1987 NCAA Division I-A football season

The 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with Miami winning its fourth National Championship during the 80's in an Orange Bowl match-up featuring a rare #1 vs. #2 matchup between the top ranked Oklahoma Sooners and the Hurricanes.

Miami's first three games were against ranked opponents in what was labeled a rebuilding year so when, after some late game theatrics by Michael Irvin against rival Florida State, the Hurricanes were 3-0, the national media started to take notice.

Oklahoma was also seen as quite the juggernaut, averaging 428.8 yards rushing per game with their potent wishbone offense. Miami was able to hold Oklahoma to just 179 yards on the ground, winning the game 20-14.

Also having notable seasons were LSU and Florida State. LSU went 10-1-1, ending the season ranked #5. This was LSU's first ten win season in 26 years and their highest ranking since 1961.

Florida State finished ranked #2, their only loss to Miami, and began a streak of 14 years where FSU either finished in the top 5 or played for the national championship. The Noles beat Rose Bowl champion Michigan State and SEC champion Auburn on the road and beat Nebraska in the Fiesta Bowl.

Conference Standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, Conf. = Conference Record

Conference Champion

Atlantic Coast Conference
Team	W	L	T	Pct.	Conf.
Clemson Tigers	10	2	0	.833	6-1
Virginia Cavaliers	8	4	0	.667	5-2
Wake Forest Demon Deacons	7	4	0	.636	4-3
NC State Wolfpack	4	7	0	.364	4-3
Maryland Terrapins	4	7	0	.364	3-3
North Carolina Tar Heels	5	6	0	.454	3-4
Duke Blue Devils	5	6	0	.454	2-5
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	2	9	0	.181	0-6
Big Eight Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Oklahoma Sooners	11	1	0	.917	7-0
Nebraska Cornhuskers	10	2	0	.833	6-1
Oklahoma State Cowboys	10	2	0	.833	5-2
Colorado Buffaloes	7	4	0	.636	4-3
Missouri Tigers	5	6	0	.454	3-4
Iowa State Cyclones	3	8	0	.272	2-5
Kansas Jayhawks	1	9	1	.091	0-6-1
Kansas State Wildcats	0	10	1	.000	0-6-1
Big Ten Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Michigan State Spartans	9	2	1	.750	7-0-1
Iowa Hawkeyes	10	3	0	.769	6-2
Indiana Hoosiers	8	4	0	.667	6-2
Michigan Wolverines	8	4	0	.667	5-3
Ohio State Buckeyes	6	4	1	.545	4-4
Minnesota Golden Gophers	6	5	0	.545	3-5
Purdue Boilermakers	3	7	1	.272	3-5
Illinois Fighting Ilini	3	7	1	.272	2-5-1
Northwestern Wildcats	2	8	1	.182	2-6
Wisconsin Badgers	3	8	0	.272	1-7
Big West Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
San Jose State Spartans	10	2	0	.833	7-0
Fresno State Bulldogs	6	5	0	.546	4-3
Cal State Fullerton Titans	6	6	0	.500	4-3
UNLV Rebels	5	6	0	.454	4-3
Utah State Aggies	5	6	0	.454	4-3
Pacific Tigers	4	7	0	.363	3-4
Long Beach State 49ers	4	7	0	.363	2-5
New Mexico State Aggies	2	9	0	.181	0-7
Mid-American Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Eastern Michigan Eagles	9	3	0	.667	7-1
Kent State Golden Flashes	6	3	1	.600	5-2-1
Miami (OH) Redskins	8	3	0	.727	5-3
Bowling Green Falcons	7	4	0	.636	5-3
Western Michigan Broncos	4	6	1	.363	4-3-1
Central Michigan Chippewas	6	5	0	.545	4-4
Toledo Rockets	5	6	0	.454	3-5
Ball State Cardinals	2	8	1	.181	1-6-1
Ohio Bobcats	0	10	1	.000	0-7-1

Pacific Ten Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
UCLA Bruins	10	2	0	.833	7-1
USC Trojans	8	4	0	.667	7-1
Washington Huskies	7	4	1	.583	4-3-1
Oregon Ducks	6	5	0	.545	4-4
Stanford Cardinal	5	6	0	.455	4-4
Arizona State Sun Devils	7	4	1	.583	3-3-1
Arizona Wildcats	4	4	3	.363	2-3-3
California Golden Bears	3	6	2	.272	2-3-2
Washington State Cougars	3	7	1	.272	1-5-1
Oregon State Beavers	2	9	0	.181	0-7
Southeastern Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Auburn Tigers	9	1	2	.750	5-0-1
LSU Tigers	10	1	1	.833	5-1
Tennessee Volunteers	10	2	1	.769	4-1-1
Georgia Bulldogs	9	3	0	.750	4-2
Alabama Crimson Tide	7	5	0	.583	4-2
Florida Gators	6	6	0	.500	3-3
Kentucky Wildcats	5	6	0	.455	1-5
Mississippi State Bulldogs	4	7	0	.363	1-5
Vanderbilt Commodores	4	7	0	.363	1-5
Mississippi Rebels	3	8	0	.272	1-5
Southwest Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Texas A&M Aggies	10	2	0	.833	6-1
Arkansas Razorbacks	9	4	0	.692	5-2
Texas Longhorns	7	5	0	.583	5-2
Texas Tech Red Raiders	6	4	1	.545	3-3-1
Baylor Bears	6	5	0	.545	3-4
TCU Horned Frogs	5	6	0	.455	3-4
Houston Cougars	4	6	1	.363	2-4-1
Rice Owls	2	9	0	.181	0-8
Western Athletic Conference
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Wyoming Cowboys	10	3	0	.769	8-0
BYU Cougars	9	4	0	.692	7-1
Air Force Falcons	9	4	0	.692	6-2
UTEP Miners	7	4	0	.636	5-3
San Diego State Aztecs	5	7	0	.416	4-4
Hawaii Warriors	5	7	0	.416	3-5
Utah Utes	5	7	0	.416	2-6
Colorado State Rams	1	11	0	.091	1-7
New Mexico Lobos	0	11	0	.000	0-8
Independents
Team	W	L	T	PCT	Conf.
Miami (FL) Hurricanes	12	0	0	1.00-
Syracuse Orangemen	11	0	1	.917	-
Florida State Seminoles	11	1	0	.917	-
South Carolina Gamecocks	8	4	0	.667	-
Pittsburgh Panthers	8	4	0	.667	-
Penn State Nittany Lions	8	4	0	.667	-
Notre Dame Fighting Irish	8	4	0	.667	-
Southern Miss Golden Eagles	6	5	0	.545	-
Rutgers Scarlet Knights	6	5	0	.545	-
Tulane Mean Green	6	5	0	.545	-
West Virginia Mountaineers	6	6	0	.500	-
Memphis State Tigers	6	6	0	.500	-

Notable Rivalry Games

• South Carolina 20,Clemson 7
• Auburn 10, Alabama 0
• Kansas 17, Kansas State 17
• LSU 41, Tulane 36
• Oklahoma 17, Nebraska 7

Bowl Games

• Rose Bowl: #8 Michigan State 20, #16 USC 17
• Sugar Bowl: #6 Auburn 16, #4 Syracuse 16
• Cotton Bowl: #13 Texas A&M 35, #12 Notre Dame 10
• Fiesta Bowl: #3 Florida State 31, #5 Nebraska 28
• Florida Citrus Bowl: #14 Clemson 35, #19 Penn State 10
• Orange Bowl: #2 Miami (FL) 20, #1 Oklahoma 14
• Hall of Fame Bowl: Michigan 28, Alabama 24
• Gator Bowl: #7 LSU 30, #9 South Carolina 13
• John Hancock Bowl: #11 Oklahoma State 35, West Virginia 33
• Holiday Bowl: #18 Iowa 20, Wyoming 19
• Freedom Bowl: Arizona State 33, Air Force 28
• Peach Bowl: #17 Tennessee 27, #21 Indiana 22
• All-American Bowl: Virginia 22, BYU 16
• Liberty Bowl: #15 Georgia 20, Arkansas 17
• Aloha Bowl: #10 UCLA 20, Florida 16
• Independence Bowl: Washington 24, Tulane 12
• California Bowl: Eastern Michigan 30, San Jose State 27

Final AP Poll

1. Miami, FL
2. Florida State
3. Oklahoma (Big 8 Champion)
4. Syracuse
5. LSU
6. Nebraska
7. Auburn (SEC Champion)
8. Michigan State (Big 10 Champion)
9. UCLA (Pac 10 Champion)
10. Texas A&M (SWC Champion)
11. Oklahoma State
12. Clemson (ACC Champion)
13. Georgia
14. Tennessee
15. South Carolina
16. Iowa
17. Notre Dame
18. Southern California
19. Michigan
20. Arizona State
21. Texas
22. Indiana

Heisman Trophy

1. Winner: Tim Brown, Notre Dame, Sr. WR
2. Don McPherson, Syracuse, Sr. QB
3. Gordie Lockbaum, Holy Cross, Sr. TB
4. Lorenzo White, Michigan State, Sr. TB
5. Craig Heyward, Pittsburgh, Jr. QB

Other Major Awards

• Maxwell (Player):Don McPherson, Syracuse
• Camp (Back): Tim Brown, Notre Dame
• O'Brein Award (QB): Don McPherson, Syracuse
• Rockne (Lineman): N/A
• Lombardi (Linebacker): Chris Spielman, Ohio State
• Outland (Interior): Chad Hennings, Air Force
• Coach of the Year:

Notes and References

• "1987 (12-0-0): Dominance From Start To Finish".
• "# 4: 1987 Florida State Seminoles". Florida College Sports. Tuesday, January 23, 2007. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
• "Great wins by LSU in the last 40+ years in football".