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Clemson has cleared its biggest hurdles and is being penciled into the playoffs. At this point, it's becoming very easy to take winning for granted, and forget to enjoy the journey as we anxiously await watching this team play for Championships in Charlotte and hopefully Phoenix.
After seeing Michigan State slip up against Nebraska this Saturday, we take a look at some of the biggest dream dashing upsets of the past decade. These are stark reminders of why teams must always be focused on the game at hand and why fans should never assume victory or take winning for granted.
#2 West Virginia Blows National Championship Bid Against Pittsburgh (2007)
2007 was a crazy football season. Kentucky beat #1 LSU (the eventual national champions) in 3OT during the regular season. South Florida reached #2 in the country before losing to Rutgers, and West Virginia blew an almost sure invitation to the BCS National Championship.
On December 1st, the Mountaineers just had to take care of business at home against a mediocre 4-7 Panther team. LeSean McCoy rushed the ball 38 times for 148 yards and West Virginia missed two field goals in a low possession plotting game. The offense didn't score in the second half and their dream season evaporated against their lowly rival.
#1 USC Trojans Chopped Down by Beavers on Thursday Night (2008)
To this day, my trepidation about Thursday night road games spawns from this game. Oregon State entered as a 25-point underdog and was still dominating the Pac-10.
Speedy running back Jaquizz Rodgers led the Beavers to a 21-0 halftime lead over the #1 ranked team in the country. Pete Carrol's rushing attack only collected 86 total yards as the #1 Trojans while the offense centered around Mark Sanchez throwing them back into the game. They outscored the Beavers 21-6 in the second half, but it wasn't enough.
That would be the Trojan's only loss on the season and it would send them to the Rose Bowl rather than the BCS National Championship game.
#2 Oklahoma State Blinks in Double Overtime to Iowa State (2012)
Lastly and most recently, we saw Oklahoma State blow their chance at glory against the Iowa State Cyclones. Brandon Weeden threw for 476 yards, but also threw three picks as the offense committed five turnovers. The Cowboy offense was very pass happy (58 passes to 18 rushes). Iowa State however pounded the ball for 192 yards on the ground. The Cowboys were 27-point favorites, but blew their national title dreams and allowed Alabama to rematch LSU and win the National Championship.