College Football Old School Game of the Week: Brees Leads Purdue Back From 18 Points Down to Upset Michigan

Drew Brees completed 32 of 44 passes for 286 yards and ran for 80 yards on 10 carries.

 By the time the 2000 college football season arrived, Drew Brees was already a Purdue football legend.

In his previous two seasons as the starting quarterback of the Boilermakers, Brees had thrown for over 8,000 yards and 64 touchdown passes.

But on October 7, 2000, Brees would put his stamp as probably the greatest player in Purdue history with his performance against the Michigan Wolverines.

The Boilermakers came into the Michigan game with a 3-2 record having suffered heartbreaking losses to Notre Dame and Penn State.

Purdue had entered the 2000 season with high expectations as Brees had returned for his senior season to direct fourth-year head coach Joe Tiller's "basketball on grass" spread offense that used the passing game to light up the scoreboard as the Boilermakers had played in three consectutive bowl games after only having played in five prior to Tiller's arrival in 1997.

Purdue fans were hoping Brees and Tiller could lead the Boilermakers to somewhere they hadn't been since the end of the 1966 season and that was to Pasadena and play in the Rose Bowl.

For any chance of that happening, the Boilermakers would have to knock off Michigan, who came into the game ranked #6 with a 4-1 record.

The Wolverines, led by head coach Lloyd Carr, had a pretty stout offense as well as it featured quarterback Drew Henson, running back Anthony Thomas, and wide receivers David Terell and Marquise Walker.

Michigan traveled to West Lafayette, Indiana to take on the Boilermakers, a team they had beaten in 25 of the previous 29 meetings and to a place where they had not lost since 1984.

Michigan got the ball to start the game as the Wolverines would drive 82 yards in 12 plays as Henson completed all six of his passes for 52 yards on the drive including a seven-yard touchdown pass to  Walker to give Michigan a 7-0 lead.

Purdue would begin its initial possession of the game at its 12-yard-line as Brees would go 6-of-9 for 58 yards on a 17-play, 81-yard drive which should have ended with a touchdown but A.T. Simpson dropped a pass in the back of the end zone on 3rd & goal, forcing the Boilermakers to settle for a 24-yard field goal by Travis Dorsch to cut the Michigan lead to 7-3 with 3:03 left in the first quarter.

The Wolverines would respond with a 15-play, 80-yard drive that took over seven minutes to complete and did not end until Henson connected with running back B.J. Askew for a four-yard touchdown pass to push Michigan's lead to 14-3 with 11:02 to go in the second quarter.

The Boilermakers would get the ball back at its 23-yard-line as Brees completed a 14-yard pass to Seth Morales to begin the drive, then ran for 21 yards on 3rd & 1 to give Purdue a 1st down at the Michigan 33-yard-line which was followed by a 16-yard run by Montrell Lowe for another Purdue 1st down at the Michigan 17-yard-line.

However on the next play from scrimmage, Brees would be picked off by Michigan cornerback Todd Howard on a pass intended for Morales in the end zone to give the ball back to the Wolverines who would take over at their 20-yard-line.

The Wolverines would pick up one 1st down before facing a 3rd & 2 situation at their 39-yard-line when Henson handed the ball off to Thomas who exploded for a 61-yard touchdown to increase the Michigan lead to 21-3 with 6:25 left in the second quarter.

Now behind by 18 points, Purdue would need Brees to get hot if they wanted to keep the game from getting out of hand.

After a six-yard run by Lowe to start the Boilermakers' ensuing possession, Brees would complete passes of 10 yards to Vinny Sutherland and 12 yards to tight end Tim Stratton to put Purdue at its 48-yard-line.

Then after two runs by Lowe for seven yards, Brees would find Sutherland for 15 yards and a 1st down at the Michigan 30-yard-line as two more runs by Lowe picked up five yards to set up 3rd & 5 when Brees connected with Sutherland again, this time for a 25-yard touchdown to bring Purdue to within 11 points at 21-10 with 1:50 left remaining in the first half.

That was plenty of time for Michigan to put some points on the board before halftime as the Wolverines would start their next possession at their 11-yard-line with a 36-yard pass from Henson to Askew for a 1st down at the Wolverines' 47-yard-line

Henson would then find Terrell for nine yards then after an incomplete pass on 2nd & 1 hit Terrell again for 13 yards and a Michigan 1st down at the Purdue 31-yard-line.

Henson would then Walker for 11 yards and Terrell for 13 yards to give Michigan a 1st & goal at the Purdue seven-yard-line as a couple of penalties would push the Wolverines back to the 15-yard-line when Henson connected with Terrell for a 15-yard touchdown to push the Michigan lead back to 18 points at 28-10 with 13 seconds left before halftime.

Michigan quarterback  Drew Henson threw for 256 yards and three touchdown passes.

Brees would take a knee to end the first half with his team down 28-10 after a 1st half which saw the Purdue defense allow 351 yards of total offense on four Michigan drives which all resulted in touchdowns.

Purdue would get the ball to start the second half as the Boilermakers would use the running game for their next possession as only 19 of the 75 yards on the 11-play drive came through the air as Lowe ran for 30 yards to put Purdue in Michigan territory which was followed by a 10-yard run by Sutherland on a reverse a few plays later.

The drive would end with an one-yard touchdown run by running back Steve Ennis to cut the deficit to 12 points at 28-16 as the Boilermakers would attempt a two-point conversion after the touchdown.

However, Brees' pass would fall incomplete to keep it the score 28-16 with 11:03 remaining in the third quarter.

Following the first punt of the game by the Wolverines, Purdue got the ball back at its 20-yard-line as Brees would complete six of his next seven passes for 40 yards plus ran three times for 15 yards on a 13-play, 80-yard drive that culminated with a 16-yard touchdown run by Lowe to bring the Boilermakers to within a touchdown at 28-23 with 4:12 left in the third quarter.

The Wolverines would hold the ball for the rest of the third quarter as they drove from their 20-yard-line to the Purdue 37-yard-line before punting the ball back to the Boilermakers who took over at their five-yard-line as the fourth quarter began.

The Michigan defense would force a three-and-out to get the ball back at the Purdue 24-yard-line after a 23-yard punt return by Rolland Bellamy to give the Wolverines an excellent chance to make it a two-score game again.

But the Purdue defense would not allow a 1st down and forced the Wolverines to settle for a 34-yard field goal by Jeff Del Verne to make it 31-23 in favor of Michigan with 11:55 left in the fourth quarter.

The Boilermakers would begin their next drive at their 20-yard-line as Brees would lead the Purdue offense on a 12-play, 80-yard drive that was capped off with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Brees to John Standeford to make it 31-29 with a potential game-tying two-point conversion coming up.

But once again the Boilermakers could not convert a two-point conversion as Stratton could not hang on to Brees' two-point pass to keep Michigan in the lead at 31-29 with 6:45 left in the fourth quarter.

The Wolverines would go three-and-out to give the ball back to the Boilermakers at the Michigan 48-yard-line with 4:52 left and a chance to drive for the go-ahead score.

After an incomplete pass to start the drive, Brees would run for 14 yards to pick up a 1st down at the Michigan 34-yard-line, then completed back-to-back passes for 16 yards to put the Boilermakers in the red zone at the Michigan 18-yard-line.

An eight-yard run by Lowe on 1st down would put Purdue at the Wolverines' 10-yard-line when the drive would stall as Lowe was stopped for no gain on 2nd down which was followed by a false start penalty and then an incomplete pass to bring up 4th down as Dorsch would come on to attempt a 32-yard field goal.

But Dorsch's kick would sail wide left and no good to keep it 31-29 in favor of Michigan with 2:11 and the Boilermakers left with two timeouts and needing one more defensive stop in order to give their offense another chance.

After two running plays went nowhere, Henson tried to connect with Walker for a potential game-winning 1st down only to have his pass fall incomplete to force a Michigan punt as the Boilermakers would get the ball back at their 41-yard-line with 1:41 left on the clock.

Travis Dorsch would make the game-winning field goal with four seconds left.

The drive would began with a 10-yard run by Brees to put Purdue in Michigan territory at the Wolverines 49-yard-line as Brees' pass for Morales fell incomplete to bring up 2nd down where Brees found Simpson for nine yards to set up 3rd & 1 at the Michigan 40-yard-line.

That is when Brees connected with Standeford for four yards and a 1st down at the Michigan 36-yard-line as Brees would hit Sutherland on back-to-back passes for 15 yards to put Purdue at the 21-yard-line.

After Michigan was called for too many men on the field which gave Purdue an extra five yards, the Boilermakers would go conservative as Lowe ran the ball for one yard on 1st & 5, which was followed by a knee by Brees and a spike to bring up 4th down at the Michigan 17-yard-line as Dorsch was called on to attempt a 33-yard field goal with eight seconds left.

Michigan called timeout in hopes of icing Dorsch but it did not work as Dorsch would make the kick to give Purdue their first lead of the game at 32-31 with four seconds left.

The Wolverines would not pull off a miracle on the ensuing kickoff as the game came to an end with the Boilermakers on top 32-31 as the Purdue fans would rush the field and tear down the goalposts following the victory.

The Wolverines would only lose one more game in the 2000 season, an epic 54-51 shootout loss to Northwestern(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_20.html) as Michigan would finish with a 9-3 record and a #10 ranking in the final coaches poll while finishing #11 in the final AP poll.

As for the Boilermakers, their win over Michigan would be the beginning of a magical four-game winning streak which saw Purdue knock off Northwestern, Wisconsin, and Ohio State to propel the Boilermakers to the Big 10 championship and their first trip to the Rose Bowl in 34 years.

Brees would finish the season as the Big 10's all-time leader in passing completions, passing attempts, passing yards, and touchdown passes as he would be nominated as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy as he would finish 3rd in the race behind quarterbacks Josh Heupel and eventual winner Chris Weinke.

Brees would go on to be selected by the San Diego Chargers with the 32nd overall pick of the 2001 NFL draft where he would play for five seasons before signing with the New Orleans Saints where he would play for 15 years as he set numerous NFL records and lead the Saints to a win over the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Seahawks Clinch First Division Title Ever With Wild Win over Raiders

Seahawks quarterback Dave Krieg threw for 410 yards and four touchdown passes in Seattle's AFC West clinching win over the Raiders.

 Entering the final week of the 1988 NFL season, the Seattle Seahawks had a chance to do something they had never done in team history and that was clinch a division title as they traveled down to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to take on the Raiders.

The Seahawks come into the final game of the regular season with a 8-7 record under head coach Chuck Knox, who was in his sixth season in the Emerald City having lead the Seahawks to three playoff appearances since his arrival in 1983.

The Seahawks had to rely on the old "Ground Chuck" running attack that Knox was known for as running back Curt Warner would run for over 1,000 yards while fullback John L. Williams would for over 800 more as starting quarterback Dave Krieg missed nearly half the season with a separated shoulder.

But with Krieg back at the helm and future hall-of-fame wide receiver Steve Largent, the Seahawks were on the cusp of winning their first division title since their inception in 1976.

Standing in their way were the Los Angeles Raiders, who also came into the game needing a win to clinch the AFC West despite their 7-8 record as LA seeked to return to the playoffs for the first time since 1985.

The Raiders were led by two newcomers in head coach Mike Shanahan and quarterback Jay Schroeder, who owner Al Davis had acquired in an offseason trade from the Washington Redskins.

Despite the arrival of Schroeder and a backfield which featured Marcus Allen and Bo Jackson plus the first-round selection of 1987 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown at wide receiver, the Raiders had an up-and-down season as their defense often falter, including in week 13 when LA lost to the Seahawks 35-27 as Krieg threw for five touchdown passes in the Seattle win.

Another performance like that by Krieg and the Seahawks would enter the playoffs as AFC West champions.

The Raiders got the ball to start the game as they drove from their 17-yard-line to the Seattle 42-yard-line until they were forced to punt the ball to the Seahawks, who took over at their eight-yard-line.

Following a three-yard run by Williams, Krieg was sacked by Raiders linebacker Jerry Robinson, causing a fumble that was recovered by nose tackle Bill Pickel to give LA the ball at the Seahawks' five-yard-line.

Two runs by Jackson picked up three yards to set up 3rd & goal when Brown carried the ball  until he fumbled the football after he was hit by Seahawks cornerback Mel Jenkins one yard shy of the end zone.

Fortunately for the Raiders, Brown would recover his own fumble in the end zone for the first touchdown in the game to give LA a 7-0 lead with exactly nine minutes left in the first quarter.

The Seahawks would respond with a five-play, 82-yard drive with the bulk of the yardage coming courtesy of two pass plays as Williams turned a short screen pass into a 36-yard reception which was followed a few plays later by Krieg's 35-yard touchdown pass to Largent that would tie the game at 7.

The Raiders would start its next possession at their 35-yard-line but would quickly go backwards as Allen was dropped for a four-yard loss after catching a screen pass then lost two more yards on a running play to set up 3rd & 16 when Schroeder was intercepted by Seahawks cornerback Terry Taylor to give Seattle the ball at the LA 23-yard-line.

Three plays later, the Seahawks were back in the end zone as Krieg connected with Brian Blades for a 17-yard touchdown to give Seattle a 14-7 lead with 3:06 left in the first quarter.

The Raiders would hold the ball for the rest of the first quarter as they drove from their 35-yard-line to the LA 49-yard-line when on the first play of the second quarter, Schroeder threw a bomb toward the end zone that was caught by Willie Gault for a 51-yard touchdown that would tie the game at 14.

Raiders quarterback Jay Schroeder would complete 22 of 49 passes for 354 yards and throw three touchdown passes.

Seattle would be given great field position to start its next drive as Bobby Joe Edmonds would return  the ensuing kickoff 65 yards to the Raiders' 25-yard-line from where the Seahawks would pick up one 1st down before settling for a 39-yard field goal by Norm Johnson to put the Seahawks back on top 17-14 with 12:14 left in the second quarter.

A track meet was developing as Schroeder would hit Gault for a 57-yard pass on the first play of the Raiders' ensuing possession to put LA at the Seattle 18-yard-line.

Three straight running plays picked up nine yards to set up 4th & 1 when the Raiders decided to go for it as fullback Steve Smith would run for four yards to give LA a fresh set of downs at the Seahawks' five-yard-line.

However, the Raiders would lose three yards on the next plays, forcing them to settle for a 26-yard field goal by Chris Bahr which tied the game again, this time at 17 midway through the second quarter.

Back came the Seahawks with a 13-play, 69-yard drive which began with Williams gaining 25 yards as he ran for 14 yards on a draw play to start the drive then caught a 11-yard pass to put Seattle at the 50-yard-line.

From there, the Seahawks would drive to the LA six-yard-line until they lost two yards on the next three plays, forcing them to settle for a 24-yard field goal by Johnson to give Seattle a 20-17 lead with 1:52 left before halftime.

After the Raiders would go three-and-out on their ensuing possession, the Seahawks would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line with 62 seconds left in the first half and all three timeouts in their pockets.

The drive would began with three straight completions by Krieg for 20 yards which was followed by an incomplete pass to set up 3rd & 5 when Krieg found Ray Butler for 17 yards and a Seattle 1st down at the Raiders' 43-yard-line as Seattle called timeout with 25 seconds left in the half.

A 20-yard pass to Williams put the Seahawks at the LA 23-yard-line as Krieg tried to hit Paul Skansi not once but twice in the end zone only for his passes to fall incomplete, leaving the Seahawks to settle for 40-yard field goal by Johnson to bring the first half to an end with Seattle ahead 23-17.

Following an exchange of punts to start the second half, the Seahawks got the ball at their 34-yard-line as Krieg found Largent for 15 yards to start the drive, which was followed by two incomplete passes to set up 3rd down when Krieg connected with Blades for 21 yards and a Seattle 1st down at the Raiders' 30-yard-line.

On the very next play, Krieg hit Blades for a 30-yard touchdown to push the Seahawks' lead to 30-17 with 9:17 left in the third quarter.

The Seahawks seemed poised to get the ball back after forcing the Raiders to punt after a three-and-out, only to have Edmonds muff the punt which was recovered by Vance Mueller to give LA the ball at the Seattle 16-yard-line.

However, the Raiders would not pick a 1st down and were forced to settle for a 28-yard field goal by Bahr which cut the Seahawks' lead to 30-20 midway through the third quarter.

It would take just one play for the Seahawks to get back into the end zone as Williams turned a short screen pass into a 75-yard touchdown to give Seattle its largest lead of the game at 37-20.

John L. Williams would carry the ball 14 times for 59 yards and catch seven passes for 180 yards.

After Brown returned the ensuing kickoff 30 yards to the LA 41-yard-line, the Raiders would hold the ball for over six minutes as they drove 59 yards in 12 plays, culminating with a four-yard touchdown pass from Schroeder to Smith on a 4th & 3 to cut the Seahawks' lead to 37-27.

Seattle would start its next drive at its 26-yard-line with a trick play as Krieg handed the ball off to Williams, who then tossed it back to the quarterback on a flea flicker, who then connected with Blades for 55 yards to put the Seahawks at the Raiders' 17-yard-line.

Needing a stop, the Raiders would hold the Seahawks to a 35-yard field goal by Johnson to increase Seattle's lead to 40-27 just 14 seconds into the fourth quarter.

The Raiders would answer with a five-play, 77-yard drive that was capped off with another long touchdown pass as Schroeder hit Mervyn Fernandez for a 54-yard touchdown to cut Seattle's lead to 40-34 with a little less than 13 minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

The Seahawks would turn it over on their next drive as Krieg threw a deep pass that was intercepted by LA free safety Eddie Anderson but would get the ball back at the Raiders' 41-yard-line after the Seattle defense forced a three-and-out by the LA offense.

Seattle would drive to the LA nine-yard-line where they faced a 3rd & 1 when Krieg handed the ball off to Williams who was dropped for a five-yard-loss, leading to another field goal by Johnson from 32 yards out to make it a two-score game as the Seahawks took a 43-34 lead with over five minutes left in the game.

The Raiders would start their next possession at their 34-yard-line as Schroeder would throw an incomplete pass on 1st down, then hit tight end Todd Christiansen three straight times for a total of 30 yards to put LA at the Seattle 36-yard-line.

After two more incomplete passes, Schroeder went back to Christiansen, this time connecting with the tight end for 18 yards and a 1st down at the Seattle 18-yard-line as Schroeder would throw another incomplete pass before finding Smith for 12 yards to set up 1st & goal at the Seattle six-yard-line.

However, three straight incomplete passes would lead the Raiders to settle for a 24-yard field goal by Bahr to make it 43-37 with 2:21 remaining.

With all three timeouts in their pocket plus the two-minute warning, the Raiders decided not to attempt an onside kick and instead kicked it to the Seahawks, who took over at their 28-yard-line hoping to milk the clock.

A five-yard run by Williams followed by an eight-yard run by Duane Harmon gave the Seahawks a 1st down at their 41-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit as two more running plays picked up eight yards to set up a crucial 3rd & 2 as the Raiders spent their last timeout with 1:45 left.

That is when the Seahawks tried to surprise the Raiders with a pass only to have Krieg get sacked by defensive end Greg Townsend for an nine-yard loss to bring up 4th down as the Seahawks would punt back to the Raiders who took over at their 33-yard-line with 68 seconds to play.

Norm Johnson would kick five field goals in the Seahawks' 43-37 victory.

Following two incomplete passes to start the drive, Schroeder connected with Fernandez for 22 yards and a 1st down at the Seattle 45-yard-line as Schroeder would spike the ball to stop the clock with 33 seconds left.

But the Raiders would go no further as Schroeder would three straight incomplete passes to cause a turnover on downs and give the ball back to the Seahawks who took a knee to run out the clock on their 43-37 victory to clinch the AFC West division championship for Seattle.

With the dreadful finish to the 1988 season, tensions between Shanahan and Davis would escalate as the Raiders got off to a 1-3 start the following season which lead to Davis firing Shanahan and promoting offensive line coach Art Shell to head coach, making Shell the first black head coach in NFL history.

Shell would lead the Raiders back to the playoffs in 1990 and two more times after that as the Hall-of-Fame guard would comply a 54-38 record during his nearly six seasons as Raiders head coach.

As for the Seahawks, they were unable to build off their division title as they would fall to the Cincinnati Bengals 21-13 in the AFC Divisional Playoffs.

The Seahawks would win only one more AFC West division title, coming in 1999, before they were realigned to the NFC West, a division which they have won eight times as of 2022.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Beuerlein & Brown Lead Notre Dame to Comeback Win over USC

Notre Dame players hold up John Carney after his game-winning field goal against USC.

When it comes to the Lou Holtz era in Notre Dame football, many fans or observers will point to the final game of the 1986 regular season against the USC Trojans as the game that would lay the foundation for what would be an return glory for the Fighting Irish.

The Irish came into the game with USC with a 4-6 record, one loss away from equaling the most losses in a season since 1963.

Despite their record, the Irish were by no means a bad football team as five of their six losses were by a combined 14 points, including losses to Michigan and Pittsburgh where kicker John Carney missed potential game-winning field goals in the final seconds in Holtz's first season in South Bend.

The Irish's best player was wide receiver Tim Brown, who had accumlated 1,646 all-purpose yards, mostly through catching passes and returning kickoffs, who would need a big performance if the Irish were going to knock off USC.

USC came into the game ranked #17 in the country with a 7-3 record under fourth-year head coach Ted Tollner, whose team was led by sophomore quarterback Rodney Peete.

Despite their winning record, the pressure was on Tollner to knock off the Irish as his Trojans had not beaten Notre Dame in three tries and was 1-3 against crosstown rival UCLA.

The Trojans got the ball to start the game as they drove 40 yards in eight plays to set up a 48-yard field goal by Don Shafer to give USC a 3-0 lead just 2:48 into the game.

After forcing the Irish to punt on their opening possession, the Trojans would drive into Notre Dame territory until Peete was intercepted by Notre Dame free safety Steve Lawrence to give the Irish the ball at their 37-yard-line.

From there, senior quarterback Steve Beuerlein would the Irish on a 14-play, 63-yard drive that took over six minutes off the clock and ended with a five-yard touchdown pass from Beuerlein to tight end Andy Heck to give Notre Dame a 6-3 lead with 85 seconds left in the first quarter as USC defensive back Tim McDonald would block the extra point.

The score was still 6-3 when in the second quarter, Beuerlein was intercepted by cornerback Louis Brock, son of former MLB career steals leader Lou Brock, who returned the pick 58 yards for a touchdown to give USC a 10-6 lead.

Following the pick-six, Beuerlein was benched in favor of junior Terry Andrysiak, who got the Irish into USC territory until a turnover on downs gave the ball back to the Trojans at their 34-yard-line.

After two runs by Ryan Knight gained 10 yards, Peete went deep and connected with Lonnie White for a 53-yard pass to give USC a 1st & goal at the Notre Dame three-yard-line.

From there, Peete would hand the ball off to Leroy Holt who punched it in for the three-yard touchdown to increase the USC lead to 17-6 with 4:21 left in the second quarter.

When the Notre Dame offense came back onto the field, Beuerlein was once again the quarterback as he was able to direct the Irish on a 11-play, 76-yard drive which featured the senior quarterback completing passes of 22 and 20 to wide receiver Milt Jackson, and then a 15-yarder to running back Mark Green on 3rd & 11 from the USC 26-yard-line.

The Irish would have to settle for a 33-yard field goal by Carney which cut the Trojans' lead to 17-9 with just 21 seconds to go in the first half.

The Trojans would get the ball back at its 35-yard-line as Peete completed a 22-yard pass to Randy Tanner to give USC a 1st down at the Notre Dame 43-yard-line.

That is when Tollner sent in the field goal unit as Shafer would attempt a 60-yard field goal, eight yards further than his career longest field goal.

But Shafer's kick would be true as it sailed through the uprights as time expired in the first half, sending the LA coliseum crowd into a frenzy as the Trojans went into the halftime break ahead 20-9.

Steve Beuerlein would completed 18 of 27 passes for 285 yards and throw four touchdown passes.

USC kept the momentum from the long field goal going on the first play of the second half when Trojans linebacker Keith Davis recovered Irish fullback Pernell Taylor's fumble to give USC the ball at the Notre Dame 15-yard-line.

The Trojans seemed poised to make it a three-score game as Knight ran the ball on back-to-back plays gaining 12 yards to set up 1st & goal from the Irish three-yard-line.

However, the Notre Dame defense would clamped down as Knight would be thrown for a four-yard loss on 1st down, eventually killing the drive as the Trojans would settle for a 23-yard field goal by Shafer which increased their lead to 23-9.

The Irish would respond by driving 66 yards in 10 plays as Beurelein completed passes to Tony Eason for 17 yards, Brown for 16 yards, and Green for seven, to set up a 32-yard field goal by Carney which cut the USC lead to 23-12 with a little over nine minutes left in the third quarter.

The Trojans would answer with a 15-play, 70-yard drive which took over five minutes to complete and did not end until fullback Todd Steele punched it in for an one-yard touchdown to push the Trojans' lead to 30-12 with 3:52 remaining in the third quarter.

Now facing their largest deficit of the game, the Irish needed a big play as soon as possible before the game could get out of reach.

It would take no longer than the ensuing kickoff as Brown returned the kick 57 yards to give Notre Dame the ball at the USC 37-yard-line.

Four plays later, the Irish were in the end zone as Beuerlein connected with fullback Braxston Banks for a 22-yard touchdown to make it 30-18 as the Irish went for two, which was successful as Beuerlein found Jackson in the end zone to cut the deficit to 10 points at 30-20.

The Irish look to respond quickly as they began their ensuing possession at their 31-yard-line with a 27-yard pass from Beuerlein to Jackson for a Notre Dame 1st down at the USC 42-yard-line.

Then, Beuerlein would scramble to his right and fire a pass toward the end zone as Jackson outjumped USC defensive back Junior Thurman to make the catch for the touchdown to make it a two-score game again.

The Irish would go for two again and seemed to have converted as Beuerlein connected with Jackson again, only to have nullified by an illegal procedure penalty, forcing the Irish to instead of kicked the extra point to make it 37-27 with 11:43 left in the fourth quarter.

Hoping for a defensive stop, Notre Dame fans watched in agony as the Trojans drained five minutes off the clock as they drove from their 30-yard-line to the Irish five-yard-line where they faced a 3rd & 1 as Peete handed the ball off to Steele who was stopped for no gain to bring up 4th & 1.

Instead of kicking the chip shot field goal, Tollner decided to go for the 1st down as Peete took the snap and tried to sneak up the middle, only to be stopped short to give the ball back to the Irish.

Peete, who believed had made the 1st down, was so incensed that he drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty giving the Irish the ball at their 20-yard-line instead of their five-yard-line with 6:16 left in the game.

After a five-yard run by Green on 1st down, Beuerlein went deep again, this time connecting with Brown for 49 yards and a Notre Dame 1st down at the USC 26-yard-line.

From there, Green would carry the ball four more times for 21 yards to set up Beuerlein's five-yard touchdown pass to Banks to make it 37-33.

With no overtime in college football in 1986, the Irish opted to go for two in hopes of making a two-point game in hopes of a potential game-winning field goal.

Beuerlein would find Heck in the end zone to complete the successful two-point conversion which trimmed the USC lead to 37-35 with 4:24 remaining in the game.

Tim Brown finished with 291 all-purpose yards as he caught five passes for 89 yards, returned four kickoffs for 97 yards, had two carries for 10 yards, and a 56-yard punt return.

The Trojans would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line hoping to pick up some 1st downs in hopes of running out the clock.

But the Notre Dame defense would force a three-and-out as linebacker Mike Kovaleski would stop Knight for an one-yard run on 3rd & 3.

This brought out Chris Sperele to punt the ball for only the second time in the game as Brown, who only received a punt once in his career up to this point, ready to return Sperle's punt.

The punt would go 44 yards as Brown made the catch at his 28-yard-line, made a cut toward the right sideline where the wall was forming from the Notre Dame return team, and proceed to run 56 yards until he was stopped by Sperle at the USC 16-yard-line with 2:15 to go.

The Irish would keep it on the ground as they ran the ball five straight times for 15 yards until Holtz called timeout with two seconds left to set up Carney's chip shot field goal attempt.

The snap to Beuerlein, who was the holder, was perfect as Carney calmly made the 19-yard field goal, which if you were watching on television you did not see live as CBS was still in commercial, as time expired to give the Irish a stunning 38-37 win.

A little over a week after the collapse against Notre Dame, USC announced that Tollner would return as head coach for the 1987 season, though they allowed him to coach the Trojans in the Citrus Bowl, which they lost 16-7 to the Auburn Tigers to finish the season with a 7-5 record.

Tollner would be replaced by University of Arizona head coach Larry Smith, who would lead the Trojans to three straight Rose Bowls in his first three seasons of his six-year tenure as USC head coach which featured a 3-2-1 record against UCLA but 0-6 against Notre Dame.

As for the Irish, their win over USC would be the beginning of a renaissance in Notre Dame football which began with Brown winning the Heisman Trophy in 1987 becoming the seventh player in school history to win the prestigious award.

This was followed by the magical year of 1988 where the Irish went 12-0 to claim the school's 11th national championship as Notre Dame defeated Michigan and #1 Miami during the regular season to earn a trip to the Fiesta Bowl where they knocked off West Virginia 34-21 to finish the championship season.

From 1988 through 1993, the Irish would go 64-9-1 under Holtz winning at least nine games each season and finishing no lower than 13th in the final AP or coaches polls during that time.

Holtz would step down as Notre Dame's head coach following the 1996 season as he won exactly 100 games in South Bend though his final game would be a 27-20 overtime loss to USC, ending the Irish's 13-year unbeaten streak against the Trojans.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Chiefs Beat Chargers on Walk-off Overtime Punt Return

Tamarick Vanover became the first player in NFL history to return an overtime punt for a touchdown.

In the first 75 years of the history of the National Football League, no one had ever returned a punt for a touchdown in overtime.

That changed in Week 6 of the 1995 NFL season as the Kansas City Chiefs hosted the San Diego Chargers in a key AFC West showdown on Monday Night Football.

The Chiefs came into the game with a 4-1 record under head coach Marty Schottenheimmer, who was in his seventh season as head coach of the Chiefs.

The Chiefs came into the year with questions at quarterback as Joe Montana, who Kansas City had acquired in 1993, had retired from the NFL.

Montana's replacement, Steve Bono, had helped Kansas City got off to a good start along with running back Marcus Allen and a ferocious defense which featured linebacker Derrick Thomas.

The Chiefs also potentially found a new weapon in rookie kick returner Tamarick Vanover, who had a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown in Kansas City' week 1 win over the Seattle Seahawks.

The Chiefs' opponent were the Chargers, who were the defending AFC Champions and came into the game with Kansas City with a 3-2 record under head coach Bobby Ross.

The Chargers still had the core of players that had led them to the Super Bowl the previous year in quarterback Stan Humphries, running back Natrone Means, and linebacker Junior Seau.

As fans gathered to fill Arrowhead Stadium, many were wondering if this game would go into overtime much like the Chiefs' previous two home games which Kansas City won as they defeated the New York Giants 20-17 in Week 2 and the Oakland Raiders 29-23 in week 3.

The Chargers got the ball to start the game as they converted on four 3rd down situations on a 19-play, 63-yard drive that took over nine minutes and did not until John Carney's 28-yard field goal to put San Diego ahead 3-0.

The Chiefs were fortunate to only giving up three points as San Diego a 2nd & goal at the Kansas City one-yard-line only to have a false start penalty and a four-yard loss push them back to the 10-yard-line where the Chargers would settle for the field goal.

Then it was the Chiefs' turn to have a time-consuming drive as they held the ball for nearly seven-and-a-half minutes as they drove 67 yards in 14 plays to set up a 21-yard field goal by Lin Elliott to tie the game at 3 with 13:24 left in the second quarter.

The Chargers would be given great field position to start their next drive as Andre Coleman returned the ensuing kickoff 54 yards to the Kansas City 37-yard-line.

From there, a three-yard run by Means, followed by a 14-yard pass from Humphries to Means, and then a 15-yard pass interference penalty on Chiefs cornerback Dale Carter gave San Diego a 1st & goal at the Kansas City five-yard-line.

Means would get the ball on the next two plays with the second carry being a two-yard touchdown to give the Chargers a 10-3 lead with 11:24 remaining in the second quarter.

The Chiefs would respond with another long drive as they drove 63 yards in 13 plays, taking six minutes off the clock, as Elliott would make a 28-yard field goal to cut the Chargers' lead to 10-6.

The Chiefs would catch a break on the ensuing kickoff as Coleman fumbled the ball following a hit by Chiefs defensive back Martin Bayless, who also made the recovery to give Kansas City the ball at the Chargers' 22-yard-line.

A 20-yard pass from Bono to tight end Lake Dawson followed by an one-yard run by Allen would set up Bono's one-yard touchdown pass to Kimber Anders to give the Chiefs their first lead of the game at 13-10 with 3:53 left in the first half.

The Chiefs would force the Chargers to punt on their ensuing possession to get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as Bono completed passes of 36 yards to Webster Slaughter and 16 yards to Dawson to help get Kansas City to the San Diego 18-yard-line until Bono was sacked by Chargers defensive end Raylee Johnson who forced a fumble that was recovered by defensive tackle Shawn Lee.

With just 43 seconds left before halftime, the Chargers went to a no-huddle offense as Humphries completed three of seven passes for 32 yards that with two Kansas City penalties for 20 yards help set up Carney's 36-yard field goal to tie the game at 13 following 30 minutes of play.

Chargers quarterback Stan Humphries completed 24 of 34 passes for 315 yards and threw a touchdown.

The Chiefs got the ball to start the second half but went three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Chargers who were poised to take the lead as Humphries connected with Tony Martin for a 30-yard reception, only to have Martin lose the football at the end of the play, which was recovered by Chiefs linebacker Tracy Simien at the Kansas City 11-yard-line.

Following an exchange of punts, the Chiefs got the ball back at their 15-yard-line as they were able to drive 54 yards in 11 plays to set up Elliott's 49-yard field goal to put Kansas City back on top, 16-13 with 12:19 left in the fourth quarter.

The Chargers would begin its next possession at their 27-yard-line as they methodically drove into Kansas City territory when Humphries threw a bomb to Shawn Jefferson, whose 45-yard reception would set up a four-yard touchdown pass from Humphries to tight end Shannon Mitchell to give San Diego a 20-16 lead with  6:50 left in the fourth quarter.

The Chargers would force the Chiefs to go three-and-out on their ensuing possession to get the ball back at their 28-yard-line with 4:38 left and a chance to ice the game away.

After two runs by Means lost one yard, Humphries threw a screen pass to running back Ronnie Harmon, who turned the short pass into a 44-yard reception to give San Diego a 1st down at the Kansas City 28-yard-line.

Two straight runs by Means picked up 11 more yards and another 1st down at the Kansas City 17-yard-line when Harmon got the ball only to be dropped for a four-yard loss as the Chiefs spent their last timeout before Humphries hit tight end Duane Yong for 12 yards to set up a crucial 3rd & 2 at the Chiefs' nine-yard-line.

That is when Kansas City linebacker Anthony Davis dropped Means for a two-yard loss forcing the Chargers to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Carney which increased San Diego's lead to 23-16 but left 72 seconds on the clock for the Chiefs to force overtime.

The Chiefs would begin their ensuing possession at their 21-yard-line as Bono's first pass intended for Anders was battered down by the Chargers defense to force 2nd down when Bono found Dawson across the middle for 27 yards and a 1st down at the Kansas City 48-yard-line.

Following a spike to stop the clock, Bono would complete three passes in a row, first hitting Willie Davis for seven yards, then Allen for six, and then Slaughter for 16 yards to put the Chiefs at the San Diego 23-yard-line with 25 seconds to go.

After an offsides penalty on the Chargers and an incomplete pass, Bono fired a pass down the middle for tight end Derrick Walker, who made the catch at the two-yard-line then lunged for the end zone to complete the 18-yard touchdown that along with Elliott's extra point tied the game at 23 with 15 seconds left in regulation.

When the Chargers' offense came back onto the field to try and win the game in regulation, they did so with backup quarterback Gale Gilbert as Humphries could not continue because of a sprained right shoulder.

Gilbert could not pull off a miracle in the final seconds of regulation as the game went into overtime tied 23-23 as San Diego won the coin toss to get the ball to start the extra period.

Chiefs quarterback Steve Bono threw for 329 yards and two touchdown passes.

Gilbert was able to lead the Chargers to the Chiefs' 40-yard-line until a four-yard loss on a Means carry and a quarterback sack by Neil Smith forced the Chargers to punt the ball back to the Chiefs who took over at their 15-yard-line.

However, the Chiefs would go three-and-out to punt it back to the Chargers, who took over at their 43-yard-line, but would also go three-and-out to punt the back to the Chiefs.

That is when Vanover etched his name into NFL history as he received the punt at his 14-yard-line, made a juke move that caused two Chargers to fall onto the ground, then cut to his left as he was able to run down the sideline outrunning the San Diego punting unit for the shocking 86-yard touchdown to give Kansas City a 29-23 win and first place in the AFC West.

Both teams would go on to make the playoffs as the Chiefs finished the regular season with a 13-3 record, good enough to earn the #1 seed in the AFC playoffs while the Chargers would finish with a 9-7 record to earn a Wild Card spot.

However, both teams would be upset by the Indianapolis Colts as the Colts knocked off the Chargers 35-20 in the Wild Card round, then shocked the Chiefs 10-7 in the Divisional Round(To read about the Ind-KC game, please click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2019/01/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-colts-shock.html).

As for Vanover, he would remain with the Chiefs until 1999 after five seasons where he finished with eight career touchdown, four coming courtesy of the punt return and four coming courtesy of the kickoff return.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Michigan Holds Off Illinois in Highest Scoring Game in Big 10 History

 

Denard Robinson(16)celebrates with his teammates following Michigan's 3OT win over Illinois.

At first glance, if you saw a box score that read "Michigan-67 Illinois-65" you probably think "Huh, good basketball game".

However that was not the case on November 6, 2010 as the Michigan Wolverines hosted the Illinois Fighting Ilini in a game that would feature the most points combined by two teams in any game in Big 10 football history.

The Wolverines came into the game with a 5-3 record needing one more win to qualify for bowl eligibility under third-year head coach Rich Rodriguez who desperately needed to get to a bowl game after back-to-back losing seasons, the first such occurrence in Michigan football since 1962-63.

Michigan got off to a 5-0 start thanks to quarterback Denard Robinson's 905 rushing yards and eight touchdowns to go along with 1,008 passing yards and seven touchdown passes but came into the Illinois game on a three-game losing streak as its 106th ranked defense gave up an average of 30 points per game.

Meanwhile, Illinois also came into the game with a 5-3 record as the Illini were one win away from bowl eligibility under sixth-year head coach Ron Zook, who had Illinois to the Rose Bowl in the 2007 season.

The Illinois offense was directed by freshman quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase and running back Mikel Leshoure who was coming off a dismal performance against Purdue where he ran for just 23 yards on 15 carries.

Leshoure hoped to get back on track against the Wolverines' defense as the Illini traveled to Ann Arbor to take on the Wolverines in the "Big House".

It didn't take long for the fireworks to begin as Robinson connected with wide receiver Ray Roundtree for a 75-yard touchdown on the first play of the game to give Michigan a 7-0 lead.

The Illini would respond with a 12-play, 40-yard drive that was culminated with a 44-yard by Derek Dimke to put Illinois on the scoreboard as it cut the Michigan lead to 7-3.

The Wolverines would begin its next possession at their 18-yard-line as Robinson lead the Michigan offense to the Illinois 41-yard-line until he was intercepted by Illini linebacker Martez Wilson to give the Illinois offense the ball back at its 48-yard-line.

Wide receiver Eddie McGee lined up at quarterback and fired a 34-yard pass to A.J. Jenkins to put Illinois at the Michigan 16-yard-line and poised to score again until Troy Pollard's fumble two plays later which was recovered by Michigan linebacker Jonas Mouton at the Wolverines' 15-yard-line.

But Michigan would give the ball back one play later when Robinson was intercepted again, this time by Illinois linebacker Trulon Henry which helped set up a 43-yard field goal by Dimke to cut the Michigan lead to 7-6 with 2:57 left in the first quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Wolverines would commit their third straight turnover as Jeremy Gallon lost the football after he was hit by Illinois linebacker Dustin Jefferson, leading to a fumble recovery by defensive back Justin Green at the Michigan 32-yard-line.

The Illini would hold the football for the rest of the first quarter  as Scheelhaase punched it in for a two-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter which was followed by a two-point conversion as Scheelhaase completed a pass to Ryan Lankford in the end zone to give Illinois a 14-7 just three seconds into the second quarter.

After three straight turnovers, the Michigan offense got back on track as it put together a seven-play, 75-yard drive which began with a 32-yard run by Stephen Hopkins and ended with a 33-yard touchdown pass from Robinson to Roundtree to tie the game at 14.

Michigan wide receiver Ray Roundtree would catch nine passes for 246 yards and score two TDs.

It would take the Illini only one play to unbreak the tie as Jason Ford took a pitch from Scheelhaase and ran down the sideline for a 62-yard touchdown to give Illinois a 21-14 lead.

The Wolverines would drive from their 36-yard-line to the Illinois 30-yard-line where they faced with a 4th & 6 when Rodriguez decided to go for the 1st down only to have Robinson's pass intended for Roundtree fall incomplete.

The Michigan defense would force a punt to get their offense the ball back at its 21-yard-line as a 75-yard pass from Robinson to Roundtree would help set up a a four-yard touchdown run by Hopkins to tie the game at 21 with less than seven minutes to go in the second quarter.

Following an Illinois three-and-out, the Wolverines would drive 73 yards in six plays to get back into the end zone as Robinson connected with Junior Hemingway for a 45-yard touchdown to put Michigan back on top 28-21.

The Illini would respond with a six-play, 60-yard drive that was capped off with a 33-yard touchdown pass from Scheelhaase to Lankford that with the extra point tied the game at 28 with 3:01 left before halftime.

The Wolverines would be given a short field for their next possession as Darryl Stonum returned the ensuing kickoff 61 yards to the Illinois 26-yard-line as Robinson ran the ball twice for eight yards then threw an incomplete pass which lead to a 35-yard field goal by Seth Broekhuizen to give Michigan a 31-28 lead with only 37 seconds to go in the first half.

That was enough time for Illinois to drive 39 yards in just three plays to set up a 43-yard field goal by Dimke to tie the game 31-31 as time expired in the first half.

After both teams punted on their opening possessions of the second half, the Illini would get an opportunity to retake the lead as Dimke would attempt a 39-yard field goal, only to have sail wide left and no good, giving Michigan the ball back at its 22-yard-line.

From there, the Wolverines would drive 78 yards in seven plays with the drive ending with a 18-yard touchdown run by Michael Shaw to give Michigan a 38-31 lead midway through the third quarter.

Michigan would force Illiniois to go three-and-out on its ensuing possession to get the ball back at its 20-yard-line as Robinson would lead the Michigan offense down to the Illinois 22-yard-line to set up a 39-yard field goal attempt by Broekhuizen, which also sailed wide left and no good to keep it a 38-31 game.

To make matters worse, Robinson came back to the sidelines and told his coaches he was feeling dizzy and had a headache, which would lead to Robinson's day coming to an end.

Meanwhile, the Illini drove 51 yards in seven plays to the Michigan 27-yard-line as the third quarter came to an end with Illinois trailing Michigan 38-31.

As the fourth quarter began, Scheelhaase hit Leshoure for a 27-yard touchdown to tie the game 38-38 just five seconds into the final period.

When the Michigan offense came back onto the field, they did so with Tate Forcier at quarterback, whose first play of the game was going back to pass and dropping the football, leading to a recovery by defensive end Clay Nurse to give Illinois the ball at the Wolverines' 28-yard-line.

A 23-yard pass from Scheelhaase to Jarred Fayson would lead to an one-yard touchdown run by Leshoure to give Illinois a 45-38 lead with 11:35 left in regulation.

Illinois running back Mikel Leshoure accounted for five touchdowns as he carried the ball 24 times for 120 yards and caught two passes for 52 yards.

Following an exchange of punts, the Wolverines got the ball back at its 20-yard-line as Forcier found his footing as he accounted for 58 of the 80 yards on the 12-play drive which ended with an nine-yard touchdown pass from Forcier to Stonum that with the extra point tied the game at 45 with 1:47 left in regulation.

The Wolverines would force a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 31-yard-line with 47 seconds left and a chance to drive down into field goal range and win the game.

Forcier would throw two straight passes to Roundtree for 17 yards to put Michigan at its 48-yard-line when Forcier was intercepted by defensive back Patrick Nixon-Youman which allowed the Illini to run out the clock and send the game into overtime tied 45-45.

Michigan would get the ball to start overtime as it took the Wolverines five plays to get into the end zone as Shaw would run for a five-yard touchdown to give Michigan a 52-45 lead and a chance for the defense to end the game if they could keep the Illini out of the end zone.

The drive would began with Scheelhaase running the ball twice for 21 yards to give Illinois a 1st & goal at the Michigan four-yard-line as two more runs by Scheelhaase  and an incomplete pass set up a do-or-die 4th down.

That is when Leshoure punched it in for an one-yard touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 52 and sent the game into a second overtime period.

Illinois would start the second overtime on offense as it took the Illini just one play to get into the end zone as Leshoure caught a 25-yard touchdown pass from Scheelhaase to give Illinois a 59-52 lead.

Forcier would complete a 14-yard pass to Vincent Smith to start the Wolverines' possession which he followed up with a nine-yard touchdown pass to Hemingway that along with the extra point made it 59-59 as both teams prepared for a third overtime period.

Michigan had the ball to start the third overtime session as Forcier ran the ball for eight yards on 1st down, then ran for 12 yards on 2nd down as a personal foul penalty on the Illini would add three yards to the run to give Michigan a 1st & goal at the Illinois two-yard-line.

Another Illinois personal foul would give Michigan an extra yard and a fresh set of downs as it had a 1st & goal at the Illini one-yard-line as Shaw got the ball and was stopped for no gain, which was followed by Forcier being stopped to set up 3rd down.

The third time would be the charm for the Wolverines as Shaw would punch it for an one-yard touchdown to put Michigan back on top 65-57 as the Michigan offense prepared for the two-point conversion, which was mandatory after a touchdown in the third overtime and beyond.

Forcier would complete the two-point conversion pass to Hemingway to increase the Michigan lead to 67-59 as Illinois was set to get the ball.

It would take four plays for the Illini to get back into the end zone as Leshoure scored his fourth straight touchdown as he ran it in for a three-yard touchdown to make it 67-65 with the all-important two-point conversion coming up.

That is when the much maligned Michigan defense rose up and blitzed Scheelhaase  into throwing a desperation pass that fell incomplete to end the game with the Wolverines on top 67-65.

Michigan quarterback Tate Forcier came off the bench to lead the Wolverines to victory over Illinois.

In total, the two teams combined for 1,237 yards of total offense, 19 touchdowns, and 132 points in what was and still is the highest scoring football game in  Big 10 history.

Despite the loss, the Illini would qualify for a bowl game as they would defeat intrastate rival Northwestern 48-27 thanks to a 330-yard performance by Leshoure as Illinois would be invited to the Texas Bowl where they would defeat the Baylor Bears 38-14 to finish the season with a 7-6 record.

As for Michigan, they would win one more game before dropping their final three games of the season including a 52-14 drubbing at the hands of Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl to finish with a 7-6 record.

Four days after the Gator Bowl loss, Rodriguez was fired after just three seasons in Ann Arbor where he complied a 15-22 record.

The following season under first-year head coach Brady Hoke and with Robinson back at quarterback, the Wolverines would go 11-2 as they defeated Ohio State for the first time since 2003, won the Sugar Bowl over Virginia Tech, and finished #9 in the final coaches poll and #12 in the final AP poll, thanks to a defense that went from giving up 35.2 points per game to 17.4.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Saints Clinch First Winning Season in Team History

 

The Saints make a crucial goal line stand in their 20-16 win over the Steelers.

For the first 20 years of their existence, the New Orleans Saints would one of the worst franchises in the NFL as they not only never made the playoffs but failed to achieve one winning season with their best seasons coming in 1979 and 1983 when they finished 8-8.

But entering Week 12 of the 1987 NFL season, the Saints had a chance to secure their first winning season in team history if they could knock off the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Saints were led by head coach Jim Mora, who was in his second season as head coach following a successful run in the USFL which he lead the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars to two championships, had brought in some of the USFL's best players to New Orleans in the form of quarterback Bobby Hebert and linebackers Sam Mills and Vaughn Johnson.

Mills and Johnson would join fellow linebackers Rickey Jackson and Pat Swilling to form the "Dome Patrol" which would be the backbone one of the NFL's best defenses.

Following a 3-3 start the season, the Saints would go on a four-game winning streak which featured a 26-24 win over the San Francisco 49ers(To read about that game click on the link that is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2019/12/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-saints.html).

Standing in the way were the Pittsburgh Steelers, who came into the game with a 6-4 record trying to recover from a 6-10 season the year before which was their worst season since 1971.

Despite being far removed from their Super Bowl winning days in the 1970s, the Steelers still had head coach Chuck Noll, wide receiver John Stallworth and center Mike Webster on the roster as Pittsburgh looked to spoil the Saints' dreams of a winning season for at least one week the two teams met at Three Rivers Stadium.

The game started as a punting contest as both teams traded punts until 3:32 left in the first quarter when Saints cornerback Johnnie Poe blocked a Steelers punt to give New Orleans the ball at the Pittsburgh 13-yard-line.

However, the Saints could not pick up a 1st down and were forced to settle for a 25-yard field goal by Morten Andersen to put New Orleans on top 3-0 with 2:42 to go in the first quarter.

Following another Pittsburgh punt, the Saints got the ball at their 21-yard-line when Hebert threw a pass intended for Lonzell Hill only to have Steelers cornerback Dwayne Woodruff pick it off and return it for a 33-yard pick-six to give the Steelers a 7-3 lead with 12:30 left in the second quarter.

After another exchange of punts, the Saints were put together their best drive of the game up to this point as they ran the ball four straight times for a total of 32 yards to drive to the Pittsburgh 13-yard-line until running back Rueben Mayes had the ball knocked loose and recovered by Steelers linebacker Mike Merriweather to give Pittsburgh the ball at its 25-yard-line with 4:29 left before halftime.

From there, the Steelers would drive 75 yards in 10 plays, culminating with a five-yard touchdown run by Walter Abercrombie to increase Pittsburgh's lead to 14-3 with 46 seconds left in the first half.

The Saints would get one last chance to put some points on the board before halftime as Hebert completed two passes for 30 yards to give Andersen a chance at a 53-yard field goal only to have it fall short and no good to keep it 14-3 in favor of the Steelers at halftime.

Steelers running back Frank Pollard would run 74 yards on 19 carries.

The Saints would get the ball to start the second half as they would drive 86 yards in 13 plays with Hebert competing all four of his passes for 51 yards on the drive to set up a five-yard touchdown run by Mayes to cut the Steelers' lead to 14-10 with less than eight minutes left in the third quarter.

The Steelers would get the ball back at their 25-yard-line and drive to the New Orleans 28-yard-line when quarterback Mark Malone was sacked by Swilling, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Mills to give the ball back to the Saints at their 40-yard-line.

The Saints would go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Steelers who took over at their 28-yard-line where two running plays picked up five yards to set up 3rd & 5 when Malone was intercepted by Poe to give the Saints the ball at the Pittsburgh 37-yard-line.

But once again the Saints would go three-and-out to force another New Orleans punt as the third quarter came to an end with the Steelers still ahead 14-10.

Following another Pittsburgh punt, the Saints would drive from their 45-yard-line to the Steelers' 33-yard-line to set up a 50-yard field goal attempt by Andersen, which once again fell short and no good to keep it 14-10 in favor of Pittsburgh.

A two-yard run by Frank Pollard and a 18-yard pass from Malone to Stallworth to put the Steelers at the Saints' 47-yard-line when Abercrombie lost the football after a hit by Saints strong safety Gene Atkins, leading to a recovery by defensive end Bruce Clark at the New Orleans 42-yard-line.

The Steelers were set to get the ball back as they held the Saints to a three-and-out to force a punt that was fielded by Woodson, who was hit by Saints linebacker Jon Kohlbrand leading to another fumble that was recovered by cornerback Dave Waymer to give New Orleans the ball at the Pittsburgh 21-yard-line.

After a two-yard run by Dalton Hilliard, Hebert connected with Eric Martin for a 19-yard touchdown pass to give the Saints a 17-14 lead with 8:16 left in the fourth quarter.

The Saints were be given a golden opportunity to increase their lead after defensive back Milton Mack intercept a Malone pass to give New Orleans the ball at the Steelers' 12-yard-line.

However, the Steelers defense would allow a 1st down to force a 32-yard field goal attempt by Andersen, which he made to increase the Saints' lead to 20-14 with 5:57 to go in the fourth quarter.

The Steelers would get the ball back at their 38-yard-line where after the first two plays picked up only three yards to set up 3rd & 7, Malone connected with Calvin Sweeney for a 34-yard completion to give the Steelers a 1st down at the Saints' 25-yard-line.

From there, a three-yard run by Frank Pollard and two passes to Sweeney for 18 yards gave the Steelers a 1st & goal at the Saints' four-yard-line.

Two running plays gained three yards to set up 3rd & goal from the one-yard-line when Malone try to hit a wide open Pollard in the end zone only to have Jackson knock down the pass to force 4th down.

Noll decided to go for the touchdown as Pollard took a pitch from Malone and tried to take it around the left side when he was met by Mill, Johnson, and defensive end Jim Wilks short of the goal line to give the ball back to the Saints with 2:13 left on the clock.

Saints running back Ruben Mayes finished with 73 yards on 22 carries and scored one touchdown.

Three runs by Hilliard would gain only five yards to bring up a 4th down when Mora instructed punter Brian Hansen to take an intentional safety instead of risking a blocked punt to make it 20-16 in favor of the Saints with 65 seconds left in the game.

The Saints would kick it off from their 20-yard-line as Woodson would return the kick 21 yards to give Pittsburgh the ball at its 44-yard-line with 53 seconds left to drive for a game-winning touchdown.

Malone would complete three consecutive passes for 47 yards that with a five-yard penalty on the Saints would give the Steelers a 1st & goal at the Saints' three-yard-line with 10 seconds to go.

That is when Swilling sacked Malone for an eight-yard-loss to force the Steelers to spend their last timeout with six seconds left and one last chance to win the game.

Malone tried to hit Sweeney on a slant pattern but the wide receiver slipped and fell paving the way for Waymer to make the interception to end the game with the Saints on top 20-16 to secure the first winning season in franchise history.

The Saints would return to New Orleans to a hero's welcome as 2,500 fans greeted them at New Orleans International Airport following the win in Pittsburgh.

While the Steelers would finish the season with a 8-7 record but failing to make the playoffs, the Saints would not only lose again in the regular season as they would finish with a 12-3 record to earn the Saints their first ever trip to the playoffs.

However, the Saints' magical season would end in the Wild Card round as they were hammered by the Minnesota Vikings 44-10 in the NFC Wild Card Game.

But the 1987 season would be a turning point in the history of the Saints as they would not have a losing season until 1994 and more winning seasons than losing seasons which included a Super Bowl championship in 2009.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Miracle on Markham Gives Arkansas SEC West Title

Decori Birmingham comes down with the game-winning touchdown pass that would become known as the "Miracle on Markham".

 If you visit Little Rock, Arkansas you may find yourself on Markham Street, a street that runs east-to-west just a little south of the Arkansas River.

Adjacent to Markham Street is War Memorial Stadium, a 50,000 plus seat football stadium where the Arkansas Razorbacks play at least one game per season.

That is where on November 29, 2002 a miracle occurred when the Razorbacks played host to the #18 LSU Tigers where the winner of the game would clinch the SEC Western division title and a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

Arkansas came into the game on a five-game winning streak after a 3-3 start to the season as the Hogs' vaunted running game which featured tailback Fred Talley and quarterback Matt Jones had put head coach Houston Nutt's team in position to win the school's second ever SEC West division title.

Standing in the Hogs' way were the LSU Tigers who were the defending SEC champions and were hoping to return to play in the SEC Championship Game for the second straight year under head coach Nick Saban.

Destiny seemed to be on the Tigers' side especially after their 33-30 win over Kentucky three weeks earlier on quarterback Marcus Randall's 75-yard touchdown pass to Devery Henderson as time expired which would be nicknamed the "Bluegrass Miracle".

A trip to Arkansas to take on the Hogs was the last obstacle for the Tigers' path to a second straight SEC championship while the Hogs were looking to complete a remarkable turnaround after their sluggish start to the season.

Arkansas would begin the game on offense with the ball at their 20-yard-line as Jones threw an incomplete pass on the first play from scrimmage, which was followed by eight consecutive running plays that picked up 33 yards on a drive that took over five minutes off the clock but ended with the Hogs punting the ball back to the Tigers.

Starting at their 15-yard-line, the Tigers would only move 18 yards in seven plays until they were faced with a 3rd & 15 when Randall completed a short screen pass to Skyler Green, who then outran the Arkansas defense for a 67-yard touchdown to give LSU a 7-0 lead with 6:44 left in the first quarter.

As the game moved into the second quarter, the Hogs got the ball at their 25-yard-line as Jones would hit Richard Smith for 11 yards to start the Arkansas drive as three straight running plays would gain nine yards to set up a 4th & 1 situation at the Arkansas 45-yard-line.

Nutt gambled and went for the 1st down which he got as Jones snuck for the 1st down as he picked up two yards to give the Hogs a fresh set of downs at their 47-yard-line.

Following another incomplete pass, the Hogs would keep it on the ground as they ran the ball nine straight times for 44 yards to give Arkansas a 1st & goal at the LSU nine-yard-line.

Two more running plays which went nowhere would set up 3rd & goal when Jones put the ball back in the air as he tried to hit Smith in the back of the end zone only to have LSU cornerback Corey Webster make the interception to end the 17-play, 66-yard drive by the Hogs which resulted in zero points.

After both teams went three-and-out on their ensuing possessions, the Tigers got the ball back at their 10-yard-line with 3:18 left before halftime and all three timeouts remaining.

LSU would drive 58 yards in 10 plays to set up John Corbello's 49-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to extend the Tigers' lead to 10-0.

Matt Jones would complete four passes in the game but his last completion would be the "Miralce on Markham."

The Tigers would start the second half on offense but would go three-and-out to give the ball back to Arkansas who took over at its 39-yard-line as back-to-back LSU penalties would give the Hogs a 1st down when Talley ran for just one yard to set up 2nd & 9 at the 50-yard-line.

That is when Jones completed a 35-yard pass to George Wilson to give Arkansas a 1st down at the LSU 15-yard-line as the Hogs went back to the ground game as De'Arrius Howard would carry the ball five straight times for 14 yards to set up 4th & goal from the one-yard-line.

Once again, Nutt would go for it on 4th down and was rewarded with an one-yard touchdown run by Mark Pierce that cut LSU's lead to 10-7 midway through the third quarter.

The Tigers would respond with a seven-play, 89-yard drive which featured a 48-yard pass from Randall to Clayton that would eventually led to a five-yard touchdown run by Randall to put the LSU lead back into double digits at 17-7 with 5:34 left in the third quarter.

The Tigers would hold the Hogs to a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 32-yard-line as LSU would drive into Arkansas territory until LaBrandon Toefield fumbled the football after he was hit by Arkansas defensive end Jeb Huckeba leading to a recovery by Raymond House at the Arkansas 46-yard-line.

However, the Hogs would go three-and-out again as the game turned into a defensive stalemate as both teams traded punts until midway through the fourth quarter when the Hogs got the ball at their 20-yard-line and drove to their 44-yard-line when they were faced with a 2nd & 19.

That is when Talley took a handoff from Jones and busted through the middle for a 56-yard touchdown to bring Arkansas to within a field goal at 17-14 with 6:33 left in the fourth quarter.

The Tigers would begin their ensuing possession at their 35-yard-line as they would drive 53 yards in 12 plays as LSU would convert on three straight 3rd down situations.

The first would be a seven-yard run by Toefield on 3rd & 1 from the LSU 44-yard-line, followed by a nine-yard pass from Randall to Clayton on 3rd & 2 from the Arkansas 41-yard-line, and then a nine-yard run by Randall on 3rd & 4 from the Arkansas 26-yard-line.

The Tigers would not make it 4-for-4 on 3rd down conversions as Toefield gained only one yard on 3rd & 6 at the Arkansas 13-yard-line but they would kick a 29-yard field goal which increased their lead to 20-14 with just 40 seconds to go in the game.

It seemed hopeless for Arkansas as it would begin its ensuing possession at its 19-yard-line needing to drive 81 yards in 34 seconds for a possible go-ahead touchdown, especially with a dormant passing game as Jones had completed only two passes up to this point.

However, hope was renewed when Jones went deep and hit Smith for a 50-yard completion to give Arkansas a 1st down at the LSU 31-yard-line as the Hogs ran up to spike the ball to stop the clock with 17 seconds left and facing a 2nd & 10.

That is when the miracle happened as Jones fired a pass toward the right corner of the end zone that was caught by Decori Birmingham who made the catch for a stunning 31-yard touchdown that tied the game at 20 with nine seconds to go.

But because the Hogs would be called for excessive celebration following the touchdown which resulted in a 15-yard penalty meaning that they would have to kick a 35-yard extra point.

David Carlton would come on to make the extra point to give Arkansas its first lead of the game at 21-20.

The Tigers would get one last chance to pull off another "Bluegrass Miracle" but Randall would be sacked before he could get a pass away as time ran out with the Hogs on top 21-20 and the SEC Western division championship.

The loss would drop the Tigers out of the top 25 as they would be invited to play Texas in the Cotton Bowl as the Longhorns would defeat LSU 35-20 as the Tigers would finish the season with a 8-5 record.

As for Arkansas, the "Miracle on Markham" would be the last win of the season for the Hogs as they fall to the  Georgia Bulldogs 30-3 in the SEC Championship Game, then lost to the Minnesota Golden Gophers 29-14 in the Music City Bowl to finish the season with a 9-5 record.

Six years after the "Miracle on Markham", the Hogs would once again play host to LSU at War Memorial Stadium in the final game of the regular season.

In that game, the Hogs would overcome a 16-point deficit to defeat the Tigers 31-30 when quarterback Casey Dick completed a 24-yard touchdown pass to London Crawford with 24 seconds to go in approximately the same spot where Birmingham caught his game-winning touchdown.

This lead to Arkansas fans to dub their 2008 win over LSU as the "Miracle on Markham 2".

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Bucs Get Revenge on Rams in Monday Night Thriller

 

Tampa Bay running back Warrick Dunn would run for 145 yards and score three touchdowns in the Bucs' memorable win over the Rams.

On January 23, 2000, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers traveled to St. Louis to take on the Rams in the NFC Championship Game with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

The Buccaneers defense would the explosive Rams offense, nicknamed the "Greatest Show on Turf" to just 11 points but it was not enough as Tampa would fall to St. Louis 11-6 in a controversial finish as Bert Emanuel had a key catch reversed and called incomplete even though he had control of the ball.

Almost 11 months later, the Buccaneers would have a chance to get some revenge on the Rams on Monday Night Football.

The Buccaneers come into the game with a 9-5 record needing just one more win to clinch a spot in the playoffs which would give Tampa Bay its third playoff appearance in four years.

The Bucs were led by head coach Tony Dungy, who had turned the franchise around after 14 consecutive losing seasons from 1983-1996, with one of the top defenses in the NFL with a lineup which featured defensive tackle Warren Sapp, linebacker Derrick Brooks, cornerback Ronde Barber, and strong safety John Lynch.

While the Bucs' defense was championship level, the offense still faced a lot of questions as second-year quarterback Shaun King had thrown for just over 2,000 yards despite starting all the games in the regular season to this point.

The Bucs would King to have a big game if they were to avenge their NFC championship game loss

St. Louis also came into the game with a 9-5 record needing a win to return to the playoffs were the Rams would try to win the Super Bowl for the second year in a row.

While the Rams had the same explosive offense as the year before, which was led by quarterback Kurt Warner, running back Marshall Faulk, and wide receivers Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt, their defense was not as it had gone from one of the league's best in 1999, giving up only 15 points per game, to the worst in the league as it was now giving up nearly 29 points per game.

So, it was strength against strength and weakness against weakness as the Bucs and Rams meet again this time in Tampa Bay.

The Rams got the ball to start the game but quickly gave it back to the Bucs when on 3rd down, Warner was intercepted by Barber, who returned it nine yards to put the Bucs at the St. Louis 20-yard-line.

The Bucs would only pick up three yards on three plays, forcing to them to settle for a 35-yard field goal by Martin Gramatica to give Tampa Bay a 3-0 lead just 1:52 into the game.

The Bucs would force the Rams to go three-and-out to get the ball back at their 32-yard-line when King threw a deep pass intended for Jaquez Green, only to have cornerback Dexter McCleon make the interception to give the ball back to the Rams but at their 24-yard-line.

From there, the "Greatest Show on Turf"  would get on track as they drove 76 yards in nine plays with Warner completing five of six passes for 70 yards to set up Faulk's two-yard touchdown run to give the Rams a 7-3 lead with 6:25 left in the first quarter.

The Bucs would start its next ensuing possession at their 18-yard-line by running the ball four straight times gaining only 12 yards until they put the ball in the air as King completed a 32-yard pass to Keyshawn Johnson putting Tampa in Rams territory at the 38-yard-line.

After a two-yard run by Dunn on 1st down, King would connect with Johnson again, this time for 23 yards which was followed by a 11-yard pass from King to Dunn to give Tampa a 1st & goal when King handed the ball off to Dunn who punched it in for a two-yard touchdown to give the Bucs a 10-7 lead with 40 seconds to go in the first quarter.

Following a 1st quarter where both teams combined for 17 points, equaling the total from the NFC championship game, the Rams would start their ensuing possession at their 28-yard-line as Warner hit passes of 29 yards to Ricky Proehl and 14 yards to Holt to help St. Louis get to the Tampa Bay 18-yard-line where they would face a 4th & 1 when head coach Mike Martz decided to go for the 1st down instead of kicking the field goal.

Warner would hand the ball off to Faulk, who got two yards and the 1st down, which was followed by Faulk's 16-yard touchdown run to give the Rams a 14-10 lead with 11 minutes left in the second quarter.

Marshall Faulk would account for 132 yards of total offense and four touchdowns.

With a track meet starting to develop, the Bucs would be more methodically on their next possession as they drove 69 yards in 12 plays in a drive that took nearly seven minutes off the clock and ended with King throwing an eight-yard touchdown pass to Johnson to give the lead back to the Bucs at 17-14 with 4:02 left before halftime.

The long drive seem to rejuvenate the Bucs' defense as they forced the Rams to go three-and-out to get the ball back at their 42-yard-line as King would lead Tampa on a six-play, 58-yard drive as he completed three of four passes for 48 yards with the drive being capped off with a 17-yard touchdown pass from King to Johnson to increase the Tampa Bay lead to 24-14 with exactly one minute to go in the first half.

The Rams would not mount a drive in the final minute of the first half as they went into the locker room down 10 points and set to play defense to start the second half.

The Bucs would drive from their 33-yard-line to the Rams' 41-yard-line until a four-yard loss by fullback Mike Alstott, an incomplete pass, and a quarterback sack pushed Tampa back into its own territory and forced to punt back to St. Louis who took over at its 26-yard-line.

The Rams would drive to the 50-yard-line thanks to four runs by Faulk for 20 yards until Warner was picked off by Tampa Bay strong safety Damien Robinson to give the Bucs the ball at their 32-yard-line, only to go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Rams who took over at their 37-yard-line.

From there, the Rams would drive 63 yards in seven plays with the drive being capped off with a 27-yard touchdown pass from Warner to Faulk to cut the Tampa Bay lead to 24-21 with 20 seconds left in the third quarter.

It would not take long for the Bucs to get back into the end zone as Karl Williams returned the ensuing kickoff 41 yards to the Tampa Bay 48-yard-line when Dunn took a King handoff and ran for a 52-yard touchdown to push the Bucs' lead back to 10 points at 31-21 as the third quarter came to an end.

The Rams would respond with a seven-play, 73-yard drive where Warner would complete three passes to Holt for 42 yards to help set up a nine-yard touchdown run by Faulk to cut the Tampa Bay lead to 31-28 with 10:53 left in the fourth quarter.

Rams quarterback Kurt Warner completed 20 of 32 passes for 316 yards.

The Bucs would start its ensuing possession at their 27-yard-line with a 20-yard run by Dunn, followed by a nine-yard pass from King to Green and then a two-yard run by Dunn for a 1st down at the Rams' 42-yard-line.

An intentional grounding penalty and an incomplete pass would force a 3rd & 20 where King completed a 30-yard pass to Green to give the Bucs a 1st down which was followed by a 21-yard run by Dunn to give Tampa a 1st & goal at the St. Louis one-yard-line.

The Rams' defense would not only keep the Bucs out of the end zone but would force a turnover when King was intercepted on a 3rd down pass by McCleon in the end zone to give St. Louis the ball on its 20-yard-line.

Following an eight-yard pass to Roland Williams to start the drive, Warner went deep and connected with Holt for a 72-yard touchdown to give the Rams a 35-31 lead with 5:18 to go in the game.

The Bucs looked to respond on their ensuing possession as King connected with Johnson for 23 yards on 2nd & 16 to give Tampa a 1st down at its 41-yard-line when King threw three straight incomplete passes to force 4th & 10 when Dungy decided to go for the 1st down instead of punting the ball away.

The gamble would not pay off as King's pass intended for Johnson fell incomplete to give the ball to the Rams at the Bucs' 41-yard-line with 3:33 left in the game.

The Rams would run the ball three straight times picking up only five yards to force a 4th & 5 as the Rams would punt the ball back to the Bucs who would take over at their 20-yard-line with 2:22 left on the clock and needing a touchdown.

After an incomplete pass to start the drive, King would complete a seven-yard pass to Johnson then a eight-yard pass to Green for a Tampa Bay 1st down at the Bucs' 35-yard-line.

Following an incomplete pass, King handed the ball off to Dunn, who looked to be dropped for a loss as Rams defensive end Kevin Carter got his hands on Dunn's jersey, only for Dunn to lateral the ball back to King who would then ran for 15 yards before he went out of bounds at the 50-yard-line when he was hit late by linebacker Mike Jones to put the Bucs at the St. Louis 35-yard-line.

A six-yard pass to Dunn and two incomplete passes would force the Bucs into a 4th & 4 situation when King would run for six yards to move the chains with a 1st down at the Rams' 23-yard-line where King would find Reidel Anthony for 22 yards to set up 1st & goal at the one-yard-line.

King would then hand the ball off to Dunn who punched it in for an one-yard touchdown to give Tampa Bay a 38-35 lead with 48 seconds left in regulation.

Bucs quarterback Shaun King would finish with 256 yards passing and 58 yards rushing in leading Tampa Bay to the victory over the Rams.

The Rams would get the ball back at their 21-yard-line with a chance to at least send the game into overtime only to have Warner be picked off by Lynch, allowing the Bucs to run out the clock as they would come away with the 38-38 win and a spot in the playoffs.

One week later, the Rams would defeat the New Orleans Saints 26-21 to clinch the final spot in the NFC playoffs where they would met the Saints again in the Wild Card Round, this time losing to New Orleans 31-28 to end St. Louis' chances of a second straight Super Bowl title.

Meanwhile, the Bucs would lose their final game of the regular season to finish with a 10-6 record, earning them the #5 seed in the NFC playoffs and a trip to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles who would hold Tampa to just a field goal in their 21-3 victory in the Wild Card round.

However, when Buccaneer fans think of the 2000 season, the first thing that comes to the minds of many is their win over the Rams on Monday Night Football.