Undefeated College Football Teams Since 1990
September 26, 2024
Going undefeated in college football is an incredibly challenging feat, especially in the modern era. Teams must win 13, 14, or even 15 consecutive games, consistently performing at a high level despite injuries, challenging opponents, and inclement weather. Yet, remarkably, nearly every year there鈥檚 an undefeated team.聽 It might sound surprising, but it鈥檚 true! Since 1990, 34 teams have finished their seasons without a single loss. Check out the full list of undefeated college football teams below:
Undefeated College Football Teams Since 1990
1) 1991 Miami (FL) Hurricanes (12-0)
- Head Coach: Dennis Erickson (Miami)
- Key Players: Gino Torretta, Darrin Smith
The Hurricanes in the Orange Bowl to claim the program’s fourth national championship. The MVP this season (as voted on by the team) was kicker Carlos Huerta.
2) 1991 Washington Huskies (12-0)
- Head Coach: Don James
- Key Players: Mario Bailey, Steve Emtman
The Huskies won the Pac-10 championship and destroyed Michigan 34-14 in the Rose Bowl.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
3) 1992 Alabama Crimson Tide (13-0)
- Head Coach: Gene Stallings
- Key Players: Derrick Lassic, George Teague
In the team鈥檚 third season under coach Stallings, the Tide beat the heavily-favored Miami Hurricanes in the Sugar Bowl, 34-13, to claim the National Championship.聽 This was the 12th national championship in Alabama history, but the program has won a staggering 18 national championships in total.
4) 1993 Auburn Tigers (11-0)
- Head Coach: Terry Bowden
- Key Players: Stan White, James Bostic
In his first year as head coach, Bowden led the Tigers to an 11-0 season.聽 Due to NCAA violations, Auburn was in the SEC Championship or a bowl game and ultimately finished #4 in the final AP Poll.
5) 1994 Nebraska Cornhuskers (13-0)
- Head Coach: Tom Osborne
- Key Players: Terry Connealy, Zach Wiegert, Rob Zatechka
The mid-90s Nebraska teams are some of the best college football teams of all time. The 鈥�94 squad sent 36 players into professional football and capped the undefeated season with a 24-17 victory over Miami in the Orange Bowl.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
6) 1994 Penn State Nittany Lions (12-0)
- Head Coach: Joe Paterno
- Key Players: Ki-Jana Carter, Kerry Collins
Penn State went undefeated and beat Oregon in the Rose Bowl, however, they finished the year ranked #2 in the final AP Poll and missed out on a National Championship.聽 Penn State鈥檚 storied program (which dates back to 1887) has won only two national championships.
7) 1995 Nebraska Cornhuskers (12-0)
- Head Coach: Tom Osborne
- Key Players: Tommie Frazier, Lawrence Phillips
Nebraska finished the National Championship season with a 62-24 blowout victory over the Florida Gators in the Fiesta Bowl. The Cornhuskers averaged a 39-point margin of victory in the 鈥�95 season.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
8) 1997 Michigan Wolverines (12-0)
- Head Coach: Lloyd Carr (Michigan)
- Key Players: Charles Woodson, Glen Steele, Jerame Tuman
Michigan won the Big Ten, defeated Washington State in the Rose Bowl, and was declared national champion by the Associated Press.
9) 1997 Nebraska Cornhuskers (13-0)
- Head coach: Tom Osborne
- Key Players: Jason Peter, Aaron Taylor, Grant Wistrom
The Cornhuskers compiled a perfect record and claimed their third national championship in four years. Nebraska went undefeated in 3 of 4 seasons from 1994-1997, a truly incredible feat!
10) 1998 Tennessee Volunteers (13-0)
- Head Coach: Phillip Fulmer
- Key Players: Tee Martin, Peerless Price
The Vols won their program鈥檚 sixth National Championship after beating Florida State (the first-ever BCS National Championship Game).聽 Although things haven鈥檛 been great for UT in the past decade, they still have one of the most unique fan environments in all of college football.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
11) 1998 Tulane Green Wave (12-0)
- Head Coach: Tommy Bowden
- Key Player: Shaun King
This was Tulane鈥檚 third undefeated season in school history, as the Green Wave finished the year ranked #7 in the final AP Poll.
12) 1999 Florida State Seminoles (12-0)
- Head Coaches: Bobby Bowden
- Key Players: Chris Weinke, Sebastian Janikowski
1999 marks back-to-back years with a Bowden coaching an undefeated team!聽 The 鈥�99 Seminoles became the first team in NCAA history to go “wire-to-wire”聽 鈥� ranked continuously as the nation’s #1 team from preseason through bowl season.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
13) 1999 Marshall Thundering Herd (13-0)
- Head Coach: Bob Pruett
- Key Players: Chad Pennington
The Herd won the MAC Conference with a perfect 8-0 record, but also defeated national powerhouses Clemson 13-10 in the season opener and BYU 21-3 in the Motor City Bowl. Marshall finished the season ranked #10 in the nation.
14) 2000 Oklahoma Sooners (13-0)
- Head Coach: Bob Stoops
- Key Players Josh Heupel, Rocky Calmus, J. T. Thatcher.
The 2000 season was Oklahoma’s seventh national championship and their first since 1985.
15) 2001 Miami Hurricanes (12-0)
- Head Coach: Larry Coker
- Key Players: Ken Dorsey, Ed Reed
Largely considered on the greatest college football teams of all time, the Hurricanes finished an undefeated season with a 37-14 victory over Nebraska in the Rose Bowl.聽 The team produced 38 NFL Draft picks, a single-team record.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
16) 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes (14-0)
- Head Coach: Jim Tressel
- Key Players: Craig Krenzel, Maurice Clarett, Chris Gamble
The 鈥�02 Buckeyes became the first team ever to finish 14-0 and earned the school鈥檚 first national championship since 1968.
17) 2004 USC Trojans (13-0)
- Head Coach: Pete Carroll
- Key Players: Reggie Bush, Matt Leinart
The 鈥�04 Trojans, claimed the BCS National Championship with a win over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl (though the title was ).
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
18) 2004 Auburn Tigers (13-0)
- Head Coach: Tommy Tuberville
- Key Players: Carnell Williams, Ronnie Brown, Jason Campbell
Despite going undefeated and winning the SEC Championship, the Tigers finished the season ranked #2 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches’ Poll.
19) 2004 Utah Utes (12-0)
- Head Coach: Urban Meyer
- Key Players: Alex Smith, Morgan Scalley
The Utes beat Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl to cap an undefeated season and finish the year ranked #4 in the AP Poll.
20) 2005 Texas Longhorns (13-0)
- Head Coach: Mack Brown
- Key Players: Vince Young, Michael Huff
The 鈥�05 Longhorns won the BCS National Championship with a thrilling 41-38 victory over USC in the Rose Bowl. The team scored 652 total points during the season, the most in NCAA history at the time.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
21) 2006 Boise State Broncos (13-0)
- Head Coach: Chris Petersen
- Key Players: Ian Johnson, Jared Zabransky
Defeating Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl 43-42 in an overtime thriller, the 鈥�06 Broncos finished the season ranked #5 in the AP Poll.
22) 2008 Utah Utes (13-0)
- Head Coach: Kyle Whittingham
- Key Players: Brian Johnson, Matt Asiata
The Utes beat Michigan on the road and Oregon State, TCU, and BYU at home to finish the year ranked #2 in the AP Poll.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
23) 2009 Alabama Crimson Tide (14-0)
- Head Coach: Nick Saban
- Key Players: Mark Ingram, Rolando McClain
The 鈥�09 Tide finished the season with a win over Texas in the Rose Bowl to claim the program鈥檚 first national championship since 1992.
24) 2009 Boise State Broncos (14-0)
- Head Coach: Chris Petersen
- Key Players: Kellen Moore, Kyle Wilson
The Broncos became only the second team in college football history to finish a season 14-0 with a win over TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.聽 They finished the season ranked #4 in the AP Poll.
25) 2010 Auburn Tigers (14-0)
- Head Coach: Gene Chizik
- Key Players: Cam Newton, Nick Fairley, Lee Ziemba
Heisman-winning quarterback Cam Newton led the Tigers to the school鈥檚 second national championship with a win over Oregon in the BCS National Championship Game.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
26) 2010 TCU Horned Frogs (13-0)
- Head Coach: Gary Patterson
- Key Players: Andy Dalton, Jimmy Young
The Horned Frogs finished the year ranked #2 in the AP Poll after beating Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl.
27) 2012 Ohio State Buckeyes (12-0)
Head Coach: Urban Meyer
Key Players: Braxton Miller, John Simon
Ohio State was ineligible for the Big Ten Championship Game and a bowl聽 appearance, but they did finish the year ranked #3 in the AP Poll after beating Michigan in the last regular season game of the season.聽 With a storied football program dating back to 1890, Ohio State has won eight national championships with its most recent coming in 2014.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
28) 2013 Florida State Seminoles (14-0)
- Head Coach: Jimbo Fisher
- Key Players: Jameis Winston, Kelvin Benjamin
This Florida State team averaged a 39.5-point margin of victory.聽 They won the last-ever BCS National Championship game by defeating Auburn in a thrilling 34-31 comeback win.
29) 2017 UCF Golden Knights (13-0)
- Head Coach: Scott Frost
- Key Players: McKenzie Milton, Shaquem Griffin
The three-year stretch from 2013 to 2016 is the longest timespan without an undefeated team in the history of college football!聽 The 鈥�17 Golden Knights finished the year ranked #6 in the AP Poll.
30) 2018 Clemson Tigers (15-0)
- Head Coach: Dabo Swinney
- Key Players: Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne
The 鈥�18 Tigers were the first major college football program to finish with a record of 15鈥�0 since Penn in 1897!聽 The Tigers beat Alabama 44-16 in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. This was Clemson鈥檚 second national championship in three seasons.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
31) 2019 LSU Tigers (15-0)
- Head Coach: Ed Orgeron
- Key Players: Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase
Boasting one of the most high-powered offenses in college football history, the in the College Football Playoff National Championship.
32) 2020 Crimson Tide Alabama (13-0)
- Head Coach: Nick Saban
- Key Players: Mac Jones, DeVonta Smith
In Saban鈥檚 14th year as head coach, the Crimson Tide beat Ohio State in a national championship game that had fewer than 15,000 in attendance due to Covid protocols.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
33) 2022 Georgia Bulldogs (15-0)
- Head Coach: Kirby Smart
- Key Players: Stetson Bennett, Brock Bowers
The Bulldogs were the undisputed national champions after beating Oregon, LSU, Ohio State and TCU, including a record-setting 58-point victory in the national championship game.
Undefeated College Football Teams (Continued)
34) 2023 Michigan Wolverines (15-0)
- Head Coach: Jim Harbaugh
- Key Players: J.J. McCarthy, Blake Corum
Lastly, the 鈥�23 Wolverines won their first national championship since 1997 with a victory over the Washington Huskies.聽 Michigan never dropped to lower than #3 in the AP Poll throughout the entire season.聽 Michigan claims 12 national championships in its program鈥檚 history.
