The 2014 season marked a major change to the postseason with the introduction of theCollege Football Playoff, a four-team knockout tournament to determine thenational champion of Division I FBS. The College Football Playoff system replaced theBowl Championship Series, which had been in use since1998.
Ohio State beatOregon to claim the first ever FBS (formerly Division I-A) national title awarded using a playoff system. Following the game, Ohio State was named the No. 1 team in theAP Poll andCoaches' Poll for the season, making the Buckeyes consensus national champions among the major polls.[1][2]
The following rule changes have been made by the NCAA Football Rules Committee for the 2014 season:[3]
Modifying the "targeting" rule enacted for the2013 season whereby if a targeting ejection is overturned on review, the 15 yard penalty will be overturned as well, unless the foul was committed in conjunction with another foul (such as an above-the-shoulders hit on a quarterback not deemed as targeting, aroughing the passer penalty would still apply).
Targeting definition expanded from "Initiate contact" to "Make forcible contact" and defining that any forcible contact with the crown of the helmet to an opponent is a targeting foul.
Modifying the 15-yardroughing the passer penalty to include hits (including lunging and/or rolling) at or below the knees from defenders that are not fouled/blocked into the quarterback, not engaged in tackling the quarterback, or are rushing unabated to the quarterback (similar to theNFL's "Tom Brady" Rule adopted in the2009 NFL season).
Thechain crew will work the first half on the same side as the press box, then switch to the side opposite the press box for the second half, the procedure used in the NFL. Prior to 2014, the chain crew worked the entire game on the sideline opposite the press box, the procedure used in high school football.
A rule meant to slow down thehurry-up offense by preventing teams from snapping the ball within the first ten seconds of the 40-second play clock to allow for defensive substitutions, or be penalized five yards fordelay of game (except within the final 2:00 of each half or when the play clock is set to 25 seconds) was tabled by the Rules Committee and not voted on.[5]
The NCAA announced itsAcademic Progress Rate (APR) sanctions for the 2014–15 school year. Two FBS teams,Idaho andUNLV, were among the 36 programs in 11 sports declared ineligible for postseason play due to failure to meet the required APR benchmark.[7]
Boise State announced that it had received a waiver from the NCAA allowing the school to immediately provide assistance to incoming freshman recruit Antoine Turner, a defensive end originally fromNew Orleans who had beenhomeless due to financial and family issues.[8]
June 26 – UNLV announced that the school would be eligible for postseason after the upcoming season; they stated that the NCAA had accepted an updated Academic Progress Rate score submitted by the university.[9]
September 8 – The NCAA restoredPenn State's postseason eligibility effective immediately, and full complement of 85 scholarships effective with the 2015 season. This means Penn State could qualify for a bowl game for the 2014 season. Penn State was originally banned from postseason play from 2012 to 2015 because ofthe Jerry Sandusky child abuse scandal.[10]
October 4
For the first time since Week 11 of the1990 season,[11] four teams ranked in the top six of theAP Poll lost during the week. Additionally, five of the top eight of the AP Poll lost in the same week for the first time ever.[12] The week's upsets began on Thursday, when No. 2Oregon lost 31–24 at home toArizona. Saturday saw No. 3Alabama lose 23–17 at No. 11Ole Miss, No. 4Oklahoma lose 37–33 at No. 25TCU, No. 6Texas A&M lose 48–31 at No. 12Mississippi State, and No. 8UCLA lose 30–28 at home toUtah.[11]
Washington State quarterbackConnor Halliday set a new FBS record for single-game passing yards, throwing for 734 yards in a 60–59 loss toCal. This broke the previous record of 716, set in 1990 byHouston'sDavid Klingler, and was five short of the all-divisions NCAA record of 739 set by Sam Durley ofDivision IIIEureka in 2012. In the same game, Cal'sJared Goff threw for 527 yards, giving the two teams an FBS-record 1,261 passing yards in the game.[13]
October 12 – The release of the Week 8 AP Poll saw Mississippi State, previously tied for No. 3 withcross-state rival Ole Miss, leapfrogFlorida State to reach No. 1 for the first time in school history. Mississippi State had just beaten No. 2Auburn at home by a score of 38–23, the Bulldogs' third straight over a team then ranked in the top 10. Most significantly, the Bulldogs became the first team in the history of the AP Poll to go from unranked to No. 1 in five weeks, surpassing the previous record of six weeks set byOhio State in 1954.[14]
October 18 –Marshall quarterbackRakeem Cato threw for four touchdowns in the Thundering Herd's 45–13 win atFIU, giving him a touchdown pass in 39 consecutive games. This broke a tie for the FBS record withRussell Wilson, who threw for TDs in 38 consecutive games while atNC State andWisconsin.[15] Cato went on to finish the season and his Marshall career in theBoca Raton Bowl with a streak of 46 games, tying the all-divisions NCAA record ofCentral Washington'sMike Reilly.[16]
November 22 – Melvin Gordon's single-game FBS rushing record, which had been set less than a week earlier, is broken byOklahoma'sSamaje Perine, who ran for 427 yards in theSooners' 44–7 win overKansas.[18]
November 30 – Police inColumbus, Ohio discovered the body ofKosta Karageorge, awrestler atOhio State who had walked on to thefootball team but had yet to appear in a game. Karageorge, who disappeared on November 26, was found with an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound. He had been complaining about post-concussion symptoms in the last weeks of his life.[20]
December 2 –UAB announced that it would drop football at the end ofthe season. The Blazers, under first-year head coachBill Clark, became bowl-eligible for only the second time in program history with a win on November 29 overSouthern Miss. UAB became the first FBS-level program to fold sincePacific dropped football after the 1995 season.[21] (The Blazers would ultimately reinstate football in2017.)
December 5 – The board of governors ofColorado State approved the construction of a new on-campus stadium to replace theRams' then-current off-campus home ofHughes Stadium. No date for completion had been set; potential capacities ranged from 35,872 to 41,200.[22] The venue would open in 2017 as Colorado State Stadium with the full 41,200 capacity, and since 2018 has been known asCanvas Stadium.
December 8 –Sporting News reported that the Big 12 Conference had been planning to expand beyond its current ten teams even before being left out of the inaugural College Football Playoff. Specifically, conference officials met with officials from theUniversity of Cincinnati.[23] These expansion plans were later dropped.
Baylor openedMcLane Stadium, returning home games to its campus for the first time since 1935. The stadium opened with 42,000 permanent seats plus 3,000 standing-room places, and is designed for future expansion to 55,000. The first game was ahigh school contest on August 29;[24] Baylor's first game was a 45–0 win overSMU on August 31.[25]
Houston openedTDECU Stadium, a 40,000-seat venue, designed to be easily expandable to 60,000, and built on the site of the school's formerRobertson Stadium. The opening game was a 27–7 loss toUTSA on August 29.[26]
Tulane openedYulman Stadium, a 30,000-seat on-campus venue located near the former site ofTulane Stadium. This returned home games to the Tulane campus for the first time since 1974, the year before theSuperdome opened. The first game was a 38–21 loss toGeorgia Tech on September 6.[27]
The three schools that moved from FCS to FBS this season use existing on-campus stadiums:
Appalachian State plays atKidd Brewer Stadium, home to the Mountaineers since 1962 and affectionately known to the school's fans as "The Rock". It has an official capacity of 24,050, but has frequently hosted significantly larger crowds, with the record being 31,531.
Georgia Southern plays atPaulson Stadium, home to the Eagles since 1984. The stadium was expanded to 24,300 for GSU's move to FBS.
Old Dominion plays atForeman Field. The 20,118-seat stadium first opened in 1936 for the football program of what was then known as the Norfolk Division of The College of William & Mary. After football was dropped after the 1941 season, the stadium was used for other football games (notably the formerOyster Bowl), plus other ODU sports, until the school reinstated football in2009.
LSU opened a new south end-zone upper deck expansion ofTiger Stadium that added approximately 60 "Tiger Den" suites, 3,000 club seats and 1,500 general public seats and brought the total capacity to approximately 102,321, making it the seventh-largest college football stadium in the country.
Ohio State added 2,500 seats to the south stands ofOhio Stadium. These seats, built over the entrance tunnels, raised the official capacity of the stadium to 104,851, making it the third-largest stadium in the country and the fifth-largest stadium in the world.
Texas A&M opened Phase 1 of a major three-year renovation ofKyle Field, which includes re-construction of the east side first deck, and construction of the south end zone, which in turn includes seating, media interview areas, 12th Man Productions and related gameday support, a commissary and recruiting area.
Mississippi State opened a new north end-zone expansion ofDavis Wade Stadium which took stadium capacity from 55,000 to over 61,000. The renovation created new concessions and restrooms, plus a new west side concourse.
Missouri opened a new east side expansion ofFaurot Field. An upper bowl was completed for the east side of the stadium, providing 5,200 general admission seats and 800 club seats.
Louisiana-Lafayette enclosed the south side ofCajun Field. The stadium upgrade added 5,900 seats increasing the capacity from 31,000 to 36,900.
Purdue removed the majority of their south end-zone bleachers atRoss–Ade Stadium and replaced it with a patio area. This stadium upgrade lowered the stadium capacity from 62,500 to 57,236.
TheRose Bowl opened the final phase of its multi-year renovation project, which included the removal of seats on the east and west sidelines to restore the original oval shape of the seating bowl. Also included in the project were additional new restrooms, new entry gate structures, and additional new concession stands. The historic hedges surrounding the field were restored to create a new "Rose Garden Walkway". An iconic plaza opened outside of Gate A in front of the south main entrance to the stadium, featuring a large logo of thePasadena Tournament of Roses.
Rankings reflect theAP Poll. Rankings for Week 9 and beyond will listCollege Football Playoff Rankings first andAP Poll second. Teams that fail to be a top 10 team for one poll or the other will be noted.
* – Appalachian State and Georgia Southern ineligible for postseason play due to FCS-to-FBS transition rules ** – Idaho ineligible for postseason play due toAPR penalties *** – Louisiana–Lafayette vacated 2 wins due to NCAA violations
* On July 22, 2016, Georgia Southern announced that it had been ordered by the NCAA to vacate two wins from the 2013 season and one win from the 2014 season as punishment for fielding academically ineligible student athletes during those games. The ruling does not affect Georgia Southern's 2014 Sun Belt Conference Football Championship.[39]
† – Appalachian State (7–5), Georgia Southern (9–3, Sun Belt champions), and Old Dominion (6–6) were conditionally eligible based on win–loss record. However, under FCS-to-FBS transition rules, they were not eligible due to enough teams qualifying under normal circumstances.
‡ – Idaho was ineligible for postseason play due to an insufficient Academic Progress Rate. However, the Vandals would not have been eligible without the ban, as they finished with a 1-10 record.
^Does not include viewers from ESPN Megacast which also included channels ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, ESPN Classic, and ESPN Deportes. 34.1 Million viewers for all channels combined.
Media related to2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season at Wikimedia Commons