Biggest College Bowl Game Upsets By SportsYeah [95 more lists]
The biggest college bowl game upsets include dozens of college football games that defied all expert predictions and shocked the country. One fine NCAA Football team went in with every expectation of bringing home a victory but they either failed or were simply overpowered by their opponent and went home upset. These games might not have played out how everyone expected, but more often than not it made these games even more exciting.
Even before NCAA Division I football started using the Bowl Championship Series, at the end of each season teams play in bowl games rather than participate in a standard playoff system. To become eligible, teams must win at least half of their games but even after that requirement is met, the bowl game match-ups are still up to the sponsors. Normally, this creates games with well-matched opponents but sometimes, especially in these cases, one team enters as a clear favorite. In case you haven't already guessed, sometimes that favorite crashes and burns.
That was the case for all of these bowl game upsets but just like some bowl games are more meaningful than others, some of these upsets are more memorable as well. Take the 2007 BCS National Championship Game for example. The top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes entered with a win streak of 19 games and were the clear-cut favorite against the Florida Gators. Head coach Urban Meyer and Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Tim Tebow never got that memo as they ran right over the Buckeyes 41-14 to win the National Championship.
Other games have not come with national championship consequences but that didn't make the upset any easier to deal with for the losing players. Close games, such as those who go into overtime, are especially tough for the upset players, such as the 2000 Sugar Bowl between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Michigan Wolverines. Then-Michigan quarterback Tom Brady led the Wolverines back from two 14-point deficits to force overtime but it was a missed field goal from the Alabama kicker in the extra session that cost the Crimson Tide the game.
Whether teams are heavily favored to win a college bowl game and lose or dominate the entire contest only to fall from one bad play, these college bowl game upsets will be remembered as the best of the best.
- 1
2007 Fiesta Bowl
“ Boise State 43 - Oklahoma 42 „ - 2
1986 Sugar Bowl
“ Tennessee 35 - Miami 7 „ - 3
1990 Liberty Bowl
- 4
2009 Sugar Bowl
“ Utah 31 - Alabama 17 „ - 5
1951 Sugar Bowl
- 6
1995 SUGAR BOWL
added by: NickMarica“ Virginia Tech 28, Texas 10. Virtually no one gave Tech a chance in this game, and they outplayed Texas.... „ - 7
2008 Fiesta Bowl
“ West Virginia 48 - Oklahoma 28 „ - 8
1975 fiesta bowl
- 9
1978 Orange Bowl
added by: Ozarkbilly“ Arkansas 31 - Oklahoma 6 6th ranked Arkansas upsets 2nd ranked Oklahoma, Arkansas is an '18 point underdog' in this game. Lou Holtz in his 1st year as head coach at Arkansas pulls off the upset! Roland Sales and Ron Calcagni in the first period and shut down the Sooners' offense for a 31-6 Orange Bowl victory. „ - 10
1987 Fiesta Bowl
“ Penn State 14 - Miami 10 „ - 11
2011 Rose Bowl
“ TCU 21 - Wisconsin 19 „ - 12
1990 Orange Bowl
- 13
1978 Orange Bowl
- 14“ West Virginia 38 - Georgia 35 „
- 15
2003 Fiesta Bowl
“ Ohio State 31 - Miami 24 „ - 16
2006 Rose Bowl
“ Texas 41 - USC 38 „ - 17
1984 Orange Bowl
- 18
2007 BCS National Championship Game
“ Florida 41 - Ohio State 14 „ - 19
2007 Hawai'i Bowl
“ East Carolina 41 - Boise State 38 „ - 20
2008 Capital One Bowl
“ Michigan 41 - Florida 35 „ -
- 21
2000 Orange Bowl
“ Michigan 35 - Alabama 34 „ - 22
1999 Rose Bowl
“ Wisconsin 38 - UCLA 31 „ - 23
1998 Alamo Bowl
“ Purdue 37 - Kansas State 34 „ - 24
1997 Sugar Bowl
“ Florida 52 - Florida State 20 „ - 25
1984 Cotton Bowl
“ Georgia 10 - Texas 9 „ - 26
2003 Insight Bowl
“ California 52 - Virginia Tech 49 „ - 27
1992 Sugar Bowl
“ Notre Dame 39 - Florida 28 „ - 28
2011
added by: bob00rog - 29
2002 Sugar Bowl
“ LSU 47 - Illinois 34 „
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