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 #1	USC Trojans
Post-season
Duration	December 14, 2004 – January 4, 2005
Bowl games	33 (28 team-competitive and 5 all-star games)
Heisman Trophy	Matt Leinart, USC QB
Bowl Championship Series
2005 Orange Bowl
Site	Dolphin Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida
Winner	USC Trojans (vacated)
Division I-A football seasons
← 2003 2005 →

2004 ACC football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#10 Virginia Tech $		7	–	1		10	–	3
#15 Florida State		6	–	2		9	–	3
#11 Miami		5	–	3		9	–	3
#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 East football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#25 Pittsburgh $+		4	–	2		8	–	4
#21 Boston College +		4	–	2		9	–	3
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 football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#8 Iowa +		7	–	1		10	–	2
#14 Michigan $+		7	–	1		9	–	3
#17 Wisconsin		6	–	2		9	–	3
Northwestern		5	–	3		6	–	6
#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 Big 12 football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
Northern Division
Colorado xy		4	–	4		8	–	5
Iowa State x		4	–	4		7	–	5
Missouri		3	–	5		5	–	6
Nebraska		3	–	5		5	–	6
Kansas		2	–	6		4	–	7
Kansas State		2	–	6		4	–	7
Southern Division
#3 Oklahoma xy$		8	–	0		12	–	1
#5 Texas %		7	–	1		11	–	1
#18 Texas Tech		5	–	3		8	–	4
Texas A&M		5	–	3		7	–	5
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 Conference USA football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#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
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
East Division
Miami 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 Rankings from AP Poll

2004 Mountain West football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#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 football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#1 USC * $		8	–	0		13	–	0
#9 California		7	–	1		10	–	2
#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 SEC football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
Eastern Division
#13 Tennessee x		7	–	1		10	–	3
#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
#2 Auburn x$		8	–	0		13	–	0
#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

The 2004 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with several undefeated teams vying for a spot in the national title game, triggering controversy. 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 (this record was tied in 2009, when five teams also went undefeated and a sixth, Florida, lost to undefeated Alabama in the SEC title game). 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 started the season ranked #1 and #2, respectively, but the other three teams were handicapped by starting out of the top 15. Thus USC and OU played for the BCS National Championship, while Auburn, Utah, and Boise State had to content themselves with other bowl games.

The Orange Bowl proved a rout with USC defeating Oklahoma 55-19, which earned the Trojans their second consecutive AP title and first BCS title. This game, USC's victory over rival UCLA, and the BCS title were later vacated as part of the sanctions levied against USC as a result of an NCAA investigation. USC appealed the decision but was denied by the NCAA on May 26, 2011, and the BCS title for 2004 was officially vacated on June 6, 2011. The AP title was not vacated, as the AP does not punish teams for violations. These sanctions have been criticized by some NCAA football writers, including ESPN's Ted Miller, who wrote, "It's become an accepted fact among informed college football observers that the NCAA sanctions against USC were a travesty of justice, and the NCAA's refusal to revisit that travesty are a massive act of cowardice on the part of the organization."

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