American college football season
The2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the 152nd season ofcollege football in the United States organized by theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at its highest level of competition, theFootball Bowl Subdivision . The regular season began on August 28, 2021,[ 1] College Football Playoff National Championship atLucas Oil Stadium inIndianapolis , and the all-star portion of the post-season concluding with the inauguralHBCU Legacy Bowl on February 19, 2022. It was the eighth season of theCollege Football Playoff (CFP) system.[ 2] Cincinnati Bearcats , the season's last undefeated team, were defeated in the2021 Cotton Bowl Classic . The season'sHeisman Trophy winner wasAlabama Crimson Tide quarterbackBryce Young .
The following rule changes, recommended by the NCAA Football Rules Committee for the 2021 season on March 12 of that year, were approved by the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel on April 22.[ 3] [ 4]
In overtime, teams scoring a touchdown will be required to attempt a two-point conversion starting with the second overtime period (previously the third overtime period). If the scores are still tied at the expiration of the second overtime, teams will be required to attempt alternating two point conversions starting with the third overtime (previously the fifth overtime period). Teams can still choose to go for the PAT kick or two-point conversion during the first overtime period. The first game using this procedure was on September 18 betweenUtah andSan Diego State , won by SDSU 33–31 in three overtimes. On October 23, the all-time FBS record for most overtimes in a single game was broken whenIllinois defeated hostPenn State 20–18 in nine overtimes . Permanently extending the team area from between the 25-yard lines to between the 20-yard lines. A rule implemented for the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic had extended this area to between the 15-yard lines, but it had been scheduled to revert to the 25 for 2021. Provide a framework to allow a school or conference to request a postgame video review about questionable actions (i.e. feigning injuries to stop the clock and slow down teams' momentum) through the NCAA secretary-rules editor/national coordinator of officials. Explicitly prohibiting video board and lighting system operators from creating "any distraction that obstructs play", with violations being deemed unsportsmanlike conduct. If replay overturns a call on the field, the game clock will only be adjusted inside of the last 2:00 of the first half and the last 5:00 of the second half. Another rule change was made during the season:
AfterPitt quarterbackKenny Pickett 's fake slide in the2021 ACC Championship Game againstWake Forest , the NCAA Football Rules Committee changed the interpretation of the "QB Slide Rule" to require officials to interpret a fake slide as "giving himself up" and blow the play dead. "Points of Emphasis" for the 2021 season included:
Any taunting action toward an opponent will be penalized. Automatic unsportsmanlike conduct penalties will be imposed on a coach who leaves the team area or goes onto the field of play to argue with the officials. Officials are to be more alert to players significantly in violation of uniform rules (specifically pants, jerseys, and T-shirts that extend below the torso), and to send violators out of the game to correct the issue. On April 15, 2021, the NCAA Division I Council adopted legislation that extended the so-called "one-time transfer exception" to all D-I sports, with the Division I Board of Directors ratifying this on April 28. This allows student-athletes in baseball, men's and women's basketball, football, and men's ice hockey to transfer one time without having to sit out a year, placing them under the same transfer regulations that previously applied to all other D-I sports.[ 5] [ 6] On June 10, theCollege Football Playoff announced that it had begun work on a proposal to expand the playoff to 12 teams in the indefinite future. Under the proposed format:[ 7] The six conference champions ranked highest by the CFP selection committee would receive automatic berths. The field would be filled out by the committee's six highest-ranked remaining teams, with no restrictions on conference affiliation. The four highest-ranked conference champions would receive first-round byes. The remaining 8 teams would play first-round games hosted by the higher seeds. The quarterfinals and semifinals would be hosted by existing bowl games, with the final continuing to be held at a separately determined neutral site. On June 21, theSupreme Court of the United States ruled inNational Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston On July 21, theHouston Chronicle Oklahoma andTexas had approached theSoutheastern Conference about the possibility of joining that league, and that an announcement could come in early August. The SEC and both schools refused comment on this report, but did not issue definitive denials.[ 8] [ 9] On July 26, Oklahoma and Texasnotified the Big 12 Conference that the two schools do not wish to extend its grant of television rights beyond the 2024–25 athletic year and intend to leave the conference.[ 10] [ 11] On July 27, Oklahoma and Texas reached out to the SEC about acceptance into the conference in 2025.[ 12] [ 13] July 28 – The Big 12 sent a cease-and-desist letter to ESPN, accusing the network oftortious interference by working with other conferences attempting to lure Big 12 members in a bid to ease Oklahoma's and Texas' exits for the SEC. The network denied the allegations.[ 14] July 29 – The presidents and chancellors of the 14 current SEC members voted unanimously to extend invitations to Oklahoma and Texas, effective in 2025.[ 15] July 30 – The boards of regents of both Oklahoma and Texas unanimously accepted the SEC's invitations.[ 16] August 16 – The Associated Press released itspreseason rankings , withAlabama as the overwhelming choice for #1. Other ranking highlights:[ 17] August 24 – ThePac-12 Conference ,Big Ten Conference , andAtlantic Coast Conference announced an alliance designed to "stabilize the current environment" by collaborating on a number of issues, including scheduling for football, men's and women's basketball.[ 18] September 3 – Multiple media outlets reported that the Big 12 was on the verge of inviting four schools—American Athletic Conference membersCincinnati ,Houston , andUCF , plusBYU , anFBS independent and otherwise a member of the non-footballWest Coast Conference . All four schools were reportedly preparing membership applications, and reports were that their future entrance could be approved as early as the next scheduled meeting of Big 12 presidents on September 10. The entry timeline was uncertain at the time of the report, but 2024 was seen as the likeliest date.[ 19] [ 20] September 10 – BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF were officially announced as incoming Big 12 members no later than 2024–25.[ 21] October 18 – Yahoo Sports reported that The American, which had been rocked by the impending departure of three of its most prominent schools, was preparing to receive applications from six of the 14 members ofConference USA —Charlotte ,Florida Atlantic ,North Texas ,Rice ,UAB , andUTSA . Should all six schools join, The American would become a 14-team conference in all sports. (Navy is a football-only member, whileWichita State is a full member but does not sponsor football.)[ 22] October 19 – ESPN reported that all six C-USA members named in Yahoo Sports' report had submitted applications to The American, and that each would receive a formal letter by the end of that week (October 22) detailing the terms of expansion.[ 23] October 21 – The six aforementioned C-USA members were announced as incoming members of The American at a date to be determined.[ 24] October 22 –The Action Network reported that C-USA memberSouthern Miss had accepted an invitation to join theSun Belt Conference in 2023, though no formal announcement had then been made. The report added that the Sun Belt was preparing to add two other C-USA members,Marshall andOld Dominion , as well as FCS programJames Madison . At the time, formal announcements of new members were expected on October 25, but an announcement regarding Marshall was likely to wait until after the school announced its new president on October 28.[ 25] October 26 – Southern Miss was officially announced as a Sun Belt member, effective no later than July 2023.[ 26] [ 27] October 27 – Old Dominion was officially announced as a Sun Belt member, also effective no later than July 2023. This marked ODU's return to that conference after an absence of more than 30 years.[ 28] October 30 – The day after both the Sun Belt Conference and Marshall issued tweets indicating that the Thundering Herd had accepted a Sun Belt invitation,[ 29] [ 30] November 5 – Multiple media outlets reported that Conference USA, which had nine of their schools depart to other separate conferences, handed out invitations to four schools: FBS independentsLiberty andNew Mexico State as well as FCS programsJacksonville State andSam Houston State , which were all accepted.[ 31] November 6 – James Madison made their move to the Sun Belt official, effective no later than July 2023.[ 32] November 23 –Cincinnati became the firstGroup of Five team ever to receive a top-four College Football Playoff ranking, coming in at fourth in this week's rankings.[ 33] December 5 – The College Football Playoff field was revealed, featuring (in order of seeding)Alabama ,Michigan ,Georgia , and Cincinnati. This marked the first time a Group of Five team received a CFP berth.[ 34] December 17 – AfterCoastal Carolina's 47–41 win overNorthern Illinois in theCure Bowl , Coastal quarterbackGrayson McCall finished the season with a 207.6passer rating , breaking the FBS record of 203.1 setlast season by Alabama'sMac Jones .[ 35] December 18 – DuringWestern Kentucky's 59–38 win overAppalachian State in theBoca Raton Bowl , WKU quarterbackBailey Zappe broke two major single-season FBS passing records and equaled a single-season FBS total offense record:5,967 passing yards (surpassing the 5,833 yards ofTexas Tech 'sB. J. Symons in 2003)[ 36] 62 passing touchdowns (surpassing the 60 TDs ofLSU 'sJoe Burrow in 2019)[ 36] 65 touchdowns responsible for (combined passing and rushing; equals Burrow's 2019 mark)[ 37] December 22 – AfterSan Diego State's 38–24 win overUTSA in theFrisco Bowl , SDSU punter and placekickerMatt Araiza ended the season with a 51.19-yard punting average, breaking the FBS single-season record of 50.98 yards set byBraden Mann ofTexas A&M in 2018.[ 38] January 1 -Ohio State receiverJaxon Smith-Njigba set an all-time FBS bowl game record with 347 receiving yards on 15 catches in theRose Bowl game against Utah. He also broke the Ohio State team record for receiving yards in a game and in a single season.[ 39] Conference realignment and new programs [ edit ] ^ Bowl count includes the National Championship game. The Hawaii Bowl, Military Bowl, Fenway Bowl, Arizona Bowl, and Holiday Bowl were subsequently canceled. ^ UConn became independent in 2020, but canceled its2020 season . ^ Notre Dame became a temporary full member of the ACC in 2020 due to the move by most conferences to play conference-only schedules during the pandemic season. This was the first season forUAB Protective Stadium Legion Field . The first game was a 36–12 UAB loss toLiberty on October 2.[ 40] With the closure ofAloha Stadium to future events and plans to build a new stadium on the site,Hawaii Clarence T. C. Ching Athletics Complex [ 41] [ 42] behind closed doors until further notice. It is the only team in Division I FBS that is restricting attendance.[ 43] Rick Blangiardi gave permission for the stadium to host 1,000 spectators. All spectators must wear masks and be fully-vaccinated (if capable of being so).[ 44] [ 45] This was the last of two seasons thatSan Diego State spent at its temporary home ofDignity Health Sports Park inCarson, California . SDSU will move to the newSnapdragon Stadium San Diego Stadium , next season. Rankings reflect theAP Poll entering each week.
The regular season began on Saturday, August 28 with five games inWeek 0 .
The majority of FBS teams opened the season on Labor Day weekend. Eight neutral-site "kickoff" games were held.
Wednesday, September 1 Thursday, September 2 Saturday, September 4 Monday, September 6 Regular season top 10 matchups [ edit ] Rankings reflect theAP Poll . Rankings for Week 10 and beyond will listCollege Football Playoff Rankings first andAP Poll second. Teams that failed to be a top 10 team for one poll or the other will be noted.
Week 1 Week 2 Week 5 Week 6 Week 9 Week 12 Week 13 Week 14 FCS team wins over FBS teams [ edit ] Italics denotes FCS teams.
Date Visiting team Home team Site Result Attendance Ref. September 2 No. 23 (FCS ) UC Davis Tulsa Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium •Tulsa, Oklahoma 19–17 15,085 [ 46] [ 47] [ 48] September 2 No. 11 (FCS ) Eastern Washington UNLV Allegiant Stadium •Paradise, Nevada 35–33 2OT 21,970 [ 46] [ 49] [ 50] September 3 No. 3 (FCS ) South Dakota State Colorado State Canvas Stadium •Fort Collins, Colorado 42–23 32,327 [ 46] [ 51] [ 52] September 4 Holy Cross UConn Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field •East Hartford, Connecticut 38–28 18,782 [ 46] [ 53] [ 54] September 4 No. 9 (FCS ) Montana No. 20 (FBS ) Washington Husky Stadium •Seattle , Washington 13–7 64,053 [ 46] [ 55] [ 56] September 4 East Tennessee State Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Stadium •Nashville, Tennessee 23–3 22,029 [ 46] [ 57] [ 58] September 11 Duquesne Ohio Peden Stadium •Athens, Ohio 28–26 19,411 [ 46] [ 59] [ 60] September 11 No. 16 (FCS ) Jacksonville State Florida State Doak Campbell Stadium •Tallahassee, Florida 20–17 60,198 [ 46] [ 61] [ 62] September 18 Incarnate Word Texas State Bobcat Stadium •San Marcos, Texas 42–34 16,107 [ 46] [ 63] [ 64] September 18 Northern Arizona Arizona Arizona Stadium •Tucson, Arizona 21–19 33,481 [ 46] [ 65] [ 66] November 6 Rhode Island UMass Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium •Hadley, Massachusetts 35–22 7,284 [ 46] [ 67] [ 68] November 13 Maine UMass Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Hadley, Massachusetts 35–10 5,331 [ 46] [ 69] [ 70] # Rankings fromAP Poll released prior to game.
This section lists instances of unranked teams defeating AP Poll-ranked teams during the season.
During the regular season, 48 unranked FBS teams, plus 1 FCS team, defeated ranked FBS teams.
September 3, 2021 September 4, 2021: September 11, 2021: September 18, 2021: September 25, 2021: October 2, 2021 October 9, 2021: October 16, 2021:Purdue 24, No. 2Iowa 7Auburn 38, No. 17 Arkansas 23Utah 35, No. 18 Arizona State 21 Baylor 38, No. 19 BYU 24 LSU 49, No. 20 Florida 42 October 20, 2021 October 23, 2021Illinois 20, No. 7Penn State 189OT Iowa State 24, No. 8 Oklahoma State 21 Miami (FL) 31, No. 18 NC State 30 Wisconsin 30, No. 25 Purdue 13 October 30, 2021Wisconsin 27, No. 9 Iowa 7 Mississippi State 31, No. 12 Kentucky 17 Miami (FL) 38, No. 17Pittsburgh 34 Houston 44, No. 19SMU 37Fresno State 30, No. 21San Diego State 20 West Virginia 38, No. 22 Iowa State 31 November 6, 2021Purdue 40, No. 5 Michigan State 29 North Carolina 58, No. 10Wake Forest 55 TCU 30, No. 14 Baylor 28Tennessee 45, No. 18 Kentucky 42Memphis 28, No. 23 SMU 25Boise State 40, No. 25 Fresno State 14 November 13, 2021Mississippi State 43, No. 16 Auburn 34 Georgia State 42, No. 22 Coastal Carolina 40 November 20, 2021Clemson 48, No. 13 Wake Forest 27 November 27, 2021 December 4, 2021 Rankings in this section are based on the final CFP rankings released on December 5, 2021.
Conference standings [ edit ] The top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches Polls.
AP Ranking Team 1 Alabama (47) 2 Oklahoma (6) 3 Clemson (6) 4 Ohio State (1) 5 Georgia (3) 6 Texas A&M 7 Iowa State 8 Cincinnati 9 Notre Dame 10 North Carolina 11 Oregon 12 Wisconsin 13 Florida 14 Miami (FL) 15 USC 16 LSU 17 Indiana 18 Iowa 19 Penn State 20 Washington 21 Texas 22 Coastal Carolina 23 Louisiana 24 Utah 25 Arizona State
USA today coaches Ranking Team 1 Alabama (63) 2 Clemson 3 Oklahoma (2) 4 Ohio State 5 Georgia 6 Texas A&M 7 Notre Dame 8 Iowa State 9 North Carolina 10 Cincinnati 11 Florida 12 Oregon 13 LSU 14 USC 15 Wisconsin 16 Miami 17 Indiana 18 Iowa 19 Texas 20 Penn State 21 Washington 22 Oklahoma State 23 Louisiana 24 Coastal Carolina 25 Ole Miss
CFB Playoff final rankings [ edit ] On December 5, 2021, theCollege Football Playoff selection committee announced its final team rankings for the year.
Rank Team W–L Conference and standing Bowl game 1 Alabama 12–1 SEC Champion Cotton Bowl (CFP semifinal) 2 Michigan 12–1 Big Ten Champion Orange Bowl (CFP semifinal) 3 Georgia 12–1 SEC runner-up Orange Bowl (CFP semifinal) 4 Cincinnati 13–0 AAC Champion Cotton Bowl (CFP semifinal) 5 Notre Dame 11–1 FBS Independent Fiesta Bowl (NY6) 6 Ohio State 10–2 Big Ten East 2nd place Rose Bowl (NY6) 7 Baylor 11–2 Big 12 Champion Sugar Bowl (NY6) 8 Ole Miss 10–2 SEC West 2nd place Sugar Bowl (NY6) 9 Oklahoma State 11–2 Big 12 runner-up Fiesta Bowl (NY6) 10 Michigan State 10–2 Big Ten East 3rd place Peach Bowl (NY6) 11 Utah 10–3 Pac-12 Champion Rose Bowl (NY6) 12 Pittsburgh 11–2 ACC Champion Peach Bowl (NY6) 13 BYU 10–2 FBS Independent Independence Bowl 14 Oregon 10–3 Pac-12 runner-up Alamo Bowl 15 Iowa 10–3 Big Ten runner-up Citrus Bowl 16 Oklahoma 10–2 Big 12 3rd place Alamo Bowl 17 Wake Forest 10–3 ACC runner-up Gator Bowl 18 NC State 9–3 ACC Atlantic 2nd place Holiday Bowl 19 Clemson 9–3 ACC Atlantic 3rd place Cheez-It Bowl 20 Houston 11–2 AAC runner-up Birmingham Bowl 21 Arkansas 8–4 SEC West 3rd place Outback Bowl 22 Kentucky 9–3 SEC East 2nd place Citrus Bowl 23 Louisiana 12–1 Sun Belt champion New Orleans Bowl 24 San Diego State 11–2 Mountain West runner-up Frisco Bowl 25 Texas A&M 8–4 SEC West 5th place Gator Bowl
Rank Associated Press Coaches' Poll 1 Georgia (61) Georgia (62) 2 Alabama 3 Michigan 4 Cincinnati 5 Baylor Ohio State 6 Ohio State Baylor 7 Oklahoma State 8 Notre Dame 9 Michigan State 10 Oklahoma 11 Ole Miss 12 Utah 13 Pittsburgh 14 Clemson Wake Forest 15 Wake Forest Kentucky 16 Louisiana Clemson 17 Houston 18 Kentucky Louisiana 19 BYU NC State 20 NC State Arkansas 21 Arkansas Oregon 22 Oregon BYU 23 Iowa 24 Utah State 25 San Diego State Texas A&M
Conference summaries [ edit ] Rankings in this section are based onCFP rankings released prior to the games.
Conference Championship game Overall Player of the Year/MVP Offensive Player of the Year Defensive Player of the Year Special Teams Player of the Year Coach of the Year Date[ 71] Champion Score Runner-up ACC Dec. 4 No 15Pittsburgh (10−2)45−21 No 16.Wake Forest (10−2) Kenny Pickett , QB, Pittsburgh[ 72] Kenny Pickett , QB, Pittsburgh[ 72] Jermaine Johnson II , DE, Florida State[ 72] — N/a Dave Clawson , Wake Forest[ 73] American Dec. 4 No. 4Cincinnati (12–0)35–20 No. 21Houston (11–1) — N/a Desmond Ridder , QB, Cincinnati[ 74] Sauce Gardner , CB, Cincinnati[ 74] Marcus Jones , KR/PR, Houston[ 74] Luke Fickell , Cincinnati[ 74] Big Ten Dec. 4 No. 2Michigan (11–1)42–3 No. 13Iowa (10−2) — N/a C. J. Stroud , QB, Ohio State[ 75] Aidan Hutchinson , DE, Michigan[ 75] Jake Moody , PK, Michigan;Jordan Stout , P, Penn State; &Charlie Jones , RS, Iowa[ 75] [ a] Mel Tucker , Michigan State (coaches & media)[ 75] Big 12 Dec. 4 No. 9Baylor (10–2)21–16 No. 5Oklahoma State (11–1) — N/a Breece Hall , RB, Iowa State[ 76] Jalen Pitre , DB, Baylor[ 76] Trestan Ebner , KR/PR, Baylor[ 76] Mike Gundy , Oklahoma State[ 76] C–USA Dec. 3 UTSA 49–41 Western Kentucky (8–4)Bailey Zappe , QB, Western Kentucky[ 77] Sincere McCormick , RB, UTSA[ 77] DeAngelo Malone , DE, Western Kentucky[ 77] Tommy Heatherly, P, FIU[ 77] Jeff Traylor , UTSA[ 78] MAC Dec. 4 Northern Illinois 41–23 Kent State (7–5)— N/a Lew Nichols III , RB, Central Michigan[ 79] Ali Fayad, DE, Western Michigan[ 79] Kalil Pimpleton , PR, Central Michigan[ 79] Thomas Hammock , Northern Illinois[ 79] MW Dec. 4 Utah State 46–13 No. 19San Diego State (11–1) — N/a Carson Strong , QB, Nevada[ 80] Cameron Thomas , DL, San Diego State[ 80] Matt Araiza , P/PK, San Diego State[ 80] Brady Hoke , San Diego State[ 80] Pac-12 Dec. 3 No. 17Utah (9–3)38–10 No. 10Oregon (10–2) — N/a Drake London , WR, USC[ 81] Devin Lloyd , LB, Utah[ 81] — N/a Kyle Whittingham , Utah[ 81] SEC Dec. 4 No. 3Alabama (11–1)41–24 No. 1Georgia (12–0) — N/a Bryce Young , QB, AlabamaWill Anderson Jr. , LB, AlabamaJameson Williams , WR, AlabamaTennessee Kirby Smart , GeorgiaSun Belt Dec. 4 No. 24Louisiana (11–1)24–16 Appalachian State (10–2)Grayson McCall , QB, Coastal Carolina[ 82] Jalen Tolbert , WR, South Alabama[ 82] D'Marco Jackson , LB, Appalachian State[ 82] — N/a Billy Napier , Louisiana[ 82]
^ The Big Ten presents separate awards for its top placekicker, punter, and return specialist. [ edit ] Ranks are per the finalCFP rankings , released on December 5, with win–loss records at that time.
Conference Champion W–L Rank Bowl game ACC Pittsburgh 11–2 12 Peach Bowl (NY6) American CincinnatiCFP 13–0 4 Cotton Bowl (semifinal) Big Ten MichiganCFP 12–1 2 Orange Bowl (semifinal) Big 12 Baylor 11–2 7 Sugar Bowl (NY6) C-USA UTSA 12–1 Frisco Bowl MAC Northern Illinois 9–4 Cure Bowl Mountain West Utah State 10–3 LA Bowl Pac-12 Utah 10–3 11 Rose Bowl (NY6) SEC AlabamaCFP 12–1 1 Cotton Bowl (semifinal) Sun Belt Louisiana 12–1 23 New Orleans Bowl
CFP
There are 42 team-competitive FBS post-season bowl games, with two teams advancing to a 43rd – the CFP National Championship game. Normally, a team is required to have a .500 minimumwinning percentage during the regular season to becomebowl-eligible (six wins for an 11- or 12-game schedule, and seven wins for a 13-game schedule). If there are not enough winning teams to fulfill all open bowl slots, teams with losing records may be chosen to fill all 84 bowl slots. Additionally, on the rare occasion in which a conference champion does not meet eligibility requirements, they are usually still chosen for bowl games viatie-ins for their conference.
Bowl-eligible teams [ edit ] ACC (10):Boston College ,Clemson ,Louisville ,Miami (FL) ,NC State ,North Carolina ,Pittsburgh ,Virginia ,Virginia Tech ,Wake Forest American (7):Cincinnati ,East Carolina ,Houston ,Memphis ,SMU ,Tulsa ,UCF Big Ten (9):Iowa ,Maryland ,Michigan ,Michigan State ,Minnesota ,Ohio State ,Penn State ,Purdue ,Wisconsin Big 12 (7):Baylor ,Iowa State ,Kansas State ,Oklahoma ,Oklahoma State ,Texas Tech ,West Virginia C-USA (8):Marshall ,Middle Tennessee ,North Texas ,Old Dominion ,UAB ,UTEP ,UTSA ,Western Kentucky MAC (8):Ball State ,Central Michigan ,Eastern Michigan ,Kent State ,Miami (OH) ,Northern Illinois ,Toledo ,Western Michigan Mountain West (8):Air Force ,Boise State ,Fresno State ,Hawaii ,Nevada ,San Diego State ,Utah State ,Wyoming Pac-12 (6):Arizona State ,Oregon ,Oregon State ,UCLA ,Utah ,Washington State SEC (13):Alabama ,Arkansas ,Auburn ,Florida ,Georgia ,Kentucky ,LSU ,Mississippi State ,Missouri ,Ole Miss ,South Carolina ,Tennessee ,Texas A&M Sun Belt (4):Appalachian State ,Coastal Carolina ,Georgia State ,Louisiana Independent (4):Army ,BYU ,Liberty ,Notre Dame Number of bowl berths available: 84 Number of bowl-eligible teams: 84
Bowl-eligible team that did not receive a berth [ edit ] On December 2, NCAA announced the 42nd bowl game, thus guaranteeing all teams with six wins (83 bowl-eligible teams plus Hawaii with a 6–7 record) could play in a bowl game.[ 83] 2021 Frisco Football Classic , essentially served as a replacement of the canceledSan Francisco Bowl .[ 84]
Bowl-ineligible teams [ edit ] ACC (4):Duke ,Florida State ,Georgia Tech ,Syracuse American (4):Navy ,South Florida ,Temple ,Tulane Big Ten (5):Illinois ,Indiana ,Nebraska ,Northwestern ,Rutgers *Big 12 (3):Kansas ,TCU ,Texas C-USA (6):Charlotte ,Florida Atlantic ,FIU ,Louisiana Tech ,Rice ,Southern Miss MAC (4):Akron ,Buffalo ,Bowling Green ,Ohio Mountain West (4):Colorado State ,New Mexico ,San Jose State ,UNLV Pac-12 (6):Arizona ,California ,Colorado ,Stanford ,USC ,Washington SEC (1):Vanderbilt Sun Belt (6):Arkansas State ,Georgia Southern ,Louisiana–Monroe ,South Alabama ,Texas State ,Troy Independent (3):New Mexico State ,UConn ,UMass Number of bowl-ineligible teams: 46 Academic Progress Rate (APR) of five-win teams. The NCAA announced on December 23 that Rutgers was the first eligible team, under APR regulations, to replace Texas A&M in theGator Bowl . Rutgers accepted the bid.[ 85]
College Football Playoff [ edit ]
Conference performance in bowl games [ edit ] Conference Total games Wins Losses Pct. ACC 6 2 4 .333 Big Ten 10 6 4 .600 Big 12 7 5 2 .714 Pac-12 5 0 5 .000 SEC 14 6 8 .429 Independents 4 2 2 .500 The American 4 3 1 .750 C-USA 8 3 5 .375 MAC 8 3 5 .375 MW 6 5 1 .833 Sun Belt 4 3 1 .750
Count of bowl games [ edit ] Heisman Trophy voting [ edit ] TheHeisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player
AP Player of the Year : Bryce Young, QB, Alabama[ 86] Lombardi Award (top player): Aidan Hutchinson, DE, MichiganMaxwell Award (top player): Bryce Young, QB, Alabama[ 87] SN Player of the Year : Bryce Young, QB, Alabama[ 88] Walter Camp Award (top player):Kenneth Walker III , RB,Michigan State [ 87] Burlsworth Trophy (top player who began as walk-on):Grant Morgan , LB,Arkansas [ 87] Paul Hornung Award (most versatile player):Marcus Jones , CB,Houston [ 89] Jon Cornish Trophy (top Canadian player):John Metchie III , WR, Alabama[ 90] Campbell Trophy ("academic Heisman"):Charlie Kolar ,Iowa State [ 87] Academic All-American of the Year : Charlie Kolar, Iowa State[ 91] Wuerffel Trophy (humanitarian-athlete): Isaiah Sanders, QB,Stanford [ 87] Senior CLASS Award (senior student-athlete): Kenny Pickett, QB, Pittsburgh[ 92] Quarterback
Running back
Wide receiver
Tight end
Lineman :
Defensive front
Defensive back
Preseason and in-season [ edit ] This is restricted to coaching changes taking place on or after May 1, 2021, and will include any changes announced after a team's last regularly scheduled game but before its bowl game. For coaching changes that occurred earlier in 2021, see2020 NCAA Division I FBS end-of-season coaching changes .
Team Outgoing coach Current role Date Reason Replacement Ohio Frank Solich None July 14, 2021 Retired[ 97] Tim Albin (promoted on July 14)UConn Randy Edsall None September 6, 2021 Resigned[ 98] Lou Spanos (interim)USC Clay Helton Georgia Southern head coachSeptember 13, 2021 Fired[ 99] Donte Williams (interim)Georgia Southern Chad Lunsford Florida Atlantic Special Teams coordinator/tight ends coachSeptember 26, 2021 Fired[ 100] Kevin Whitley (interim)Washington State Nick Rolovich California senior offensive assistant October 18, 2021 Fired[ 101] Jake Dickert (named full time on November 27)Texas Tech Matt Wells Oklahoma Offensive AnalystOctober 25, 2021 Fired[ 102] Sonny Cumbie (interim)TCU Gary Patterson Texas special assistant to head coachOctober 31, 2021 Parted ways[ 103] Jerry Kill (interim)Akron Tom Arth Los Angeles Chargers Pass Game SpecialistNovember 4, 2021 Fired[ 104] Oscar Rodriguez (interim)UMass Walt Bell Indiana offensive coordinatorNovember 7, 2021 Fired[ 105] Alex Miller (interim)Washington Jimmy Lake Los Angeles Rams Senior defense assistant November 14, 2021 Fired Bob Gregory (interim)Virginia Tech Justin Fuente None November 16, 2021 Parted ways[ 106] J. C. Price (interim)Florida Dan Mullen UNLV head coach November 21, 2021 Fired[ 107] Greg Knox (interim)Troy Chip Lindsey UCF offensive coordinatorNovember 21, 2021 Fired[ 108] Brandon Hall (interim)SMU Sonny Dykes TCU head coachNovember 26, 2021 Hired byTCU Jim Leavitt (interim)Oklahoma Lincoln Riley USC head coachNovember 28, 2021 Hired byUSC Bob Stoops (interim; bowl)LSU Ed Orgeron None November 28, 2021 Parted ways Brad Davis (interim; bowl)Notre Dame Brian Kelly LSU head coachNovember 29, 2021 Hired byLSU Marcus Freeman (promoted on December 3)Fresno State Kalen DeBoer Alabama Head Coach November 29, 2021 Hired byWashington Lee Marks (interim; bowl)Louisiana Billy Napier Florida head coachDecember 5, 2021 Hired byFlorida Michael Desormeaux (promoted on December 5)Nevada Jay Norvell Colorado State head coachDecember 6, 2021 Hired byColorado State Vai Taua (interim; bowl)Oregon Mario Cristobal Miami (FL) head coachDecember 6, 2021 Hired byMiami (FL) Bryan McClendon (interim, bowl)Miami (FL) Manny Diaz Duke head coach December 6, 2021 Fired Jess Simpson (interim; bowl)
This list includes coaching changes announced during the season that did not take effect until the end of the season.
Team Outgoing coach Date Reason Replacement Previous position Georgia Southern Kevin Whitley (interim)November 2, 2021 Permanent replacement Clay Helton USC head coach (2015-2021)Texas Tech Sonny Cumbie (interim)November 8, 2021 Permanent replacement Joey McGuire Baylor assistant head coach/outside linebackers coach (2020-2021)FIU Butch Davis November 10, 2021 Will not return after the 2021 season Mike MacIntyre Memphis defensive coordinator (2020-2021)UConn Lou Spanos (interim)November 11, 2021 Permanent replacement Jim Mora UConn offensive assistant (2020-2021)UMass Alex Miller (interim)November 21, 2021 Permanent replacement Don Brown Arizona defensive coordinator (2021)Louisiana Tech Skip Holtz November 26, 2021 Fired[ 109] Sonny Cumbie Texas Tech interim head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach (2021)TCU Jerry Kill (interim)November 26, 2021 Permanent replacement Sonny Dykes SMU head coach (2018-2021)New Mexico State Doug Martin November 27, 2021 Fired Jerry Kill TCU interim head coach and assistant to head coach (2020-2021)Duke David Cutcliffe November 28, 2021 Parted ways Mike Elko Texas A&M defensive coordinator (2018-2021)Florida Greg Knox (interim)November 28, 2021 Permanent replacement Billy Napier Louisiana head coach (2018-2021)USC Donte Williams (interim)November 28, 2021 Permanent replacement Lincoln Riley Oklahoma head coach (2017-2021)SMU Jim Leavitt (interim)November 29, 2021 Permanent replacement Rhett Lashlee Miami (FL) offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach (2020-2021)Temple Rod Carey November 29, 2021 Fired Stan Drayton Texas assistant head coach, running backs coach and run game coordinator (2017-2021)LSU Brad Davis (interim)November 29, 2021 Permanent replacement Brian Kelly Notre Dame head coach (2010-2021)Washington Bob Gregory (interim)November 29, 2021 Permanent replacement Kalen DeBoer Fresno State head coach (2020-2021)Virginia Tech J. C. Price (interim)November 30, 2021 Permanent replacement Brent Pry Penn State defensive coordinator (2016-2021)Colorado State Steve Addazio December 2, 2021 Fired Jay Norvell Nevada head coach (2017-2021)Virginia Bronco Mendenhall December 2, 2021 Resigned Tony Elliott Clemson assistant head coach and offensive coordinator (2020-2021)Troy Brandon Hall (interim)December 2, 2021 Permanent replacement Jon Sumrall Kentucky co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach (2020-2021)Akron Oscar Rodriguez (interim)December 4, 2021 Permanent replacement Joe Moorhead Oregon offensive coordinator (2020-2021)Oklahoma Bob Stoops (interim; bowl)December 5, 2021 Permanent replacement Brent Venables Clemson assistant head coach and defensive coordinator (2012-2021)Miami (FL) Jess Simpson (interim; bowl)December 6, 2021 Permanent replacement Mario Cristobal Oregon head coach (2018-2021)Fresno State Lee Marks (interim; bowl)December 8, 2021 Permanent replacement Jeff Tedford Fresno State head coach (2017-2019)Nevada Vai Taua (interim; bowl)December 10, 2021 Permanent replacement Ken Wilson Oregon co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach (2020-2021)Oregon Bryan McClendon (interim; bowl)December 11, 2021 Permanent replacement Dan Lanning Georgia defensive coordinator (2019-2021)Hawaiʻi Todd Graham January 14, 2022 Resigned Timmy Chang Nevada wide receivers coach (2021)
Television viewers and ratings [ edit ] Most watched regular season games [ edit ] All timesEastern . Rankings are from theAP Poll (before 11/2) andCFP Rankings (thereafter).
Conference championship games [ edit ] All timesEastern . Rankings are from theCFP Rankings .
Most watched non-CFP bowl games [ edit ] All timesEastern . Rankings are from theCFP Rankings .
Rank Date Matchup Network Viewers (millions) TV ratings Game Location 1 January 1, 2022, 1:00 p.m. No. 15Iowa 17 No. 22Kentucky 20 ABC 6.5 3.5 Citrus Bowl Camping World Stadium ,Orlando FL 2 December 30, 2021, 3:00 p.m. Tennessee 45 Purdue 48 ESPN 5.6 3.1 Music City Bowl Nissan Stadium ,Nashville, TN 3 December 29, 2021, 5:45 p.m. No. 19Clemson 20 Iowa State 13 4.9 2.8 Cheez-It Bowl Camping World Stadium, Orlando FL 4 December 29, 2021, 9:15 p.m. No. 14Oregon 32 No. 16Oklahoma 47 4.7 2.7 Alamo Bowl Alamodome ,San Antonio, TX 5 January 1, 2022, 12:00 p.m. Penn State 10 No. 21Arkansas 24 ESPN2 3.9 2.2 Outback Bowl Raymond James Stadium ,Tampa, FL 6 December 28, 2021, 6:45 p.m Mississippi State 7 Texas Tech 34 ESPN 3.9 2.3 Liberty Bowl Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium ,Memphis, TN 7 December 30, 2021, 10:30 p.m. Wisconsin 20 Arizona State 13 3.6 1.8 Las Vegas Bowl Allegiant Stadium ,Las Vegas, NV 8 December 31, 2021, 11:00 a.m. No. 17Wake Forest 38 Rutgers 10 3.5 2.1 Gator Bowl TIAA Bank Field ,Jacksonville, FL 9 December 18, 2021, 3:30 p.m. UAB 31 No. 13BYU 28 ABC 3.2 1.9 Independence Bowl Independence Stadium ,Shreveport, LA 10 December 23, 2021, 7:00 p.m. UCF 29 Florida 17 ESPN 3.2[ 114] 1.8 Gasparilla Bowl Raymond James Stadium ,Tampa, FL
New Year Six and College Football Playoff semifinal games [ edit ] All timesEastern . Rankings are from theCFP Rankings .
Rank Date Time Matchup Network Viewers (millions) TV ratings Game Location 1 January 10, 2022 8:00 p.m. No. 3 Georgia 33 No. 1 Alabama 18 ESPN 22.6 12.1 CFP National Championship Lucas Oil Stadium ,Indianapolis, IN 2 December 31, 2021 7:30 p.m. No. 3 Georgia 34 No. 2 Michigan 11 16.5 7.7 Orange Bowl (CFP Semifinal)Hard Rock Stadium ,Miami Gardens, FL 3 December 31, 2021 3:30 p.m. No. 4 Cincinnati 6 No. 1 Alabama 27 16.1 8.3 Cotton Bowl (CFP Semifinal)AT&T Stadium ,Arlington, TX 4 January 1, 2022 5:00 pm No. 11 Utah 45 No. 6 Ohio State 48 16.0 7.8 Rose Bowl Rose Bowl ,Pasadena, CA 5 January 1, 2022 8:45 p.m. No. 8 Ole Miss 7 No. 7 Baylor 21 9.5 5.0 Sugar Bowl Caesars Superdome ,New Orleans, LA 6 January 1, 2022 1:00 pm No. 9 Oklahoma State 37 No. 5 Notre Dame 35 8.0 4.2 Fiesta Bowl State Farm Stadium ,Glendale, AZ 7 December 30, 2021 7:00 pm No. 12 Pittsburgh 21 No. 10 Michigan State 31 7.6 4.0 Peach Bowl Mercedes-Benz Stadium ,Atlanta, GA
Average home attendance top 10:
Rank Team Average 1 Michigan Wolverines 108,763 2 Penn State Nittany Lions 106,799 3 Alabama Crimson Tide 98,720 4 Texas A&M Aggies 98,407 5 Ohio State Buckeyes 96,756 6 LSU Tigers 94,808 7 Georgia Bulldogs 92,746 8 Texas Longhorns 91,938 9 Tennessee Volunteers 86,386 10 Nebraska Cornhuskers 86,173
Source:[ 115]
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Conference seasons Inter-conference All-Americans
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