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Matt Doeden
MILLBROOK PRESS MINNEAPOLIS
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Copyright 2016 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwisewithout the prior
written permission of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc., except for the inclusion of brief
quotations in an acknowledged review.
Millbrook Press
A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
241 First Avenue North
Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA
For reading levels and more information, look up this title at www.lernerbooks.com.
Main body text set in Adobe Garamond Pro Regular 14/19
Typeface provided by Adobe Systems.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Doeden, Matt.
The college football championship : the fight for the top spot / Matt Doeden.
pages cm. (Spectacular Sports)
Audience: Age: 1018.
Audience: Grade: 7 to 12.
ISBN 978-1-4677-1897-4 (lb : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-4677-8852-6 (eb pdf)
ISBN 978-1-5124-1788-3 (Audisee)
1. FootballUnited StatesHistoryJuvenile literature. 2. College sports
United StatesHistoryJuvenile literature. I. Title.
GV959.5.D64 2016
796.332'63dc23
2014041355
Manufactured in the United States of America
1 VP 7/15/15
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CONTENTS
Introduction: Championship Thrills
Whos No. 1? A History of College Footballs Championship
Settling It on the Field: Great National Title Games
Building a Legend: Dynasties of College Football
Unforgettable: Memorable Moments of the
National Championship
Challenges and Opportunities: The Future
of College Football
Source Notes
Glossary
Further Reading
Index
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INTRODUCTION
CHAMPIONSHIP THRILLS
T
he crowd roars as the quarterback barks out his signals.
He takes the snap. Shoulder
pads crunch and helmets crash as the offensive and defensive lines clash.
Camera flashes fill the stadium as the ball sails through the air and drops into the arms of a wide receiver racing down the sideline.
These are some of the sights and sounds of big-time college football. But this is no ordinary college football game. This is the national championship. Two teams. One trophy. Every down, every play, its all on the line.
Its almost hard to believe that the national title game is relatively new in college football. For more than a century, the sport went on without such a spectacle. Championships were settled on paper rather than on grass and turf. But no longer. The College Football Playoff National Championship game answers a question thats as old as the sport: Whos No. 1?
Opposite page: The Ohio State Buckeyes celebrate their victory in the first College Football
Playoff National Championship game in January 2015.
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This drawing shows a rugby match between
Yale and Columbia University.
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WHOS NO. 1?
A HISTORY OF COLLEGE