NCAA Football Tournament of Champions 1996-2010 Round 2 from Whatifsports.com

With the NFL in a state of flux and college football still a few months away, Whatifsports.com wanted to provide a fix for fans craving football. We've teamed up with FOXSports.com and created "The Champs are Here: NCAA Football Tournament of Champions 1996-2010."

Using our college football simulation engine, we simulated each matchup 2,001 times. The team with the higher winning percentage advanced in our bracket. We'll unveil the simulation results round by round over the next four weeks until a champion in crowned.

For more information about our tournament simulation, be sure to check out this Beyond the Boxscore article.

Go directly to the bracket page.

Round 2 Recaps

Miami (FL) 2001 vs. Florida 1996

It's a series that dates to 1938. The rivalry between Miami and Florida intensified by the 1950s, when the two teams started battling for the wooden canoe. With their win over the Hurricanes in 2010, the Gators closed within a game of tying the all-time series record (Miami leads 28-27). The two rivals meet again in this quarterfinal-round simulation. 

Hurricanes kicker Todd Sievers may have been overshadowed by teammate Clinton Portis, but the man with the golden leg accounted for 16 of Miami's 40 points. He split the uprights from 43, 40, 45 and 27 yards, plus four extra points. 

Portis plowed in for two touchdowns in the first half to help Miami build a 17-6 lead. 

Florida quarterback Danny Wuerffel hit Tremayne Allen in the third quarter for a score to cut the deficit to eight. But Sievers connected on three consecutive field goals to push the lead to 17. 

Portis scored his third touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter. He finished with 133 rushing yards in the Hurricanes' 40-23 win. 

Winning Percentage of 2,001 Simulation: Miami-FL 89.5 percent, Florida 10.5 percent

USC 2003 vs. Texas 2005

In an attempt to add some fuel to the out-of-conference rivalry, Texas and USC announced last August they would play a home-and-home series in 2017 and '18. Book your flights now and remember: Good tickets are still available. 

But instead of waiting six years, we jump in our Whatifsports.com DeLorean and travel back in time to check out a battle between the 2003 Trojans and 2005 Longhorns. 

Mack Brown's team hit USC with a Mack truck to end the first half. Vince Young found Billy Pittman for six on the Trojans' goal line. With less than a minute to go in the second quarter and facing 3rd-and-8, Young scrambled for 11 yards and scored the Longhorns' second touchdown of the game. 

Young found Limas Sweed on the first possession of the third quarter for another score, but USC answered back. Matt Leinart threw touchdown passes to Jason Mitchell and Steve Smith. Ryan Killeen's two field goals for the Trojans gave USC a 23-21 lead with 90 seconds remaining in the game. 

As the Trojans learned in the 2005 BCS National Championship Game, Young can hurt you in less than a minute. The Texas quarterback orchestrated a seven-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a game-winning touchdown pass to Brian Carter. 

Texas put its hooks in the Trojans again 28-23.

 

Winning Percentage of 2,001 Simulation: Texas 61.9 percent, USC 38.1 percent

See the rest of the 2nd Round results at Whatifsports.com