Poll Controversies Revisited: 1996 - A Four Car Crash With Another Disputed Champion

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.

Part Two


The season entered November with the potential for a 1 vs 2 showdown in Tallahassee to finish the season. But a dark undercurrent remained: what if both Ohio State and Arizona State made the Rose Bowl with perfect records? The winner of the Florida-Florida State game would thus be eliminated, but who would the winner face? And even if Arizona State lost, how could anyone rate them behind the very same Nebraska team they had throttled, 19-0? In fact, if events broke a certain way, there was the potential for TWO 1 vs 2 matchups, Florida vs Florida St followed by Ohio State vs Arizona St in the Rose Bowl.



November began with Nebraska administering the worst beating they'd ever administered to arch rival Oklahoma, a 73-21 blasting that wasn't even that close as the Huskers built a 52-0 lead early in the second half before letting off the gas. And there was a new record for longest game in college history when Cal beat Arizona, 56-55, when the Wildcats failed in the fourth overtime. The only change in the top ten came when #10 Northwestern was blown out, 34-9, by Penn state in Happy Valley, a loss that brought one-loss Alabama back into the top ten just in time for an expected loss to #13 LSU in Baton Rouge. Some things just don't go as planned.



The big sports story of November 9 concerned the long awaited first match between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield, a fight boxing fans had waited six years, an unplanned retirement, and a prison sentence to see. College football, however, did its best to compete for attention with four of the best games of the day in the SEC. High octane Florida survived 2-7 Vandy by a touchdown in a game where the Gators entered as 43 point favorites. Arkansas fittingly began what would become a tradition by playing Ole Miss in the first-ever SEC overtime game. As of this writing, the Hawgs have played in and won more overtime games than any team in the SEC. They also have played in the three longest games in SEC history, winning both seven overtime games while losing a six overtime game against Tennessee. Naturally, the Hawgs beat Ole Miss, 13-7, in overtime. The most shocking result of the day was a stunning 21-17 upset of Tennessee by the upstart Memphis State Tigers. The Vols held the Tigers to 153 total yards, ran nearly 40 more plays, and held the ball for 22 minutes more and yet Memphis won on a 3-yard scamper with 34 seconds left. And the night belonged to a heretofore unknown (outside Alabama) running back named Shaun Alexander. The Alabama defense was devastating, holding LSU's talented Kevin Faulk and the other LSU runners to only 52 yards rushing. Alexander had two touchdown runs each (73, 72) that outgained LSU's entire evening. Alexander accounted for 291 yards and four touchdowns. Alexander's name would be prominent for the next decade in both college and professional football, but it all began on that night in Baton Rouge. Jim Colletto, Purdue head coach, resigned effective the end of the year, and the Boilermakers stunned the football world with a 9-3 beating of #9 Michigan. The two upset losses thrust Alabama up to number eight and with one loss very much alive in the national championship hunt, particularly if they could get an unbeaten Florida in Atlanta and win the SEC title. As it turned out, the Tide's national championship hopes and winning program died on the field in Starkville at the hands of a former Bryant player trying desperately to avoid losing his job.



Ohio State's 48-0 demolition of Illinois, following on the heels of an impressive 45-0 crushing of Minnesota, so impressed pollsters that they moved the Buckeyes up to number two, dropping Florida State in the process. The Buckeyes were then commensurately punished the following week when their unimpressive 27-17 win over Indiana dropped them back to number three. Mack Brown's North Carolina squad, 10-1 in their last eleven games and with only a loss to FSU marring their record, blew the Virginia game in typical Mack Brown fashion, blowing a 17-3 second half lead en route to a 20-17 loss in Scott Stadium. Auburn was seemingly eliminated from the SEC West hunt with a stunning 56-49 overtime loss at home to Georgia. Alabama entered the night needing just a win over Mississippi State to clinch the SEC, a #7 ranking, and stay in the national title hunt. The Bulldogs were tattooed with a 3-6 record, Jackie Sherrill was all but gone, and the Bulldogs had only beaten Alabama once in the previous forty years. MSU built a 14-7 lead on a TD run by Robert Isaac and a pass by QB Derrick Taite. In the closing minutes of the first half, Alexander scored to set up the tie that failed when K John Brock's kick went wide left. Early in the fourth quarter, Alabama took a 16-14 lead when Brock kicked his longest field goal of the year, a 42-yard pop. The game was following the pattern of the two most recent Alabama-MSU games in Starkville, where the Dawgs lead in the fourth quarter and surrender to the superior talent on the Alabama side. A short Taite pass to the tight end on the ensuing series took the Dawgs all the way down inside the Alabama ten, a Quincy Jackson tackle the only thing preventing a touchdown. The Tide defense stiffened, sacking Taite for a 12-yard loss that forced a forty-yard Brian Hazlewood field goal attempt that was good and gave the Dawgs a 17-16 lead with about nine minutes left. Starting inside their own twenty, Freddie Kitchens had about 90 seconds and one timeout to get Alabama in field goal range. He got the Tide to the MSU 40 with a fourth and three. When Marcel West dropped Kitchens's hard throw, the MSU Bulldogs had beaten Alabama, 17-16, for their first win in the series following fifteen consecutive losses. Sherrill was the toast of Starkville, and Alabama was not going to win their second title in five years. To make matters worse, rumors of Coach Gene Stallings's retirement began to increase in volume following the narrow loss. Colorado's 12-0 blanking of Kansas State eliminated the Wildcats (#9 entering the game), and the voters agreed Florida was number one but divided upon whether Ohio State or Florida State was the real number two. In the world of the Bowl Alliance, the distinction was very important. Only the stunning loss by Ohio State in 1995 had saved the Bowl Alliance and given them the unbeaten 1 vs 2 match in the Fiesta Bowl. As it turned out, John Cooper was about to his version of "hold my beer" in outdoing his contribution to the previous year.



Rivalry weekend was split in 1996, with some games played the weekend of November 23 and others played the Thanksgiving weekend of November 28-30. Over the course of the next three weekends, fans were reminded both of why college football is an emotional and exciting sport as well as the utter frustration of not being able to determine a champion with anything resembling rationale.



For the third time in four years, Ohio State entered the big showdown with Michigan undefeated. And for the third time in four years, the Buckeyes lost an eminently winnable game. After taking a 9-0 halftime lead in a game they could easily have been ahead 21-0, tOSU managed an incredible five yards rushing in the second half. When Michigan QB Scott Dreisbach went out late in the first half with an injury, second-string Brian Griese brought Michigan back with a 68-yard toss to Tai Streets and two field goals. The Bowl Alliance breathed a sigh of relief - way too soon as circumstances ultimately proved. Alabama and Auburn met in a Legion Field Iron Bowl for a winner-takes-the-SEC-West showdown that was three games in one. Alabama tore out to a 17-0 lead just 11 minutes into the game only to see Auburn flip the script and score the next 23 points and hold a six-point lead with 2:04 remaining. Needing 74 yards, a touchdown and (most frighteningly) an extra point, Freddie Kitchens converted a third and ten with a toss to Shamari Buchanan that gained 15 and kept the drive alive. Kitchens had already thrown three interceptions, including the one that had Alabama trailing via a Pick Six. A safety valve to Dennis Riddle took the Tide across midfield. The very next play was a carbon copy to Riddle with yet another first down. Alabama had half of the 74 yards they needed in only forty seconds. Kitchens went for it all with a bomb to the end zone and an open receiver. By throwing a hanging toss, Auburn's DB caught up to the play and fouled the receiver, giving up fifteen yards rather than the NFL spot foul. Kitchens then took off for a gain of nine that gave Alabama a second and one at the Auburn nine. He then threw to Michael Vaughn inside the five who tipped it twice and then held on for the first down. For the third time in the drive, Kitchens went to Riddle for the safety valve, this time on the left. Riddle raced through the blockers for a game-tying touchdown with 27 seconds left. The PAT gave Alabama a one-point lead, and Dameyune Craig's fourth down Hail Mary was well short of the end zone and knocked down to preserve a 24-23 Alabama win to clinch their fourth Western Division title in four eligible years. But the most memorable moment of the game came in the post-game press conference where Coach Gene Stallings announced he was retiring as head coach at the end of the season. The MSU loss was now hanging over Alabama as a missed opportunity. Arizona State ensured controversy with a rousing 56-14 win over Arizona that gave them a perfect regular season. And BYU, quietly climbing up the polls, clinched their division with a 37-17 win over Utah that put them in the first-ever WAC championship game. But this week paled in comparison to what was about to happen.



Nebraska and Colorado met in Lincoln to determine the Big 12 North champion and eliminate at least one of the teams from the national title hunt. Colorado took a 6-0 lead, but they couldn't move the ball. Indeed, Koy Detmer's only touchdown pass was to Nebraska LB Jay Foreman. The biggest play, however, was an injury to RB Ahman Green. Backup DeAngelo Evans replaced Green and rushed for 123 yards and a TD as the Huskers stayed alive in their quest for a three-peat, 17-12. But the most consequential game since September saw the two Florida teams atop the polls in their annual grudge match, the 30th time in NCAA history where one played two. The Seminoles unloaded, sacking Danny Wuerffel six times and forcing field position with a blocked punt and Florida's failure to execute. Warrick Dunn ran all over the Gators, and the game ended in a 24-21 triumph that appeared to eliminate the Gators from national title contention. The Noles were in the national title game, but they would not face #2 Arizona State. The general consensus was that Florida State would face #3 Nebraska, who were expected to steamroll the upstart Texas Longhorns in the first-ever Big 12 title game. The Huskers were suddenly alive again, thanks to the Ohio State loss against Michigan. Voters could never justify voting for Nebraska over an undefeated Arizona State, but if the Huskers won out and the Buckeyes beat the Sun Devils, Nebraska would make history as the first ever three-peat champion of college football. There was just the formality of beating three touchdown underdog Texas in St Louis. And speaking of formalities, Jackie Sherrill's stunning upset of Ole Miss had turned him from a lame duck into the toast of Starkville, Mississippi. Sherrill was about to go on the best four-year run in MSU history, and it began with wins over his two arch rivals, Alabama and Ole Miss.



December 7, 1996, was the first real conference championship Saturday in college football history. Army and Navy both entered the game with winning records for the first time since the infamous 1963 contest. Navy blew a 21-3 lead to lose, 28-24, giving Army an overall record of 10-1. (Amusingly, Army dropped from 23 to 24 in the polls after beating an eight-win team). Also amusingly, the Mormons of BYU set out for the Sin City in Las Vegas for the first-ever WAC championship. It was a fitting ending and exciting contest that saw BYU prevail, 28-25, in overtime. BYU would not gain much prestige from their season, however. They were rejected by the Bowl Alliance, largely because of the assumption that thrifty Mormons wouldn't spend much money to help the economies of the various large bowl cities. They wound up with a little noted scuffle against up and coming Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl. The game of the day, however, was in St Louis.



Tom Osborne had made no particular effort to hide his displeasure with conference title games. He warned, presciently as it turned out, that it was a risk of a highly ranked team having its season ruined by an average team that played their best in a nothing to lose game. (Osborne never brought up the fact that his 1994 national title was aided, in part, by this very circumstance ruining an unbeaten Alabama). Despite losing Ahman Green for the game, Nebraska was so superior to Texas on paper that nobody gave serious thought to an upset save one person: Texas QB James Brown, who was apparently "feeling good," predicted that Nebraska might well lose to Texas by the three TD oddsmaker margin. Texas scored on the first drive, but Nebraska responded with a touchdown of their own, Green's replacement Evans scoring from the three. A 61-yard dash by Priest Holmes gave Texas a 20-17 halftime lead that was turned when Evans got another TD in the third quarter that put Nebraska up by one, 24-23. Brown then hit Wane McGarity for a 66-yard touchdown pass that put the Longhorns up, 30-27. After holding Nebraska without points, Texas got the ball on their own seven-yard line with a little over three minutes left and a three-point lead. Brown drove Texas to their own 29 and faced fourth and inches. Texas Coach John Makovic, the college roommate of the late Brian Piccolo, showed his own form of courage by opting to go for it and end the game with 2:28 left. Nebraska's excellent defense penetrated the line quickly, but the call was for a rollout toss behind the defense. Brown zinged a soft toss to a wide open Derek Lewis, who ambled to the Nebraska 10-yard line before he was tackled. Holmes scored his third TD on the very next play, and Nebraska's three-peat hopes went from life support to the graveyard. Perhaps nowhere did hearts beat slower after Texas's win than in Alabama, slowing down just in time to watch the SEC title game.



Florida took the field with an extra spring in their step. A win against Alabama and in a rematch with Florida State - plus an Arizona State loss in the Rose Bowl - and the Gators would finally ascend the mountaintop to their first national title. Alabama seized the early momentum when Ozell Powell picked of a deflected pass and put Alabama at the Florida nine just 90 seconds into the game. But the Tide, typical of the 1996 team, failed to score. The Tide did strike first on a 36-yard swing pass TD to Dennis Riddle, Florida got serious and punched in three passing TDs to take a 24-7 lead and appear to put the game away in the second quarter. Just before halftime, Kitchens led a crucial drive that ended with a TD toss to Michael Vaughn and bring the Tide to 24-14. Alabama ended the first half with only seven rushing yards and only alive because of two Gator turnovers. Preparing to punt from their own 35 on the second possession of the second half, Florida punter Robby Stevenson dropped the snap, and the Tide got the ball at the Florida at the five-yard line. Riddle scored on the first play, and Alabama pulled to a 24-21 deficit with over nine minutes left in the third. Wuerffell's subsequent drive ended in a TD toss to Reidel Anthony that re-established a ten-point lead. And just as Alabama seemed dead yet again, they climbed off the canvas. Facing third and ten on their own six-yard line, Ktichens went for broke. And broke caught it wide open in the form of Michael Vaughn, who had a five-yard cushion on the defender and raced untouched for a 94-yard touchdown bomb, the longest pass play (at that time) in Alabama history. The Tide was again within three points, trailing only 31-28 as the fourth quarter began. And the fourth quarter was all Florida, with Wuerffel's response to the 94-yard toss his own 85-yard TD bomb to Jacquez Green. Florida had won their fourth straight SEC title, and they could now begin preparing for a revenge game against the Noles thanks to Nebraska's shocking defeat. The final regular season coaches poll was as follows:



1) Florida St (57)

2) Arizona St (5)

3) Florida

4) Ohio St

5) BYU

6) Nebraska

7) Penn St

8) Colorado

9) Va Tech

10) Tennessee



Yes, once again the Big Ten - this time assisted by the Pac Ten - had thrown a monkey wrench into the proceedings. The powers that be continued to concoct title match-ups that depended on cooperation by the two Rose Bowl conferences, and the two Rose Bowl conferences kept making it difficult. There was little doubt that once the Rose Bowl contract with ABC expired in 1998, the Rose Bowl conferences were going to have to get on board with some sort of consistent championship method. Fans would be treated to four weeks of ridiculous scenarios, "If Florida State loses and Ohio State wins," etc. College football was a lucky winner in that it would have two potential national championship games, but this also meant two potential champions. Maybe. For the second time in three years, Florida and Florida State would square off in a rematch of the final regular season game. And it would be the last game of the season.



The bowl games, as always, were a mix of the big name games that failed to deliver the hype (LSU's 10-7 snooze-fest win over Clemson), near upsets (Army almost beating Auburn in the Independence Bowl), and the historic (Alabama and Michigan meeting for only the 2nd time ever in Gene Stallings's swan song). The SEC, a conference long known for asserting superiority and then bumbling home with a losing bowl record, went 5-0 in the bowl games, with LSU, Tennessee, Auburn, Alabama, and Florida emerging as winners, while the Pac 10 went 1-3. And yes, that gives away the results of what happened.



Arizona State emerged as the lovable underdog, the team that had taken down Nebraska and run the gauntlet undefeated to make their first Rose Bowl appearance in a decade. Florida State had been a national power for years, so the part of the public that likes the underdog rooted heavily for Arizona State. To make the storyline more dramatic, Ohio State's coach John Cooper had been the ASU head coach in their Rose Bowl win in 1987. And the Sun Devils and Buckeyes played the best game of the 1996 season. Ohio State took the early lead on a Stanley Jackson to David Boston TD pass, but Jake Plummer tied it with a 25-yard pass to Ricky Boyer that replays (which were not in use in 1996) showed actually hit the ground. A critical OSU stop forced a field goal that gave Arizona State a 10-7 lead, but the Buckeyes responded immediately with a 72-yard TD pass from Arizona native Joe Germaine to Dimitrious Stanley. An Andy Katzenmoyer interception seized momentum, but his huge runback was called back because of a block below the waist. Entering the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes were up, 14-10. With about six minutes left, a well-placed punt the Buckeyes at their own three. Jackson replaced Germaine and after a three-yard gain, Jackson handed off to Pepe Pearson, busted loose by a perfect block by Orlando Pace. Pearson rumbled 62 yards, but when the Devils stiffened, helped by a pass interference that was not called on ASU's Pat Tillman. Trying to turn the four-point lead to seven, maximum disaster struck when ASU not only blocked the field goal but DE Derrick Rodgers ran the distance for a momentum flipping touchdown. In a game marred with an unusually high number of penalties, however, ASU lost the TD but kept the ball when the officials ruled it was a forward toss rather than a lateral prior to the touchdown dash. Plummer drove his charges the distance to score on his own and give the Sun Devils a 17-14 lead with only 1:40 remaining. Germaine countered with an inconsistent but effective drive aided by two 15-yard penalties for pass interference, and the Buckeyes scored with 19 seconds left to go ahead, 20-17, on a toss to David Boston. But when ASU blocked the PAT, the Devils had a prayer. Plummer hit Jackson in the center of the field around the forty, but time ran out, and ASU's dream season was over just four points short of perfection. The loss of Arizona State meant two days of non-stop hype because it was now inescapable: the winner of the Florida-Florida State rematch was going to be the national champions for 1996.



Steve Spurrier spent much of the time leading up to the rematch pouting rather petulantly about alleged late hits by Florida State against Spurrier's Heisman winner, Danny Wuerffel. FSU QB Thad Busby got Florida's attention immediately, with a play action bomb to Andre Cooper that gained 55 yards. Getting aggressive early, the Noles eschewed a field goal and were stopped on fourth and two. To combat the alleged late hits, Spurrier introduced a new wrinkle: Wuerffel in shotgun. Wuerffel took Florida right down the field with a strike to Ike Hilliard that put Florida ahead, 7-0. Busby responded with a second drive that netted a field goal to reduces the score to 7-3. Poor field position and an FSU put from their own end zone put Florida in business to start a drive at the FSU 30. Despite the excellent field position, Wuerffel's off target throws forced UF to settle for a field goal and a 10-3 lead. It was one of the longest first quarters anyone could remember, as both teams threw the ball almost every play. In the second quarter, Wuerffel dodged a disaster at his own 20 and threw a wounded goose that a wide open Ike Hilliard caught for a 50-yard gain on a drive that netted the Gators another touchdown and a 17-3 lead. Florida was doing an outstanding job holding Warrick Dunn to a pittance of yards, and the FSU receivers had trouble catching the rushed throws. When two Florida defenders collided near the end zone, Busby hit a wide open E.G. Green to narrow the deficit to 17-10. Florida responded with another quick drive that ended with another Wuerffel pass to Hilliard and a 24-10 score. In the final minute of the half, Dunn finally put together 12 yards and a touchdown, and the two teams went in for halftime with the Gators ahead, 24-17. A Scott Bentley field goal on FSU's first second half possession made it 24-20, and it appeared to be anyone's game.



And then came the play that decided the national championship.



After holding the Gators to a punt and preparing to get the ball back with momentum, FSU watched helplessly as Robby Stephenson uncorked a 69-yard punt that wound up at the Noles 2-yard line. FSU called for a pass and just as Busby was about to get sacked, he threw the ball into the ground and avoided the safety. His next pass was nearly picked off deep downfield. After a run to set up the punt, FSU watched Jacquez Green set Florida up in business at the FSU 29. The Gators put together a drive that ended with Wuerffel throwing to Hilliard in double coverage, who caught it and gave the Noles a 31-20 lead. The game, for all intents and purposes, was over. But Spurrier also made a crucial decision: he was not going to leave any doubt for pollsters who might toy with the idea of either a split national title or even voting Ohio State over the Gators, unlikely as that seemed. With less than a minute left in the half, Florida State seemingly caught a break when Wuerffel's pass was intercepted, tipped, intercepted....and dropped....in a matter of two seconds. Wuerffel made them pay with a 16-yard TD run that put the Gators ahead, 38-20, and the rout was on. In the final quarter, Terry Jackson would run all over a tired Noles defense for two TD runs of 42 and one yard, and the Gators left the field with Steve Spurrier's long awaited national championship, 51-20. In just 367 days, Spurrier had gone from blowout victim to blowout victor in the national championship. When the vote was finally in, Ohio State got 1.5 votes while Florida got everything else and completed the trifecta: Heisman winner, SEC champions, and national champions. The huge victory margin erased any incentive voters may have had to name the two teams co-national champions. Very little ink was spilled or anger expressed at the idea of a rematch. Yet at the same time, the conclusion to the season was once again unsatisfying. Sure, Florida had won the national championship, but in a world of reality, the Gators had no business playing in the game. The matchup SHOULD have been Florida State vs Arizona State for the national title. 1996 may have better reflected the delicate tension that IS college football: the Gators were without question the best team as they played the toughest schedule in the nation and blew out pretty much everyone except Vandy and FSU. (The 35-29 win over the Vols, as noted earlier, was never really that close; UF led, 35-6, at one point). A lot of writers felt Nebraska was still the nation's best team, fluke loss to ASU with new quarterback and loss to Texas when star RB Ahman Green was out with injury notwithstanding. The bizarre irony is that if Nebraska had just beaten Texas, the Cornhuskers would have played Florida State for the national title while the Gators would have been able to do nothing but lament "what if." And what if the Huskers had won while Arizona State lost? How could you name Nebraska the national champion if Ohio State beat the same Arizona State that routed Nebraska, 19-0, in September? Rest assured, it had happened before, especially since Nebraska would have beaten number one (almost always a guaranteed vote for champion), and the writers wanting to see a three-peat champion would have enabled it. These were problems that would have to be addressed going forward. The powers that be were not always going to get as lucky as they got in the first four days of 1997. What if both Florida State and Arizona State had won? The Noles had the name, but the Sun Devils had beaten Nebraska. If Arizona State had been moved up to number one when they beat number one - as Florida State had - then they would have been number one in the polls entering the game. Or what if Florida had lost to Alabama? Would BYU of all teams have been invited to New Orleans for a Bowl Alliance showdown for the national championship? (There is a sort of twisted irony in picturing Mormons first in Vegas and then on Bourbon Street).



1996 was a year of change in college football, but it was also a harbinger of things to come. In the fifteen seasons since 1982, nine of the fifteen titlists - including Florida in 96 - had been disputed. Over and over again, #1 and #2 were contractually obligated to other games. The Bowl Coalition and the Bowl Alliance had both sought to remedy this only to see the non-participating conferences act as proverbial flies in the ointment. The Big Ten had already lost a national title in 1994, when Penn State managed to fall from the top spot in both polls, once after thumping a good Ohio State team by the resounding margin of 63-14. And what would happen if a team was in the top spot in both polls with an unbeaten record, but an unbeaten #2 who couldn't play #1 head to head stole a national championship from them?



As it turned out, this too bizarre to happen scenario was only one year away.