How BYU Won the 1984 National Championship & Changed the FBS Forever 

No they shouldn't have. They were only highly ranked because they beat a Pitt team ranked #3 to start the season, said Pitt squad finished with 3 wins. After that they played almost nothing but their weak opponents in the WAC, and in half of those games they won by 10 or less points. Even their bowl game wasn't impressive, barely beating a very mediocre Michigan.

@@kaminsod4077 too bad washington declined to play them in the Holiday bowl buddy

​​@@cbphoto87 Cougars fans should be eternally thankful for that, otherwise they would've gotten their asses handed to them.

@@kaminsod4077 nice well you can live in that parallel universe all you want. The rest of us will live in the real world where BYU has a consensus natty banner and you have to cry about it

​@chasebart they only played 2 teams with 7 wins? 8 of the teams had losing records. Pound your chest. 😂 Fun fact... when did BYU have their first 10 win season? 1979, coincidentally the first year after ASU and Arizona last the WAC. Those teams owned byu at the time. You should thank them for leaving our these seasons would have never had happened with then losses to them. 😂

UCF fan here. I can sympathize with this.

Those same power conferences made a serious effort to eliminate the automatic bid in basketball, but now they just settle for stealing all the at-large bids with mediocre .500 teams.

@@christopherfoote4643Conspiracy is a strong word, but to recall a few things that happened during that season: 1) One of the networks (ESPN, ABC?) had a call in poll where fans to express their opinion on whether BYU should be #1. 2) Bryant Gumbel called BYU, "Bo Diddley Tech." 3) Barry Switzer (HC of Oklahoma) was very vocal that BYU should not be considered a contender for the National Championship. None of that would have happened if it had been a school from a "big" conference.

@@nuraby_9228 I wonder if they woulda gotten away with it, if BYU didn't sue for anti-trust violations against them in football......

@@kevinblatter2369 If it was Bryant Gumbel, had to be NBC.

Like he stated in this video, it's all about marketing and what teams bring in the most money for games. It's all about money. It's not about who is the best team anymore. Teams are pushed in the rankings (SEC) to make strength of schedule look better so certain teams are made to look "dominant". This is why ESECPN always hypes up SEC teams now. Just pay attention this season. More SEC teams are pushed up high and as soon as they lose, others are pushed up high to keep the conference looking so "great". Notice how many fans now root for a conference (SEC) instead of their teams. The SEC marketing has worked. Now fans of teams that never even make it to a CCG can feel good by rooting for a conference. The marketing has worked.

CFB literally has never had parity lol

Yeah. It’s awesome.

Sad

​@@HayyywardAnyone who places success of a conference over their own team are insufferable assholes.

And having BYU or any mid major program isn't a bad thing. I get why people upset with a mid major program from a small conference, meaning somewhat low tier Competition winning it all. But Having BYU win the natty help brings that vibe of a level playing field that anyone can win a National Championship. And help make College Football more fun to watch, like how the NCAA Basketball Tournament is fun to watch. I wish your team the best of luck in the Big 12 nowadays.

@@adriansmith5279 I agree. Its one of the reasons the NFL is particularly popular. I mean, since 2010, there have been 11 different teams that have won the Super Bowl. Thats 1/3 of the league in just over 10 years. People love thinking that their team is within striking distance of a Super Bowl. Anyway, good luck to your teams too!

@christopherfoote4643 I don't mind you correcting me. Because this is the 80s/early 80s, I wasn't even alive until the late 90s(now in my mid-20s). So is nice to hear that the WAC... nowadays doesn't even have a football league(despite them trying to bring it back recently), which was actually better than it was at the time.

​@@adriansmith5279I wasn't necessarily correcting you. Western Athletic Conference was a diminished level major conference roughly 8/11. They were below the bar. I studied this extensively. Brigham Young fell under the bar but were buffered by Iowa. Iowa and Brigham Young share a title. They were co-champions. It became official in 1991. F.W.I.W. Iowa and Brigham Young share a title. Florida and Louisiana State share a title. Washington and Southern California share a title. It takes a village. Brigham Young, Florida and Washington are titleists. Nobody really won it.

It's still a beauty contest.

Berth* Birth lolol

@@jarlwhiterun7478 Brain fried lol. But yes

That's right, I remember. It was a huge upset by Texas when Nebraska seemed to be cruising to another national title.

@@brianlaneherder3666 Texas was picked last, but that's because the Fiesta had the final pick. But they were forced to pick them, as the Big XII champ had to be picked. But in actuality, it was Penn State picked over BYU

There was a bowl alliance in 1984. Michigan would have been an eight seed to a tournament of thirty two teams. North Carolina was an eight seed two seasons ago when they played Kansas. Kansas had to rally to win. North Carolina had to win five elimination games to advance. In 1985 Michigan began 5-0. Against tournament competition. Before losing to Iowa. In a title game. Iowa was 8-4-1 in 1984 and carried half of the load. They share a title. It became official in 1991. Brigham Young tied Iowa. Brigham Young might have won but blew an Extra point attempt that sailed left.

Don't forget Boise State

If Utah fans want to see what a national championship trophy looks like, they can always drive down to Provo. Same thing for a Heisman trophy

Worst then they were given the absolute worst BCS team of all time (Pitt, which was only in because the BIG East got a bid) and worst it made Alex Smith look like he should be number one pick (if you like safe 250 yards 2 tds and a game plan in NFC championship where Harbaugh only calls run plays)

There cannot be a team from Utah winning a tier one sport right? Just isn’t physically possible!

Yeah I agree. Honestly until another school from a non major conference wins, the 1984 BYU team will always be an anomaly when it comes to college football national champions. I know they almost always played in the Holiday Bowl back then but they should’ve played either Washington or Oklahoma.

C c x c xz c c s c c

I agree, he was awesome. Even taught my mom to drive at Granite High School circa 1960.

@@TPaine1776 That's cool.

It didn't. There was a bowl alliance prior to the BCS and a bowl coalition prior to that. And in 1984 Oklahoma and Brigham Young were obligated to play in title games separated from each other.

Prior to the BCS. The Big Ten vs Pac-10 champions were obligated to play each other in the Rose Bowl even if either one was ranked 1 or 2

It was #1 v #2 AS VOTED ON BY POLLSTERS (concentrated in the major media markets, with all of their regional biases at play). Then, with BCS, it is controlled BY THE SELF-STYLED MAJOR CONFERENCES with a token rep from the "mid-majors" (in itself a pejorative term). If NCAA was really serious about the sport and its players, they would reassume control of the game and use ADs and coaches from DII and DIII to do polling and evaluations of DI sports.

​@@christopherfoote4643And each iteration bent on assuring that a "1984 scenario" could never happen again. IE - we have to keep BYU (or Boise State, or Fresno State, or Hawaii, .....) from ever having a shot. It was, and continues to be, a caste system - even within the "Major" conferences

Wait fr? That’s dope

I don't think that's true, 1982 K State v Wisconsin was the first one

I don't think that's true, 1982 K State v Wisconsin was the first one

.....And BYU lost to UTEP the worst team in div 1 at the time (1985)

@@ReisterJPthey still went 11-3 and all their losses were by less than 1 td.

Its also forgotten that they won 24 games in a row before being crowned champs. That combine with the respect pollsters had for lavell gave em the title.

@@suuwooski6416 beating 7 win teams for 2 years

They also won their 6th straight WAC title in 1984. The dominated the conference for a whole decade.

Read HOWARD COSELLS I NEVER PLAYED THE GAME

Its because mormons cant be trusted...

Actually it was about the Orange Bowl having a championship game. Sometimes we over analyze. It was about the Orange Bowl being able to host a national championship. Which, they did. Most people wanted Brigham Young to play Oklahoma and the general consensus of opinion was that would have determined a titleist. So, when Washington was represented, most people thought, perhaps justifiably if Oklahoma could beat Washington they would be a legitimate national champion. Washington was substituted for Brigham Young and Washington also had a chance to play Brigham Young. Brigham Young was top dog. People are asking why? It isn't that complicated. Brigham Young played a competitive schedule. Western Athletic Conference was a major football conference at the time. Eighth of eleven. Top eight probably are roughly equivalent to top six, now. Mountain West Conference is probably comparable to the Western Athletic Conference. That's why some people think it was a diminished national championship. But there are quality programs in the Mountain West Conference. Boise State is roughly comparable to Brigham Young University. So if Boise could finish 13-0 like they did in 2006 that is something to write home about. And, it was! Brigham Young and Boise State roughly comparable to the same thing. In 2006 the national champion was Florida. Florida was a team in contention but lost to Miami FL. Miami FL was 8-5 overall. Air Force Academy finished 8-4. Brigham Young defeated Air Force 30-25. I suspect Brigham Young defeating the Academy catapulted them over Florida although admittedly Florida would have been an especially tough team to beat. That's probably why Florida is recognized as a legitimate titleist. Together with Louisiana State. They tied for a conference championship. Louisiana State lost to Notre Dame. Notre Dame lost to the Academy. Brigham Young defeated Air Force in Colorado Springs, CO. I think Brigham Young demonstrated supremacy over Louisiana State by that fact. Florida lost to Miami, FL. Miami FL lost to Michigan. Brigham Young defeated Michigan. Brigham Young > Michigan > Miami FL> Florida. Obviously that's circumstantial.

@@christopherfoote4643 that's just stupid. A>B>C doesn't work in sports. In 2008, Texas beat OU, Texas Tech beat Texas, and OU beat Texas Tech. Only fans come up w/ your "analysis."

​@@TulsaSooner1979 What else do you go off of if you dont have a common opponent?

Yeah so were the 2004 and 2008 undefeated Utah football teams

@@carterdalby9011 Absolutely. Loved watching the Utes push around an Alabama team that thought they were national champions.

And 4 loss Texas team over a one loss BYU Team getting a better bowl game. That's f-up! That should tell you how much they really care about money more, like he mentioned in this video.

A team can only beat the teams in front of them and BYU did exactly that in 1984. They were the only team that went undefeated that year and no top five team wanted to play them in a major bowl. Prior to this, the formula to win the national title was a great defense, a strong running game with a complimentary passing game and finally great special teams. BYU changed the formula and proved a pass heavy team with a complimentary running game, a deep defense and good special teams. Miami followed this formula in 1989 & 1991 and Florida did this in 1996.

Agreed!! That team should have been the one to play Florida State in the Sugar Bowl, not Florida

South Carolina waa probably the front-runner but lost to Navy. Navy was 4-6-1 and lost to Air Force and Notre Dame. They also tied Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh actually tied Brigham Young. Pittsburgh was 3-6-2 and Wisconsin was 7-4-1. Collectively that's 10-10-3. Or 5-5-1 independently. Meaning Brigham Young and Iowa are co-champions. Michigan was admitted to the Holiday Bowl but began 1985 5-0. A tournament would have required Michigan to be 5-0 in a post-season tournament to advance to a championship game. Michigan was represented. Brigham Young was an NCAA collegiate titleist. Iowa tied Wisconsin and therefore share a title.

That was quite the colossal schedule they had there. LOL. If they'd only beaten................Wyoming.............a little more handily they would have gotten it.

Michigan was 6-5 going into the Holiday Bowl, 5th in the Big Ten that year. Folks they were not good, let alone a worthy opponent!

That's expecting a lot for a team to go from seven to one. Their only help could have been Oklahoma tying Michigan. You're thinking of the 1975 team.

As I recall, it was a BYU math professor who came up with that . BYU could only win as many games as they played, of course, but every other team lost to somebody who lost to somebody (etc. etc.) who lost to BYU. It was an interesting observation, an may possibly hold more weight than some other arguments. But that was the problem back then. The national champion was determined by polls, opinions, and pretty much anything other than on the field. Today things are somewhat better, but money has so much become king that certain conferences have been allowed to band together to shut the other conference out. NIL only made things worse, even though I applaud seeing players get financially rewarded for the sacrifice it takes to play. But when the Big 5 (Big 4) have the big money locked up, what chance does does anyone else have of locking up the best talent? Oh well, bitch bitch bitch...

Cowards don't get to be national champions. They ducked out of playing BYU because their coaching staff knew they had no chance against BYU.

​@@allanbird3725yk thats a lie

I know you wrote this a month ago and I'm late the party, but i actually think the first few weeks of the season (with a lot of upsets and close calls) have born out that nil and the transfer portal are bringing more parity to college football, not less. Why would a talented recruiter sit on the bench at Alabama or Georgia for 4 years, when he could transfer to a "lesser" program where he would actually get playing time and get in front of NFL scouts. I really think nil/transfer portal is going to put a wrench into the "super conferences" master plan.

@@christopherfoote4643 the luck that was involved was concerning other teams from real conferences.

No not really. They were only about 50.0% capable but they made it all up in 1996. That is why it's no longer a disputed national championship. It's official and it is an NCAA title.

No. I don't think so. You can call it luck but it took a lot of patience among other things. Luck might have played a part. But it is never lucky to win that many consecutive games. Plus Robbie Bosco was injured. If you think that is luck then you're not very intelligent.

​@@TulsaSooner1979what is that supposed to mean? Western Athletic Conference was actually among the more distinguished. I did a retrospective on it. You might be surprised just how capable it was. It wasn't the best. But it wasn't the worst. By the way Brigham Young doesn't claim the title exclusively. They share it. That is partly why it was as controversial as it was. Iowa and Brigham Young share a title. That is fairly obvious.

Who doesn’t? The ap and coachs polls voted for it… what do you think the bcs was? Ap, coachs and average of computer polls. What happened with the committee? G5 gets in because they play one great team and several decent teams as well as got a little lucky. That’s been the minimum formula for a g5 to get in. So why don’t g5 teams get in? They for the most part don’t want to.

@@christopherfoote464384 BYU’s schedule vs 2006 Boise state’s schedule is pretty much a wash till the bowl game which wasn’t BYUs fault. I’d vote neither NC.

@@christopherfoote4643 no it’s literally always about opinion. From day one to now. I’m not suggesting, that’s what I said. Limited to the bowl alliance?

the mighty whities players were and still are like 25 and 26 years old

Huskies were even more dominant in '91....being crowned co-champs with Miami was a joke!

Boise state got screwed over and over by BCS selection committee...they were only non power conference school in last 2 decades that should have national championship banner in their stadium! That bowl win over OU was priceless!! Lol

Air Force lost to Brigham Young University. That eliminated Air Force although they did play Texas in the Bluebonnet Bowl. I don't necessarily follow it but Air Force nearly played Penn State and it's a possibility they might have beaten them. Making them a legitimate titleist.

Cheap shot penalized late hit by Michigan caused the Bosch limp. It was quite blatant that Michigan was trying to knock him out of the game.

@@stevenbooth6792 I wondered what happened. But it looks like Bosco was a tough kid and he gutted it out.

Bosco would not be denied. Blaine Fowler came in just after the hit and did great. Bosco came back in and finished the game. Great performance. @@thelastjohnwayne

Thanks for the info I was just starting to get into College football at that time. I did not watch the game. I was living in Reno and just starting to go to Wolf Pack football games and then I got hooked on College football and I have been addicted ever since @@stevenbooth6792

Its football. People get hurt

Yep. They had to have alot of things go their way + do what they can control. Same as cincy making the cfp, even going undefeated and beating #5 nd, they still needed 1 loss okst to lose to make playoffs lol

Pittsburgh at the start of the year was ranked #3.

BYU beat the worst Michigan squad of the 1980s. In fact that was Michigans worst win percentage until the coronavirus happened in 2020.

@@IAMGavinMitchell pre-season rankings mean nothing. Especially when you end with 3 wins on the season.

@dezznutz3743 so wasn't BYU unranked the 1st game of that season? Therefore, that's the starting point of a season. Especially given that Pittsburgh in 82 & 83 had a quarterback by the name of Dan Marino.

Not to mention, other football leagues are legally prohibited from scheduling football games on Saturdays. True anti-trust

I hate to burst your bubble but there is no way they beat Nebraska or Florida that year.

The '90's Huskers were not to be f-d with, and Tom Osborne is one of the greatest college football coaches ever.

@@ericwhittle4657 we can never know because they were to pussy to play BYU

@@ericwhittle4657 The Jets beat the Colts in the 3rd Super Bowl because they knew how to throw the ball in a time where zone defense was not practiced in the NFL as they would run A gap trap followed by off tackle and GUT runs. BYU had an ability to pass that Nebraska couldn't have kept with, they would have most likely played a version of cover 0 defense against Nebraska and forced them to pass.

@@getbig2501 lol gotta love internet coaches that don't realize these things are easier said than done. Nebraska's defense regularly dismantled pass-happy teams, including Steve Spurrier and Danny Wuerffel in what was the most lopsided national title game ever played until as recently as last year, when Georgia finally beat the record. There's this assumption that because Nebraska was a run-oriented offense, that it somehow meant they had a defense oriented toward stopping the run as well, but that's simply not correct. Also, I'm sure you think you're the first person to ever think of running cover 0 or stuffing the box to force Nebraska to pass, but countless teams of that era tried (and failed) to do exactly that. That being said, it's kind of a moot point anyway, because Nebraska wasn't really even in title consideration in 1996. They had 2 losses (Nebraska went 60-3 from 1993-1997 and that 96 team had 2/3 losses during that 5 year stretch). But the arrogance to assume that beating Nebraska was as easy as just having a good passing attack and running a Cover 0 is super amusing. The greatest coaches of that era apparently couldn't figure out something as simple as that, but YOU did! Congrats! lol

Yes.

So claim it so and it shall be done.

I didn't realize how weak their schedule was until seeing this video.

Miami FL was 8-5. Northwestern (last year) was 8-5. Northwestern and Michigan (6-5) are comparable. Brigham Young was comparable to Florida State (last season). F.W.I.W.

It was an easy victory for Washington AT Michigan earlier in the season. Pummeled them...up 20-3 until a last second TD made it 20-11. And if UW accepts the Holiday Bowl invitation and blows out BYU, Oklahoma takes the national title in the Orange Bowl. Watch the Holiday Bowl and the Orange Bowl and see which game had the better teams...

​@@rogerbrodniak5644if Washington accepts a Holiday Bowl invitation? Why didn't they? Quit feeding me this bullshit line about what obviously isn't what happened. Fantasy Island was cancelled. Nobody cares about what Washington might have done.

​@@rogerbrodniak5644Bo Schembechler said Brigham Young was comparable to Illinois. Chris Zurbrugg was 2-0 against decent (0.500) Illinois. Jim Harbaugh was 0-0-1 against a 6-5-1 Illinois. Michigan was 6-5 and lost. That means they fell to 6-6. I'm thinking Brigham Young might have been better than Illinois. Fairly confident about it.

​@@rogerbrodniak5644I don't remember the part about Washington accepting the Holiday Bowl and blowing out the Cougars. When did that happen? I missed that episode. Put down the crack pipe. I do remember Brigham Young beating Washington. 31-3. That part I remember.

​@@rogerbrodniak5644it wasn't an easy victory. 20-11. Nine points. Washington didn't roll over on Brigham Young. They might have run away like a little girl from a challenge. Brigham Young was rated #1.

BYU was unranked until week 2 in 1984 by those same pollsters. So much for respect.

@@danlower7834 they gave them a natty dan. Cry about it. The moment they realized that 1983 wasnt a fluke they gave them respect. Cry about it

@@suuwooski6416 who's crying? Not me. I'm just pointing out facts - the media and pollsters weren't in love with BYU. There were snide remarks on air, in the newspaper, and all around, especially from Oklahoma and Washington, who disputed the title after the fact.

@@danlower7834 the media gave em the title. They gave them respect once they realized the previous year wasnt a fluke. What part dont you understand? The moment they realized the 12 or so game winning streak wasnt fluke they gave em respect. It then ended as a 24 game win streak Stay mad

Screwed over how? So why don’t they just claim the title? It’s an unclaimed title, just claim it. I wouldn’t be able to argue it not being a split title after a glance of the schedules.

Cry

It’s like they should have used a playoff system from the get go…

BYU's starting QB was injured early in the Holiday Bowl and played on a gimpy leg, and the team was plagued by turnovers throughout, but they still won. Stuff happens in football games, the only thing that matters is getting the win. And as a matter of fact, BYU did get a chance to play Washington, the team that finished #2 that year (but failed to win its conference), early in 1985. Yes, different year and different team, but the fact that BYU thrashed them 30-3 on that day gives the lie to the notion that they weren't in the same league as the traditional powers.

Or how 2014 TCU got screwed out of a playoff for not winning their conference, yet still made the playoffs 8 years later without winning their conference.....

​@MattLindon-wv8jy They didn't get screwed out of their spot. There were 6 deserving teams, and only 4 spots. 2 of the 1 loss teams were going to have to be left out. And winning your conference is not a requirement, it just helps out. There were no non playoff teams in 2022 that had the resume to be ahead of TCU that year.

While Georgia may have curb stomped TCU, TCU 100% belonged in the playoffs. Remember, they beat Michigan in the semi-finals.

UTEP 1985!

penn state in 69 and 94

You don't just declare a championship, the college football world has to do it for you and if you had a really good year, where the championship is indisputable, it is then declared CONSENSUS.

By the way, it should also be pointed out that none of those teams that you listed were considered to be national champions by the college football world...... that is why they could not lay claim to a "national championship".

​@@ptor175Penn State was mightily screwed in 1994. Tom Osborne of Nebraska hasn't won the championship yet so they gave it to him

Typical Ute fan.

@@kooperuranus1503 say what you will, but we are a very passionate bunch.

😆😅🤣

@kooperuranus1503 BYU fans are a laughing matter indeed, I mean, who would be a fan of a team who loses to East Carolina and Liberty. Who's glory days were 40 years ago? It's kinda sad, huh 🤣 🤣 😂.

Again, a yewt fan who can't leave anything "BYU" alone. Yewts #1 job; hate on BYU Yewts #2 job; root for Utah

Thats bcs there was no natty until the bcs era

@suuwooski6416 yes there were "nattys". What you meant to say is there were no national championship games. That is my point. He video said they played in one.

@@elche1976 Um, yes, they did. They played a game, and in winning it, they won the national championship. Ergo, national championship game. There were attempts at the time to line up two good candidates in a "championship" bowl game, but that often did not take place. If the favorite won their bowl game, they were champs. If they lost and the next-best won, the next-best was considered the champ. Simple. That's what happened in 1984. BYU was #1, they won their bowl game, so they were the national champions.

@SIB1963 byu education. Nowhere outside of your feelings has it ever or will be listed as the national championship game. Child. It was a regular a Holiday bowl, and byu won. After it, because byu can from behind against the 6-5 Michigan team, they were voted as championship. But these do called national championship game didn't exist outside of your fantasies until the bcs. I love byu fans. Their myopic views provide great comedy.

@@elche1976 And yet...BYU was the 1984 National Champion. You'll just somehow have to find a way to make peace with that fact.

That was the first thing I noticed at the beginning of the video. BYU didn't play in a national championship game. They played in the Holiday Bowl.

By your logic there were no national champions prior to 1984 either.

Look at the title of the video. It says “how byu WON the 1984 national championship” byu didn’t WIN the national championship. There were no national championship games back then. Nobody “won” a national championship. After all the bowl games were over a committee voted on all the teams and byu was voted number 1. They didn’t actually WIN anything.

@Dezz Exactly, you nailed it even using only their actual bowl game. Not to mention how slow the WAC was back in the day, and the absence of quality depth. Drop that 84 squad into a major conference at the time, and even if the attrition of the roster depth miraculously didn't change, that BYU squad wins 7 games. Their only top 25 win was vs Pitt week one, who ended up 3-7-1. They also eeked out wins vs Hawaii Wyoming, and Air Force. And, dang, that Michigan squad had zero team speed.

No, pay to play is still illegal. It’s just not enforced rn.

They were selected but it's questionable at best they were a titleist. The reason they were selected is because collectively they merited one. Louisiana State shares in it. They gave it to Florida but it's a co-championship. It should have been given to both. Louisiana State University tied Florida. They were co-champions. They both merited recognition. Louisiana State lost to Nebraska. So a more deserving titleist would have been Nebraska. Not Florida. That's why it wasn't as simple as selecting one team.

This will be the final year of the P5. The moves take place in 2024 (after this season). Then it will be a P4 until the ACC's fate is discovered. With the American getting its best teams poached to the Big12, I honestly don't think any G5 will move up and take the PAC's place as a new P5. I'd even bet the Sun Belt becomes as strong or even stronger than the new American conference that no longer would have UCF, Cincy, Houston. If the remaining PAC teams (or just Wash St and Oregon St) join the MWC, then the MWC may bump up to the level of the Sun Belt and American. MAC will stay MAC, while C-USA will for sure be the bottom of the G5 since they're the ones getting poached from and only staying alive by taking FCS teams.

That sucks.

FBS college football is a big anti trust violation.