The Behemoths of the National Championship

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Note: Article Written on 16th May 2022

What College Has The Most National Championships?

In the United States of America, the National Championship is one of the highest and most valued sporting competitions for colleges and institutions. It is an annual event where teams from different colleges, institutions, and conferences within the 50 states of the USA, some colleges in Canada and Puerto Rico, and some colleges in other North American nations compete in different sporting activities to lift high-valued titles/trophies. Presently, National Championship is being organized and regulated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Founded in 1906, the NCAA is a member-led organization saddled with the organization and regulation of college sporting events and the well-being of college athletes.

The Most Decorated College

About 1,268 teams from North American Institutions and conferences, including the United States of America and Canada, participate in the National Championship, out of which 180 institutions have won the NCAA titles across the three divisions (Division I, Division II, and Division III).

Stanford University, nicknamed ‘Cardinal’ shines outstandingly as the most decorated school with the highest number of titles for the highest level of NCAA college athletic competition, with 129 titles won in 20 different sporting events.

The National Championship Giant

Having won the most titles and made remarkable milestone achievements in the National Championship, it is ideal to note that Stanford University currently stands as the Giant of the National Championship. Below are interesting, verifiable, and authentic achievements curated directly from the sports section of the website of Stanford University (credit to the school).

• ‘On Dec. 3, 2017, Stanford Athletics won a national championship in women’s soccer, temporarily becoming the nation’s all-time leader with 114 NCAA championships and passing rival UCLA for the first time since 1965. However, the lead was short-lived, when the Bruins claimed the men’s water polo crown that same day.
• Later in the 2017 – 18 campaign, Stanford moved ahead following titles in men’s soccer and women’s swimming before UCLA answered with two more, giving both schools 116 NCAA championships.
• Stanford moved permanently ahead with 117 on May 22, 2018, after winning women’s tennis. The Cardinal has since won 12 more NCAA championships, increasing its nation-leading total to 129 and maintaining its edge over second-place UCLA (119).
• Stanford varsity teams have won 156 national championships (75 men, 80 women, 1 coed) and 129 NCAA championships (69 men, 60 women).
• Stanford has won at least one NCAA team championship during each of the last 46 seasons, dating back to the 1976 – 77 campaign.
• Of Stanford’s 129 NCAA championships, 35 have been won by fall sports, 31 by winter sports, and 63 by spring sports.
• Since 2000, Stanford has captured 53 NCAA crowns.
• During the 2018 – 19 campaign, Stanford captured seven national championships overall, a haul that included NCAA crowns in women’s volleyball, women’s swimming, men’s gymnastics, women’s water polo, women’s tennis, and men’s golf. The six NCAA titles matched the record for an academic year, with the Cardinal also winning six back in 1996 – 97.
• Stanford has won the Learfield IMG College Director’s cup in 25 of the possible 27 seasons, including a 25-year streak from 1995 to 2019. The Director’s Cup is awarded annually to the most successful overall intercollegiate athletic department in the nation in each of the NCAA’s three divisions.
• Stanford student-athletes have earned a nation-leading 173 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships. NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships are awarded to students who demonstrate outstanding performance in athletics, academics, and community service’.

Timeline of Stats of National Championship Titles

Below are the different National Championship sporting events won by Stanford University, along with the dates (year). Stanford University has won the most number of titles in Women’s Tennis with a record 21 titles.

1.?????Artistic Swimming: 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2016, 2021

2.?????Baseball: 1987, 1988

3.?????Men’s Basketball: 1937, 1938, 1942

4.?????Women’s Basketball: 1990, 1992, 2021

5.?????Men’s Cross Country: 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003

6.?????Women’s Cross Country: 1996, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007

7.?????Men’s Golf: 1938, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1946, 1953, 1994, 2007, 2019

8.?????Women’s Golf: 2015

9.?????Women’s Rowing: 2009

10.?Lightweight Rowing: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019

11.?Sailing: 1997

12.?Men’s Soccer: 2015, 2016, 2017

13.?Women’s Soccer: 2011, 2017, 2019

14.?Men’s Swimming: 1967, 1985,1986, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1998

15.?Women’s Swimming and Diving: 1980, 1983, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2017, 2018, 2019

16.?Men’s Tennis: 1942, 1973, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000

17.?Women’s Tennis: 1978, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2019

18.?Men’s Gymnastics: 1992, 1993, 1995, 2009, 2011, 2019, 2021, 2022

19.?Men’s Track and Field: 1925, 1928, 1934, 2000

20.?Men’s Volleyball: 1997, 2010

21.?Women’s Volleyball: 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2016, 2018, 2019

22.?Men’s Water Polo: 1963, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1986, 1993, 1994, 2001, 2002, 2019

23.?Women’s Water Polo: 2002, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019

24.?Football: 1926, 1940

With a record 129 National Championship titles, Stanford University is not just the ‘Giant of National Championship’, but also the reputable ‘Home of Champions’. Aside from the enviable sporting prowess, Stanford University is also a shining light in all spheres of the academic circle. Opened in1981, the school currently has 16,937 students (undergraduate and graduate), 2,288 faculties, 19 institutes with cross-disciplinary boundaries, 20 libraries holding over 9.5 million volumes of resources, and about 1.69 billion dollars sponsored research budget. There are 7 different schools and 77 academic departments in the school offering more than 200 academic programs, with a yearly intake of new and transfer students. Stanford is a hub of interdisciplinary research for the creation of knowledge and innovative discoveries in different areas that are pertinent to the world.

Among the most successful and highly rated institutions participating in the National Championship, Stanford is the most dominant. With its modern state-of-the-art recreational and sporting facilities, Stanford will likely remain a force to reckon with, a giant to beat in the National Championship, and will throw up more stellar performances and achievements.

Read more articles from me - Ben Ebuka at?Face2Face Africa.