Ranking the top 10 college football teams of the decade
Top 10 college football teams of the decade: Over the past ten years, college football hasn’t been as even as it used to be. This is because of the success of a few strong programs that usually dominated the competition on the field and recruiting during the playoff era. And it’s not hard to figure out the top 10 national programs since the start of the 2012 season if you look at the final rankings and think about which teams are led by future Hall of Fame coaches.
This list is based on several things, such as the overall winning percentage of the program, national championships and conference titles won, appearances in the College Football Playoff, individual player honors, and selections in the NFL Draft.
Here are the ten best American football teams of the last ten years:
#1 Crimson Tide Of Alabama
| Crimson Tide Of Alabama | |
| National championships | 4 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .908 |
| NFL Draft selections | 94 |
Nick Saban has won six national titles since taking over at Alabama before the 2007 season. In the last ten years, he has produced more championships, and NFL Draft picks than any other head coach, and almost every coach who has worked with him has tried to follow in his footsteps. Since 2011, Alabama has won 11 or more games every year and has consistently finished in the top 10 of the final AP Poll. Since the start of the College Football Playoff, the Crimson Tide has only missed out on the final four once (2019), when they beat Michigan in the Citrus Bowl.
#2 Ohio Buckeye
| Ohio Buckeye | |
| National championships | 1 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .899 |
| NFL Draft selections | 79 |
The Buckeyes’ only national title this decade was won by Urban Meyer, who is no longer their coach. However, after losing to Alabama in the championship game two years ago, Ohio State will be back in the final game with Ryan Day. The Buckeyes have sent more NFL draft picks and first-round players to the NFL than any other Big Ten team, and CJ Stroud and Jackson Smith-Njigba could be leaving in 2023. After beating Utah in the Rose Bowl, Ohio State’s percentage of wins since the start of the 2012 season is .899. This puts them in second place in the country.
#3 Clemson Tigers
| Clemson Tigers | |
| National championships | 2 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .877 |
| NFL Draft selections | 56 |
Dabo Swinney is among the best college football coaches because he has won 10 or more games in 11 straight seasons. Since 2015, he has won two national titles and lost twice in the finals. Since the Tigers stole the torch from Florida State and hadn’t looked back, no other program in the ACC has come close to this level of success. After not winning the ACC last fall, Clemson has unfinished business as the preseason favorite in the league in 2022 with the best team.
#4 Georgia Bulldogs
| Georgia Bulldogs | |
| National championships | 1 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .791 |
| NFL Draft selections | 72 |
Kirby Smart is 66 years old and 15 years old in Georgia. He has been there since he got a job before the 2016 season, right after the team got rid of its longtime leader. Mark Richt. He made it easier for Georgia to get new players and led the Bulldogs to their first national title since 1980 last fall. And that’s not all, since Athens has a lot of fabulous people. This spring, the Bulldogs broke a number of NFL draft records. For example, their generational defense won five first-round picks, which is a record. In addition, Georgia beat Oklahoma in this game because the Bulldogs made a pact to get to the Final Four.
#5 Oklahoma Sooners
| Oklahoma Sooners | |
| National championships | 0 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .817 |
| NFL Draft selections | 59 |
Oklahoma has been to the College Football Playoff three times since the 2017 season, but despite winning multiple Big 12 titles during that time, they don’t have much to show for it. Lincoln Riley left the program in great shape for Brent Venables, a former Clemson defensive coordinator and Oklahoma graduate who now drives a Cadillac. Oklahoma’s move to the SEC in the coming years will help the Sooners make more money from football, but it could make it much harder for one of the best teams in the country to win a national championship.
#6 LSU Tigers
| LSU Tigers | |
| National championships | 1 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .709 |
| NFL Draft selections | 81 |
LSU has only won 11 games since going undefeated in the SEC and winning the college football national championship in 2019. This was one of the best single seasons in the long history of the sport. The Tigers gave that team a record number of picks in the NFL draft, including the first pick overall. Joe Burrow, but Ed Orgeron’s time as the coach didn’t last long after that. Since 2000, LSU is the only college football team to have won three national championships under three different head coaches. Brian Kelly hopes to make that number four soon.
#7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
| Notre Dame Fighting Irish | |
| National championships | 0 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .758 |
| NFL Draft selections | 54 |
Notre Dame made it to the national championship game in 2013 and has been to the College Football Playoff twice this decade. However, the Fighting Irish haven’t won a title since 1988. For now, Notre Dame’s first-year coach Marcus Freeman has to figure out what to do about realignment and whether the Fighting Irish will stay independent or join a super-conference. Given Notre Dame’s reputation and long history of winning, there’s no doubt that the program is a good way for the Big Ten and SEC to make money. The Fighting Irish would find it harder to win a championship in both of these leagues, though.
#8 Florida Seminoles
| Florida Seminoles | |
| National championships | 1 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .669 |
| NFL Draft selections | 53 |
Florida State was one of five teams to win a national championship this decade. In 2014, they went undefeated and beat Auburn in the final seconds of the BCS title game. Their coaches were Jimbo Fisher and Jamis Winston, who won the Heisman Trophy. In the next season, the Seminoles lost to Oregon in the Rose Bowl, ending the longest winning streak in the country. They then had three straight 10-win seasons until Fisher left for Texas A&M in 2017 after a 5-win season. Florida is having a hard time right now, so the Seminoles just barely made it into the top 10.
#9 Oregon ducks
| Oregon ducks | |
| National championships | 0 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .771 |
| NFL Draft selections | 36 |
In 2014, Oregon beat Florida State in the Rose Bowl, which was the defending champion and had never lost a game. This put Oregon in the first College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Even though the Ducks won 12 games in 2019, that was as close as they would get to a ring. Oregon has finished in the top 10 four times this decade. Former Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning is now the new coach, taking over for Mario Cristobal, who left the team of Miami. After USC left the Pac-12 for the Big Ten, the Ducks and Utah are expected to lead what’s left of the Pac-12 in the coming years.
#10 Oklahoma Cowboys
| Oklahoma Cowboys | |
| National championships | 0 |
| Winning percentage in the past 10 seasons | .698 |
| NFL Draft selections | 22 |
Mike Gandy is the coach with the most years in the Big 12 and one of the most consistent winners in the country. He leads the Cowboys to 12 wins in his second season, which is just a few yards short of winning the conference title. Oklahoma State, unlike some of the other teams in this top ten, has never had a losing season in this decade. During this time, Oklahoma State has finished in the top 25 six times, and the AP Poll predicts that they will be there to start the 2022 season.
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