Ranking the 30 Greatest National Championship Games
By Zach Bigalke
7. 2001 Orange Bowl
#1 Oklahoma d. #2 Florida State 13-2
BEFORE THE GAME
The third year of the Bowl Championship Series was fraught with curious decisions. Oklahoma had run the table to win the Big 12, scoring 39 points per game with an offense that featured Heisman runner-up Josh Heupel at quarterback. The Sooners knocked off Texas, Kansas State, and Nebraska in October to rise up the polls, putting them in pole position for the rest of the year in the BCS rankings.
The question was who they would face in the title game. Florida State entered 2000 as the defending BCS national champions and were an overwhelming favorite to return to the title game for a third straight season. Things eventually played out to put the Seminoles into position to defend their crown, but there was plenty of controversy surrounding their selection to face Oklahoma by the end of the season.
The Seminoles were selected ahead of a Miami team that had defeated them head-to-head in early October. But Miami had themselves lost to Pac-10 co-champion Washington in September, and the Huskies also had a strong case at 10-1. But UW was hurt by the fact that Oregon State and Oregon had also finished with 7-1 records in league play to share the Pac-10 title. Ultimately Florida State got the nod once again as a top-two team, pitting Heisman winner Chris Weinke against the undefeated quarterback he beat for the individual award.
THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
The 2001 Orange Bowl is the lowest-scoring national championship game on this list, as the two teams combined for just 15 total points. Second-year head coach Bob Stoops engineered a game plan that clamped down on Weinke and the Seminoles offense. Weinke completed fewer than half of his passes, averaging 5.4 yards per attempt and throwing two interceptions. The Seminoles held Oklahoma to just one Tim Duncan field goal in the first half, though, and they were locked in a 3-0 defensive struggle at halftime.
Duncan kicked a second field goal to put Oklahoma up 6-0 heading into the fourth quarter. Weinke had the ball knocked out of his hands on the following drive by Rocky Calmus, and Roy Williams recovered the fumble on the FSU 15. Quentin Griffin punched in the ball two plays later for a 13-0 lead with less than eight minutes remaining. The Seminoles avoided the shutout with a safety late in the game, but the Sooners controlled the ball for 13 more minutes than their opponents and kept Florida State from ever recovering its way back into the contest.