College Football Old School Game of the Week: #1 Iowa Holds off Michigan State Thanks to Long's QB Bootleg TD

 

Iowa quarterback Chuck Long would complete 30 of 39 passes for 380 yards and throw four touchdowns in the Hawkeyes' win against the Spartans.

On November 10, 1984, the Iowa Hawkeyes lost to the Michigan State Spartans 17-16 when quarterback Chuck Long was ruled to fall short of the goal line when he tried to dive into the end zone on a quarterback option with 44 seconds to go.

The loss ended Iowa' s hopes of winning the Big 10 championship and earning a trip to the Rose Bowl as the Hawkeyes finished the 1984 season with a 8-4-1 record.

Eleven months after their heartbreaking loss to the Spartans, the Hawkeyes would get a shot at redemption when they hosted the Spartans in Iowa City as the #1 team in the country.

Following the 1984 season, Long announced he would be returning to Iowa for his fifth and final year of eligibility under head coach Hayden Fry, who had since his arrival in 1979 had turned Iowa from the one of the worst programs in college football to a top 25 program as the Hawkeyes had gone 42-28-1 after 19 consecutive losing seasons from 1962 through 1980.

With Long at quarterback to lead a offense which featured running back Ronnie Harmon and All-American linebacker Larry Station to lead the defense, the Hawkeyes entered the 1985 season as the #5 team in the country and the favorite to win the Big 10 and go to the Rose Bowl for the second time in five years.

After three blowout victories where the offense averaged 54.3 points per game, the Hawkeyes propelled to the #1 ranking as the month of October was set to begin.

Their first opponent as the #1 team in the country would be Michigan State who came into the game unranked with a 2-1 record under third-year head coach George Perles, who was an defensive assistant on the Pittsburgh Steelers during their 1970s dynasty.

On offense, their best weapon was sophomore running back Lorenzo White, who had run for 438 yards on 98 carries through the Spartans' first three games while redshirt freshman Bobby McAllister was still trying to get comfortable as he threw for a total of just 99 yards in his first two starts(McAllister did not start the first game of the season).

If the Spartans were going to upset the Hawkeyes, they would need a strong passing game from McAllister who future NFL wide receivers Mark Ingram and Andre Rison to go to.

  The Spartans got the ball to start the game as they drove from their 18-yard-line to inside Hawkeyes territory on the right arm of McAlister as he completed passes of 19 yards to tight end Butch Rolle and 11 yards to tight end Veno Belk to put Michigan State at the Iowa 45-yard-line.

But the drive would stall and the Spartans would be forced to punt to the Hawkeyes, who took over at their 21-yard-line as two runs by Harmon picked up five yards and Long completed two passes for 14 yards tobset up a 2nd & 2 at the Iowa 40-yard-line.

That is when Long went deep for wingback Robert Smith, who made the catch at the Spartans' 15-yard-line and proceeded to run it in to complete the 60-yard touchdown to give Iowa a 7-0  lead with 10:23 left in the first quarter.

When the Spartans got the ball back at their 24-yard-line, they used White to help them get down the field as the sophomore carried the ball six times for 30 yards to help set up a 51-yard field goal attempt by Chris Caudall.

However, Caudall's kick was short and no good, allowing for the Hawkeyes to take over at their 34-yard-line.

After an exchange of punts, the Hawkeyes got the ball at their 32-yard-line as they drove 68 yards in seven plays using a mix of run and pass as Harmon carried the ball three times for 31 yards while Long was a perfect 3-for-3 for 33 yards with his last completion being a 17-yard touchdown pass to Mike Flagg(The other play was a four-yard run by Smith) to increase the Iowa lead to 13-0 early in the second quarter as kicker Rob Hougthlin missed the extra point.

Iowa tight end Mike Flagg(86)would account for 14 points as he caught two touchdowns and a two-point conversion 

The Spartans would begin their next possession at their 36-yard-line as an incomplete pass and a four-yard run by White would set up 3rd & 6 when McAllister went deep and completed a 52-yard pass to Mark Ingram to give Michigan State a 1st & goal at the Iowa eight-yard-line.

However, the Hawkeyes defense would rise to the occasion as they pushed the Spartans back seven yards on the next three plays, forcing Michigan State to settle for a 32-yard field goal by Caudell to cut the Iowa lead to 13-3 with 11:34 remaining in the second quarter.

Following an Iowa three-and-out, the Spartans would drive 63 yards in just three plays as McAllister completed a short pass to Rison, who then ran down the left sideline and was able to get into the end zone for a 50-yard touchdown to cut the Hawkeyes' lead to 13-10 with 9:15 left in the second quarter.

The two teams would trade punts until late in the second quarter when the Spartans got the ball at their 19-yard-line with 2:27 left before halftime and quickly drove to inside Iowa territory as White ran for 26 yards to start the drive and then ran for 13 more to put Michigan State at the Hawkeyes' 42-yard-line.

After McAllister was dropped for a five-yard-loss, he completed consecutive passes to Rison that totaled eight yards to give Caudell a shot at a 56-yard field goal that would tie the game.

Caudell's kick was long enough but it sailed wide left and no good as the first half came to an end with Iowa ahead 13-10.

The Spartans would get the ball to start the second half  as they had deferred the opening coin toss as they would begin their opening possession of the second half at their 29-yard-line.

The drive would begin with White carrying the ball four straight times picking up a total of 16 yards before McAllister put the ball in the air as he completed a six-yard pass to Rolle that got five yards added on thanks to a face-mask penalty to put the Spartans at the Iowa 44-yard-line.

Two more runs by White for five yards and a four-yard pass to Rolle set up a 4th & 1 when Perles decided to go for the 1st down which he got when McAllister ran a quarterback bootleg for 12 yards to give Michigan State a 1st down at the Iowa 23-yard-line.

That is when White took a pitch from McAllister and broke four Iowa tacklers on his way to a 23-yard touchdown to give Michigan State a 17-13 lead with 12:30 remaining in the third quarter.

Iowa would start its initial drive of the second half at their 20-yard-line as Long completed passes of 16 yards to Flagg and 18 yards to Bill Happel to lead the Hawkeyes to the Michigan State 47-yard-line until Long was picked off by Spartans safety Phil Parker to give Michigan State the ball back at its 29-yard-line.

Four runs by White for 33 yards would put the Spartans at the Iowa 37-yard-line when McAllister connected with Ingram for a 36-yard pass to give Michigan State a 1st & goal at the one-yard-line.

After McAllister was stopped for no gain on 1st down, he tossed to White, who took it around the left side for the one-yard touchdown to increase the Spartans' lead to 24-13 with 7:01 to go in the third quarter.

Michigan State running back Lorenzo White would carry the ball 39 times for 226 yards and score two touchdowns.

Having given up 24 straight points, the Hawkeyes needed a score of some kind as they began their next possession at their 37-yard-line.

Following two incomplete passes to start the drive, Long would find Happel for 24 yards and then connected with Harmon on a screen pass that totaled 37 yards to give the Hawkeyes a 1st & goal at the three-yard-line when Long rolled to his left and hit Smith for the three-yard touchdown to make it 24-19.

The Hawkeyes decided to go for the two-point conversion which they got when Long found Flagg in the back of the end zone to cut the Michigan State lead to 24-21 with 6:16 to play in the third quarter.

Iowa would force the Spartans to go three-and-out on their ensuing possession to get the ball back at the Michigan State 46-yard-line as Long hit Scott Helverson for 21 yards and a 1st down at the Spartans' 25-yard-line as two passes for five yards would bring up 3rd & 5 when Harmon carried the ball for eight yards and a 1st down at the Spartans' 12-yard-line.

That is when Long hit a wide open Flagg in the right corner of the end zone for the 12-yard touchdown to give Iowa a 28-24 lead with 3:21 left in the third quarter.

The two teams would trade punts as the game moved into the fourth quarter when Iowa got the ball at their 20-yard-line as three straight running plays for 24 yards set up a 2nd & 6 when Long connected with Harmon a 54-yard screen pass only to have negated because of a clipping penalty.

Two plays later, Long was intercepted by Michigan State cornerback Todd Krumm to give the ball back to the Spartans at their 11-yard-line with 9:20 remaining in the game.

The drive would get off to an auspicious start as White came off the field limping following an one-yard loss as the sophomore left the game with a sprained right ankle and was replaced by freshman Craig Johnson.

Johnson would get the ball on the next four plays, running for 26 yards before McAllister connected with Ingram for 12 yards to give Michigan State a 1st down at the Spartans' 48-yard-line when Johnson got the ball again and ran for 21 yards for a Spartans 1st down at the Iowa 31-yard-line.

After two more runs by Johnson for six yards to set up 3rd & 4, the freshman would take up the gut and run for a 25-yard touchdown to cap off the 10-play, 89-yard drive in which Johnson ran for 78 yards on eight carries.

More importantly he gave the Spartans a 31-28 lead with 4:06 to go in the game.

Following a 17-yard return by Harmon on the ensuing kickoff, the Hawkyes would get the ball at their 22-yard-line hoping to have their Heisman Trophy candidate lead them down the field for at least a potential tie or victory.

Long hit Helverson for 12 yards to begin the drive then after an incomplete pass, went back to Helverson for nine yards to set up 3rd & 1 when Harmon got the call as he carried for two yards and a 1st down at the Iowa 45-yard-line.

Long would go back to the air as he found Helverson for eight yards then threw an incomplete pass to bring up 3rd & 2 when Long handed the ball off to Harmon, who carried for four yards and a 1st down at the Michigan State 43-yard-line.

That is when Long found Happel for 20 yards, then went back to Helverson for 12 more yards to give the Hawkeyes a 1st down at the Spartans' 11-yard-line.

Harmon would get the ball on the next two plays as he ran for nine yards to set up a crucial 3rd & 1 at the two-yard-line with 31 seconds left when Iowa called timeout.

With both teams probably getting a feeling of deja vu from what happened the year before,Long conferred with Fry who told Chuck to fake a handoff to Harmon, then ran around the right side on a bootleg that they hoped would result in a touchdown.

When the Iowa offense came back up into the field, they lined up in their goalline formation as did the Spartans defense.

Long took the snap then faked the ball to Harmon, who proceeded to leap over the pile of players while Long ran in untouched and holding the ball in his right hand for the two-yard touchdown that with Houghtlin's extra point gave Iowa a 35-31 lead with 27 seconds to go.

Michigan State would get one last chance to pull off the upset as they got the ball back at their 38-yard-line as McAllister completed a 16-yard pass to Ingram, then scrambled for seven yards to set up a Hail Mary attempt from the Iowa 39-yard-line with three seconds left.

However, the Spartans' prayers were not answered as McAllister's pass fell incomplete, ending the game with the Hawkeyes on top 35-31.

The Spartans would drop their next two games, which included a 31-0 drubbing at the hands of arch rival Michigan, before going on a five-game winning streak to end the regular season with a 7-4 record, earning them an invitation to play in the Hall of Fame Classic in Birmingham, Alabama against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

Michigan State would lose that game 17-14 as White finished the season with 2,066 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns as he finished 4th in the Heisman Trophy race.

Two years later, White would run 1.572 yards and 16 touchdowns as he along with McAllister, Rison, and Perles would lead Michigan State to the Rose Bowl.

As for the Hawkeyes, they would remain #1 through the month of October as they won their next three games, including the legendary 12-10 win over #2 Michigan on Houghtlin's 29-yard game-winning field goal as time expired(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here:(https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2021/12/college-football-old-school-game-of.html) until they fell to Ohio State 22-13 in the first week of November.

Iowa would recover to win its remaining three games of the regular season to secure the Big 10 championship and earn a spot to the Rose Bowl for the second time in five years as they faced the UCLA Bruins on New Year's Day.

The Hawkeyes would be defeated by the Bruins 45-26 to finish the season with a 10-2 record and #9 ranking in the final coaches poll and #10 ranking in the final AP poll.

Long would finish his career with 10.461 yards and 74 touchdown passes as he finished the ' 85 season with 2,978 yards and 26 touchdown passes to finish 2nd in the Heisman Trophy race, 45 points behind eventual winner Bo Jackson.