The period from 1983-87 was, by the standards of Bo Schembecler’s Michigan program, a dry one. The Wolverines “only” made it to one Rose Bowl in that five-year stretch. In ‘87 they lost four games. Perhaps most galling was that in-state rival Michigan State had won the Big Ten in 1987. And at a time […]
Brian Kelly’s tenure in South Bend began with a year that saw a slow start and strong finish on the football field, but was ultimately overshadowed by a tragedy in between. It was an emotional roller coaster for the 2010 Notre Dame football team as they began a new era. GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS Start […]
Upstarts crashed the 1977 Cotton Bowl. The Houston Cougars were in the first year of the old Southwest Conference, which had the bowl’s automatic bid. Rather than pay deference to legendary coaches in Texas’ Darrell Royal and Arkansas’ Frank Broyles, both in their final year, Houston quickly won the league. Their opponent was Maryland, who rose up to enjoy an undefeated season. Here’s how they arrived in Dallas following the 1976 college football season.
USC and Michigan both had national title hopes in 1976 and they brought those hopes into their matchup at the 1977 Rose Bowl. Even though circumstances didn’t work out for either team to end up playing for the title, the Trojans and Wolverines still staged a great battle for #2.
The 1977 Sugar Bowl settled a national championship in front of the president of the United States, as Jimmy Carter attended to watch his home-state Georgia Bulldogs. President Carter didn’t get to see his home state team win, but he did watch an impressive display for the Pitt Panthers, who capped off a perfect season with a championship win.
Faust’s enthusiasm, his devout Catholicism and his record of winning seemed to make him a dream choice for Notre Dame. But the first four years hadn’t gone well—no major bowl appearances—and 1985 was his last chance to make it work
This would’ve been the ideal time for a plus-one format after the bowls, because the Irish and Tide had strong resumes, but ones that appealed to different voting philosophies. Alabama had played a consistently tougher schedule and their September loss to Nebraska was infinitely more defensible than Notre Dame’s defeat at Ole Miss.
But the Tide didn’t have wins like the devastations Notre Dame had hung on USC and Texas—beating two highly regarded opponents by a combined 58 points.
The 2004 college football season was marked by two teams that opened the year determined to find vindication, for very different reasons. The USC Trojans and Oklahoma Sooners opened the season 1-2 in the polls, finished it the same way and built to a championship conclusion in Miam
For those of us who remember quite vividly the college football world of the late 1980s and early 1990s, this game wakes up the echoes. It’s easy to say that the Miami-Florida State rivalry was hot back in the day, but I don’t think even those words convey just how hot it was.
The 1996 college football season looked headed for a predictable finish. It got there, but in the mold of a well-written Hollywood script that were some wild twists and turns that made you wonder how the anticipated outcome was going to occur, but the scriptwriters got there eventually.