| 1987 NCAA Division I-A season | |
|---|---|
 President Ronald Reagan holds up aUniversity of Miami jersey presented to him byMiami Hurricanes head coachJimmy Johnson and the1987 Miami Hurricanes football team after winning the 1987 national championship | |
| Number of teams | 104 |
| Preseason AP No. 1 | Oklahoma[1] |
| Postseason | |
| Bowl games | 18 |
| Heisman Trophy | Tim Brown (wide receiver,Notre Dame) |
| Champion(s) | Miami (FL) (AP, Coaches, FWAA) |
| Division I-A football seasons | |
← 1986 1988 → | |
The1987 NCAA Division I-A football season ended withMiami winning its secondnational championship of the 1980s in anOrange Bowl game featuring a rare No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup between the top rankedOklahoma Sooners and the Hurricanes.
Miami's first three games were against ranked opponents in what was labeled a rebuilding year. After some late game theatrics byMichael Irvin against rival Florida State, the Hurricanes were 3–0, the national media started to take notice.
Oklahoma was also seen as quite the juggernaut, averaging 428.8 yards rushing per game with their potent wishbone offense. Miami was able to hold Oklahoma to just 179 yards on the ground, winning the game 20–14.
Also having notable seasons wereSyracuse,LSU andFlorida State. Syracuse finished the season 11–0–1 and ranked No. 4 after a controversialSugar Bowl game in whichAuburn kicked a late field goal to end the game in a tie. LSU went 10–1–1, ending the season ranked No. 5. This was LSU's first ten win season in 26 years and their highest ranking since 1961.
Florida State finished ranked No. 2, their only loss to Miami, and began a streak of 14 years where FSU finished in the top 5. The Seminoles beatRose Bowl championMichigan State andSEC championAuburn on the road and beatNebraska in theFiesta Bowl.
This would be the first of two yearsSMU would not field a team due to theNCAA's death penalty.
The loss of Wichita State and SMU and the gain of Akron decreased the number of teams to 104.
| School | 1986 Conference | 1987 Conference |
|---|---|---|
| AkronZips | Ohio Valley (I-AA) | I-A Independent |
| Wichita StateShockers | I-A Independent | Program Dropped |
Italics denotes I-AA teams.
| Date | Visiting team | Home team | Site | Result | Attendance | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 5 | Austin Peay | Kansas State | KSU Stadium •Manhattan, Kansas | 26–22 | 23,350 | [2] | ||
| September 12 | No. 4 (I-AA) Holy Cross | Army | Michie Stadium •West Point, New York | 34–24 | 38,428 | [2] | ||
| September 12 | Western Michigan | Illinois State | Hancock Stadium •Normal, Illinois | 6–20 | [2] | |||
| September 12 | Lamar | Northern Illinois | Huskie Stadium •DeKalb, Illinois | 39–35 | 22,184 | [2] | ||
| September 12 | No. 17 (I-AA) William & Mary | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium •Annapolis, Maryland | 27–12 | [2] | |||
| September 12 | Youngstown State | Bowling Green | Doyt Perry Stadium •Bowling Green, Ohio | 20–17 | 10,000 | [2] | ||
| September 19 | Lehigh | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, Maryland | 24–9 | 25,047 | [2] | ||
| September 26 | Louisiana Tech | Kansas | David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium •Lawrence, Kansas | 16–11 | 23,000 | [2] | ||
| October 10 | Marshall | Louisville | Cardinal Stadium •Louisville, Kentucky | 34–31 | 21,658 | [2] | ||
| October 17 | Colgate | Army | Michie Stadium • West Point, New York | 22–20 | 40,578 | [2] | ||
| October 17 | No. 16 (I-AA) Delaware State | Akron | Rubber Bowl •Akron, Ohio | 52–26 | 9,491 | [2] | ||
| November 7 | East Tennessee State | NC State | Carter–Finley Stadium •Raleigh, North Carolina | 29–14 | 35,400 | [2] | ||
| November 7 | Cincinnati | Indiana State | Hoosier Dome •Indianapolis, Indiana | 16–40 | 5,424 | [2] | ||
| November 7 | No. 8 (I-AA) Northeast Louisiana | Southern Miss | M. M. Roberts Stadium •Hattiesburg, Mississippi | 34–24 | 10,123 | [2] | ||
| November 7 | No. 19 (I-AA) Northern Arizona | Tulsa | Skelly Stadium •Tulsa, Oklahoma | 24–20 | 10,863 | [2] | ||
| November 20 | No. 19 (I-AA) Youngstown State | Akron | Rubber Bowl • Akron, Ohio (Steel Tire) | 10–6 | 1,300 | [2] | ||
| November 21 | Indiana State | Ball State | Hoosier Dome • Indianapolis, Indiana (Blue Key Victory Bell) | 24–23 | 7,323 | [2] | ||
| #Rankings fromAP Poll released prior to game. | ||||||||
Note:Arkansas State atMemphis State tied 21–21.
The preseason AP Poll ranked Big 8 rivalsOklahoma andNebraska at No. 1 and No. 2, followed by No. 3UCLA, No. 4Ohio State, and No. 5Auburn.
September 5: No. 1 Oklahoma beat North Texas State 69-14, No. 2 Nebraska defeated Utah State 56-12, and No. 3 UCLA won 47-14 over San Diego State. No. 4 Ohio State was idle. No. 5 Auburn overwhelmed Texas 31-3 and moved up in the next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Auburn, and No. 5 Ohio State.
September 12: No. 1 Oklahoma shut out North Carolina 28-0. No. 2 Nebraska hosted No. 3 UCLA and won 42-33. No. 4 Auburn blanked Kansas 49-0. No. 5 Ohio State opened their schedule with a 24-3 win over West Virginia, and No. 6LSU (who had easily defeated No. 15Texas A&M in their opener) beat Cal State Fullerton 56-12. The next poll featured No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Auburn, No. 4 LSU, and No. 5 Ohio State.
September 19: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, and No. 3 Auburn were all idle. No. 4 LSU beat Rice 49-16. No. 5 Ohio State defeated Oregon 24-14 but fell out of the top five in the next poll. They were replaced by No. 6Miami, who was idle this week but had started the year with an impressive 31-4 blowout of then-No. 20Florida. The poll featured No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Auburn, No. 4 LSU, and No. 5 Miami.
September 26: No. 1 Oklahoma won in a second consecutive shutout, 65-0 over Tulsa. No. 2 Nebraska visited No. 12Arizona State and defeated the Sun Devils 35-28. No. 3 Auburn played No. 11Tennessee to a 20-20 tie. No. 4 LSU had the same result, as they threw three fourth-quarter interceptions which allowed No. 7 Ohio State to come away with a 13-13 draw. No. 5 Miami overwhelmed No. 10Arkansas 51-7, No. 6Florida State won 31-3 atMichigan State, and No. 8Notre Dame was a 44-20 victor over Purdue. The next poll featured No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Florida State, and No. 5 Notre Dame.
October 3: No. 1 Oklahoma won 56-3 at Iowa State, and No. 2 Nebraska beatSouth Carolina 30-21. No. 3 Miami and No. 4 Florida State squared off in a game which featured 63 future NFL players. The Seminoles led 19-3 late in the third quarter, but the Hurricanes responded with 23 unanswered points to take a seven-point lead. After Florida State scored a touchdown with 42 seconds left, coachBobby Bowden sent out his kicker for a game-tying extra point, but changed his mind at the last moment and called for a two-point conversion. QuarterbackDanny McManus’ pass was deflected, giving Miami a 26-25 victory. No. 5 Notre Dame was idle, and No. 6 Auburn bounced back with a 20-10 win at North Carolina. The next poll featured No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Notre Dame, and No. 5 Auburn.
October 10: No. 1 Oklahoma held their opponent without a touchdown for the fourth game in a row, limiting Texas to three field goals in a 44-9 triumph. No. 2 Nebraska was similarly dominant, beating Kansas 54-2. No. 3 Miami defeated Maryland 46-16, but No. 4 Notre Dame lost 30-22 at Pittsburgh. No. 5 Auburn won 48-15 over Vanderbilt, and No. 6 Florida State visited Southern Mississippi for a 61-10 win. The next poll featured No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Florida State, and No. 5 Auburn.
October 17: No. 1 Oklahoma won 59-10 at Kansas State, and No. 2 Nebraska shut out No. 12Oklahoma State 35-0. No. 3 Miami was idle, and No. 4 Florida State defeated Louisville 32-9. No. 5 Auburn won 20-10 at Georgia Tech, but the AP voters were more impressed with No. 6 LSU’s 34-9 victory over Kentucky, and the teams switched spots in the next poll: No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Florida State, and No. 5 LSU.
October 24: No. 1 Oklahoma defeated Colorado 24-6, No. 2 Nebraska dominated Kansas State 56-3, and No. 3 Miami won 48-10 at Cincinnati. No. 4 Florida State and No. 5 LSU were idle, and the top five remained the same.
October 31: All of the highly-ranked teams registered blowout wins this week. No. 1 Oklahoma crushed Kansas 71-10, No. 2 Nebraska won 42-7 at Missouri, No. 3 Miami beat East Carolina 41-3, No. 4 Florida State dominated Tulane 73-14, and No. 5 LSU defeated Mississippi 42-13. The top five again remained the same.
November 7: No. 1 Oklahoma hosted No. 12 Oklahoma State and won 29-10, but quarterbackJamelle Holieway was lost for the season with a torn ACL, and fullbackLydell Carr also suffered a knee injury. No. 2 Nebraska overwhelmed Iowa State 42-3. The name was the only similarity between No. 3 Miami-Florida and unranked Miami-Ohio, as the Hurricanes defeated the Redskins 54-3. No. 4 Florida State visited No. 6 Auburn and breezed to a 34-6 victory. Auburn’s SEC rival, No. 5 LSU, fell 22-10 to No. 13Alabama. No. 7 UCLA, whose only loss was to Nebraska, won 52-17 at Oregon State. The top five in the next poll were No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Florida State, and No. 5 UCLA.
November 14: Without Holieway and Carr, No. 1 Oklahoma struggled to a 17-13 victory over Missouri. No. 2 Nebraska, who had defeated Missouri by 35 points a few weeks earlier, was idle. No. 3 Miami beat Virginia Tech 27-13, No. 4 Florida State defeated Furman 41-10, and No. 5 UCLA won 47-14 over Washington. The top two teams switched spots in the next poll: No. 1 Nebraska, No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Florida State, and No. 5 UCLA.
November 21: In what was effectively a semifinal for the national championship, No. 1 Nebraska and No. 2 Oklahoma met to decide the Big 8 title and anOrange Bowl berth. Despite their injuries, the Sooners finished an undefeated regular season with a 17-7 victory, their fourth win in as many years over the Cornhuskers. No. 3 Miami defeated Toledo 24-14, while No. 4 Florida State was idle. No. 5 UCLA needed only a win over unrankedUSC to gain the Pac-10 title, but the Trojans pulled off a 17-13 upset to earn theRose Bowl berth. Their opponent would be No. 11 Michigan State, who had already clinched the Big Ten championship. No. 6Syracuse won a thriller against West Virginia, triumphing 32-31 on a two-point conversion with ten seconds left to finish the regular season undefeated. The top five in the next poll were No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Miami, No. 3 Florida State, No. 4 Syracuse, and No. 5 Nebraska.
November 26–28: No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 4 Syracuse had finished their seasons. No. 2 Miami shut out No. 10 Notre Dame 24-0, No. 3 Florida State won 28-14 at Florida, and No. 5 Nebraska beat Colorado 24-7. The last few bowl tie-ins were decided this week: No. 7 Auburn’s 10-0 shutout of No. 18 Alabama in the Iron Bowl gave the Tigers the SEC title and aSugar Bowl berth, while No. 15 Texas A&M won the SWC and a spot in theCotton Bowl with a 20-13 defeat of Texas. The top five remained the same in the next poll.
December 5: No. 2 Miami ended their season undefeated with a 20-16 win over No. 8 South Carolina. The other top-ranked teams had already finished their schedules, and the top five remained the same in the final poll of the regular season.
With both teams possessing 11-0 records, the Orange Bowl between No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 2 Miami would decide the national championship. Over the past three years, the Sooners were 0-2 against the Hurricanes and 33-0 against all other opponents, and they would have the opportunity for revenge on the biggest stage. No. 4 Syracuse, also undefeated but without a clear path to the championship, would face No. 6 Auburn in the Sugar Bowl. No. 3 Florida State and No. 5 Nebraska (whose only losses were to Miami and Oklahoma respectively) would match up in theFiesta Bowl. The Rose Bowl featured the usual Big Ten/Pac-10 matchup of No. 8 Michigan State and No. 16 USC, while the Cotton Bowl pitted No. 12 Notre Dame against No. 13 Texas A&M.
National Championship:
New Year's Day Bowls:
Other Bowls:
TheHeisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player
| Player | School | Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tim Brown | Notre Dame | WR | 324 | 173 | 124 | 1,442 |
| Don McPherson | Syracuse | QB | 167 | 135 | 60 | 831 |
| Gordie Lockbaum | Holy Cross | RB | 108 | 103 | 127 | 657 |
| Lorenzo White | Michigan State | RB | 89 | 121 | 123 | 632 |
| Craig Heyward | Pittsburgh | RB | 17 | 44 | 31 | 170 |
| Chris Spielman | Ohio State | LB | 15 | 20 | 15 | 110 |
| Thurman Thomas | Oklahoma State | RB | 11 | 23 | 20 | 99 |
| Gaston Green | UCLA | RB | 4 | 13 | 35 | 73 |
| Emmitt Smith | Florida | RB | 2 | 11 | 42 | 70 |
| Bobby Humphrey | Alabama | RB | 5 | 17 | 14 | 63 |
Average home attendance top 3:
| Rank | Team | Average |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michigan Wolverines | 104,469 |
| 2 | Tennessee Volunteers | 88,179 |
| 3 | Ohio State Buckeyes | 85,295 |
Source:[5]
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