Bill ConnellyJan 27, 2026, 07:00 AM ETCloseBill Connelly is a writer for ESPN. He covers college football, soccer and tennis. He has been at ESPN since 2019.Follow on X
play0:26Connor Calvert’s career-long 50-yard FG wins it for Wake ForestConnor Calvert sinks a 50-yard field goal as time expires to improbably lift Wake Forest past SMU.
play1:36Missouri’s Hail Mary no good as Vanderbilt hangs onFreshman quarterback Matt Zollers throws a Hail Mary to Kevin Coleman Jr. but the completion comes up short of the goal line.
play0:35Blake Horvath crosses goal line for 51-yard rushing touchdownTouchdown! Blake Horvath scores vs. Temple
play0:29Nick Minicucci walks it off for Delaware with OT TD runNick Minicucci walks it off for Delaware with OT TD run
play0:42John Mateer connects with Isaiah Sategna III to give Oklahoma the leadJohn Mateer finds a wide open Isaiah Sategna III for a 58-yard touchdown to put the Sooners on top.
play1:16Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. Delaware Blue Hens: Full HighlightsLouisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. Delaware Blue Hens: Full Highlights
play0:48Cal forces UNC fumble at the goal line for a touchbackCal’s Brent Austin punches the ball out of Nathan Leacock’s hands at the goal line to force a fumble and subsequent touchback.
play1:13Pop-Tarts Bowl mascots toasted to celebrate BYU’s winThe Pop-Tarts Bowl mascots are lowered into a giant toaster to become an edible prize for champions BYU.
play0:31TCU wins the Alamo Bowl in dramatic fashion in OTJeremy Payne breaks multiple tackles on third-and-20 and somehow reaches the end zone for the winning touchdown for TCU.
play1:13Georgia Tech kicks game-winning FG to spark wild celebrationsGeorgia Tech races its kicker onto the field, and Aidan Birr nails a 55-yard field goal to take down Clemson.
play0:34Hawai’i stuns Cal with go-ahead TD in final secondsBackup QB Luke Weaver finds Nick Cenacle in the end zone to give Hawai’i the lead with 10 seconds left vs. California.
play0:49Fans rush the field after UVA upsets No. 8 FSUFlorida State is unable to convert on fourth down in double overtime against Virginia, and fans storm the field.
play0:59CJ Daniels makes jaw-dropping 1-handed TD grab for MiamiCJ Daniels goes full extension for a one-handed touchdown grab to put Miami up late in the first half.
play0:40Mississippi State upsets Arizona State on game-winning TDBlake Shapen throws the game-winning touchdown in the final minute as Mississippi State upsets Arizona State.
play1:50Montana State defeats Illinois State in OT thriller to win FCS national championshipMontana State defeats Illinois State in overtime to claim its second national championship in school history.
play0:41Chambliss escapes multiple defenders with a big 1st-down throwOle Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss scrambles away from multiple defenders and somehow finds Kewan Lacy for a first down.
play1:41Indiana holds off Miami to win 1st national championship in program historyIndiana defeats Miami 27-21 to win the College Football Playoff National Championship.
What could Indiana’s CFP win mean for college football? (1:25)Josh Pate joins “The Rich Eisen Show” to discuss the potential ripple effects Indiana’s College Football Playoff championship win could have on the sport. (1:25)
Connor Calvert’s career-long 50-yard FG wins it for Wake ForestConnor Calvert sinks a 50-yard field goal as time expires to improbably lift Wake Forest past SMU.
Missouri’s Hail Mary no good as Vanderbilt hangs onFreshman quarterback Matt Zollers throws a Hail Mary to Kevin Coleman Jr. but the completion comes up short of the goal line.
Freshman quarterback Matt Zollers throws a Hail Mary to Kevin Coleman Jr. but the completion comes up short of the goal line.
Blake Horvath crosses goal line for 51-yard rushing touchdownTouchdown! Blake Horvath scores vs. Temple
Nick Minicucci walks it off for Delaware with OT TD runNick Minicucci walks it off for Delaware with OT TD run
John Mateer connects with Isaiah Sategna III to give Oklahoma the leadJohn Mateer finds a wide open Isaiah Sategna III for a 58-yard touchdown to put the Sooners on top.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. Delaware Blue Hens: Full HighlightsLouisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. Delaware Blue Hens: Full Highlights
Cal forces UNC fumble at the goal line for a touchbackCal’s Brent Austin punches the ball out of Nathan Leacock’s hands at the goal line to force a fumble and subsequent touchback.
Cal’s Brent Austin punches the ball out of Nathan Leacock’s hands at the goal line to force a fumble and subsequent touchback.
Pop-Tarts Bowl mascots toasted to celebrate BYU’s winThe Pop-Tarts Bowl mascots are lowered into a giant toaster to become an edible prize for champions BYU.
The Pop-Tarts Bowl mascots are lowered into a giant toaster to become an edible prize for champions BYU.
TCU wins the Alamo Bowl in dramatic fashion in OTJeremy Payne breaks multiple tackles on third-and-20 and somehow reaches the end zone for the winning touchdown for TCU.
Jeremy Payne breaks multiple tackles on third-and-20 and somehow reaches the end zone for the winning touchdown for TCU.
Georgia Tech kicks game-winning FG to spark wild celebrationsGeorgia Tech races its kicker onto the field, and Aidan Birr nails a 55-yard field goal to take down Clemson.
Georgia Tech races its kicker onto the field, and Aidan Birr nails a 55-yard field goal to take down Clemson.
Hawai’i stuns Cal with go-ahead TD in final secondsBackup QB Luke Weaver finds Nick Cenacle in the end zone to give Hawai’i the lead with 10 seconds left vs. California.
Backup QB Luke Weaver finds Nick Cenacle in the end zone to give Hawai’i the lead with 10 seconds left vs. California.
Fans rush the field after UVA upsets No. 8 FSUFlorida State is unable to convert on fourth down in double overtime against Virginia, and fans storm the field.
Florida State is unable to convert on fourth down in double overtime against Virginia, and fans storm the field.
CJ Daniels makes jaw-dropping 1-handed TD grab for MiamiCJ Daniels goes full extension for a one-handed touchdown grab to put Miami up late in the first half.
CJ Daniels goes full extension for a one-handed touchdown grab to put Miami up late in the first half.
Mississippi State upsets Arizona State on game-winning TDBlake Shapen throws the game-winning touchdown in the final minute as Mississippi State upsets Arizona State.
Blake Shapen throws the game-winning touchdown in the final minute as Mississippi State upsets Arizona State.
Montana State defeats Illinois State in OT thriller to win FCS national championshipMontana State defeats Illinois State in overtime to claim its second national championship in school history.
Montana State defeats Illinois State in overtime to claim its second national championship in school history.
Chambliss escapes multiple defenders with a big 1st-down throwOle Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss scrambles away from multiple defenders and somehow finds Kewan Lacy for a first down.
Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss scrambles away from multiple defenders and somehow finds Kewan Lacy for a first down.
Indiana holds off Miami to win 1st national championship in program historyIndiana defeats Miami 27-21 to win the College Football Playoff National Championship.
65. New Mexico Highlands 48, South Dakota Mines 42 (OT) (Sept. 20)
60. Celebration Bowl: SC State 40, Prairie View A&M 38 (4OT) (Dec. 13)
Off the field, college football appears caught in a constant state of discontent. We can’t agree on the proper size of a playoff. Years of winner-take-all media-rights stakes have turned conferences and conference mates against one another. Coaches sign players to contracts that are only theoretically enforceable, then openly try to poach other players from other teams with other theoretically enforceable contracts.
On the field, however, the game remains utterly spectacular. As hard as it feels like we’re trying to screw it up, we just can’t. (Or at least, we haven’t yet.) The 2025 college football season offered us epic upsets, dynamite playoff games at every level of the sport, iconic plays — you probably know exactly what I’m referring to if I say “Cooper’s catch” or “Chambliss’ scramble” or “Mendoza’s leap” — and our first incredible national title game in eight years.
Let’s once again write a love letter to the season by celebrating its 100 best games. There was a lot to love.
Illinois led for most of the way against unbeaten USC, but the Trojans nearly stole the game at the end. Biletnikoff Award winner Makai Lemon scored twice and hit a 2-point conversion to turn a 31-17 deficit into a 32-31 lead with 1:55 left, but that was too much time to give to Illinois: The Illini drove 51 yards, and David Olano nailed a 41-yard field goal at the buzzer.
These teams slogged through forgettable 2025 campaigns, but they put together something wild in Week 2. MSU’s Aidan Chiles and BC’s Dylan Lonergan combined for six touchdown passes in the first 33 minutes, then the place-kickers took over until OT. In the second OT possession, BC scored but couldn’t hit the mandatory 2-point conversion. Chiles scored with his legs, then found Omari Kelly for the winning points.
Despite dominating early, Florida settled for a series of first-half field goals and, with help from a couple of costly penalties, left the door open for USF. With a 66-yard Keshaun Singleton touchdown, a safety and a 20-yard Nico Gramatica field goal at the buzzer, the Bulls marched through that open door and stole the win.
When you’ve lost 21 straight games, you’ll take a win wherever you can find it. Kent State watched a 14-3 lead turn into a sudden 17-14 deficit late against the FCS’ Merrimack, but the guy with the greatest name in the sport, Da’Realyst Clark, saved the day with a 100-yard kick return.
In a game that ended up having major ACC title implications, Wake trailed 12-10 heading into the fourth quarter but twice lost fumbles at the SMU 6 late in the game. After the second, the Mustangs ran most of the clock off before punting, but a huge, 25-yard pass from Deshawn Purdie to Kamrean Johnson (his only catch of the day) gave Connor Calvert a shot at a career-long 50-yard field goal and the win. He nailed it.