NFL Old School Game of the Week: Kramer Comes off the Bench to Lead Vikings to Comeback Win over 49ers

Vikings quarterback Tommy Kramer threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to lead the Vikings to a win over the 49ers in 1977.

In the mid 1970s, many Minnesota Vikings fans probably wonder who would be the quarterback to take over for Fran Tarkenton when "Scramblin Fran" retired.

In week 12 of the 1977 NFL season, they got their answer when an unknown rookie named Tommy Kramer came off the bench to lead the Vikings to an historic comeback win over the San Francisco 49ers.

The Vikings entered their Week 12 game with the 49ers with a 7-4 record as they held a one-game lead over the Chicago Bears for the NFC Central Division lead.

The Vikings were led by head coach Bud Grant, who was in his 11th season as the Minnesota head coach having lead the Vikings to eight division championships, including four straight NFC Central division titles, and four Super Bowls which the Vikings all lost.

But the Vikings' hopes of a fifth straight division title and fifth trip to the Super Bowl looked to be dashed in week 9 of the season when Tarkenton was lost for the rest of the season with a broken leg.

While Kramer, the Vikings' first round pick from the 1977 NFL draft, came in to take over for the injured Tarkenton for the rest of the Week 9 game against the Cincinnati Bengals, he was benched in favor of veteran backup quarterback Bob Lee, who got the start the next two weeks as the Vikings went 1-1 during those two games as Lee would get the start again as the Vikings hosted the 49ers.

The 49ers came in with a 5-6 record under first-year head coach Ken Meyer, who had led San Francisco back from a 0-5 start to the middle of the race for the NFC Wild Card spot(There was only one Wild Card spot in 1977).

The 49ers' offense was led by quarterback Jim Plunkett, who was in his second season in San Francisco after spending his first five seasons with the New England Patriots, and the running back tandem of Wilbur Jackson and Devlin Williams.

The 49ers hoped to ride Jackson and Williams past the famous "Purple People Eaters" and get back to.500 if they could pull off the win in frigid Minnesota as the game time temperature was 12 degrees with a wind chill of minus one degree at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington.

The Vikings got the ball to start the game as they drove from their 30-yard-line to the 49ers' 40-yard-line on six straight running plays until Lee threw an incomplete pass on 3rd & 5 to force Minnesota to punt the ball to San Francisco.

The 49ers took over at their 13-yard-line and like Minnesota did on its first possession, drove down the field primarily on the running gams as Williams and Jackson combined to run the ball 10 times for 45 yards to lead San Francisco to the Vikings' 28-yard-line where they faced a 4th & 1.

The 49ers decided to go for the 1st down but failed to convert as Jackson was stopped for no gain giving the ball back to the Vikings at their 28-yard-line.

The two teams would trade punts as the game moved into the second quarter when the 49ers had the ball at their 28-yard-line when they put together the best drive of the game thus far.

After two running plays picked up 15 yards, Plunkett dropped back to pass and threw a pass intended for Gene Washington that fell incomplete, only to have Vikings cornerback Bobby Bryant get called for pass interference, giving the 49ers a 1st down at the Minnesota 45-yard-line.

Williams would run for two yards on 1st down which was followed by a 20-yard pass from Plunkett to Jackson to give San Francisco a 1st down at the Vikings' 23-yard-line where three straight runs picked up nine yards to set up 4th & 1 at the Minnesota 14-yard-line when the 49ers decided to go for the 1st down.

This time they got it as Plunkett snuck to get the 1st down as the 49ers kept it on the ground for the next four plays culminating with a two-yard touchdown run by Williams to give San Francisco a 7-0 lead with 4:03 left in the second quarter.

The Vikings would get the ball back at their 36-yard-line and would drive to the 50-yard-line until Lee was sacked for a 10-yard loss by 49ers defensive tackle Cleveland Elam which was followed by a turnover as Lee lost the football following a sack by defensive end Tommy Hart which was recovered by Jimmy Webb to give San Francisco the ball at the Minnesota 42-yard-line.

With just 87 seconds left on the clock, the 49ers needed to move quickly if they hoped to get more points before halftime as the drive began with a 17-yard pass from Plunkett to Washington to give San Francisco a 1st down at the Vikings' 25-yard-line.

Four straight runs picked up 12 more yards until Plunkett threw an incomplete pass on 3rd & 10 forcing the 49ers to settle for a 31-yard field goal by Ray Wersching which increased the 49ers' lead to 10-0 with only 25 seconds left in the first half.

The Vikings would get great field position following the ensuing kickoff as they took over at their 49-yard-line, giving them a chance to drive down and kick a field goal before halftime.

But on the first play from scrimmage, Lee would be intercepted by 49ers cornerback Tony Leonard on a deep pass intended for Sammy White, allowing the 49ers to run out the clock to end the first half with San Francisco ahead 10-0 and set to get the ball to start the second half.

49ers running back Devlin Williams ran the ball 27 times for 107 yards and scored two TDs.

The Vikings were fortunate to be down only 10-0 as they complied only 49 yards of total offense while the 49ers had 180 as Minnesota looked to start the second half with a defensive stop.

However, the Vikings' defense would not get a chance to make a stand as Dave Williams returned the opening kickoff 80 yards for the touchdown to increase the 49ers' lead to 17-0 just 15 seconds into the second half.

It would not get better for the Vikings on the ensuing kickoff as Wersching's kick bounced off Dennis Swilley and was recovered by the 49ers' Jim Obradovich to give San Francisco the ball at its 44-yard-line.

However an holding penalty and a quarterback sack by Page forced the 49ers to punt the ball to the Vikings only to have returner Manfred Moore fumble the ball during his return which was recovered by Dave Williams to give San Francisco the ball at the Minnesota 39-yard-line.

The 49ers would drive to the Vikings' 19-yard-line until they were forced to settle for a 37-yard field goal attempt by Wersching which he made only to have it called back because of an illegal procdure penalty on the 49ers pushing them back five yards to the Minnesota 24-yard-line.

The penalty would prove costly as Wersching's 42-yard attempt sailed wide left and no good to keep it 17-0 as the Vikings got the ball at their 25-yard-line.

The Vikings would go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the 49ers when Dave Williams struck again as he returned the punt 60 yards to the Minnesota five-yard-line, giving the 49ers a 1st & goal and a chance to seemingly put out the knockout punch.

Following an incomplete pass on 1st down, Plunkett handed the ball off to Devlin Williams who ran it in for the five-yard touchdown to increase the 49ers' lead to 24-0 midway through the third quarter.

Even though they was still a full quarter and a half to play, it seemed like the game was over as the 49ers held a 24-point lead and the Minnesota offense sputtering.

If the Vikings were going to pull off a miracle, they needed a score on its next possession.

The Vikings would get the ball at their 26-yard-line as Lee threw two incomplete passes to start the drive until he completed a 18-yard pass to Ahmad Rashad for a Minnesota 1st down at its 44-yard-line when Lee went back to Rashad, this time completing a 12-yard pass to give the Vikings a 1st down at the 49ers' 44-yard-line.

Lee would go back to Rashad on 2nd & 6, completing a 13-yard pass for another Minnesota 1st down at the San Francisco 27-yard-line when the next three plays picked up five yards to set up 4th & 5.

Grant decided against kicking the field goal and went for the 1st down which he got as Lee connected with White for a seven-yard gain and a 1st down at the 49ers' 15-yard-line.

Then after an incomplete pass on 1st down, Lee completed a short screen pass to running back Brent McClanahan who turned into a 15-yard touchdown to put the Vikings on the board and cut the 49ers' lead to 24-7 with 3:20 left in the third quarter.

The Vikings would force the 49ers to punt to get the ball back at their 17-yard-line as the fourth quarter began when Lee was picked off by 49ers linebacker Willie Harper on a pass intended for McClanahan to give San Francisco the ball at the Minnesota 19-yard-line.

The 49ers decided to go for the knockout punch on the first play as Plunkett dropped back to pass and threw a pass toward the end zone that was caught by Washington for an apparent touchdown, only to have nullified as Washington was called for offensive pass interference to push the 49ers back 10 yards to the Minnesota 29-yard-line to face 1st & 20.

The 49ers would only pick up three more yards on the next three plays, forcing them to settle for a 43-yard field goal attempt by Wersching which was blocked to keep the score at 24-7 as the Vikings took over at their 26-yard-line with 12:43 left on the clock.

Vikings wide receiver Ahmad Rashad caught seven passes for 121 yards and one touchdown.

It was here that Grant inserted Kramer into the game in hopes of providing his offense a spark as the Vikings needed three scores in the final 12:43 of regulation.

The drive would get off to a good start as Kramer hit Rashad for 22 yards and a 1st down at the Minnesota 48-yard-line which was followed by an incomplete pass to set up 2nd & 10 went Kramer went deep for Rashad, who caught a 39-yard pass to give the Vikings a 1st down at the San Francisco 13-yard-line.

An incomplete pass and an 49ers offsides penalty later, Kramer found Rashad in the end zone for an eight-yard touchdown to bring the Vikings to within 10 points at 24-14 with 11:08 left in the fourth quarter.

However, the touchdown came with a price as Rashad was knocked out of the game after a hard hit by 49ers cornerback Bruce Taylor on the touchdown catch.

Even though they were over 11 minutes to play, Grant called for an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff which was successful as Minnesota defensive back Tom Hannon recovered the onside kick to give the Vikings the ball at their 47-yard-line.

From there, Kramer completed a seven-yard pass to White to put the Vikings in 49ers territory, then threw an incomplete pass to force 3rd & 3 where Kramer hit running back Robert Miller for a three-yard pass and a 1st down at the San Francisco 43-yard-line.

Kramer would go back to Miller on the next two plays completing back-to-back passes that totaled 17 yards before going to tight end Bob Tucker who made a fingertip catch for a 1st down at the San Francisco nine-yard-line.

Kramer would then complete a short pass to Tucker, who turned into a nine-yard touchdown to bring the Vikings to within a field goal at 24-21 with 8:44 left in regulation.

However the San Francisco special teams would strike again on the ensuing kickoff as Leonard's 68-yard return gave the 49ers a 1st & goal at the Vikings eight-yard-line.

After two running plays picked up three yards, the 49ers went into their bag of tricks on 3rd & goal as Plunkett attempted a reverse handoff to wide receiver Kenny Harrison, who mishandled the handoff leading to a fumble that Harrison would recover at the Minnesota 14-yard-line, forcing the 49ers to settle for a 31-yard field goal by Wersching to make it 27-21 with 6:23 left in the fourth quarter.

The 49ers would force a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 37-yard-line with 5:17 left in the game and a chance to put the game away if they could pick up some 1st downs.

Paul Hofer, who took over for Jackson and Williams who were out of the game because of injuries, carried the ball twice for 12 yards to pick one 1st down, then was dropped for a three-yard-loss which was followed by a five-yard run to set up 3rd & 8 from the Minnesota 49-yard-line.

It became 3rd & 3 as the Vikings were called for offsides as Hofer ran for five yards and a 1st down at the Vikings' 44-yard-line.

Then after Bob Ferrell carried the ball twice for seven yards to set up another 3rd & 3, Hofer got the ball again only to fumble it as Vikings defensive tackle James White recovered the fumble at the Minnesota 31-yard-line giving the ball to the Vikings with 1:47 left and needing a touchdown to win.

That is when Kramer dropped back and went deep as he threw a 40-yard pass to Sammy White, who made the catch at the San Francisco 29-yard-line and then ran it in for a shocking 69-yard touchdown to tie the game at 27 with the all-important extra point coming up.

Fred Cox would successfully make the extra point to give the Vikings a 28-27 lead with 1:38 left to play as Minnesota needed one more defensive stop to pull off the miracle win.

Sammy White avoids a would be 49ers tackler on his way to the end zone for the game-winning touchdown.

The 49ers took over at their 34-yard-line as Plunkett threw an incomplete pass on 1st down then had his 2nd down pass intercepted by Vikings linebacker Jeff Siemon to give Minnesota the ball at the 50-yard-line with 78 seconds to go.

Kramer would take three knees to run out the clock as the Vikings had pulled off the greatest comeback in team history as they had overcome a 24-point deficit to win 28-27.

The 49ers would not recover from the loss as they lost their last two games to finish the season with a 5-9 record leading to Meyer's dismissal as head coach after just one season.

Things would get worse for the 49ers as they finished with a 2-14 record the following season leading to more changes in the offseason that would bring in Bill Walsh as head coach and Joe Montana at quarterback.

As for the Vikings, they would start Kramer the following week as Minnesota took on the Oakland Raiders as the Vikings were defeated 35-13 leading to Lee becoming the starting quarterback for the team's regular season finale against the Detroit Lions.

The Vikings would win that game 30-20 to clinch their fifth straight NFC Central division title as the Vikings would advance all the way to the NFC Championship Game as they lost to the Dallas Cowboys 23-6.

Tarkenton would return to play one more season for the Vikings before retiring after the 1978 season as Kramer would become the starting quarterback for Minnesota in 1979.

Kramer would start more than 100 games for the Vikings over the next 11 seasons as he threw for over 24, 000 yards and 154 touchdowns during that span, including the famous "Miracle At The Met" touchdown pass to Rashad as time expired to give Minnesota a win over the Cleveland Browns in 1980(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2017/10/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-vikings.html).

Kramer would be released following the 1989 season and signed with the New Orleans Saints where he played one game for them during the 1990 season before retiring from the NFL after the season.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Notre Dame Clinches BCS Bowl Berth With Wild Win over Stanford

Brady Quinn threw for 432 yards and three touchdown passes in the Irish's win over Stanford in 2005.

As the Notre Dame Fighting Irish traveled to the San Francisco Bay Area to face off with the Stanford Cardinal in their regular season finale in 2005, the stakes were very high as the Irish needed a win to secure a spot to play in one of major bowl games in the Bowl Championship Series or the infamous BCS.

The Irish entered the game with a 8-2 record under head coach Charlie Weis, who was in his first season as the head coach of the Irish after serving as the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots in helping the Patriots win three Super Bowls in three out of the previous four years.

Weis' impact was immediate as the offense set numerous records with quarterback Brady Quinn, running back Darius Walker, and wide receiver Jeff Samardzija helped lead the Irish to an average of 37.2 points per game and scoring at least 30 points in all but one game during the 2005 season to put the Irish on the brink of a BCS bowl game for the first time since 2000.

Standing in the Irish's way of a $14 million payday were the Stanford Cardinal who entered the game with a 5-5 record needing a win to become bowl eligible.

The Cardinal were led by head coach Walt Harris, who was in his first season at Stanford after spending the previous eight seasons as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Panthers.

With his starting quarterback Trent Edwards banged up with an arm injury, Harris' Cardinal were 18-point underdogs as they hosted the Irish it would be the last game at Stanford Stadium before it underwent renovations that would drop its capacity from 84,000 to 50,000.

The only thing standing in the Irish's way of a It didn't take long for the Irish to get on the scoreboard as Quinn connected with Samardzija on an 80-yard touchdown pass on the second play of the game to give Notre Dame a 7-0 lead.

After the Cardinal went three-and-out on their first possession of the game, the Irish had the ball at their 40-yard-line when Quinn was picked off by Stanford linebacker Kevin Schimmelmann to give his team the ball at the Notre Dame 41-yard-line.

The Stanford drive got off to an auspicious start as Edwards was sacked on 1st down by Notre Dame cornerback Mike Richardson for a six-yard-loss to push the Cardinal back to the Irish 47-yard-line for 2nd & 16 when Edwards completed a 20-yard pass to running back J.R. Lemon for a 1st down.

Two plays later, Edwards would throw a 27-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mark Bradford that would tie the game 7-7 just 3:32 into the game.

It seemed like a track meet was underway especially after Quinn connected with Maurice Stovall for a 42-yard completion on the first play of the Irish's ensuing possession to put Notre Dame at the Stanford 30-yard-line.

From there, Walker would carry the ball on the next four plays running for 23 yards which was followed by a two-yard run by Samardzija to give Notre Dame a 1st & goal at the Stanford five-yard-line.

Following a two-yard-loss by Walker, Quinn found Samardzija in the end zone for a seven-yard touchdown to put Notre Dame back on top 14-7 midway through the first quarter.

Notre Dame wide receiver Jeff Samardzija caught eight passes for 192 yards and scored two TDs.

After both teams punted on their next possessions, the Cardinal had the ball at their 20-yard-line as they proceeded on a drive that would go into the second quarter as Stanford traveled 57 yards before they faced a 4th & 1 at the Notre Dame 33-yard-line.

The Cardinal decided to go for the 1st down only to have it fail as Edwards' pass intended for Bradford fell incomplete, giving the Irish the ball at their 33-yard-line with 12:25 left in the second quarter.

The Irish would drive to the Stanford 38-yard-line until they were faced with a 4th & 6 situation when Weis decided to go for the 1st down which just like the Cardinal on their previous possession failed as Quinn was sacked for a 11-yard-loss by Jon Alston and Michael Okwo to give Stanford the ball at their 49-yard-line.

Edwards was sacked on 1st down for a three-yard-loss but came right back with a 16-yard completion to tight end Mark Traverso, followed by a 38-yard touchdown pass to Justin McCollum that with the extra point tied the game at 14 with 8:14 left in the first half.

The Irish would get the ball back at their 23-yard-line as they drove to the Stanford 22-yard-line primarily on the legs of Walker, who carried the ball five times for 19 yards and caught a 11-yard pass on the drive which ended with another Quinn interception as Stanford strong safety Brandon Harrison made the pick at the Stanford six-yard-line with 4:22 before halftime.

Neither team would mount another scoring threat for the rest of the half as both teams traded punts until the halftime break with the game tied 14-14 and Stanford set to get the ball to start the second half.

However, the Cardinal would go three-and-out on their opening possession of the second half, punting the ball back to Notre Dame who took over at its 38-yard-line as the Irish would drive 62 yards in 10 plays as Quinn completed four of five passes for 45 yards on the drive including the 10-yard touchdown pass to Stovall to give Notre Dame a 20-14 lead.

The score would stay at 20-14 as D.J. Fitzpatrick's extra point bounced off the left upright and was no good.

When the Stanford offense came back onto the field for its next possession, it did so without Edwards, who left the game with an arm injury and was replaced by T.C. Ostrander.

Ostrander did not get off to a good start as the Cardinal would go three-and-out to give the ball back to Notre Dame at its 29-yard-line when Quinn connected with Samardzija for a 41-yard completion on the Irish's first play to give Notre Dame a 1st down at the Stanford 30-yard-line.

However, the Stanford defense would not permit another 1st down, forcing the Irish to settle for a 42-yard field goal attempt by Fitzpatrick, which sailed wide left and no good, to keep it 20-14 in favor of the Irish with 5:07 remaining in the third quarter.

The Cardinal took over at their 24-yard-line as Ostrander completed back-to-back passes to McCullum for 38 yards put Stanford at the Notre Dame 38-yard-line until two straight sacks forced the Cardinal to punt it away to the Irish who took over at their 13-yard-line.

Quinn would hit Stovall for 12 yards on 3rd & 7 to give Notre Dame a 1st down at its 28-yard-line when the Irish turned to the running game as they ran the ball four straight times culminating with a 38-yard run by Walker to the Stanford 11-yard-line on the final play of the third quarter.

The break between the third and fourth quarters was just what the Cardinal needed as they did not allow another yard on the next three plays forcing Weis to make a decision on 4th & 10.

Weis decided to send the field goal unit in but with Carl Gioia instead of Fitzpatrick to attempt a 28-yard field goal.

Gioia's kick sailed through the uprights to increase Notre Dame's lead to 23-14 with 13:29 left in the game.

Now down by two scores, the Cardinal needed a spark and they got on the ensuing kickoff as T.J. Rushing returned the kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown to bring Stanford to within two points at 23-21.

Stanford quarterback T.C. Ostrander came off the bench and completed 11 of 15 passes for 197 yards and threw one touchdown.

The Irish would get the ball back at its 20-yard-line as Quinn completed a five-yard pass to Stovall to start the drive which was followed by three straight runs by Walker for a total of 21 yards before Quinn went back to the air as he completed a four-yard pass to Stovall, then hit Matt Shelton for 25 yards to give Notre Dame a 1st down at the Stanford 25-yard-line.

Quinn would connect with Walker on a nine-yard pass that become 17 as Schimmelmann was called for a face mask penalty to give Notre Dame a 1st & goal at the Stanford eight-yard-line when Quinn handed it off to Travis Thomas who busted though for an eight-yard touchdown to push the Irish lead back to nine points at 30-21 with 9:44 left in the fourth quarter.

The Cardinal would begin its ensuing possession at their 20-yard-line with two straight runs by Lemon that gained 14 yards until Ostrander connected with Traverso for a 21-yard completion and a Stanford 1st down at the Notre Dame 45-yard-line.

Two more completions to Traverso, a 23-yarder and another for eight yards, set up Michael Sgori's 31-yard field goal which trimmed the Irish's lead to 30-24 with 5:21 remaining.

The Irish would get the ball at their 31-yard-line hoping to drive down the field and get one more score to put the game away and seal their bid into a BCS bowl game.

Following a four-yard pass to Samardzija to start the drive, Quinn handed it off to Walker, who ran for 17 yards and a Notre Dame 1st down at the Stanford 48-yard-line.

Walker would then run for three yards which was followed by a two-yard run that was nullified by a holding penalty to push Notre Dame back to its 45-yard-line to face 2nd & 17 when Quinn connected with Stovall for 42 yards and a 1st down at the Stanford 18-yard-line.

From there, the Irish kept on the ground for the next three plays as the Cardinal called all three of their timeouts in order to save some time on the clock as Notre Dame prepared to kick a 29-yard field goal that they hope would put the game away.

But instead of sending in Gioia who had made a field goal and an extra point earlier in the fourth quarter, Weis sent Fitzpatrick back in to attempt the 29-yard field goal.

But Fitzpatrick's kick would sail wide left and no good to keep it 30-24 as the Cardinal took over at their 20-yard-line with 2:15 left on the clock and needing a touchdown to take the lead.

After Ostrander's pass intended for Bradford fell incomplete on 1st down, Ostrander went back to Bradford and fired a pass for Bradford who made the catch then ran down the left sideline before being knocked out of bounds at the Notre Dame four-yard-line after a 76-yard completion.

Then after Ostrander was stopped for no gain on 1st down, the backup quarterback found Traverso in the end zone for the four-yard touchdown that with the extra point gave Stanford a 31-30 lead with 1:46 to play.

Now trailing for the first time in the game, the Irish would need Quinn and the explosive Notre Dame offense to put together one more drive to get the go-ahead score and send Notre Dame to a big time bowl game.

The Irish took over at their 20-yard-line as Quinn found Samardzija for 30 yards to begin the drive, then hit Samardzija again for 17 yards to put the Irish at the Stanford 33-yard-line when Quinn was forced to scramble for three yards on 1st down to set up 2nd & 7.

That is when Quinn went back to Stovall who made a 21-yard catch despite being interfered with to go give Notre Dame a 1st & goal at the Stanford nine-yard-line.

Walker would get the call on 1st down running for three yards before running it in for the six-yard touchdown to put Notre Dame back on top 36-31.

The Irish would go for two to make it a seven-point game as Walker took a direct snap and ran it in for the two-point conversion to make it 38-31 with 55 seconds left in regulation.

Notre Dame running back Darius Walker finished with 35 carries for 184 yards and one touchdown plus five catches for 55 yards.

With no timeouts remaining and starting at their 20-yard-line, the Cardinal would need to pull off a miracle to try and force the game into overtime.

Ostrander would complete his first two passes for 18 yards to give Stanford a 1st down at its 38-yard-line when two straight incomplete passes lead to a 3rd & 10 when Ostrander was called for intentional grounding to push the Cardinal back nine yards to its 29-yard-line to face a do-or-die 4th & 19.

Notre Dame defensive end Victor Abiamirini would sack Ostrander for a 20-yard-loss to give the Irish the ball at the Stanford nine-yard-line where Quinn took a knee to run out the clock as the Irish came away with the 38-31 victory to secure their spot in a BCS bowl game.

The heartbreaking loss for Stanford dropped them to 5-6 meaning the Cardinal would not being playing in a bowl game in Harris' 1st season as head coach.

Things would get dramatically worse the next year as the Cardinal won only one game which lead to Harris being dismissed as head coach after just two seasons.

He was replaced by former NFL quarterback Jim Harbaugh who would rebuild the Cardinal into a power in the Pac-10 conference which many felt began with the Cardinal's historic upset over USC in 2007(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2018/09/college-football-old-school-game-of.html).

As for the Irish, they would be selected to play in the Fiesta Bowl where they would face off with the Ohio State Buckeyes where the Irish would give up 617 yards of total offense as the Buckeyes would knock off the Irish 34-20 as Notre Dame finished the 2005 season with a 9-3 record and #9 ranking in the final AP poll and #11 in the coaches poll.

Quinn, Walker, and Samardzija would all return the following season to lead the Irish to another BCS bowl game where Notre Dame would be crushed by the LSU Tigers 41-14 in the Sugar Bowl to finish the 2006 season with a 10-3 record and top-20 ranking in both polls.

Following the 2006 season, the wheels would came off in South Bend as the Irish would go 17-21 over the next three years leading Weis' firing after the 2009 season.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: O'Brien Comes Off The Bench To Lead Jets To Win over Dolphins in Shootout

Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien came off the bench to throw two touchdown passes in leading the Jets a comeback win over the Miami Dolphins.

Many NFL fans remember the classic quarterback duel between Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino and New York Jets Ken O'Brien in week 3 of the 1986 NFL season in which the two quarterbacks combined to throw for 927 yards and 10 touchdown passes as O'Brien's Jets came out on top 51-45 in overtime(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here:https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2018/09/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-jets-win.html).

However that would not be the last time the two quarterbacks engaged in a shootout.

Two years later, Marino would throw for 521 yards and three touchdown but also threw five interceptions as the Dolphins fell to the Jets 44-30 as O'Brien threw for three touchdowns in the New York victory.

Five weeks later, the Dolphins were set to travel to the Meadowlands to take on the Jets in Week 13 with many fans hoping for another duel between Marino and O'Brien.

However, O'Brien would not be on the bench as Jets head coach Joe Walton had turned to backup quarterback Pat Ryan in hopes of giving the New York offense a spark as the team entered the Miami game on a three-game losing streak to fall to 5-6-1.

Ryan had started the previous week but had lead the Jets to just six points in a 9-6 overtime loss to the Buffalo Bills.

Still, Ryan got the start as the Jets hosted the Dolphins who came into the game with a 5-7 record, hoping to avoid only the second losing season in head coach Don Shula's career with the first coming in 1976 as Miami finished with a 6-8 record.

While Marino was still playing at a high level, the same could not be said for the defense or running game which ranked near the bottom of the league, thus putting more pressure on Marino to lead the Dolphins as they entered their game with the Jets also on a three-game losing streak.

Something had to give as both teams desperately needed a win and keep their slim playoff chances alive.

The Jets got the ball at their 20-yard-line to start the game and rode the right arm of Ryan to drive 80 yards in 12 plays as Ryan completed six of eight passes for 68 yards on the drive that was capped off with an eight-yard touchdown pass to veteran wide receiver Wesley Walker, who had caught a 35-yard pass earlier on the drive, to give New York a 7-0 lead with 9:21 left in the first quarter.

The Dolphins would also begin their initial possession of the game at their 20-yard-line and like the Jets would drive 80 yards primarily through the air as Marino completed five of nine passes for 58 yards on a 13-play drive that culminated with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Marino to Fred Banks to tie the game 7-7 with 4:56 to go in the first quarter.

The Jets would get the ball back at their nine-yard-line when after an incomplete pass on the first play of the drive, ran the ball three straight times picking up 15 yards until Ryan connected with Al Toon for 14 yards, then again for 29 yards to put New York at the Miami 33-yard-line.

Another completion to Toon, this time for 10 yards, and two runs by Freeman McNeil for nine yards had the Jets at the Dolphins' 14-yard-line as the second quarter began when Ryan was intercepted by Dolphins cornerback William Judson to give the ball back to Miami at its 16-yard-line.

The Dolphins would pick up one 1st down before punting the ball back to the Jets who took over at their 38-yard-line as New York ran the ball four straight times for a total of 23 yards to drive to the Dolphins' 39-yard-line.

From there, the Jets went back to the air as Ryan would complete five of his next seven passes for 42 yards with the last pass being a 14-yard touchdown to tight end Mickey Shuler to give New York a 14-7 lead midway through the second quarter.

Pat Ryan completed 27 of 43 passes for 341 yards and threw two touchdown passes.

Following a Miami three-and-out, the Jets got the ball at their 39-yard-line and quickly drove down the field as Ryan connected with Shuler for nine yards to start the drive which was followed by an 18-yard run by Johnny Hector and then a 16-yard pass from Ryan to  Toon to put New York at the Miami 18-yard-line.

That is when the Dolphins' defense showed signs of life as they held the Jets to six yards on the next three plays, forcing New York to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Pat Leahy which increased the Jets' lead to 17-7 with 2:40 left in the second quarter.

The Dolphins would take over at their 26-yard-line with all three timeouts in their pocket and over two and a half minutes to drive down the field and pick up some points before halftime.

After the first two plays picked up four yards, Marino tried to go deep on 3rd & 6 and fired a long pass for Duper that fell incomplete but drew a pass interference penalty on Jets cornerback James Hasty which resulted in a 32-yard gain and a 1st down for the Dolphins at the New York 38-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

An one-yard run by Jim Jensen and two incomplete passes forced a 4th & 9 at the Jets' 37-yard-line when Shula decided to gamble and go for the 1st down.

Shula would get more than the 1st down as Marino fired a 37-yard touchdown pass to Banks, who had streaked down the left sideline to make the touchdown catch to bring the Dolphins to within a field goal at 17-14 with 88 seconds to go in the first half.

The Jets would get the ball back at their 24-yard-line with 1:23 left in the first half and two timeouts which gave them plenty of time to pick up some points as the Jets offense had driven down the field on all four of their possessions thus far in the game.

The drive began with a modest three-yard pass from Ryan to Toon which was followed by a 18-yard pass to Shuler then a 20-yard pass to Toon to put the Jets at the Miami 35-yard-line.

That is when Ryan went deep for Walker who made the catch at the Miami six-yard-line for a 29-yard gain that became a 32-yard gain as Dolphins linebacker Mark Brown was called for roughing the passer as he hit Ryan in the jaw with a elbow that led to Brown being ejected from the game.

Ryan stayed on the ground for a minute but got up and was able to hand the ball off to McNeil who ran it in for a three-yard touchdown with eight seconds left in the half to increase the Jets' lead to 24-14.

The Dolphins would return the ensuing kickoff to their 48-yard-line to end the first half to end the first half with Miami trailing 24-14 as their defense had allowed 21 1st downs and 346 yards of total offense.

If the Dolphins were going to come back and win the game, they would need Marino, who had completed only six of 19 passes for 95 yards in the first half to step up his game.

Miami got the ball to start the second half as they took over at their 38-yard-line and proceeded to drive to the Jets' 31-yard-line when Marino connected with Clayton for a 31-yard touchdown to bring the Dolphins to within three points at 24-21 with 11:13 remaining in the third quarter.

Dan Marino completed 17 of 35 passes for 353 yards and threw five touchdowns.

The Jets took over at their 28-yard-line only to give right back to the Dolphins after just one play when running back Roger Vick fumbled the football after a hit by Miami nose tackle Brian Sochia, which was recovered by linebacker Rick Graf at the New York 25-yard-line.

After two plays picked zero yards, Marino fired a 25-yard touchdown pass to Clayton to give the Dolphins their first lead of the game at 27-24 with 10:04 remaining in the third quarter as kicker Fuad Reveiz would miss the extra point.

Then after forcing the Jets to punt for the first time in the game, the Dolphins had the ball at their 20-yard-line when Marino completed a short pass over the middle to tight end Ferrell Edmunds, who managed to outrun the New York defense for a 80-yard touchdown to increase the Dolphins' lead to 34-24 as Miami had scored three touchdowns in a span of three minutes and 29 seconds.

The Jets would keep the ball out of Marino's hands for the next five minutes as they drove 37 yards in 11 plays until they were forced to punt from the Miami 39-yard-line

By this time, Ryan was still feeling groggy from the hit he took to his jaw late in the first half as he struggled to stay in the game.

He ultimately told O'Brien "I'm feeling a little funny. Hang loose" meaning that O'Brien might have come into the game.

Having scored three straight touchdowns, the Dolphins offense was clicking and they looked to continue that trend as they took over at their 15-yard-line with 2:31 left in the third quarter.

After an one-yard run to start the drive, Marino connected with Banks again, this time for 27 yards and another 1st down at the Miami 43-yard-line.

On the next play, Marino threw another short pass to Edmunds, who once again turned upfield and looked to outrun the Jets defense again for another touchdown.

But New York strong safety Rich Miano would pop the ball loose from Edmunds at the end of his 37-yard reception, leading to a fumble that was recovered by Hasty, who returned the fumble 17 yards to the Jets' 37-yard-line.

When the Jets' offense came back onto the field, O'Brien joined them as he took over for the injured Ryan at quarterback.

Despite nursing a sore shoulder, O'Brien came out firing as he completed a 11-yard pass to Shuler to start the drive, then hit Toon for 30 yards for a New York 1st down at the Miami 22-yard-line.

Then, O'Brien handed the ball off to McNeil, who ran for 10 yards and another 1st down, which was followed by a Hector run up the middle for no gain as the Jets sat at the Miami 12-yard-line as the third quarter came to an end.

O'Brien would scramble for five yards on the first play of the fourth quarter then would connect with Shuler for a seven-yard touchdown to bring the Jets to within three points at 34-31 just 51 seconds into the fourth quarter.

Jets wide receiver Al Toon caught 14 passes for 181 yards.

Miami would drive from its 28-yard-line to the New York 48-yard-line before punting the ball back to the Jets who took over at their 26-yard-line with 11:06 remaining in regulation.

The drive began on the ground as McNeil took a handoff from O'Brien and ran around the right side for 13 yards and a 1st down at the New York 39-yard-line.

A five-yard run by Hector and an incomplete pass would lead to a 3rd & 5 where O'Brien connected with Toon for 13 yards and another Jets 1st down at the Miami 43-yard-line.

O'Brien would then an incomplete pass on 1st down which was followed by an nine-yard run by Vick to set up 3rd & 1 where the Dolphins drew an illegal use of hands penalty to give New York a 1st down at the Miami 29-yard-line.

A 12-yard run by McNeil gave the Jets another 1st down at the Dolphins' 17-yard-line when an illegal procedure penalty push the Jets back five yards to the Miami 22-yard-line.

McNeil got four of the five yards back on a 1st down run to set up 2nd & 11 when O'Brien fired a 18-yard touchdown pass to Walker to give New York a 38-34 lead with 5:41 left in the fourth quarter.

The Dolphins would begin its ensuing possession at their 31-yard-line as Marino completed passes of 16 yards to Clayton and 15 yards to running back Ron Davenport to push the Miami offense to the New York 38-yard-line.

However, after a three-yard run by Davenport and two straight incomplete passes, the Dolphins were faced with a 4th & 7 at the New York 35-yard-line with just about four minutes to go.

Like he had done late in the first half, Shula decided to go for the 1st down but this time the gamble did not pay off as Marino's pass intended for Banks fell incomplete giving the Jets the ball at their 35-yard-line with 3:58 to go in the game, hoping to pick up some 1st downs and run out the clock.

The drive began with a four-yard run by McNeil, followed by a seven-yard run by Hector for a New York 1st down at its 46-yard-line as Miami called its first timeout of the second half with 3:03 remaining.

An one-yard run by McNeil and an incomplete pass set up a critical 3rd & 9 when O'Brien found Toon for a 13-yard completion to give the Jets a 1st down at the Dolphins' 40-yard-line as Miami called its third and final timeout with 2:36 to go.

McNeil would run for three yards on 1st down on the last play before the two-minute warning which was followed by two straight runs by Hector that picked up seven yards and another 1st down at the Dolphins' 30-yard-line, allowing the Jets to take a knee twice to seal the 38-34 victory for New York.

The Dolphins would finish the season with a 6-10 record which was the worst record for a single season in Shula's legendary 33-year career as a NFL head coach as he retired following the 1995 NFL season as the all-time wins leader with 347 career wins.

As for the Jets, they would go back to Ryan as the starting quarterback for their game the next week against the Kansas City Chiefs, which they lost 38-34 before going back to O'Brien who came off the bench in the next-to-last game of the regular season and led New York to a 34-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts and a 27-21 win over the New York Giants to finish the season with a 8-7-1 record but not good enough to make the playoffs.

O'Brien would retake the starting quarterback job for the 1989 season, which included another shootout win over the Dolphins in week 3 as the Jets won that game 40-33 and held on to the starting job until the 1992 season when he was replaced by Browning Nagle.

O'Brien would retire from the NFL following the 1993 season which he spent with the Philadelphia Eagles as he started four games but losing in place of an injured Randall Cunningham.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Michigan State Upsets #1 Ohio State in Bizarre + Controversial Finish

 

Michigan State running back Levi Jackson runs for what would be the game-winning touchdown in the Spartans' upset over #1 Ohio State in 1974.

The finish in the 1974 game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan State Spartans was so strange that Sports Illustrated dubbed the game the "Bizarre Bowl" because it took 45 minutes after the game's final play to officially announce who had won the game.

It is a finish that is forever debated amongst the players who participated and fans who watched the game in person or on television.

The Ohio State Buckeyes came into the game ranked #1 in the country with a 8-0 record as their famous "three yards and a cloud of dust" offense had averaged 44.5 points per game up to this point with a backfield that featured quarterback Cornelius Greene, fullback Harold Henson, and tailback Archie Griffin.

The Buckeyes were coached by Woody Hayes who was hoping to win his fourth national title in his tenure at Ohio State which began in 1951.

While many Ohio State fans and media were looking toward the Buckeyes' regular season finale with the Michigan Wolverines as the de facto Big 10 championship game, Hayes could not overlook the Michigan State Spartans, especially since the game was going to be played in East Lansing in front of 75,000 fans at Spartan Stadium.

Michigan State came into the game unranked with a 4-3-1 record in what had been a rollercoaster season as the Spartans won their first two games, then went on a three-game losing streak, followed by a 21-21 tie at Illinois, then another two-game winning streak before their game with Ohio State.

 The Spartans were led by head coach Denny Stolz, who was in his second season as head coach after replacing the legendary Duffy Daugherty, who had coached the Spartans from 1954-72.

Daugherty would be in the booth calling the game for ABC as the Spartans, who came into the game as four-touchdown underdogs, hosted the Buckeyes hoping to replicate their result from two years before when an unranked Michigan State team upset then #5 Ohio State in East Lansing.

 The Spartans got the ball to start the game as they drove from their 20-yard-line to the Ohio State 49-yard-line until Michigan State lined up to punt on 4th & 3 only to have punter Tom Birney fumble the snap, leading him to abandon any attempt to punt and run for the 1st down.

Ohio State defensive lineman Pete Cusick and Van Decree tackled Birney for a 12-yard-loss to give the Buckeyes the ball at the Michigan State 39-yard-line.

Griffin would carry the ball four straight times, gaining 26 yards to the Spartans' 13-yard-line until Greene kept the ball himself and ran for five yards to the eight-yard-line to set up 2nd & 5 where Greene attempted his first pass of the game, which fell incomplete to force 3rd down as Brian Baschnagel would run for three yards to force 4th & 2.

Thomas Klaban would come on to kick a 22-yard field goal to give the Buckeyes a 3-0 lead with 6:29 left in the first quarter.

Head coach Woody Hayes confers with his quarterback Cornelius Greene, who ran for 66 yards on 11 carries and completed three of 11 passes for 44 yards.

The Buckeyes would allow the Spartans to pick up a 1st down on their next possession forcing Birney to try and punt the ball which he was able to do as Ohio State's Neal Colzie awaited to receive the punt.

However, Buckeyes defensive back Doug Plank collided with Colzie, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Michigan State's Mike Dean at the Ohio State 44-yard-line.

But the Spartans could not take advantage of the turnover as they would go three-and-out to punt the ball again to the Buckeyes as they would take over at their 20-yard-line following a touchback on the punt.

The score was still 3-0 early in the second quarter when the Buckeyes had the ball at their 20-yard-line as they would drive to their 49-yard-line primarily on the legs of Henson, who carried the ball four times for 23 yards on the drive, until Greene was intercepted by Michigan State defensive back Tom Hannon on a deep pass intended for David Hazel at the Spartans' eight-yard-line.

Again, the Spartans were unable to convert the turnover into points as they punted the ball away after a six-play, 24-yard drive.

The game seemed destined to go into halftime with Ohio State on top 3-0 until Spartans defensive end Mike Duda recovered a Buckeyes fumble to give Michigan State the ball at its 46-yard-line with just a few minutes left in the first half.

Quarterback Charlie Baggett would complete a 18-yard-pass to Mike Hurd, but would then be sacked by Buckeyes defensive tackle Nick Buonamici for a 16-yard loss to push the Spartans back to their 48-yard-line and facing a 3rd & 26.

That is when Baggett ran around the left side for 30 yards and a 1st down but with time running out in the first half the Spartans decided to attempt a field goal as Hans Nielsen would make a 39-yard field goal with two seconds left to tie the game 3-3 as the first half came to an end.

The Buckeyes would get the ball to start the second half as they returned the opening kickoff to their 18-yard-line where five straight running plays picked up 18 yards until Greene completed a 30-yard pass to tight end Michael Bartoszek to give Ohio State a 1st down at the Michigan State 34-yard-line.

Three plays later, the Buckeyes would face a 4th & 2 when Hayes decided to skip a potential field goal and go for the 1st down which Ohio State got as Griffin ran around the right end for a five-yard gain to the Michigan State 21-yard-line.

Another five-yard run by Griffin and a seven-yard run by Henson gave the Buckeyes 1st & goal at the Spartans' nine-yard-line as another five-yard run by Griffin on 1st down followed by an one-yard run by Henson set up 3rd & goal from the three-yard-line.

The Buckeyes tried to surprise the Spartans by having Greene try and throw a pass for Griffin in the end zone but the Michigan State defense would force Greene to throw an incomplete pass, leading to a 20-yard field goal by Klaban to give Ohio State a 6-3 lead with 6:49 left in the third quarter.

The two teams would trade punts until the Buckeyes got the ball at the Michigan State 44-yard-line late in the third quarter and drove to the eight-yard-line when Klaban came on to attempt a 25-yard field goal, only to miss it to keep it 6-3 early in the 4th quarter.

Ohio State running back Archie Griffin had 23 carries for 140 yards.

However, the Buckeyes would get another chance to increase the lead when two plays later, Ohio State cornerback David Luke recovered a Baggett fumble at the Spartans' 44-yard-line.

From there, the Buckeyes would run the ball eight straight times with the last carry going to Henson who punched it in for an one-yard touchdown to increase the Buckeyes' lead to 13-3 with 9:03 remaining in the game.

It seemed that the Buckeyes had finally put the game out of reach as the pesky Spartans needed two scores to salvage at least at a tie which looked a tall task as Michigan State had gained only 37 yards of offense in the second half.

The Spartans would get the ball at their 20-yard-line to begin their next possession as the first two plays picked up only one yard to set up 3rd & 9 when Baggett completed a 17-yard pass to fullback Levi Jackson to give Michigan State a 1st down at its 38-yard-line.

Baggett would follow this completion with a six-yard pass to Mike Jones, which was followed by a 10-yard run by Jackson to give Michigan State another 1st down at the Ohio State 46-yard-line.

Then after Jackson ran for two yards on 1st down, Baggett dropped back to pass and fired a long pass for Jones that was caught for a 44-yard touchdown to bring the Spartans to within four points at 13-9.

Stolz decided to go for two after the touchdown in hopes of converting to make it 13-11 meaning a field goal would win the game for the Spartans.

But Jackson caught Baggett's pass before he could get in the end zone and was tackled short of the goal line to keep it 13-9 with 5:30 left in the game.

The Buckeyes would begin their next possession at their 30-yard-line but the Spartans defense would force a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 12-yard-line with about three and a half minutes to play.

That is when Baggett handed the ball off to Jackson, who burst through a hole on the right side and cut toward the right sideline as he outran the Ohio State defense for a shocking 88-yard touchdown run to give Michigan State its first lead of the game at 16-13 with 3:17 remaining.

Michigan State quarterback Charlie Baggett completed five of 13 passes for 98 yards and ran for 65 yards on 14 carries.

That was still enough time for the #1 Buckeyes to drive down and salvage at least a tie with a field goal or win the game with a touchdown.

An 11-yard return by Griffin gave the Buckeyes the ball at their 29-yard-line where the Spartans thought they got a turnover when on the first play of the drive, Greene threw a pass intended for Griffin, only to have Michigan State linebacker Terry McClowry make a diving attempt at an interception.

Officials ruled that McClowry did not come up with the interception ruling the pass was incomplete to make it 2nd down when Greene handed the ball off to Griffin, who ran up the middle for 31 yards and a 1st down at the Michigan State 40-yard-line.

Henson would get the ball on the next play running for only three yards which was followed by two straight runs by Greene that gained 14 yards and another 1st down at the Michigan State 23-yard-line.

That is when Greene tried to hit Bartoszek in the end zone but his pass was too high for the tight end to catch to force 2nd down when Greene completed a nine-yard pass to Haxel to set up 3rd & 1 as Greene handed the ball off to Henson who picked up three yards and a 1st down at the Michigan State 11-yard-line.

Griffin would get the ball on 1st down and run for five yards as Hayes called the Buckeyes' last timeout with 40 seconds to go and facing 2nd & 5 at the six-yard-line.

The Buckeyes could pick up a 1st down without scoring a touchdown as Henson got the ball following the timeout and ran it five yards to the one-yard-line.

Officials stopped the clock with 29 seconds left to measure whether or not Henson made the 1st down, which he did when the chains came out and showed that the ball had past the 1st down marker by half a football.

The Buckeyes lined up to huddle as the officials restarted the clock, then run back to the one-yard-line for what they hoped would be a game-winning touchdown.

Once again, Greene handed the ball off to Henson, who was stopped about half a yard short of the end zone by four Michigan State defenders, though Henson claims he was able to break the plank for a touchdown.

However, officials ruled that Henson had be stopped short of the goal line with 13 seconds to go.

Knowing the Buckeyes could not stop the clock, the Michigan State defense took their time in getting up and ready for the next play while the Buckeyes frantically tried to get one last play off before the clock struck zero.

That is when the madness began.

As Ohio State lined up to snap the ball, the clock struck zero as the snap went between Greene's legs and into the backfield where it was picked up by Bachnagel, who ran into the end zone.

While the back judge and field judge signaled that time had run out before Ohio State snapped the ball, the line judge had signaled touchdown leading to confusion amongst the officiating crew.

Michigan State fans come right onto the field to tear down the goalposts while both teams were celebrating thinking they had won the game.

Big 10 commissioner Wayne Duke, who had been watching the game in the press box, come down onto the field to meet with the officials to determine what exactly happened.

While Duke and the officials were sorting out the final sequence of events, the Michigan State players went to the locker room hoping to hear they had won the game while Hayes and the Buckeyes waited in the tunnel assuming they would go back and get one more play.

Finally after a 46-minute discussion, it was determined that Ohio State had not snapped the ball before the clock struck zero, meaning that the Spartans had won the game 16-13.

Hayes protested vehemently that the ball was snapped before time expired and that Bachnagel was five yards into the end zone though Bachnagel said years later he didn't think the Buckeyes got the play off in time and was more angry about Michigan State taking their time to get ready for a potential final play.

Here is the final seconds of the game:

Another argument Ohio State fans make is that the Buckeyes did not line up properly thus an illegal procedure penalty could have been called which would have nullified the touchdown and push the Buckeyes five yards back, but would have given Ohio State one last play.

However, since the officials ruled Ohio State did not get the play off in time, the play was dead meaning no illegal procedure penalty and no last play for the Buckeyes.

But at the end of the day it was Michigan State-16 Ohio State-13.

The Buckeyes would rebound from the loss to win their last two games of the regular season including a 12-10 win over Michigan to win the Big 10 title and go to the Rose Bowl for the third straight year where they once played USC.

The Trojans would defeat the Buckeyes 18-17 to claim a share of the national title as the Buckeyes finished the 1974 season with a 10-2 record and #3 ranking in the final Coaches Poll and #4 ranking in the AP Poll.

As for Michigan State, their win over Ohio State pushed them into the rankings as the team was voted #15 following the upset win over the Buckeyes as the Spartans would win their final two games of the regular season to finish with a 7-3-1 record, their best season since 1966 where they finished 9-0-1.

However, because the Big 10 only permitted one team to bowl games in 1974, the Spartans did not participate in the postseason as they finished #12 in the AP poll and #18 in the coaches poll.

Still, the 1974 football team will also have a place in Michigan State lore because of their upset win over #1 Ohio State.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Alstott's Two-Point Conversion Gives Bucs Win over Redskins

Buccaneers fullback Mike Alstott prepares to punch it in the end zone for the game-winning two-point conversion against the Redskins in 2005.

 Nine times out of 10 when a team scores a touchdown in the final minutes of a game and needs one point to tie, they opt to play it safe and kick the extra point.

But every once in a while, someone will gamble and go for two to try and win the game in regulation.

That's exactly what happened in Week 10 of the 2005 NFL season when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hosted the Washington Redskins.

The Bucs came into the game with a 5-3 record but having lost their previous two games and three of their last four after jumping out to a 4-0 start.

The Bucs were led by head coach Jon Gruden, who was in his fourth season at Tampa Bay, and was looking to return to the playoffs for the first time since the Bucs won it all after the 2002 season.

If Tampa Bay was going to return to the postseason, they would need backup quarterback Chris Simms, the son of former New York Giants quarterback Phil Simms, to step up his game after Simms had thrown for four interceptions in the Bucs' previous two losses after taking over for Brian Griese, who had been lost for the rest of the season with a torn ACL.

Simms would need help from his backfield which featured eventual offensive rookie of the year Cadillac Williams at tailback and the "A-Train", veteran fullback Mike Alstott if the Bucs were going to stop their two-game losing streak.

The Redskins came into the game with a 5-3 record under head coach Joe Gibbs, who had returned to the sidelines after a 11-year absence to once again become the head coach of the Redskins.

After a disappointing 6-10 season in 2004, the Redskins jumped out to a 3-0 start thanks to an offense that featured quarterback Mark Brunell at the the helm and running back Clinton Portis.

With both teams evenly matched, the game figured to be a close one and would not be decided until the final minutes.

After both teams punted on their opening possessions of the game, the Redskins had the ball at their 30-yard-line when Brunell handed the ball off to Portis, who busted loose for a 31-yard run to give Washington a 1st down at the Tampa Bay 39-yard-line.

However, the Redskins would turn it over three plays later when Brunell was picked off by Buccaneers defensive back Juran Bolden on a pass intended for David Patten.

Bolden returned the interception 28 yards to the Washington 47-yard-line as it took the Bucs six plays to get into the end zone as Alstott punched it in from the two-yard-line to give Tampa Bay a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

The Redskins would begin their ensuing possession at their 30-yard-line as Brunell would hit Patten for nine yards to start the drive, which was followed by a 11-yard run by Portis to give Washington at the 50-yard-line.

Brunell would then connect with tight end Chris Cooley for 16 yards, then with Santana Moss for 22 yards to give the Redskins a 1st & 10 at the Tampa Bay 12-yard-line.

However, the Tampa Bay defense would stiffen and not allow another 1st down as a quarterback sack by Bucs defensive end Simeon Rice would sack Brunell on 3rd & 6 to force the Redskins to settle for a 33-yard field goal by John Hall which trimmed the Tampa Bay lead to 7-3 with 3:38 left in the first quarter.

Redskins quarterback Mark Brunell completed 23 of 35 passes for 226 yards and threw two TDs.

The Redskins would force a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 26-yard-line and proceed to drive to the Tampa Bay 30-yard-line until Rice picked off a Brunell pass and returned it six yards to give the Bucs the ball back at their 36-yard-line.

The Bucs would unable to cash in on the turnover as they punted the ball back to the Redskins, only to have Rice strike again as he forced Brunell to fumble on a quarterback sack, with fellow Tampa defensive end Dewayne White recovering the ball at the Washington five-yard-line.

Alstott would get the ball on 1st down as he carried it to the one-yard-line then punched it in for the one-yard touchdown to increase the Bucs' lead to 14-3 midway through the second quarter.

Having turned the ball over on their previous three possessions, the Redskins needed a spark and would get it on the ensuing kickoff as Ladell Betts returned the kick 94 yards for a touchdown to cut the Tampa lead to 14-10.

The Bucs would get the ball at their 33-yard-line to start their next drive as it took them only two plays to get into Redskins territory as Simms completed a short screen pass to Alstott on 2nd & 6, who turned into a 18-yard gain that got 15 yards added to it as Washington defensive end Nic Clemons was called for roughing the passer, giving Tampa Bay a 1st down at the Redskins' 30-yard-line.

Then after two running plays picked up six yards, Simms fired a 24-yard touchdown pass to Joey Galloway to push the Tampa Bay lead back to double digits at 21-10 with 5:16 left in the second quarter.

The Redskins would get the ball back at their 25-yard-line where after an one-yard run by Portis to start the drive, Brunell would complete four of his next five passes for 44 yards to push the Redskins to the Tampa Bay 30-yard-line.

But after two runs by Portis picked up eight yards, Brunell threw an incomplete pass on 3rd & 2, forcing the Redskins to settle for a 40-yard field goal by Hall to cut the Buccaneers' lead to 21-13 with 1:40 left before halftime.

Despite having two timeouts and nearly a minute and a half on the clock, Gruden was content with a 21-13 lead as running back Michael Pittman ran the ball three straight times to end the first half as the Bucs were set to get the ball to start the second half.

However on the first play of the second half, Williams fumbled the football after he was hit by Redskins defensive tackle Joe Salave'a as defensive end Demetric Evans made the recovery to give the Redskins a 1st & goal at the Tampa Bay seven-yard-line.

Three plays later, the Redskins were in the end zone as Brunell connected with Mike Sellers for a seven-yard touchdown to make it 21-19 when Gibbs decided to go for two.

The two-point conversion was successful as Brunell completed a pass to Portis for the two points to tie the game at 21 just 93 seconds into the second half.

Redskins running back Clinton Portis ran for 144 yards on 23 carries and scored one touchdown.

The Redskins would force the Bucs to punt on their next possession to get the ball back at their 27-yard-line where after two runs by Portis netted three yards, Brunell scrambled for 11 yards and a 1st down at the Washington 41-yard-line.

Brunell would then complete a 47-yard pass to Moss only to have called because of a holding penalty which pushed the Redskins back 10 yards to their 37-yard-line where the Redskins lost three more yards when Betts was dropped for a three-yard-loss after catching a screen pass from Brunell to set up 2nd & 23.

The Redskins would get half of those yards back when Portis ran for 12 yards to set up 3rd & 11 when Brunell connected with Moss for a 42-yard gain and a 1st down at the Tampa Bay 22-yard-line.

Then on 3rd & 9, Brunell would hit Betts for a 17-yard touchdown to give the Redskins their first lead of the game at 28-21 with 5:25 remaining in the third quarter.

The Bucs would get the ball back at their 30-yard-line as Simms would complete a 16-yard pass to Ike HIlliard for a 1st down at the Tampa 46-yard-line, then hit Edell Shephard with a 46-yard bomb on 3rd & 9 to give the Bucs a 1st & goal at the Redskins' seven-yard-line.

Then after a three-yard run by Alstott, Simms connected with Hilliard on a four-yard touchdown which tied the game 28-28 with 1:58 left in the third quarter.

The Redskins would begin their next possession at their 24-yard-line as Washington would pick up a 1st down when Brunell ran for two yards on 3rd & 1 to end the third quarter.

As the fourth quarter began, the Redskins turned the left arm of Brunell, who would complete seven of his next eight passes for 32 yards which included a four-yard completion to Cooley on 4th & 3 from the Tampa Bay 35-yard-line.

After the 4th down conversion, Brunell would the ball off to Betts, who carried the ball three straight times for a total of 23 yards to set up an eight-yard touchdown run by Portis to cap off the 16-play, 76-yard drive and give Washington a 35-28 lead with 8:26 left in the third quarter.

The Bucs would get the ball back at their 24-yard-line as Simms completed a four-yard pass to Galloway to start the drive, then handed the ball off to Williams who was stopped for no gain to force 3rd & 6 when Simms connected with Galloway for 18 yards and a 1st down at the Tampa Bay 46-yard-line.

Simms would go back to Galloway on the next play, this time connecting on a 33-yard gain to push the Bucs to the Redskins' 21-yard-line.

The Bucs would pick up one more 1st down until they were faced with a 4th & goal from the Washington 12-yard-line with 3:44 left in the game.

Simms would try to hit Galloway again but his pass fell incomplete forcing a turnover on downs and giving the ball back to the Redskins with 3:37 to play and a chance for Washington to run out the clock.

However, the Bucs would force a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 46-yard-line with 1:52 remaining in regulation.

The drive would begin with a 13-yard pass from Simms to Galloway for a Tampa Bay 1st down at the Redskins 41-yard-line, followed by an incomplete pass, then an 11-yard pass from Simms to Shephard for another Tampa Bay 1st down at the Redskins' 30-yard-line as Simms spiked the ball to stop the clock with 65 seconds left.

That is when Simms dropped back and fired a pass toward the end zone, intended for Shephard, who made a diving catch for the 30-yard touchdown to make it 35-34 with 58 seconds remaining and all but academic extra point that would tie the game at 35.

Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms would complete 15 of 29 passes for 279 yards and throw three TDs and zero INTs.

But the Redskins broke through the line of scrimmage to block the extra point only to have nullified because cornerback Walt Harris jumped offsides to put the ball at the Washington one-yard-line.

That is when Gruden decided to send his offense back on the field and go for the two-point conversion that would give Tampa Bay the lead.

Gruden called "14 Blast" a run specifically for Alstott to run behind the right tackle and hopefully for the Bucs into the end zone.

Simms took the snap and handed the ball off to Alstott, who was initially stopped at the line of scrimmage, but kept his legs moving to sneak his way into the end zone for two-point conversion to give the Bucs a 36-35 lead.

The Redskins would get the ball at their 20-yard-line with two timeouts in their pocket and 58 seconds to drive into field goal range.

The drive got off to a good start as Brunell completed a 24-yard pass to Cooley, only to have his next three passes fall incomplete to force a 4th & 10 from the Washington 44-yard-line.

Unable to find anybody, Brunell tried to run for the 1st down, but could only get two yards as he was tackled by Dewayne White and Sheldon Quarles to force a turnover on downs and give the ball back to Tampa Bay as Simms would take a knee to run out the clock to give the Bucs the 36-35 win.

The loss seemed to send Washington's season into a tailspin as they would lose their next two games to fall to 5-6 until the Redskins went on a five-game winning streak to clinch their first playoff berth since 1999.

In the playoffs, the Redskins would travel to Tampa Bay again to take on the Buccaneers, who finished with a 11-5 record good enough to earn the right to host an NFC Wild Card Game against Washington.

In that game, the Redskins would get revenge for their heartbreaking loss in November as they defeated the Bucs 17-10 to advance to the Divisional Round where Washington fell to the Seattle Seahawks 20-10.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: McFadden Leads Arkansas to 3OT Upset Win over #1 LSU

 

Arkansas running back Darren McFadden carried the ball 32 times for 206 yards and run for three TDs while completed three of six passes for 34 yards and threw a TD in Arkansas' upset win over LSU.

When it comes to the greatest running backs in Arkansas Razorbacks football history, it's hard to argue against anyone other than Darren McFadden as the greatest in school history.

In his three years with the Hogs, McFadden rushed for over 1,000 yards in each season to become only the second player in SEC history to do that with the other being Georgia Bulldogs running back Herschel Walker, who McFadden currently runs behind in second place on the all time rushing yards list in SEC with his 4,590 career yards.

McFadden's finest performance as a Arkansas Razorback came in the Hogs' 2007 regular season finale against the #1 LSU Tigers in a  triple overtime classic in "Death Valley".

 Arkansas came into the game with a 7-4 record and unranked in what many observers believed to be a disappointing season for the Hogs as they returned McFadden, plus fellow 1,000 rusher Felix Jones, and fullback Peyton Hillis for the 2007 season following a 10-win season and SEC West division title in 2006.

But after a number of controversies that including the departure of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn as well as several high-ranked recruits, head coach Houston Nutt was on the hot seat when it came to his job security despite a nearly successful 10-year run in Fayetteville.

It seemed likely that Nutt's final game was going to be the Hogs' annual battle with the LSU Tigers over the "Golden Boot" trophy given to the winner of the LSU-Arkansas game.

The Tigers came into the Arkansas game ranked #1 in the AP and coaches polls but most importantly in the BCS rankings as the Tigers came into their game with Arkansas with a 10-1 record with their only loss being a 45-37 triple overtime loss to Kentucky six weeks earlier(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2021/10/college-football-old-school-game-of.html).

The Tigers had climbed back to the #1 ranking under the direction of head coach Les Miles and an offense with fifth-year senior Matt Flynn at quarterback and the bruising Jacob Hester at running back.

The Tigers had already wrapped up the SEC West division title and were set to play in the SEC Championship Game the following week in Atlanta, but had no margin for error because of their loss to Kentucky, meaning their game against the Hogs was still very important if the Tigers were going to play for a national championship at the end of the season..

The Hogs were set to get the ball to start the game as McFadden received the opening kickoff and returned it 17 yards until he was hit by LSU linebacker Kelvin Sheppard, causing a fumble that was recovered by running back Charles Scott to give the Tigers the football at the Arkansas 25-yard-line.

The Tigers would pick up one 1st down before settling for a 32-yard field goal by Colt David to give LSU a 3-0 lead just 1:41 into the game.

Lightning almost struck twice for the Tigers as McFadden received the ensuing kickoff and again fumbled the football after a hit by Hester, only this time McFadden was able to recover his fumble to give Arkansas the ball at its 29-yard-line.

The Hogs would go three-and-out to give the ball back to LSU, who took over at its 27-yard-line as Hester carried the ball on the first three plays of the drive, gaining a total of 18 yards, which was followed by an eight-yard pass from Flynn to tight end Richard Dickson to put the Tigers at the Arkansas 45-yard-line.

The Tigers would drive to the Arkansas 32-yard-line until they called on David again to attempt a 49-yard field goal which he made to increase the LSU lead to 6-0 midway through the first quarter.

LSU running back Jacob Hester ran for 126 yards on 28 carries and scored two touchdowns.

Both teams would trade punts until the second quarter when the Hogs got the ball at their three-yard-line when they put together their best drive of the first half.

McFadden ran for 12 yards to begin the drive which was followed by a pass interference penalty on LSU cornerback Chevis Jackson giving the Hogs a 1st down at their 30-yard-line.

After the next two plays picked up six yards, the Hogs lined up in the "Wild Hog" formation, which was Arkansas' version of the "Wildcat" formation as McFadden lined up at quarterback and handed the ball off to Jones, who broke loose for a 31-yard run to give Arkansas a 1st down at the LSU 33-yard-line.

Following another 1st down, Arkansas went back to the "Wild Hog" as McFadden completed a five-yard pass to Jones on 1st & 10, then kept the ball on 2nd down and ran it in for a 16-yard touchdown to give the Hogs a 7-6 lead with 7:33 left in the second quarter as the Hogs had driven 97 yards in nine plays.

Those would be the last points of the first half as both teams would trade punts until the end of the half with Arkansas on top 7-6 as the two teams went into the locker room for the halftime break.

The Tigers would get the ball to start the second half as they drove from their 38-yard-line to the Arkansas 40-yard-line until they punted the ball back to the Hogs, who took over at their 20-yard-line following a touchback on the punt.

The Hogs picked up one 1st down before facing a 2nd & 14 at their 27-yard-line when lined up in the "Wild Hog" again, McFadden took the direct snap, ran toward his left and outraced the LSU defense for a 73-yard touchdown which increased Arkansas' lead to 14-6 with 9:49 left in the third quarter.

The Tigers needed a spark and would get it on the ensuing kickoff as Chad Jones' 33-yard-return gave LSU the ball at its 49-yard-line to begin its next drive.

Flynn would come out firing as he completed back-to-back passes to Demetrius Byrd for 19 yards, then hit Dickson for eight more yards to give LSU a 1st down at the Arkansas 24-yard-line.

Hester would get the call on the next play running for nine yards before being stopped for no gain to set up 3rd & 1 when Flynn kept it himself to run for three yards and a 1st down at the Arkansas 12-yard-line.

Following an incomplete pass, Flynn handed the ball off to Hester, who broke through three Arkansas tacklers to punch it in for the 12-yard touchdown to bring the Tigers to within two points at 14-12 as Miles decided to go for two.

Flynn would run it in for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 14 with 7:48 left in the third quarter.

Arkansas would get the ball back at its 17-yard-line and drive to their 35-yard-line when the "Wild Hog" struck again as McFadden handed the ball off to Hillis, who busted through the middle for a 65-yard touchdown to give Arkansas a 21-14 lead with 5:46 left in the third quarter.

Arkansas fullback Peyton Hillis had 11 carries for 89 yards and two touchdowns plus caught five passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns.

Back came the Tigers as they would drive 75 yards in 10 plays with the drive culminating in a seven-yard touchdown pass from Flynn to Byrd to tie the game at 21 with 2:22 remaining in the third quarter.

The two teams would trade punts as the game moved into the fourth quarter when the Tigers had the ball at their 46-yard-line when Flynn connected with Hester on a 54-yard touchdown pass, only to have called back because of an ineligible receiver downfield.

The Tigers would eventually punt giving the Hogs the ball at their 28-yard-line as  Arkansas came out in the "Wild Hog" formation to start the drive with McFadden running for seven yards, then throwing an incomplete pass to force a 3rd & 3 where McFadden handed the ball off to Jones who exploded for a 30-yard run to give the Hogs a 1st down at the LSU 35-yard-line.

Then after two runs by McFadden picked up 11 yards, McFadden lined up at quarterback and fired a pass a 24-yard touchdown pass to Hillis to give Arkansas a 28-21 lead with 5:06 remaining in regulation.

The Tigers got the ball back at their 21-yard-line needing a touchdown in hopes of sending the game into overtime or tying to give them a chance to win before the end of regulation.

After an incomplete pass on 1st down, Hester carried the ball on the next two plays picking up 16 yards for a LSU 1st down at its 37-yard-line.

A six-yard pass to Dickson followed by a three-yard run by Hester set up 3rd & 1 when Flynn threw an incomplete pass to force 4th & 1 with the Tigers at their 46-yard-line.

Miles decided to go for it and was awarded with a 1st down as Keiland Williams ran for two yards to give LSU a 1st down at its 48-yard-line as Flynn would connect with Early Doucet for nine yards to put LSU in Arkansas territory at the Hogs' 43-yard-line.

On the next play, Flynn connected with Dickson for 35 yards to give LSU 1st & goal at the Arkansas eight-yard-line with less than two minutes to go.

An incomplete pass on 1st down, followed by a two-yard run by Flynn, then a four-yard run by Hester set up a do-or-die 4th down at the Arkansas two-yard-line.

That is when Flynn found Byrd in the middle of the end zone for a two-yard touchdown that along with David's extra point tied the game at 28-28 with 57 seconds to go in regulation.

That was still enough time for the Hogs to drive down the field and get the game-winning score, especially after Jones returned the ensuing kickoff 33 yards to the Arkansas 48-yard-line.

However, the Tigers would force the Hogs to turn it over on downs as Dick's 4th down pass intended for Lucas Miller fell incomplete to give LSU a chance at a "Hail Mary" pass with three seconds to go.

Flynn's pass would fall incomplete to send the game into overtime with the game tied at 28.

LSU got the ball first in the overtime period as Williams ran for 13 yards on 1st down, then following an incomplete pass, Flynn ran it in for a 12-yard touchdown to give LSU a 35-28 lead as the Hogs were set to get the ball for their overtime possession.

LSU quarterback Matt Flynn completed 22 of 47 passes for 209 yards and threw three TDs while running the ball nine times for 27 yards and one TD.

McFadden completed a five-yard pass to Jones to start the overtime possession then was stopped for no gain on 2nd down to set up 3rd & 5 when Dick went back in at quarterback.

An illegal procedure penalty and an incomplete pass forced a 4th & 10 at the LSU 25-yard-line when Dick completed a 13-yard pass to Hillis to give Arkansas a 1st down at the LSU 12-yard-line.

Then on 3rd & 8 from the 10-yard-line, Dick connected with Hillis again, this time for a 12-yard touchdown that with the extra point made it a 35-35 game and send the game into a second overtime.

The Hogs had the ball first in the second overtime period as Jones began the drive with a 16-yard run, which was followed by a nine-yard touchdown run by McFadden to give Arkansas a 42-35 lead.

LSU's possession began with a four-yard run by Williams, followed by a 12-yard pass from Flynn to Dickson to give the Tigers a 1st down at the Arkansas' nine-yard-line when Hester carried the ball for seven yards on 1st & goal, then ran it in for a two-yard touchdown to send the game to a third overtime with the scored tied at 42.

A six-yard run by Jones, followed by an one-yard run by Hillis, then a three-yard run by Jones gave the Hogs a 1st down at the 15-yard-line when Arkansas went back to the "Wild Hog" formation as McFadden handed the ball off to Hillis, who ran for only two yards on 1st down.

McFadden would then run for 10 yards on 2nd down to set up 1st & goal at the three-yard-line when McFadden handed the ball off to Hillis, who busted though for a three-yard touchdown.

Now that the game had entered a third overtime period, the Hogs had to go for two following the touchdown, which they got as Jones ran it into the end zone to give Arkansas a 50-42 lead.

The Tigers' triple overtime possession began with a 12-yard pass from Flynn to Doucet, followed by a four-yard run by Hester to set up 2nd & 6 when Flynn hit Brandon LaFell for the nine-yard touchdown to bring LSU to within two at 50-48.

Now needing to make the two-point conversion to send the game to a fourth overtime, Flynn dropped back and fired a pass intended for Byrd at the back of the end zone, only to have Arkansas cornerback Matterral Richardson step in front of Byrd to make the interception to end the game and give the Hogs a 50-48 victory.

The loss seemingly ended the Tigers' national championship hopes as they fell to 10-2 and drop from #1 to #7 in the following week's BCS rankings.

But following a 21-14 win over Tennessee in the SEC Championship Game, plus losses by Missouri and West Virginia the following week, the Tigers jumped all the way to #2 in the final BCS rankings, earning them a trip to the BCS Championship Game where they faced the #1 Ohio State Buckeyes as LSU would knock off the Buckeyes 38-24 to claim the Tigers' second national title in five years.

Despite the win over #1 LSU, Nutt decided to resign as Arkansas head coach three days later, where he was replaced by defensive coordinator Reggie Herring who coached the Hogs in their bowl game, a 38-7 loss to Missouri in the Cotton Bowl, dropping Arkansas to a 8-5 record to finish the season.

Nutt would sign with the Ole Miss Rebels to became their head coach where he lead the Rebels to back-to-back Cotton Bowl wins in his first two seasons until two straight losing seasons led to his firing following the 2011 season.

As for McFadden, who would finish 2nd in the Heisman Trophy race behind eventual winner Tim Tebow as McFadden finished the 2007 season with 1,830 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns.

McFadden would be chosen as the #4 overall pick by the Oakland Raiders in the 2008 NFL Draft as he would rush for 4,247 yards and 25 touchdowns in seven seasons, then signed with the Dallas Cowboys before the 2015 season in which he ran for 1,089 yards and scored three touchdowns that year.

Two years later, McFadden would retire from the NFL after a 10-year career and then would be enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2019.

The Hogs celebrate with the Golden Boot Trophy following their upset win over #1 LSU.