2004 NCAA Division I-A football season

2004 NCAA Division I-A season
Heisman Trophy won by Matt Leinart for the 2004 season
Number of teams	117 full members + 2 transitional
Preseason AP No. 1	USC
Postseason
Duration	December 14, 2004 – January 4, 2005
Bowl games	28
Heisman Trophy	Matt Leinart (quarterback, USC)
Bowl Championship Series
2005 Orange Bowl
Site	Dolphin Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida
Champion(s)	None
Division I-A football seasons
←  2003 2005  →

The 2004 NCAA Division I-A football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The regular season began on August 28, 2004 and ended on December 4, 2004. The postseason concluded on January 4, 2005 with the Orange Bowl, which served as the season's Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship Game.

USC defeated Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl by a score of 55–19, which earned the Trojans their second consecutive AP title and first-ever BCS title. The Orange Bowl win and accompanying BCS title were later vacated as part of the sanctions levied against USC following an NCAA investigation. The Coaches Poll and FWAA titles were also vacated. USC appealed the decision but was denied by the NCAA, and the 2004 BCS title was officially vacated on June 6, 2011. 2004 is the only season in the BCS era not to have a national champion. ^[1]

Rule changes

The NCAA Rules Committee adopted the following rule changes for the 2004 season:

• Instant replay would make its debut in college football, as the Big Ten Conference began to use it on a one-year experimental basis. ^[2]
• Officials are allowed to announce the number of a player committing a penalty, similar to the NFL.
• Modifying the rule regarding offensive substitutions made and rushing to snap the ball before the defense can make their changes; eliminating the five yard penalty for the first offense (but stopping play and warning the offensive team), but maintaining the 15 yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for further violations.
• Allowing the head coach to request a time-out.
• Allowing the receiving team the option to enforce encroachment penalties on punts/kickoffs either from the end of the return or from the previous line of scrimmage, requiring a re-kick.
• Leaping on PAT/Field Goal attempts is prohibited.
• Defensive pass interference will not be called when a kicker throws a ball high and downfield to simulate a pass.
• Roughing the passer will not be called if a defensive player is blocked into the passer.

Conference changes

Main article: 2005 NCAA conference realignment

Prior to the 2004 season, Miami (FL) and Virginia Tech left the Big East Conference to join the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), giving the ACC 11 members. Connecticut joined the Big East after having been an Independent since ascending to Division I-A in 2000. Troy State also left their Independent status and joined the Sun Belt Conference. Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University moved up from Division I-AA and became I-A Independents.^{[ citation needed ]} Florida A&M also briefly attempted to move up to Division I-A and become the only HBCU at college football's highest level, but the team was forced to abort its bid. ^[3]

School	2003 Conference	2004 Conference
Connecticut Huskies	I-A Independent	Big East
Florida Atlantic Owls	I-AA Independent	I-A Independent
Florida International Panthers	I-AA Independent	I-A Independent
Miami Hurricanes	Big East	ACC
Troy State Trojans	I-A Independent	Sun Belt
Virginia Tech Hokies	Big East	ACC

Regular season top 10 matchups

Rankings reflect the AP Poll. Rankings for Week 8 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 2
  • No. 5 Miami defeated No. 4 Florida State, 16–10 ^OT (Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida)
• Week 5
  • No. 8 Auburn defeated No. 10 Tennessee, 34–10 (Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tennessee)
• Week 6
  • No. 1 USC defeated No. 7 California, 23–17 (Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California)
  • No. 2 Oklahoma defeated No. 5 Texas, 12–0 (Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas)
• Week 7
  • No. 7 Florida State defeated No. 6 Virginia, 36–3 (Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee, Florida)
  • No. 10 Wisconsin defeated No. 5 Purdue, 20–17 (Ross-Ade Stadium, West Lafayette, Indiana)
• Week 11
  • No. 3/3 Auburn defeated No. 8/8 Georgia, 24–6 (Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, Alabama)
• Week 14
  • No. 12/10 Virginia Tech defeated No. 10/9 Miami, 16–10 (Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida)

BCS Controversy

Undefeated teams

In the 2003 season, no team finished the regular season unbeaten, and five teams finished the season with one loss. In 2004, the situation became even more complicated, as five teams went without losing, a record in the BCS era (later tied in 2009). USC of the Pac-10, Oklahoma of the Big 12, Auburn of the SEC, Utah of the MWC, and Boise State of the WAC all finished the regular season undefeated. USC and Oklahoma were ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the preseason by both the AP and Coaches Polls, but the other three undefeated teams were handicapped by starting the season out of the top 15. Thus USC and OU played for the BCS National Championship in the Orange Bowl, while Auburn, Utah, and Boise State had to settle for other bowl games.

Auburn played in the Sugar Bowl and beat Virginia Tech, the ACC champion and ranked No. 8 by the BCS. Utah became the first BCS Buster and beat Pittsburgh, the champion of the Big East and ranked No. 21, in the Fiesta Bowl. Boise State lost a close, high scoring game in the Liberty Bowl to Louisville, the No. 10 ranked Conference USA champion.

As with previous seasons, fans of successful teams left out of BCS bowls were disappointed. Auburn, Utah, and Boise State all went unbeaten but were not offered a chance to compete for the BCS championship. Auburn was especially the focus of national media attention on this topic, since Auburn managed to go undefeated in the traditionally tough SEC. Adding to the frustration with the BCS system was that Auburn and Utah, though both picked to play in BCS bowl games, would not be able to play each other as a match-up of highly ranked unbeatens. This confluence of events made 2004 a seminal year for serious momentum building behind a multi-team playoff system in college football, which would later be realized with the advent of the College Football Playoff in 2014.

USC was forced to vacate its BCS title win, along with its regular-season victory over rival UCLA, due to NCAA sanctions that stemmed from the USC athletics scandal. The AP title was not vacated, as the AP does not punish teams for violations. The severity of these sanctions has since been criticized by some pundits across college football. ^{[4] [5] [6] [7] [8]}

Rose Bowl

Controversy also arose in selecting the second at-large team of the BCS after Utah. California expected to get the invitation, having been ranked fourth by the BCS entering the last week of the regular season. Texas, which had been left out of the BCS the previous season, was ranked fifth. Both teams finished with 10–1 records, but the Longhorns received a boost of support from poll voters in the final regular season rankings to overtake Cal and move into the fourth position, which ensured they would also receive the final at-large bid. Texas coach Mack Brown was criticized for publicly politicking voters to put Texas ahead of California, and Cal coach Jeff Tedford called for coaches' votes to be made public. Texas went on to defeat Michigan in the Rose Bowl, while California lost to Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl. Much of the pre-bowl criticisms of Texas being given the spot vs. Michigan evaporated when the Longhorns and Wolverines produced an instant classic game that was marked by a breakthrough performance by Vince Young and a Texas FG as time expired to give them a 38–37 victory.

AP Poll

The Associated Press, as a result of two consecutive seasons of BCS controversy, prohibited the BCS from using their poll as part of its ranking formula following the 2004 season. The AP poll was replaced by the Harris Interactive poll starting in 2005, and the AP continues to award its own national championship trophy.

In another first, the LSU Tigers lost to the Iowa Hawkeyes on a last second Hail Mary pass in the Capital One Bowl, becoming the first school to lose a non-BCS bowl a year after winning the BCS National Championship Game.

Conference standings

2004 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 10 Virginia Tech $   7 – 1     10 – 3   No. 15 Florida State   6 – 2     9 – 3   No. 11 Miami (FL)   5 – 3     9 – 3   No. 23 Virginia   5 – 3     8 – 4   North Carolina   5 – 3     6 – 6   Georgia Tech   4 – 4     7 – 5   Clemson   4 – 4     6 – 5   NC State   3 – 5     5 – 6   Maryland   3 – 5     5 – 6   Wake Forest   1 – 7     4 – 7   Duke   1 – 7     2 – 9   $ – BCS representative as conference champion Rankings from AP Poll	2004 Big 12 Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   North Division Colorado xy   4 – 4     8 – 5   Iowa State x   4 – 4     7 – 5   Nebraska   3 – 5     5 – 6   Missouri   3 – 5     5 – 6   Kansas   2 – 6     4 – 7   Kansas State   2 – 6     4 – 7   South Division No. 3 Oklahoma xy$   8 – 0     12 – 1   No. 5 Texas  %   7 – 1     11 – 1   Texas A&M   5 – 3     7 – 5   No. 18 Texas Tech   5 – 3     8 – 4   Oklahoma State   4 – 4     7 – 5   Baylor   1 – 7     3 – 8   Championship: Oklahoma 42, Colorado 3 $ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll	2004 Big East Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 21 Boston College +   4 – 2     9 – 3   No. 25 Pittsburgh $+   4 – 2     8 – 4   West Virginia +   4 – 2     8 – 4   Syracuse +   4 – 2     6 – 6   Connecticut   3 – 3     8 – 4   Rutgers   1 – 5     4 – 7   Temple   1 – 5     2 – 9   $ – BCS representative as conference champion + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll
2004 Big Ten Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 14 Michigan $+   7 – 1     9 – 3   No. 8 Iowa +   7 – 1     10 – 2   No. 17 Wisconsin   6 – 2     9 – 3   Northwestern   5 – 3     6 – 6   No. 20 Ohio State   4 – 4     8 – 4   Purdue   4 – 4     7 – 5   Michigan State   4 – 4     5 – 7   Minnesota   3 – 5     7 – 5   Penn State   2 – 6     4 – 7   Illinois   1 – 7     3 – 8   Indiana   1 – 7     3 – 8   $ – BCS representative as conference champion + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll	2004 Conference USA football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 6 Louisville $   8 – 0     11 – 1   Memphis   5 – 3     8 – 4   Southern Miss   5 – 3     7 – 5   Cincinnati   5 – 3     7 – 5   UAB   5 – 3     7 – 5   TCU   3 – 5     5 – 6   Tulane   3 – 5     5 – 6   South Florida   3 – 5     4 – 7   Houston   3 – 5     3 – 8   East Carolina   2 – 6     2 – 9   Army   2 – 6     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll	2004 Mid-American Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   East Division Miami (OH) x   7 – 1     8 – 5   Akron   6 – 2     6 – 5   Marshall   6 – 2     6 – 6   Kent State   4 – 4     5 – 6   Ohio   2 – 6     4 – 7   Buffalo   2 – 6     2 – 9   UCF   0 – 8     0 – 11   West Division Toledo xy$   7 – 1     9 – 4   Northern Illinois x   7 – 1     9 – 3   Bowling Green   6 – 2     9 – 3   Eastern Michigan   4 – 4     4 – 7   Central Michigan   3 – 5     4 – 7   Ball State   2 – 6     2 – 9   Western Michigan   0 – 8     1 – 10   Championship: Toledo 35, Miami 27 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant
2004 Mountain West Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 4 Utah $   7 – 0     12 – 0   New Mexico   5 – 2     7 – 5   BYU   4 – 3     5 – 6   Wyoming   3 – 4     7 – 5   Air Force   3 – 4     5 – 6   Colorado State   3 – 4     4 – 7   San Diego State   2 – 5     4 – 7   UNLV   1 – 6     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion and BCS representative as top non-AQ school to meet automatic qualification criteria Rankings from AP Poll	2004 Pacific-10 Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 1 USC † $   8 – 0     13 – 0   No. 9 California   7 – 1     10 – 2   No. 19 Arizona State   5 – 3     9 – 3   Oregon State   5 – 3     7 – 5   UCLA   4 – 4     6 – 6   Oregon   4 – 4     5 – 6   Washington State   3 – 5     5 – 6   Stanford   2 – 6     4 – 7   Arizona   2 – 6     3 – 8   Washington   0 – 8     1 – 10   $ – Conference champion † – USC later vacated 2 wins (1 in conference), as well as the BCS and Pac-10 championships, due to NCAA sanctions. Rankings from AP Poll	2004 Southeastern Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Eastern Division No. 13 Tennessee x   7 – 1     10 – 3   No. 7 Georgia   6 – 2     10 – 2   Florida   4 – 4     7 – 5   South Carolina   4 – 4     6 – 5   Kentucky   1 – 7     2 – 9   Vanderbilt   1 – 7     2 – 9   Western Division No. 2 Auburn x$   8 – 0     13 – 0   No. 16 LSU   6 – 2     9 – 3   Alabama   3 – 5     6 – 6   Arkansas   3 – 5     5 – 6   Ole Miss   3 – 5     4 – 7   Mississippi State   2 – 6     3 – 8   Championship: Auburn 38, Tennessee 28 $ – BCS representative as conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll
2004 Sun Belt Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   North Texas $   7 – 0     7 – 5   Troy State   4 – 2     7 – 5   New Mexico State   3 – 2     5 – 6   Middle Tennessee   4 – 4     5 – 6   Louisiana–Monroe   3 – 3     5 – 6   Arkansas State   3 – 4     3 – 8   Louisiana–Lafayette   2 – 5     4 – 7   Utah State   2 – 5     3 – 8   Idaho   2 – 5     3 – 9   $ – Conference champion	2004 Western Athletic Conference football standings v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 12 Boise State $   8 – 0     11 – 1   UTEP   6 – 2     8 – 4   No. 22 Fresno State   5 – 3     9 – 3   Louisiana Tech   5 – 3     6 – 6   Hawaii   4 – 4     8 – 5   Nevada   3 – 5     5 – 7   Tulsa   3 – 5     4 – 8   SMU   3 – 5     3 – 8   Rice   2 – 6     3 – 8   San Jose State   1 – 7     2 – 9   $ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll	2004 NCAA Division I-A independents football records v t e Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 24 Navy   –     10 – 2   Notre Dame   –     6 – 6   Florida A&M   –     3 – 8   Rankings from AP Poll

I-AA team wins over I-A teams

Italics denotes I-AA teams.

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Ref.
September 4	Florida Atlantic	Hawaii	Aloha Stadium • Hālawa, Hawaii	35–28 OT	39,390	[9]
September 11	Florida Atlantic	North Texas	Fouts Field • Denton, Texas	20–13	15,803	[9]
September 11	No. 19 (I-AA)  New Hampshire	Rutgers	Rutgers Stadium • Piscataway, New Jersey	35–24	31,615	[9]
September 18	Florida Atlantic	Middle Tennessee	Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium • Murfreesboro, Tennessee	27–20	13,348	[9]
September 18	No. 15 (I-AA)  Maine	Mississippi State	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi	9–7	43,486	[9]
September 25	Eastern Illinois	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, Michigan	31–28		[9]
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game.

• Note: Florida Atlantic was transitioning from I-AA to I-A.

Final AP Poll

Utah Utes fans rush the field and carry the goalpost after defeating rival BYU, completing a perfect regular season, and becoming the first BCS Buster by clinching a spot in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl (hence the sombrero).

Main article: 2004 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

1. USC (11–0)*
2. Auburn (13–0)
3. Oklahoma (12–1)
4. Utah (12–0)
5. Texas (11–1)
6. Louisville (11–1)
7. Georgia (10–2)
8. Iowa (10–2)
9. California (10–2)
10. Virginia Tech (10–3)
11. Miami (9–3)
12. Boise State (11–1)
13. Tennessee (10–3)
14. Michigan (9–3)
15. Florida State (9–3)
16. LSU (9–3)
17. Wisconsin (9–3)
18. Texas Tech (8–4)
19. Arizona State (9–3)
20. Ohio State (8–4)
21. Boston College (9–3)
22. Fresno State (9–3)
23. Virginia (8–4)
24. Navy (10–2)
25. Pittsburgh (8–4)

* USC finished the season with a 13–0 record but was forced to vacate two wins in 2010 as a result of NCAA sanctions.

Bowl games

Main article: 2004–05 NCAA football bowl games

BCS bowls

Rankings given are AP rankings going into bowl games

• Orange Bowl: No. 1 (BCS No. 1) USC 55, No. 2 (BCS No. 2) Oklahoma 19 (vacated due to NCAA violations)
• Rose Bowl: (At Large) No. 6 Texas 38, (Big Ten Champ) No. 13 Michigan 37
• Fiesta Bowl: (At Large, MWC Champ) No. 5 Utah 35, (Big East Co-Champ) No. 19 Pittsburgh 7
• Sugar Bowl: (SEC Champ) No. 3 Auburn 16, (ACC Champ) No. 9 Virginia Tech 13

Other New Years Day bowls

• Cotton Bowl Classic: No. 15 Tennessee 38, No. 22 Texas A&M 7
• Capital One Bowl: No. 11 Iowa 30, No. 12 LSU 25
• Gator Bowl: No. 17 Florida State 30, West Virginia 18
• Outback Bowl: No. 8 Georgia 24, No. 16 Wisconsin 21

December bowl games

UCLA vs. Wyoming in the 2004 Las Vegas Bowl

• Peach Bowl: No. 14 Miami (FL) 27, No. 20 Florida 10
• Houston Bowl: Colorado 33, UTEP 28
• Liberty Bowl: (C-USA Champ) No. 7 Louisville 44, (WAC Champ) No. 10 Boise State 40
• MPC Computers Bowl: Fresno State 37, No. 18 Virginia 34 (OT)
• Continental Tire Bowl: No. 25 Boston College 37, North Carolina 24
• Independence Bowl: Iowa State 17, Miami (Ohio) 13
• Silicon Valley Classic: Northern Illinois 34, Troy State 21
• Sun Bowl: No. 21 Arizona State 27, Purdue 23
• Music City Bowl: Minnesota 20, Alabama 16
• Holiday Bowl: No. 23 Texas Tech 45, No. 4 California 31
• Emerald Bowl: Navy 34, New Mexico 19
• Alamo Bowl: No. 24 Ohio State 33, Oklahoma State 7
• Insight Bowl: Oregon State 38, Notre Dame 21
• Champs Sports Bowl: Georgia Tech 51, Syracuse 14
• Motor City Bowl: UConn 39, (MAC Champ) Toledo 10
• Hawaii Bowl: Hawaii 59, UAB 40
• Fort Worth Bowl: Cincinnati 32, Marshall 14
• Las Vegas Bowl: Wyoming 24, UCLA 21
• GMAC Bowl: Bowling Green 52, Memphis 35
• New Orleans Bowl: Southern Miss 31, (SBC Champ) North Texas 10

Heisman Trophy voting

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

Player	School	Position	1st	2nd	3rd	Total
Matt Leinart	USC	QB	267	211	102	1,325
Adrian Peterson	Oklahoma	RB	154	180	175	997
Jason White	Oklahoma	QB	171	149	146	957
Alex Smith	Utah	QB	98	112	117	635
Reggie Bush	USC	RB	118	80	83	597
Cedric Benson	Texas	RB	12	41	69	187
Jason Campbell	Auburn	QB	21	24	51	162
J. J. Arrington	California	RB	10	33	19	115
Aaron Rodgers	California	QB	8	14	15	67
Braylon Edwards	Michigan	WR	3	13	27	62

Other major awards

• Walter Camp Award (top player): Matt Leinart, USC
• Maxwell Award (top player): Jason White, Oklahoma
• AP Player of the Year: Matt Leinart, USC
• Lombardi Award (top linebacker): David Pollack, Georgia
• John Mackey Award (tight end): Heath Miller, Virginia
• Doak Walker Award (running back): Cedric Benson, Texas
• Chuck Bednarik Award (defensive player): David Pollack, Georgia
• Outland Trophy (interior lineman): Jammal Brown, Oklahoma
• Davey O'Brien Award (quarterback): Jason White, Oklahoma
• Johnny Unitas Award (Sr. quarterback): Jason White, Oklahoma
• Fred Biletnikoff Award (wide receiver): Braylon Edwards, Michigan
• Jim Thorpe Award (defensive back): Carlos Rogers, Auburn
• Lou Groza Award (placekicker): Mike Nugent, Ohio State
• Ray Guy Award (punter): Daniel Sepulveda, Baylor
• Paul "Bear" Bryant Award (Coach of the Year): Tommy Tuberville, Auburn
• The Home Depot Coach of the Year Award: Urban Meyer, Utah
• Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award: Paul Johnson, Navy

Attendances

Average home attendance top 3:

Rank	Team	Average
1	Michigan Wolverines	111,025
2	Tennessee Volunteers	106,644
3	Ohio State Buckeyes	104,876

Source: ^[10]

See also

• BCS controversies#2004–05 season

References

1. Lingard, Michael (April 24, 2024). "USC Still Frosty Despite Reggie Bush Getting Heisman Back". Fox Sports Radio. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
2. Pointer, Michael (August 4, 2004). "Big Ten reveals instant replay details". Usatoday.Com. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
3. Powell, Robert Andrew (October 9, 2004). "Florida A&M Tries to Recover From Failed Bid". New York Times. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
4. Jay Bilas, "Anyone know what NCAA's standards are?", ESPN.com , July 1, 2010.
5. Bryant Gumbel, "Student/Athlete Behavior", Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel , September 21, 2010.
6. Bryan Fischer, " Trojans never stood a chance after taking NCAA's best shot" Archived 2012-01-21 at the Wayback Machine , CBSSports.com , May 26, 2011.
7. Pete Fiutak, "USC paying for NCAA's inconsistency?", FoxSports.com , May 26, 2011.
8. Stewart Mandel, "What USC's sanctions mean for Ohio State", SportsIllustrated.com , April 27, 2011.
9. "FCS wins vs. FBS teams: All-time victories, upsets, wins vs. ranked teams". NCAA.com. September 7, 2025. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
10. https://s3.amazonaws.com/fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/Attend.pdf ^{[ bare URL PDF ]}