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The 50 greatest college football teams throughout history

By Nate Williamson

Ed Orgeron, Joe Burrow, Grant Delpit, LSU Tigers. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
Ed Orgeron, Joe Burrow, Grant Delpit, LSU Tigers. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) /
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Best college football teams of all-time:
(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Allsport/Getty Images) /

9. Best college football teams of all-time: 1988 Notre Dame

It’s no secret to any football fan that Notre Dame is one of the best college football programs of all time. No matter the era, no matter the coach and nearly no matter the players, Notre Dame continues to be a force in all of college football.

The 1988 Fighting Irish was coached by legendary Lou Holtz who led the team to a National Championship while becoming (at that point) the only undefeated 12-0 Notre Dame team in history. This year’s installment of the Fighting Irish defeated No. 1 Miami, No. 2 USC and No. 3 West Virginia defeating the two latter teams in a row and both by more than 10 points.

The consensus national champion in the 1988 season, this Fighting Irish team featured two future first round picks, seven second round picks and a total of 31 future NFL players

The team also featured five All-Americans, including consensus pick Michael Stonebreaker (appropriately named) in the interior linebacker position. One of the team’s defensive tackles, Chris Zorich, would be inducted into the college hall of fame in 2007, followed by his head coach Lou Holtz one year later.