 |
| Leroy Butler tries to outran Donnel Woolford on the famous "Puntrooskie" play in 1988. |
In the 1980s, the Florida State Seminoles rose to become one of the top programs in college football thanks to head coach Bobby Bowden's willingness to run all sorts of trick plays that earned him the nickname the "Riverboat Gambler".
Bowden's biggest gamble came in the third game of the 1988 season when he and his Seminoles traveled to "Death Valley" to take on the Clemson Tigers in a top-10 showdown.
Florida State came into the game ranked #10 after beginning the season as the #1 team ranked in the country following a 11-1 season the previous year.
However, the Seminoles would lose their #1 ranking following an embarrassing 31-0 loss to the defending National Champion Miami Hurricanes in the opening game of the season.
Led by all-American cornerback Deion Sanders, the Seminoles would bounce back with a 29-13 win over Southern Mississippi the following week to even their record at 1-1 as they hoped to back in the race for the national championship if they could knock off the Tigers.
Much like the Seminoles, the Tigers came into the 1988 season with national championship aspirations as they began the season as the #4 team in the country.
Following wins of 40-7 against Virginia Tech and 23-3 against Furman, the Tigers moved up to #3 in the country as they prepared to host the Seminoles on a rainy day which left the field at Memorial Stadium very soggy.
Clemson would start the game on offense as the Tigers drove from their 16-yard-line to the Florida State 34-yard-line on 10 straight running plays until a fumbled snap and an incomplete pass forced a punt back to the Seminoles after Clemson had held the ball for six-and-a-half minutes.
After forcing a three-and-out, the Tigers would get the ball back at their 26-yard-line where after three plays, they had a 1st & 10 at the Clemson 39-yard-line.
That is when the Tigers pulled a rabbit out of the hat as quarterback Rodney Williams tossed the ball off to wide receiver Chip Jones who appeared to be running a reverse around the left side, only for Jones to stop and throw a pass downfield intended for Gary Cooper.
Cooper made the catch at the FSU 20-yard-line as Seminoles cornerback Derrick Dodge slipped which allowed Cooper to run into the end zone untouched to complete the 61-yard touchdown that gave Clemson a 7-0 lead with 5:10 left in the first quarter.
Following an exchange of punts, the Seminoles got the ball back at their 41-yard-line as quarterback Chip Ferguson would complete a nine-yard pass to running back Victor Floyd to start the drive followed by another nine-yard pass to running back Dexter Carter, which became a 14-yard play as Clemson was called for a five-yard face mask, to put FSU at the Tigers' 36-yard-line as time ran out in the first quarter.
 |
| Clemson quarterback Rodney Williams accounted for 116 yards of total offense and scored one TD. |
The Seminoles would lose four yards to set up 3rd & 14 when Ferguson found Carter on a swing pass which resulted in a 40-yard touchdown which tied the game 7-7 just 74 seconds into the second quarter.
After another exchange of punts, the Tigers were pinned back at their one-yard-line when they put together a masterful 17-play, 99-yard touchdown drive which took nearly eight minutes to complete.
The drive got off to an auspicious start as the Tigers gained no yards on the first two plays to set up 3rd & 10 when Williams connected with Allen for 14 yards and a 1st down at the Clemson 15-yard-line.
Fullback Tracy Johnson would carry the ball on the next two plays gaining eight yards to set up 3rd & 2 when tailback Joe Henderson got the call as he ran for four yards and a 1st down at the Clemson 27-yard-line.
After the two next plays gained zero yards, the Tigers struck it big as Williams completed a 38-yard pass to Cooper that with a five-yard penalty on the Seminoles put Clemson at the FSU 30-yard-line.
Five more running plays would total 16 yards until Williams put it back in the air as he completed a five-yard pass to Ricardo Hooper to make it 4th & 1 at the FSU nine-yard-line.
Instead of kicking the field goal, Ford decided to go for the 1st down which he got as Williams handed the ball off to Johnson who got two yards to give Clemson a 1st & goal at the FSU seven-yard-line.
That is when Williams kept the ball to himself as he took around the left side for a seven-yard touchdown to complete the long drive and give Clemson a 14-7 lead with 2:45 left in the second quarter.
Neither team would mount a scoring threat before the halftime break as the Tigers went into the locker room with a 14-7 lead as the Clemson offense had amassed 232 yards of total offense compared to the Seminoles' 71.
The Seminoles would get the ball to start the second half but would go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Tigers who took over at their 16-yard-line.
The Tigers would pick up 30 yards before they had to punt back to the Seminoles when "Prime Time" arrived in Death Valley.
Chris Gardocki would punt the ball to Sanders, who received the punt at his 24-yard-line, took up the middle, made a cut to his right and dodged a diving Gardocki for an electrifying 76-yard punt return touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 14.
It would not be the last time the Seminoles special teams unit would have an impact on this game.
Following a Clemson three-and-out, the Seminoles got the ball back at their 23-yard-line as Ferguson completed passes of 34 yards to Floyd and 36 yards to Bruce LaSane to set up Dayne Williams' one-yard touchdown run to give Florida State its first lead of the game at 21-14 midway through the third quarter.
The momentum had turned in the Seminoles' favor especially after they force another Clemson punt to the get the ball back at their 19-yard-line as Ferguson would complete six of eight passes for 69 yards on a 10-play, 73-yard drive which put FSU at the Clemson eight-yard-line as kicker Richie Andrews come on to attempt a 24-yard field goal.
However, Clemson cornerback James Lott would deflect Andrews' kick just enough to make it sail wide right and no good to keep it 21-14 with 1:42 left in the third quarter.
The two teams would trade punts until midway through the fourth quarter when the Tigers had the ball at their 34-yard-line, hoping to drive down for a touchdown.
The drive would begin with a 11-yard run by future NFL running back Terry Allen, followed by an illegal shift penalty and then a 19-yard pass from Williams to Hooper to give the Tigers a 1st down at the FSU 41-yard-line.
A two-yard run by Allen followed by incomplete pass set up 3rd & 8 when Williams connected with Hooper again, this time for seven yards to put Clemson at the 32-yard-line where it would face a 4th & 1.
With time running out in the game, the Tigers had no choice but go for the 1st down which they got as Williams handed it off to Johnson, who got the one yard for the 1st down at the FSU 31-yard-line.
Johnson would get the ball again on 1st down as he ran for four yards to set up 2nd & 6 when disaster nearly struck for Clemson as Allen lost the football only for wide receiver Keith Jennings to recover it for the Tigers at the FSU 17-yard-line.
Then after Allen was dropped for a two-yard loss on 1st down, Williams handed the ball off to Johnson, who bursted through for a 19-yard touchdown to make it 21-20.
With no overtime in college football in 1988, Ford could have decided to go for two and the win but instead opted to go for the extra point which Rusty Seyle made to tie the game at 21 with 2:32 remaining.
The Seminoles would begin its ensuing possession at their 15-yard-line as Carter ran for six yards on 1st down which was followed by two straight incomplete passes forcing a 4th & 4 with 1:33 to go in the game.
It appeared that the Tigers would get the ball back with a chance to drive for the winning score as the Seminoles lined up in their punting formation when Bowden made one of the gustiest calls in college football history.
As the Seminoles were lined up in their punting formation, Dayne Williams lined up behind center David Whittington to take the direct snap.
Williams would then snap the ball to defensive back Leroy Butler, who was supposed to remain still as Williams and the rest of the Seminoles' punting unit would run to the right side in order to distract the Tigers from Butler.
Butler, who was supposed to wait three seconds before he ran, took off in about half that time and ran down the left sideline where he was on his way to the end zone until Clemson cornerback Donnell Woolford knocked Butler out of bounds at the Tigers' one-yard-line.
Butler's stunning 78-yard run had put the Seminoles on the doorstep of the go-ahead score which would occur after Ferguson took a knee as Andrews came on to kick a 19-yard field goal to give FSU a 24-21 lead with 32 seconds to go.
The Tigers would get the ball one more time to try and perhaps salvage a tie but after four straight incomplete passes, the Seminoles got the ball with four seconds left, allowing Ferguson to take a knee to complete the 24-21 win before the shocked Clemson faithful in "Death Valley'.
While the loss would doom the Tigers' national title dreams, they would recover to win the ACC championship for the third consecutive season as Clemson would finish the 1988 season with a 10-2 record and top-10 ranking in both polls following a 13-6 win over Oklahoma in the Citrus Bowl.
Meanwhile the Seminoles would not lose for the rest of the season as FSU finished the season with a 11-1 record and #3 ranking in both polls after a 13-7 win over Auburn in the Sugar Bowl.
As for Butler, he would go on to be selected in the second round of the 1990 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, where he played 12 seasons in a career which featured a Super Bowl championship and the creation of the "Lambeau Leap" in 1993 when Butler leapt into the grandstands of Lambeau Field following a touchdown in Green Bay's 28-0 win over the Raiders, which clinched the Packers a playoff berth for the first time in 11 years.
Butler would be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022 thanks to a career which featured 38 interceptions, 13 forced fumbles, 10 fumble recoveries, and 20.5 quarterback sacks.
No comments:
Post a Comment