The College Football BeltThe CFB Belt

A companion lineage

The Losers Belt (FCS)

The real belt passes to whoever BEATS the holder. This one is its mirror image: it passes to whoever LOSES to the holder — you catch it the way you’d catch a cold, by losing to the team that currently has it. Lose again, and you keep it (you’re still the reigning worst team in the country). Win, and whoever you just beat catches it from you. It starts the same place the real belt does: Princeton, who lost the very first college football game ever played, 6–4 to Rutgers on November 6, 1869. This one is restricted to FCS programs only — both sides of every game have to be FCS, so the belt can never cross up into FBS.

Combined (FBS + FCS)FBS OnlyFCS Only

How the Losers Belt works

Lost to the holder? It's yours.

The holder wins a game, and the team that just lost to them catches the Losers Belt.

Lose again? Still yours.

The holder loses again, nothing changes — still the reigning worst team.

Ties: holder retained

Same convention as the real belt — in the pre-overtime era a tie changed nothing either way (there hasn’t been one since 1996).

Computed, not curated

Same mechanical, no-editorial-judgment approach as the real belt — just run in reverse.

One wrinkle: this belt can only pass by losing, so a holder that stops fielding a football team at all would hold it forever under the literal rule — and a lot of this belt’s holders are exactly the kind of small or historic programs that don’t exist anymore. When a holder goes roughly two full seasons without playing a single game, it’s treated as having discontinued football, and the belt reverts to whoever it last caught it from.

Utah Tech holds the Losers Belt.

Caught it by losing to Southern Utah, 33–46, on October 3, 2026.

Next FCS Losers Belt gameUtah Tech at Portland State · October 10, 2026 · ESPN+ — Portland State catches it with a loss.

3Days Held
0Losses Since
1869Belt Established
136Reigns
480Belt Games
37Programs
Longest Reign
The Citadel — 21 yrs, 278 days
November 25, 1981 – August 30, 2003
Most Losses, One Reign
Lehigh — 17
starting September 30, 1967
Most Reigns, All-Time
Lafayette — 10 separate reigns
caught it back 9 times after passing it on
Reigns 1–100 of 136 · page 1 of 2 · Jump to current holder →
#TeamReignLength LossesCaught itPassed it on
1 Columbia November 16, 1872 – December 4, 1875 3 yrs, 18 days 4 Established it (first-ever loss) beat Yale
2 Yale December 4, 1875 – November 18, 1876 350 days 0 lost to Columbia 2–3 beat Harvard
3 Harvard November 18, 1876 – March 3, 1877 105 days 0 lost to Yale 0–1 beat Princeton
4 Princeton March 3, 1877 – November 17, 1877 259 days 0 lost to Harvard 0–1 beat Harvard
5 Harvard November 17, 1877 – November 6, 1880 2 yrs, 355 days 4 lost to Princeton 0–1 beat Columbia
6 Columbia November 6, 1880 – November 26, 1881 1 yr, 20 days 4 lost to Harvard 0–3 beat Pennsylvania
7 Pennsylvania November 26, 1881 – November 25, 1882 364 days 2 lost to Columbia 0–2 beat Lafayette
8 Lafayette November 25, 1882 – October 25, 1884 1 yr, 335 days 2 lost to Pennsylvania 0–1 beat Lehigh
9 Lehigh October 25, 1884 – November 18, 1886 2 yrs, 24 days 7 lost to Lafayette 0–50 beat Pennsylvania
10 Pennsylvania November 18, 1886 – November 12, 1887 359 days 5 lost to Lehigh 0–28 beat Lehigh
11 Lehigh November 12, 1887 – November 26, 1887 14 days 1 lost to Pennsylvania 4–6 beat Cornell
12 Cornell November 26, 1887 – November 17, 1888 357 days 1 lost to Lehigh 10–38 beat Bucknell
13 Bucknell November 17, 1888 – September 25, 1891 2 yrs, 312 days 3 lost to Cornell 0–20 beat Lafayette
14 Lafayette September 25, 1891 – November 5, 1892 1 yr, 41 days 9 lost to Bucknell 10–16 beat Lehigh
15 Lehigh November 5, 1892 – November 19, 1892 14 days 1 lost to Lafayette 0–4 beat Lafayette
16 Lafayette November 19, 1892 – November 14, 1894 1 yr, 360 days 7 lost to Lehigh 6–15 beat Lehigh
17 Lehigh November 14, 1894 – November 24, 1894 10 days 0 lost to Lafayette 0–28 beat Lafayette
18 Lafayette November 24, 1894 – November 29, 1894 5 days 0 lost to Lehigh 8–11 beat Bucknell
19 Bucknell November 29, 1894 – October 23, 1897 2 yrs, 328 days 5 lost to Lafayette 0–44 beat Lehigh
20 Lehigh October 23, 1897 – November 5, 1898 1 yr, 13 days 5 lost to Bucknell 20–28 beat Lafayette
21 Lafayette November 5, 1898 – November 19, 1898 14 days 1 lost to Lehigh 0–22 beat Bucknell
22 Bucknell November 19, 1898 – October 14, 1899 329 days 1 lost to Lafayette 0–6 beat Lehigh
23 Lehigh October 14, 1899 – October 13, 1900 364 days 6 lost to Bucknell 0–5 beat Bucknell
24 Bucknell October 13, 1900 – October 26, 1901 1 yr, 13 days 3 lost to Lehigh 6–12 beat Lehigh
25 Lehigh October 26, 1901 – November 22, 1902 1 yr, 27 days 6 lost to Bucknell 0–10 beat Lafayette
26 Lafayette November 22, 1902 – October 17, 1903 329 days 0 lost to Lehigh 0–6 beat Fordham
27 Fordham October 17, 1903 – October 17, 1903 0 days 0 lost to Lafayette 0–41 vacated — stopped playing football
28 Lafayette October 18, 1903 – November 24, 1904 1 yr, 37 days 4 reverted after Fordham stopped playing beat Lehigh
29 Lehigh November 24, 1904 – November 21, 1908 3 yrs, 363 days 7 lost to Lafayette 6–40 beat Lafayette
30 Lafayette November 21, 1908 – October 23, 1909 336 days 0 lost to Lehigh 5–11 beat Princeton
31 Princeton October 23, 1909 – October 1, 1910 343 days 2 lost to Lafayette 0–6 beat Villanova
32 Villanova October 1, 1910 – November 28, 1912 2 yrs, 58 days 2 lost to Princeton 0–36 beat Fordham
33 Fordham November 28, 1912 – November 17, 1917 4 yrs, 354 days 5 lost to Villanova 0–19 beat Cornell
34 Cornell November 17, 1917 – November 29, 1917 12 days 1 lost to Fordham 6–27 vacated — stopped playing football
35 Fordham November 30, 1917 – November 30, 1917 0 days 0 reverted after Cornell stopped playing vacated — stopped playing football
36 Villanova December 1, 1917 – December 1, 1917 0 days 0 reverted after Fordham stopped playing vacated — stopped playing football
37 Princeton December 2, 1917 – December 2, 1917 0 days 0 reverted after Villanova stopped playing vacated — stopped playing football
38 Lafayette December 3, 1917 – November 1, 1919 1 yr, 333 days 4 reverted after Princeton stopped playing beat Cornell
39 Cornell November 1, 1919 – October 23, 1920 357 days 1 lost to Lafayette 2–21 beat Colgate
40 Colgate October 23, 1920 – November 24, 1921 1 yr, 32 days 4 lost to Cornell 6–42 beat Columbia
41 Columbia November 24, 1921 – October 30, 1926 4 yrs, 340 days 9 lost to Colgate 14–21 beat Cornell
42 Cornell October 30, 1926 – November 13, 1926 14 days 0 lost to Columbia 9–17 beat Dartmouth
43 Dartmouth November 13, 1926 – October 22, 1927 343 days 0 lost to Cornell 23–24 beat Harvard
44 Harvard October 22, 1927 – November 12, 1927 21 days 1 lost to Dartmouth 6–30 beat Brown
45 Brown November 12, 1927 – November 19, 1927 7 days 0 lost to Harvard 6–18 beat New Hampshire
46 New Hampshire November 19, 1927 – November 22, 1930 3 yrs, 3 days 3 lost to Brown 13–31 beat Brown
47 Brown November 22, 1930 – October 3, 1931 315 days 1 lost to New Hampshire 0–7 beat Rhode Island
48 Rhode Island October 3, 1931 – October 5, 1935 4 yrs, 2 days 3 lost to Brown 0–18 beat Brown
49 Brown October 5, 1935 – October 3, 1936 364 days 5 lost to Rhode Island 7–13 beat Rhode Island
50 Rhode Island October 3, 1936 – October 11, 1952 16 yrs, 8 days 13 lost to Brown 6–7 beat Brown
51 Brown October 11, 1952 – November 15, 1952 35 days 2 lost to Rhode Island 6–7 beat Harvard
52 Harvard November 15, 1952 – October 10, 1953 329 days 1 lost to Brown 21–28 beat Colgate
53 Colgate October 10, 1953 – October 17, 1953 7 days 0 lost to Harvard 26–28 beat Dartmouth
54 Dartmouth October 17, 1953 – October 31, 1953 14 days 1 lost to Colgate 14–24 beat Yale
55 Yale October 31, 1953 – November 14, 1953 14 days 0 lost to Dartmouth 0–32 beat Princeton
56 Princeton November 14, 1953 – October 2, 1954 322 days 1 lost to Yale 24–26 beat Columbia
57 Columbia October 2, 1954 – October 16, 1954 14 days 1 lost to Princeton 20–54 beat Harvard
58 Harvard October 16, 1954 – November 6, 1954 21 days 1 lost to Columbia 6–7 beat Princeton
59 Princeton November 6, 1954 – November 13, 1954 7 days 0 lost to Harvard 9–14 beat Yale
60 Yale November 13, 1954 – October 1, 1955 322 days 1 lost to Princeton 14–21 beat Brown
61 Brown October 1, 1955 – October 8, 1955 7 days 0 lost to Yale 20–27 beat Dartmouth
62 Dartmouth October 8, 1955 – October 22, 1955 14 days 1 lost to Brown 0–7 beat Harvard
63 Harvard October 22, 1955 – November 5, 1955 14 days 1 lost to Dartmouth 9–14 beat Princeton
64 Princeton November 5, 1955 – November 12, 1955 7 days 0 lost to Harvard 6–7 beat Yale
65 Yale November 12, 1955 – November 19, 1955 7 days 0 lost to Princeton 0–13 beat Harvard
66 Harvard November 19, 1955 – October 13, 1956 329 days 0 lost to Yale 7–21 beat Cornell
67 Cornell October 13, 1956 – November 22, 1956 40 days 5 lost to Harvard 7–32 beat Pennsylvania
68 Pennsylvania November 22, 1956 – November 9, 1957 352 days 4 lost to Cornell 7–20 beat Yale
69 Yale November 9, 1957 – November 16, 1957 7 days 0 lost to Pennsylvania 20–33 beat Princeton
70 Princeton November 16, 1957 – November 23, 1957 7 days 0 lost to Yale 13–20 beat Dartmouth
71 Dartmouth November 23, 1957 – September 27, 1958 308 days 0 lost to Princeton 14–34 beat Lafayette
72 Lafayette September 27, 1958 – September 25, 1965 6 yrs, 363 days 10 lost to Dartmouth 0–20 beat Columbia
73 Columbia September 25, 1965 – October 16, 1965 21 days 2 lost to Lafayette 10–14 beat Yale
74 Yale October 16, 1965 – October 23, 1965 7 days 0 lost to Columbia 7–21 beat Cornell
75 Cornell October 23, 1965 – October 30, 1965 7 days 0 lost to Yale 14–24 beat Columbia
76 Columbia October 30, 1965 – November 12, 1966 1 yr, 13 days 9 lost to Cornell 6–20 beat Pennsylvania
77 Pennsylvania November 12, 1966 – September 30, 1967 322 days 1 lost to Columbia 14–22 beat Lehigh
78 Lehigh September 30, 1967 – November 3, 1973 6 yrs, 34 days 17 lost to Pennsylvania 23–35 beat Colgate
79 Colgate November 3, 1973 – November 10, 1973 7 days 0 lost to Lehigh 26–58 beat William & Mary
80 William & Mary November 10, 1973 – October 5, 1974 329 days 2 lost to Colgate 42–49 beat The Citadel
81 The Citadel October 5, 1974 – November 16, 1974 42 days 1 lost to William & Mary 12–16 beat Furman
82 Furman November 16, 1974 – October 11, 1975 329 days 3 lost to The Citadel 0–24 beat Presbyterian
83 Presbyterian October 11, 1975 – September 8, 1979 3 yrs, 332 days 4 lost to Furman 7–35 beat The Citadel
84 The Citadel September 8, 1979 – October 6, 1979 28 days 0 lost to Presbyterian 13–21 beat Western Carolina
85 Western Carolina October 6, 1979 – October 13, 1979 7 days 0 lost to The Citadel 19–21 beat Wofford
86 Wofford October 13, 1979 – September 6, 1980 329 days 1 lost to Western Carolina 21–56 beat East Tennessee State
87 East Tennessee State September 6, 1980 – September 5, 1981 364 days 5 lost to Wofford 9–16 beat Tennessee Tech
88 Tennessee Tech September 5, 1981 – September 5, 1981 0 days 0 lost to East Tennessee State 22–31 vacated — stopped playing football
89 East Tennessee State September 6, 1981 – October 3, 1981 27 days 1 reverted after Tennessee Tech stopped playing beat The Citadel
90 The Citadel October 3, 1981 – October 17, 1981 14 days 1 lost to East Tennessee State 13–17 beat Davidson
91 Davidson October 17, 1981 – November 7, 1981 21 days 1 lost to The Citadel 3–23 vacated — stopped playing football
92 The Citadel November 8, 1981 – November 14, 1981 6 days 0 reverted after Davidson stopped playing beat Wofford
93 Wofford November 14, 1981 – November 14, 1981 0 days 0 lost to The Citadel 14–24 vacated — stopped playing football
94 The Citadel November 15, 1981 – November 21, 1981 6 days 0 reverted after Wofford stopped playing beat Furman
95 Furman November 21, 1981 – November 21, 1981 0 days 0 lost to The Citadel 18–35 vacated — stopped playing football
96 The Citadel November 22, 1981 – November 22, 1981 0 days 0 reverted after Furman stopped playing vacated — stopped playing football
97 East Tennessee State November 23, 1981 – November 23, 1981 0 days 0 reverted after The Citadel stopped playing vacated — stopped playing football
98 Wofford November 24, 1981 – November 24, 1981 0 days 0 reverted after East Tennessee State stopped playing vacated — stopped playing football
99 The Citadel November 25, 1981 – August 30, 2003 21 yrs, 278 days 0 reverted after Wofford stopped playing beat Charleston Southern
100 Charleston Southern August 30, 2003 – October 2, 2004 1 yr, 33 days 4 lost to The Citadel 10–64 beat VMI

No reigns match “.”

Reigns 1–100 of 136 · page 1 of 2 · Jump to current holder →