Countdown To College Football Season: 100 Days
By Kyle Kensing
The countdown to college football season reached 100 days today. Summer’s approach brings football oh-so much closer. In preparation for kickoff, SaturdayBlitz.com is presenting memorable moments and milestones for every number on the countdown.
100
Sept 8, 2012; Norman OK, USA; A general view of the Steve Owens statue outside Oklahoma Memorial Stadium before the game between the Oklahoma Sooners and Florida A
• The 1969 season commemorated the sport’s 100th anniversary. The Red River Rivalry took center stage in college football’s 100th year, as the Texas Longhorns raced to the national championship with a thrilling, 15-14 win over the Arkansas Razorbacks in the Southwest Conference finale.
Texas and Arkansas were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 entering the game, with Pres. Richard Nixon in attendance to formally crown a champion. Michael Weinreb chronicled the event at Grantland.com earlier this month. Imagine the furor if President Obama determined a champion before the bowl games in this era.
The Longhorns and Razorbacks matched the “Game of the Century” hype bestowed upon them.
Not to be outdone by their rivals to the south, the Oklahoma Sooners boasted the 100th college football season’s Heisman Trophy winner in halfback Steve Owens. OU erected a statue in honor of Owens during the 2006 season.
• Two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin set the NCAA record for consecutive 100-yard rushing games with 31. His incredible stretch began in 1973, before he won either of his Heismans, and extended through the 1974 and 1975 seasons. Griffin’s astounding production for the Ohio State Buckeyes might never be duplicated. To reach such a mark, he needed durability rarely seen today.
• Elon wide receiver Terrell Hudgins holds the record for most 100-yard receiving games, eclipsing the century mark 28 times in his career.
• In 1884, college football’s original powerhouse, Princeton, became the first team to score at least 100 points in a game. The Tigers blasted Lafayette, 140-0. Ivy League counterpart Yale followed suit that same season, hanging 113 points on Dartmouth. The last 100-plus-point game was in 2003, when Div. III Rockford College routed Trinity Bible College of the National Christian College Athletic Association, 103-0.
The last 100-point game involving Div. I programs was Portland State’s 105-0 shellacking of Delaware State in 1980; Houston was the last current FBS member to reach the century mark, 100-6 against Tulsa in 1968.
• In the 100th installment of the Army-Navy Game, the Navy Midshipmen began a run that continues into the 2013 season, and is almost unparalleled in college football’s true rivalries. The Mids won that Dec. 1999 day, 19-9. It was the first in a stretch of 13 wins for the Naval Academy over a 14-season period. Army’s only victory in this era was a 26-17 decision in 2001.
After Army-Navy Game No. 100, the Black Knights led the overall series 48-45-7. Since, Navy has taken a commanding Navy 57-49-7 advantage.