College football’s 150th anniversary: The 150 best moments that stood the test of time

60. Winston-Led Comeback Ends SEC Streak (2014)

Entering the final season of the Bowl Championship Series, the SEC had won each of the previous seven national championship games. As the college football world prepared to enter a new era with the inauguration of the College Football Playoff, it looked like the conference was prepared to make it eight in a row as Auburn snatched one of the two spots in the final BCS title game.

Gus Malzahn’s Tigers found themselves up against Florida State, who had stormed through the regular season and won the ACC with the only perfect record in the FBS. Led by Heisman winner Jameis Winston, the Seminoles averaged 53 points per game as they ran away with the conference title. But it was Auburn that found themselves up early, storming to a 21-10 halftime lead.

Florida State chipped away at the lead in the second half, as Winston threw a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes and Kermit Whitfield ripped off a 100-yard kickoff return that neutralized an Auburn field goal. The Tigers regained the lead with 1:19 remaining, but Winston engineered a game-winning drive culminating in a short touchdown pass to Kelvin Benjamin with 13 seconds left. Time ran out on Auburn, and the SEC streak died in Pasadena in the final game of the BCS era.

59. Jack Trice Mortally Wounded in Minnesota (1923)

A young tackle at Iowa State, Jack Trice was a groundbreaker for his time. Trice was the first African-American to suit up for the Cyclones on the college football field, slotting in at tackle on both sides of the ball. He played his first college game on the last weekend of September 1923, participating in a win over visiting Simpson College from nearby Indianola.

The big test for Trice was to come the following week when Iowa State headed north to Minneapolis to face Minnesota. Iowa State served as the season-opening test for the Golden Gophers, who were coming off a disappointing three-game losing streak to end the 1922 season. It would prove to be the last game Trice would ever play.

On the second snap of the game, a rough finish left Trice with a broken collarbone. He played through the pain until in the third quarter he was trampled by several Minnesota players. Trice died of internal bleeding and hemorrhaged lungs two days after the contest. While it has never been proven that Trice was targeted by the Golden Gophers for his skin color, the enmity from the game led Iowa State to cancel its series with Minnesota for 65 years.

58. Darryl Hill Breaks ACC Color Barrier (1963)

When Darryl Hill arrived at the University of Maryland in 1962, he had already played for several schools — including breaking the color barrier on the football team at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. His arrival in College Park, however, helped drive progress toward ending segregation in football below the Mason-Dixon Line.

Recruited by assistant coach Lee Corso to become a groundbreaker in the ACC, Hill eventually relented when he realized the import of the offer. Due to transfer rules, he was forced to sit out the 1962 season. During that time, he developed his skills as a wide receiver and bided his time until he finally had the chance to get back on the gridiron.

That landmark moment came on Sept. 21, 1963, in a home game against NC State. Fans and even opposing coaches hurled epithets at the African-American star, but his teammates rallied in support and demanded to stay together only in desegregated hotels when playing on the road. By the end of the year, Hill finished only five receptions shy of the ACC season record in his lone season as a pioneer for integration in southern college football.