As the curtain fell on the 1995 season, the outsized blowout Nebraska administered to a good Florida team suddenly gave birth to hyperbole that would have made Brent Musberger or Bob Costas blush with shame. Prior to the Fiesta Bowl, much analysis focused on the fact that neither team had played much in the way of competition and so it was difficult to assess how the game might go. Within a day of Nebraska's mammoth rout of Florida, however, a revisionism took hold that permeates analysis nearly a quarter of a century later: in four quarters, this Nebraska team went from a team that played minimal competition to the greatest team that ever played college football. They were helped in this elevation by the fact that three other teams in the Big Eight - Colorado, Kansas, and Kansas State - finished in the top ten. Nebraska had blown out all four foes they faced with ten wins or more. Suddenly, the analysis changed from "they won by big margins because they didn't play anybody" became "they won by big margins because they were the greatest team ever." Make no mistake, there was not a team within a country mile of Nebraska in 1995, and they were the most undisputed champions and best team of the year since (maybe) the 1979 Alabama Crimson Tide. But the idea that they were the best ever (a subjective analysis to begin with) is based solely upon the fact they blew out Florida with a bunch of people watching. Yes, they beat Kansas, 41-3, but Kansas State beat that same KU bunch, 41-7, so it's not like they were the only team capable of doing so. Nebraska blew out Colorado in Boulder by 23, but Kansas beat CU by 16 on the same field. And the out of conference schedules of all four teams were not overly challenging save Colorado facing both Wisconsin on the road and Texas A/M at home. To be fair, this was not Nebraska's fault as their schedule included some big names that had some rough patches at the time. A question remained as the year tottered towards the next football season: how good - really - was Florida? The answer of 1996 would go a long way towards furthering the "great 95 Nebraska" legend.
1996 was perhaps the most important transitional year in the history of college football. Every year brings changes, but it is unlikely that AT THE TIME any other year saw as many changes that would affect the long-term college football product as this one year produced. The most important was the introduction of what was expected to become the new power football conference in all the USA - a hybrid of the old Big Eight and half the Southwest Conference to be called "the Big 12." Excitement gripped the central portion of the US as they contemplated challenging the SEC and Big 10 for rival fans' hearts and minds as well as in conference strength. It seemed the best of all worlds, with a couple of Texas powers joining a conference with Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Colorado, who had combined to win four national titles in the previous decade (and lose the championship game in three others). The heightened competition promised to make everyone try harder, recruiter harder, and perhaps put a better product on the field. The second change, probably more important to fans outside the Great Plains, was the new overtime rules that ensured every game would end with both a winner and a loser. It might get crazy - indeed, it would get insane in the coming years - but at least nobody had to worry about Pat Dye hosing Syracuse out of an unbeaten season just to be a jerk anymore, either. The overtime rules had actually been put in place for the 1995 bowl season, where Toledo had beaten Nevada, 40-37, in the first-ever Division I-A (now FBS) overtime game, earning Coach Gary Pinkel the honor of being the answer to a trivia question. Over the course of the next two decades, an average of 32 games per year would need extra time to settle the outcome. At present there remain only four coaches still active that have a tie on their resume: Terry Bowden, Bill Snyder, Brian Kelly, and Nick Saban.
But one other change would have the longest lasting and most permanent consequences of any other: noting the extreme financial success of the SEC championship game since 1992, the new year brought several new conference title games vying for attention on the first Saturday in December alongside the SEC. The Big 12 immediately saw a potential bonanza that could pit an unbeaten Nebraska against a Texas or an Oklahoma with a shot at the national championship on the line. The first Big 12 title game would be played in the Trans World Dome in St Louis, a circumstance that gave nobody a home field advantage since Missouri was not a contender. The old WAC, too, decided to get into the championship sweepstakes by staging their own title game that promised to match BYU against whoever won the Pacific Division. In time, both conferences would implode over money and cries of inequity, but much as the bright America of 1996 saw wages increasing and unemployment decreasing in a time of seemingly unparalleled peace at home, the future seemed bright as 1996 began.
PRE-SEASON AP POLL
1) Nebraska (50)
2) Tennessee (7)
3) Florida State (5)
4) Florida (1)
5) Colorado (3)
6) Notre Dame (1)
7) USC
8) Texas
The coaches poll had the same top five followed by USC, Notre Dame, and Penn State. The projected national championship was that Nebraska would go for the three-peat against Peyton Manning in the Sugar Bowl, this year's Bowl Alliance national championship game. Manning would wind up going to Disney World.
Once again, college football continued to move its first game ever earlier in the year. On August 24, BYU and Texas A/M squared off in the Pigskin Classic in Anaheim. The Aggies bolted to a quick 20-6 lead in the second quarter and then watched Cougars QB Steve Sarkisian unload a series of bombs, going 33 for 44 for 536 yards and six touchdowns in a 41-37 thriller that got the season off to a roaring start. The following day saw the year's first marquee matchup of Penn State and USC in the Kickoff Classic give the Nittany Lions a 24-7 win behind the running heroics of Curtis Enis. Polls were on hold until after week two.
Georgia debuted a new head coach in Jim Donnan, but he looked a lot like his predecessor Ray Goff in a befuddling 11-7 loss against Southern Miss. Donnan had left Marshall University to take the Georgia job and in his first game held the Golden Eagles to 227 yards offense and no touchdowns. Three field goals gave USM a 9-7 lead in the fourth quarter when Georgia QB Mike Bobo collided on a handoff with RB Robert Edwards and was tackled in the end zone for a safety that put the Eagles up by four. This became critical when Georgia marched down the field all the way to the USM 13-yard line in the final minute. Needing a touchdown rather than a field goal, Bobo missed a fourth down pass and Southern Miss had the upset in Donnan's first game. It would set the tone for his stormy tenure in Athens. The first-ever Big 12 conference game was a vanilla affair pitting Texas Tech against the rapidly improving Kansas State Wildcats in Manhattan. Bill Snyder became the first coach to ever win a Big 12 conference game in a 21-14 contest that sounds truly amusing given where the Big 12 scores would venture in future years. Penn State's early win netted them a vote in the coaches poll as the season entered September.
UCLA traveled to Knoxville for a rare SEC vs Pac Ten match that gave Peyton Manning even more Heisman hype when the Vols prevailed, 35-20. Bruins QB Cade McNown was as steady as Manning if a little less impressive. Nebraska bombarded Michigan State, 55-14, in the second half of a home and home with a then unknown Nick Saban. It would be the worst beating Saban ever took as a head coach. And Arizona State got some hype with a thrilling 45-42 win over Washington behind QB Jake Plummer, a name few knew at the time but would know soon. And Alabama beat the same USM team that had upset Georgia, 20-10, in a rather bland game that was typical of the Gene Stallings era at the Capstone. So, too, was the next game against Vanderbilt.
The Commodores (not the Lionel Richie variety) entered Bryant-Denny Stadium with a head full of steam after narrowly missing a monumental upset against Notre Dame, 14-7. The game was tied with five minutes left, so the Commodores had a lot to be proud about. They carried that into their game with Alabama. Vandy scored first to take a 7-0 lead. The Tide drives all ended in field goals, but they had the lead. Trailing 9-7 in the second quarter, Vandy unleashed the longest run in the entire history of Vanderbilt University, not by a back but by the punter. Lined up deep in his own territory, punter Bill Marinanagel saw the Tide playing return and ran straight up the middle of the field. After clearing the first down marker, he continued on racing for an 81-yard unbelievable touchdown that put Vandy ahead, 15-9, and stunned the Crimson faithful. Recovering from the shock, Alabama hung tough and eventually won though QB Freddie Kitchens threw two fourth quarter interceptions that kept Vanderbilt far too close for comfort. The win was so unimpressive that the pollsters dropped Alabama a spot from 12 to 13 - tied with arch rival Auburn no less. In the rematch of the infamous Kordell Stewart "Hail Mary" game, Colorado QB Koy Detmer again heaved a potential touchdown towards the end zone on the last play that was batted away by Charles Woodson. Michigan won, 20-13. A stunner occurred when SW Louisiana, who had never beaten a ranked foe since joining Division I-A in 1981, shocked the world with an upset of Texas A/M, 29-22, on a pick six with minutes left to play. And in what would turn out to be perhaps the most critical result of the year, Washington upset BYU, 29-17, sacking Steve Sarkisian eight times, including a safety that put the game out of reach.
Much of the hype entering the year focused on Nebraska's quest for a legitimate college football three-peat national championship. The outrage was most pronounced in the Heart of Dixie, where Alabama partisans were quick to note that it was only because of some shifty polls that benefited Notre Dame - twice, in fact - that there had not been a three-peat champion (1966, 1977). Nebraska had lost a lot to graduation (Tommie Frazier), death (Brook Berringer, who served as an inspiration for the season), and the NFL draft (Lawrence Phillips most notably). But they were a solid team with an excellent defense. On an unforgettable night in Tempe, Arizona, the college football world got flipped upside down thanks to a Snake and defense led by a linebacker who would eventually become an American hero. 994 days had passed since Nebraska left the field a loser. They had won 26 games in a row, 37 regular season games in a row, and two national titles (and lost a third on the last play). But on Frank Kush Day in Tempe, where the field was named in his honor, Arizona State stepped into the national consciousness for the first time as a college football contender. Early in the contest, Jake Plummer took the Sun Devils to a quick 7-0 lead. Stunningly that would be enough to win just 3:22 into the contest. But a minute later, ASU made a statement. After Nebraska got called for an illegal block penalty that put them in second and 18 at their own six, QB Scott Frost and RB Ahman Green missed an option pitch that Green batted into the end zone and then watched go out for a quick safety that put the Devils ahead, 9-0. Plummer took the ensuing drive all the way to the Nebraska 21, where Mike Minter picked him off. Frost drove the Huskers right down the field to the ASU 5 only to make another bad pitch behind Damon Benning that Scott van Der Ahe recovered. A Robert Nycz 27-yard field goal put ASU ahead 12-0 and then with 2:19 in the half, disaster struck Scott Frost for the third time. Back in shotgun (a rarity for a Nebraska QB), the snap went past his head at his own 20 and all the way back into the end zone for a second safety that put the Devils ahead, 14-0. Nycz kicked a 44-yarder that made it 17-0 at halftime. It was the first time Nebraska had been shut out in the first half since the 1992 Orange Bowl against Miami. The second half was no better. Nebraska only crossed midfield once the entire second half. Frost's last play of the game was (surprise!) a THIRD safety on a sack by Derrick Rogers. Frustrated beyond measure, Frost heaved the ball at the goal post in disgust and was removed from the game for backup Matt Turman. His final stats were 6 of 21 for 66 yards and three safeties. On top of Frost's bad night, the Huskers twice had to use timeouts when they had only ten men on the field as they prepared to punt. It was an incredible game of disorganization and lack of discipline shocking for a team that had routed these same Sun Devils, 77-28, just a year earlier. Nebraska seemed done for the year. And so, too, Peyton Manning.
Once again, Archie's oldest quarterbacking son went into the game with Florida and once again he came out a loser, 35-29. The score was deceiving, though, because Florida led 35-6 at the half and had forced four Manning interceptions. He bravely fought back, but despite flinging 65 passes (37 complete) for almost 500 yards, the outcome was never in question. Tennessee's national title hopes were dead in September once again. Florida was on fire just like the Auburn Sports Arena on ESPN in a frightening and unforgettable sight.
The new conference realignment had brought an annual showdown between both Tiger teams in the SEC, and they had quickly found some classics. This year, LSU's upset of Auburn in Jordan-Hare was a footnote to the fire raging at the Auburn Sports Arena during the telecast. It was never a threat to the game or any spectators, but it took the Auburn fire department over an hour to douse the blaze in a game that is now known as "The Night the Barn Burned." LSU clinched the game when Auburn went for the tie with a two-point pass play with 38 seconds left. Raion Hill picked off Jon Cooley's pass and took it all the way back for a two-point LSU score that ended the game, 19-15. And Notre Dame survived Texas, 27-24, in yet another close call for Lou Holtz. Arizona State's win vaulted them all the way to #11 in the polls. Florida was the new number one.
The last week of September became yet another chapter in "Ricky Williams Says Something Stupid." The future NFL pro who would retire to (of all places) Grass Valley, California because he wanted to smoke marijuana made the mistake of saying prior to the game with Virginia that he "had never heard" of Virginia's tandem "the Barbers of C'ville" (brothers Tiki and Ronde Barber). Tiki scored three touchdowns and had 311 all-purpose yards while Ronde's interception set up one of Tiki's TD runs. A 37-13 blowout sent Texas plummeting in the polls (14 to 23). A blue blood match between Ohio State and Notre Dame ended the Irish hopes for a title as John Cooper's charges prevailed just like the year before, this time by a 29-16 score. In so doing, Ohio State became only the fourth school (at that time) to beat Notre Dame in consecutive years (it would get easier very soon). Iowa State had an exciting running back, Troy Davis, who would lead the nation in rushing and who led them to a stunning 45-31 upset of Missouri. But Iowa State would win only one other game, the major reason Davis lost the Heisman in a close vote at the end of the year.
The end of September saw the two Florida beasts hanging tough.
COACHES POLL
1) Florida
2) FSU
3) Ohio St
4) Penn St
5) Michigan
6) Nebraska
7) Arizona St (?????)
The AP had ASU at number five - ahead of the Nebraska team they'd beaten as October began.
A top five showdown in Columbus pitted Ohio State against Penn State in a match of the two most recent Big Ten champions, but the game didn't live up to the hype. The Buckeyes became the first team since Florida State in 1980 to beat top five teams in consecutive weeks, and the shellacking was so one-sided that Penn State didn't even cross into Ohio State territory until the second half in a jack hammering 38-7 win that so impressed the pollsters that they moved Ohio State into the number two spot once again (!) creating a season of "but the top two teams can't meet in the bowl game" if it played out. Four suspended USC players helped Cal dash out to a 19-0 lead entering the fourth quarter that they held on to win, 22-15, the Bears first win over the Trojans in Los Angeles since 1970. The coaches poll remained an amusing farce as Nebraska moved up to number four, one spot ahead of their conquerors and still unbeaten Arizona State. And once again it was time for Miami, a probation riddled Canes team, to square off against Florida State.
Miami had quietly put together an unbeaten record prior to the annual grudge match, in large part due to the extraordinarily low level of competition they'd faced in surrendering only 13 points in four games. FSU administered a reality check and ended Miami's 11-game unbeaten streak (admittedly against overmatched competition), 34-16, and showing again the perverse humor of the coaches poll replaced the Buckeyes at #2 because they'd beaten big name Miami who everyone knew hadn't played anybody. Ohio State dropped because after knocking off two top five foes in the previous two games, they faced a rested Wisconsin and had a letdown, barely prevailing, 17-14, in a game they trailed midway through the fourth quarter. And overtime came at the most bizarre time in the Red River Rivalry as Oklahoma, suffering through a seven-game losing streak (the longest in school history) ended the streak by scoring a touchdown that turned a 27-24 overtime deficit into a 30-24 Sooners win. Arizona State kept it going with a beating of UCLA, 42-34. And since this was an even numbered year once again - quietly, methodically - Alabama was creeping up the polls after a series of close wins against teams they should have pounded.
The Tide's one-year bowl ban - only the second time since 1957 that Alabama didn't enjoy a post-season bowl - was served in 1995, and a number of publications (most notably "The Sporting News") had projected this would be a typically decent Alabama team that would put together the last decent season for a few years as the scholarships lost kicked in with their after effects. In typical Gene Stallings era fashion, the offense was one step above inept and in need of a better quarterback while the defense was very good. The Tide had bumbled its way (mostly) through six wins, solid on defense while questionable on offense. They played one of their best efforts of the year on October 19, routing Ole Miss with a 37-0 pasting that did little to ease concerns in Tuscaloosa. Consider the stat line of quarterback Freddie Kitchens, who was 13 of 33 for 216 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 INTs. Dennis Riddle's running led the Tide on offense, and they were now sitting pretty at number six. Ohio State smashed Purdue to keep the 2 vs 3 controversy alive, Air Force stunned Notre Dame, 20-17, in overtime, leading to increased calls for the removal of Lou Holtz, and Arizona State survived a brush with defeat by prevailing in double overtime by 13 points. How is that possible? With a seven-point lead, the Sun Devils DB Courtney Jackson scooped up a fumble that USC thought was an incomplete pass and dashed 85 yards for a touchdown that counted and made the score look more respectable. And the last week of October brought a de facto elimination game in the form of Alabama at Tennessee. The Vols needed a win to keep their very slim hopes of some sort of championship alive while Alabama realized they likely would not be considered for the national title with anything less than a perfect record.
It was a rainy day in Knoxville for a typical old school rivalry, Peyton Manning (then an up and coming junior) and the Alabama defense. In typical UA-UT fashion, the halftime score favored Alabama, 3-0. A Kitchens bomb to Marcel West for a 40-yard touchdown moved the lead to 10-0 and the Tide set up shop after an interception at the Vols 13-yard line with a first down. Key to the Vols hopes was holding the Tide to a field goal that kept it at 13-0. Manning was sacked five times, but he did get a short pass completion that Joey Kent took 54 yards for a touchdown to bring the Vols back in the game. They eventually tied it and took over at their own 22 with 3:11 remaining. Manning, who had blistered Florida for nearly 500 yards, had been held to only 176 by the Tide D while the running game netted Tennessee only 42 yards - until Joey Graham dashed through the middle and down the right sidelines with a game-clinching 79-yard TD dash that gave Alabama their first loss since the 1995 Iron Bowl Kitchens' stat line was once again nothing to be proud of: 8 of 21 for 137 yards and 3 crippling interceptions. Colorado backup QB John Hessler brought the Buffs back to beat Texas, 28-24, in a game they trailed late. As October ended, there was still no dominant team capturing the fancy of the country
COACHES POLL RANKINGS FOR OCTOBER 28, 1996
1) Florida
2) Florida St
3) Ohio St
4) Arizona St
5) Nebraska
The AP poll had Ohio State and FSU flipped. It promised to be a fight to the finish.
1996 was perhaps the most important transitional year in the history of college football. Every year brings changes, but it is unlikely that AT THE TIME any other year saw as many changes that would affect the long-term college football product as this one year produced. The most important was the introduction of what was expected to become the new power football conference in all the USA - a hybrid of the old Big Eight and half the Southwest Conference to be called "the Big 12." Excitement gripped the central portion of the US as they contemplated challenging the SEC and Big 10 for rival fans' hearts and minds as well as in conference strength. It seemed the best of all worlds, with a couple of Texas powers joining a conference with Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Colorado, who had combined to win four national titles in the previous decade (and lose the championship game in three others). The heightened competition promised to make everyone try harder, recruiter harder, and perhaps put a better product on the field. The second change, probably more important to fans outside the Great Plains, was the new overtime rules that ensured every game would end with both a winner and a loser. It might get crazy - indeed, it would get insane in the coming years - but at least nobody had to worry about Pat Dye hosing Syracuse out of an unbeaten season just to be a jerk anymore, either. The overtime rules had actually been put in place for the 1995 bowl season, where Toledo had beaten Nevada, 40-37, in the first-ever Division I-A (now FBS) overtime game, earning Coach Gary Pinkel the honor of being the answer to a trivia question. Over the course of the next two decades, an average of 32 games per year would need extra time to settle the outcome. At present there remain only four coaches still active that have a tie on their resume: Terry Bowden, Bill Snyder, Brian Kelly, and Nick Saban.
But one other change would have the longest lasting and most permanent consequences of any other: noting the extreme financial success of the SEC championship game since 1992, the new year brought several new conference title games vying for attention on the first Saturday in December alongside the SEC. The Big 12 immediately saw a potential bonanza that could pit an unbeaten Nebraska against a Texas or an Oklahoma with a shot at the national championship on the line. The first Big 12 title game would be played in the Trans World Dome in St Louis, a circumstance that gave nobody a home field advantage since Missouri was not a contender. The old WAC, too, decided to get into the championship sweepstakes by staging their own title game that promised to match BYU against whoever won the Pacific Division. In time, both conferences would implode over money and cries of inequity, but much as the bright America of 1996 saw wages increasing and unemployment decreasing in a time of seemingly unparalleled peace at home, the future seemed bright as 1996 began.
PRE-SEASON AP POLL
1) Nebraska (50)
2) Tennessee (7)
3) Florida State (5)
4) Florida (1)
5) Colorado (3)
6) Notre Dame (1)
7) USC
8) Texas
The coaches poll had the same top five followed by USC, Notre Dame, and Penn State. The projected national championship was that Nebraska would go for the three-peat against Peyton Manning in the Sugar Bowl, this year's Bowl Alliance national championship game. Manning would wind up going to Disney World.
Once again, college football continued to move its first game ever earlier in the year. On August 24, BYU and Texas A/M squared off in the Pigskin Classic in Anaheim. The Aggies bolted to a quick 20-6 lead in the second quarter and then watched Cougars QB Steve Sarkisian unload a series of bombs, going 33 for 44 for 536 yards and six touchdowns in a 41-37 thriller that got the season off to a roaring start. The following day saw the year's first marquee matchup of Penn State and USC in the Kickoff Classic give the Nittany Lions a 24-7 win behind the running heroics of Curtis Enis. Polls were on hold until after week two.
Georgia debuted a new head coach in Jim Donnan, but he looked a lot like his predecessor Ray Goff in a befuddling 11-7 loss against Southern Miss. Donnan had left Marshall University to take the Georgia job and in his first game held the Golden Eagles to 227 yards offense and no touchdowns. Three field goals gave USM a 9-7 lead in the fourth quarter when Georgia QB Mike Bobo collided on a handoff with RB Robert Edwards and was tackled in the end zone for a safety that put the Eagles up by four. This became critical when Georgia marched down the field all the way to the USM 13-yard line in the final minute. Needing a touchdown rather than a field goal, Bobo missed a fourth down pass and Southern Miss had the upset in Donnan's first game. It would set the tone for his stormy tenure in Athens. The first-ever Big 12 conference game was a vanilla affair pitting Texas Tech against the rapidly improving Kansas State Wildcats in Manhattan. Bill Snyder became the first coach to ever win a Big 12 conference game in a 21-14 contest that sounds truly amusing given where the Big 12 scores would venture in future years. Penn State's early win netted them a vote in the coaches poll as the season entered September.
UCLA traveled to Knoxville for a rare SEC vs Pac Ten match that gave Peyton Manning even more Heisman hype when the Vols prevailed, 35-20. Bruins QB Cade McNown was as steady as Manning if a little less impressive. Nebraska bombarded Michigan State, 55-14, in the second half of a home and home with a then unknown Nick Saban. It would be the worst beating Saban ever took as a head coach. And Arizona State got some hype with a thrilling 45-42 win over Washington behind QB Jake Plummer, a name few knew at the time but would know soon. And Alabama beat the same USM team that had upset Georgia, 20-10, in a rather bland game that was typical of the Gene Stallings era at the Capstone. So, too, was the next game against Vanderbilt.
The Commodores (not the Lionel Richie variety) entered Bryant-Denny Stadium with a head full of steam after narrowly missing a monumental upset against Notre Dame, 14-7. The game was tied with five minutes left, so the Commodores had a lot to be proud about. They carried that into their game with Alabama. Vandy scored first to take a 7-0 lead. The Tide drives all ended in field goals, but they had the lead. Trailing 9-7 in the second quarter, Vandy unleashed the longest run in the entire history of Vanderbilt University, not by a back but by the punter. Lined up deep in his own territory, punter Bill Marinanagel saw the Tide playing return and ran straight up the middle of the field. After clearing the first down marker, he continued on racing for an 81-yard unbelievable touchdown that put Vandy ahead, 15-9, and stunned the Crimson faithful. Recovering from the shock, Alabama hung tough and eventually won though QB Freddie Kitchens threw two fourth quarter interceptions that kept Vanderbilt far too close for comfort. The win was so unimpressive that the pollsters dropped Alabama a spot from 12 to 13 - tied with arch rival Auburn no less. In the rematch of the infamous Kordell Stewart "Hail Mary" game, Colorado QB Koy Detmer again heaved a potential touchdown towards the end zone on the last play that was batted away by Charles Woodson. Michigan won, 20-13. A stunner occurred when SW Louisiana, who had never beaten a ranked foe since joining Division I-A in 1981, shocked the world with an upset of Texas A/M, 29-22, on a pick six with minutes left to play. And in what would turn out to be perhaps the most critical result of the year, Washington upset BYU, 29-17, sacking Steve Sarkisian eight times, including a safety that put the game out of reach.
Much of the hype entering the year focused on Nebraska's quest for a legitimate college football three-peat national championship. The outrage was most pronounced in the Heart of Dixie, where Alabama partisans were quick to note that it was only because of some shifty polls that benefited Notre Dame - twice, in fact - that there had not been a three-peat champion (1966, 1977). Nebraska had lost a lot to graduation (Tommie Frazier), death (Brook Berringer, who served as an inspiration for the season), and the NFL draft (Lawrence Phillips most notably). But they were a solid team with an excellent defense. On an unforgettable night in Tempe, Arizona, the college football world got flipped upside down thanks to a Snake and defense led by a linebacker who would eventually become an American hero. 994 days had passed since Nebraska left the field a loser. They had won 26 games in a row, 37 regular season games in a row, and two national titles (and lost a third on the last play). But on Frank Kush Day in Tempe, where the field was named in his honor, Arizona State stepped into the national consciousness for the first time as a college football contender. Early in the contest, Jake Plummer took the Sun Devils to a quick 7-0 lead. Stunningly that would be enough to win just 3:22 into the contest. But a minute later, ASU made a statement. After Nebraska got called for an illegal block penalty that put them in second and 18 at their own six, QB Scott Frost and RB Ahman Green missed an option pitch that Green batted into the end zone and then watched go out for a quick safety that put the Devils ahead, 9-0. Plummer took the ensuing drive all the way to the Nebraska 21, where Mike Minter picked him off. Frost drove the Huskers right down the field to the ASU 5 only to make another bad pitch behind Damon Benning that Scott van Der Ahe recovered. A Robert Nycz 27-yard field goal put ASU ahead 12-0 and then with 2:19 in the half, disaster struck Scott Frost for the third time. Back in shotgun (a rarity for a Nebraska QB), the snap went past his head at his own 20 and all the way back into the end zone for a second safety that put the Devils ahead, 14-0. Nycz kicked a 44-yarder that made it 17-0 at halftime. It was the first time Nebraska had been shut out in the first half since the 1992 Orange Bowl against Miami. The second half was no better. Nebraska only crossed midfield once the entire second half. Frost's last play of the game was (surprise!) a THIRD safety on a sack by Derrick Rogers. Frustrated beyond measure, Frost heaved the ball at the goal post in disgust and was removed from the game for backup Matt Turman. His final stats were 6 of 21 for 66 yards and three safeties. On top of Frost's bad night, the Huskers twice had to use timeouts when they had only ten men on the field as they prepared to punt. It was an incredible game of disorganization and lack of discipline shocking for a team that had routed these same Sun Devils, 77-28, just a year earlier. Nebraska seemed done for the year. And so, too, Peyton Manning.
Once again, Archie's oldest quarterbacking son went into the game with Florida and once again he came out a loser, 35-29. The score was deceiving, though, because Florida led 35-6 at the half and had forced four Manning interceptions. He bravely fought back, but despite flinging 65 passes (37 complete) for almost 500 yards, the outcome was never in question. Tennessee's national title hopes were dead in September once again. Florida was on fire just like the Auburn Sports Arena on ESPN in a frightening and unforgettable sight.
The new conference realignment had brought an annual showdown between both Tiger teams in the SEC, and they had quickly found some classics. This year, LSU's upset of Auburn in Jordan-Hare was a footnote to the fire raging at the Auburn Sports Arena during the telecast. It was never a threat to the game or any spectators, but it took the Auburn fire department over an hour to douse the blaze in a game that is now known as "The Night the Barn Burned." LSU clinched the game when Auburn went for the tie with a two-point pass play with 38 seconds left. Raion Hill picked off Jon Cooley's pass and took it all the way back for a two-point LSU score that ended the game, 19-15. And Notre Dame survived Texas, 27-24, in yet another close call for Lou Holtz. Arizona State's win vaulted them all the way to #11 in the polls. Florida was the new number one.
The last week of September became yet another chapter in "Ricky Williams Says Something Stupid." The future NFL pro who would retire to (of all places) Grass Valley, California because he wanted to smoke marijuana made the mistake of saying prior to the game with Virginia that he "had never heard" of Virginia's tandem "the Barbers of C'ville" (brothers Tiki and Ronde Barber). Tiki scored three touchdowns and had 311 all-purpose yards while Ronde's interception set up one of Tiki's TD runs. A 37-13 blowout sent Texas plummeting in the polls (14 to 23). A blue blood match between Ohio State and Notre Dame ended the Irish hopes for a title as John Cooper's charges prevailed just like the year before, this time by a 29-16 score. In so doing, Ohio State became only the fourth school (at that time) to beat Notre Dame in consecutive years (it would get easier very soon). Iowa State had an exciting running back, Troy Davis, who would lead the nation in rushing and who led them to a stunning 45-31 upset of Missouri. But Iowa State would win only one other game, the major reason Davis lost the Heisman in a close vote at the end of the year.
The end of September saw the two Florida beasts hanging tough.
COACHES POLL
1) Florida
2) FSU
3) Ohio St
4) Penn St
5) Michigan
6) Nebraska
7) Arizona St (?????)
The AP had ASU at number five - ahead of the Nebraska team they'd beaten as October began.
A top five showdown in Columbus pitted Ohio State against Penn State in a match of the two most recent Big Ten champions, but the game didn't live up to the hype. The Buckeyes became the first team since Florida State in 1980 to beat top five teams in consecutive weeks, and the shellacking was so one-sided that Penn State didn't even cross into Ohio State territory until the second half in a jack hammering 38-7 win that so impressed the pollsters that they moved Ohio State into the number two spot once again (!) creating a season of "but the top two teams can't meet in the bowl game" if it played out. Four suspended USC players helped Cal dash out to a 19-0 lead entering the fourth quarter that they held on to win, 22-15, the Bears first win over the Trojans in Los Angeles since 1970. The coaches poll remained an amusing farce as Nebraska moved up to number four, one spot ahead of their conquerors and still unbeaten Arizona State. And once again it was time for Miami, a probation riddled Canes team, to square off against Florida State.
Miami had quietly put together an unbeaten record prior to the annual grudge match, in large part due to the extraordinarily low level of competition they'd faced in surrendering only 13 points in four games. FSU administered a reality check and ended Miami's 11-game unbeaten streak (admittedly against overmatched competition), 34-16, and showing again the perverse humor of the coaches poll replaced the Buckeyes at #2 because they'd beaten big name Miami who everyone knew hadn't played anybody. Ohio State dropped because after knocking off two top five foes in the previous two games, they faced a rested Wisconsin and had a letdown, barely prevailing, 17-14, in a game they trailed midway through the fourth quarter. And overtime came at the most bizarre time in the Red River Rivalry as Oklahoma, suffering through a seven-game losing streak (the longest in school history) ended the streak by scoring a touchdown that turned a 27-24 overtime deficit into a 30-24 Sooners win. Arizona State kept it going with a beating of UCLA, 42-34. And since this was an even numbered year once again - quietly, methodically - Alabama was creeping up the polls after a series of close wins against teams they should have pounded.
The Tide's one-year bowl ban - only the second time since 1957 that Alabama didn't enjoy a post-season bowl - was served in 1995, and a number of publications (most notably "The Sporting News") had projected this would be a typically decent Alabama team that would put together the last decent season for a few years as the scholarships lost kicked in with their after effects. In typical Gene Stallings era fashion, the offense was one step above inept and in need of a better quarterback while the defense was very good. The Tide had bumbled its way (mostly) through six wins, solid on defense while questionable on offense. They played one of their best efforts of the year on October 19, routing Ole Miss with a 37-0 pasting that did little to ease concerns in Tuscaloosa. Consider the stat line of quarterback Freddie Kitchens, who was 13 of 33 for 216 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 INTs. Dennis Riddle's running led the Tide on offense, and they were now sitting pretty at number six. Ohio State smashed Purdue to keep the 2 vs 3 controversy alive, Air Force stunned Notre Dame, 20-17, in overtime, leading to increased calls for the removal of Lou Holtz, and Arizona State survived a brush with defeat by prevailing in double overtime by 13 points. How is that possible? With a seven-point lead, the Sun Devils DB Courtney Jackson scooped up a fumble that USC thought was an incomplete pass and dashed 85 yards for a touchdown that counted and made the score look more respectable. And the last week of October brought a de facto elimination game in the form of Alabama at Tennessee. The Vols needed a win to keep their very slim hopes of some sort of championship alive while Alabama realized they likely would not be considered for the national title with anything less than a perfect record.
It was a rainy day in Knoxville for a typical old school rivalry, Peyton Manning (then an up and coming junior) and the Alabama defense. In typical UA-UT fashion, the halftime score favored Alabama, 3-0. A Kitchens bomb to Marcel West for a 40-yard touchdown moved the lead to 10-0 and the Tide set up shop after an interception at the Vols 13-yard line with a first down. Key to the Vols hopes was holding the Tide to a field goal that kept it at 13-0. Manning was sacked five times, but he did get a short pass completion that Joey Kent took 54 yards for a touchdown to bring the Vols back in the game. They eventually tied it and took over at their own 22 with 3:11 remaining. Manning, who had blistered Florida for nearly 500 yards, had been held to only 176 by the Tide D while the running game netted Tennessee only 42 yards - until Joey Graham dashed through the middle and down the right sidelines with a game-clinching 79-yard TD dash that gave Alabama their first loss since the 1995 Iron Bowl Kitchens' stat line was once again nothing to be proud of: 8 of 21 for 137 yards and 3 crippling interceptions. Colorado backup QB John Hessler brought the Buffs back to beat Texas, 28-24, in a game they trailed late. As October ended, there was still no dominant team capturing the fancy of the country
COACHES POLL RANKINGS FOR OCTOBER 28, 1996
1) Florida
2) Florida St
3) Ohio St
4) Arizona St
5) Nebraska
The AP poll had Ohio State and FSU flipped. It promised to be a fight to the finish.