It takes a lot to become a championship team in college football. A great offense, a great defense, mental toughness and leadership are great recipes, but every once in a while, a team will need something else: luck.
One of the more notable lucky plays in recent memory came in Knoxville in 1998. In a November match-up of undefeateds, top-ranked Tennessee was trailing Arkansas 24-22 with under two minutes to play and the Razorbacks had the ball near midfield.
Arkansas was one first down away from ending Tennessee’s dream season. Simply holding onto the football would have put Arkansas in a position where it could pin Tennessee deep with little time on the clock.
On a roll-out, Arkansas quarterback Clint Stoerner moved to his left with the football when he stumbled without being touched. Stoerner lost the football, giving Tennessee new life.
Tennessee recovered the fumble and scored five plays later on a 1-yard touchdown run by Travis Henry. The Volunteers would go on to finish the season undefeated and win the national championship for the first time in 37 years.
Tennessee however, isn’t the only example.
At Faurot Field in 1990, eventual co-national champion Colorado was given five downs in a goal-to-go situation. Officials forgot to count a play where the Buffaloes killed the clock as a down before Colorado scored late to stun Missouri 33-31.
More than seven years later, Missouri was again the victim of an inexplicable finish. Against top-ranked Nebraska, the Tigers were one play away from pulling perhaps the biggest upset of the season when a pass in the dirt from Nebraska quarterback Scott Frost was kicked up into the air and caught by a diving Matt Davison.
With time expired, the Cornhuskers evened the game with an extra point before going on to win 45-38 in overtime. Nebraska would go on to share the national championship with Michigan.
In 2002, Ohio State hung by the skin of its teeth for much of the season. Against Purdue on November 9th, the third-ranked Buckeyes trailed 6-3 and faced a 4th-and-1 with under two minutes to play.
With star freshman running back Maurice Clarett out, Ohio State went deep in a last ditch effort to stave off the upset. Quarterback Craig Krenzel was pressured, but found Michael Jenkins in the end zone for the game-winning score as the Buckeyes escaped 10-6.
In one of the bigger BCS upsets ever, Ohio State would top Miami in the Fiesta Bowl to win its first national championship in 34 years.
While it’s still too early to say what will become of the season for top-ranked Florida State, the Seminoles may have made a play Saturday night that its fan base looks at for years to come.
With the game even 17-17 and just over two minutes to play, Jadar Johnson’s interception of Florida State quarterback Sean Maguire looked to seal the fate of the ‘Noles. With Clemson facing a 2nd-and-short in the red zone, the Tigers were in a position to milk the clock and kick a short field goal.
On a hand-off to C.J. Davidson which gained enough yardage for a first down, Florida State defensive tackle Eddie Goldman was able to strip Davidson, who was in the air and horizontal to the ground. The ball was recovered by the Seminoles and the rest is history.
Florida State would go on for a 23-17 overtime victory, but the fact that the Seminoles persevered through what seemed like an unwinnable situation could pay huge dividends moving forward.
While Florida State breezed through the regular season slate last year, it has been forced to win two very tight games early on. Wins like those against Oklahoma State and Clemson build character and after snatching victory from the jaws of defeat on Saturday, the Seminoles may have got the break they needed to put together another magical season.
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