Sooner Solace: A Record Not Even the Florida Gators Can Break

A great debate always ensues when someone brings up the records that will stand the test of time.  Sure there are the obvious ones: Cal Ripken Jr.'s consecutive games played streak, Wilt Chamberlin's 100 points in one NBA game or Brett Favre's career interception record of 310 and counting...well maybe and counting.

But there is one record this writer doesn't see being broken anytime soon: Oklahoma's 47 game college football winning streak.  From October 10th, 1953 till November 9th, 1957 the Sooners won a NCAA FBS record 47 straight college football games. 

Since the Sooners' streak ended in a 7-0 loss to Notre Dame, three schools have made runs at the record. However, none could even get within a full seasonal slate of games of breaking the record.

Toledo maxed out its attempt at college football immortality with 35 straight wins from 1969-1971.  The Rockets won three straight MAC titles and won three straight Tangerine Bowls (now the Capital One Bowl). 

However, lost in this attempt is that Toledo did not play a single game against a current BCS conference school and its three bowl appearances were all against teams now playing football in the FCS.  Today, a mid-major schools like Toledo routinely have a BCS school on it's regular season schedule and with multiple undefeated seasons would most definitely run into one of the big boys come bowl season. 

Two of college football's more traditional powers made serious runs at the record this decade.  Both Miami and Southern California reeled off 34 straight wins in the BCS era. 

Miami won their 34 games from the third week of the 2000 season until the controversial ending of the National Championship game against Ohio State.  Along the way the Canes knocked off the likes of Florida, Florida State, Virginia Tech, Nebraska, and Tennessee.  The Canes captured three Big East championships and a national title win in the Rose Bowl. 

Assume for a minute that the Buckeyes didn't catch a break in that fateful Fiesta Bowl and Miami won their second straight national title.  Larry Coker's squad started off 2003 with seven straight wins, thus taking their hypothetical streak to 42.  However, in game eight Miami was blown out against conference foe Virginia Tech and then lost a close game the next week against Tennessee, thus leaving the Canes' six games short of breaking the record.

Southern Cal next stepped up to try break the streak of Bud Wilkinson's Sooners.  From the fifth game of the 2003 season until the Trojans showdown with Texas in the Rose Bowl following the 2005 season, Southern Cal also notched a 34 game win streak. 

Now assume that Vince Young couldn't pull off his late game heroics lifting the Longhorns to the national championship.  USC's hypothetical streak would then have gone to 35 games.  However, the Trojans suffered similar setbacks as Miami, losing after starting the season 6-0 to familiar nemesis Oregon State; therefore leaving them seven games short of setting the record. 

Take for instance Utah and Florida, riding 14 and 10 game winning streaks respectably. 

The Utes seem to have a great program in place, but reeling off another 34 wins to break the record would be nearly impossible in the newly challenging Mountain West.  Not to mention another undefeated season would probably find the Utes in the National Title game comes season's end. 

As for the Gators, well they play in what is year in and year out the toughest conference in the nation.  In fact only Tennessee in 1998 and Auburn in 2004 have gone undefeated in conference play.  A Florida run to 38 more wins in a row or 48 in a row at some point in the foreseeable future just is not going to happen. 

While the bell of disappointment still rings loudly in Sooner ears, Oklahoma fans should remember they have a proud football history to hang their hat on.  A sacred part of that past is college football’s most unbreakable record.