25 college football records that will never be broken
Louisiana Tech wide receiver Troy Edwards entered the 1998 season with the momentum of one of the most productive seasons ever for a college receiver. The previous year, the junior caught 102 passes for a 1,707 yards (which led the nation) and 15 touchdowns. It carried over. Edwards began 1998 with the greatest single-game performance in NCAA history.
Facing the No. 4 Nebraska Cornhuskers in Lincoln, Edwards was unstoppable. The junior caught 21 passes (which was three short of the NCAA record set by Jerry Rice at Mississippi Valley State in 1983) for 405 yards and three touchdowns (of 94, 80 and 52 yards) in the 56-27 loss.
The 405 yards were 35 more than the all-division record at the time, which had been set in 1989 by Barry Wagner of Alabama A&M, and tied in 1991 by Princeton’s Michael Lerch. Interestingly, Edwards’ single-game receiving record was broken at the NCAA Division III level in 2002 when Principa receiver Lewis Howes recorded 418 yards in a game against Martin Luther. However, it’s difficult to imagine an instance in which anyone will surpass Edwards’ 405 receiving yards in an FBS game.
Edwards’ 405 yards was the first of several records Edwards set in 1998 before leaving school and becoming a first round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Edwards set an NCAA Division I record with 27 touchdown catches, which still stands, and also set the high water mark with 1,996 receiving yards. However, that record would last just one year.
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