Ranking the Best College Football Programs Since 2010
By winning four national championships in the past seven years, Alabama has already cemented itself as the best college football program of the 2010s. Any argument to the contrary would be 50 percent jealousy and 50 percent delusion.
Beyond the Crimson Tide, though, is a flood of teams that has averaged at least 10 wins per year over the past eight seasons. Though programs like Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma can't quite compare to Alabama's sustained greatness, they have been doggone good lately, too.
Rather than factoring in high school recruiting and NFL draft output, this ranking will focus solely on success at the collegiate level. Total wins, AP polls, Heisman Trophies, conference titles and trips to the College Football Playoff/BCS Championship are what we'll be evaluating here.
In other words, which programs will be most remembered for their cumulative triumphs from 2010-17?
Honorable Mentions
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TCU Horned Frogs
Gary Patterson dominated the Mountain West Conference early in the 2010s. After a two-year adjustment period, he started doing the same in the Big 12, putting TCU in the College Football Playoff conversation in three of the last four years. The Horned Frogs have won at least 11 games in five of the past eight years.
Michigan State Spartans
Michigan State also has five 11-win seasons dating back to 2010, including a CFP appearance in 2015. Had there been a Playoff in 2013, the Spartans would've played in that one, too. However, they haven't actually played in a national championship game, which made that 3-9 record in 2016 a bit too ugly to ignore.
LSU Tigers
LSU had one fantastic season in 2011, going 13-0 before falling to Alabama in the national championship. Outside of that, the Tigers have been good, not great. That 2011 campaign was the last time they finished in the top 12 of the AP poll.
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Like LSU, Oklahoma State was outstanding in 2011 and moderately above-average for the rest of the decade. Mike Gundy's mullet is undefeated, and this program has been in a bowl game in 12 straight seasons, but the Cowboys have suffered at least three losses in each of the last six years.
Northern Illinois Huskies
Only two current Group of Five teams have won at least 74 games thus far this decade: Boise State (85) and Northern Illinois (78). The Broncos made the cut for the top 10, but the Huskies fell short, despite opening the 2010s with five consecutive seasons producing at least 11 wins. The past three haven't been anywhere near as good, and it's difficult to make the case for a program that wasn't ranked higher than No. 16 in the AP poll at any point in the decade.
Georgia Bulldogs
For now, no, Georgia doesn't belong on the list. Last year's run to the national championship game was great, and it's fresh in everyone's memory, but the Dawgs also finished outside the AP Top 25 in four of the past eight seasons. Should we redo this list after the 2018 and 2019 seasons, though, it's looking like a safe bet that Georgia will be regarded as one of the 10 best programs of the decade.
10. Auburn Tigers
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Details: 70-36 record, 2010 national champion, 2013 runner-up, 2010 and 2013 SEC champ, 2010 Heisman (Cam Newton)
Is Auburn a great team that is occasionally bad or an OK team that is sometimes awesome?
As far as total wins are concerned, the Tigers are nowhere near the top of the leaderboard. Compared to Alabama's nation-best mark of 12.4 wins per year since 2010, Auburn's 8.8 average is downright pithy. Heck, even Louisville has more wins (71) in the past eight seasons than Auburn, and the Cardinals haven't finished higher than No. 13 in the AP poll since 2006.
That's because Auburn has won eight or fewer games in five of the last seven seasons, including an atrocious 3-9 campaign in 2012 that led to Gene Chizik's termination less than two years after winning it all. Moreover, the Tigers have been just barely better than average in the SEC dating back to 2011, compiling a 29-27 league record.
And yet, Auburn is one of just four teams—along with Alabama, Clemson and Oregon—to appear in at least two of the last eight national championship games. Led by Cam Newton, the Tigers went 14-0 and won it all in 2010. Three years later, they came one unforgettable Jameis Winston two-minute drill away from claiming another title.
Factor in wins over both Alabama and Georgia this past season, and it's clear that omitting Auburn from this list would be a mistake. This program hasn't been a consistent presence in the college football zeitgeist, but Auburn feasts like a swarm of cicadas every few years.
9. Boise State Broncos
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Details: 85-21 record, 2010 WAC champ, 2012/2014/2016/2017 MWC champ
Without a close runner-up, Boise State has been the best Group of Five team of the 2010s.
And for the Broncos’ sake, it’s a shame we didn’t go back an extra four years into the history books, since they went 49-4 from 2006-09. They won more games during Chris Petersen’s first four years than any other team, and their 134 wins since 2006 trail only Alabama (138) and Ohio State (135) during that 12-year span. This might have been a top-five team if those were the years considered.
Still, 85-21 over the past eight seasons in nothing to scoff at.
The Broncos haven’t been anywhere near as dominant under Bryan Harsin as they were with Petersen at the helm, but they won at least eight games each year, including earning at least a share of four conference titles. Boise State also appeared in at least one installment of the AP Top 25 in all eight seasons.
Playing in the Mountain West Conference (and the WAC in 2010) has kept the Broncos from truly vying for a national championship, but they do have an 11-7 record against Power Five schools since 2010, including a 4-2 record in bowl games against those foes.
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8. Wisconsin Badgers
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Details: 84-25 record, 2010/2011/2012 Big Ten champ
Dating back to 2004, there isn't a college football team that embodies the runner-up quite like Wisconsin.
In all but one of those seasons (2012), Wisconsin spent at least five weeks in the AP Top 25. The Badgers were a ranked team at the end of 12 of the last 14 years. However, they didn't finish higher than No. 7 in any of those seasons, and they haven't spent a single week ranked higher than No. 4 since 1963.
And yet, there they always are, at or near the top of the standings in what is annually one of the best conferences. Only Ohio State (57-9) has a regular-season Big Ten record better than Wisconsin's (52-14) since 2010. In addition to the three conference championships listed above, Wisconsin also played in the 2014, 2016 and 2017 Big Ten championship games.
The Badgers typically have one of the stingiest defenses in the country. And aside from Alabama, is any team better at churning out great offensive linemen and Heisman-caliber running backs? Five different Badgers—Montee Ball, James White, Melvin Gordon, Corey Clement and Jonathan Taylor—have rushed for at least 1,375 yards since 2010.
This didn't factor into the ranking process, but the incredible thing is Wisconsin keeps getting it done with guys who were under the radar coming out of high school. While Alabama and Florida State sign 5-star players and top-notch classes year after year, Wisconsin hasn't had a recruiting class ranked in the top 30 nationally since 2005, per 247 Sports.
7. Stanford Cardinal
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Details: 85-23 record, 2012/2013/2015 Pac-12 champ
Stanford always seems to be a factor because of its stingy defense, dominant offensive line and star power at running back. Neither one won the Heisman, but Christian McCaffrey and Bryce Love each rushed for more than 2,000 yards in a single season. Tyler Gaffney (1,709 yards and 21 TDs in 2013) was no slouch, either.
And Stanford was oh so close to having a shot at three national championships.
In both 2010 and 2011, the Cardinal presumably would have been in the College Football Playoff, had such a thing existed. They were ranked No. 4 in the final BCS standings in each season, thanks to Andrew Luck, Stepfan Taylor and a 23-1 record against teams not named Oregon. Those two losses to the Ducks left the Cardinal short of the goal, though.
Oregon was once again the cause of Stanford's demise in 2015, as a two-point home loss to the Ducks limited the Cardinal to sixth place in the final CFP standings.
At least Stanford got to return the favor once, pulling off a comeback, overtime win over then-No. 1 Oregon in November 2012. It was Oregon's only loss of the season, but it caused the Ducks to finish No. 4 in the BCS standings. It's wild to think how much different recent college football history would be—and how our perspective of this conference as a whole would change—if those four games in this rivalry had gone the opposite way.)
Stanford leads all Pac-12 teams with a 57-16 conference record over the past eight years. As a result, it has finished in the top 12 of the AP poll in six of the last eight seasons, played in three Rose Bowls, as well as one Orange Bowl and one Fiesta Bowl. Thanks in part to a 3-2 record in those marquee events, Stanford is our pick for the best program that has not yet played in a College Football Playoff or BCS Championship game in the 2010s.
6. Oregon Ducks
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Details: 80-26 record, 2010 and 2014 national runner-up, 2014 Heisman (Marcus Mariota), 2010/2011/2014 Pac-12 champ
The past few years were quite the blow for a program that dominated the first half of the decade. Oregon has been good for the majority of the past three decades, but what Chip Kelly built and eventually bequeathed to Mark Helfrich was magnificent.
With an offense that averaged better than 45 points per game in all five seasons, the Ducks went 60-8 from 2010-14. (No other team won more than 58 games.) During that entire run, they only spent six weeks outside the AP Top 10, never dropping lower than No. 13.
Oregon finished in the top five of the BCS standings in 2010, 2011 and 2012, facing Auburn in the national championship in the first of those three years. The Ducks were also the No. 2 seed in the first College Football Playoff, falling to Ohio State in the 2014 title game.
Despite never winning a 'ship, had Oregon maintained that level of excellence for another three years, it would have been the no-brainer No. 2 team behind Alabama.
Instead, the Ducks have gone 20-18 over the past three seasons. The offense has dropped from elite to better than average, and the defense ranked among the worst in the nation in both 2015 and 2016.
Maybe a Justin Herbert Heisman campaign will bring them back with a vengeance this year, but it's been a while since Oregon football was appointment television. Great as it was for five years, it's currently hard to justify calling this a top-five program of the decade.
5. Oklahoma Sooners
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Details: 85-21 record, 2015 and 2017 College Football Playoff semifinalist, 2017 Heisman (Baker Mayfield), 2010/2012/2015/2016/2017 Big 12 Champ
As Oregon began its descent into mediocrity, Oklahoma was ready, willing and able to take up the mantle as the nation's offensive juggernaut. With Baker Mayfield running the show, the Sooners averaged 44.2 points per game over the past three seasons, finishing all three of those campaigns in the top five of the AP poll.
Oklahoma was quite good before that, though, winning at least 10 games in seven of the past eight seasons, including five Big 12 championships. No other team can boast more than four conference crowns thus far in the decade.
Unfortunately for the Sooners, the lack of appearances in national championships keeps them from holding a candle to our top four teams—each of which won at least one title. Moreover, they haven't even flirted with perfection, suffering at least one loss by the seventh game of all eight seasons, and finishing each one with at least two losses.
Though this program's report card is lacking in A+ seasons, one C+ (8-5 in 2014) on a sheet otherwise filled with A- grades is impressive. Oklahoma never quite plays for a natty, but it's usually a realistic possibility into late November.
4. Florida State Seminoles
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Details: 85-23 record, 2013 national champion, 2013 Heisman (Jameis Winston), 2014 College Football Playoff semifinalist, 2012/2013/2014 ACC champ
Four of the five teams at the top of this list won at least 12 games in 2017. Not only are they among the best teams of the past decade, but they were the cream of the crop in the most recent season.
And then there's Florida State, which only won seven games in what was arguably its most disappointing campaign of the past four decades. Expectations for the Seminoles in 2018 are also well behind those of the rest of the top five, so recency bias might make them feel a bit out of place this high on the list.
A few years ago, though, this program was the most unstoppable force in the country. From Dec. 1, 2012 through Jan. 1, 2015, the 'Noles put together a 29-game winning streak, including three consecutive ACC championships.
Led by Jameis Winston in 2013, they ranked second in the nation in scoring offense and first in scoring defense for a 553 point differential that is just plain absurd. Per Sports Reference, only four other teams have had a point differential of 400 or more points in a season since 2000, the largest of which was Texas' mark of 439 in 2005.
Even outside the peak of excellence, Florida State had a great first seven years of the decade. Jimbo Fisher coached them to at least nine wins in each season from 2010-16. Overall, they had a winning percentage of 82.1, which trailed only Alabama (88.7) and Ohio State (84.9) during that time.
3. Ohio State Buckeyes
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Details: 91-16 record, 2014 national champion, 2016 College Football Playoff semifinalist, 2010/2014/2017 Big Ten champ
Since we're only considering what has happened on the field for each program from 2010-17, there's no need to discuss the ongoing Urban Meyer/Zach Smith saga here. It may well have a huge impact on this program in 2018 and 2019, but it isn't relevant to this conversation.
We can certainly point out, though, that Ohio State's record since 2010 is technically 79-15 and that the Buckeyes officially only won two Big Ten titles, since the NCAA vacated their entire 12-1 season in 2010 during the fallout from Tattoogate.
But even if we disregard that first season and only focus on 2011-17, we're still talking about a program that has won a national championship and 84 percent of all games played over the past seven years. That's good enough for a spot in the top three, and there's absolutely a case for Ohio State at No. 2 if we do include 2010.
If we reduce that scope even further to disregard the disappointing 6-7 season in 2011, Ohio State is 73-8 over the past six years. The Buckeyes were not eligible for postseason play in 2012, but they went 12-0 that year before starting 12-0 in 2013, as well. But their magnum opus came in 2014, rallying from a Week 2 loss to Virginia Tech to win the national championship.
Ohio State opened the following season with a 10-0 record, meaning it has had winning streaks of 24 games and 23 games under Meyer. Only Florida State (29) and Alabama (26) have maintained perfection for longer in this decade, and they didn't do it multiple times.
2. Clemson Tigers
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Details: 88-22 record, 2016 national champion, 2015 runner-up, 2017 College Football Playoff semifinalist, 2011/2015/2016/2017 ACC champ
It hasn't been that long since this program was known for its colossal letdowns. Back around the time when people were obsessed with planking, the Tigers were busy Clemsoning their way out of the championship conversation every November.
Six years ago, it would have been outrageous to suggest that Clemson could become one of the three best college football programs of this decade.
Nowadays, though, Clemsoning means dominating the ACC and eventually facing Alabama in the College Football Playoff every year.
Despite the Tigers' 6-7 season to begin the decade, only Alabama (99) and Ohio State (91) have won more games in the 2010s than Clemson. The Tigers have averaged 12 wins over the past six years, finishing all six of those seasons in the top 15 of the AP poll.
And it's plausible that the best still lies ahead for a program that has won 40 of 44 games over the past three seasons. Their 2018 defensive line could go down as the greatest ever assembled, and incoming freshman QB Trevor Lawrence is already being discussed as a potential Heisman winner.
The Tigers probably won't be able to steal the top spot of the decade away from Alabama, but they could at least make it a conversation worth having.
1. Alabama Crimson Tide
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Details: 99-12 record, 2011/2012/2015/2017 national champion, 2016 runner-up, 2014 College Football Playoff semifinalist, 2015 Heisman (Derrick Henry), 2012/2014/2015/2016 SEC champ
Let's be serious: If you didn't know Alabama would be No. 1, you clearly clicked on this link by mistake. But thanks for scrolling this far before realizing your error.
No other program has won more than one national championship in the past nine years while the Crimson Tide have stockpiled five of them. (However, only four of those came in the 2010s, so we have to temporarily disregard the 14-0 season in 2009.) They also played in a fifth championship game and made it to the semifinals in a sixth season.
It's not quite the 1991-98 Chicago Bulls nor the 1936-43 New York Yankees as far as eight year runs of title dominance are concerned, but it's damn close. In fact, you could reasonably argue this is even more impressive. Consider that the Bulls had Michael Jordan for all six of their titles and the Yankees had Joe DiMaggio for seven of their eight seasons. But Alabama loses, like, eight of its best players to the NFL every single season and never misses a beat.
The one surprising thing about this run is that Alabama hasn't had a perfect season in the 2010s. It feels like the Crimson Tide never lose, because they have spent 29 of the past 31 weeks at No. 1 in the AP Top 25—and that's not including their inevitable spot at No. 1 in the 2018 preseason poll. They have spent at least one week at No. 1 in each of the last 10 seasons. But this program has suffered at least one loss in eight straight years, too.
On the whole, this is as close to perfection as it gets. Barring a complete meltdown in each of the next two seasons and two consecutive national championships for either Clemson or Ohio State, Alabama has already locked up the title of best college football program of this decade.
Kerry Miller covers college football and men's college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @kerrancejames.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
