The Five Most Unbreakable Records In College Football
People have always believed that records are meant to be broken, but the best records are made to never be broken. Multiple records have continued to stand the test of time and may never be touched in this age of college football.
Historic records like Barry Bonds’ home run record, Emmitt Smith’s rushing record, and LeBron James’ scoring record may never be threatened. But what are the unbreakable records for college football?
This sport has existed for more than 100 years, so it has seen many changes over the years. We take a look at the five most unbreakable records in college football.
Oklahoma’s 47-game winning streak
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College football has had multiple different dynasties over the years, but there has not been a more dominant dynasty than the Oklahoma Sooners throughout the 1950s. The Sooners won 47 straight games over five seasons (1953-1957), which led to two national championships and 22 shutouts.
The only winning streak that has threatened this record was Miami’s dominant run from 2000-03. The Hurricanes won 34 games in a row but still fell 13 games short of the impressive run by the Sooners under legendary head coach Bud Wilkinson.
Combined Offensive Yards In One Game (1,708)
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In 2016, Oklahoma and Texas Tech combined for an incredible 1,708 yards of total offense in a 66-59 shootout in Lubbock. Both teams were led by future NFL stars at quarterback and recorded an identical 854 yards of total offense. Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes completed 52-of-88 passes for 734 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. He added 85 yards rushing and two scores in the losing effort. Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield threw for 545 yards and a school-record seven touchdowns.
Mahomes’ total yardage (819) also set an NCAA record, which could also be an unbreakable record. Mayfield and Mahomes also combined to set the FBS record for combined yardage by two players in a single game at 1,383.
Rushing yards allowed per game (17)
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This record may never be broken due to the evolution of the game, but no team will ever be as dominant against the run as Penn State in 1947. Under head coach Bob Higgins, the Nittany Lions only allowed 17 rushing yards per game.
Penn State finished the season 9-0-1 after making a run to the Cotton Bowl against SMU, which ended in a 13-13 tie. The Nittany Lions also only allowed 4.0 points per game while having the No. 2 ranked offense in the nation. Offenses are too explosive in this age of college football for this record to be in danger of being broken.
Career Receiving Yards (5,278)
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This one could be debatable, but with elite receivers only spending three years at the college level, this record may never be broken in this age of college football. Another wrinkle is the transfer portal, which could also keep any player from breaking this record.
Western Michigan wide receiver set the career receiving record with 5,285 yards over four seasons. He is one of only two wide receivers to surpass the 5,000-yard mark in his career and still holds the record by over 200 yards. Davis recorded three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and over 900 receiving yards as a true freshman.
Games With 300 Rushing Yards Or More In A Season (4)
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Oklahoma State’s Barry Sanders may have had the most legendary career of any running back in college football history. He set multiple NCAA records, all of which could be included in this list, but there is one that seems unbreakable in this age of college football.
In Sanders’ Heisman-winning season, he rushed for over 300 yards in four games. He rushed for 332 yards against Texas Tech, 320 yards against Kansas State, 312 yards against Kansas, and another 304 yards against Tulsa. Four 300-yard games is also the record for a career, which makes this one of the most unbreakable records in college football.