NFL Old School Game of the Week: Bucs Battle Back From 17 Points Down to Punch Ticket to Postseason

Bucs quarterback Doug Williams completed 25 of 49 passes for 367 yards and threw two touchdowns to lead Tampa Bay to a comeback victory over the Bears.

 The final game of the 1982 regular season would be a metaphor for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers season as they dug themselves out of a hole to pull out the victory as Tampa Bay hosted the Chicago Bears with a spot in the playoffs on the line for the Buccaneers.

Under head coach John McKay and quarterback Doug Williams, the Buccaneers had won the NFC Central division title in two of the previous three seasons to earn a spot in the postseason as they made the way to the 1979 NFC Championship Game where they were defeated by the Los Angeles Rams 9-0, which was followed by a 5-10-1 season in 1980 before the Bucs rebounded with a 9-7 record in 1981 as the Bucs would be knocked out by the Dallas Cowboys 38-0 in the divisional playoffs.

The '82 season started out with losses to the Minnesota Vikings and Washington Redskins before the season was interrupted with a 57-day players strike that wiped out nearly half the season as the regular season would be reduced from 16 games to nine games.

The Bucs would lose their first game after the strike, a 14-9 slugfest to the Cowboys to drop their record to 0-3 until the Bucs won four of their next five games, all by a touchdown or less, as Tampa Bay improved their record to 4-4 as they needed to beat the Bears to clinch a spot in the expanded 16-team single elimination tournament as the NFL would expand their postseason for 1982 from 10 teams to 16 teams.

Tampa Bay's opponent, the Bears were already eliminated with a 3-5 record under first-year head coach Mike Ditka, who had been hired with hopes of restoring the "Monsters of the Midway" to the top of the NFL as the Bears had made the playoffs only two times since their last NFL championship back in 1963 where Ditka caught 59 passes for 794 yards and scored eight touchdowns as a tight end.

The Bears used the 1982 season to break a new quarterback as they had selected BYU quarterback Jim McMahon with the #5 overall pick of the 1982 draft, to take over the offense to help out running back Walter Payton, who had been the Chicago offense since his rookie season in 1975.

After the Bears punted to end their first drive of the game, the Bucs had the ball at their 22-yard-line when Williams was picked off by Chicago strong safety Gary Fencik to give the ball back to the Chicago offense at the Tampa Bay 34-yard-line.

Four runs by Payton for 16 yards moved the Bears to inside the Bucs' red zone until McMahon was sacked by Tampa Bay defensive end Dave Stalls for a seven-yard loss which forced Chicago to settle for a 43-yard field goal by Bob Thomas to give the Bears a 3-0 lead with 7:59 left in the first quarter.

The Bucs would start their next possession at their 19-yard-line as Williams completed his next four passes for 51 yards to move the Tampa Bay offense to the Bears' eight-yard-line where on 3rd & goal, Williams backpedaled about 20 yards until he was sacked by Chicago defensive tackle Jim Osborne which caused a fumble that was recovered by the Bears' Steve "Mongo" McMichael.

McMichael would return the fumble 64 yards until he was run down by Williams, to set up the Bears offense with a 1st & goal at the Buccaneers' eight-yard-line as the first quarter came to a close.

The Bears would muster six yards on their next three plays as they settled for another Thomas field goal, this one from 19 yards out, to increase Chicago's lead to 6-0 early in the second quarter.

Then on the third play of the Bucs' ensuing possession, Williams threw a short pass that bounced off the chest of Bears defensive end Al Harris and into the arms of linebacker Otis Wilson, who returned the interception for a 39-yard touchdown to extend the Bears lead to 13-0 with 12:16 to go in the second quarter.

Williams looked to rebound on the Bucs' next drive as he would complete four of six passes for 56 yards to move the Bucs to the Bears 12-yard-line until the drive stalled as tailback Mel Carver carried the ball on two straight plays picking up only three yards to force a 3rd & 7 where Williams threw an incomplete pass to bring up 4th down where Bill Capece would come on to kick a 27-yard field goal to put Tampa Bay on the scoreboard to cut the Bears' lead to 13-3 midway through the second quarter.

Following a Chicago three-and-out, the Bucs took over at the Bears' 31-yard-line after a 22-yard punt return by John Holt as Tampa Bay drove 18 yards in four plays to set up another Capece field goal, this one from 31 yards out to make it an one-score game at 13-6 in favor of Chicago with 4:26 left in the second quarter.

The Bears would begin their next possession with three straight running plays that gained 11 yards to move Chicago to their 37-yard-line when McMahon completed a 13-yard pass to wide receiver Brian Baschnagel followed by a 31-yard completion to wide receiver Ricky Watts to give the Bears a 1st down at the Tampa Bay 19-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

After two incomplete passes, McMahon found Baschangel in the back of the end zone for a 19-yard touchdown to push the Bears' lead to two touchdowns at 20-6 with 1:41 to go in the first half.

The Bears defense would force the Bucs to go three-and-out on their next drive to give their offense the ball at their 45-yard-line with 42 seconds left before halftime giving Chicago enough time to add on to their lead before the end of the first half.

It looked like the Bears were going to be in field goal range as McMahon completed a 28-yard pass to wide receiver Ken Margerum only for him to fumble the football as Buccaneers linebacker Andy Hawkins made the recovery at the Tampa Bay 25-yard-line, which allowed the Bucs to run out the clock on the first half.

Bears running back Walter Payton ran for 109 yards on 26 carries.

The two teams would trade punts to start the third quarter until a 17-yard punt return by future Tennessee Titans head Jeff Fisher gave the Bears the ball at the Tampa Bay 45-yard-line as McMahon completed a 13-yard pass to Margerum which was followed by a 10-yard run by Payton to put Chicago at the Bucs' 22-yard-line.

However, the Bears would not pick another yard as they would settle for a 40-yard field goal by Thomas to increase Chicago's lead to 23-6 with 7:03 to go in the third quarter.

With their playoff hopes fading, the Bucs needed to score quickly as they would get good field position for their next offensive possession as Carver returned the ensuing kickoff 25 yards to the Tampa Bay 40-yard-line.

Williams would complete passes of 15 yards to wide receiver Theo Bell and 10 yards to wide receiver Gordon Jones to move the Bucs to the Bears' 35-yard-line where Williams fired a deep pass for tight end Jimmie Giles, who made the catch at the five-yard-line and ran it into the end zone for the 35-yard touchdown to trim the Chicago lead to 23-13 with 5:05 left in the third quarter.

The Bears would lean on Payton and the running game for their next drive as the future all-time rushing leader carried the ball six times for 26 yards to help Chicago move from their 19-yard-line to the Tampa Bay 44-yard-line until the Bears were forced to punt the ball back to the Bucs who would take over at their 20-yard-line with 13:50 to go in the fourth quarter.

On the next play from scrimmage, Williams would complete a 43-yard bomb to wide receiver Kevin House to move Tampa Bay into Chicago territory as running back James Wilder would run for three yards which was followed by a 14-yard pass from Williams to House to give the Bucs a 1st down at the Bears' 20-yard-line.

The drive would stall as Williams would throw three straight incomplete passes to force a 38-yard field goal attempt by Capece, which would sail wide left of the uprights as the score remained 23-13 in favor of the Bears,

The Bucs defense would force the Bears to punt on their ensuing possession to give their offense the ball back at their 35-yard-line as Williams completed passes of 15 yards to Bell and six yards to running back James Owens to set up a 2nd & 4 at the Chicago 44-yard-line when Williams scrambled for just one yard and tweaked his hamstring which caused him to miss the next play from scrimmage.

Backup quarterback Jerry Golsteyn would come on to throw an incomplete pass to put the Bucs into a 4th & 3 situation when Williams came back onto the field and completed a 12-yard pass to Wilder to give Tampa a fresh set of downs at the Bears' 31-yard-line.

On the next play, Williams would find Giles for a 31-yard touchdown to cut the Bucs' deficit to three points as they now trailed the Bears 23-20 with 8:03 left in the fourth quarter.

Following an exchange of punts, the Bears had the ball at their 28-yard-line with 3:21 left on the clock and a chance for Chicago to put the game away with a couple of 1st downs.

However, the Tampa Bay defense would allow just six yards on the next three plays, forcing the Bears to punt the ball to the Bucs, who would take over at their 35-yard-line with 2:07 left in regulation and a chance to at a minimum kick a game-tying field goal.

The drive would begin with a 14-yard pass from Williams to Jones which was followed by a 17-yard pass to House to move the Bucs to the Bears' 34-yard-line with 1:40 still go in the game.

Williams would then find wide receiver Gerald Carter for a seven-yard completion, followed by an incomplete pass to bring up 3rd & 3 when the gimpy Williams was able to scramble for five yards and give Tampa Bay a 1st down at the Chicago 22-yard-line.

The drive would stall as Williams would throw three straight incomplete passes to force Tampa Bay to call on Capece in hopes of tying the game with a field goal

This time Capece would make the kick as his 40-yard field goal sailed through the uprights to tie the game at 23 with 26 seconds left in regulation.

Bucs tight end Jimmie Giles only caught three passes for 75 yards but two of those catches were for touchdowns.

The Bears would get the ball back at their 24-yard-line with a chance to drive into field goal range and break the Buccaneers' hearts with a last-second field goal as McMahon completed a 20-yard pass to Baschangel then a 15-yard pass to running back Matt Suhey to put Chicago at the Tampa Bay 41-yard-line with four seconds to go.

Ditka would send in Thomas to attempt a 58-yard field goal on the final play of regulation which would fall short of the uprights as the game would go into overtime with both teams deadlocked at 23.

Chicago would get the ball to start the extra period but they would go three-and-out as they would punt the ball back to the Bucs who would take over at their 40-yard-line with a chance to win the game.

After called passing the ball on 26 of their previous 29 plays, with two of the other three plays being quarterback scrambles, the Bucs would surprise the Bears defense with a run as Williams tossed the ball to Wilder, who would take it around the right side and explode for a 47-yard run before being brought down at the Bears' 13-yard-line.

Williams would take a knee to put the ball in the middle of the field as McKay would send in Capece to win the game with a 32-yard field goal, which sailed through the uprights to end the game 3:14 into overtime with the Bucs on top 26-23 and securing their spot in the postseason.

Brighter days were ahead for the Bears as they would win the NFC Central division five straight times from 1984 through 1988 and again in 1990 with the apex of their run coming in 1985 as the Bears would go 18-1 led by their legendary defense as the Bears destroyed the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX for the Bears' first NFL title since 1963.

As for the Bucs, their season would end one week later as they would once again be eliminated by the Cowboys as Dallas defeated the Bucs 30-17 in the first round of the Super Bowl tournament as Tampa Bay would not return to the NFL postseason until 1997.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: 3rd & 43 Conversion Helps Miami Avenge "Catholics vs Convicts" Loss

 On October 15, 1988, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated the Miami Hurricanes in a 31-30 classic where the Irish handed the Hurricanes their first loss in a regular season game in three years in a game that would be nicknamed "Catholics vs Convicts" after a T-shirt made by Notre Dame students in anticipation of the 1988 game(To read about that game, click on the link highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2017/11/college-football-old-school-game-of_8.html).

The consequences of that game were enormous as Notre Dame would finish the 1988 season with a 12-0 record as they would be voted as the #1 team in the country at the end of the season, to earn the Irish their first national title since 1977 while the Hurricanes would finish the '88 season #2 with a 11-1 record.

Thirteen months after their defeat at the hands of the Irish, the Hurricanes would get a chance at revenge as they played host to Notre Dame in the anticipated rematch at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida.

Following the 1988 season, the Hurricanes lost their head coach Jimmy Johnson who left to become the new head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL as Dennis Erickson was hired from Washington State to replace Johnson as the Miami football head coach.

Not only did Miami have to replace their head coach, they also had to replace their quarterback as Steve Walsh, whose only loss as the Miami starting quarterback was the loss to Notre Dame in 1988, as junior quarterback Craig Erickson(no relation to Dennis)took over as the Miami quarterback hoping to continue the tradition of great Miami starting quarterbacks that had started earlier in the 1980s with Jim Kelly, followed by Bernie Kosar, and then Vinny Testaverde, and then Walsh.

The two Erickson led Miami to a 3-0 start when in the fourth game of the season against Michigan State, Craig broke a knuckle on his throwing hand, causing him to miss the next three games which included a 24-10 loss to Florida State 24-10 on October 28th which dropped the Hurricanes from #2 to #7 in the country.

Erickson returned one week later to help Miami defeat East Carolina and Pittsburgh before the Hurricanes' penultimate game of the regular season against San Diego State, which Miami won 42-6 despite five interceptions thrown by Erickson.

This performance caused many Miami fans to think that Dennis should bench Craig and replace him with Gino Toretta, who had filled during Craig's absence, but Dennis stuck with Craig as the Hurricanes prepared to take on Notre Dame.

The Irish had been ranked #1 throughout the entire 1989 season as they had extended their winning streak to 23 games under head coach Lou Holtz and quarterback Tony Rice, who had been the Notre Dame starting quarterback for their championship season the year before.

The highlight of the '89 season for the Irish was their 24-19 win over Michigan in a #1 vs #2 matchup where kickoff return Raghib "Rocket" Ismail returned two kickoffs for touchdowns to lead the Irish to victory that day.

If the Irish could defeat Miami, it likely would set up another #1 vs #2 matchup in the Orange Bowl Classic on New Year's Day as #2 Colorado Buffaloes, undefeated champions of the Big 8 conference, with the national championship on the line.

After the Irish punted on their opening possession of the game, the Hurricanes would drive 36 yards in six plays, with the bulk of the yardage coming on a 26-yard pass from Erickson to wide receiver Dale Dawkins, to set up a 35-yard field goal by Carlos Huerta to give Miami a 3-0 lead with 9:41 left in the first quarter.

The Irish's next offensive possession would end in a turnover as Rice threw a deep pass intended for Ismail which ended up being intercepted by Hurricanes cornerback Roland Smith to give Miami the ball at their 11-yard-line.

Following an exchange of punts, the Hurricanes had the ball at their 45-yard-line when Erickson found Dawkins again, this time with a pass over the middle that was caught by the senior wide receiver around the Notre Dame 30-yard-line, who then outran the rest of the Irish defense for a 55-yard touchdown to extend Miami's lead to 10-0 with four seconds to go in the second quarter.

Miami quarterback Craig Erickson completed 16 of 26 passes for 210 yards and threw two touchdown passes.

The Irish would begin their ensuing drive at their 16-yard-line as Rice led the Irish down to the Miami 15-yard-line when the game's most controversial play occurred when Rice handed the ball off to fullback Anthony Johnson, who reeled off a 14-yard run until it looked like he fumbled the football after a hit by Hurricanes defensive back Charles Pharms as Hurlie Brown recovered the football for Miami.

However, the referees ruled that Johnson was down by contact even though replays showed that he had lost the football before his knee touched the ground.

Nevertheless, the Irish had a 1st & goal at the Miami one-yard-line when the Hurricanes defense rose up and kept Notre Dame out of the end zone as the Irish lost three yards on the next three plays, forcing them to settle for a 22-yard field goal by Billy Hackett to cut the Miami lead to 10-3 midway through the second quarter.

After a Miami three-and-out, the Irish got the ball back at their 49-yard-line as three plays picked up nine yards to set up a 4th & 1 at the Hurricanes 42-yard-line when Holtz decided to go for the 1st down which he got when Rice kept the ball himself and snuck two yards give Notre Dame a fresh set of downs at the Miami 40-yard-line.

Three plays later, the Irish were faced with another 4th down situation, this time needing three yards to convert as Holtz would once again gamble and go for the 1st down which this time failed as Miami defensive tackles Cortez Kennedy and Russell Maryland combined to stop Johnson one yard short of the marker as the Hurricanes would take over on downs at their 31-yard-line.

The Hurricanes picked up one 1st down as they advanced to their 43-yard-line when Erickson threw a pass intended for tight end Rob Chudzinski that was picked off by Notre Dame linebacker Ned Bolcar, who then return the interception 49 yards for a touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 10 with 2:08 to go before halftime.

It appeared that the momentum had swung in Notre Dame's favor especially after their defense forced Miami to go three-and-out on their next possession to give their offense the ball back at their 45-yard-line with a chance to take the lead before the end of the first half.

But once again the Miami defense would make a play as Hurricanes linebacker Bernard Clark intercepted a pass intended for running back Ricky Watters and returned the pick 50 yards to the Notre Dame eight-yard-line to give Erickson and the Miami offense the ball with 37 seconds to go before the halftime break.

After two plays gained three yards, Erickson would hand the ball off to running back Stephen McGuire who would run up the gut for the five-yard touchdown to give Miami a 17-10 lead as the first half came to an end.

The Hurricanes would get the ball to start the second half as Miami would put together one of the longest drives in school history in terms of plays and time of possession.

Starting at their 20-yard-line, the Hurricanes would run the ball twice, picking up five yards to set up 3rd & 5 when Erickson completed a five-yard pass to running back Leonard Conley to give Miami a fresh set of downs at their 30-yard-line.

A two-yard run by Conley, followed by an incomplete pass, and then a nine-yard pass from Erickson to Chudzinski would set up a 4th & 1 when Miami gambled and went for the 1st down which they got after a two-yard run by McGuire for a 1st down at the Hurricanes' 41-yard-line.

However after the McGuire run, the Hurricanes were called for a dead-ball personal foul penalty that would push Miami not only back 15 yards to their 26-yard-line but force them into a 1st & 25 situation.

The odds of converting a 1st down seemed to go from slim to none on the next play from scrimmage when Erickson was sacked by Notre Dame defensive end Eric Jones, causing a fumble that the Irish's other defensive end, Devon McDonald, had a shot at recovering but failed as Miami center Bobby Garcia would fall on the football, allowing the Hurricanes to keep possession of the football after a 23-yard loss

Now facing a 2nd & 48 at their three-yard-line, the Hurricanes appeared to be content on punting the ball back to the Irish as they kept it on the ground as McGuire ran the ball for five yards to set up a 3rd & 43 at the Miami eight-yard-line.

That is when Erickson dropped back and fired a pass down the right sideline intended for wide receiver Randel Hill that if the Hurricanes were lucky, could maybe draw a pass interference penalty on the Irish that would give Miami an automatic 1st down.

But Hill was able to get past Notre Dame cornerback Stan Smagala and free safety Pat Terrell to make the catch at the Notre Dame 49-yard-line for a 44-yard completion to miraculously give Miami a 1st down to keep the drive going.

Following the long pass to Hill, the Hurricanes would run the ball on three straight plays, gaining 11 yards and a fresh set of downs at the Irish 38-yard-line, until Erickson threw an incomplete pass and then a six-yard pass to Conley to set up 3rd & 4 when Erickson handed the ball off to Conley, who ran for 13 yards and another Miami 1st down at the Notre Dame 19-yard-line.

Two runs by McGuire for six yards set up another 3rd & 4 situation as Erickson would find Hill for seven yards to move the sticks as Miami now had a 1st & goal at the Irish six-yard-line as two more runs by Conley netted just one yard to force a 3rd & goal from the five-yard-line.

That is when Erickson found Dawkins in the back of the end zone who made a leaping catch for the five-yard touchdown to end the epic 22-play, 80-yard drive that took 10 minutes and 47 yards to complete but more importantly increase Miami's lead to 24-10 with 4:13 left in the third quarter.

The two teams would trade punts as the game moved into the fourth quarter when the Irish got the ball at their five-yard-line needing at least two touchdowns to tie the game 

A 42-yard pass from Rice to wide receiver Williams Pollard help move the Irish down to the Miami eight-yard-line when on 4th & 6, Rice tried to connect with Ismail only for his pass to fall incomplete to end the Notre Dame drive and give Miami the ball with 7:04 left in the game.

From there, the Hurricanes would drive 77 yards in 10 plays, with the biggest play of the drive being a 30-yad run by Conley on 3rd & 7 from the Miami eight-yard-line, to set up a 32-yard field goal by Huerta with 1:44 to go in the game to put the icing on the Hurricanes' 27-10 victory and an end to Notre Dame's 23-game winning streak.

Following the game, the Irish fell from #1 to #4 in the polls while Miami climbed from #7 to #2 as the Hurricanes earned an invitation to play the SEC Champions, the Alabama Crimson Tide, in the Sugar Bowl while Notre Dame was invited to play Colorado in the Orange Bowl as the Buffaloes assumed the #1 ranking.

Notre Dame would upset Colorado 21-6 in the Orange Bowl while the Hurricanes defeated the Crimson Tide 33-25 in the Sugar Bowl as Miami would finish the season ranked #1 in the polls to earn the Hurricanes their third national championship in seven years while the Irish would finish the season ranked #2.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Jets Pull off Divisional Playoff Upset Win over Raiders

Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett is sandwiched between two New York Jet defenders in their 1982 playoff loss to the Jets.

 The 1982 NFL season was marred by a players strike that lasted for 57 days from September 21st through November 16th which wiped out nearly half the season as all 28 teams' schedules were reduce from 16 games to 9 games.

With the shortened season, the NFL decide to expand the playoffs from a 10-team format to a 16-team single-elimination tournament where eight teams would qualify per conference as a team needed to win three games to earn a trip to Super Bowl XVII in Pasadena, California.

The expansion of the postseason allowed for the Jets, who finished with a 6-3 record, to qualify as the #6 seed in the AFC, and make a memorable playoff run as the Jets would win their first postseason games since they won Super Bowl III in 1969.

The Jets were led by head coach Walt Michaels who was in his sixth season as the head coach of New York's AFC team as the Jets did not have a winning season in Michaels' first four seasons until they went 10-5-1 in 1981 to earn a trip to the playoffs for the first time since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.

The biggest reason for the Jets' return to the postseason was their defensive line which complied 66 quarterback sacks in 1981 as the line of Mark Gastineau, Joe Klecko, Marty Lyons, and Abdul Salaam would become known as the "New York Sack Exchange". 

With the shortened season and Klekco's absence because of a ruptured patella tendon in his right knee, the "Sack Exchange" would only comply just 12 sacks as the Jets would return to the postseason for the second year in a row, thanks in large part to running back Freeman McNeil, who would finish as the NFL's leading rusher for the 1982 regular season.

Behind McNeil's 201 rushing yard performance, the Jets knocked off the defending AFC Champion Cincinnati Bengals 44-17 in the first round of the tournament to advance to the second round of the tournament where the Jets would travel cross-country to take on the AFC's #1 seed, the Los Angeles Raiders.

The 1982 season was the first season for the Raiders in Los Angeles after two years of legal proceedings between Raiders owner Al Davis and the NFL, who tried to block Davis from moving the team from until a jury ruled in favor of Davis in his antitrust lawsuit against the leaguein May 1982 which allowed him to move the team from Oakland to LA as the "Silver and Black" would move into the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for their new home stadium. 

On the field the Raiders were led by quarterback Jim Plunkett, who led the Raiders to a surprising Super Bowl title in 1980, and rookie running back Marcus Allen, who had been selected with the #10 overall pick in the 1982 NFL draft after his Heisman Trophy winning season in 1981 where Allen ran for 2,342 yards and scored 23 touchdowns for the USC Trojans, the other tenant of the LA coliseum.

Allen accounted for 1,098 yards of total offense and scored 14 touchdowns in his rookie season as the Raiders would finish the regular season with a 8-1 record to earn home field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs which began for Los Angeles with a 27-10 win over the Cleveland Browns as Plunkett threw for 386 yards while Allen scored two touchdowns.

The Raiders entered their second round playoff game with the Jets as a slight favorite as over 90,000 fans filled the Memorial Coliseum to see if Los Angeles could secure their spot in the AFC Championship Game.

After both teams punted on their first possessions of the game, the Jets had the ball at their 40-yard-line when Todd botched a handoff to McNeil, resulting in a fumble recovery by Raiders linebacker Ted Hendrick to give Los Angeles the football at the New York 34-yard-line.

It looked like the Raiders would going to convert the turnover into a touchdown as Plunkett completed a 26-yard pass to wide receiver Malcolm Barnwell to give LA a 1st & goal at the Jets' eight-yard-line only for the Sack Exchange to strike as Lyons sacked Plunkett to stall the drive and force a field goal attempt.

But Chris Bahr's 34-yard field goal attempt would bounce off the right upright and no good as the Jets would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line for their next possession of the game.

The Jets would drive down the field on the right arm of Todd, who completed all six of his passes for 65 yards on a 10-play, 80-yard drive that culminated with Todd throwing a 20-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Wesley Walker to give New York a 7-0 lead with 3:52 to go in the first quarter.

The Raiders would begin their ensuing possession at their 20-yard-line as Los Angeles would drive to the Jets' 27-yard-line until the second play of the second quarter when Plunkett was picked off by Jets cornerback Bobby Jackson, who returned the interception 10 yards to give Todd and the New York offense the ball at their 22-yard-line.

On the next play from scrimmage, Todd would connect with wide receiver Lam Jones for a 38-yard completion to move the Jets to the Raiders' 40-yard-line as New York was given an opportunity to extend their lead.

The Jets would pick up one more 1st down before calling on Pat Leahy to attempt a 47-yard field goal, which he would miss as his kick fell short of the uprights, to keep the score at 7-0 in favor of New York as the Raiders would get the ball back at their 30-yard-line.

Los Angeles would drive to the Jets' 40-yard-line before punting the ball back to the Jets as a 37-yard pass from Todd to Walker would be the biggest play of the eight-play, 68-yard drive that ended with a 30-yard field goal by Leahy to increase the Jets' lead to 10-0 with 2:55 left in the second quarter.

Jets wide receiver Wesley Walker caught seven passes for 169 yards and one touchdown.

The Jets would force the Raiders to punt on their next possession to get the ball back at their 13-yard-line when McNeil got loose for a 26-yard run only to fumble at the end of it after a hit by Raiders linebacker Rod Martin as cornerback Ted Watts would make the recovery to give Los Angeles the ball at the New York 39-yard-line with 38 seconds to go before halftime.

A five-yard run by Plunkett and an incomplete pass would set up 3rd & 5 when Plunkett found wide receiver Cliff Branch for a 18-yard-completion that looked to put the Raiders in field goal range only for Branch to fumble the football which was recovered by Jets cornerback Jerry Holmes which allowed New York to run out the clock in the first half with the Jets ahead 10-0.

During the halftime break, Michaels received a phone call that he was told was from Jets owner Leon Hess, who berated Michaels for a few seconds that led the New York head coach believe was a prank call by Al Davis, though later it was revealed that the caller was a bartender from Queens who want to mess with Michaels.

Perhaps the phone call caused the Jets to start off the second half slow as the Raiders would get the ball to start the second half at their 20-yard-line as two passes from Plunkett to Branch totaled 33 yards to help move Los Angeles to the Jets' 24-yard-line where on 4th & 1, the Raiders went for the 1st down which they got when running back Frank Hawkins got two yards to move the sticks for Los Angeles.

Three plays later, the Raiders were in the end zone as Allen ran it in for a three-yard touchdown to get Los Angeles on the scoreboard and cut the Jets' lead to 10-7 with 7:04 remaining in the third quarter.

The Jets would drive to around midfield on their next possession before punting the ball back to the Raiders when LA cornerback Lester Hayes partially blocked Chuck Ramsey's punt which only went 17 yards as the Raiders would begin their next drive at their 40-yard-line.

Allen would catch a pass on 1st down but lost one yard which was followed by a four-yard run on 2nd down to set up a 3rd & 7 situation when Plunkett connected with Barnwell for a 57-yard touchdown to give the Raiders a 14-10 lead with 1:14 left in the third quarter.

It seemed like the favored Raiders were in complete control of the game especially when on the Jets' ensuing possession, defensive tackle Lyle Alzado pressured Todd into throwing an interception by Hayes on the next-to-last play of the third quarter to give Los Angeles the ball at the New York 41-yard-line.

The Raiders would advance to the Jets' 19-yard-line when Allen fumbled the football after a hit by Jets linebacker Lance Mehl as Klecko would fall on the football to the New York offense the ball at their 14-yard-line for their next offensive possession.

A 36-yard pass from Todd to Walker helped move the Jets to the Raiders' 27-yard-line until Alzado sacked Todd for a 13-yard loss to set up a 3rd & 23 when Todd was picked off again, this time by LA free safety Burgess Owens on a pass intended for Walker in the end zone as the Raiders would begin their next possession at their 20-yard-line.

The Raiders would go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Jets, who would take over at their 33-yard-line as two runs by McNeil for 10 yards and a 11-yard pass from Todd to tight end Jerome Barkum would lead to a 2nd & 3 situation at the Los Angeles 46-yard-line.

That is when Todd threw deep for Walker, who would make a diving catch for a 45-yard reception to give the Jets a 1st & goal at the Raiders' one-yard-line when running back Scott Dierking would dive into the end zone for the one-yard touchdown to give New York a 17-14 lead with 3:45 left in regulation.

Jets running back Scott Dierking(25)dives for what would be the game-winning touchdown.

The Raiders would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as an incomplete pass and a quarterback sack by Gastineau would put Los Angeles into a 3rd & 17 situation when Plunkett threw a pass intended for Branch that was underthrown and intercepted by Mehl, who returned the pick eight yards to give the Jets the ball at the LA 27-yard-line with 2:49 left in the game and a chance to run out the clock.

McNeil would carry the ball on the next two plays, gaining a total of four yards as the Raiders spend two of their three timeouts to set up a 3rd & 6 when McNeil got the ball again when he lost his third fumble of the game after a hit by Owens that led to a recovery by Hendricks at the Los Angeles 33-yard-line with 2:26 left for the Raiders at a minimum drive down and kick a field goal to send the game into overtime.

Following a two-yard scramble by Plunkett to start the drive, Plunkett would complete passes of 15 yards to Hawkins and eight yards to tight end Todd Christensen to move the Raiders to the New York 42-yard-line with a 2nd & 2 situation with 1:50 left in regulation.

That is when Plunkett once again threw a pass intended for Branch that was underthrown and intercepted by Mehl at the Jets' 26-yard-line which allowed New York to take three knees to run out the clock on their 17-14 victory to send the Jets to the AFC Championship Game.

One week later, the Jets would travel down to Miami to take on the Dolphins in the AFC Championship Game that would be become known as the "Mud Bowl" as three days of rain in southern Florida would turn the playing surface at the Orange Bowl into a muddy mess as Michaels and many Jets fans believe was intentional as they believe Dolphins head coach Don Shula instructed the field crew not to tarp the field as a muddy surface would slow down the Jets' speed.

The Jets offense would be held to just 139 yards and zero points as Todd would throw five interceptions, three of them to Dolphins linebacker A.J. Duhe which included a 35-yard pick-six in the fourth quarter as the Dolphins defeated the Jets 14-0 to end New York's dreams of going to Super Bowl XVII.

Seventeen days after the defeat to the Dolphins, Michaels would step down as the Jets head coach, saying he needed to take a break from football that many believe that the Jets front office pressure Michaels to resign as offensive coordinator Joe Walton would be promoted to head coach.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Washington Scores 27 Straight Points to Knock off Nebraska

Washington quarterback Billy Joe Hobert celebrates with his teammates after leading the Huskies to a win over Nebraska in 1991.

On September 21, 1991, the #4 Washington Huskies traveled to the nation's heartland to take on the #9 Nebraska Cornhuskers in a nationally televised primetime top-10 showdown that would have a major impact on the Huskies' fortunes for a national championship.

Washington came into the game as the preseason favorite to win the Pac-10 conference championship as at least 15 starters returning from a team that had gone 10-2 the previous season as the Huskies won the Pac-10 title and earned a trip to the Rose Bowl for the first time since the 1981 season as the Huskies defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes 46-34 to finish the season ranked #5 in the country.

Despite the large number of players returning for the 1991 season, the Huskies would have to break in a new starting quarterback in redshirt sophomore Billy Joe Hobert, who took over for Mark Brunell who tore the MCL and suffered damage to the ACL in his right knee, which would cause Brunell to miss significant time in the 1991 season.

Hobert made his first time in the Huskies' 1991 season opener, a 42-7 rout of Stanford, as the Huskies made their trip to the Lincoln to take on the Cornhuskers, who were looking to beat a ranked opponent for the first time since the end of the 1988 regular season.

After both teams punted on their opening possessions of the game, the Cornhuskers had the ball at their 24-yard-line when on 3rd & 10, Nebraska quarterback Keithen McCant scrambled for 16 yards for a Nebraska 1st down which was followed by an 11-yard run by running back Derek Brown to move the Cornhuskers into Washington territory at the Huskies 49-yard-line.

McCant would then complete a 22-yard pass to wide receiver Tyrone Hughes to set up a 1st & 10 at the Washington 27-yard-line when McCant tossed the ball to Brown on an option play to the left side as the sophomore running back would run into the end zone for the first touchdown of the game to give Nebraska a 7-0 lead with 8:41 left in the first quarter.

The two teams would trade punts as the game moved into the second quarter when on the first play of the quarter, Hobert was picked off by Nebraska cornerback Kenny Wilhite on a deep pass to give the Cornhuskers the ball at their 29-yard-line.

The Huskies defense would force a three-and-out but their offense would have to begin pinned back in front of their end zone as Nebraska's Mike Stigge boomed a 68-yard punt to the Washington two-yard-line.

Heading into the stiff wind, the Huskies ran the ball five straight times for 37 yards to begin a 10-play, 98-yard drive that was capped off with a nine-yard touchdown run by Hobert on a quarterback draw to cut the Nebraska lead to 7-6 as Washington could not tie the game because of a botched snap on the ensuing extra point.

Following another exchange of punts, the Cornhuskers got the ball at the Washington 49-yard-line as four plays took Nebraska to the Huskies' 42-yard-line when McCant threw deep and hit wide receiver Jon Bostick for the 42-yard touchdown which increased Nebraska's lead to 14-6 with 3:40 to go in the second quarter.

It looked like the Cornhuskers would have a golden opportunity to increase their lead when on the second play of the Huskies' ensuing possession, Hobert threw his second interception of the first half as cornerback Tyrone Legette picked off a Hobert pass to give Nebraska the ball at the Washington 36-yard-line.

However, McCant would then throw his first interception of the game as Huskies cornerback Dana Hall  intercepted a deep pass from McCant to give Washington the ball back at their eight-yard-line with 1:08 to go before halftime.

From there, the Huskies would drive to the Cornhuskers' 31-yard-line to give Travis Hanson a chance at a 49-yard field goal on the final play of the first half only for the kick fall short as Hanson was kicking into the wind to keep the score at 14-6 in favor of Nebraska after the first 30 minutes.

Running back Beno Bryant ran for 139 yards on 17 carries and scored one touchdown.

The Huskies would get the ball to start the second half as they would drive 51 yards in seven plays to set up a 43-yard field goal attempt for Hanson, which he made with the wind at his back, to cut the Nebraska lead to 14-9 with 12:27 to go in the third quarter.

The score remained 14-9 until later in the third quarter when Huskies tailback Beno Bryant muffed a punt that was recovered by Nebraska linebacker Mike Anderson at the Washington two-yard-line where on the next play from scrimmage, Brown would punch in for the touchdown to increase the Cornhuskers' lead to 21-9 with 5:32 left in the third quarter.

Now down by double digits, the Huskies needed a touchdown as they would drive 78 yards in 12 plays as Bryant atoned for his fumble by running for a 15-yard touchdown to cut the Nebraska lead to 21-16 with 19 seconds to go in the third quarter.

Bryant's touchdown would not have happened if not for Hobert bailing out the Huskies on a 3rd & 27 at the Washington 49-yard-line as the redshirt sophomore picked up 19 yards on a quarterback scrmable to set up 4th & 8 where Hobert found wide receiver Orlando McKay for a 15-yard completion to give Washington a fresh set of downs at the Nebraska 21-yard-line.

After forcing Nebraska to a three-and-out, the Huskies got the ball back at their 31-yard-line as Hobert would complete a 22-yard pass to tight end Aaron Pierce to start the drive then on a 2nd & 8 hit fullback Aaron Jones for a 20-yard completion to give Washington a 1st down at the Nebraska 25-yard-line.

Hobert would then hand the ball off to Bryant, who reeled off a 17-yard run to give the Huskies a 1st & goal at the Cornhuskers eight-yard-line when disaster nearly struck for Washington as Hobert fumbled a snap from center that was recovered by Pierce that allowed the Huskies to keep possession of the football.

On the next play from scrimmage, Hobert would fire an eight-yard touchdown pass to McKay to give the Huskies their first lead of the game at 22-21 with 11:20 left in the fourth quarter as the Huskies failed to convert on a two-point conversion following the touchdown.

Things would go from bad to worse for the Cornhuskers on their ensuing possession when McCant fumbled the football after a hit by Huskies linebacker Jaime Fields as strong safety Paxton Tailele would recover the fumble to give the Washington offense the ball at the Nebraska 33-yard-line.

Eight plays later, the Huskies were back in the end zone as Hobert kept the ball on a quarterback option to the left side and ran it in for a three-yard touchdown to extend the Washington lead to 29-21 with 7:26 to play in the game.

The Cornhuskers would go three-and-out on their ensuing possession to give the ball back to the Huskies, who after two plays lost two yards set up 3rd & 12, handed the ball off to running back Jay Berry who exploded for an 81-yard touchdown run for Washington's fourth touchdown in a span of nine minutes and 41 seconds but more importantly increase their lead to 36-21 with 5:38 left in the game.

Jay Berry would run for an 81-yard touchdown that secured the Huskies' victory over the Cornhuskers.

Berry's long touchdown run was the nail in the coffin for the Cornhuskers as their offense could muster only 109 yards and five 1st downs in the second half while the Huskies accounted for 349 yards of offense, 225 of them rushing, in the final 30 minutes as Washington finished the game with an incredible 618 yards of total offense, with 335 of those yards rushing, as the Huskies improved to 2-0 with the 36-21 victory 

Nebraska would recover from the loss as they would finally beat an ranked opponent in the Arizona State Sun Devils one week later as the Cornhuskers would go 8-0-1 throughout the rest of the regular season to finish the regular season with a 9-1-1 records as Nebraska shared the Big 8 conference title with Colorado.

The Cornhuskers would earn a trip to the Orange Bowl would they would be defeated by the Miami Hurricanes 22-0 as the Cornhuskers would finish ranked #15 in the final AP poll and #16 in the final coaches poll with a 9-2-1.

As for the Huskies, they would steamroll through the rest of the regular season as only one of their remaining nine regular season victories, a 24-17 triumph over the California Golden Bears, would have a margin of a touchdown or less as Washington would win the Pac-10 championship and earn a second straight trip to the Rose Bowl.

In the "Grandaddy of Them All", the Huskies trounced the Michigan Wolverines 34-14 to finish the season with a 12-0 record and a split national championship with Miami as the Huskies would be voted #1 in the final coaches poll while the Hurricanes would be voted #1 in the final AP poll.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Falcons Shock 49ers to Clinch Playoff Berth

Falcons quarterback Bobby Hebert came off the bench to complete 17 of 27 passes for 197 yards and threw two touchdown passes.

The Week 17 matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons in the final week of the 1995 regular season had playoff implications for both teams as the 49ers were seeking to secure home field advantage while the Falcons were looking to secure their place in the postseason.

The '95 season had been a up-and-down one for the Falcons as they started the season with a 4-1 record which included a 23-20 overtime win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 1(To read about that game, click on the link highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2023/09/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-falcons.html)before going 4-6 over their next 10 games to enter the regular season finale with a 8-7 record.

The Falcons were led by head coach June Jones, who was in his second season as the Atlanta head coach after serving the previous three yeas as the Falcons' offensive coordinator, as Jones' "Run N Shoot" offense was directed by quarterback Jeff George who had thrown for 4,031 yards up to this point in this season as wide receivers Bert Emanuel, Eric Metcalf, and Terrance Mathis would all finish the season with at least 1,000 receiving yards.

However on the defensive end, the Falcons were last in passing yards allowed and 29th out of 30 teams in total yards allowed as Atlanta had given at least 20 points in eleven out of the 15 games during the regular season as they gave up an average of 21.6 points per game while the offense averaged 22.2 points per game.

All the Falcons needed to do was their final regular season game to clinch a spot in the playoffs for only the sixth time in team history and first since 1991.

But the Falcons' opponents were the defending Super Bowl Champion 49ers who came into the game with a 11-4 record and needed to beat the Falcons to secure home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.

The 49ers were led by quarterback Steve Young, whose four-year run as the NFL's top rated quarterback would come to an end in 1995 because Young missed five games during the season, and wide receiver Jerry Rice, who was having perhaps the best year of his Hall-of-Fame career as he had caught 110 passes for 1,695 yards while catching 15 touchdown passes.

Despite being the road team, the 49ers were double digit favorites to defeat the Falcons as San Francisco had won their previous three meetings with Atlanta by a combined score of 133-27 since Jones' promotion to head coach including a 41-10 romp by the Niners during the second week of the '95 season.

The 49ers would start the game with the ball at their 20-yard-line as Young would complete five of seven passes for 64 yards to move San Francisco to the Falcons' six-yard-line when Young completed a short pass to fullback Adam Walker who was hit by Falcons linebacker Darryl Talley at the one-yard-line causing a fumble that would go into the end zone.

Fortunately for San Francisco, Rice would fall on the football for the 49ers touchdown to give San Francisco a 7-0 lead with 9:24 remaining in the first quarter.

The Falcons would get good field position for their opening possession as Jamal Anderson returned the ensuing kickoff 34 yards to the Atlanta 35-yard-line as George would complete two passes for 15 yards begin to the drive then handed the ball off to running back Craig "Ironhead" Heyward who reeled off a 19-yard run to give the Falcons a 1st down at the 49ers' 31-yard-line.

However, the drive would stall as the Falcons lost three yards on the next three plays as they would settle for a 52-yard field goal by Morten Andersen to put Atlanta on the scoreboard and cut the 49ers' lead to 7-3 with 5:34 left in the first quarter.

The 49ers would begin their ensuing possession at their 22-yard-line as the other 49ers starting wide receiver, J.J. Stokes, would make his presence felt as he would catch three passes for 35 yards to help San Francisco advance to the Atlanta 41-yard-line.

That is when it looked like the 49ers had called for a double reverse as the ball ended up in Rice's hands who stopped and fired a deep pass down the right sideline for Stokes, who made the catch for the 41-yard touchdown as for the first and only touchdown pass of Rice's career as San Francisco increased its lead to 14-3 with 1:58 to play in the opening period.

Jerry Rice caught 12 passes for 153 yards while recovering a fumble for one 49ers touchdown and throwing a 41-yard touchdown pass for another 49ers touchdown.

Another long kickoff return, this time by Eric Metcalf for 37 yards, gave the Falcons good field position as their begin their next drive at their 45-yard-line as two running plays would gain 13 yards to put Atlanta at the San Francisco 42-yard-line as George would complete four straight passes with his last completion being a 12-yard touchdown to Metcalf, who made a one-handed catch for the touchdown on the third play of the second quarter to cut the 49ers' advantage to 14-10.

It looked like a track meet was starting to develop especially when Young connected with Rice for a 57-yard completion on the first play of the 49ers' ensuing possession to give San Francisco a 1st & goal at the Atlanta eight-yard-line.

Rice would then catch a seven-yard pass to set up a one-yard touchdown run by running back Derek Loville to push the 49ers' lead to 21-9 with 12:16 to go in the second quarter.

After the two teams traded punts on their next possessions, Atlanta would get the ball back at their 14-yard-line as a 41-yard pass from George to Metcalf would help the Falcons drive to the 49ers' nine-yard-line where they had a 3rd & 2 when George threw an incomplete pass intended for Emanuel when 49ers defensive end Tim Harris drove George into the ground which resulted in the Falcons quarterback spraining his neck.

As George was taken off the field, he gave the 49ers bench the finger as Andersen would come on to kick a 28-yard field goal that cut the 49ers' lead to 21-12 with 1:50 left in the first half.

After forcing the 49ers three-and-out on their ensuing possession, the Falcons would begin their next drive at their 36-yard-line as backup Bobby Hebert would come on to take the reins as the Atlanta quarterback as the Falcons had 78 seconds left before halftime to get some points on the scoreboard.

Hebert would complete four of five passes for 23 yards to move the Falcons to the 49ers' 41-yard-line when Jones would send in the field goal unit as Andersen would attempt a 59-yard field goal with 15 seconds to go.

Andersen, who had made a team-record 55-yard field goal two weeks earlier, would shatter his own record as he made the 59-yard field goal to bring the Falcons to within a touchdown at 21-15 as the first half came to an close.

The Falcons got the ball to start the second half as Hebert hit Emanuel on a 32-yard catch-and-run to help move Atlanta to the San Francisco 20-yard-line when on 4th & 1, the Falcons decided to go for the 1st down which they got as Hebert kept it himself as he picked up two yards to move the sticks.

Hebert would then connect with Emanuel for a 10-yard completion on a 3rd & 9 to set up Hebert's seven-yard touchdown pass to Mathis to give the Falcons a 22-21 lead as they would go for two after the touchdown which failed as Hebert would then an incomplete pass on the two-point attempt.

Following an exchange of punts, the 49ers got the ball back at their four-yard-line as Young would complete passes of 13 yards to Loville followed by a 17-yard completion to tight end Brent Jones and then back to Rice for 33 yards on the first play of the fourth quarter to move San Francisco to the Atlanta 26-yard-line.

The Falcons defense would hold the 49ers to five yards on the next three plays, forcing San Francisco to settle for a 39-yard field goal by Jeff Wilkins to put the 49ers back on top with a 24-22 lead with 12:38 left in the fourth quarter.

Falcons wide receiver Terrance Mathis caught eight passes for 84 yards and scored two touchdowns, including the game-winner with less than two minutes left.

After forcing a Falcons punt, the 49ers would begin their next possession at their 21-yard-line as Rice would catch three passes for 25 yards to help move San Francisco advance to the 50-yard-line when Young threw deep for Rice who made an uncharacteristic drop with the ball at the goal line and what would have been a 50-yard touchdown.

Six plays later, the 49ers were at the Falcons' nine-yard-line where they faced a 3rd & 4 situation when Falcons linebacker sacked Young for a five-yard loss which forced San Francisco to settle for a 32-yard field goal by Wilkins which increased the 49ers' lead to 27-22 with 3:36 to go in the game.

Needing a touchdown to retake the lead, the Falcons would begin their next possession at their 20-yard-line as Hebert would find wide receiver J.J. Birden for 15 yards which was followed by a five-yard pass to Mathis to set up 2nd & 5.

After two incomplete passes, the Falcons were faced with a do-or-die 4th & 5 when Hebert connected with Metcalf for a 23-yard completion to give Atlanta a 1st down at the 49ers' 37-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

On the next play from scrimmage, Hebert would take the snap and scrambled to his left side before firing a pass to Mathis, who made the catch near the left sideline around the 49ers' 10-yard-line and then zigzagged his way through the 49ers defense until he was able to dive into the end zone to complete the 37-yard touchdown and give the Falcons a 28-27 lead with 1:45 left in the game.

Because the Falcons failed to convert on the two-point touchdown after Mathis' touchdown, the 49ers had a chance to win the game if they could drive down into Atlanta territory and kick a field goal as they would begin their ensuing possession at the San Francisco 27-yard-line.

The drive would begin with two incomplete passes until Young hit Rice for eight yards to set up a 4th & 2 when Rice would make his 12th catch of the game as his 10-yard reception to give the 49ers a 1st down at their 45-yard-line when a pass interference penalty on Falcons free safety Devin Bush would put San Francisco at the Falcons' 44-yard-line with 46 seconds to go.

Two incomplete passes and a quarterback sack by Falcons defensive tackle Lester Archambeau would force the 49ers into a 4th & 14 situation when Young threw a pass intended for Jones that was picked off by Falcons strong safety Kevin Ross as he would return the interception 17 yards to the Atlanta 46-yard-line.

Hebert would come on to take a knee to run out the remaining time on the clock as the Falcons secured a spot in the NFL playoffs with a 28-27 win as the 49ers would end up as the #2 seed in the NFC as the Cowboys were win the following night to secure home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Unfortunately for the Falcons and the 49ers, their quest for the Vince Lombardi Trophy would both end at the hands of the Green Bay Packers as the Packers defeated the Falcons 37-20 in the Wild Card round which was followed by the Packers upsetting the 49ers in the Divisional Round as Green Bay eliminated the defending Super Bowl Champions with a 27-17 win in San Francisco.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Alabama Gets Revenge on A&M & Manziel

 

Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron completed 20 of 29 passes for 334 yards and threw four touchdown passes in Bama's win over Texas A&M.

On November 10, 2012, the Texas A&M Aggies traveled to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to take on the #1 ranked and defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide as the Tide were two-touchdown favorites to defeat the Aggies.

But behind a remarkable performance by redshirt freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel, who threw for 253 yards and two touchdown passes while running for 92 yards on 18 carries, the Aggies shocked the Tide 29-24 to hand Alabama its first loss in over a year.

The Tide would rebound to run the national championship for the second year in a row while Texas A&M would go on to finish the season with a 11-2 record in their first season in the SEC as Manziel would win the Heisman Trophy after a season in which totaled 5,216 yards of offense(3,706 passing and 1,410 rushing)and 47 touchdowns(26 touchdown passes, 21 touchdown runs).

This set the stage for the anticipated rematch on September 14, 2013 where the #1 ranked Crimson Tide traveled to College Station to take on Manziel and the #6 ranked Aggies.

The Tide were the two-time defending national champions under head coach Nick Saban, who returned Alabama to dominance as the Crimson Tide won at least 10 games in each of the previous five seasons and won three national titles in the last four years.

Seeking a historic three-peat, the Tide featured quarterback A.J. McCarron, who had been the Tide's starting quarterback for the previous two seasons, and a stout defense that gave up an average of only 8.9 points per game in 2011 and 10.9 points per game in 2012.

The most points an Alabama defense had given up over that span were the 29 scored by the Aggies in their 2012 upset over the Tide as the Aggies led by second-year head coach Kevin Sumlin look to build on their 2012 season where A&M finished #5 in both the final AP and coaches polls.

The offseason had been a tumultuous one for the Aggies because of Manziel's off the field behavior which included a few instances of him partying and underage drinking that included him being getting kicked out of a frat party at the University of Texas.

The biggest issue came on August 4 when it was revealed that Manziel was under a NCAA investigation for making money off autographed merchandise.

The NCAA could not determine whether or not Manziel received any payment for the autographs as a deal was made where Manziel would be suspended for the first half of the Aggies' 2013 season opener against the Rice Owls.

Manziel showed no effects of the suspension as he threw for three touchdown passes in the second half of the Aggies' 52-31 against Rice then threw for 426 yards and three touchdowns in a 65-28 win over Sam Houston State to set up the rematch with the Crimson Tide who defeated Virginia Tech 35-10 in their season opener before going on a bye the week before the A&M game.

 A&M got the ball to start the game as Manziel would complete passes of 32 and 35 yards to wide receiver Mike Evans to set up a one-yard touchdown run by running back Cameron Clear to give the Aggies a 7-0 lead just 2:39 into the game.

After forcing the Tide to go three-and-out on their opening possession of the game, the Aggies got the ball back at their 41-yard-line as Manziel ran the ball twice for 24 yards before connecting with Evans again, this time for 34 yards to set up another one-yard touchdown run, this one by running back Ben Malena to extend the A&M lead to 14-0 midway through the first quarter.

At this point, the Tide were getting thoughts of deja vu as the Aggies had jumped out to a 20-0 lead in their upset the year before, but the Alabama offense would respond with a touchdown on their ensuing possession as McCarron completed four of five passes for 60 yards on a six-play, 75-yard drive that culminated with McCarron throwing a 22-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Kevin Norwood to get Bama on the scoreboard and cut the Aggies' lead to 14-7 with 5:24 left in the first quarter.

Aggies wide receiver Mike Evans caught four passes for 135 yards in the first quarter alone as he finished the game with 279 yards on seven catches.

The Aggies' Brandon Williams would have trouble receiving the ensuing kickoff as the ball bounced off his hands and went out of bounds at the Texas A&M two-yard-line meaning the Aggies would have drive to 98 yards for a touchdown.

It looked like the Aggies were going to drive the length of the field as a 34-yard pass from Manziel to Evans help moved A&M to the Alabama 34-yard-line when it looked like the Aggies were going to be in the red zone again after Evans caught a 19-yard pass from Manziel.

But Evans would be called for pass interference which negated the 19-yard catch and pushed the Aggies back 15 yards to the Alabama 49-yard-line as A&M would be forced to punt the ball to the Tide who would take over at their 20-yard-line.

A 21-yard pass from McCarron to wide receiver Amari Cooper and a 15-yard pass to tight end O.J. Howard moved Alabama to the Aggies' 44-yard-line when the Tide went into their bag of tricks as McCarron handed the ball off to fullback Jalston Fowler, who tossed the ball back to McCarron on a flea-flicker, who fired a pass for a wide open DeAndrew White for the 44-yard touchdown on the third play of the second quarter to tie the game at 14.

On their next possession, the Aggies would drive from their 25-yard-line to the Alabama 34-yard-line when on 3rd & 8, Manziel faded back to the 50-yard-line where it looked like he was going to be sacked by Alabama defensive end Jeoffrey Pagan, only for Manziel to escape the grasp of Pagan and drop back to the A&M 40-yard-line when he lobbed a desperation pass that was caught by Aggies wide receiver Edward Pope for a 12-yard gain and a 1st down at the Alabama 22-yard-line.

The Aggies were on the cusp of retaking the lead as three straight running plays for 18 yards put A&M at the Alabama four-yard-line when Manziel was picked off in the end zone by Alabama cornerback Cyrus Jones to end the A&M threat and give the Tide the ball at their 20-yard-line.

A two-yard run by running back Kenyon Drake and a 27-yard pass to Howard put the Tide at their 49-yard-line when McCarron completed a short pass to wide receiver Kenny Bell, who then outran the Aggies defense for the 51-yard touchdown to give the Tide their first lead of the game at 21-14 with 8:55 left in the second quarter.

Following a Texas A&M three-and-out, the Tide would rely on their running game to move down the field and keep Manziel off the field as running back T.J. Yeldon carried the ball three straight times for a total of 26 yards to begin the drive as Bama moved into A&M territory when Kenyon Drake got the call on back-to-back plays as he also ran for a total of 26 yards to move the Tide to the Aggies' four-yard-line.

Yeldon would then finish off the 11-play, 93-yard drive that took nearly six-and-a-half minutes to complete as Yeldon ran it in for the four-yard touchdown to extend the Crimson Tide's lead to 28-14 with 45 seconds left in the first half.

Manziel would get one last chance to put some points on the board for the Aggies before the first half as he led A&M to the Alabama 25-yard-line before time ran out on the first half with the Tide ahead 28-14 and set to get the ball to start the second half.

However, the Tide would go three-and-out on their opening possession of the first half as they punted the ball to the Aggies who took over at their 34-yard-line as a nine-yard run by Manziel would bring up a 2nd & 1 situation when Manziel threw a pass that was deflected and intercepted by Alabama strong safety Vinnie Sunseri, who then run it back for a 73-yard pick-six to increase the Crimson Tide's lead to 35-14 with 12:41 left in the third quarter.

Having given up 35 unanswered points, the Aggies needed a score on their ensuing possession which they would get as Manziel led the Aggies on a nine-play, 58-yard drive that was capped off with a 14-yard touchdown pass from Manziel to wide receiver Malcome Kennedy to trim the Crimson Tide's advantage to 35-21 with 9:33 to go in the third quarter.

The Tide would begin its next drive at their 17-yard-line as McCarron completed passes of 10 yards to White and 12 yards to Christion Jones on the opening two plays of the drive before the Tide went back to the running game as they ran the ball on eight consecutive plays with the last play being a three-yard touchdown run by Drake to push the Alabama lead back to 21 points at 42-21 with 4:16 remaining in the third quarter.

Alabama running back T.J. Yeldon averaged nearly six yards per carry as he ran for 149 yards on 25 carries and scored one touchdown.

The two teams would trade punts as the game moved into the fourth quarter when Manziel led the Aggies on a quick four-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that took only 90 seconds to complete as Manziel would find Kennedy again, this time for a 12-yard touchdown to once again make it a two-possession game at 42-28.

The Tide would start their next drive at their 25-yard-line with a 26-yard pass from McCarron to White which was followed by six straight runs by Yeldon for 33 yards plus a 15-yard penalty on the A&M defense to help put Alabama on the cusp of putting the game away as they had the ball at the Aggies' one-yard-line.

However, the maligned Aggies defense would force a turnover when free safety Steven Jenkins hit Yeldon so hard he fumbled the football as linebacker Shaan Washington would make the recovery to give A&M the ball at their four-yard-line

An incomplete pass and an one-yard run by Tre Carson would set up 3rd & 9 when Manziel threw a deep pass down the right sideline for Evans, who made the catch around the Aggies' 40-yard-line, then outrace the rest of the Alabama defense for a shocking 95-yard touchdown cut the Crimson Tide's lead to 42-35 with 8:04 to go in regulation.

With the momentum on the Aggies' side, the Tide would begin their next possession at their 35-yard-line as Yeldon looked to atone for his fumble as he ran for 24 yards on the first two plays of the drive to move Alabama into A&M territory as an incomplete pass and an illegal shift penalty would set up a 2nd & 15 at the Texas A&M 46-yard-line.

That is when McCarron completed a 26-yard pass to Howard to give Alabama  a 1st down at the Aggies' 20-yard-line as four straight running plays for 15 yards would put the Tide at the A&M five-yard-line when McCarron faked a handoff and found Fowler for the touchdown to extend the Bama lead to 49-35 with 2:28 left in regulation.

Needing a touchdown to stay alive, Manziel would lead the Aggies on a 10-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Kennedy catching his third touchdown pass of the game, this one for four yards to trim the Crimson Tide lead to 49-42 with just 15 seconds to go.

The Aggies would attempt an onside kick but Cooper would recover the kick for the Tide as McCarron would take a knee to run out the clock as Alabama would come out of College Station with a 49-42 in a game that had a combined 92 points and 1,196 yards of offense.

Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel accounted for 562 yards of total offense as he threw for 464 yards and five touchdown passes while running for 98 yards on 14 carries.

A&M would not live up to their national title aspirations as the Aggies would go on to finish the regular season with a 8-4 record which included a 45-41 loss to the Auburn Tigers in the middle of the season(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2023/09/college-football-old-school-game-of_20.html).

The Aggies would finish the season with a trip to the Peach Bowl where Manziel led the Aggies back from a 21-point deficit to defeat the Duke Blue Devils 52-48 as "Johnny Football" would account for 455 yards of total offense and five touchdowns in what be the final game of his collegiate career as he would forego his final two seasons of eligibility and enter the 2014 NFL Draft.

As for the Tide, they would retain their #1 ranking throughout the season as their defense which gave up 628 yards to the Aggies, would allow only 50 points over the next nine games of the season to improve their record to 11-0 when they met Auburn in the Iron Bowl.

It was this game that would not the Crimson Tide's chances of a third straight national championship as the Tigers defeated the Tide 34-28 with the famous "Kick-Six" where Auburn's Chris Davis would run back an Alabama missed final goal 100 yards for the game-winning touchdown on the final play of the game.

Alabama would up play Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl where the Sooners upset the Crimson Tide 45-31 as the Tide would finish the season with a 11-2 record and #7 ranking in the final AP poll and #8 ranking in the final coaches poll.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Brees & Manning's Superdome Shootout

Eli Manning and Drew Brees greet each other after their game where they threw a combined 13 touchdown passes.

In Week 8 of the 2015 NFL season, the New York Giants traveled down to the Crescent City to take on the New Orleans Saints in a game that would feature 101 points scored and 1,024 yards of offense between the two teams.

The Saints came into the game with a 3-4 record as New Orleans got off to a 1-4 start to the 2015 season as the New Orleans defense had given up a total of 143 points over their first five games of the season.

The Saints would win their next two games to improve to 3-4 thanks to their future Hall-of-Fame quarterback Drew Brees, who was in his 10th season as the New Orleans starting quarterback, having led the Saints to a 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV.

With head coach Sean Payton, the Saints hoped they could return to the postseason after missing out the previous year as they finished the season with a 7-9 record which was only the second losing season for the Payton/Brees era which began in 2006.

The Saints' opponents, the Giants, came into the game with a 4-3 record as New York also had defensive issues as "Big Blue" had given up 156 points over their first seven games of the season.

The pressure was on head coach Tom Coughlin, who despite leading the Giants to two Super Bowl championships, was on the hot seat as the Giants had missed the playoffs the previous three seasons with their 2014 season ending with a 6-10 record, tied for the worst record in a season with Coughlin as the head coach of the Giants.

To defeat the Saints, the Giants would need a big day from their quarterback, Eli Manning, who was returning home to Louisiana, to play the team his father, Archie, played for from 1971-80.

 After the Saints went three-and-out to start the game, the Giants got the ball at their 40-yard-line as Manning would complete four of his first five passes to move New York to the New Orleans' two-yard-line where on 4th & goal, Manning would connect with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. for the touchdown to give the Giants an early 7-0 lead.

The Saints would begin their ensuing possession at their 20-yard-line as Brees began the drive with a 17-yard screen pass to running back Mark Ingram, then later in the drive would connect with tight end Ben Watson for 25 yards, to set up Brees' 34-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Willie Snead to help tie the game at seven midway through the first quarter.

Following a Giants three-and-out, the Saints took over at their four-yard-line when Brees threw a deep pass intended for Watson, who made the catch for a 46-yard gain, which led to Brees connecting with wide receiver Brandin Cooks for a 26-yard touchdown to give New Orleans a 14-7 lead with 2:24 left in the first quarter.

The Giants would respond with a nine-play, 79-yard drive that was capped off with an one-yard touchdown pass from Manning to Beckham that with the extra point tied the game at 14 early in the second quarter.

It would take the Saints five plays to get back into the end zone as wide receiver Marcus Colston would turn a short Brees pass into a 53-yard touchdown to put New Orleans back on top at 21-14 with 11:05 still to play in the second quarter.

The Saints defense would hold the Giants to a three-and-out on their next possession to give their offense the ball back at their 40-yard-line when the Saints would put together the longest drive in terms of time as they would hold the ball for the next seven minutes as they drove 60 yards in 14 plays.

Brees would complete all eight of his passes on the drive for 62 yards on the drive with his last completion being a two-yard touchdown pass to Snead, the fourth touchdown pass of the first half for Brees as the Saints increased their lead to 28-14 with 1:46 to go before halftime.

The Giants would go to a no-huddle offense when they got the ball back at their 20-yard-line as New York would pick up one 1st down before it looked like they were set to punt as Manning threw an incomplete pass on 3rd & 5 from the New York 39-yard-line, only for Saints cornerback Brandon Browner get called for a holding penalty to give the Giants a 1st down at their 44-yard-line.

Following a roughing the passer penalty on Saints linebacker Hau'oli Kikaha on the very next play, Manning would complete six straight passes for 41 yards with his last completion going to running back Shane Vereen for a two-yard touchdown to cut the New Orleans lead to 28-21 with two seconds left in the first half.

Giants quarterback Eli Manning threw a career high six touchdown passes.

The Giants would get the ball to start the second half as it would take them just four plays to travel 65 yards as Manning and Beckham connected for their third touchdown of the game, this one for 50 yards that with the extra point tied the game at 28 just 2:02 into the third quarter.

The Saints would answer with an eight-play, 80-yard drive where Brees completed four passes to four different receivers for 60 yards on the drive which culiminated with Brees hitting Cooks for a 21-yard touchdown to put New Orleans back on top 35-28.

The Giants would get great field position to start their next drive as Vereen returned the ensuing kickoff 46 yards to the New York 43-yard-line where a holding penalty would force New York into a 3rd & 16 situation when tight end Will Tye fumbled the football after catching a short pass from Manning as Saints free safety Jarius Byrd would recover the fumble to give New Orleans the ball at the Giants' 36-yard-line.

However, the Saints could not convert on the turnover as Brees threw a deep pass intended for Cooks that was intercepted by Giants cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to give New York the ball back at their seven-yard-line.

The Giants would drive to the New Orleans 47-yard-line before they punted the ball back to the Saints, who would begin their next possession at their 20-yard-line as New Orleans would use the running game for this drive as Ingram carried the ball three times for 25 yards while C.J. Spiller would reel off a 11-yard run on the drive which ended with Brees firing a 20-yard touchdown to Watson to give the Saints their largest lead of the game at 42-28 with 29 seconds to go in the third quarter.

Going back to the no-huddle for their next possession, the Giants drove from their 20-yard-line to the Saints' 33-yard-line when it looked like the New Orleans defense had forced another turnover as defensive end Bobby Richardson sacked Manning to cause a fumble that was recovered by defensive tackle Tyeler Davidson.

But the fumble was negated by a holding penalty on Saints cornerback Delvin Breaux to give the Giants a 1st down at the Saints' 28-yard-line as the Giants advanced to the New Orleans nine-yard-line when on 4th & goal, Manning found wide receiver Dwayne Harris in the end zone for the touchdown to cut New Orleans' lead to 42-35 with 12:15 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Following a Saints three-and-out, the Giants got the ball at their 35-yard-line as it would take New York three plays to drive down the field as Manning would hit Beckham for a 38-yard completion, then find wide receiver Rueben Randle for a seven-yard gain, then ending the drive with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Harris to help tie the game at 42 with 9:30 left in regulation.

The Saints began their next drive at their 20-yard-line as Brees helped move the New Orleans offense to the New York 43-yard-line when threw a pass intended for Snead, who looked to have made the catch until he was hit hard by Rodgers-Cromartie, which caused the ball to be dislodged from Snead and into the arms of Giants defensive back Trumaine McBride, who returned the interception 63 yards for the touchdown to give the Giants a 49-42 lead midway through the fourth quarter.

Now trailing for the first time in the game, the Saints began their ensuing possession at their 20-yard-line as two passes by Brees for nine yards set up a 4th & 1 at the New Orleans 29-yard-line when Payton decide to gamble and go for the 1st down.

The gamble paid off as Ingram ran for two yards to give the Saints a fresh set of downs at their 31-yard-line where after a false start penalty pushed the Saints back five yards, Brees would find Cooks for 12 yards then Colston for five yards to move the sticks as the Saints had a 1st & 10 at their 43-yard-line.

Following an incomplete pass, Brees would complete a five-yard pass to Snead, then connect with Watson for 16 yards and then Snead again for nine yards, before handing the ball off to Ingram on three straight plays as the former Heisman Trophy winner would move the Saints to the Giants' nine-yard-line with a 2nd & goal situation.

Then is when Brees threw his record-tying seventh touchdown pass of the game, a 9-yarder to Spiller that with the extra point tied the game at 49 with 36 seconds left in regulation.

Saints quarterback Drew Brees became the eighth player in NFL history to throw seven touchdown passes in one game.

Following a touchback on the ensuing kickoff, the Giants got the ball at their 20-yard-line with all three timeouts which meant they had plenty of time to drive down the field for a possible game-winning field goal.

Manning would overthrow Randle on 1st down, then connected with Vereen for five yards as New York called timeout with 25 seconds before their 3rd & 5 when Manning threw a pass that bounced off the hands of Harris and incomplete to force a 4th & 5 as the Giants would punt the ball back to the Saints as overtime appeared to be on the horizon.

Giants punter Brad Wing's kick traveled 46 yards as Saints returner Marcus Murphy received the punt at his 29-yard-line as Murphy ran the kick back 24 yards to the Giants' 47-yard-line until he coughed up the football after a hit by Giants defensive back Craig Dahl that was picked up by Snead, who was tackled by Wing as the punter grabbed Snead's face mask.

Wing was called for a face mask penalty, even though Snead could not advance the fumble as the only way the offense can advance a fumble in the final two minutes is if the player who fumbled the ball makes the recovery, which put the Saints at the Giants' 32-yard-line with five seconds to go, meaning the Saints could win the game with a field goal.

Payton would send in the Saints' field goal unit as Kai Forbath would come on to make a 50-yard field goal as time expired to give New Orleans a 52-49 win in the fifth highest scoring game in NFL history.

Manning played one of the best games of his NFL career as he completed 30 of 41 passes for 350 yards and threw a career high six touchdown passes but it was not good enough as Brees completed 39 of 50 passes for 505 yards and seven touchdown passes, tying the mark for most touchdown passes thrown in one NFL game.

The Giants would go on to finish the season with a 6-10 record as Coughlin would resign after the season as his 12-year run in New York came to an end after compiling a 102-90 record.

As for the Saints, they would go on a four-game losing streak after their win against the Giants as they would finish the 2015 season with a 7-9 record, the second of three straight 7-9 seasons before Payton and Brees led the Saints to four straight playoff appearances from 2017-20.