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.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: "Wide Left" Allows #1 Miami to Escape FSU Upset Bid

 

Xavier Beitia angusihes after his potential game-winning field goal sailed wide left in the Seminoles' 2002 game with Miami.

It's the two most frightening words to Florida State Seminole fans: Wide Right.

Those are the two words to describe a trio of heartbreaking losses to the Miami Hurricanes which occured over a decade in the annual rivalry between the Canes and the Noles.

It started with "Wide Right I" in 1991 when Gerry Thomas missed a potential game-winning 34-yard field goal in the final seconds to give #2 Miami a 17-16 win over #1 Florida State.

One year later, Dan Mowrey had his 39-yard field goal attempt sail wide right on the final play of the game as #2 Miami prevailed with a 19-16 win over #3 Florida State.

Eight years after that, the third chapter would occur as Matt Munyon's 49-yard attempt at the end of regulation would also go wide right to give Miami a 27-24 win over #1 Florida State.

Then in 2002, the next cruel chapter in the Seminoles' fortunes against Miami would occur with a slightly different twist.

The Hurricanes were the #1 ranked team in the country having won their previous 27 games and were the defending national champions after a 2001 season.

The Canes were led by second-year head coach Larry Coker who had a roster which featured quarterback Ken Dorsey who had this point had won 31 of his 32 career starts, future NFL Hall-of-Fame wide receiver Andre Johnson, tight end Kellen Winslow II son of former Hall-of-Fame tight end Kellen Winslow Sr. and running back Willis McGahee, who had run for 640 yards and 10 touchdowns in the first five games of the 2002 season.

While the Canes were seeking a second consectuive national championship, the Noles came into the game looking rebound following a tough 2001 season in which they went 8-4 and finished #15 in the final polls, ending a 14-year streak of finishing in the top 5 in the final AP and coaches polls.

The Noles were led by head coach Bobby Bowden, who was in his 27th season as the FSU head coach, as he saw his Seminoles led by quarterback Chris Rix get off to a 4-0 start before losing to unranked Louisville on a rainy Thursday night.

This loss helped drop FSU from #4 to #11 in the country as they bounced back with a 48-31 win over Clemson to move back up to #9 as the Noles traveled to South Florida to take on the defending national champions who entered the game as nearly two-touchdown favorites.

 After the Seminoles punted following their opening possession of the game, the Hurricanes would drive 89 yards in 13 plays for the game's first touchdown as McGahee punched it in for a four-yard touchdown to give Miami a 7-0 lead.

The drive featured Dorsey completing four of five passes for 77 yards as he hit Ethenic Sands for 14 yards, Johnson for 14 yards, Kevin Beard for 22 yards, and Winslow for 27 yards.

The two teams would trade punts until early in the second quarter when Miami had the ball at the Florida State 26-yard-line thanks in large part to a 37-yard pass from Dorsey to Sands, when Ken was intercepted by FSU linebacker Michael Boulware to give the Seminoles the ball at their six-yard-line.

The Miami defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball at their 44-yard-line as a holding penalty would derail the drive and force the Hurricanes to punt the ball back to the Seminoles, only for Leon Washington to muff the kick which was recovered by Antrel Rolle to give the Canes the ball at the FSU 15-yard-line.

But on the very next play from scrimmage, Dorsey would fumble the football while trying to scramble, leading to a recovery by FSU linebacker Allen Augustin to give the Seminoles the ball back at their 16-yard-line.

From there, the Noles would drive 84 yards in four plays as Nick Maddox would take it in for a 30-yard touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 7 with 9:29 left in the second quarter.

Following a Miami three-and-out, the Noles would take the lead as Xavier Beitia would kick a 45-yard field goal to give the Noles a 10-7 lead with 6:12 remaining in the second quarter.

The Seminoles would force another three-and-out to give their offense the ball at the 50-yard-line where it took FSU five plays to get back into the end zone as Rix hit  Talman Gardner for a 10-yard touchdown to push the Florida State lead to double digits at 17-7 with 2:34 to go before halftime.

Seminoles running back Greg Jones ran for 189 yards on 31 carries and scored one touchdown.

Having allowed 17 unanswered points, the Hurricanes needed a response from their offense as the first half came to an end as Miami would begin its ensuing possession at their 20-yard-line.

Dorsey would complete three of his next four passes for 21 yards to put the Canes at their 41-yard-line as they would pick up the next 13 yards on the ground on runs of nine yards by Jason Geathers and four yards by McGahee to give Miami a 1st down at the FSU 46-yard-line.

That is when Dorsey completed back-to-back passes to Beard, first for 16 yards and the second for 20 yards to give Miami a 1st & goal at the FSU 10-yard-line as an illegal participation penalty on the Noles would give the Canes five extra yards and a fresh set of downs at the five-yard-line.

After two incomplete passes, Dorsey would find Winslow for the five-yard touchdown to end the 12-play, 80-yard drive which cut the FSU lead to 17-14 with 26 seconds left in the first half.

The Noles would run out the clock to end the first half to go into the locker room ahead 17-14 but set to give the ball back to the Hurricanes to start the second half.

The Canes would drive from their 36-yard-line to the FSU 48-yard-line until Dorsey was picked off by Seminoles free safety Kyler Hall to give the Noles the ball at their 14-yard-line.

Following an exchange of punts, the Noles got the ball back at their four-yard-line as they would drive into Miami territory primarily on the ground game as eight running plays totaled 38 yards while Rix complete passes of 24 and 9 yards to Anquain Boldin to set up a 42-yard field goal by Beitia to increase the FSU lead to 20-14 with 3:25 left in the third quarter.

The Canes would begin their next possession at their 16-yard-line as a 15-yard pass from Dorsey to Johnson on 3rd & 9 would give Miami a 1st down at its 32-yard-line when the Hurricanes appeared to be in FSU territory as Roscoe Parrish caught a 53-yard pass from Dorsey, only to have negated by a chop block which cost Miami 15 yards.

Miami would be forced to punt the ball back as the Noles would take over in Hurricanes territory as an incomplete pass and a run for no gain would set up 3rd & 10 as the third quarter came to an end.

The fourth quarter would begin with a run by Rix, who somersaulted over a few Hurricane defenders for a seven-yard gain which got 15 yards added to it as Miami linebacker Jonathan Vilma was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty to give FSU a 1st down at the Canes' 24-yard-line.

Four plays later, the Noles were back in the end zone as Greg Jones took it in from 11 yards out to increase the FSU lead to 26-14 as Bowden opted to go for the extra point instead of attempting a two-point conversion which would have made it a 14-point game as Beitia would make the extra point to make it 27-14 with 11:44 left in the fourth quarter.

Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey threw for 362 yards and two touchdowns passes.

After both teams went three-and-out on their next possessions, the Canes got the ball at their 30-yard-line with 9:32 left in the game and Miami needing two touchdowns to take the lead.

That is when the Canes went to a no-huddle offense as Dorsey completed a 37-yard pass to Johnson to start the drive, which was followed by an incomplete pass and then an 11-yard run by McGahee to give Miami a 1st down at the FSU 22-yard-line.

After another incomplete pass, Dorsey would find Johnson again this time for 19 yards to give Miami a 1st & goal at the FSU three-yard-line as McGahee ran for one yard before Beard caught a two-yard touchdown pass to end the seven-play, 70-yard drive which took only 82 seconds to complete and cut the Noles' lead to 27-21.

The Noles would pick up one 1st down on their next possession before they punted the ball back to the Canes who took over at their 21-yard-line with 5:36 left in regulation.

That is when Dorsey completed a short screen pass to McGahee, who sprinted down the right sideline until he was tackled at the FSU 11-yard-line after a 68-yard play which would set up Geathers' 11-yard-touchdown run to give Miami a 28-27 lead with 5:17 left in the game.

The momentum had clearly turned in Miami's favor especially after they forced a three-and-out to get their offense the ball back at the 50-yard-line with 4:08 remaining and a chance to run out the clock with a few 1st downs.

However, the Seminole defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball back at their 46-yard-line after Freddie Capshaw shanked the punt which traveled only three yards.

After two running plays picked up six yards, the Noles faced a 3rd & 4 when Rix completed an eight-yard pass to Gardner to give FSU a 1st down at the Miami 40-yard-line.

Rix would find Gardner again, this time for 15 yards, to give the Noles a fresh set of downs at the Miami 25-yard-line as FSU kept it conservative as they ran two plays then spiked the ball to set up a 43-yard field goal attempt by Beitia that would in the game and end the Hurricanes' 27-game winning streak.

But Beitia would join the list of FSU kickers who missed a game-winning field goal against Miami as his kick sailed wide left, instead of wide right, as time expired with the Canes coming away with the 28-27 win as the Orange Bowl scoreboard put out the words "Wide Left I".

The Seminoles would go to win the ACC despite two more losses during the regular season as they earned a trip to the Sugar Bowl where they fell to the Georgia Bulldogs 26-13 to finish the season with a 9-5 record while Miami would run its winning streak up to 34 games before losing to Ohio State 31-24 in double overtime in the Fiesta Bowl to deny the Canes a second straight national title.

As for Beitia, he would get a chance at redemption 14 months after "Wide Left" as the Noles faced the Canes in the Orange Bowl on New Years' Day 2004 as he attempted a 39-yard field goal with five minutes left in the fourth quarter that would give FSU the lead.

However, his kick sailed wide right and no good, allowing for the Hurricanes to run out the clock and come away with the 16-14 win.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: "Puntrooskie" Paves Way for Seminoles Victory in "Death Valley"

 

Leroy Butler tries to outran Donnel Woolford on the famous "Puntrooskie" play in 1988.

In the 1980s, the Florida State Seminoles rose to become one of the top programs in college football thanks to head coach Bobby Bowden's willingness to run all sorts of trick plays that earned him the nickname the "Riverboat Gambler".

Bowden's biggest gamble came in the third game of the 1988 season when he and his Seminoles traveled to "Death Valley" to take on the Clemson Tigers in a top-10 showdown.

Florida State came into the game ranked #10 after beginning the season as the #1 team ranked in the country following a 11-1 season the previous year.

However, the Seminoles would lose their #1 ranking following an embarrassing 31-0 loss to the defending National Champion Miami Hurricanes in the opening game of the season.

Led by all-American cornerback Deion Sanders, the Seminoles would bounce back with a 29-13 win over Southern Mississippi the following week to even their record at 1-1 as they hoped to back in the race for the national championship if they could knock off the Tigers.

Much like the Seminoles, the Tigers came into the 1988 season with national championship aspirations as they began the season as the #4 team in the country.

Following wins of 40-7 against Virginia Tech and 23-3 against Furman, the Tigers moved up to #3 in the country as they prepared to host the Seminoles on a rainy day which left the field at Memorial Stadium very soggy.

Clemson would start the game on offense as the Tigers drove from their 16-yard-line to the Florida State 34-yard-line on 10 straight running plays until a fumbled snap and an incomplete pass forced a punt back to the Seminoles after Clemson had held the ball for six-and-a-half minutes.

After forcing a three-and-out, the Tigers would get the ball back at their 26-yard-line where after three plays, they had a 1st & 10 at the Clemson 39-yard-line.

That is when the Tigers pulled a rabbit out of the hat as quarterback Rodney Williams tossed the ball off to wide receiver Chip Jones who appeared to be running a reverse around the left side, only for Jones to stop and throw a pass downfield intended for Gary Cooper.

Cooper made the catch at the FSU 20-yard-line as Seminoles cornerback Derrick Dodge slipped which allowed Cooper to run into the end zone untouched to complete the 61-yard touchdown that gave Clemson a 7-0 lead with 5:10 left in the first quarter.

Following an exchange of punts, the Seminoles got the ball back at their 41-yard-line as quarterback Chip Ferguson would complete a nine-yard pass to running back Victor Floyd to start the drive followed by another nine-yard pass to running back Dexter Carter, which became a 14-yard play as Clemson was called for a five-yard face mask, to put FSU at the Tigers' 36-yard-line as time ran out in the first quarter.

Clemson quarterback Rodney Williams accounted for 116 yards of total offense and scored one TD. 

The Seminoles would lose four yards to set up 3rd & 14 when Ferguson found Carter on a swing pass which resulted in a 40-yard touchdown which tied the game 7-7 just 74 seconds into the second quarter.

After another exchange of punts, the Tigers were pinned back at their one-yard-line when they put together a masterful 17-play, 99-yard touchdown drive which took nearly eight minutes to complete.

The drive got off to an auspicious start as the Tigers gained no yards on the first two plays to set up 3rd & 10 when Williams connected with Allen for 14 yards and a 1st down at the Clemson 15-yard-line.

Fullback Tracy Johnson would carry the ball on the next two plays gaining eight yards to set up 3rd & 2 when tailback Joe Henderson got the call as he ran for four yards and a 1st down at the Clemson 27-yard-line.

After the two next plays gained zero yards, the Tigers struck it big as Williams completed a 38-yard pass to Cooper that with a five-yard penalty on the Seminoles put Clemson at the FSU 30-yard-line.

Five more running plays would total 16 yards until Williams put it back in the air as he completed a five-yard pass to Ricardo Hooper to make it 4th & 1 at the FSU nine-yard-line.

Instead of kicking the field goal, Ford decided to go for the 1st down which he got as Williams handed the ball off to Johnson who got two yards to give Clemson a 1st & goal at the FSU seven-yard-line.

That is when Williams kept the ball to himself as he took around the left side for a seven-yard touchdown to complete the long drive and give Clemson a 14-7 lead with 2:45 left in the second quarter.

Neither team would mount a scoring threat before the halftime break as the Tigers went into the locker room with a 14-7 lead as the Clemson offense had amassed 232 yards of total offense compared to the Seminoles' 71.

The Seminoles would get the ball to start the second half but would go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Tigers who took over at their 16-yard-line.

The Tigers would pick up 30 yards before they had to punt back to the Seminoles when "Prime Time" arrived in Death Valley.

Chris Gardocki would punt the ball to Sanders, who received the punt at his 24-yard-line, took up the middle, made a cut to his right and dodged a diving Gardocki for an electrifying 76-yard punt return touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 14.

It would not be the last time the Seminoles special teams unit would have an impact on this game.

Following a Clemson three-and-out, the Seminoles got the ball back at their 23-yard-line as Ferguson completed passes of 34 yards to  Floyd and 36 yards to Bruce LaSane to set up Dayne Williams' one-yard touchdown run to give Florida State its first lead of the game at 21-14 midway through the third quarter.

The momentum had turned in the Seminoles' favor especially after they force another Clemson punt to the get the ball back at their 19-yard-line as Ferguson would complete six of eight passes for 69 yards on a 10-play, 73-yard drive which put FSU at the Clemson eight-yard-line as kicker Richie Andrews come on to attempt a 24-yard field goal.

However, Clemson cornerback James Lott would deflect Andrews' kick just enough to make it sail wide right and no good to keep it 21-14 with 1:42 left in the third quarter.

The two teams would trade punts until midway through the fourth quarter when the Tigers had the ball at their 34-yard-line, hoping to drive down for a touchdown.

The drive would begin with a 11-yard run by future NFL running back Terry Allen, followed by an illegal shift penalty and then a 19-yard pass from Williams to Hooper to give the Tigers a 1st down at the FSU 41-yard-line.

A two-yard run by Allen followed by incomplete pass set up 3rd & 8 when Williams connected with Hooper again, this time for seven yards to put Clemson at the 32-yard-line where it would face a 4th & 1.

With time running out in the game, the Tigers had no choice but go for the 1st down which they got as Williams handed it off to Johnson, who got the one yard for the 1st down at the FSU 31-yard-line.

Johnson would get the ball again on 1st down as he ran for four yards to set up 2nd & 6 when disaster nearly struck for Clemson as Allen lost the football only for wide receiver Keith Jennings to recover it for the Tigers at the FSU 17-yard-line.

Then after Allen was dropped for a two-yard loss on 1st down, Williams handed the ball off to Johnson, who bursted through for a 19-yard touchdown to make it 21-20.

With no overtime in college football in 1988, Ford could have decided to go for two and the win but instead opted to go for the extra point which Rusty Seyle made to tie the game at 21 with 2:32 remaining.

The Seminoles would begin its ensuing possession at their 15-yard-line as Carter ran for six yards on 1st down which was followed by two straight incomplete passes forcing a 4th & 4 with 1:33 to go in the game.

It appeared that the Tigers would get the ball back with a chance to drive for the winning score as the Seminoles lined up in their punting formation when Bowden made one of the gustiest calls in college football history.

As the Seminoles were lined up in their punting formation, Dayne Williams lined up behind center David Whittington to take the direct snap.

Williams would then snap the ball to defensive back Leroy Butler, who was supposed to remain still as Williams and the rest of the Seminoles' punting unit would run to the right side in order to distract the Tigers from Butler.

Butler, who was supposed to wait three seconds before he ran, took off in about half that time and ran down the left sideline where he was on his way to the end zone until Clemson cornerback Donnell Woolford knocked Butler out of bounds at the Tigers' one-yard-line.

Butler's stunning 78-yard run had put the Seminoles on the doorstep of the go-ahead score which would occur after Ferguson took a knee as Andrews came on to kick a 19-yard field goal to give FSU a 24-21 lead with 32 seconds to go.

The Tigers would get the ball one more time to try and perhaps salvage a tie but after four straight incomplete passes, the Seminoles got the ball with four seconds left, allowing Ferguson to take a knee to complete the 24-21 win before the shocked Clemson faithful in "Death Valley'.

While the loss would doom the Tigers' national title dreams, they would recover to win the ACC championship for the third consecutive season as Clemson would finish the 1988 season with a 10-2 record and top-10 ranking in both polls following a 13-6 win over Oklahoma in the Citrus Bowl.

Meanwhile the Seminoles would not lose for the rest of the season as FSU finished the season with a 11-1 record and #3 ranking in both polls after a 13-7 win over Auburn in the Sugar Bowl.

As for Butler, he would go on to be selected in the second round of the 1990 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, where he played 12 seasons in a career which featured a Super Bowl championship and the creation of the "Lambeau Leap" in 1993 when Butler leapt into the grandstands of Lambeau Field following a touchdown in Green Bay's 28-0 win over the Raiders, which clinched the Packers a playoff berth for the first time in 11 years.

Butler would be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022 thanks to a career which featured 38 interceptions, 13 forced fumbles, 10 fumble recoveries, and 20.5 quarterback sacks.