The fourth quarter has a way of revealing who a college football team really is. When the margin for error disappears and every possession carries a little more weight, the best programs find ways to win – whether it’s protecting a lead, erasing a deficit or making the plays necessary in a close game.

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Championship teams tend to separate themselves in those moments. Three of the past five national champions finished inside the top 10 nationally in fourth-quarter scoring margin. Indiana, led by coach Curt Cignetti, ranked third nationally in fourth-quarter scoring margin last season, with a plus-81 margin.

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The Hoosiers were a perfect 14-0 when entering the fourth quarter with at least a seven-point lead, and they consistently pulled away from opponents. However, Indiana did stumble in two games against Iowa and Ohio State, where they entered the fourth quarter in one-score games and still managed to win.

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No team in the country is harder to come back against than Georgia. While 17 other Power Four programs finished with a perfect record when leading by at least seven points entering the fourth quarter over the past five seasons, the Bulldogs did it with the largest sample size, going 53-0.

Georgia’s company at the top is exactly who you’d expect: Notre Dame (44-0), Alabama (42-0), Oregon (49-1), Ohio State (48-1) and Michigan (46-1). Those six programs also rank among the winningest teams in the FBS since 2021. Tennessee and a handful of others aren’t far behind.

On the other side of the spectrum, Stanford struggled to protect leads, blowing it in three games when entering the fourth quarter with at least a seven-point lead. That’s the lowest win percentage of any FBS team in this situation.

Wake Forest owns the most losses among Power Four teams after leading by at least a touchdown entering the fourth quarter, dropping five such games. However, in Jake Dickert’s first season, the Demon Deacons went a perfect 5-0 in those situations.

USC also struggled to close out games, tied with California, Kansas State, North Carolina and Wake Forest for the most losses in this situation (four) among Power Four teams. Texas, despite ranking 10th among Power Four teams in overall winning percentage since 2021, was just 53rd out of 68 teams at finishing the job when leading by at least seven points entering the fourth quarter.

Protecting a lead is one thing, but erasing it is a different animal entirely. Across those same 68 programs, teams are a combined 110-947 (.104) when trailing by at least seven points entering the fourth quarter over the past five seasons. That’s proof of just how rare these comebacks are.

Georgia, however, has shown an ability to come back from deficits, with a .444 winning percentage in games where they trailed by at least seven points entering the fourth quarter over the past five seasons. Only three other Power Four programs have won at least one-quarter of their games in this situation: Oregon (4-7), Clemson (4-10) and Iowa (4-12).

The ultimate test of a fourth-quarter team comes when neither side has control and the score differential entering the final 15 minutes is within six points. This is where the greatest separation can be found, because the outcome is nearly a coin flip. Teams in this study went a combined 607-545 (.527) in those situations over the past five seasons.

Michigan and Georgia top the Power Four with the best winning percentages in games that entered the fourth quarter within six points over the past five seasons. The Wolverines went a perfect 5-0 in such games during Jim Harbaugh’s final two seasons, while the Bulldogs won four such games, including three on the road.

A cluster of teams joins the ‘Canes near the top of the chart while hovering around .500 in these pressure-packed situations. Iowa, Iowa State, Minnesota and South Carolina have each played at least 24 games that entered the fourth quarter within six points over the past five seasons.

Nebraska has too – only with far more agonizing heartbreak than any program in college football. The Cornhuskers’ 18 losses in such games are the most of any FBS team over the past five seasons.