Is Oregon among greatest college football programs of all time?
The Oregon Ducks are in a complicated spot when looking at the world of college football through a historical lens. On one hand, the Ducks have been as dominant as any team in the nation over the past couple of decades, with multiple Rose Bowl victories and a couple of trips to the national championship game; they’ve been a mainstay near the top of the rankings since the turn of the century.
Before that, though? It’s not quite the same story.
Oregon didn’t used to be known for football. They weren’t always the vehicle for Nike’s latest and greatest, and they didn’t register on the national scale. It wasn’t until Rich Brooks came along that it started to change, and was carried forward by the likes of Mike Bellotti and Chip Kelly. Now the Ducks are a national brand, beloved — and despised — by many across the college landscape.
It’s interesting to see how much that recent success can improve the historic outlook of the Oregon football program. This past week, 247Sports ranked their top 25 programs of all time in college football. Unfortunately, the decades of early turmoil in Eugene were too much for the Ducks to overcome to get into the top 25.
It’s unclear what metrics 247Sports used to decide their top 25, but you can assume that stats like national championships, conference championships, overall record, and bowl records were weighted heavily. For an added measure, we also wanted to throw in College Football Playoff appearances, since that shows how well teams have performed over the past decade.
For reference, here are the Ducks’ all-time statistics when it comes to program history:
National Championships: 0
Conference Championships: 14
Overall Record: 692-508-46 (.574)
Bowl Game Record: 16-20 (.444)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 1
Here are the 25 programs that made it in ahead of them.
Alabama Crimson Tide
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 18
Conference Championships: 33
All-Time Record: 953-335-43 (.732)
Bowl Game Record: 46-27-3 (.625)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 7
Ohio State Buckeyes
National Championships: 8
Conference Championships: 41
All-Time Record: 953-331-53 (.733)
Bowl Game Record: 27-28 (.491)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 5
Oklahoma Sooners
(Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
National Championships: 7
Conference Championships: 50
All-Time Record: 934-338-53 (.725)
Bowl Game Record: 31-24-1 (.563)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 4
Michigan Wolverines
National Championships: 11
Conference Championships: 44
All-Time Record: 989-353-36 (.731)
Bowl Game Record: 21-29 (.420)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 2
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 11
Conference Championships: N/A
All-Time Record: 930-332-42 (.729)
Bowl Game Record: 18-21 (.462)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 2
USC Trojans
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 11
Conference Championships: 39
All-Time Record: 885-354-54 (.705)
Bowl Game Record: 34-21 (.618)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 5
Conference Championships: 46
All-Time Record: 912-417-40 (.681)
Bowl Game Record: 26-27 (.491)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Texas Longhorns
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 4
Conference Championships: 32
All-Time Record: 936-389-33 (.701)
Bowl Game Record: 31-24-2 (-561)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Penn State Nittany Lions
Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 2
Conference Championships: 5
All-Time Record: 920-406-42 (.688)
Bowl Game Record: 31-19-2 (.615)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Tennessee Volunteers
Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 6
Conference Championships: 16
All-Time Record:867-410-53 (.672)
Bowl Game Record: 30-25 (.545)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
LSU Tigers
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 4
Conference Championships: 16
All-Time Record: 831-430-47 (.653)
Bowl Game Record: 30-24-1 (.555)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 1
Georgia Bulldogs
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 4
Conference Championships: 16
All-Time Record: 868-428-54 (.663)
Bowl Game Record: 37-21-3 (.631)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 3
Florida State Seminoles
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 3
Conference Championships: 18
All-Time Record: 575-286-18 (.664)
Bowl Game Record: 29-17-3 (.622)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Auburn Tigers
(Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images)
National Championships: 2
Conference Championships: 16
All-Time Record: 785-452-47 (.630)
Bowl Game Record: 24-20-2 (.453)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Florida Gators
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 4
Conference Championships: 8
All-Time Record: 751-443-40 (.630)
Bowl Game Record: 24-23 (.511)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Miami Hurricanes
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 5
Conference Championships: 9
All-Time Record: 637-372-19 (.629)
Bowl Game Record: 19-22 (.463)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
UCLA Bruins
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 1
Conference Championships: 17
All-Time Record: 622-448-37 (.579)
Bowl Game Record: 16-20 (.446)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Clemson Tigers
National Championships: 3
Conference Championships: 27
All-Time Record: 790-467-44 (.624)
Bowl Game Record: 28-22 (.560)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 2
Michigan State Spartans
Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 6
Conference Championships: 11
All-Time Record: 727-479-44 (.467)
Bowl Game Record: 14-16 (.467)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 1
Arkansas Razorbacks
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 1
Conference Championships: 13
All-Time Record: 736-531-40 (.578)
Bowl Game Record: 17-24-3 (.420)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Texas A&M Aggies
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 3
Conference Championships: 18
All-Time Record: 771-498-48 (.604)
Bowl Game Record: 20-22 (.476)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Washington Huskies
Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 2
Conference Championships: 17
All-Time Record: 752-463-50 (.614)
Bowl Game Record: 20-20-1 (.500)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 1
Wisconsin Badgers
Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 0
Conference Championships: 14
All-Time Record: 735-513-53 (.586)
Bowl Game Record: 19-15 (.559)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Ole Miss Rebels
Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 3
Conference Championships: 6
All-Time Record: 678-528-35 (.560)
Bowl Game Record: 24-15 (.615)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
Iowa Hawkeyes
Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports
National Championships: 5
Conference Championships: 13
All-Time Record: 685-570-39 (.544)
Bowl Game Record: 20-17-1 (.539)
College Football Playoff Appearances: 0
