NFL Old School Game of the Week: Seahawks Take Down Bucs in "Expansion Bowl"

Seahawks quarterback Jim Zorn 11 of 27 passes for 167 yards and one touchdown in Seattle's win in the "Expansion Bowl".

 For the 1976 season, the National Football League introduced two new franchises in the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The two teams would meet for the first time during Week 6 of the 1976 NFL season in a game that was dubbed by the media as the "Expansion Bowl" as both teams were seeking their first ever NFL victory.

The Seahawks were led by head coach Jack Patera, who had spent the previous seven seasons as the defensive line coach of the Minnesota Vikings which featured the famous "Purple People Eaters" that led Minnesota to three Super Bowl appearances during Patera's time with the Vikings.

Despite his background in defense, Patera was having a difficult time in building the Seattle defense as the Seahawks gave up a combined 153 points over the team's first games or 31 points per game.

If the Seahawks were going to get into the win column, they most likely would need a big day from  quarterback Jim Zorn and his favorite target, rookie wide receiver Steve Largent.

On the other side were the Buccaneers, who were led by John McKay, who became the Tampa Bay head coach after a 16-year reign as tenure as the USC Trojans' head coach in which he led USC to four national championships.

While the Seahawks' problems in their first year were mainly on defense, the Buccaneers' issues were on offense as the unit led by future Florida Gators head coach Steve Spurrier had scored just 26 points over their first five games including three shutouts.

After the Seahawks went three-and-out to start the game, the Buccaneers would begin their first drive of the game at the 50-yard-line as a 18-yard pass from Spurrier to running back Louis Carter would be the longest play of Tampa Bay's eight-play, 29-yard drive that ended with a 38-yard field goal by Dave Green to give the Bucs a 3-0 lead.

Following an exchange of punts, the Seahawks took over at their 14-yard-line as Zorn completed a 26-yard pass to tight end Ron Howard to help Seattle drive to its 46-yard-line before lining up to punt the ball back to the Bucs early in the second quarter.

So it was bad on bad as the Buccaneers' putrid offense took on the Seahawks' horrific defense on a hot muggy afternoon in Tampa Bay, Florida.

However, punter Rick Engles took the snap in the punt formation and then ran it 13 yards that with a five-yard face mask penalty on the Bucs gave Seattle a 1st down at the Tampa Bay 36-yard-line.

On the very next play from scrimmage, Zorn hit wide receiver Steve Largent for a 30-yard completion to put the Seahawks at the Tampa Bay six-yard-line as after a one-yard run by Sherman Smith on 1st down, Seattle appeared to have a touchdown as Zorn connected with Largent in the end zone.

But a holding penalty on Seattle right tackle Gordon Jolley would nullify the touchdown and push them back 10 yards to the Tampa Bay 15-yard-line when Zorn was able to find wide receiver Sam McCullum for the touchdown which this time stood as the Seahawks took a 7-3 lead just 1:45 into the second quarter.

The Bucs would drive from their 20-yard-line to the Seattle 41-yard-line until a holding penalty would push them back into their own territory as they would punt the ball back to the Seahawks, who would take over at their four-yard-line.

The Tampa defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball at the Seattle 35-yard-line as the Bucs would move to the six-yard-line until another holding penalty pushed them back 10 yards as the drive would stall.

The Bucs lined to attempt a 36-yard field goal but Green's kick would be partially blocked by Seattle defensive back Lyle Blackwood to keep the score at 7-3 as the Seahawks would take over at their 20-yard-line for their next possession.

The drive would begin with a 24-yard pass from Zorn to McCullum followed by a seven-yard completion between the two to put Seattle in Tampa Bay territory as Smith carried the ball on the next two plays with the second carry being a 16-yard run to give the Seahawks a 1st down at the Bucs' 32-yard-line.

Zorn would then complete a 19-yard pass to Howard followed by a 11-yard pass to McCullum to put the Seahawks at the Tampa Bay two-yard-line where they would have a 1st & goal.

But a holding penalty would help slow the Seahawks down as they wound up settling for a 25-yard field goal by John Leypoldt which increased Seattle's lead to 10-3 as the two-minute warning hit.

Buccaneers quarterback Steve Spurrier completed 18 of 30 passes for 170 yards.

Tampa Bay would begin its ensuing possession at its 31-yard-line but a holding penalty to go along with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on McKay for arguing which push the Bucs back to their 12-yard-line as they would punt the back to the Seahawks with 57 seconds left in the first half.

A 16-yard punt return by Blackwood would put the Seahawks at the Tampa 30-yard-line as an eight-yard pass from Zorn to Smith would set up a 39-yard field goal by Leypoldt which increased Seattle's lead to 13-3 with only 18 seconds to go before halftime.

The Bucs would run out the clock to end the first half, trailing 13-3 after a first half which featured a combined 21 penalties in a flag fest that would continue throughout the second half.

The Bucs would begin the second half on offense at their 20-yard-line as another holding penalty and a quarterback sack by Seattle defensive tackle Richard Harris would force Tampa to go three-and-out as the Seahawks would get the ball back at the Tampa Bay 34-yard-line with an excellent chance to increase their lead.

However, the Seahawks could not take advantage of the opportunity as Zorn would be intercepted by Tampa Bay strong safety Mark Cotney on a pass intended for McCullum to give the Bucs the ball at their seven-yard-line.

Tampa Bay would pick up two 1st downs before punting the ball to the Seahawks, who took over at their 45-yard-line, when Smith fumbled the football as Buccaneers linebacker Richard Wood would recover the fumble to give the Bucs the ball back at their 46-yard-line.

The Bucs would drive down to the Seattle one-yard-line aided by a crucial penalty on the Seahawks as they were called for offsides that nullified a quarterback sack of Spurrier that would have set up a 3rd & long situation.

After two runs fail to get into the end zone, Spurrier would hand the ball off to Carter who was stopped at the line of scrimmage only for him to shovel the ball to wide receiver Morris Owens, who managed to get into the end zone for the first ever home touchdown in Tampa Bay Buccaneers history and cut the Seahawks' lead to 13-10 with 2:02 to go in the third quarter.

Following the Tampa Bay touchdown, the game turned into a defensive stalemate as neither team could mount a drive into the other's territory.

At one point, Patera took out Zorn and replaced him with Bill Munson for two Seahawks drives which resulted in two Seattle punts.

That all changed with 2:37 to go in regulation as a 30-yard punt return by Buccaneers cornerback Danny Reece gave Tampa Bay the ball at its own 47-yard-line as a six-yard run by Rod McNeil put the Bucs at the Seattle 47-yard-line.

However a holding penalty, the 19th penalty for the Bucs, pushed them back 10 yards to their 43-yard-line as Spurrier would complete a 13-yard pass to Owens, which was followed by an eight-yard run by Owens to give Tampa Bay a fresh set of downs at the Seahawks' 36-yard-line.

Spurrier then completed a 14-yard pass to tight end Bob Moore for a Tampa Bay 1st down at the Seattle 22-yard-line as Spurrier would throw the ball out of bounds to stop the clock with 1:18 to go in regulation.

A four-yard run by Owens and an incomplete pass later, the Bucs were faced with a 4th & 6 as McKay sent in the field goal unit to try and tie the game with 46 seconds to go.

But Green's 35-yard attempt would be blocked by Seahawks linebacker Mike "Mad Dog" Curtis, who famously played for the Baltimore Colts from 1965-1975, as the ball wound up in the hands of Seattle free safety Dave Brown, who took a late hit from Buccaneers tight Fred Pagac for Tampa Bay's 20th and final penalty.

Linebacker Mike "Mad Dog Curtis" would block the Buccaneers attempt a game-tying field goal.

Zorn would then take two knees to run out the clock as the Seahawks had come away with their first victory in team history, a 13-10 game that featured a combined 35 penalties.

It would be well over a year before the Buccaneers would taste victory as the team lost its first 26 games in team history before scoring a 33-14 win over the New Orleans Saints in the penultimate game of the 1977 NFL season(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2017/11/nfl-old-school-game-of-week0-26-bucs.html).

As for the Seahawks, they would win one more game during the 1976 season, a 30-13 win over the Atlanta Falcons, to finish their inaugural season with a 2-12 record as the franchise would have its first winning season two years later with a 9-7 season in 1978.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Miami Stops 2-Point Conversion to Preserve Win over FSU

The rivalry between the Miami Hurricanes and the Florida State Seminoles really took off in the late 1980s and early 1990s as both teams ascended to national championship contenders as Miami won four national championships between 1983 + 1991 while Florida State finished 14 straight seasons ranked in the top 5 starting in 1987.

So when the two teams met in the 1980 season, it was not a big game on a national level as it was not shown on live television but that did not mean nothing on the line as the two teams prepared to face off for the 24th time since 1951.

Miami came into the game with a 3-0 record under head coach Howard Schellenberger, who was beginning his second season as the Miami head coach after two stints as the offensive coordinator of the NFL's Miami Dolphins, including being the OC during their undefeated 1972 season.

With sophomore quarterback Jim Kelly leading the offense, Schellenberger was hoping to get Miami to a bowl game in the second year of his five-year plan which at the end he believed Miami would win a national championship.

On the other side were the Seminoles, who also came into the game 3-0 but ranked #9 in the country as they began the 1980 season ranked #13 following a undefeated regular season in 1979 as FSU would lose the Orange Bowl game 24-7 to the Oklahoma Sooners to finish the season with a 11-1 record.

The Seminoles were led by head coach Bobby Bowden, who was in his fifth season as the Florida State head coach after leading FSU back from the doldrums after winning just one game during the 1973 + 74 seasons.

On the field, the Seminoles' strength was their defense, led by All-American nose tackle Ron Simmons and All-American defensive back Bobby Butler, that had given up just one touchdown over the first three games of the season.

The Seminoles hoped that their defense would lead the way to another victory over the Hurricanes as the Noles had won the previous two meetings.

  After both teams punted on their initial possessions of the game, the Hurricanes would get the ball at their 36-yard-line as Kelly would complete passes of 19 yards to tight end Andy Baratta and 19 yards to wide receiver Pat Walker to help set up a 47-yard field goal attempt by kicker Dan Miller.

But Miller's kick would sail wide left and no good to keep the game scoreless as the Seminoles would take over at their 20-yard-line.

The Canes would force the Seminoles to go three-and-out to get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as they advanced to their 41-yard-line when Kelly completed a seven-yard pass to running back Chris Hobbs only for him to fumble when he was hit by FSU linebacker Paul Piurowski as defensive tackle James Gilbert would recover the ball to give the Noles possession at the Miami 48-yard-line.

The two teams would trade punts until early in the second quarter when running back Michael Whiting lost the football after a 10-yard catch as Miami defensive back John Swain would make the recovery to give the Hurricanes the football at the Florida State 37-yard-line.

Miami seemed poised to cash in the turnover into points as they moved to the FSU 15-yard-line until fullback Gregory Anderson dropped a pitchout from Kelly as Seminoles defensive end Jarvis Coursey would fall on the football at the Florida State 22-yard-line.

The game was still scoreless when the Hurricanes took over at their 24-yard-line with 2:28 to go before halftime as three running plays for 26 yards put Miami at the 50-yard-line when Kelly threw a bomb intended for wide receiver Larry Brodsky, who collided with Florida State free safety Gary Henry as the pass went over Brodsky's head to fall incomplete.

However, Henry would be called for pass interference which in 1980 was a spot foul penalty meaning that the Hurricanes would get the ball at the Florida State one-yard-line where Kelly would sneak it for the touchdown for the only points of the first half as Miami would go into the halftime break up 7-0.

Jim Kelly completed 13 of 22 passes for 172 yards and ran for one touchdown.

Following an exchange of punts to start the second half, the Seminoles got the ball at their 41-yard-line when they drove into Miami territory for the first time in the game as quarterback Rick Stockstill completed four of six passes for 47 yards on a 10-play, 48-yard drive that culminated with a 26-yard field goal by Bill Capece to put Florida State on the scoreboard and cut the Hurricanes' lead to 7-3 midway through the second quarter.

The Hurricanes would start their next possession at their 20-yard-line as Kelly would complete passes of 22 yards to wide receiver Jim Joiner, 15 yards to Walker, and 11 yards to running back Mark Rush on a drive to the Florida State five-yard-line that would end with a 22-yard field goal by Miller to push the Miami lead back to seven points at 10-3 with 2:08 left in the third quarter.

Miami would get a golden opportunity to increase their lead when on the first play of the Seminoles' ensuing possession Stockstill would be picked off by Hurricanes linebacker Mike Scott Nichols to give Miami the ball at the FSU 30-yard-line.

The Hurricanes would only move two yards on three plays as they would call on Miller to kick a 45-yard field goal only for the kick to sail wide left and no good to keep the score at 10-3 as Florida State would begin their next possession at their 28-yard-line.

However, the Seminoles would turn it over on the first play from scrimmage as Stockstill would fumble the football following a sack by defensive end Mike Goedeker as Charles Cook would make the recovery to give Miami the ball at the Florida State 19-yard-line.

But for the second time in a row, the Hurricanes could not convert the turnover into points as Miller would miss another field goal attempt, this one from 35 yards out, as the game moved into the fourth quarter with Miami still ahead 10-3.

The two teams would trade punts until there was 4:32 to go in the fourth quarter when the Seminoles took over at their 45-yard-line with Florida State needing a touchdown.

After a seven-yard pass from Stockstill to wide receiver Hardis Johnson started the drive, the Seminoles would gain no yards on the next two plays to set up a do-or-die 4th & 3 when Stockstill completed a 11-yard pass to Dennis McKinnon to give Florida State a 1st down at the Miami 37-yard-line.

A holding penalty would push the Seminoles back 15 yards to their 48-yard-line to set up 1st & 25 as Stockstill would find Johnson for 17 yards which was followed by an one-yard pass to Whiting to make it 3rd & 7 when Stockstill connected with Johnson again, this time for 15 yards to put Florida State at the Miami 19-yard-line.

Following an incomplete pass on 1st down, Stockstill would complete an eight-yard pass to Whiting to give FSU a 3rd & 2 at the Miami 11-yard-line when Stockstill found a wide open Sam Childers in the end zone for the touchdown to bring the Seminoles to within a point at 10-9 with 39 seconds to go in the game.

Bowden now had a decision to make as the game would most likely end in a 10-10 tie if he sent in the kicking unit to make the extra point as there was no overtime in college football in 1980 or he could keep the offense on the field and go for a two-point conversion that would give Florida State a 11-10 lead.

Bowden decided to go for the win as Stockstill took the snap, dropped back and threw a pass intended for wide receiver Phil Williams, only for the ball to bounce off Miami nose tackle Jim Burt's helmet to fall incomplete and keep the score at 10-9 in favor of the Hurricanes.

Despite a bruised shoulder, FSU quarterback Rick Stockstill(11) completed 19 of 30 passes for 182 yards and threw one touchdown.

The Seminoles would attempt an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff but Miami would recover the kick as Kelly took two knees to run out the clock as the Hurricanes would come away with the 10-9 victory.

Florida State would recover from the Miami loss to upset the Nebraska Cornhuskers 18-14 in Lincoln one week later as the Seminoles would win the remaining games of the regular season to finish with a 10-1 record as they would earn a second straight invitation to play Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl for the second year in a row.

The Seminoles would fall to the Sooners 18-17 as Oklahoma quarterback J.C. Watts threw a 11-yard touchdown pass to Steve Rhodes, then hit Forrest Valora with the two-point conversion with 1:33 to go in the game as Florida State would finish the season ranked #5 in both the AP and coaches poll with a 10-2 record.

As for Miami, they would lose their next three games before going a four-game winning streak to end the regular season as the Hurricanes would be invited to play Virginia Tech in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta.

Behind Kelly's 11-of-22 for 179 yards and one touchdown performance, the Hurricanes would knock off the Hokies 20-10 to finish the 1980 season with a 9-3 record as Miami would be ranked #18 in both the AP and Coaches polls.

Schellenberger would lead the Hurricanes to the national championship in 1983, the fifth season of his tenure as the Miami head coach.