3. 1999 Florida State Seminoles (12-0, 8-0 ACC)
The season: The Seminoles were nearly eliminated from the national championship race in their second game. Led by quarterback Joe Hamilton, Georgia Tech nearly knocked off No. 1 FSU before losing 41-35. Hamilton threw a 22-yard touchdown to Kelly Campbell to pull the Yellow Jackets to within six points, but the Seminoles recovered the ensuing onside kick. After winning their next three games against No. 20 NC State, North Carolina and Duke by at least 28 points, the Seminoles hosted No. 19 Miami at Doak Campbell Stadium. The score was tied 21-21 at the half, but FSU's defense threw a shutout in the second half of a 31-21 victory, its fifth win in a row over the Hurricanes. FSU rolled Virginia 35-10 and Maryland 49-10 before facing Florida on the road in the regular-season finale. The Gators led 16-13 in the third quarter before quarterback Chris Weinke led the Seminoles to a tying field goal and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter of a 30-23 victory.
Signature moment: FSU coach Bobby Bowden won his 300th game with a 17-14 victory at Clemson in the eighth game of the season. It was the first father-son coaching matchup in major college football history, as Tommy Bowden coached the Tigers. The Seminoles trailed 14-3 at the half before rallying with two second-half touchdowns. FSU won when Clemson's Tony Lazzara missed a 42-yard field goal with 1:57 to play.
The championship game: Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Vick nearly led the Hokies to an improbable national championship, but FSU receiver Peter Warrick wouldn't let it happen. Warrick scored on two long pass receptions, a 59-yard punt return and a two-point conversion to set a Sugar Bowl record with 20 points. Warrick caught six passes for 163 yards. His punt return for a touchdown gave FSU a 28-7 lead with 11:40 to play in the first half. But led by Vick's dazzling running, the Hokies stormed back to take a 29-28 lead going into the fourth quarter. After FSU went ahead 39-29, the Hokies tried a fake punt but were stopped short of the first down. On the next play, Weinke fired a 43-yard touchdown to Warrick to make it 46-29 with 7:42 to play. The Seminoles turned the tables on "Beamer Ball," blocking a punt for a touchdown and snuffing out a fake field goal attempt.
The stars: It wasn't FSU's most talented team, but it was the only squad to finish unbeaten. Weinke, a 27-year-old junior who went to FSU after a minor league baseball career, completed 61.5 percent of his passes for 3,103 yards with 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He won the Heisman Trophy the next season. Warrick might have won the 1999 Heisman Trophy, but he was suspended three games for shoplifting. Warrick still caught 71 passes for 934 yards with eight touchdowns and scored on three runs and one punt return. The FSU defense, led by All-America nose tackle Corey Simon, was solid but unspectacular. Kicker Sebastian Janikowski was a two-time Lou Groza Award winner and led the ACC in scoring with 10.5 points per game in 1999.
Why they're No. 3: The Seminoles became the first team to start and finish a season ranked No. 1 in the AP poll. It was a fitting end to the 1990s for FSU. The Noles had a 109-13-1 record during the 10-year stretch, which is the most wins by a team in any decade in college football history.
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