Memorable Moments: Raising The Trophy 15 Times

There have been 15 football conference championships at CSU since 1915, and five times the Aggies or Rams have won back-to-back titles. One of the more difficult tasks in any sport is to win consecutive championships, winning three or more is even more difficult. We look back at those 10 seasons which garnered great players and national attention on CSU's football program.

The first back-to-back championships were the first championships in school history, taking place in the 1915 and 1916 seasons. The 1915 team, led by star halfback Ralph "Sag" Robinson went undefeated and untied during a season that had a lopsided scoring total of 243-31. Over the span of those seven games, the Aggies scored an average of 34.7 points per game to their opponent's 4.4. The Aggies continued the onslaught in 1916, not losing any games but a scoreless tie against the tough Colorado Mines team left them with a 6-0-1 record.

The second back-to-back championships took place in 1919 and 1920 when coach Harry Hughes guided his Aggies to a 13-2-1 record over both seasons to capture his fourth championship in six seasons. Led by the likes of William Nye, Duane Hartshorn and Charles Bresnahan, these teams were even more dominant. The only two losses were one on the last game of the 1919 season when the team arrived on Thanksgiving Day in a snowstorm at Colorado College late. The other was a very respectable 7-0 loss to Nebraska in 1920, and a tie came against CU.

Harry Hughes won his seventh and eighth conference championships in 1933 and 1934, both by a three-way tie. Led by outstanding halfback Wilbur "Little Red" White and the stellar receiving of end Glenn Morris, the Depression Era Aggies fought hard in Hughes' last seasons before Aggies football fell down.

It was not until 1994, when second-year head coach Sonny Lubick shocked the football world by winning the first seven games of the season. The season included what may be the greatest upset in school history, a win over No. 6 Arizona in Tucson, and a famous fake punt in the Wyoming game that led to a come-from-behind win at Hughes Stadium on national television. The Rams won their first WAC championship in 1994 and ended the season at 10-2, the first 10-win season in school history. With greats like Greg Myers, Anthoney Hill, Sean Moran, Brady Smith and a plethora of talent on both sides of the ball, the 1994 team ranks as one of the greatest to ever take the field at CSU.

Many of the 1994 Rams returned in 1995, similar to how Hughes' teams won their consecutive titles, and led a tough season in which four teams tied for the conference championship. The Rams, with a 6-2 conference record, tied with Air Force, BYU and Utah for the first and only four-way tie for the championship in WAC and CSU history. The season was highlighted by Myers not only being named a first-team All-American defensive back, but he won the Thorpe Award, the first time in school history any player had been recognized with a national individual award. Myers also won the Honda Scholar-Athlete of the year award; he could play on the field and study in the classroom too. Despite the four-way tie, CSU was the chosen school to play in the Holiday Bowl, the WAC bowl game for the season champions.

Those two teams of 1994 and 1995 took CSU football to heights it had never known before by showcasing the Rams on ESPN often and gaining recruits no other team could get. CSU football was suddenly brought into the national spotlight, other schools tried to poach Lubick from the Rams, but he held steadfast to stay in Fort Collins. Former Ram tight end and Colorado Rockies executive Keli McGregor spoke in a 2008 interview how he stepped into a cab in New York City only to find out the driver knew about the successful CSU football team because he watched them on national television. No other time in school history was CSU in the limelight more than 1994 to 1999.

By 1999, CSU's success along with schools like BYU, Utah and Air Force created the Mountain West conference. During that first season of the new conference, the Rams found themselves in a three-way tie with BYU and Utah for the conference championship. With Lubick at the helm, he guided players such as quarterback Matt Newton, receivers Pete Rebstock, Dallas Davis and Frank Rice. Always a defensive-minded team too, the Rams boasted players like Clark Haggans, Greg Pollard, Ula Tuitele and Rick Crowell. Many are in CSU's Hall of Fame; others were outstanding stalwarts for a team which would not quit.

In 2000, the Rams came back with vengeance playing with nearly the same group of athletes and won the Mountain West outright. A dominating 10-2 overall record and tough loss to Air Force that prevented a perfect conference season led to an exciting 22-17 win in the Liberty Bowl to cap off the last back-to-back champions in school history.

The theme behind all five back-to-back championships is returning players who play well together. From the teams of over 110 years ago to 1999 and 2000, each time CSU won consecutive championships, the teams had returning players that made the difference in the games they played. CSU is still looking for its first "three-peat" championships and entrance into the Pac-12 might see a record for Rams football.

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