What was the best College Bowl game ever?

Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

What about last year?

-Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42 (Fiesta)

That game was amazing and featured the guttiest call of all time when Boise State went for 2 without having to do that! :cheers

Also, Penn State vs. Miami in 1987 and Nebraska vs. Miami in 1984 may have been the best of all-time as well...
 

MadCapper

Head <in> Moderation
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

What about last year?

-Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42 (Fiesta)

That game was amazing and featured the guttiest call of all time when Boise State went for 2 without having to do that! :cheers

Was amazing. Will never forget it.

Texas/USC was for the national championship. So it made it an ever better one for me.

But your game was exciting as anything!
 

MCP

2
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

you can't be journeyman no matter how hard you try. give it up
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

What about last year?

-Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42 (Fiesta)

That game was amazing and featured the guttiest call of all time when Boise State went for 2 without having to do that! :cheers

Easily gets my vote here also! We will NEVER have another game like that one.
 

jimmythegreek

The opening odds start here
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

I think the 3 best bowl games ever played were the above two aforementioned along with the '02 Fiesta Bowl featuring OSU/Miami.
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

What about last year?

-Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42 (Fiesta)

That game was amazing and featured the guttiest call of all time when Boise State went for 2 without having to do that! :cheers

Also, Penn State vs. Miami in 1987 and Nebraska vs. Miami in 1984 may have been the best of all-time as well...
that one gets my vote and as a penn state fan of course I'm partial to the '97 fiesta bowl

however one of the most entertaining PSU bowl games was the
[FONT=Verdana,Helvetica,Arial]1989 Holiday Bowl: Penn State 50, BYU 39[/FONT]


How fitting that when the whole crazy, exhausting, thrilling, four-hour-and-17-minute affair was finished, when Penn State had finally been declared a 50 39 winner over BYU in Holiday Bowl XII, they couldn't select a single Offensive Player of the Game.
They picked two of them.
They gave one trophy to Ty Detmer, the prodigy of a BYU quarterback. They gave the other trophy ? the one that was supposed to go to the Defensive Player of the Game, and handed it to Blair Thomas, Penn State's unstoppable running back. There would be no trophy for the defense on this night.
Who do you like? Thomas, who rushed for 186 yards on 35 carries and caught two passes for 46 yards? Or Detmer, who set a Holiday Bowl record for pass completions (42), attempts (59) and yards (576), including two for touchdowns and two for interceptions?
The only thing Detmer didn't do was pull out a victory, although he came within a couple of strange plays of doing so. As Lion coach Joe Paterno told the crowd of 61,113 after the game, "The BYU kids played a great game. A couple of breaks at the end of the game made the difference."
Trailing 41-26 with 9:28 left in the game, Detmer led the Cougars to two quick touchdowns ? a 10-yard run by Fred Whittingham and a three-yard TD strike to Brent Nyberg ? to close the gap to 41-39. But then came the first of two game-breaking plays. Andre Collins, PSU's All-America linebacker, intercepted Detmer's two-point conversion pass and returned it 102 yards, worth two points and a 43-39 lead with 2:34 remaining.
Still, the Cougars weren't finished. The BYU defense, led by linebacker Bob Davis, rose up and stopped the Nittany Lions, forcing them to punt. Detmer went to work again. He completed four quick passes to move BYU to the PSU 38. Faced with a third-and-eight with some 50 seconds remaining, Detmer was dropping back for another pass when Gary Brown, a defensive back, swooped in behind him, ripped the ball out of his hands and raced 53 yards for a touchdown.
"I was fixing to throw it away and he smashed the ball against my shoulder and took it," said Detmer. "I didn't think I could catch him, so I made a dive after him."
"This was as screwy a game as I have every been involved with," said BYU coach LaVell Edwards, "and I've never seen two back-to-back plays like Penn State scored in the last few minutes of play."
Afterward, the Cougars to a man lamented missed opportunities. At halftime, they led 13-12, but twice they had driven inside the five-yard line ? once to the one, once to the four ? and come away with just two field goals.
"I thought we were going to pull out another one," said Detmer. "We just had trouble inside the one."
If nothing else, Detmer won the respect of his opponents, who crowded around him after the game to congratulate him, as well as observers such as Jim McMahon, the former BYU star quarterback.
"I thought Detmer was impressive, but when you have an offensive line like that . . . .," said McMahon.
Indeed, Detmer was sacked only four times the entire game, this against the brilliant Penn State defense.
"I hadn't any idea before the game that there would be this number of points scored," said Edwards.
Indeed, BYU finished with 651 yards against a defense that had allowed only one team ? Notre Dame ? to gain over 400 yards this season. In the meantime, the Nittany Lions had 464 yards.
All week long BYU coaches had feared only one thing: turnovers and penalties, their long-time bowl nemesis. So what happens? On the game's opening drive, the Cougars committed three big penalties ? one of which nullified a 46-yard touchdown pass from Ty Detmer to Brent Nyberg. The Cougars finally stalled for good at the 30 and came away empty-handed.
They followed that with another big blunder on their next possession. On second down from the PSU 36, Detmer spotted a wide-open Stacey Corley at the goal line, but his pass was wobbly and fell out of the night sky like a wounded duck. Safety Sherrod Rainge raced over from the far side of the field to intercept the pass.
Moments later, BYU cornerback Tony Crutchfield returned the favor, making a diving interception of a Tony Sacca pass at the 34. Detmer, rolling right to elude the rush, threw a wobbly side-armed pass to Andy Boyce at the one-yard line, and BYU was in business again. On first down Detmer fumbled; on second down he threw behind reserve tight end Fotu Katoa, who was wide open in the back of the end zone; on third down, the PSU rush forced Detmer to throw the ball away, forcing BYU to settle for a 20-yard Jason Chaffetz field goal that tied the score at 3.
In the meantime, as expected the Nittany Lions were pounding out yardage bit by bit on the legs of Thomas, five and six yards a pop. On their opening drive alone, he had eight carries to set up Ray Tarasi's 31-yard field goal. With the score tied at 3, the Lions again went to Thomas to move them upfield, but then ? surprise! ? Sacca threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Terry Smith, who was in a different area code than the nearest BYU defender. Tarasi missed the PAT kick, making it 9-3.
Down by six points, Detmer struck back, eventually scoring one a one-yard bootleg to give BYU a 10-9 lead with 8 minutes remaining in the half.
The Nittan Lions answered back. They drove into BYU territory ? and then two yellow flags later they were knocking at the door. Then BYU's Eric Bergeson was penalized for a deadball non-contact foul ? a fancy term for foul-mouthing off ? and then a teammate repeated the act even as the official was marking off the penalty to draw still another flag. That moved PSU from the 20 to the five-yard line. One play later, the refs made the same call against the Nittany Lions, moving them back to the 17 and forcing them to settle for a 36-yard Tarasi field goal and a 12-10 lead.
If that lead looked safe with only 2:01 remaining in the half, it wasn't for long. On first down, Detmer rolled left, then threw back the other way to Bellini streaking down the right sideline for a 51-yard gain. Detmer chipped away from there: 13 yards to Smith, nine to Bellini, four to Whittingham. On third-and-one at the four-yard line, Detmer had Bellini wide open in the back of the end zone ? and overthrew him. On came Chaffetz to kick a 22-yard field goal.
After outgaining the Lions 294 to 182, the Cougars held a one-point lead at halftime. They had only themselves to blame; They were penalized six times, to their opponent's one.
The Lions started the second half quickly. Tarasi kicked a Holiday Bowl record 51-yard field goal that barely cleared the uprights to give Penn State a 15-13 lead. Then reserve Leroy Thompson swept around the right end on a 16-yard touchdown run to put the Nittany Lions ahead 22-13.
The Cougars' wake-up call came. A deadball personal foul against Penn State moved BYU to the 42, but Detmer was clicking again anyway. Eleven yards to Fred Whittingham. Thirteen to Jeff Frandsen. Sixteen to Frandsen. Twelve to Frandsen, who made a diving catch at the goal. And then the touchdown: Detmer rolled left, sidestepped a tackle by Willie Thomas at the four and stepped into the end zone. Chaffetz missed the PAT, leaving BYU down by three, 22-19.
But any momentum the Cougars had mounted ended shortly. Facing fourth down, the Lions sent in Smith to punt. That should have been BYU's first clue. Smith, a wide receiver, hadn't punted all season. From punt formation, he fielded the snap and threw to Tisen Thomas for nine yards and the first down. A personal foul penalty against BYU moved the Lions to the 14 and one play later Thompson ran for the touchdown. Score: 29-19.
So much for defense. Now it was the Cougars' turn. Detmer found Nyberg for 18 and the Cougars were off again. On first down from the 12, Detmer found Boyce in the corner of the end zone. Score: 29-26.
Lions' turn. Thomas was a one-man gang this time. Twice Sacca passed to him, for gains of 29 and 17 yards, and then Thomas, breaking several tackles, scored on a seven-yard run. With 12:11 left in the game, PSU led 35-26.
For all practical purposes, the contest ended when Detmer threw straight into the hands of Rainge. A couple of plays later, a high, arching pass to Sacca bounced off the hands of David Daniels twice before he finally grabbed it while flat on his back in the end zone. With 9:28 remaining, Penn State led 41-26.
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

I seem to remember PSU scored a TD on a 2pt conversion INT return. I didn't know you could do that
 

NickPappagiorgio

EOG Dedicated
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

I dont remember the year or the Bowl. It was Michigan/Alabama and it was Tom Bradys senior year. Alabama missed a extra point and the game ended up in OT. Michigan won in OT, but was a great game.
 

jimmythegreek

The opening odds start here
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

I dont remember the year or the Bowl. It was Michigan/Alabama and it was Tom Bradys senior year. Alabama missed a extra point and the game ended up in OT. Michigan won in OT, but was a great game.

Yes the infamous 2000 Orange Bowl. With the score knotted at 28 at the end of regulation, Michigan scored on its initial play of overtime when Tom Brady found tight end Shawn Thompson on a 25-yard TD pass. Kicker Hayden Epstein hit the extra point to give U-M a 35-28 lead, its first of the contest. On Alabama's first possession of overtime, Andrew Zow hit Antonio Carter with a 21-yard TD pass on the second play of the drive. However Ryan Pflugner pushed the extra point attempt wide right and all bedlam broke loose.
 

Bucsfan67

EOG Master
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

What about last year?

-Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42 (Fiesta)

That game was amazing and featured the guttiest call of all time when Boise State went for 2 without having to do that! :cheers

Also, Penn State vs. Miami in 1987 and Nebraska vs. Miami in 1984 may have been the best of all-time as well...



The Boise/Oklahoma one gets my vote too
 

nydoc

EOG Dedicated
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

dont forget Michigan Alabama Orange Bowl Jan 1, 2000. most of us were hung over but a classic game that went to overtime, with michigan winning on a missed extra point. I believe it was tom brady and sean alexander's last college games.
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

What about last year?

-Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State 43, Oklahoma 42 (Fiesta)

That game was amazing and featured the guttiest call of all time when Boise State went for 2 without having to do that! :cheers

Also, Penn State vs. Miami in 1987 and Nebraska vs. Miami in 1984 may have been the best of all-time as well...

I totally agree with all 3 of those, and throw in Buckeyes/Miami

Now that is one damm fine top 4 list there.
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

As I have stated before, everyone else is playing for 2nd place. The 2006 Rose Bowl is the best College Football game I have ever seen.

 

CHALKbreaker

EOG Dedicated
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

Oklahoma vs Boise ST.

I said it after I saw it, and sticking to it as long as I live.
I honestly don't even think it's close. That game had everything. Hell even the star player got the cheerleader afterward!:+textinb3
 

Journeyman

EOG Master
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

Several stand out some already mentioned, the Holiday Bowl- BYU vs Indiana, that game had a tremendous comeback by BYU, there were several really exciting Holiday Bowl games around that period in time.

Miami Nebraska Orange 1984 of course would be right there.
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

Texas 41 USC 38

I had the over 69

I had Texas on the moneyline at +1.60 and +1.90

I had Texas +6.5

I had a prop on Texas to win by 1-4 at 7:1

I had Texas moneyline & over parlayed at 7:1

I won a private sports board pick 'em contest with a guess of Texas 42-38

Hell, yes, this was the greatest bowl game ever!
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

By far, the Vince and Reggie show. But I like this cover better.
 
Last edited:
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

OSU/ Miami in 2003 both undefeated and game went in to double overtime to decide the National Championship


 

stump

EOG Veteran
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

early 80's Holiday Bowl with BYU and SMU, Mcmahon was the QB, byu scored like 20 pts in the last 2 minutes to win.
 
Re: What was the best College Bowl game ever?

OSU/ Miami in 2003 both undefeated and game went in to double overtime to decide the National Championship



Remember OSU was a 11.5 dog in the game

<TABLE class=infobox style="FONT-SIZE: 90%" width=300><TBODY><TR><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 135%; TEXT-ALIGN: center" colSpan=2>2003 Fiesta Bowl</TD></TR><TR><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 105%; TEXT-ALIGN: center" colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR style="BACKGROUND: #f9f9f9; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><TD colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle colSpan=2><TABLE class=nowraplinks style="FONT-SIZE: 95%; BACKGROUND: #f9f9f9; LINE-HEIGHT: 95%" width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle width="50%">Miami Hurricanes</TD><TD align=middle width="50%">Ohio State Buckeyes</TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle>(12-0)</TD><TD align=middle>(13-0)</TD></TR><TR><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 300%; LINE-HEIGHT: 100%" align=middle>24</TD><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 300%; LINE-HEIGHT: 100%" align=middle>31</TD></TR><TR><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 95%" align=middle>Head coach: Larry Coker</TD><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 95%" align=middle>Head coach: Jim Tressel</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top align=middle><TABLE style="BORDER-RIGHT: #aaa 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: #aaa 1px solid; FONT-SIZE: 110%; BACKGROUND: #efefef; BORDER-LEFT: #aaa 1px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #aaa 1px solid"><TBODY><TR><TD>AP</TD><TD></TD><TD>Coaches</TD><TD></TD><TD>BCS</TD><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle>1</TD><TD></TD><TD align=middle>1</TD><TD></TD><TD align=middle>1</TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD><TD vAlign=top align=middle><TABLE style="BORDER-RIGHT: #aaa 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: #aaa 1px solid; FONT-SIZE: 110%; BACKGROUND: #efefef; BORDER-LEFT: #aaa 1px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #aaa 1px solid"><TBODY><TR><TD>AP</TD><TD></TD><TD>Coaches</TD><TD></TD><TD>BCS</TD><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle>2</TD><TD></TD><TD align=middle>2</TD><TD></TD><TD align=middle>2</TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE style="FONT-SIZE: 90%; POSITION: relative; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" align=center><TBODY><TR style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><TH></TH><TH width=15>1</TH><TH width=15>2</TH><TH width=15>3</TH><TH width=15>4</TH><TH width=15>OT</TH><TH width=15>2OT</TH><TH width=25>Total</TH></TR><TR style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><TD align=right>Miami</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>7</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>0</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>7</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>3</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>7</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>0</TD><TD>24</TD></TR><TR style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><TD align=right>Ohio State</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>0</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>14</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>3</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>0</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>7</TD><TD bgColor=#e0e6eb>7</TD><TD>31</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>Date</TD><TD>January 3, 2003</TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>Stadium</TD><TD>Sun Devil Stadium</TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>Location</TD><TD>Tempe, AZ</TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>MVP</TD><TD>Craig Krenzel, QB
Mike Doss, S</TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>Favorite</TD><TD>Miami by 11?<SUP class=reference id=_ref-0>[1]</SUP></TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>National anthem</TD><TD>The Singing Sergeants[1]</TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>Halftime show</TD><TD>Ohio State and Miami Marching Bands[2]</TD></TR><TR style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle"><TD>Attendance</TD><TD>77,502</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
--------------------------------------------

4th Quarter
The 4th Quarter started out with a 49 yard punt out of bounds by Andy Groom giving Miami the ball at their own 24 yard line. Miami once again put a drive together earning 3 first downs including a 9 yard rush by McGahee who was injured and out for the rest of the game after the play. McGahee's injury was caused by a helmet leading hit from safety Will Allen. The tackle ruptured all three ligaments in McGahee's knee, putting his career in doubt. (McGahee subsequently recovered from his injury and has gone on to a successful professional football career.)
The next plays were a Dorsey completion to Ethenic Sands for 9 yards, and a Dorsey completion to Winslow for a gain of 11 yards. The Canes were then held forced to bring out kicker Todd Sievers to attempt a 54 yard field goal. Sievers?s attempt was wide right and the Buckeyes took over on downs.
The Buckeyes put a drive together, also earning 3 first downs including a 10 yard completion from Krenzel to Michael Jenkins, a 12 yard completion from Krenzel to Gamble, and a 6 yard rush by Clarett. However the Miami defense held and forced Ohio State to try a field goal. Nugent's attempt at a 42 yard field goal missed the uprights wide right. Miami then took over the ball at its own 25 with 6:36 left in the game.
On the first play of the Miami drive, Dorsey hookd up with Kellen Winslow for an 11 yard gain and a first down. Jarrett Payton then rushed for 5 yards, right before Dorsey and Winslow hooked up yet again for a 10 yard gain and another Miami 1st down. Miami was stopped two plays in a row bringing up 3rd and 8 when Dorsey passed to Parrish for a 34 yard completion, but Parrish fumbled the ball at the hands of cornerback Dustin Fox. Nickelback Will Allen recovered the fumble for the Buckeyes.
Krenzel then rushed for one more 1st down on a 4 yard gain until they were held by the Miami D and were forced to punt once again. On third down a catch by Chris Gamble was ruled incomplete due to his being out of bounds. Replays however seem to show that: 1) Gamble had his jersey grabbed on this play which could have resulted in pass interference call and a consequent Ohio first down. 2) Gamble appeared to land inbounds, again a first down. With a first down Ohio State would have been in a position to run the clock out and win the game without it going to overtime. 3) That the play clock had reached :00 before the snap of the football. Instead they had to punt and Groom punted the ball 44 yards.
Miami's returner, Parrish, ran the ball back 50 yards before being tackled by Groom and Doss. Miami started their drive at the Buckeye 26 yard line with 2:02 left in the game. They ran 3 plays for a total of 3 yards and decide to take a timeout on 4th and 7 with 3 seconds left in the game. Miami elects to have Sievers attempt a 40 yard field goal. Tressel called a timeout to try to ice the kicker. Ohio State then used its last timeout in a further attempt to rattle Sievers. The 40 yard attempt was successful, however, and tied the score at 17 with no time remaining in regulation, forcing the game into overtime.

[edit] 1st overtime

Ohio State won the toss at the start of overtime and chose to be on defense first. Miami started their OT drive out slow, but on 2nd and 10, Dorsey completed a 9 yard pass to Andre Johnson to make it 3rd and 1 from the 16 yard line. Jarrett Payton then rushed for 8 yards to give Miami another 1st down and a 1st and goal from the OSU 8 yard line. Two plays later, Dorsey hooked up with Kellen Winslow in the endzone for a 7 yard touchdown pass. Pass interference was called on the defense but the penalty was declined. Miami lead 24 - 17 at this point forcing the Buckeyes to score a touchdown on their next possession to keep the game alive.
On the Buckeyes turn to try to score from the Miami 25 yard line, Krenzel came up with a 5 yard rush on the first play. Ohio State had a 2nd and 5 on the Miami 20 yard line and a false start penalty was called against the Buckeyes bringing them back 5 yards to the 25. On 2nd and 10 Krenzel got sacked for a 4 yard loss bringing up 3rd and 14. Krenzel then threw an incomplete pass to Clarett to make it 4th and 14 and their last chance to get a 1st down. Krenzel came through and completed a 17 yard pass to Jenkins for a 1st down on the Miami 12 yard line. Krenzel then threw another incomplete pass to Jenkins which brought up 2nd and 10 where Krenzel took the ball himself and rushed for 7 yards down to the Miami 5 yard line. 3rd and 3 was another dud for Krenzel which brought up 4th down and 3. Krenzel attempted a pass to Gamble, but the ball was knocked down by Sharpe and was initially called an incomplete pass. The fans and team, believing the game to be over, began to rush the field. However, a field referee had thrown a flag in the endzone. The penalty was defensive pass interference, called on Miami defender Glen Sharpe. Due to the penalty, Ohio State received the ball on the 2 yard line with an automatic first down. With a fresh set of downs, Krenzel rushed for a 1 yard touchdown on 3rd down. Nugent's kick was good and tied the score at 24 sending the game into a double overtime.

[edit] 2nd overtime

On the second overtime the teams switched possession order, giving the ball first to Ohio State. The Buckeyes started strong with Lydell Ross rushing for a 9 yard gain on 1st down. 3rd and 1 came up and Krenzel rushed for 5 yards and an Ohio State 1st down. For 1st and 10 on the Miami 11 Krenzel completed a 6 yard pass to Jenkins which brought up 2nd and 4 on the Miami 5 yard line. Krenzel then handed off the ball to Maurice Clarett for a 5 yard rushing touchdown putting Ohio State up 31 - 24 after a successful Nugent PAT.
Miami had to score a touchdown to tie the game and send it to a 3rd overtime. The Canes drew a couple of blanks to put them in a 4th and 3 situation where Dorsey completed a 7 yard pass to Winslow for a 1st down. A facemask penalty got called on Ohio State during the play to make it 1st and 5 for Miami from the Buckeye 6 yard line. Dorsey then threw an incomplete pass to Andre Johnson but a pass interference call on the Buckeye defender gave the Canes a 1st and goal from the 2 yard line. The Buckeye defense held Miami to only one yard in the next 3 plays to bring up a big 4th and goal on the 1 yard line. Ken Dorsey threw a pass as he was being hit by linebacker Cie Grant; it was incomplete, ending the game 31 - 24, Ohio State winning.
 
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