IRVING, TEXAS (Feb. 6, 2025) - The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame sent the fabled MacArthur Bowl, the organization's national championship trophy for the Football Bowl Subdivision, to The Ohio State University, formally recognizing the 2024 Buckeyes and head coach Ryan Day as the 2024 national champions.
"The MacArthur Bowl is one of the most storied trophies in all of college football, representing excellence, perseverance, and the highest level of team achievement," said NFF President & CEO
Steve Hatchell. "Since 1959, it has honored the very best, and we are proud to engrave the name of the 2024 Ohio State Buckeyes alongside the greatest teams in the sport's history. Under Coach Ryan Day's leadership, this team demonstrated remarkable determination and championship-caliber play, earning their place among college football's elite. We are thrilled to present this trophy to The Ohio State University, Coach Day, his staff, and the 2024 national champions."
The NFF recognized Ohio State (14-2) as the recipient of the 2024 NFF MacArthur Bowl National Championship Trophy following the team's 34-23 victory over Notre Dame (14-2) in the College Football Playoff (CFP) National Championship Presented by AT&T before a sellout crowd of 77,660 fans on Jan. 20, 2025, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The name of the 2024 Buckeyes will now be etched alongside the greatest teams in college football history on the MacArthur Bowl Championship Trophy, marking the fifth time Ohio State has hit the milestone (1968, 1970, 2002, 2014 and now 2024). The trophy is housed at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta and has been presented since 1959.
The 2024 crown marks Ohio State's first MacArthur Bowl since 2014, having captured the trophy that year under head coach
Urban Meyer (whom the NFF announced on Jan. 15 as a member of the 2025 College Football Hall of Fame Class.) College Football Hall of Fame coaches
Jim Tressel (2002) and
Woody Hayes (1968 and 1970 as co-honoree) also had the names of their teams etched on the trophy's fabled archways.
Presented to every national champion since 1959, the MacArthur Bowl represents the pinnacle of team achievement in college sports, and each year during its 66-year history a new name has been etched alongside the greatest teams of all time. The trophy, a replica of a football stadium, features archways with space to engrave the names of 100 teams and miniature goal posts. The trophy was the gift of an anonymous donor, who commissioned Tiffany & Co. to craft it from 400 ounces of silver, in honor of early NFF leader General
Douglas MacArthur. It took eight months to make, and the trophy features MacArthur's famous quote: "There is no substitute for victory."
During college football's poll era, the NFF MacArthur Bowl Committee selected the recipient of the trophy. With the advent of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) in 1998, the national championship game has determined which team claimed the MacArthur Bowl, a tradition that continues under the College Football Playoff.
Ohio State, with two CFP national titles, now joins Alabama (3), Clemson (2) and Georgia (2) as the only schools to have multiple titles during the CFP era. Including the national titles presented before the creation of the MacArthur Bowl in 1959, Ohio State now claims a total of nine national titles in school history, adding titles in 1942, 1954, and 1957. (The Buckeyes count an FWAA title in 1961 during the poll era when the NFF recognized Alabama as the MacArthur Bowl recipient.)
Twenty-four different schools have claimed the MacArthur Bowl at least once during its 66-year history. Alabama has hoisted it the most, claiming it 10 times. Ohio State now ties Notre Dame for the second most wins with five each while Miami (FL), Southern California and Texas have each etched their names four times on the trophy. Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Nebraska and Oklahoma each boast three trophies. Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State have each won the trophy twice.
First presented in 1959, NFF National Champions and MacArthur Bowl recipients include: Syracuse 1959, Minnesota 1960, Alabama 1961, Southern California 1962, Texas 1963, Notre Dame 1964, Michigan State 1965, Michigan State/Notre Dame 1966, Southern California 1967, Ohio State 1968, Texas 1969, Ohio State/Texas 1970, Nebraska 1971, Southern California 1972, Notre Dame 1973, Southern California 1974, Oklahoma 1975, Pittsburgh 1976, Notre Dame 1977, Alabama 1978, Alabama 1979, Georgia 1980, Clemson 1981, Penn State 1982, Miami (FL) 1983, Brigham Young 1984, Oklahoma 1985, Penn State 1986, Miami (FL) 1987, Notre Dame 1988, Miami (FL) 1989, Colorado 1990, Washington 1991, Alabama 1992, Florida State 1993, Nebraska 1994, Nebraska 1995, Florida 1996, Michigan 1997, Tennessee 1998, Florida State 1999, Oklahoma 2000, Miami (FL) 2001, Ohio State 2002, LSU 2003, Vacated 2004, Texas 2005, Florida 2006, LSU 2007, Florida 2008, Alabama 2009, Auburn 2010, Alabama 2011, Alabama 2012, Florida State 2013, Ohio State 2014, Alabama 2015, Clemson 2016, Alabama 2017, Clemson 2018, LSU 2019, Alabama 2020, Georgia 2021, Georgia 2022, Michigan 2023 and Ohio State 2024.
