15. Iowa 17, Northern Iowa 16
Iowa City, IA (Sept. 5)
If the cardiac Hawkeyes had managed to complete the season unscathed this game would rank much higher. This was the first of many close calls, which ended when Iowa lost Ricky Stanzi and their undefeated run against Northwestern. Anytime a minnow seriously threatens to swallow a college football shark, you have to take notice, and the Panthers certainly woke the Hawkeyes up on September 5. Iowa was forced to block not one, but two field goal attempts to preserve their one point lead with just seconds remaining.
14. Michigan 38, Notre Dame 34
Ann Arbor, MI (Sept. 12)
At the time this game was played, no one had any notion that neither of these traditional powers would fail to qualify for a bowl, so the game had a much greater air of importance than what it does in hindsight. And it was a thriller, as the teams traded touchdowns through the fourth quarter - Notre Dame first overcoming an 11 point deficit, then the Wolverines scoring on a Tate Forcier TD pass to Greg Mathews with 11 seconds left to clinch the win.
13. Texas 49, Texas A&M 39
College Station, TX (Nov. 26)
After Texas cleared what appeared to be their final hurdle, at Oklahoma State on October 31, most of the nation wrote their name into the national title game in Sharpie. Little did anyone know how difficult those final few games would be on the way to Pasadena. Jarrod Johnson and Texas A&M knifed through the Longhorn defense, refusing to bow out even after Texas twice took double digit leads. But Colt McCoy was one better than Johnson, and Marquise Goodwin iced it for Texas with a kickoff return TD when the Aggies had once again cut the Longhorn lead to 3. More on Texas' rough road later.
12. Boise State 17, TCU 10
Glendale, AZ (Fiesta Bowl, Jan. 4)
This is the first of a few games on this list that I didn't watch. Priorities. But it belongs because of the historic appearance of 2 non-BCS schools making the BCS show, and Boise State once again flipped to the last page of the playbook, dialing up a fake punt from their own territory in the fourth quarter of a tie game to spark the winning TD. Then the Broncos iced it with defense, picking off Andy Dalton with less than 30 seconds remaining and TCU driving for a tie.
11. Connecticut 33, Notre Dame 30 (2OT)
South Bend, IN (Nov. 21)
Two teams that played more than their share of close games were true to the script on this day in South Bend, and UConn played valiant, come-from-behind football, gaining their first lead of the day in overtime. Randy Edsall said it was his program's best win, and the Huskies dedicated the win to fallen teammate Jasper Howard, their first since his murder on campus.
10. Oregon 37, Oregon State 33
Eugene, OR (Dec. 3)
The de facto Pac Ten title game was a thriller. It was likely the most important Civil War game of all time, and arguably the most exciting. The teams raced up and down the field for 3 quarters, entering the fourth at a score of 34-33. Then the defenses stiffened (a little), and Oregon sealed the deal with one of the program's great drives: a six minute monster that featured 2 fourth down conversions, forcing the Beavers to use all their timeouts and wringing every last second from the game clock.
9. Missouri 41, Kansas 39
Kansas City, MO (Nov. 28)
Neither Missouri nor Kansas had the season they'd hoped for, but Missouri at least got to finish it with a thrilling win over their arch-rival. After a shootout, all Kansas needed to do was run out the clock after receiving the ball with under 3 minutes left and a 3 point lead. Todd Reesing had already passed for 498 yards, so Missouri's defense would pose no threat, right? Nope. The Tigers sacked Ressing for a safety, forcing the Jayhawks to kick off and give Missouri a chance for the outright win, which they did with a buzzer-beating field goal.
8. Fresno State 53, Illinois 52
Champaign, IL (Dec. 5)
Possibly the wildest finish of the season happened in the murky backwater of college football's last weekend. With all eyes on the conference championships, Fresno State managed two improbable final plays to cap a wild, high scoring affair in Champaign. First, Fresno receiver Jamel Hamler, a name you aren't likely to find on the front page of Mel Kiper's big board, made one of the most acrobatic plays a receiver can make, catching a pass at the 4 yard line in the middle of the field with 2 seconds left, then as his knees were being taken out by an Illinois defender, stretching his full body length to extend the ball across the goal line before hitting the ground. That was followed by the gutsy call to go for 2 instead of playing for overtime, and in what has to be one of the weirdest ends to a game, a deflected hail mary pass was gathered gently into the breadbasket of Devan Cunningham, an offensive lineman, who plowed his way through a stunned Illinois defender for the win. Catch the craziness here.
7. Auburn 38, Northwestern 35
Tampa, FL (Outback Bowl, Jan. 1)
Staying in the wild finish department, this was the craziest bowl game this year had to offer. Northwestern QB Mike Kafka threw 78 passes. Two were intercepted in the end zone, one run back for a TD. The Wildcats scored twice in the final 4 minutes to force OT, needed a 2 point conversion on the second score because they had their previous extra point blocked. Then, with their kicker injured, Northwestern faked what would have been a tying field goal in OT, only to be tackled at the 2 yard line.
6. Miami (FL) 38, Florida State 34
Tallahassee, FL (Sept. 7)
The best the early season had to offer, a wild game between old rivals that came down to the final play. Jacory Harris looked like a Heisman winner, making incredible throw after incredible throw and rallying the Hurricanes to a late lead. But Florida State marched down the field in the final 2 minutes, only to fall short of a come from behind win at home with 3 incomplete passes into the end zone in the final seconds. The last one needed video review to confirm the pass was incomplete, and Miami had survived, and leapt into a successful campaign that should springboard to a great 2010 year.
5. Cincinnati 45, Pittsburgh 44
Pittsburgh, PA (Dec. 5)
What was essentially the Big East championship game came down to a botched PAT and a porous second half defense by Pitt. Cincinnati rallied from down 31-10 to tie at 38, and then Pitt re-took the lead on one of Dion Lewis's incredible 47 carries, the last a 5 yard TD. But a good snap was mishandled, and Cincinnati had an open door. Tony Pike drove Cincinnati 61 yards for the winning TD, polishing off a Big East title and an undefeated regular season.
4. Ohio State 27, Iowa 24
Columbus, OH (Nov. 14)
Another de facto conference championship saw Ohio State hold off a plucky and undermanned Iowa squad who'd seen their hopes of an undefeated season, and their starting QB, lost the week before. Iowa fell behind 24-10 in the fourth, but rallied behind no-name freshman QB James Vandenberg to force OT. The Vandenberg magic wouldn't continue in OT, as the Buckeye defense pushed Iowa out of field goal range, giving themselves a chance to win by field goal.
3. Mississippi 25, LSU 23
Oxford, MS (Nov. 21)
LSU could have many games in the top 15 (vs. Georgia, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi State, etc.), but I've chosen this one because it sums up their season and the cool clock managing efficiency of Les Miles. What was a good game became memorable in the last 2 minutes. LSU scored, missed a tying 2 point conversion, recovered an onside kick, let precious seconds run off the clock when they failed to call timeout after one play, completed a hail mary pass to the 6 yard line with one second left, then in their euphoria over the accomplishment left their offense in instead of rushing the field goal unit on, unsuccessfully attempting to spike the ball. You can't spike it with one second left and expect time to remain. And so Ole Miss held on.
2. Alabama 26, Auburn 21
Auburn, AL (Nov. 27)
Alabama's closest call was not the need for a blocked field goal against Tennessee. It was in the Iron Bowl, when Auburn ran every gadget play in the book in the first quarter, essentially throwing the kitchen sink and several small appliances, including a peppermill and a bagel slicer, at the Crimson Tide. The shenanigans fired up the Tigers and the home crowd, and gave them a 14-0 lead. Alabama fought back to tie, but Auburn managed to re-take the lead in the third quarter, and their defense did their best to preserve it, only to succumb to one of the great drives in Alabama history, Greg McElroy marching his offense 79 yards in 15 plays to score the winning TD.
1. Texas 13, Nebraska 12
Arlington, TX (Dec. 5, Big 12 Championship)
The most intriguing game to watch all season. Ndamukong Suh was as dominant as any defensive player was in any one game in college football history, nearly winning the Heisman trophy and the upset of the year by himself. But Colt McCoy had the last laugh. Barely. Nebraska took the lead with 1:44 left, then McCoy drove his Longhorns into field goal range before enrolling in the Les Miles school of clock management. As though he wasn't aware that the clock was rolling, he took his time before snapping the ball on their final offensive play, then nonchalantly rolled to his right as the seconds clicked off before heaving a lazy ball out of bounds. The clock actually hit triple zero and Nebraska was euphoric, before the officials added one last second. Has a gust of wind struck at the wrong moment, Texas wouldn't have played for the BCS championship. But they had their second, and Hunter Lawrence kicked the Longhorns to Pasadena.
Next week: a look at the four-year rankings in a symbolic thumbing of the nose to the ridiculous hoopla of national signing day.
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