This is the fourteenth post in our 24-part Super Squad Series, recognizing the best programs over the last three years in every single Division I FBS & FCS Conference, as well as the upperclassmen & staff who’ve anchored them.
Full updated rankings after last week‘s rundown of Ivy League programs:
About Super Squad Rating
Super Squad Ratings range 0-100, heavily-weighed toward zero. A 100.0 rating is only achievable for a team that finishes #1 in College Football all three years, with a 100+ power rating each year. The top three 2020 Super Squads rate in at 78, 57, and 47, respectively.
Best thought of as a notoriety score:
“How many normal people out of 100 should recognize this program’s success the last three years?”
EXAMPLE
Consider an SSR (Super Squad Rating) of 78 to abstractly mean that program deserves 78% of Americans’ attention.
Conversely a program with a 1.1 SSR would be worth the attention of only 11 out of 1,000 Americans.
Stepping back first into September 1, 2007:
It still ills me – a starry-eyed 19 year old Freshman standing for over 3 hours in Section 31 at the Big House to watch my #5 national title-contender team of returning Wolverine greats and future NFL talents like Chad Henne, Mike Hart, Mario Manningham and Jake Long play a surprisingly-close opener to a decent FCS…“AND WHAAAAAAAAT??? LOSE?????????…TO WHOOO?!?!?!” – oops, trauma.
Sorry…again:
It still ills me to recognize our next well-earned Super Squad title winner.
If you’re unfamiliar with the historic day described poorly above, YouTube creator KTO gives a much greater visual re-telling of that and the rest of the 2007 insanity that ensued. (included at bottom)
The unprecedented impact of that single contest on the entire trajectories of both schools still remains unmatched.
But let’s not overshadow the accomplishments of the stellar young men recognized below (who were only 6-9 years old at that time…damn).
To further credit our winner Appalachian State (then and now), being ‘Cinderella’ in 2007 wasn’t quite enough…
The program steadily-rose from being nationally-quiet ‘FCS Immortals‘ circa 2005, straight-past ‘Cinderella, Wolverine Killer‘ in ’07 – and now with multiple consecutive league titles (let’s dub that phase “Sun Belt Supreme Leader“) – in only one and a half decades.
Kudos ‘Neers Nation for your spectacular and steady rise! And especially to these 54 young men playing all three seasons – 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20 – to earn this Super Squad title:
CONGRATULATIONS Corey Sutton, Darrynton Evans, Thomas Hennigan, Desmond Franklin, Jacob Huesman, Josh Thomas, Shemar Jean-Charles, Tim Frizzell, Tanner Wilson, Jeremy Level, Jalen Virgil, Steven Jones, Zac Thomas, Kaiden Smith, Malik Williams, Shaun Jolly, Daetrich Harrington, Noel Cook, Ryan Huff, Jace Frisbee, Akeem Davis-Gaither, Matthew McQuinn, Marcus Williams Jr., Clayton Howell, Tanner Ellenberger, Xavier Subotsch, Demetrius Taylor, Blythe Hall, Baer Hunter, D’Marco Jackson, Matt Williams, Elijah Diarrassouba, Ryan Neuzil, Jordan Fehr, Noah Hannon, Ivan Reyes, Will Hardin, Gage Blackston, Will Israel, Logan Wright, Cole Garrison, Victor Johnson, Jake Henry, Joe Hartung, Michael Queen, Collin Reed, Cameron Pack, Chris Willis, Tommy Dawkins, Chandler Staton, George Blackstock, Markell Clark, Caleb Spurlin, E.J. Scott.
Before getting too caught-up in our winners’ accolades, these are their runners-up, from worst-to-first:
10th
#213 Texas State Bobcats
2.5 Super Squad Rating
Record:
8-28 Overall
4-20 Sun Belt
Average Power:
35.7
Yearly Finish:
#233, #210, #182
9th
#198 South Alabama Jaguars
2.9 Super Squad Rating
Record:
9-27 Overall
4-20 Sun Belt
Average Power:
39.9
Yearly Finish:
#186, #191, #197
8th
#171 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
3.4 Super Squad Rating
Record:
13-23 Overall
6-18 Sun Belt
Average Power:
43.3
Yearly Finish:
#220, #153, #140
7th
#160 Georgia State Panthers
3.7 Super Squad Rating
Record:
16-21 Overall
10-14 Sun Belt
Average Power:
45.9 Avg
Yearly Finish:
#163, #178, #117
6th
#151 Louisiana Monroe Warhawks
3.9 Super Squad Rating
Record:
15-21 Overall
12-12 Sun Belt
Average Power:
47.2
Yearly Finish:
#170, #151, #118
5th
#113 Georgia Southern Eagles
5.0 Super Squad Rating
Record:
19-19 Overall
13-11 Sun Belt
Average Power:
52.2
Yearly Finish:
#214, #60, #88
4th
#108 Louisiana Rajin’ Cajuns
5.1 Super Squad Rating
Record:
23-17 Overall
16-8 Sun Belt
Average Power:
52.1
Yearly Finish:
#210, #116, #41
3rd
#101 Arkansas State Red Wolves
5.4 Super Squad Rating
Record:
23-15 Overall
16-8 Sun Belt
Average Power:
54.9
Yearly Finish:
#129, #86, #97
2nd
#85 Troy Trojans
6.1 Super Squad Rating
Record:
26-12 Overall
17-7 Sun Belt
1 Sun Belt Title
(shared 2017)
Average Power:
57.2
Yearly Finish:
#63, #66, #145
WINNER
#31 Appalachian State Mountaineers
11.0 Super Squad Rating
Record:
33-7 Overall
21-3 Sun Belt
3 Sun Belt Titles
(2017 shared, 2018-2019)
Average Power:
68.2
Yearly Finish:
#62, #34, #25
With 5 straight bowl wins, 4 straight Sun Belt Titles, and the steady-rising history I griped about earlier, this week’s choice was obvious.
Congratulations all Mountaineer coaches, staff, administrators, players, and especially the 54 young men present on the roster all three years that earned this title!
Super Squad Rankings
These are our up-to-date Division I Super Squad rankings after this week’s announced winner. Follow along as each Sunday we fill in more teams and announce our next Super Squad!
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As Promised
Ladies & Gentlemen, the CRAZIEST College Football season of all time, kicked off by events still creating ripples today:
Did you watch that fateful 2007 game? Were you on the happy side or the home side? What do you remember from that day?
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