This is hard, but for what it’s worth . . .
On September 16, 2021 the Associated Press ranked the five greatest college “Games of the Century” when #1 played #2.
The sportswriters voted our era with 3 of the 5 contests, or 60%, of the greatest games ever played!
Pretty good, we’d say.
More achievement overlooked in an era of drugs, rock ‘n roll, and protests.
The dates of the five games, starting with the VERY BEST, are 1971, 1969,
1991 (No. 2 Miami 17, No. 1 Florida State 16),
1993 (No. 2 Notre Dame 31, No. 1 Florida State 24), and 1966.
https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/best-best-ap-ranks-top-games-century-80059303
1960
1961
1962
1963
- Unbeaten top-ranked USC narrowly defeats Wisconsin Badgers in the highest-scoring Rose Bowl to date, 42-37; Trojan QB (Ron Vanderkelen) completes 33 of 48 passes for 401 yards, a record; Wisconsin QB (Pete Beathard) set his own record, throwing four touchdown passes (January 2).
1964
- NCAA restores unlimited substitution, restoring also the 2-platoon set up – first established in 1941 but disallowed in 1952.
1965
- Amos Alonzo Stagg (b. 1862!!), “Grand Old Man,” pioneer, coach, and innovator of football plays, dies March 17 at 102.
1966
- (Jan. 2) Five times beaten in the Rose Bowl, UCLA upsets Michigan State at Pasadena, 14-12 – even avenging a loss to MSU earlier the same season.
- Nov. 20) Undecided: two unbeaten and untied titans, No. 1 Michigan State and No 2 Notre Dame, clash in East Lansing; and play to a 10-10 tie! Ranked fifth best “Game of the Century” by AP writers, 2021. ABC persuaded to broadcast game nationally rather than the custom of just regional; contributes to popularity of college football, and the sport in general (see poll in 1972 Gallop poll about most popular American sports in “Pro Football Chronology”).
1967
1968
- The University of Texas introduces a new offensive pattern: the “wishbone.”
- Ivy League Miracle: Harvard scores 16 points in the last 42 seconds gaining an hysterical 29-29 tie with unbeaten Yale in “The Game” at Cambridge (Nov. 23).
1969
- Michigan under Bo Schembechler beats top-ranked Ohio State under Woody Hayes 24-12 in what started the so-called “Ten-Year War” in college football.
- No. 1 Texas beats No. 2 Arkansas by a point, 15-14. Considered by AP as the second greatest “Game of the Century;” notable also Texas being last team to win a national collegiate championship without black players.
1970
- The National Collegiate Sports Service voted O.J. Simpson the greatest player of the 1960s, followed by Gale Sayers and Archie Manning. Voting for best coach of the decade went to Paul “Bear” Bryant of Alabama, followed by Darrell Royal of the University of Texas.
1971
- The Fighting Irish employ a wishbone defense to beat a wishbone offense in the Cotton Bowl, as Notre Dame snaps Texas’ amazing 30-game winning streak, 24-11 (Jan. 2)
- No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers defeat the No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners, 35-31 in the AP sportswriters (2021) consider THE greatest “Greatest Game of the Century.”
Big Eight Conference match up, Thursday, Nov. 25 at Norman, OK
1972
- (Jan 2) Stanford edges Michigan in the Rose Bowl, 13-12, evens the score since Michigan’s clobbering Stanford 70 years ago in 1902 in the first “Tournament East–West football game,” which became known as the 1923
1973
1974
1975
- Ohio State star tailback Archie Griffin wins Heisman a second time as a senior, with a 5,176-yard varsity career rushing record.