Winning at the highest level in college football is challenging. Sustaining that success over the years is even harder.
Especially nowadays, with name, image and likeness opportunities and the transfer portal, college football is unlike any other sport. Between roster turnover, coaching carousels and the 365-day recruiting trail, schools are constantly competing with one another to stay relevant and succeed.
Still, despite the challenges of maintaining a winning pedigree, certain programs have elevated themselves above others, placing them in a category of their own. According to 247Sports’ Josh Pate, five programs deserve to be named one of the top dogs in college football.
One can judge programs on a myriad of criteria: National Championships, bowl game appearances, double-digit win seasons and so much more. In his rankings, Pate attempted to combine every data point and story available and created a list that may surprise some fans.
According to Pate, here are the top five programs over the past 20 years.