1999 NCAA Division I-A football season

The 1999 NCAA Division I-A football season saw Florida State named national champions, defeating Virginia Tech in the BCS Sugar Bowl.

Florida State became the first team in history to start out preseason No. 1 and remain there through the entire season. Their 12–0 season gave them 109 victories in the '90s, the most for any decade. Virginia Tech also had a remarkable season behind freshman quarterback Michael Vick, who was being touted as college football's best player.

Vick was outshone in the national championship game by Florida State wide receiver Peter Warrick. Warrick had early problems with the law, charged with a misdemeanor he sat out two games early in the season. But he scored three touchdowns in the title game, earning MVP honors.

The BCS adopted a new rule after the previous season, nicknamed the "Kansas State Rule," which stated that any team ranked in the top four in the final BCS poll is assured of an invitation to a BCS bowl game.

Many teams faced debacles. East Carolina faced Hurricane Floyd, and in that same week, faced the No. 9 Miami Hurricanes. The Pirates were down, 23–3, but scored 24 unanswered points to win the football game, 27–23.

Kansas State finished 6th in the BCS standings but again received no BCS bowl invitation, this time being passed over in favor of Michigan (ranked eighth). Kansas State's predicament demonstrated early on the problem of trying to balance historic bowl ties and creating a system which gives top bowl bids to the most deserving teams. In addition, for a second straight season, a team from outside the BCS Automatic Qualifying conferences (Marshall) went undefeated but did not receive a bid to a BCS bowl game, which illustrated the problem of BCS Non-Automatic Qualifying conference teams being shut out of the BCS bowls.

Rule changes
The NCAA Rules Committee adopted the following changes for the 1999 season:
 Holding penalties committed behind the line of scrimmage will be enforced from the previous spot, modifying a 1991 rule that penalized holding (as well as illegal use of hands and clipping) committed behind the scrimmage line from the spot of the foul.
 The penalty for intentional grounding was changed from a five-yard penalty from the spot of the foul plus loss-of-down to simply a loss-of-down at the spot of the foul.
 Bandannas that are visible are considered illegal equipment.
 Offensive teams may not break a huddle with 12 or more players.
 Continuing action dead-ball fouls against both teams are disregarded, however any disqualified players must leave the game.

Conference and program changes
Two teams upgraded from Division I-AA, thus increasing the number of Division I-A schools from 112 to 114.

The Mountain West Conference was formed prior to the season by eight former members of the Western Athletic Conference.
Arkansas State joined the Big West Conference as its seventh member after three seasons as an independent.
Two schools made the move up to Division I-A football this season: the University at Buffalo and Middle Tennessee State University.

Conference changes

Program changes
Two programs, each playing as independents, changed their names prior to the season:
After Northeast Louisiana University changed its name to the University of Louisiana at Monroe, the Northeast Louisiana Indians became the Louisiana–Monroe Indians.
Similarly, after the University of Southwestern Louisiana changed its name to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, the Southwestern Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns became the Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns.

Regular Season

August–September
In the preseason AP Poll, No. 1 Florida State was followed by No. 2 Tennessee, the team which had defeated them in last year’s championship game. The top five were rounded out by No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Arizona, and No. 5 Florida.

August 28: No. 1 Florida State beat Louisiana Tech 41-7, and No. 3 Penn State blasted No. 4 Arizona by the same 41-7 score in the Pigskin Classic. The other highly-ranked teams had not begun their seasons, and the next AP Poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Tennessee, No. 4 Florida, and No. 5 Nebraska (who moved up from sixth place).

September 4: No. 1 Florida State was idle. No. 2 Penn State posted another blowout win, 70-24 over Akron. No. 3 Tennessee began their schedule with a 42-17 defeat of Wyoming, No. 4 Florida beat Western Michigan 55-26, and No. 5 Nebraska won 42-7 at Iowa. The top five remained the same in the next poll.

September 11: No. 1 Florida State got past No. 10 Georgia Tech by a 41-35 score. No. 2 Penn State had an even closer call, needing a late field goal and a block of a potential game-tying kick with time running out to preserve a 20-17 win over rival Pittsburgh. No. 3 Tennessee was idle. No. 4 Florida beat Central Florida 58-27, and No. 5 Nebraska shut out California 45-0. The next poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Tennessee, and No. 3 Penn State, with Florida and Nebraska tied at No. 4.

September 18: No. 1 Florida State beat No. 20 North Carolina State 42-11. No. 2 Tennessee visited No. 4 Florida, whom they had defeated in 1998 after several frustrating losses earlier in the decade. This time, the Gators went back on top in a 23-21 squeaker. No. 3 Penn State edged past No. 8 Miami as the Nittany Lions followed a crucial fourth-down stop with a 79-yard touchdown pass to win 27-23. No. 4 Nebraska dropped out of the top five after struggling to beat Southern Mississippi 20-13. A tie-breaking safety proved to be the key play in No. 6 Michigan’s 18-13 win at Syracuse, while No. 7 Texas A&M overwhelmed Tulsa 62-13. The next poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Florida, No. 4 Michigan, and No. 5 Texas A&M.

September 25: No. 1 Florida State visited North Carolina for a 42-10 victory, No. 2 Penn State defeated Indiana 45-24, and No. 3 Florida won 38-10 at Kentucky. No. 4 Michigan held eventual Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne without a single rushing yard in the second half of the Wolverines’ 21-16 victory at No. 20 Wisconsin. No. 5 Texas A&M beat Southern Mississippi 23-6, and the top five remained the same in the next poll.

October
October 2: No. 1 Florida State beat Duke 51-23. No. 2 Penn State was idle. No. 3 Florida hosted No. 21 Alabama for a thriller in which the Crimson Tide’s Shaun Alexander ran for four touchdowns, including game-tying scores both at the end of regulation and in overtime. Alabama missed the extra point on the latter touchdown, but an offsides penalty gave their kicker a second chance, and this time he converted the point-after for a 40-39 finish which was Florida’s first loss at home in five years. No. 4 Michigan defeated No. 11 Purdue 38-12, but No. 5 Texas A&M was upset 21-19 by Texas Tech. No. 6 Nebraska won 38-14 over Oklahoma State, and No. 8 Virginia Tech pulled off a 31-7 victory at No. 24 Virginia. The next poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Virginia Tech.

October 9: No. 1 Florida State hosted No. 19 Miami and won 31-21, while No. 2 Penn State visited Iowa for a 31-7 victory. No. 3 Michigan fell 34-31 to No. 11 Michigan State as the Spartans’ Bill Burke and Plaxico Burress set school records for passing and receiving yards. No. 4 Nebraska defeated Iowa State 49-14, and No. 5 Virginia Tech won 58-20 at Rutgers. The next poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Virginia Tech, and No. 5 Michigan State.

October 16: No. 1 Florida State beat Wake Forest 33-10, and No. 2 Penn State defeated No. 18 Ohio State 23-10. No. 3 Nebraska was idle. No. 4 Virginia Tech overwhelmed No. 16 Syracuse 62-0; not only did the Hokies’ offense put on a show, but the defense also returned two fumbles and an interception for touchdowns. No. 5 Michigan State lost 52-28 at No. 20 Purdue. No. 6 Tennessee was idle, but nevertheless moved back into the top five: No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Virginia Tech, and No. 5 Tennessee.

October 23: Clemson coach Tommy Bowden nearly pulled off an upset against his father Bobby’s top-ranked Florida State team, but the Seminoles escaped with a 17-14 victory. No. 2 Penn State looked ineffective on offense, but the Nittany Lions converted three turnovers into touchdowns in a 31-25 win at No. 16 Purdue which moved coach Joe Paterno into third place on the all-time wins list. No. 3 Nebraska also struggled to hold onto the ball, losing three fumbles (including a crucial one at their opponent’s 2-yard line) in a 24-20 loss at No. 18 Texas. No. 4 Virginia Tech was idle. No. 5 Tennessee visited No. 10 Alabama for a 21-7 win, and idle No. 6 Florida returned to the top five: No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 3 Virginia Tech, No. 4 Tennessee, and No. 5 Florida. The first BCS standings, released after this weekend’s games, had the same top four but placed Kansas State at No. 5.

October 30: No. 1 Florida State won 35-10 at Virginia, No. 2 Penn State went to Illinois for a 27-7 victory, No. 3 Virginia Tech was a 30-17 winner at Pittsburgh, No. 4 Tennessee beat South Carolina 30-7, and No. 5 Florida defeated No. 10 Georgia 30-14. The top five remained the same in the AP Poll, and Florida’s big victory was sufficient to move the Gators from sixth to fourth place in the BCS standings.

November
November 6: No. 1 Florida State was idle. Unranked Minnesota completed a 4th-and-16 pass to set up a game-winning field goal and stun No. 2 Penn State 24-23; after their hot start, the Nittany Lions would lose all of their remaining regular-season games by a touchdown or less. Another thriller took place in Morgantown, where No. 3 Virginia Tech led West Virginia 19-7 with five minutes left but then allowed two Mountaineers touchdowns in quick succession. In a last-ditch effort, Michael Vick led the Hokies on a 58-yard drive resulting in a field goal which put them back on top 22-20 as time expired. No. 4 Tennessee beat No. 24 Notre Dame 38-14, No. 5 Florida escaped Vanderbilt 13-6, and No. 6 Kansas State held off Colorado 20-14. The next AP Poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Virginia Tech, No. 3 Tennessee, No. 4 Florida, and No. 5 Kansas State; the BCS standings had Tennessee second and Virginia Tech third.

November 13: No. 1 Florida State defeated Maryland 49-10. No. 2 Virginia Tech beat No. 19 Miami 43-10. No. 3 Tennessee blew a fourth-quarter lead to Arkansas and lost 28-24, while No. 4 Florida won 20-3 at South Carolina to clinch a spot in the SEC Championship Game. No. 5 Kansas State fell 41-15 at No. 7 Nebraska. No. 9 Wisconsin breezed past Iowa 41-3 to win the Big Ten title and a spot in the Rose Bowl. The next AP Poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Virginia Tech, No. 3 Florida, No. 4 Nebraska, and No. 5 Wisconsin, while the BCS standings had Nebraska third, Florida fourth, and Tennessee fifth.

November 20: Undefeated No. 1 Florida State visited one-loss No. 3 Florida with a spot in the national title game likely at stake, and the Seminoles prevailed 30-23. No. 2 Virginia Tech, the only other undefeated squad in the major conferences, blew out Temple 62-7. No. 4 Nebraska was idle, and No. 5 Wisconsin had already finished their schedule. The next AP Poll featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Virginia Tech, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Wisconsin, and No. 5 Florida; the BCS standings ranked Tennessee fourth rather than Wisconsin.

November 26: No. 1 Florida State, No. 4 Wisconsin, and No. 5 Florida had all finished their schedules. No. 2 Virginia Tech completed their undefeated season with a 38-14 defeat of No. 22 Boston College. No. 3 Nebraska blew a 27-3 fourth-quarter lead over Colorado and gave the Buffaloes a chance to win in regulation, but a missed field goal sent the game to overtime. After Colorado opened the extra period with a field goal, Eric Crouch’s one-yard touchdown run gave the Cornhuskers a 33-30 win and a berth in the Big 12 Championship Game. The top five remained the same in the next AP Poll; the BCS standings had Florida fourth and Tennessee fifth.

December
December 4: In the Big 12 Championship Game, No. 3 Nebraska faced No. 12 Texas, the only team that had defeated them in the regular season. The Cornhuskers redeemed themselves this time, breezing to a 22-6 victory. The SEC Championship Game between No. 5 Florida and No. 7 Alabama had a much more surprising result. After the favored Gators scored the first touchdown, the Crimson Tide ran off 34 points in a row on their way to a 34-7 victory. The final AP Poll of the regular season featured No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 Virginia Tech, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Wisconsin, and No. 5 Alabama; the final BCS standings had the same top three, Alabama fourth, and Tennessee fifth.

As the only two unbeaten teams in the major conferences, No. 1 Florida State and No. 2 Virginia Tech were the obvious choices to play for the national championship in the Sugar Bowl. No. 3 Nebraska drew No. 6 Tennessee, who earned an at-large BCS bid, in the Fiesta Bowl. The Rose Bowl featured the usual Big Ten/Pac-10 matchup between No. 4 Wisconsin and No. 22 Stanford. No. 8 Michigan, who finished second in the Big Ten, got the other at-large spot and faced No. 5 Alabama in the Orange Bowl. For the second year in a row, No. 7 Kansas State was kept out of the BCS bowls despite having just one loss; the Wildcats’ opponent would be Washington in the Holiday Bowl. No. 11 Marshall, who finished undefeated but was not part of a major conference, went up against Brigham Young in the Motor City Bowl.

Regular season top 10 matchups
Rankings reflect the AP Poll. Rankings for Week 9 and beyond will list BCS Rankings first and AP Poll second. Teams that failed to be a top 10 team for one poll or the other will be noted.
Week 0
No. 3 Penn State defeated No. 4 Arizona, 41–7 (Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania)
Week 2
No. 1 Florida State defeated No. 10 Georgia Tech, 41–35 (Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee, Florida)
Week 3
No. 3 Penn State defeated No. 8 Miami, 27–23 (Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida)
No. 4 Florida defeated No. 2 Tennessee, 23–21 (Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida)
Week 6
No. 6 Tennessee defeated No. 10 Georgia, 37–20 (Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Week 8
No. 5 Tennessee defeated No. 10 Alabama, 21–7 (Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, Alabama)
Week 9
No. 6/5 Florida defeated No. NR/10 Georgia, 30–14 (Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida)
Week 11
No. 6/7 Nebraska defeated No. 5/5 Kansas State, 41–15 (Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska)
No. 9/11 Alabama defeated No. 10/8 Mississippi State, 19–7 (Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, Alabama)
Week 12
No. 1/1 Florida State defeated No. 4/3 Florida, 30–23 (Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida)
Week 14
No. 7/7 Alabama defeated No. 4/5 Florida, 34–7 (1999 SEC Championship Game, Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia)

Conference standings

Bowl games

Rankings from final regular season AP poll

BCS bowls
Sugar Bowl: No. 1 Florida State (BCS No. 1, ACC Champ) 46, No. 2 Virginia Tech (BCS No. 2, Big East Champ) 29
Orange Bowl: No. 8 Michigan (At Large) 35, No. 5 Alabama (SEC Champ) 34 (OT)
Rose Bowl: No. 4 Wisconsin (Big 10 Champ) 17, No. 22 Stanford (Pac-10 Champ) 9
Fiesta Bowl: No. 3 Nebraska (Big 12 Champ) 31, No. 6 Tennessee (At Large) 21

Other New Years Day bowls
Cotton Bowl Classic: No. 24 Arkansas 27, No. 12 Texas (Big 12 Runner Up) 6
Florida Citrus Bowl: No. 9 Michigan State 37, No. 10 Florida (SEC Runner Up) 34
Outback Bowl: No. 21 Georgia 28, No. 19 Purdue 25 (OT)
: No. 23 Miami 28, No. 17 Georgia Tech 13

December bowl games
Peach Bowl: No. 16 Mississippi State 17, Clemson 7
: Illinois 63, Virginia 21
Sun Bowl: Oregon 24, No. 13 Minnesota 20
Alamo Bowl: No. 14 Penn State* 24, No. 18 Texas A&M 0
Insight.com Bowl: Colorado 62, No. 25 Boston College 28
Holiday Bowl: No. 7 Kansas State 24, Washington 20
: No. 15 Southern Mississippi (C-USA Champ) 23, Colorado State 17
Aloha Bowl: Wake Forest 23, Arizona State 3
Oahu Bowl: Hawaii-Manoa (WAC Champ) 23, Oregon State 17
Independence Bowl: Mississippi 27, Oklahoma 25
Music City Bowl: Syracuse 20, Kentucky 13
Las Vegas Bowl: Utah 17, Fresno State 16
: No. 11 Marshall (MAC Champ) 21, BYU (MWC Champ) 3
Humanitarian Bowl: Boise State (Big West Champ) 34, Louisville 31
Mobile Alabama Bowl: TCU 28, No. 20 East Carolina 14

Final polls

Heisman Trophy voting
The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player

Other major awards
Maxwell Award (College Player of the Year) – Ron Dayne, Wisconsin
Walter Camp Award (Back) – Ron Dayne, Wisconsin
Davey O'Brien Award (Quarterback) – Joe Hamilton, Georgia Tech
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (Senior Quarterback) – Chris Redman, Louisville
Doak Walker Award (Running Back) – Ron Dayne, Wisconsin
Fred Biletnikoff Award (Wide Receiver) – Troy Walters, Stanford
Bronko Nagurski Trophy (Defensive Player) – Corey Moore, Virginia Tech, DE
Chuck Bednarik Award – LaVar Arrington, Penn State
Dick Butkus Award (Linebacker) – LaVar Arrington, Penn State
Lombardi Award (Lineman or Linebacker) – Corey Moore, Virginia Tech, DE
Outland Trophy (Interior Lineman) – Chris Samuels, Alabama, OT
Jim Thorpe Award (Defensive Back) – Tyrone Carter, Minnesota
Lou Groza Award (Placekicker) – Sebastian Janikowski, Florida St.
Paul "Bear" Bryant Award – Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech
Football Writers Association of America Coach of the Year Award – Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech

References