When was the last time 2 undefeated teams played the National Championship? Revisiting the 2021 National Championship

The top-ranked Michigan Wolverines (14-0) will clash with the No. 2 Washington Huskies (14-0) for the College Football Playoff National Championship game on Monday.

The Wolverines leapfrogged the Alabama Crimson Tide in a 27-20 Rose Bowl game that came down to overtime. Meanwhile, the Huskies beat the Texas Longhorns in a 37-31 shootout, where Heisman finalist Michael Penix Jr. threw for 430 yards with two touchdown passes.

While Michigan comes in looking like the more cohesive unit, opening up as 4.5-point favorites, Washington has a secret weapon in Michael Penix Jr. On his best day, Penix looks like the best quarterback in college football, which can be a huge equalizer.

This is the first time since 2021 that two undefeated teams met each other in the College Football Playoff National Championship game. Michigan beat Iowa to close the regular season 13-0 to crown themselves the Big Ten champions.

Washington won what was probably the last edition of the Pac-12, by defeating the Oregon Ducks for the second time in a row.

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When was the last time that two undefeated teams played in the National Championship?

It was in 2021 when the 7-0 No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes met the 12-0 No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide for the seventh edition of the College Football Playoff National Championship game at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida. Alabama would go on to win 52-24.

The only caveat that year is that both teams played a far reduced season, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alabama played only 10 regular season games and the SEC championship game, while Ohio State played five regular season games plus the Big Ten championship. Alabama beat Notre Dame in the CFP semifinal, while Ohio State leapfrogged Clemson.

The last time two full-fledged undefeated schools met for the national title game, was in 2020. That yearm a 14-0 No. 3 Clemson team faced a 14-0 No. 1 LSU one. LSU would win 42-25 while being led by Joe Burrow.