2007 BCS National Championship Game
The 2007 Tostitos BCS National Championship Game was an American football game played at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on January 8, 2007, and featured the top-ranked Big Ten champion Ohio State Buckeyes against the 2nd-ranked SEC champion Florida Gators. The Gators routed the Buckeyes by a final score of 41–14 to win their first national championship since 1996.
| 2007 Tostitos BCS National Championship Game | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| BCS Bowl Game | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | January 8, 2007 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2006 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | University of Phoenix Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Glendale, Arizona | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Offense: QB Chris Leak (Florida) Defense: DE Derrick Harvey (Florida) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Ohio State by 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National anthem | U.S. Military Academy Cadet Glee Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Jack Folliard (Pac-10) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Halftime show | Ohio State and Florida bands; Habitat for Humanity presentation | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 74,628 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | Fox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Thom Brennaman, Barry Alvarez, and Charles Davis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nielsen ratings | 17.4, 28.8M viewers, 27 share | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Buckeyes secured a spot by finishing the regular season undefeated and ranked #1 in the BCS. It was the first time the Buckeyes and Gators had ever met on the football field. The 12–1 Florida Gators earned a spot after defeating Arkansas in the SEC Championship Game in early December, and jumping from #4 to #2 in the final BCS Rankings, passing #3 Michigan and previous #2 USC.
The game was the first BCS National Championship Game to be televised on the Fox TV network, as well as the first time the BCS had held a standalone national championship game (previously, one of the 4 BCS bowls had served as the national championship game).