AP Trophy

Associated Press Trophy
The Associated Press Trophy that was awarded to the 1997 Michigan Wolverines
Awarded forthe Associated Press college football National Champion
CountryUnited States
Presented byAssociated Press
History
First award1936
Most recentMichigan

The Associated Press Trophy is the annual award given by the Associated Press (AP) to the team ranked No. 1 in the season's final AP Poll. The trophy is emblematic of the college football national championship as awarded by the Associated Press.

The current version of trophy consists of a silver or gold football suspended above a base which contains the letters "AP" (for Associated Press), along with the information on who the recipient of the trophy was.[1]

Until the 1968 college football season, the final AP poll of the season was released following the end of the regular season,[2] with the exception of the 1965 season.[3]

Prior to the College Football Playoff (CFP) and Bowl Championship Series (BCS), the NCAA had not held a tournament or championship game to determine the national champion of what is now the highest level, NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) due to the long-standing historical ties between individual college football conferences and high-paying bowl games like the Rose Bowl and Orange Bowl. The NCAA did, however, recognize a national champion based upon the final results of major "wire-service" (AP and Coaches') polls. The extent of that recognition came in the form of acknowledgment in the annual NCAA Football Guide of the "unofficial" national champions. As a result, the public and the media began to acknowledge the leading vote-getter in the final AP Poll as the national champion for that season.[4][5]

The Associated Press was not tied to the BCS, and the trophy could be awarded to a team which did not win the BCS National Championship Game. This has happened once after the 2003 season when LSU won the BCS title game, but USC received a higher total of votes in the final AP Poll, and therefore received the AP National Championship Trophy.[6] Teams serving NCAA postseason bans are still eligible for the AP National Championship. This has occurred twice, following the 1957 and 1974 seasons.[7][8]

  1. ^ College Football Awards: All National and Conference Winners Through 2010. McFarland. 31 August 2012. ISBN 9780786448678.
  2. ^ "Poll Matches Rose Foes – 'One-Two' Fracas Set". Moberly Monitor–Index. Moberly, Missouri. Associated Press. December 3, 1968. p. 8. Retrieved August 25, 2022. That Dream Match—the No. 1 team against the No. 2 outfit in the Rose Bowl—remained a reality today... but just barely. [...] Because the race is so tight, the final AP poll of the season won't be released until after the Jan. 1 bowl games.
  3. ^ Green, Bob (January 4, 1966). "Crimson Tide Named National Collegiate Football Champions — Third Title in Five Years". Fort Collins Coloradoan. Associated Press. Retrieved August 17, 2022. Ironically, when the Tide won last year, the poll was taken at the close of the regular season and 'Bama went on to lose to Texas in the Orange Bowl. This year the final poll of the season was conducted after the New Year's bowl games—the first time it had been held until after the bowls—because the six top teams were in action New Year's Day.
  4. ^ Sports in America from Colonial Times to the Twenty-First Century: An Encyclopedia: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. 26 March 2015. ISBN 9781317459477.
  5. ^ College Football Awards: All National and Conference Winners Through 2010. McFarland. 31 August 2012. ISBN 9780786448678.
  6. ^ Miller, Ted (May 20, 2008). "BCS system leaves long trail of wounded victims". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 20, 2008.
  7. ^ Irvine, Steve. "Defense, lobbying helped 1957 Auburn team to Tigers only national title". AL.com.
  8. ^ Tramel, Berry. "USC poll ban: OU football started it all". The Oklahoman.