The top 10 Group of Five teams from the last 10 years

The consensus among predictors, prognosticators and know-it-alls in attendance at the American Athletic Conference media days is that South Florida, now run by Charlie Strong, is the class of the league.

It’s not a crazy thought. For example: USF went 11-2 last fall, its final season under Willie Taggart; returns 16 starters, tied for most in the American; and draws Illinois, Temple, Houston and Tulsa at home. So it’s not crazy, right?

In honor of the American media day — and its night-before event, the only clambake in the Football Bowl Subdivision — this week’s top 10 list asks the question: What are the 10 best Group of Five teams from the past 10 years? (Team’s rank in final Amway Coaches Poll in parentheses.)

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1 (TIE). 2009 Boise State: 14-0 (No. 4)

This team would beat Oregon in its opener and win just one game by fewer than 10 points during an unbeaten regular season. It had Kellen Moore at quarterback. Chris Petersen on the sidelines. One of the nation’s premier defensive backs in Kyle Wilson. In its bowl game, Boise would knock off undefeated TCU 17-16 to secure a top-five finish. Amazingly, the Broncos had just five seniors on the roster, the fewest in the FBS. This was a great team. But the Broncos can’t hold this spot alone …

1 (TIE). 2010 TCU: 13-0 (No. 2)

The 2010 Horned Frogs share the honor. In going unbeaten, TCU would knock off Oregon State, Baylor, Brigham Young and Utah in the regular season, and then win a class Rose Bowl with a late goal-line stand to top Wisconsin. OK, but the Broncos and Horned Frogs need to share the honor …

1 (TIE). 2008 Utah: 13-0 (No. 4)

The list of wins in the regular season included Michigan — though the Wolverines were miserable in Rich Rodriguez’s first season — Oregon State, TCU and BYU. But the Utes didn’t earn a degree of national respect until the Sugar Bowl, when they ran through, around and over Alabama to finish unbeaten.

4. 2009 TCU: 12-1 (No. 7)

The only loss came in that aforementioned one-point defeat to Boise State. The Horned Frogs’ wins, meanwhile, featured Power Five opponents Virginia and Clemson, and imposing conference foes Utah and BYU.

5. 2010 Boise State: 12-1 (No. 7)

Picking between 2010 and 2011 Boise State isn’t easy — both lost just once, in heartbreakers defined by kicking failures, and featured many of the same cast of characters as the 2009 team, notably Moore and Petersen. The 2010 squad gets the nod, but not by much.

6. 2011 Boise State: 12-1 (No. 7)

The Broncos missed yet another perfect season by the narrowest of margins. A year earlier, it was an overtime loss to Nevada that crushed Boise, at the time ranked No. 3 nationally. In 2011, the Broncos couldn’t complete another makeable kick in a 36-35 loss to TCU.

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7. 2015 Houston: 13-1 (No. 8)

The most recent entry on this list, Houston’s 13-1 season was highlighted by victories against Louisville and a trio of ranked American foes in a row: Memphis, Navy and Temple. In the Peach Bowl, the Cougars would outmuscle Florida State, teaching the Seminoles a valuable lesson about respecting your competition.

8. 2013 UCF: 12-1 (No. 12)

The Knights’ lone loss was a tough one: South Carolina trailed 10-0 at halftime but stormed back for a 28-25 win. It was the lone blemish on an otherwise fantastic season. Led by quarterback Blake Bortles, a future top pick, UCF topped Penn State, Louisville, Houston and Rutgers in the regular season and ran all over Baylor in a 52-42 Fiesta Bowl victory.

9. 2015 Navy: 11-2 (No. 18)

Ken Niumatalolo’s most accomplished team at Navy deserves a spot on the list. The Midshipmen lost twice, to that one-loss Houston team and Notre Dame, and notched wins against Memphis, Army and Air Force. Quarterback Keenan Reynolds accounted for 32 total touchdowns in the final season of his outstanding college career.

10. 2012 Utah State: 11-2 (No. 17)

The Aggies make the list somewhat for their list of wins — Utah and a ranked Louisiana Tech team, most notably — but primarily for how close Gary Andersen’s final team came to running the table. Those two losses? By two points at Wisconsin and by a field goal at BYU.

PROJECTING THE PRESEASON TOP 25