The 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of
college football competition in the United States organized by the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...
(NCAA). The regular season began on August 26, 2016 and ended on December 10, 2016. The postseason concluded on January 9, 2017 with the
2017 College Football Playoff National Championship, where the
Clemson Tigers
The Clemson Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) s ...
defeated the
Alabama Crimson Tide
The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I as a me ...
to claim their second national title in school history. The championship game was a rematch of the
2016 edition won by Alabama.
Rule changes
The following rule changes were voted on by the NCAA Football Rules Committee for the 2016 season:
* Requiring replay officials to review all aspects of targeting penalties, including the option to call a targeting foul missed by the on-field officials if the foul is deemed egregious. After several hits during the early part of the season that resulted in concussions that should have been targeting, the NCAA Rules Committee reinforced this rule for replay officials and also clarified the "crown of the helmet" (to determine targeting penalties) as the area above the facemask to the dome of the helmet.
* Allowing electronic devices to be used for coaching purposes in the press box and locker room during the game. Electronic devices will still be prohibited on the field and sideline.
* Coaches can now be ejected after receiving two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in one game, the same as players.
* A ball carrier who "gives himself up" (''e.g.'', by sliding) will now be considered a defenseless player.
* Deliberate tripping of a ball carrier with the leg is now a 15-yard penalty.
* Players who leave the
tackle box are now prohibited from blocking below the waist toward the initial position of the ball.
* An exception to a rule introduced for the 2015 season regarding low hits to passers (''i.e.'', at or below the knee) was eliminated. Previously, a defensive player would not have been penalized for such a hit if making a bona fide attempt at a tackle.
* Teams attempting a scrimmage kick (i''.e.'', field goals, PATs, and punts) must have five offensive linemen (numbered 50-79) on the scrimmage line unless the kicking team has at least two players seven yards OR one player at least 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage. Previously, only one player had to be lined up seven yards behind the line to avoid using five linemen, causing confusion in kick coverage on defense.
* The procedure for restarting the game clock following a penalty by the offense will change if the penalized team has a lead in the last two minutes of either half. Before this season, the game clock would have been restarted in this situation once the ball was declared ready for play; it now will not start until the ball is snapped.
The committee, once again, took no action on changing the ineligible receiver downfield rule from three yards to one yard; however it will once again be a "point of emphasis" and will adjust officiating mechanics to better officiate those plays.
Conference realignment
Membership changes
Although
Coastal Carolina began the transition process to FBS in the 2016 season and joined the
Sun Belt Conference in non-football sports, it was officially classified as an FCS independent for this first season of the transition. Coastal Carolina became a provisional FBS member when the football team joined the Sun Belt in 2017, and full FBS membership and bowl eligibility followed in 2018.
Other headlines
* March 1 – The
Sun Belt Conference announced that its football-only membership agreements with
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...
and
New Mexico State
New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...
would not be renewed upon their expirations at the end of the 2017 season.
* March 3 - The NCAA Council forced the
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette, University of Louisiana, ULL, or UL) is a public research university in Lafayette, Louisiana. It has the largest enrollment within the nine-campus University of Louisiana System and the s ...
and the
Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns football team to vacate 22 wins from
2011-
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
including the
2011 and
2014 New Orleans Bowl
The 2014 New Orleans Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 20, 2014 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The fourteenth annual New Orleans Bowl, it pitted the Nevada Wolf Pack of the Mountain West Conference ...
championships after a finding that a previous assistant head coach had falsified
ACT scores. Their penalty was the lowest penalty in NCAA Division I and the university did not receive a post-season ban.
* April 8 – The NCAA Division I Council voted to prohibit FBS schools from participating in or conducting so-called "satellite camps." The NCAA had already prohibited schools from hosting camps located more than from campus, but many coaches took advantage of a loophole that allowed them to participate in off-site camps as guest coaches. The new rule was reversed on April 28.
* April 11 – The Division I Council approved a three-year moratorium on new bowl games, following
a season in which a record three teams with sub-.500 records made bowls. No new bowls were allowed until the 2019 season. This decision affected three games that were in the process of seeking NCAA certification for the 2016 season.
* April 28
** The
University of Idaho
The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho. It is the state's land-grant and primary research university,, and the lead university in the Idaho Space Grant Consortium. The Universit ...
announced that the Vandals football team would return to the
FCS Big Sky Conference
The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eig ...
, its all-sports league, effective with the 2018 season. The Vandals became the first team ever to voluntarily drop from FBS to FCS.
** The Division I Board of Directors rescinded the FBS satellite camp ban that had been approved less than three weeks earlier. The ban had sparked major controversy within several conferences, notably the
Pac-12 (whose Division I Council representative voted for the ban despite 11 of the league's 12 members opposing it). Additionally, the ban was seen as having the unintended effect of limiting scholarship opportunities, especially at
Group of Five
The Group of Five (G5) encompasses five nations which have joined together for an active role in the rapidly evolving international order. Individually and as a group, the G5 nations work to promote dialogue and understanding between developing ...
schools, for a large number of high school prospects.
* September 10 -
Arizona State
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
running back Kalen Ballage scored 8 touchdowns in the Sun Devils' 68–55 win over
Texas Tech, tying an NCAA record set in 1990 by Howard Griffith of
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
against
Southern Illinois.
* October 22 – The
Oklahoma–
Texas Tech game, won 66–59 by Oklahoma, saw several FBS single-game records broken or equaled:
** The teams combined for 1,708 yards of total offense (854 each), surpassing the previous FBS record of 1,640 set by
San Jose State
San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...
and
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
in
2001.
** Texas Tech quarterback
Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...
' 819 yards of total offense broke the previous FBS record of 751 set in 2014 by
Connor Halliday of
Washington State
Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...
. Mahomes also tied Halliday's FBS record of 734 passing yards.
** Oklahoma became the first FBS team ever with a 500-yard passer (
Baker Mayfield), 200-yard rusher (
Joe Mixon), and 200-yard receiver (
Dede Westbrook
Decrick De'Shawn "Dede" Westbrook (; born November 21, 1993) is an American football wide receiver and return specialist who is a free agent. He played college football at Oklahoma. He was drafted 110th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft by the Jacks ...
) in a single game.
* November 9 –
Georgia State University
Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the largest institution of hig ...
received final approval from the
Georgia Board of Regents The Georgia Board of Regents oversees the University System of Georgia as part of the state government of Georgia in the United States. The University System of Georgia is composed of all state public institutions of higher education in the state. ...
, the governing body of
the state's university system, to purchase
Turner Field
Turner Field was a baseball stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia. From 1997 to 2016, it served as the home ballpark to the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). Originally built as Centennial Olympic Stadium in 1996 to serve as the c ...
, vacated by the
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
after
their 2016 season. The facility, originally the
main stadium
Main may refer to:
Geography
* Main River (disambiguation)
**Most commonly the Main (river) in Germany
* Main, Iran, a village in Fars Province
*" Spanish Main", the Caribbean coasts of mainland Spanish territories in the 16th and 17th centurie ...
of the
1996 Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
, was converted to a football stadium seating 23,000, with potential future expansion to 33,000. The
football team
A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all-s ...
ultimately began play at Turner Field, now known as
Center Parc Stadium
Center Parc Stadium (formerly Georgia State Stadium) is an outdoor stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The stadium is the home of the Georgia State University Panthers football team as of the 2017 season, replacing the Georgia Dome which had served a ...
, in 2017 while the conversion project was ongoing.
* November 26 –
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
defeated
Syracuse 76–61, with the two teams setting a new FBS record for combined points scored in a regulation game. The previous record had been set by
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
and
North Texas
North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wo ...
in
2007.
Kickoff games
*
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
and
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
played the first game of the 2016 season at
ANZ Stadium
ANZ may refer to:
People
* Anz (musician), a British DJ and electronic musician
Banks
* ANZ (bank), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, the fourth-largest bank in Australia
** ANZ Bank New Zealand, the largest bank in New Zealand
* ...
in
Sydney,
Australia on August 27. This was the first college football game in Oceania since 1985. California eased to a 51–31 win.
*
Boston College and
Georgia Tech
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
played at
Aviva Stadium
Aviva Stadium (also known as Lansdowne Road) is a sports stadium located in Dublin, Ireland, with a capacity for 51,700 spectators (all seated). It is built on the site of the former Lansdowne Road Stadium, which was demolished in 2007, and ...
in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
on September 3, in a game billed as the
Aer Lingus
Aer Lingus ( ; an anglicisation of the Irish , meaning "air fleet" compare Welsh 'llynges awyr') is the flag carrier of Ireland. Founded by the Irish Government, it was privatised between 2006 and 2015 and it is now a wholly owned subsidiary ...
College Football Classic. Georgia Tech scored a touchdown in the last minute to win 17–14.
*
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
hosted
LSU at the first-ever Division I FBS game at
Lambeau Field
Lambeau Field is an outdoor athletic stadium in the north central United States, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The home field of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), it opened in 1957 as City Stadium, replacing ...
in
Green Bay, Wisconsin, also on September 3. The Badgers surprised the No. 5 Tigers 16–14.
AP reporter Genaro Armas wrote that the loss, the first in a season opener for
Les Miles
Leslie Edwin Miles (born November 10, 1953) is a former American football coach. He most recently served as the head coach at Kansas. His head coaching career began with the Oklahoma State Cowboys, where he coached from 2001 to 2004. Following t ...
in his 12 seasons at LSU, "will surely put Miles back on the hot seat after he was nearly run out of Baton Rouge after a 9–3 season in 2015."
*
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
met
Oklahoma at
NRG Stadium
NRG Stadium, formerly Reliant Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. Construction was completed in 2002, at a cost of $352 million and has a seating capacity of 72,220. It was the first NFL facility to have a retrac ...
in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
on September 3 in the
Texas Kickoff
The Texas Kickoff was an annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the college football season in Houston, Texas, at NRG Stadium. The game was sponsored by Advocare from 2013 to 2019 and known officially as the Advocare Texas ...
, a game with major
College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
significance as a virtual elimination game for Houston as a CFP contender. The Cougars are members of the "Group of Five"
American Athletic Conference
The American Athletic Conference (The American or AAC) is an American collegiate athletic conference, featuring 11 member universities and five affiliate member universities that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) ...
, but were coming off a convincing win over
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
in
last season's Peach Bowl. The game was also played against the backdrop of potential
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its ...
expansion, with Houston seen by many in the media as a leading Big 12 candidate. The Cougars won 33–23.
*
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
and
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
played at the
Georgia Dome
The Georgia Dome was a domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of the Georgia World Congress Center ...
in
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
on September 3, in the annual
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game. Both teams entered the contest 0–1 in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, with North Carolina losing to
LSU in 2010 and Georgia falling to
Boise State in 2011. In the debut for Georgia head coach
Kirby Smart
Kirby Paul Smart (born December 23, 1975) is an American football coach and former player. He is the current head football coach of the Georgia Bulldogs, his alma mater. He coached the 2021 Bulldogs to a national championship victory, their f ...
, the Bulldogs won 33–24, led by
Nick Chubb
Nicholas Jamaal Chubb (born December 27, 1995) is an American football running back for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia and was drafted by the Browns in the second round of the ...
, who ran for 222 yards and two touchdowns in his first game since
tearing an ACL last season.
*
USC and
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
played at
AT&T Stadium in
Arlington, Texas on September 3 in the
Advocare Classic
The Cowboys Kickoff Classic was an annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the college football season. It was played in Arlington, Texas, at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys from 2009 to 2021. The game was orig ...
. Defending national champions Alabama blasted the Trojans 52–6, marking USC's worst loss since a 51–0 blowout by
Notre Dame in
1966.
*
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
and
BYU
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S ...
played week 1 of the season at
University of Phoenix Stadium
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
in
Glendale, Arizona on September 3 in the Cactus Kickoff. BYU won 18–16 on a field goal with 4 seconds left.
*
Ole Miss and
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
played at
Camping World Stadium
Camping World Stadium is a stadium in Orlando, Florida, located in the West Lakes neighborhood of Downtown Orlando, west of new sports and entertainment facilities including the Amway Center, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, ...
in
Orlando, Florida on September 5 in the
Camping World Kickoff
The Camping World Kickoff is an annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the college football season in Orlando, Florida at Camping World Stadium. The game, a collaboration between Florida Citrus Sports and ESPN Events, debut ...
. Florida State, facing a 28–6 second-quarter deficit, scored 33 unanswered points and went on to win 45–34.
*
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...
and
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
played at
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Bristol is among the m ...
near
Bristol, Tennessee
Bristol is a city in the State of Tennessee. Located in Sullivan County, its population was 26,702 at the 2010 census. It is the twin city of Bristol, Virginia, which lies directly across the state line between Tennessee and Virginia. T ...
on September 10 in a game billed as the
Pilot Flying J Battle at Bristol. The game drew an announced crowd of 156,990, breaking the previous record for a college football game by more than 40,000. After trailing 14–0 at the end of the first quarter, Tennessee scored 31 unanswered points en route to a 45–24 win.
Regular season top 10 matchups
Rankings reflect the
AP Poll
The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broad ...
. Rankings for Week 10 and beyond will list
College Football Playoff Rankings first and
AP Poll
The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broad ...
second. Teams that fail to be a top 10 team for one poll or the other will be noted.
*Week 3
**No. 10
Louisville
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
defeated No. 2
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
63–20 (
Papa John's Cardinal Stadium
Cardinal Stadium, formerly known as Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, is a football stadium located in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, on the southern end of the campus of the University of Louisville. Debuting in 1998, it serves as the home o ...
,
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
)
*Week 5
**No. 10
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
defeated No. 7
Stanford 44–6 (
Husky Stadium,
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...
)
**No. 5
Clemson defeated No. 3 Louisville 42–36 (
Clemson Memorial Stadium
Frank Howard Field at Clemson Memorial Stadium, popularly known as "Death Valley", is home to the Clemson Tigers football, Clemson Tigers, an National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Division I FBS College football, football team located in ...
,
Clemson, South Carolina
Clemson () is a city in Pickens and Anderson counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Clemson is home to Clemson University; in 2015, ''the Princeton Review'' cited the town of Clemson as ranking #1 in the United States for " town-and-go ...
)
**No. 4
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
defeated No. 8
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
14–7 (
Michigan Stadium
Michigan Stadium, nicknamed "The Big House," is the football stadium for the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It is the largest stadium in the United States and the Western Hemisphere, the third largest stadium in the world, and the ...
,
Ann Arbor, Michigan)
*Week 6
**No. 8
Texas A&M
Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
defeated No. 9
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
45–38, 2OT (
Kyle Field
Kyle Field is the American football stadium located on the campus of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, United States. It has been the home to the Texas A&M Aggies football team in rudimentary form since 1904, and as a permanent con ...
,
College Station, Texas
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-n ...
)
*Week 7
**No. 1
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
defeated No. 9 Tennessee 49–10 (
Neyland Stadium
Neyland Stadium ( ), is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Foot ...
,
Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...
)
**No. 2
Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
defeated No. 8 Wisconsin 30–23, OT (
Camp Randall Stadium
Camp Randall Stadium is an outdoor stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, located on the campus of the University of Wisconsin. It has been the home of the Wisconsin Badgers football team in rudimentary form since 1895, and as a fully functioning stadiu ...
,
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...
)
*Week 8
**No. 1 Alabama defeated No. 6 Texas A&M 33–14 (
Bryant-Denny Stadium,
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population o ...
)
*Week 10
**No. 6/6 Ohio State defeated No. 10/9
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...
62–3 (
Ohio Stadium,
Columbus, Ohio)
*Week 12
**No. 9/8
Oklahoma defeated No. 14/10
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...
56–28 (
Milan Puskar Stadium
Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium is an American football stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia, on the campus of West Virginia University. It opened in 1980 and serves as the home field for the West Virginia Mountaineers football team. ...
,
Morgantown, West Virginia)
*Week 13
**No. 2/2 Ohio State defeated No. 3/3 Michigan 30–27, 2OT (Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio)
*Week 14
**No. 4/4 Washington defeated No. 8/9
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
41–10 (2016 Pac-12 Championship Game,
Levi's Stadium
Levi's Stadium is an American football stadium located in Santa Clara, California, just outside San Jose in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has served as the home venue for the National Football League (NFL)'s San Francisco 49ers since 2014. T ...
,
Santa Clara, California
Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...
)
**No. 7/8
Penn State defeated No. 6/6 Wisconsin 38–31 (2016 Big 10 Championship Game,
Lucas Oil Stadium,
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...
)
Upsets
In the first full weekend of the season, seven teams ranked in the
AP Poll
The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broad ...
lost, the most in an opening week since the debut of the AP preseason poll in
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...
.
The seven ranked losers included two top-five teams; the last time two such teams had lost in the season's first week was
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
. The weekend also saw seven
SEC teams lose their season openers, which had not happened since the league returned to 12 teams with the 1992 arrival of
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
and
South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
.
One of those loses saw
South Alabama
South Alabama is the various parts of southern Alabama. Although it is not a strictly defined geographic region, it generally includes all Alabama counties south of the Black Belt (region of Alabama), Black Belt. In that view, ''South Alabama'' co ...
defeat
Mississippi State
Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
21-20 as a 28-point underdog, which was the biggest
FPI upset in the last 5 seasons (2.3% chance to win before the match).
On September 10, a finish noted for its improbability happened when
Central Michigan
Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Mid Michigan cor ...
defeated
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...
30–27 on a Hail Mary pass followed by a lateral on the game's final play. Shortly afterwards, the game officials, as well as the conferences of the participating teams (the
MAC and
Big 12
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...
respectively), announced that Central Michigan should not have been allowed to run the winning play. On the previous play, during which the clock had run out, Oklahoma State had been called for intentional grounding on fourth down. Under NCAA rules, a game cannot end on an accepted live ball foul; however, an exception to that rule states that if the penalty includes a loss of down—which is the case for intentional grounding—the game ends at that point.
On September 17,
FCS program
North Dakota State defeated No. 13
Iowa
Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...
on a late field goal to win 23–21 at
Kinnick Stadium, becoming just the fourth FCS team to beat an AP-ranked FBS team. This was Iowa's first loss to a non FBS opponent. The next day, NDSU received 74 points in the AP Poll to set a new record for votes received by an FCS team in a single AP Poll.
On October 22, unranked
Penn State defeated No. 2
Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
, 24-21 at
Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium on the campus of Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Pennsylvania. It has been home to the Penn State Nittany Lions of the Big Ten Conference since 1960, though some parts of ...
. Penn State had not been ranked since the
2011 season, and had entered the 2016 season still rebuilding after sanctions had decimated the roster in 2012. Ohio State built a 21-7 lead in the third quarter; Penn State rallied to score the game's final 17 points. Ohio State had lined up for a field goal to potentially put them ahead by seven points, but then-safety
Marcus Allen
Marcus LeMarr Allen (born March 26, 1960) is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the Los Angeles Raiders. Considered one of the greatest goal line and short- ...
blocked the field goal attempt, and Penn State's cornerback
Grant Haley returned it 60 yards for the score. Haley's game-winning touchdown was labeled as the "
Kick Six
The Kick Six (also known as Kick Bama Kick) was the final play of the 78th Iron Bowl college football game played on November 30, 2013 at Jordan–Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama. The game featured the No. 1-ranked and two-time defending nationa ...
". It was Penn State's first win over a Top-5 team in 20 years; their first win against a top-2 opponent since 1990; and their first win in Beaver Stadium against a team ranked No. 2 since 1982 against No. 2 Nebraska. Penn State would go on to win nine straight games, winning the
Big Ten Championship, rose to No. 5 in the College Football Playoff rankings, and went to the
Rose Bowl. Ohio State did not lose again during the regular season, and despite their loss to Penn State, they would go on to the
College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
.
On December 10,
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
defeated No. 25 ranked
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
21–17 to end a 14-year losing streak in the
Army–Navy Game, the longest for either side in the rivalry's history.
Updated stadiums
*
Miami (FL)
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at the ...
debuted major renovations to the renamed
Hard Rock Stadium
Hard Rock Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Miami Gardens, Florida. The stadium is the home field for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) and the Miami Hurricanes, the University of Miami's NCAA Division I coll ...
. In a project that began after the Hurricanes and the stadium's owner, the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...
, completed their 2014 seasons, a canopy was added over the main seating areas, video boards were placed in each corner, many luxury suites and club seats were added, and the stadium's lower bowl was reconstructed, eliminating an obsolete movable stand that had been added in the early 1990s to accommodate
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
's
Florida (now Miami) Marlins. The capacity was reduced from over 75,000 to slightly over 65,000.
*
Utah State made major renovations to
Maverik Stadium
Maverik Stadium, also known as Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium, is an outdoor college football stadium in the western United States, on the campus of Utah State University in Logan, Utah. The home field of the Utah State Aggies of the Moun ...
, adding a new complex to the west side featuring expanded concourses, luxury suites, and a new press box.
*
Oklahoma is currently undertaking a $160 million renovation of the south end zone of
Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, also known as Owen Field or The Palace on the Prairie, is the football stadium on the campus of the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. It serves as the home of the Oklahoma Sooners football tea ...
. The renovation which will bowl in the end zone includes 22 enclosed suites, 60 loge boxes and nearly 2,000 club seats. The new end zone when completed will be topped by a new state of the art 7,806 square feet scoreboard. The official capacity increased to 83,489 (from 82,112).
*
Ole Miss debuted phase 2 of the latest renovations and expansion of
Vaught–Hemingway Stadium
Vaught–Hemingway Stadium at Hollingsworth Field is an outdoor athletic stadium located in University, Mississippi, United States (although it has an Oxford address). The stadium serves as the home for the University of Mississippi Rebels colleg ...
. The 2016 season saw the opening of new seating bowls in the north end zone, bringing capacity to 64,038.
*
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
unveiled The Champions Club, a new club seat section constructed for
Doak Campbell Stadium
Doak S. Campbell Stadium (in full Bobby Bowden Field at Doak S. Campbell Stadium), popularly known as "Doak", is a football stadium on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home field of the Florida State Semino ...
. The exclusive 6,000-seat club seat section, with more than 70,000 square feet of air conditioned club space and 34,000 square feet of covered rooftop terraces, was built in the south end zone across from the Unconquered Statue.
*
Arizona State
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
began a four-year renovation of
Sun Devil Stadium after the 2014 season. For the 2016 season, upper deck seats were removed and the lower bowl on the west sideline and north end zone was redone. Renovations are expected to be complete by the start of the 2018 season.
*
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...
was in the midst of approximately $50 million in renovations to
Milan Puskar Stadium
Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium is an American football stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia, on the campus of West Virginia University. It opened in 1980 and serves as the home field for the West Virginia Mountaineers football team. ...
. For this season, the old turf and goalposts were replaced, and the crown under the field was removed and a modern base and drainage system installed that is more in keeping with today's infilled artificial turf systems. Also, work on the east and north side gates and concourses, including renovations to concessions, restrooms, and additional space for EMS and police operations, was completed for the 2016 season. Similar work on the west and south sides of the stadium is ongoing and expected to be completed for 2017.
*
Louisville
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
began work on expansion of
Papa John's Cardinal Stadium
Cardinal Stadium, formerly known as Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, is a football stadium located in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, on the southern end of the campus of the University of Louisville. Debuting in 1998, it serves as the home o ...
during the season. The project will increase the stadium's capacity from 55,000 to 65,000, and at the time was planned to be complete for the 2019 season. Due to unexpected fundraising success, the project timetable was advanced, and the expansion is now expected to open for the 2018 season.
In addition to the stadium updates above, two schools played their final season in their then-current venues:
*
Colorado State was in the process of replacing
Hughes Stadium, owned by the university but located about 4 miles (6 km) west of the main campus, with a new on-campus venue tentatively known as
Colorado State Stadium
Canvas Stadium, officially Sonny Lubick Field at Canvas Stadium, is an outdoor college football stadium in the western United States, located on the campus of Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins, Colorado.
The home field of the CS ...
. The new stadium opened for the 2017 season.
*
Georgia State played its final season in the Georgia Dome, as the stadium was to be demolished once its replacement,
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, opened in September 2017. As noted
above, Georgia State purchased Turner Field with the intent of renovating the stadium for football, and the Panthers began playing home games there in 2017 while renovations were ongoing.
Conference standings
Conference summaries
Rankings reflect the Week 15 AP Poll before the conference championship games were played.
Power 5 Conferences
Group of Five Conferences
CFP College Football Playoff participant
Postseason
Bowl selections
There were 40 postseason
bowl games
In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Division I Fo ...
, with two teams advancing to a 41st – the CFP National Championship game. As in previous seasons, teams with losing records could become bowl-eligible in order to fill all 80 bowl slots.
Bowl-eligible teams
*American Athletic Conference (7): Houston, Memphis, Navy, Temple, Tulsa, UCF, USF
*Atlantic Coast Conference (11): Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, N.C. State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
*Big 12 Conference (6): Baylor, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, West Virginia
*Big Ten Conference (10): Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin
*Conference USA (7): Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, Old Dominion, North Texas*, Southern Miss, UTSA, Western Kentucky
*Independents (2): Army, BYU
*Mid-American Conference (6): Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Miami (OH), Ohio, Toledo, Western Michigan
*Mountain West Conference (7): Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, Hawaii*, New Mexico, San Diego State, Wyoming
*Pac-12 Conference (6): Colorado, Stanford, USC, Utah, Washington, Washington State
*Southeastern Conference (12): Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi State*, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt
*Sun Belt Conference (6): Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Idaho, Louisiana-Lafayette, South Alabama, Troy
Teams with Asterisk(*) qualified for bowls based on Academic Progress Rate, despite not having a bowl-eligible record.
Number of bowl berths available: 80
Number of bowl-eligible teams: 80
Bowl-ineligible teams
*
The American (5):
SMU,
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...
,
East Carolina,
Tulane
Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...
*
ACC (3):
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...
,
Syracuse,
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
*
Big Ten
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
(4):
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
,
Michigan State,
Purdue,
Rutgers
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and w ...
*
Big 12
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...
(4):
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
,
Texas Tech,
Iowa State,
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...
*
Conference USA (6):
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
,
Florida Atlantic,
Florida International,
Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
,
Rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
,
UTEP
*
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
(2):
Notre Dame,
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
*
MAC (6):
Akron
Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city ...
,
Northern Illinois
Northern Illinois is a region generally covering the northern third of the U.S. state of Illinois. The region is by far the most populous of Illinois with nearly 9.7 million residents as of 2010.
Economics
Northern Illinois is dominated by t ...
,
Ball State,
Bowling Green
A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls.
Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...
,
Buffalo,
Kent State
*
Mountain West (5):
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
,
Fresno State
California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...
,
San Jose State
San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...
,
Utah State,
UNLV
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...
*
Pac-12 (6):
Arizona State
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
,
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
,
Oregon
Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...
,
Oregon State
Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...
,
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
*
SEC (2):
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
,
Ole Miss
*
Sun Belt (5):
Georgia Southern,
Louisiana–Monroe,
Georgia State,
New Mexico State
New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...
,
Texas State
Texas State University is a public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin metropolitan area and the fifth largest university ...
Number of bowl-ineligible teams: 48
Conference performance in bowl games
College Football Playoff
Since the 2014–15 postseason, six
College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
(CFP) bowl games have hosted two semifinal playoff games on a rotating basis. For the 2016 season, the
Fiesta Bowl
The Fiesta Bowl is an American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area. From its beginning in 1971 until 2006, the game was hosted at the Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has been pla ...
and the
Peach Bowl
The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially ...
hosted the semifinal games, with the winners advancing to the
2017 College Football Playoff National Championship at
Raymond James Stadium
Raymond James Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Tampa, Florida that opened in 1998 and is home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) and the University of South Florida (USF) Bulls college football program. The s ...
in
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
.
Rankings
Final CFP rankings
Final rankings
Awards and honors
Heisman Trophy
The
Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player.
*
Lamar Jackson (QB),
Louisville
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
*
Baker Mayfield (QB),
Oklahoma
*
Jabrill Peppers
Jabrill Ahmad Peppers (born October 4, 1995) is an American football strong safety for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan, and was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the first r ...
(LB),
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
*
Deshaun Watson
Derrick Deshaun Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson, where he led the team to a national championship in 2 ...
(QB),
Clemson
*
Dede Westbrook
Decrick De'Shawn "Dede" Westbrook (; born November 21, 1993) is an American football wide receiver and return specialist who is a free agent. He played college football at Oklahoma. He was drafted 110th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft by the Jacks ...
(WR), Oklahoma
Other overall
*
Archie Griffin Award
The Touchdown Club of Columbus was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1956 by Sam B. Nicola at the request of state auditor Jim Rhodes, James A. Rhodes, who later became governor of the state. Nicola served as the club's president until his death in 1 ...
(MVP):
Sam Darnold,
USC
*
AP Player of the Year: Lamar Jackson, Louisville
*
Chic Harley Award (Player of the Year):
Deshaun Watson
Derrick Deshaun Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson, where he led the team to a national championship in 2 ...
, Clemson
*
Maxwell Award
The Maxwell Award is presented annually to the college football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best al ...
(top player): Lamar Jackson, Louisville
*
SN Player of the Year: Lamar Jackson, Louisville
*
Walter Camp Award
The Walter Camp Player of the Year Award is given annually to the collegiate American football player of the year, as decided by a group of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I FBS head coaches and sports information directo ...
(top player): Lamar Jackson, Louisville
Special overall
*
Burlsworth Trophy (top player who began as walk-on): Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma
*
Paul Hornung Award
The Paul Hornung Award is a college football award that was created in January 2010 by the Louisville Sports Commission (LSC) with the support of Paul Hornung, a native and resident of Louisville, Kentucky and member of the College Football Hall ...
(most versatile player): Jabrill Peppers, Michigan
*
Campbell Trophy ("academic Heisman"):
Zach Terrell
Zachary Steven Terrell (born May 1, 1993) is an American football quarterback. He played college football for the Western Michigan Broncos where he won the William V. Campbell Trophy his senior year. He signed with the Baltimore Ravens as an un ...
,
Western Michigan
West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for an arbitrary region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Most narrowly it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Pen ...
*
Wuerffel Trophy
The Wuerffel Trophy is an award given annually to the college football player "who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement." The trophy, designed by W. Stanley Proctor and named in honor of former Univers ...
(humanitarian-athlete):
Trevor Knight,
Texas A&M
Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
*POLY POY (Polynesian College Football Player of the Year):
Sefo Liufau,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
Offense
Quarterback
*
Davey O'Brien Award (quarterback): Deshaun Watson, Clemson
*
Johnny Unitas Award (senior/4th year quarterback): Deshaun Watson, Clemson
*
Kellen Moore Award
The Touchdown Club of Columbus was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1956 by Sam B. Nicola at the request of state auditor James A. Rhodes, who later became governor of the state. Nicola served as the club's president until his death in 1993. More th ...
(quarterback): Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma
*
Manning Award
The Manning Award has been presented annually since the 2004 football season to the collegiate American football quarterback as judged by the Sugar Bowl Committee to be the best in the United States. It is the only quarterback award that incl ...
(quarterback): Deshaun Watson, Clemson
*
Sammy Baugh Trophy (passing quarterback): Patrick Mahomes II, Texas Tech
Running back
*
Doak Walker Award
Since 1990 the Doak Walker Award honors the top running back in college football in the United States. It is named in honor of Doak Walker, a former running back who played for the SMU Mustangs from 1945 to 1949 and in the National Football Le ...
(running back):
D'Onta Foreman
D'Onta Foreman (born April 24, 1996) is an American football running back for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas, and was drafted by the Houston Texans in the third round of the 2017 ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
*
Jim Brown Trophy (running back): Donnel Pumphrey, San Diego State
Wide receiver
*
Fred Biletnikoff Award (wide receiver): Dede Westbrook, Oklahoma
*
Paul Warfield Trophy (wide receiver): Finalists:
Corey Davis, Western Michigan
Tight end
*
John Mackey Award
The John Mackey Award is presented annually to college football's most outstanding tight end. Established in 2000 by the Nassau County Sports Commission, the award is given annually to the tight end who best exemplifies the play, sportsmanship, a ...
(tight end):
Jake Butt,
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
*
Ozzie Newsome Award (tight end):
Evan Engram, Ole Miss
Lineman
*
Dave Rimington Trophy
The Dave Rimington Trophy is awarded to the player considered to be the best American football center in college football. Dave Rimington was a center who played at the University of Nebraska from 1979 to 1982.
A member of the National College ...
(center):
Pat Elflein,
Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
*
Jim Parker Trophy (offensive lineman): Pat Elflein, Ohio State
*
Joe Moore Award (offensive line): Iowa
Defense
*
Bronko Nagurski Trophy (defensive player): Jonathan Allen, Alabama
*
Chuck Bednarik Award
The Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive player in college football as judged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States. The award is named for Chuck Bednarik, a former college and professional Ameri ...
(defensive player): Jonathan Allen, Alabama
*
Lott Trophy
The Lott IMPACT Trophy is presented annually to the college football defensive IMPACT player of the year. IMPACT is an acronym for: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community, and Tenacity. The award purports to equally recognize th ...
(defensive impact): Jabrill Peppers, Michigan
Defensive line
*
Bill Willis Award (defensive lineman):
Ed Oliver,
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
*
Dick Butkus Award (linebacker): Reuben Foster, Alabama
*
Jack Lambert Trophy (linebacker): Ben Boulware, Clemson
*
Lombardi Award
The Rotary Lombardi Award is an award for college football in the United States. Awarded by the Rotary Club of Houston, Texas annually to the college football player "who best embodies the values and spirit of NFL's legendary coach Vince Lomba ...
(defensive lineman/linebacker): Jonathan Allen, Alabama
*
Ted Hendricks Award
The Ted Hendricks Award is given annually to college football's top defensive end. The award is named after Ted Hendricks, a member of both the College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame, and is presented by his own foundation. I ...
(defensive end): Jonathan Allen, Alabama
Defensive back
*
Jim Thorpe Award
The Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport athlete Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. It is voted on by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, the award became sponsored by Payco ...
(defensive back): Adoree' Jackson, USC
*
Jack Tatum Trophy
The Touchdown Club of Columbus was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1956 by Sam B. Nicola at the request of state auditor James A. Rhodes, who later became governor of the state. Nicola served as the club's president until his death in 1993. More th ...
(defensive back): Tarvarus McFadden, Florida State
Special teams
*
Lou Groza Award
The Lou Groza Award is presented annually to the top college football placekicker in the United States by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission. The award is named after former Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns player Lou Groza. It has be ...
(placekicker):
Zane Gonzalez,
Arizona State
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
*
Vlade Award (placekicker): Tyler Davis,
Penn State
*
Ray Guy Award (punter):
Mitch Wishnowsky,
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
*
Jet Award
The Jet Award, named in honor of 1972 Heisman Trophy Winner Johnny "The Jet" Rodgers, is awarded to the top return specialist in college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams ...
(return specialist): Adoree' Jackson, USC
*
Peter Mortell Award (holder): Garrett Moores,
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
Other positional awards
*
Outland Trophy
The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best college football interior lineman in the United States as adjudged by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named an All-Am ...
(interior lineman on either offense or defense):
Cam Robinson,
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
Coaches
*
AFCA Coach of the Year:
Mike MacIntyre
George Michael MacIntyre (born March 14, 1965) is an American football coach. He is the head coach at FIU. MacIntyre served as the head football coach at San Jose State University from 2010 to 2013 and the University of Colorado Boulder from 2 ...
,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
*
AP Coach of the Year: Mike MacIntyre, Colorado
Assistants
*
AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year: Dan Brooks, Clemson
*
Broyles Award
The Broyles Award is an annual award given to honor the best assistant coach in college football. First awarded in 1996, it was named after former University of Arkansas men's athletic director Frank Broyles. The award is presented in Little R ...
:
Brent Venables, Clemson
All-Americans
Coaching changes
Preseason and in-season
This is restricted to coaching changes taking place on or after May 1, 2016. For coaching changes that occurred earlier in 2016, see
2015 NCAA Division I FBS end-of-season coaching changes.
End of season
Television viewers and ratings
Most watched regular season games
Conference championship games
College Football Playoff
Attendance
See also
*
2016 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings
Two human polls and a committee's selections comprised the 2016 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) football rankings, in addition to various publications' preseason polls. Unlike most sports ...
*
2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season
The 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season, part of college football in the United States, was organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. The NCAA Divisi ...
*
2016 NCAA Division II football season
*
2016 NCAA Division III football season
The 2016 NCAA Division III football season, part of the college football season organized by the NCAA at the Division III level in the United States, began on September 5, 2016 and ended with the NCAA Division III Football Championship, also know ...
*
2016 NAIA football season
Footnotes
References
External links
*
{{NCAA football season navbox