Rocky Mountain High for Colorado Football

MIAMI —  Colorado, which overcame controversy, close calls and a crucial injury, won its first national championship in college football today.

The Buffaloes, who edged Notre Dame 10-9 in the Orange Bowl, beat out Georgia Tech for the No. 1 ranking in the final Associated Press poll of sportswriters and broadcasters.

Colorado (11-1-1) and Georgia Tech (11-0-1) were ranked 1-2 going into the bowls, and they remained that way after the bowls. The Yellow Jackets beat Nebraska, 45-21, in the Citrus Bowl and finished as the only major unbeaten team, but they couldn’t overtake a Colorado squad that finished the season with 10 straight wins.

“What a tremendous moment it is for our school, our kids, the state of Colorado and the city of Boulder,” Colorado Coach Bill McCartney said.

Colorado received 39 first-place votes and 1,475 points, while Tech got 20 first-place votes and 1,441 points. The 34-point margin was the fifth-closest since the AP went to a postseason poll in 1968.

Miami, which demolished Texas in the Cotton Bowl, 46-3, rose from fourth to third with one first-place vote and 1,388 points. The Hurricanes (10-2) fell just short of becoming the first team in college football history to finish first or second for five consecutive seasons.

THE TOP 25 The top 25 teams in the final AP college football poll; first-place votes in parentheses. 1. Colorado (39) 11-1-1

2. Georgia Tech (20) 11-0-1

3. Miami, Fla. (1) 10-2-0

4. Florida State 10-2-0

5. Washington 10-2-0

6. Notre Dame 9-3-0

7. Michigan 9-3-0

8. Tennessee 9-2-2

9. Clemson 10-2-0

10. Houston 10-1-0

11. Penn State 9-3-0

12. Texas 10-2-0

13. Florida 9-2-0

14. Louisville 10-1-1

15. Texas A&M; 9-3-1

16. Michigan State 8-3-1

17. Oklahoma 8-3-0

18. Iowa 8-4-0

19. Auburn 8-3-1

20. USC 8-4-1

21. Mississippi 9-3-0

22. Brigham Young 10-3-0

23. Virginia 8-4-0

24. Nebraska 9-3-0

25. Illinois 8-4-0