October 16 in college football
Every October 16 in Iron's archive: the ranked teams that lost to unranked ones, the ranked matchups, and the games worth retelling. Every result links to its game card.
- 1,113games on file
- 33unranked wins over ranked teams
- 28ranked vs ranked meetings
- 1900–2025seasons covered
Unranked over ranked on October 16
The 33 such results, best rank beaten first; the top 14 are listed.
| Season | Winner | Ranked loser | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Purdue 24 | #2 Iowa 7 | On the road · Kinnick Stadium · Iowa City, Iowa |
| 1982 | Tennessee 35 | #2 Alabama 28 | At home |
| 2010 | Texas Longhorns 20 | #5 Nebraska Cornhuskers 13 | On the road |
| 1965 | Florida State 10 | #5 Georgia 3 | At home |
| 1976 | Iowa State 21 | #7 Missouri 17 | On the road |
| 2008 | TCU Horned Frogs 32 | #9 BYU Cougars 7 | At home · Amon Carter Stadium |
| 1982 | Arizona 16 | #9 Notre Dame 13 | On the road |
| 1954 | Pittsburgh 21 | #9 Navy 19 | At home |
| 2010 | Kentucky Wildcats 31 | #10 South Carolina Gamecocks 28 | At home |
| 1965 | Memphis 33 | #10 Mississippi State 13 | At home |
| 1948 | Tulane 20 | #10 Ole Miss 7 | At home |
| 1971 | Oregon State 24 | #11 Arizona State 18 | At home |
| 1994 | Rice 19 | #12 Texas 17 | At home |
| 1982 | Ohio State 26 | #15 Illinois 21 | On the road |
Ranked vs ranked on October 16
28 meetings in all; the ten with the highest-ranked team are listed.
| Season | Winner | Loser | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | #1 Georgia 30 | #11 Kentucky 13 | At home · Sanford Stadium · Athens, Georgia |
| 2010 | #18 Wisconsin Badgers 31 | #1 Ohio State Buckeyes 18 | At home |
| 2004 | #1 USC Trojans 45 | #15 Arizona State Sun Devils 7 | At home · LA Coliseum |
| 1993 | #1 Florida State 40 | #15 Virginia 14 | At home |
| 1965 | #3 Arkansas 27 | #1 Texas 24 | At home |
| 1999 | #2 Penn State 23 | #18 Ohio State 10 | At home |
| 1971 | #2 Oklahoma 45 | #6 Colorado 17 | At home |
| 1954 | #2 Wisconsin 20 | #5 Purdue 6 | At home |
| 1948 | #4 Michigan 28 | #3 Northwestern 0 | At home |
| 1999 | #4 Virginia Tech 62 | #16 Syracuse 0 | At home |
One-score finishes between ranked teams
Decided by three points or fewer.
| Season | Winner | Loser | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | #3 Arkansas 27 | #1 Texas 24 | 3 pts |
| 1993 | #19 Auburn 38 | #4 Florida 35 | 3 pts |
| 2004 | #10 Wisconsin Badgers 20 | #5 Purdue Boilermakers 17 | 3 pts |
Top-10 teams routed
The widest losses by a team ranked in the top ten.
| Season | Winner | Ranked loser | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | #7 Florida State Seminoles 36 | #6 Virginia Cavaliers 3 | 33 pts |
| 1948 | #4 Michigan 28 | #3 Northwestern 0 | 28 pts |
| 1971 | #2 Oklahoma 45 | #6 Colorado 17 | 28 pts |
| 2008 | TCU Horned Frogs 32 | #9 BYU Cougars 7 | 25 pts |
| 1999 | #20 Purdue 52 | #5 Michigan State 28 | 24 pts |
Biggest comebacks
Deficit the winner erased. Measured from in-game margins where play data exists, cross-checked against quarter scores; a row prints only when the quarter lines corroborate it, so this list starts in 2000.
| Season | Winner | Loser | Trailed by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Eastern Ky. 38 | Central Ark. 35 | 22 ptsin game |
| 2021 | Buffalo 27 | Ohio 26 | 21 ptsin game |
| 2010 | Eastern Michigan Eagles 41 | Ball State Cardinals 38 | 21 ptsin game |
| 2021 | Florida A&M 35 | Alabama A&M 31 | 18 ptsin game |
| 2010 | Kentucky Wildcats 31 | #10 South Carolina Gamecocks 28 | 18 ptsin game |
Highest-scoring games
Combined points, both teams.
| Season | Winner | Loser | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #7 Auburn Tigers 65 | #12 Arkansas Razorbacks 43 | 108 pts |
| 2021 | Davidson 70 | Presbyterian 35 | 105 pts |
| 1915 | Vanderbilt 100 | Henderson State 0 | 100 pts |
| 1909 | The Citadel 99 | Porter Military 0 | 99 pts |
| 2021 | Princeton 56 | Brown 42 | 98 pts |
Biggest crowds
Announced attendance.
| Season | Winner | Loser | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | #13 Ole Miss 31 | Tennessee 26 | 102,455 |
| 2021 | #12 Oklahoma St. 32 | #25 Texas 24 | 99,916 |
| 2021 | LSU 49 | #20 Florida 42 | 96,012 |
| 1993 | #5 Ohio State 28 | #25 Michigan State 21 | 93,989 |
| 2004 | #12 Georgia Bulldogs 33 | Vanderbilt Commodores 3 | 92,746 |