NFL Old School Game of the Week: Eagles Hold Off Cowboys Thanks To Last-Second Defensive Touchdown

Eagles linebacker James Willis(50)prepares to lateral the ball to cornerback Troy Vincent for what would be the game-winning touchdown.

Anytime the Philadelphia Eagles play the Dallas Cowboys, emotions are always high between the two bitter division rivals, but their meeting in Week 10 of the 1996 NFL season was important as 1st place in the NFC East was at stake.

The Eagles came into the game with a 6-2 record under second year head coach Ray Rhodes, who had Philadelphia to the playoffs the year before as the Eagles were eliminated by the Cowboys 30-11 in their NFC Divisional Playoff.

The Eagles' quarterback for their showdown with the Cowboys was Ty Detmer, who after attempting only 21 passes in four seasons with the Green Bay Packers, signed with Philadelphia to back up Rodney Peete only to for the 1990 Heisman Trophy Winner to take over the job as starting quarterback after Peete was lost for the year with a tore patella tendon in the Eagles' 23-19 loss to the Cowboys in Week 5.

With help from running back Ricky Watters, Detmer led the Eagles to three straight wins as Ty completed 59 of 85 passes for 738 yards and threw five touchdown passes in the winning streak as Philadelphia traveled to Texas to take on the defending Super Bowl champions.

The Cowboys had established themselves as the "Team of the 90s" thanks to their three Super Bowl titles in four years led by the "Triplets" in quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, and wide receiver Michael Irvin.

However, the '96 season got off to a tumultuous start as the Cowboys lost three of their opening four games while Irvin sat on the bench with a five-game suspension after pleading no contest to cocaine possession during the summer.

Following their win over the Eagles in week 5, Irvin came back to help the Cowboys win their next three games to improve their record to 5-3, including a 12-catch, 186-yard performance in a 29-10 over the Miami Dolphins and Dallas' former head coach Jimmy Johnson.

Irvin and the Cowboys looked to keep things going in the right direction as they hosted thier bitter division rivals with 1st place in the NFC East on the line.

The game got off to a fast start as Herschel Walker, in his second stint with the Cowboys, returned the game's opening kickoff 86 yards to the Eagles' six-yard-line as three plays later, Dallas would have the first touchdown of the game as Smith punched it in from one yard out.

Emmitt Smith ran for 113 yards on 24 carries and scored two touchdowns.

The Eagles would be a bit more methodically on their opening possession as they drove 75 yards in 13 plays as Detmer completed five of seven passes for 43 yards on the drive which ended with a five-yard touchdown run by Watters that tied the game at seven midway through the first quarter.

After the Cowboys went three-and-out on their next possession, the Eagles got the ball at their 19-yard-line as Detmer completed a 21-yard pass to Irving Fryar to start the drive, then found Fryar again for 13 yards on 3rd & 13 to give Philadelphia a 1st down at the 50-yard-line.

Two runs by Watters collected 18 yards to give the Eagles a fresh set of downs at the Dallas 32-yard-line as Detmer threw three straight incomplete passes to bring up 4th & 10 when Rhodes decided to go for the 1st down instead of attempting a long field goal.

The gamble would not pay off as Detmer threw another incomplete pass to give the Cowboys the ball at their 32-yard-line as Smith ran for 24 yards to start the Dallas possession as the Cowboys drove to the Eagles' 18-yard-line as the first quarter came to a close.

Five straight running plays for 17 yards set up 3rd & goal at the Eagles' one-yard-line when Aikman fumbled the snap from center to which he recovered at the two-yard-line, allowing for the Cowboys to settle for a 19-yard field goal by Chris Boniol which gave Dallas a 10-7 lead with 11:12 remaining in the second quarter.

Following an exchange of punts, the Eagles got the ball back at their 20-yard-line as they would drive down the field behind the right arm of Detmer as he completed passes of 16 yards to Fryar, 18 yards to tight end Ed West, and 24 yards to Mark Seay to help put Philadelphia at the Cowboys' one-yard-line with a 1st & goal.

After a false start penalty pushed them back five yards, the Eagles would get into the end zone as Detmer ran it in on a quarterback draw for a six-yard touchdown to give Philadelphia a 14-10 lead with 59 seconds left in the first half.

The Cowboys would run out the clock to end the first half trailing 14-10 as the Eagles would get the ball to start the second half, only to punt it back to Dallas who would begin its initial possession of the second half at its 25-yard-line.

From there, the Cowboys would drive to the Eagles' 19-yard-line in seven plays until the Philadelphia defense hunkered down and did not permit another yard to force the Cowboys to settle for a 37-yard field goal by Boniol which cut the Eagles' lead to 14-13 midway  through the third quarter.

The Eagles would start their next possession at their 25-yard-line with a 17-yard run by Watters which was followed by the running back being dropped for a six-yard loss to bring up 2nd & 16 when Detmer found Fryar for 18 yards and a 1st down.

After a pass interference penalty on tight end Jason Dunn pushed the Eagles back 10 yards, Detmer hit Seay for 12 yards, then after a six-yard run by Watters made it 3rd & 2, Ty found Fryar again this time for 12 yards and a 1st down at Dallas 26-yard-line.

Five plays later, Detmer would connect with Fryar again, this time for a 14-yard touchdown which increased the Eagles' lead to 21-13 with 1:57 left in the third quarter.

The Cowboys would respond with a 13-play, 84-yard drive which saw Aikman passes of 17 and 11 yards to Irvin, 14 yards to Kelvin Martin, and 15 yards to Sanders, all leading up to a seven-yard touchdown run by Smith to make it 21-19 as Dallas would attempt a two-point conversion to tie the game.

The Cowboys would successfully make the two-point conversion as Aikman completed a pass to tight end Eric Bjornson to tie the game at 21 with 10:14 left in regulation.

Eagles quarterback Ty Detmer completed 19 of 33 passes for 217 yards and threw one touchdown run while for another.

Following a three-and-out by the Eagles, the Cowboys got the ball back at their 28-yard-line as two plays netted two yards to set up 3rd & 8 when Aikman was intercepted by safety James Fuller to give Philadelphia the ball at the Dallas 35-yard-line.

After Detmer completed a 10-yard pass to Fryar to begin the drive, Watters would get the ball on five straight plays, picking up 12 yards to set up 3rd & 9 from the Cowboys' 12-yard-line when Detmer would throw an incomplete pass trying to hit Fryar again.

This would bring out Gary Anderson to come on and attempt a 30-yard field goal which he made to give the Eagles a 24-21 lead with 3:19 remaining in regulation.

After Walker returned the ensuing kickoff 24 yards to the Dallas 28-yard-line, Aikman and the Cowboys' offense came onto the field hoping to at least drive for a game-tying field goal or even better a go-ahead touchdown.

Aikman came out firing as he completed three straight passes for 21 yards, which was followed by a six-yard run by Smith to put the Cowboys in Eagles territory at the Philadelphia 45-yard-line as an offsides penalty and a 10-yard pass from Aikman to Martin put the Cowboys at the Eagles' 30-yard-line.

An eight-yard run by Smith and an incomplete pass would bring up 3rd & 2 when Aikman found Bjornson for 19 yards to give Dallas a 1st & goal at the Eagles' three-yard-line as the Cowboys seemed on the doorstep of scoring the game-winning touchdown.

The Cowboys would try to punch it in with Smith as he picked up one yard on 1st down, then lost that one yard on 2nd down to set up 3rd & goal from the three-yard-line.

That is when  Aikman dropped back to throw a pass into the end zone when under pressure from defensive end William Fuller, fired a pass that was picked off by linebacker James Willis, who instead of taking a knee in the end zone, ran out to his 10-yard-line then lateraled the ball to cornerback Troy Vincent, who ran the remaining 90 yards to increase the Eagles' lead to 31-21 with just 15 seconds left.

Vincent's touchdown effectively ended the game as the Cowboys threw an incomplete pass on the final play of the game as the Eagles came away with the 31-21 win as Philadelphia retained sole possession of 1st place in the NFC East.

However, the win over the Cowboys would be the highlight of the Eagles' season as they would drop their next three games as Philadelphia finished the regular season with a 10-6 record as they finished in a tie with Dallas for the NFC East which the Cowboys won thanks to a tiebreaker.

The Eagles would fall to the San Francisco 49ers 14-0 in the Wild Card round while the Cowboys would easily dispatch of the Minnesota Vikings 40-15 in the same round before being eliminated by the Carolina Panthers 26-17 in the Divisional Round of the NFC playoffs.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Kelly + Buffalo Outgun Young + 49ers in the "No Punt Game"

Bills quarterback Jim Kelly would throw for 403 yards and three touchdowns on 22-of-33 passing in the famous "No Punt Game".

For seven straight years in the 1990s, ESPN's Chris Berman would predict that the Super Bowl would feature the Buffalo Bills out of the AFC going up against the San Francisco 49ers of the NFC.

While the Bills would make four Super Bowls in a row and the 49ers would play in the NFC title game  six out of seven years between 1988 and 1994, neither team would meet each other in the Super Bowl.

The closest thing we got to a Bills-49ers Super Bowl was a Week 2 matchup that would see NFL history be made.

Both teams entered the game coming off Opening Day wins as the 49ers took care of the New York Giants 31-14 while the Bills would destroy the Los Angeles Rams 40-7.

The Bills were coming off back-to-back Super Bowl losses and hoping to make a run at a third straight appearance under head coach Marv Levy.

The Bills were one of the most complete teams in the NFL at that time as their famous no-huddle offense was led by quarterback Jim Kelly, running back Thurman Thomas, and wide receivers Andre Reed and James Lofton.

Plus, they had quarterback sack master Bruce Smith at defensive end and all-pro linebacker Cornelius Bennett on the defensive side.

While the Bills had been in the Super Bowl the previous two years, the 49ers had not having lost in the 1990 NFC Championship Game, then missing out on the playoffs in 1991.

By this time, Steve Young was fully entrenched as the 49ers' starting quarterback as he taken over the starting quarterback job from Joe Montana who had suffered an elbow injury in the 1991 preseason that kept him on the sidelines for two years.

Much like Kelly, Young had a strong cast of supporting characters on offense which featured running back Ricky Watters, who was in his first year in the 49ers' backfield, and the wide receiver tandem of John Taylor and the greatest wide receiver of all time, Jerry Rice.

With all this talent on offense on both teams, many fans were hoping for a shootout much like the one Kelly and Young had in the United States Football League(USFL) where Kelly lead the Houston Gamblers back from a 20-point 4th quarter deficit to defeat Young and the Los Angeles Express 34-33 as Kelly threw for 574 yards and five touchdowns on 35-of-54 passing while Young threw for 255 on just 13 completions.

The fans at Candlestick Park and watching on NBC would get that shootout and one of the best quarterback duels in NFL history.

The 49ers got the ball to start the game as they came out throwing as Young completed five of his first six passes for 53 yards in leading the San Francisco offense from their 22-yard-line to the Bills' 15-yard-line.

But that is where the drive started to unravel as Watters lost nine yards on a 1st down carry, which was followed by an incomplete pass, then a 10-yard pass to Rice, who was hit by Bills strong safety Henry Jones, leaving the All-Pro receiver with a concussion.

49ers kicker Mike Cofer would come on to attempt a 33-yard field goal but his kick sailed wide right and no good as San Francisco came with no points on their opening drive and had lost Rice for the rest of the game.

The Bills would take over at their 20-yard-line and would drive to their 47-yard-line until Kelly was sacked by 49ers defensive end Pierce Holt, knocking the ball loose which was recovered by linebacker Tim Harris at the Buffalo 40-yard-line.

Four plays later, the 49ers were in the end zone as Young completed a pass to Odessa Turner, who made the catch at the 10-yard-line, then ran in untouched for the 23-yard touchdown to put San Francisco ahead 7-0 with 3:26 left in the first quarter.

The Bills would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line and would quickly drive to the 49ers' 27-yard-line as Kelly connected with tight end Pete Metzelarrs for 20 yards and then Reed for 23 until the San Francisco defense rose up and forced Buffalo to settle for a 41-yard field goal by Steve Christie to cut the 49ers lead to 7-3 with 18 seconds remaining in the opening quarter.

San Francisco would begin its next possession at its 20-yard-line where after four plays picked up 18 yards they were faced with a 3rd & 6 when Young threw a short pass to Turner for the 1st down, who then cut upfield for a 57-yard gain to give the 49ers 1st & goal from the five-yard-line.

Rathman would get the ball on the next two plays with the last one being for a two-yard touchdown which increased the 49ers' lead to 14-3 with 11:53 to go in the second quarter.

Down by 11, the Bills needed a response as they took over at their 27-yard-line only to have Kelly throw two straight incomplete passes to start the drive.

But on 3rd down, Kelly threw a screen pass to Thomas, who turned into a 24-yard gain and a 1st down at the San Francisco 49-yard-line.

After Thomas was dropped for an one-yard-loss on 1st down, Kelly would hit Reed for 30 yards and another 1st down at the 49ers' 20-yard-line, which was followed by another incomplete pass, then a 20-yard touchdown strike to Thomas to bring the Bills to within four point at 14-10 with 9:35 left in the second quarter.

It would take the 49ers two plays to get inside the Bills' red zone as Young would connect with Mike Sherrard for a 39-yard catch-and-run which was followed by a 20-yard run by Watters to put San Francisco at the Buffalo 12-yard-line.

However, the Bills' defense would allow five more yards on the next three plays, forcing the 49ers to settle for a 24-yard field goal by Cofer to extend San Francisco's lead to 17-10 with 6:53 left in the first half.

Filling in for the injured Jerry Rice, 49ers wide receiver Mike Sherrard caught six passes for 159 yards.

Back came the Bills with a 10-play, 80-yard drive which included another big play on a screen pass as Kelly threw a short pass to Thomas who turned into a 43-yard reception, leading to Christie's 28-yard field goal to make it a 17-13 game with 2:31 before halftime.

That was plenty of time for the 49ers to drive down and put up some points on the board as San Francisco took over at its 20-yard-line.

Following an incomplete pass to start the drive, Young found Sherrard again at the 49ers' 33-yard-line, who then proceeded to run down the left sideline before he was knocked out of bounds at the Buffalo 24-yard-line.

Five plays later, Young found Taylor for a seven-yard touchdown to extend the San Francisco lead to 24-13 with 11 seconds left in the first half.

Kelly would take a knee to run out the clock in the first half came to a close with the 49ers on top 24-13 which saw Young throw for 257 yards while Kelly threw for 193.

But the fireworks were far from over.

The Bills would begin the second half with the ball at their 20-yard-line where it took them just five plays to get back into the end zone as Kelly found Metzelaars for a 47-yard touchdown to make it a four-point game at 24-20 just 2:27 into the third quarter.

Young and the 49ers would get the ball back at their 22-yard-line and drove into Buffalo territory where they faced a 3rd & 1 at the Bills' 44-yard-line when running back Keith Henderson lost the football after a hit by Smith, leading to a recovery by Bennett at the Bills' 40-yard-line.

After a two-yard run by Thomas to start the drive, Kelly would complete four straight passes as he hit Beebe for 13 yards, then Reed on back-to-back completions that totaled 21 yards, and then finishing it off with a 24-yard touchdown to Metzelaars to give the Bills their first lead of the game at 27-24 with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter.

Now trailing for the first time in the game, the 49ers got the ball at their 20-yard-line where after an one-yard pass to Rathman, Young threw a short pass to Taylor, who made the catch at the 29-yard-line, then spun around a defender as he made his way to the Buffalo 47-yard-line to complete a 32-yard reception.

49ers quarterback Steve Young would account for nearly 500 yards of total offense as threw for 449 and three touchdowns on 26-of-37 passing and ran for 50 yards on seven carries.

Watters would run the ball two straight times for 11 yards to pick up another 1st down when after a delay of game penalty pushed the 49ers back five yards, Young found tight end Jamie Williams, who was filling for an injured Brent Jones, at the Buffalo 28-yard-line, only for Williams to fumble the ball after the catch.

The ball was recovered by cornerback Nate Odomes whose 12-yard return gave the ball back to the Bills at their 39-yard-line.

Kelly and the Bills would drive to the 49ers' 40-yard-line until running back Kenneth Davis was stripped of the football by San Francisco linebacker Mike Walter, who was also recovered the fumble at the 40-yard-line.

Watters would run for 16 yards to start the drive but a sack of Young for 10 yards and an incomplete pass lead to a 3rd & 20 from the 49ers' 46-yard-line.

That is when Young threw a pass over the middle to Taylor, who made the catch at the Buffalo 32-yard-line and then ran into the endzone for a 54-yard touchdown to give the lead back to the 49ers at 31-27 with six seconds left in the third quarter.

Following the ensuing kickoff, the Bills would get the ball at their 29-yard-line to start the 4th quarter as Kelly would lead the Bills to the 49ers' 17-yard-line until he was picked off by 49ers strong safety Merton Hanks on a pass intended for Reed, giving the ball back to San Francisco at its 11-yard-line.

The 49ers would move the ball to the Bills' 48-yard-line when disaster nearly struck as Young fumbled a 3rd down snap, only to pick up and run for a nine-yard gain and a 1st down at the Buffalo 39-yard-line.

But on the very next play, Young would be intercepted by Odomes to give the Bills the ball back at their 28-yard-line with 6:48 left in regulation for Kelly to lead Buffalo to the go-ahead touchdown.

The drive would begin with a six-yard pass to Reed, then two straight runs by Thomas that gained eight yards, which was followed by a 16-yard completion to Metzelaars to give Buffalo a 1st down at the San Francisco 42-yard-line.

After a six-yard run by Thomas on 1st down and an incomplete pass on 2nd down, Kelly would find Lofton for 10 yards and a 1st down at the 49ers' 26-yard-line.

Thomas would pick up four more yards on 1st down which was followed by a quarterback sack by 49ers linebacker John Johnson that dropped Kelly for a 10-yard-loss and pushed the Bills back to the 32-yard-line where they faced 3rd & 16.

Kelly would connect with Reed for 12 yards, leading to a 4th & 4 situation at the 20-yard-line with 3:37 left in the game.

Knowing a field goal would would no them no good and the fact that the Buffalo defense had not stopped the 49ers all game, the Bills went for the 1st down which they got as Kelly found Lofton for nine yards.

On the very next play, Kelly handed the ball off to Thomas who ran up the middle for the 11-yard touchdown to give Buffalo a 34-31 lead with 3:04 left in the game.

Bills running back Thurman Thomas carried the ball 19 times for 85 yards, caught four passes for 91 yards, and scored two touchdowns.

That was plenty of time for Young to drive the 49ers down the field for the game-tying field goal or go-ahead touchdown as the 49ers had all three timeouts and the two-minute warning still to come as they would begin their ensuing drive at their 20-yard-line.

The drive started with a bang as Young found Sherrard for 21 yards and a 1st down at the San Francisco 41-yard-line, which was followed by an eight-yard run by Watters to set up 2nd & 2.

But an incomplete pass and an one-yard run by Young would set up a do-or-die 4th & 1 at the 50-yard-line with 1:47 to go.

That is when Young took the snap and ran around the left side for three yards and the 1st down at the Bills' 47-yard-line.

The 49ers would get five free yards as Smith was called for offsides to make it 1st & 5 when Young found Sherrard again this time for 12 yards and a 1st down at the Bills' 30-yard-line.

But then is when 49ers left tackle Steve Wallace got called for holding during a six-yard pass to Rathman, pushing the 49ers back 10 yards to the Bills' 40-yard-line to make it 1st & 20.

Young would hit Rathman for 11 yards, then fire two straight incomplete passes, forcing a 4th & 9 from the 29-yard-line when head coach George Seifert sent in Cofer to try and tie the game with a 47-yard field goal.

But just like in the first quarter, Cofer's kick sailed wide right and no good, giving the ball to the Bills with 54 seconds left as Kelly would take three knees to run out the clock as the Bills would come away with the 34-31 win.

In all, the two teams combined for 67 points and 1, 084 yards of total offense as both  quarterbacks would throw for over 400 yards in the first game in NFL history where neither team punted the football.

A rematch seemed plausible as the 49ers would finish the regular season with the best record in the league at 14-2 to earn home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs while the Bills would lose three of their final five games to finish with a 11-5 record earning them a Wild Card spot.

It was in the Wild Card round where the Bills famously pulled off the greatest comeback in NFL history as Frank Reich, filling for an injured Kelly, lead the Bills back from a 35-3 deficit to a 41-38 overtime win over the Houston Oilers, then lead Buffalo to a 24-3 upset win over the AFC's #1 seed, the Pittsburgh Steelers while the 49ers defeated the Washington Redskins 20-13 in the Divisional Round as both teams earned trips to their respective conference championship games.

Kelly would return for the Bills as they knocked off the Miami Dolphins 29-10 to win thier third straight AFC title but the 49ers fell to the Dallas Cowboys 30-20 in the NFC Championship Game as the Cowboys advanced to Super Bowl XXVII where they would destroy the Bills 52-17.

The Bills and 49ers would again make it all the way to the championship round the following season with the Bills knocking off the Kansas City Chiefs, who had traded for Montana in the offseason, 30-13 in the AFC Title Game while the 49ers lost to the Cowboys 38-21 in the NFC Title Game.

The 49ers would finally get past the Cowboys in the 1994 NFC Championship Game to advance to the Super Bowl but the Bills were not there as they missed the playoffs for the first time since 1987.

So while Berman's dream of a Bills-49ers Super Bowl never came, he still has this classic to watch over and over again.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Reggie Ho Kicks Irish To Win Over Michigan

Reggie Ho is lifted up his teammates after kicking four field goals in the 1988 season opener against Michigan.

Almost every Notre Dame football fan and most non-sports fans know the story of Rudy, the story of Daniel Ruettiger, a 5-6 walk-on who famously made his way on to the Notre Dame football team and made a quarterback sack at the end of the 1975 Georgia Tech-Notre Dame game and was carried off the field.
That story was made into the movie Rudy starring Sean Astin which came out in 1993 and has become one of the most beloved sports movies of all time.
While the movie never got a sequel, the story of a walk-on helping the Irish football team was given in the name of Reggie Ho, a 5-5 135-pound kicker from Hawaii who helped Notre Dame to a win over Michigan.
Ho came to the University of Notre Dame in 1985 in hopes of becoming a doctor like his father as he entered the pre-med program.
After two years at the university,  Ho decided to try out for the football team as a kicker.
Ho had experience as a kicker as he played soccer and football at St. Louis High School in Honolulu.
Ho was granted a spot on the Notre Dame roster by head coach Lou Holtz and kicked an extra point in the Irish's 56-13 win over Navy in 1987.
But Ho's story did not end there as he would be named the team's starting placekicker as the Irish opened the 1988 season against Michigan.
Michigan came to South Bend ranked #9 under head coach Bo Schembechler who was looking for revenge against the Irish after Notre Dame shocked the Wolverines 26-7 in Ann Arbor the year before.
If the #13 Irish were going to pull off the upset, they were going to need find a way to replace the production of Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown, who had accounted for 11 touchdowns the year before with three of them coming on punt returns.
The man assigned with the task of replacing Tim Brown on punt returns was sophomore Ricky Watters, who had spend his freshman season as a running back before being switched to returner and wide receiver before the start of the 1988 season.
Notre Dame would get the ball to start the game but would punt it to the Wolverines who would go three-and-out on their opening possession, forcing them to punt the ball back to Notre Dame where Watters was waiting to receive the punt.
Watters got the ball at his 19-yard-line bursted up through the middle, made a cut to his left at the Irish 35-yard-line and ran untouched for a 81-yard touchdown to put Notre Dame on top 7-0 with 10:11 left in the first quarter.
After both teams traded punts, the Irish would drive from their 42-yard-line to the Michigan 15-yard-line when on 4th & 3, Holtz sent Ho in to try a 31-yard field goal.
With the nearly 59,000 fans holding their breath, Ho calmly made the 31-yard field goal to increase the Irish lead to 10-0 with 35 seconds left in the first quarter.
Following the field goal, the Irish would be given another excellent opportunity to put more points on the board as Leroy Hoard fumbled the ensuing kickoff after a hit by Notre Dame cornerback D'Juan Francisco, which was recovered by his teammate, defensive end Arnold Ale to give the Irish the ball at the Michigan 22-yard-line.
But the Wolverines defense would not allow a 1st down and forced the Irish to call on Ho again to attempt another field goal, this one from 38 yards out.
Ho would come on and kick his second field goal in a span of 48 seconds as his 38-yarder on the second play of the second quarter increased the Irish lead to 13-0.

Ricky Watters scored the game's first touchdown on a 81-yard punt return early in the first quarter.

Now down nearly two touchdowns, the Wolverines desperately needed a big play on offense if they were to stay in the game and they would get that on the ensuing kickoff as Tony Boles' 59-yard return set up the Michigan offense at the Notre Dame 38-yard-line.
Michigan would convert on two straight 3rd down conversions as quarterback Michael Taylor hit Hoard on a shovel pass for 10 yards on 3rd & 10 from the 36-yard-line, then found Greg McMutry for eight yards on 3rd & 6 from the 22-yard-line.
The Wolverines would face a 3rd straight 3rd down but would come up one yard short of making the 1st down as Boles ran for five yards only to be stopped at the five-yard-line setting up a 4th & 1.
That is when Schembechler decided to go for the 1st down and got it when Taylor snuck for two yards to give Michigan a 1st & goal at the three-yard-line.
After Tracy Williams picked up two yards on 1st down, Hoard dove over the goal line for a one-yard touchdown to put the Wolverines on the scoreboard trailing 13-7 with 8:21 left in the second quarter.
The Irish would begin its next possession at its own 29-yard-line and drive to the Michigan 47-yard-line until a pass from quarterback Tony Rice bounced off Watters and was intercepted by Michigan cornerback David Key to give the Wolverines the ball at their 33-yard-line with 4:11 left in the first half.
Michigan would drive to the Notre Dame 45-yard-line before punting the ball back to the Irish who would run out the clock and go into the locker room with a 13-7 lead after 30 minutes of football.
Both teams would punt on their opening possessions of the second half and Michigan was set to punt after failing to pick up a 1st down on their second possession of the half.
But the Wolverines would catch a break when Watters muffed the punt resulting in a fumble that was recovered by Michigan at the Notre Dame 14-yard-line.
The Wolverines would drive to the one-yard-line where they were faced with 4th & goal when Schembechler decided to gamble again near the Notre Dame goal line and try to come away with a touchdown.
Taylor would punch it in for the touchdown that along with Mike Gillette's extra point gave Michigan its first lead of the game at 14-13 with 4:44 to go in the third quarter.
The Irish would get the ball back at their 22-yard-line when on 1st down, Rice threw his first completed pass of the game, a one-yard loss to running back Mark Green.
But Rice's second completion would go for 23 yards as he connected with Steve Alaniz for a 23-yard gain and a 1st down at the Notre Dame 44-yard-line.
From there, the Irish went back to the ground as they ran the ball eight straight times, picking up 46 yards to set up a 26-yard field goal by Ho to reclaim the lead on the second play of the 4th quarter.
Following Ho's third field goal of the game, the Wolverines would put together a drive that would take up over 8 1/2 minutes to complete.

Michigan running back Tony Boles was the game's leading rusher with 83 yards on 25 carries.

Michigan would begin its drive from their 20-yard-line where four straight running plays picked up 12 yards until Taylor hit Chris Calloway for 17 yards to give the Wolverines a 1st down at their 49-yard-line.
The Wolverines would then make two straight key 3rd down conversions as Boles ran for eight yards on 3rd & 1 at the Notre Dame 42-yard-line which was followed by a 12-yard run by Taylor on a quarterback draw on 3rd & 7 to give Michigan a 1st down at the Notre Dame 19-yard-line.
From there, the Wolverines would go backwards as a holding penalty and three runs which lost four yards would force Michigan to call on Gillette to attempt a 49-yard field goal.
Gillette would make the kick to give Michigan a 16-14 lead with 5:34 left in the game.
Notre Dame got the ball back at their 20-yard-line and went to the air on 1st down as Rice would throw an incomplete pass, only to get a 15-yard pass interference penalty on Key to give the Irish a 1st down at their 35-yard-line.
Rice kept the ball on the ground on the next play from scrimmage as he kept the ball on a quarterback option and around the left side of the Notre Dame offensive line for a 21-yard run to give the Irish a 1st down at the Michigan 44-yard-line.
Then after running back Tony Brooks was stopped after a one-yard run on 1st down, Rice would throw his third and final completed pass of the game, a 18-yard completion to Brooks to give Notre Dame another 1st down at the Michigan 25-yard-line.
Then after two runs by Green netted six yards, Rice ran for four yards and another 1st down at the Michigan 15-yard-line.
Three more runs would pick up six more yards setting up 4th & 4 from the nine-yard-line when Holtz sent in Ho to attempt the go-ahead 26-yard field goal.
Even though he had made three field goals already, the pressure was on Ho for this kick as if he missed the Irish would lose the game since they had one timeout left.
But Ho would connect on his fourth field goal of the game to give Notre Dame a 19-17 lead with just 1:13 left.
Michigan would get the ball back with two timeouts remaining in hopes of driving into field goal range and kick a game-winning field goal.
Disaster nearly struck on the ensuing kickoff as Boles dropped the kick only to pick it up and ran 30 yards to the Michigan 37-yard-line, giving the Wolverines the ball with 66 seconds remaining.
The drive began with Taylor hitting a 11-yard pass to Calloway for a 1st down, which was followed by a one-yard scramble to Taylor, forcing Michigan to call one of its two remaining timeouts with 43 seconds left.
Then after Taylor's 2nd down pass intended for Calloway fell incomplete, Taylor hit McMutry for 19 yards and a 1st down at the Notre Dame 32-yard-line.
Taylor tried to connect with McMutry again on 1st down but the pass fell incomplete which was followed by a Boles run up the middle to set up the field goal attempt as Michigan ran the clock down to three seconds before calling timeout.
Gillette would come on to the field to attempt a 48-yard field goal which would give Michigan a 20-19 win and break the hearts of Notre Dame fans.
Holtz called timeout in hopes of icing Gillette as the Michigan kicker prepared for his attempt to etch his name in Michigan lore.
Finally, Gillette was able to kick the ball which was long enough but sailed inches wide right of the goal line and no good as time expired giving Notre Dame a 19-17 win and set off a wild celebration in South Bend.

Notre Dame's Corny Southall celebrates after Mike Gillette misses his potential game-winning field goal on the last play of the game.

The loss to Notre Dame would be the first of two heartbreakers to start the season for Michigan as the Wolverines would blow a 16-point lead to the #1 Miami Hurricanes the following week to lose that game 31-30 and start off the season.
However, the Wolverines would rebound to go 8-0-1 for the rest of the regular season earn a trip to the Rose Bowl where they would defeat the USC Trojans 22-14 for the second Rose Bowl title in Schembechler's legendary career to finish the season with a 9-2-1 record and #4 ranking in both polls at the end of the season.
As for Notre Dame, they would win the national championship as the Irish would defeat the #1 Hurricanes in the legendary "Catholics vs Convicts" game which you can read by clicking on the link here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2017/11/college-football-old-school-game-of_8.html then knock off the USC Trojans 27-10 in a #1 vs #2 game at the end of the regular season to earn a trip to the Fiesta Bowl where they would knock off the undefeated West Virginia Mountaineers 34-21 to earn the school their 11th national title.
Ho would continue his role as the short-range field goal kicker as he would make five more field goals and convert 31 extra points over the course of the Irish's championship season.
Ho would graduate in the spring of 1989 with a degree in pre-med as he would spend the next four years at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine where would he receive his medical degree in 1993.
Ho is now living his dream of being a cardiologist as he specializes in electrophysiology at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.
But to Irish fans, Dr. Reginald Ho was always be the man he kickstarted Notre Dame's run to the 1988 National Championship.
(Below are the highlights of the game)

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Montana Gets Revenge on 49ers

Joe Montana would get payback as he led the Chiefs to a win over his former team, the San Francisco 49ers.

When the San Francisco 49ers traveled to Arrowhead Stadium for a game with the Kansas City Chiefs during the second week of the 1994 season, they would be going a familiar face at quarterback.
Joe Montana, who had become a San Francisco legend as he helped lead the 49ers to four Super Bowl titles in the 1980s, would be the starting quarterback for the Chiefs as they prepared to face San Francisco in one of the most anticipated games of the 1994 season.
After Montana suffered an elbow injury during the 1991 preseason which ultimately sidelined him for two years, he was replaced by Steve Young, who would finish as the NFL's top rated quarterback the following two seasons and lead the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game in 1992, which they lost to the Dallas Cowboys.
By then Montana was finally healthy and wanted to compete for the starting quarterback job, but 49ers management had decided that Young should be the starter and Montana the backup.
Montana then requested for a trade which was granted just before the 1993 NFL draft as the 3-time Super Bowl MVP was traded to Kansas City, along with defensive back Dave Whitmore.
Paired with former Raiders running back Marcus Allen, Montana lead the Chiefs to their first postseason victory since they won Super Bowl IV, with a 27-24 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card Round, followed by a 28-20 upset of the Houston Oilers in the Divisional Round, only to fall in the AFC Championship Game to the Buffalo Bills 30-13.
With Montana and Allen back and head coach Marty Schottenheimer at the helm, the Chiefs were considered Super Bowl contenders in 1994 just like the 49ers.

Steve Young and Joe Montana greet each other before thier much-hyped showdown during the second week of the 1994 season.

While expectations were high in Kansas City, there was more pressure for Young and the 49ers as they had fallen to the Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game for the second year in a row.
With an offense which featured running back Ricky Watters, wide receiver John Taylor, and perhaps the greatest player in NFL history, wide receiver Jerry Rice, nothing short of a Super Bowl title would satisfy the 49ers' fanbase in 1994.
But first they had to get by an old friend as both the 49ers and the Chiefs won their season openers the week before, with Rice breaking the record for most touchdowns scored by a NFL player in the 49ers' 44-14 rout of the Raiders.
 The Chiefs got the ball at their 33-yard-line and were able to drive down to the 49ers' five-yard-line, thanks to a pair of 3rd down conversions as Montana hit Willie Davis for 18 yards on a 3rd & 2, then hit tight end Keith Cash for six yards on a 3rd & 5, which was followed by a 25-yard pass to J.J. Birden to give Kansas City a 1st-and-goal.
But after three plays netted four yards, the Chiefs were faced with a 4th-and-goal from the one-yard-line.
That is when the normally conservative Schottenheimer decided to gamble and go for the touchdown.
Montana took the snap and lofted a pass for offensive lineman Joe Valerio, who lined up as an eligible receiver on the play, made the catch for the game's first touchdown to give Kansas City a 7-0 lead with 9:16 left in the first quarter.

Joe Valerio celebrates after his one-yard touchdown catch gave Kansas City an early 7-0 lead.

After both teams traded punts, the 49ers took over at their 30-yard-line when Young hit tight end Brent Jones for 30 yards on the first play of the drive to put the Niners in Chiefs territory at the Kansas City 40-yard-line.

The 49ers then went backwards as John Taylor lost three yards on a reverse which was followed by an illegal use of hands penalty on left tackle Steve Wallace, forcing a 2nd & 23 back at the San Francisco 47-yard-line.
But Young would hit back-to-back passes to Watters and Nate Singleton totaling 31 yards to give the 49ers a 1st down at the Chiefs 22-yard-line.
Then on the first play of the second quarter, Young found Jones for a five-yard touchdown to tie the game just three seconds into the second quarter.
After forcing a three-and-out, the 49ers got the ball at thier 45-yard-line and proceeded to drive 55 yards in 10 plays, culminating with a one-yard touchdown run by fullback Marc Logan to give San Francisco a 14-7 lead with just over eight minutes before halftime.
On their ensuing possession, the Chiefs drove from their 20-yard-line to the 49ers' 34-yard-line until Montana was sacked by 49ers defensive end Richard Dent on a 3rd & 9 that pushed Kansas City back to the 49ers' 43-yard-line and forced a punt.
However, punter Louie Aguiar was able to pin the 49ers back as his punt landed on the San Francisco three-yard-line.
Young was able to get the 49ers out of danger of a safety when he hit Rice for a 16-yard gain to the Kansas City 22-yard-line, only to have back-to-back penalties push the Niners back to their seven-yard-line where they faced a 1st & 25.
That is when Chiefs pass rusher extraordinaire Derrick Thomas struck as he ran past right tackle Harry Boatswain and sacked Young for a safety to give the Chiefs two points and cut the Niners' lead to 14-9 with 2:12 left before halftime.

Derrick Thomas sacked Young three times in the game, including one for a safety.

But after beginning their next drive at their 31-yard-line following the free kick, the Chiefs went three-and-out, punting the back to the Niners who took over at their 20-yard-line with a minute and a half left in the first half.
Young was precise on the drive as he completed four of six passes for 47 yards to set up a 43-yard field goal attempt by Doug Brien.
But Brien's kick sailed wide right and the 49ers' lead was still 14-9 as the first half came to a close.
After forcing the 49ers to go three-and-out on their first possession of the second half, the Chiefs got great field position as Danan Hughes returned the ensuing punt 43 yards to the 49ers' 42-yard-line, though the Chiefs would lose 15 yards because of an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, making Kansas City start its opening possession of the second half at their 43-yard-line.
The penalty would not haunt the Chiefs as they drove 57 yards in eight plays as Montana hit two big completions to Davis gaining a total of 34 yards and then fired his second touchdown pass of the game, an eight-yard pass to Cash that gave the lead back to Kansas City.
The Chiefs decided to go for two to give them a three-point lead and after Montana hit Birden in the end zone, Kansas City had a 17-14 lead with 8:43 left in the third quarter.
The KC defense would give their offense an excellent opportunity to extend the lead when strong safety Charles Mincy intercepted a Young pass intended for Jones and returned the pick 31 yards to the 49ers' 17-yard-line.
Four plays later, the Chiefs put another touchdown on the scoreboard as Allen ran it in from four yards out to increase the Kansas City lead to 24-14 with just under five minutes to play in the third quarter.
The Chiefs kept the momentum going as free safety William White intercepted Young on the second play of the 49ers' ensuing drive, giving Montana and the Kansas City offense the ball at their 27-yard-line.
This time, the Chiefs were unable to convert the turnover into points giving the ball back to the 49ers at their six-yard-line after another perfect coffin-corner punt by Aguiar.
Following an exchange of punts, the 49ers took over at their 20-yard-line and were able to drive to the Chiefs' five-yard-line as Young completed five passes for 46 yards.
After Watters picked up four yards on 1st & goal, the Chiefs called timeout to give their defense a rest in hopes they would rise up and keep the Niners out of the end zone.
The rest worked as defensive end Vaughn Booker dropped Watters for a one-yard loss on 2nd down, then Whitmore made his presence felt as stopped Young for no gain when the quarterback tried to run in on a naked bootleg.
With plenty of time remaining in regulation,49ers head coach George Seifert settled for the field goal, a 19-yarder by Brien to cut the deficit to a touchdown at 24-17 with 5:34 left in the fourth quarter.

Marcus Allen finished with 114 total yards(69 rushing, 45 receiving) and one touchdown.

Needing a defensive stop, the 49ers got one as they forced a three-and-out to get the ball back at their 31-yard-line with 4:14 left and a chance to tie the game with a touchdown.
But on 2nd & 4 from the San Francisco 48-yard-line, Young hit Taylor for a six-yard-pass, only to have Taylor lose the football when he was hit by Chiefes linebacker George Jamison, forcing a fumble that was recovered by defensive back Jay Taylor at the Chiefs' 46-yard-line, though Kansas City would lose 15 yards because of an unnecessary roughness penalty on Mincy as the KC offense took over at their 31-yard-line with 2:23 left.
With the 49ers defense expecting run on 1st down, Montana crossed them up and went deep for Allen, who made a 38-yard catch before being knocked out of bounds at the San Francisco 31-yard-line.
The Chiefs would stick to the ground for the rest of the drive as Allen carried the ball six straight times for 27 yards to run out the clock and give Kansas City a 24-17 victory and a win for Montana over his former team as "Joe Cool" finished with 203 yards on 19-of-31 passing and two touchdown passes while Young completed 24 of 34 passes for 288 yards and a touchdown, but threw two interceptions while Montana threw none.
The loss would just be a bump in the road for the 49ers as they would go on to finish the regular season 13-3 behind the league's #1 offense, finally defeated the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game, then destroyed the San Diego Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX as Young threw a Super Bowl record six touchdown passes, ironically breaking Montana's record of five touchdown passes he set in San Francisco's 55-10 win over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV.
As for Montana, the win over the 49ers would be one of the high points in a up-and-down season as the Chiefs finished with a 9-7 record and entered the playoffs as the AFC's #6 seed, where they would lose to the Miami Dolphins 27-17 in the Wild Card round.
Then on April 18, 1995, Montana announced his retirement from the NFL after 16 seasons in an event held at Justin Herman Plaza in San Francisco where "Joe Cool" was joined by former 49ers head coach Bill Walsh and other former teammates from San Francisco.