle Tennessee 4 3 5 7 308 339
Louisiana-Monroe 4 3 6 6 282 332
Arkansas State 3 4 5 7 291 331
Louisiana-Lafayette 3 4 3 9 285 430
Florida International 1 6 1 11 181 469
North Texas 1 6 2 10 298 541
Western Athletic Conference
Conf Overall
Team W L W L PF PA
#19 Hawaiʻi 8 0 12 1 564 331
Boise State 7 1 10 3 551 281
Fresno State 6 2 9 4 427 351
Nevada 4 4 6 7 435 418
Louisiana Tech 4 4 5 7 249 368
San Jose State 4 4 5 7 245 352
Utah State 2 6 2 10 247 406
New Mexico State 1 7 4 9 312 471
Idaho 0 8 1 11 258 443
Independents
Team W L PF PA
Navy 8 5 511 473
Western Kentucky 7 5 398 250
Army 3 9 203 364
Notre Dame 3 9 197 345

[edit] Conference championship games

All games played on December 1st, 2007.

[edit] Other conference champions

[edit] Bowl games

Main article: 2007-08 NCAA football bowl games

[edit] Bowl Championship Series

(winner listed in boldface)

Bowl Game Date Playing as Visitor Playing as Home Score
BCS Title Game (New Orleans, LA) January 7, 2008 LSU Ohio State 38-24
Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA) January 1, 2008 Illinois Southern California 49-17
Sugar Bowl (New Orleans, LA) January 1, 2008 Hawaiʻi Georgia 41-10
Fiesta Bowl (Glendale, AZ) January 2, 2008 West Virginia Oklahoma 48-28
Orange Bowl (Miami Gardens, FL) January 3, 2008 Virginia Tech Kansas 24-21

[edit] Other January bowl games

Bowl Game Date Playing as Visitor Playing as Home Score
Outback Bowl (Tampa, FL) January 1, 2008 Wisconsin Tennessee 21-17
Cotton Bowl (Dallas, TX) January 1, 2008 Missouri Arkansas 38-7
Capital One Bowl (Orlando, FL) January 1, 2008 Michigan Florida 41-35
Gator Bowl (Jacksonville, FL) January 1, 2008 Texas Tech Virginia 31-28
International Bowl (Toronto, ON, Canada) January 5, 2008 Rutgers Ball State 52-30
GMAC Bowl (Mobile, AL) January 6, 2008 Bowling Green Tulsa 63-7

[edit] December bowl games

Bowl Game Date Playing as Visitor Playing as Home Score
Poinsettia Bowl (San Diego, CA) December 20, 2007 Utah Navy 35–32[29]
New Orleans Bowl (New Orleans, LA) December 21, 2007 Memphis Florida Atlantic 44–27
PapaJohns.com Bowl (Birmingham, AL) December 22, 2007 Southern Miss Cincinnati 31–21
New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque, NM) December 22, 2007 Nevada New Mexico 23–0
Las Vegas Bowl (Las Vegas, NV) December 22, 2007 UCLA BYU 17–16
Hawaiʻi Bowl (Honolulu, HI) December 23, 2007 Boise State East Carolina 41–38
Motor City Bowl (Detroit, MI) December 26, 2007 Purdue Central Michigan 51–48
Holiday Bowl (San Diego, CA) December 27, 2007 Arizona State Texas 52–34
Champs Sports Bowl (Orlando, FL) December 28, 2007 Boston College Michigan State 24–21
Texas Bowl (Houston, TX) December 28, 2007 TCU Houston 20–13
Emerald Bowl (San Francisco, CA) December 28, 2007 Maryland Oregon State 21–14
Meineke Car Care Bowl (Charlotte, NC) December 29, 2007 Connecticut Wake Forest 24–10
Liberty Bowl (Memphis, TN) December 29, 2007 UCF Mississippi State 10–3
Alamo Bowl (San Antonio, TX) December 29, 2007 Penn State Texas A&M 24–17
Independence Bowl (Shreveport, LA) December 30, 2007 Alabama Colorado 30–24
Armed Forces Bowl (Fort Worth, TX) December 31, 2007 California Air Force 42-36
Sun Bowl (El Paso, TX) December 31, 2007 South Florida Oregon 56-21
Humanitarian Bowl (Boise, ID) December 31, 2007 Georgia Tech Fresno State 40-28
Music City Bowl (Nashville, TN) December 31, 2007 Kentucky Florida State 35-28
Insight Bowl (Tempe, AZ) December 31, 2007 Indiana Oklahoma State 49-33
Chick-fil-A Bowl (Atlanta, GA) December 31, 2007 Clemson Auburn 23-20 (OT)

[edit] Post-BCS All-Star Games

[edit] Bowl Challenge Cup standings

Bowl Challenge Cup
Conference Wins Losses Percent
Mountain West† 4 1 .800
Southeastern 7 2 .777
Pacific 10 4 2 .667
Big 12 5 3 .625
Big East 3 2 .600
Big Ten 3 5 .375
Conference USA 2 4 .333
Atlantic Coast 2 6 .250
Western Athletic 1 3 .250
Mid-American 0 3 .000

† Winner of the Bowl Challenge Cup

Notes
  • The Sun Belt Conference (represented by Florida Atlantic University) is not eligible for the Bowl Challenge Cup as they only have one bowl berth. Conferences must have a minimum of three bids to be a part of the challenge. FAU defeated Memphis in the New Orleans Bowl.

[edit] Heisman Trophy voting

The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player

[edit] Other major award winners

[edit] All-America selections

The Associated Press All-America team: [39]

Offense

Defense

[edit] Milestones

The following teams and players set all-time NCAA Division I FBS (formerly Division I-A) records during the season:

Record Player/Team Date/Opponent Previous Record Holder[40] Source
Most consecutive pass attempts without an interception, career André Woodson, Kentucky, 325[41] September 22, vs. Arkansas Trent Dilfer, Fresno State, 271 (1993) [42]
Most career extra points Art Carmody, Louisville, 253 September 29, vs. NC State Shaun Suisham, Bowling Green, 226 (2001–2004) [43]
Most consecutive pass attempts with only one interception, career André Woodson, Kentucky, 343[44] October 4, vs. South Carolina Woodson, 333 (2006–2007)[45] [46]
Most combined rushing yards by teammates in a single game Felix Jones and Darren McFadden, Arkansas (487 yards) November 3, vs. South Carolina Tony Sands and Chip Hilleary, Kansas (476 yards) (1991-11-23) [47], [48]
Most points scored, both teams (regulation) North Texas and Navy, 136 November 10 San Jose State vs. Rice, 133 points (2004-10-02) [49]
Most points scored in one quarter, both teams North Texas and Navy, 63 November 10 San Jose State vs. Hawaiʻi, 61 points (1999-11-06) [49]
Most wins by two points or fewer in a season by a team Virginia, 5 November 3 vs. Wake Forest Columbia, 4 (1971) [50]
Most all-purpose yards by a freshman Jeremy Maclin, Missouri, 2,713 November 17, vs. Kansas State Terrell Willis, Rutgers, 2,026 (1993) [51]
Most touchdown passes in a career Colt Brennan, Hawaiʻi, 131 November 23 vs. Boise State Ty Detmer, BYU, 121 (1988–1991) [52]
Most touchdowns responsible for in a career Colt Brennan, Hawaiʻi, 146 November 23 vs. Boise State Ty Detmer, BYU, 136 (1988–1991) [52]
Most touchdown passes in a season by a freshman quarterback Sam Bradford, Oklahoma, 34 November 24, vs. Oklahoma State David Neill and Colt McCoy, 29 [53]
Most career points scored by a kicker Art Carmody, Louisville, 433 November 29, vs. Rutgers Roman Anderson, Houston, 423 (1988–1991) [54]
Most rushing attempts in a season Kevin Smith, UCF, 415 December 1, vs. Tulsa Marcus Allen, USC, 403 (1981) [55]
Most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a season Tim Tebow, Florida, 23 January 1, vs. Michigan Chase Harridge, Air Force, 22 (2002) [56]
Most consecutive games with 300 or more yards passing by a quarterback Paul Smith, Tulsa, 14 January 6 vs. Bowling Green Ty Detmer, BYU, 13 (1990–1991) [57]
Greatest margin of victory in a bowl game Tulsa, 56 points (63–7) January 6 vs. Bowling Green Alabama, 55 points (61–6) vs. Syracuse, 1953 Orange Bowl (1953-01-01) [57]
This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

[edit] Coaching changes

[edit] Pre-season

School Former Coach New Coach
Indiana Terry Hoeppner[58] Bill Lynch

[edit] Post-season

School Former Coach Interim New Coach
Arkansas Houston Nutt[59] Reggie Herring[60] Bobby Petrino[61]
Baylor Guy Morriss[62]   Art Briles[63]
Colorado State Sonny Lubick[64]   Steve Fairchild[65]
Duke Ted Roof[66]   David Cutcliffe[67]
Georgia Tech Chan Gailey[68] Jon Tenuta [69] Paul Johnson[70]
Hawaiʻi June Jones[71] Greg McMackin[72]
Houston Art Briles[63] Chris Thurmond[73] Kevin Sumlin[74]
Michigan Lloyd Carr[75]   Rich Rodriguez[76]
Mississippi Ed Orgeron[77]   Houston Nutt[78]
Navy Paul Johnson[70]   Ken Niumatalolo [79]
Nebraska Bill Callahan[80] Tom Osborne[81] Bo Pelini[82]
Northern Illinois Joe Novak[83]   Jerry Kill[84]
SMU Phil Bennett[85]   June Jones[86]
Southern Miss Jeff Bower[87]   Larry Fedora[88]
Texas A&M Dennis Franchione[89] Gary Darnell[90] Mike Sherman[91]
UCLA Karl Dorrell[92] DeWayne Walker[93] Rick Neuheisel[94]
Washington State Bill Doba[95]   Paul Wulff[96]
West Virginia Rich Rodriguez[76] Bill Stewart[97] Same

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ NCAA Football Schedules Week 1. CBS Sportsline. Retrieved on 2007-08-20.
  2. ^ 2007 Preseason Rankings, National Title Contenders - No. 1 to No. 25 (HTML) (English). Scout.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-16.
  3. ^ Schlabach, Mark. "Trojans, Wolverines top revised look at 2007", ESPN, 2007-01-11. Retrieved on 2007-01-26. (English) 
  4. ^ McClellan, Mark. "Rivals.com 2007 Preseason Top 25", ESPN, 2007-01-09. Retrieved on 2007-01-18. (English) 
  5. ^ CFN 2007 Pre-Preseason Rankings - Top 25. College Football News (January 14, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
  6. ^ a b "Longhorns ranked fourth in coaches poll", Austin American-Statesman, 3 August 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-03. 
  7. ^ 2007 NCAA Football Rankings - Week 1. Associated Press (2007-08-18). Retrieved on 2007-08-03.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Steve Wieberg (2007-02-14). NCAA rules committee proposes reworking football time-saving rules (HTML) (English). USA Today. Retrieved on 2007-02-15.
  9. ^ Surprising Twists & Turns this College Football Season - ESPN Video
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Duffey, David (2007-08-14). Don't miss these conference games in 2007. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Top 20 Games To Watch In 2007. Sports Illustrated (2007-07-08). Retrieved on 2007-08-15.
  12. ^ a b Duffey, David (2007-08-15). Don't miss these nonconference games in 2007. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Lowe, Matt (2007-08-14). BCS hopefuls must win key games to have a shot at title. Lindy's Sports. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.
  14. ^ Schlabach, Mark (2007-09-24). Script might be flipped for SEC, Pac-10 for this season. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-24.
  15. ^ Huguenin, Mike, Rivals.com (2007-10-01). Monday Morsels: Last week was nothing. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved on 2007-10-02.
  16. ^ a b Don Borst (2007-10-07). Saturday wrap: Upsets keep on coming. Fox Sports. Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Feldman, Bruce (2007-10-15). Buckeyes-Nittany Lions headline matchups to watch. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
  18. ^ a b c Fox, David (2007-10-14). Rivals.com Weekend Rewind: Kentucky's victory captures headlines. Rivals.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g Forde, Pat (2007-10-30). Trinity's Lateralpalooza rocks Division III and beyond. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-31.
  20. ^ Virginia embarrasses Miami in final game at Orange Bowl. ESPN.com/Associated Press (2007-11-11). Retrieved on 2007-11-19.
  21. ^ Starkey, Joe (2007-11-06). 'Bionic' quarterback leading surging Bearcats. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-07.
  22. ^ Maisel, Ivan (2007-11-14). I-Formation: Under pressure: Clemson's coaches, Gator Bowl officials, Tebow's opponents. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-17.
  23. ^ Forde, Pat (2007-11-20). Forde-Yard Dash: Coaching chaos, rivalry games add spice to holiday week. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-21.
  24. ^ "Pitt throws curveball at BCS"
  25. ^ In the Year of the Upset, memorable moments were plentiful. ESPN (2007-12-04). Retrieved on 2008-02-28.
  26. ^ a b Associated Press (2007-11-10). Illinois shocks top-ranked Ohio State in Columbus. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
  27. ^ 2007 SEC Football Television Schedule. Southeastern Conference. Retrieved on 2007-06-05.
  28. ^ Conference Champion & Tiebreaker Procedures (Football) (PDF). Big East Conference. Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
  29. ^ Johnson's 2 TDs lead Utah to seventh straight bowl win. ESPN (2007-12-20). Retrieved on 2007-12-21.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Awards twice as much fun for Tebow. Palm Beach Post. Retrieved on 2007-12-07.
  31. ^ LSU's Dorsey beats out OSU's Laurinaitis for Nagurski award. CBS Sportsline. Retrieved on 2007-12-03.
  32. ^ University of Arkansas Athletics (2007-12-06). "Razorback Jonathan Luigs Wins Rimington Trophy". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-12-06.
  33. ^ Texas center Griffin wins Draddy Award as top scholar-athlete. CBS Sportsline. Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
  34. ^ Virginia's Long wins Hendricks Award with 60 percent of vote. CBS Sportsline. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  35. ^ Tulsa QB Smith wins award for academic, athletic achievements. CBS Sportsline. Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
  36. ^ Associated Press. "Mangino honored for leading Kansas to dramatic turnaround", ESPN.com, 2007-12-19. Retrieved on 2007-11-20. 
  37. ^ Walter Camp Foundation. "Kansas’ Mark Mangino Named 2007 Walter Camp Coach of the Year". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
  38. ^ Buckeyes defensive coordinator wins award for top assistant. CBS Sportsline. Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
  39. ^ Associated Press (2007). Tebow, McFadden, Smith on AP All-America first team. ESPN. Retrieved on December 14, 2007.
  40. ^ Official 2007 NCAA Division I Football Records Book (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved on 2007-11-11.
  41. ^ Associated Press. "Woodson tosses 5 TDs, loses interception-free streak as UK cruises", ESPN.com, 2007-09-29. Retrieved on 2007-12-31. 
  42. ^ Associated Press. "Kentucky's Woodson breaks record for passes without INT", ESPN.com, 2007-09-22. Retrieved on 2007-12-31. 
  43. ^ Associated Press. "Louisville forces 5 turnovers in 29-10 win over N.C. State", ESPN.com, 2007-11-30. Retrieved on 2007-09-29. 
  44. ^ After Woodson's interception-free streak ended against Florida Atlantic on September 29, he attempted three more passes without being intercepted. In the Cats' following game on October 4 against South Carolina, he made 14 pass attempts without an interception before being intercepted in his 15th attempt. The official Kentucky football site has posted detailed play-by-play of both the Florida Atlantic and South Carolina games.
  45. ^ Woodson's record-setting streak of pass attempts without an interception began on November 4, 2006 against Georgia. In that game, he was intercepted early in the second quarter. He then attempted and completed seven passes before being intercepted for the second time in the quarter. His next pass attempt began his interception-free streak. The official Kentucky football site has a detailed play-by-play of this game.
  46. ^ Before the 2007 season, the record was 329 by Damon Allen of Cal State Fullerton, spanning the 1983 and 1984 seasons.
  47. ^ "McFadden honored by SEC after record-breaking weekend", ESPN, 2007-11-05. Retrieved on 2007-11-11. 
  48. ^ McFadden and Jones Break NCAA Record for Combined Rushing Yards. University of Arkansas Athletics. Retrieved on 2007-12-13.
  49. ^ a b "Football: UNT can't stop Navy in record-setting shootout", Denton Record-Chronicle, 2007-11-11. Retrieved on 2007-11-11. 
  50. ^ "Narrow victory sets NCAA mark, ties ACC record", The Virginian-Pilot, 2007-11-04. Retrieved on 2007-11-19. 
  51. ^ Associated Press. "Maclin sets single-season freshman record for all-purpose yards", ESPN.com, 2007-11-17. Retrieved on 2007-12-02. 
  52. ^ a b Associated Press. "Brennan sets passing TD mark to claim Hawaii's first outright WAC title", ESPN.com, 2007-11-24. Retrieved on 2007-11-24. 
  53. ^ Associated Press. "Patrick runs for career-best 202 yards, 2 TDs as OU rolls", ESPN.com, 2007-11-24. Retrieved on 2007-11-24. 
  54. ^ Associated Press. "Carmody's late field goal lifts Cardinals over Scarlet Knights", ESPN.com, 2007-11-30. Retrieved on 2007-11-29. 
  55. ^ Associated Press. "Tulsa can't contain Smith as UCF clinches first C-USA title", ESPN.com, 2007-12-01. Retrieved on 2007-12-01. 
  56. ^ Associated Press. "Off and Running", ESPN.com, 2007-12-09. Retrieved on 2008-01-03. 
  57. ^ a b Associated Press. "Smith's 14th straight 300-yard game leads Tulsa past Bowling Green", ESPN.com, 2008-01-06. Retrieved on 2008-01-07. 
  58. ^ Hoeppner, who had previously announced plans to take the 2007 season off for medical reasons, died of a brain tumor on June 19.
  59. ^ "Sources: Nutt out as coach, will receive settlement from Arkansas", ESPN, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  60. ^ Associated Press. "Nutt turns down offer to remain Razorbacks coach", ESPN.com, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  61. ^ Sources: Petrino leaving NFL for Arkansas job. ESPN (2007-12-11). Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
  62. ^ Durante, Joseph. "Baylor football coach Morriss out in 5th season", Houston Chronicle, 2007-11-08. Retrieved on 2007-11-08. 
  63. ^ a b Houston's Briles to take Baylor job. ESPN.com (2007-11-28). Retrieved on 2007-11-28.
  64. ^ Press conference to announce Lubick’s retirement, deal set
  65. ^ Fairchild to be named CSU football coach
  66. ^ Associated Press. "Duke fires Roof after 1-11 finish", FoxSports.com, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  67. ^ Associated Press. "Cutcliffe embraces rebuilding opportunity at Duke", ESPN.com, 2007-12-15. Retrieved on 2007-12-16. 
  68. ^ Schlabach, Mark. "Sources: Gailey fired at Tech after six seasons", ESPN.com, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  69. ^ Georgia Tech Official Athletic Site
  70. ^ a b Schlabach, Mark. "Johnson accepts offer to become Yellow Jackets coach", ESPN, 2007-12-07. Retrieved on 2007-12-07. 
  71. ^ Honolulu Advertiser: June Jones resigns as UH coach
  72. ^ CBS Sportsline.com: Hawaii promotes McMackin, makes him highest paid coach in school history
  73. ^ Thurmond replaces Briles ... for now. SI.com (2007-11-28). Retrieved on 2007-11-28.
  74. ^ Schad, Joe. "Source: Houston hires Sumlin, eighth minority coach in FBS", ESPN, 2007-12-13. Retrieved on 2007-12-13. 
  75. ^ Associated Press. "Michigan coach Carr to step down after 13 seasons with Wolverines", ESPN.com, 2007-11-18. Retrieved on 2007-11-18. 
  76. ^ a b Associated Press. "Rodriguez leaving West Virginia to coach Michigan", ESPN.com, 2007-12-16. Retrieved on 2007-12-16. 
  77. ^ Neal McCready. "Orgeron fired at Ole Miss", Alabama Press-Register, 2007-11-24. Retrieved on 2007-11-24. 
  78. ^ Nutt moves quickly to Mississippi. USAToday.com (2007-11-27). Retrieved on 2007-11-27.
  79. ^ ESPN - Niumatalolo named new head coach at Navy - College Football
  80. ^ Schad, Joe. "Source: Interim Nebraska AD Osborne fires Callahan", ESPN, 2007-11-24. Retrieved on 2007-11-24. 
  81. ^ Sherman, Mitch. "NU Football: Osborne is interim head coach", Omaha World-Herald, 2007-11-29. Retrieved on 2007-11-29. 
  82. ^ Associated Press. "Nebraska chooses LSU assistant Pelini as new coach", ESPN.com, 2007-12-02. Retrieved on 2007-12-02. 
  83. ^ Willhite, Lindsey. "NIU coach Joe Novak is retiring", Daily Herald, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  84. ^ Associated Press. "Huskies hire former coach of year from Southern Illinois", ESPN.com, 2007-12-13. Retrieved on 2007-12-13. 
  85. ^ Hairopoulos, Kate. "SMU fires football coach Phil Bennett", Dallas Morning News, 2007-10-28. Retrieved on 2007-10-28. 
  86. ^ Sherman, Mitch. "Agent: Jones leaving Hawaii, agrees to be SMU coach", sportsline, 2008-01-08. Retrieved on 2008-01-08. 
  87. ^ Schlabach, Mark. "Sources: Bower won't return for18th season at Southern Miss", ESPN.com, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  88. ^ Allen, Robert. "It's Official Now, Fedora to Southern Miss", Scout.com, 2007-12-11. Retrieved on 2007-12-12. 
  89. ^ Associated Press. "Embattled A&M coach resigns after 5 rocky seasons", ESPN, 2007-11-23. Retrieved on 2007-11-23. 
  90. ^ Davis, Brian. "A&M defensive coordinator Gary Darnell named interim head coach", Dallas Morning News, 2007-11-24. Retrieved on 2007-11-24. 
  91. ^ Miller, John. "Sherman to be next Aggies coach", Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  92. ^ Brian Dohn. "UCLA fires coach Dorrell", Los Angeles Daily News, 2007-12-03. Retrieved on 2007-12-03. 
  93. ^ Los Angeles Times: Walker brings a different feel to Bruins
  94. ^ Associated Press. "Former UCLA quarterback Neuheisel named head coach", ESPN.com, 2007-12-29. Retrieved on 2007-12-29. 
  95. ^ Smith, Craig. "WSU fires head coach Doba", The Seattle Times. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  96. ^ Wulff returns to Pullman to coach alma mater. sportsline.com (2007-12-11). Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
  97. ^ Associated Press. "Associate head coach to prepare Mountaineers for Fiesta Bowl", ESPN.com, 2007-12-18. Retrieved on 2007-12-19. 
  98. ^ Associated Press. "Navy, N. Texas score most combined points in regulation FBS game", ESPN.com, 2007-11-10. Retrieved on 2007-11-10. 
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