NFL Old School Game of the Week: Cardinals Rally From 23 Points Down to Shock 49ers

Roy Green raises his arms in celebration after his game-winning touchdown catch against the 49ers in 1988.

In Week 10 of the 1988 NFL season, the San Francisco 49ers would play their first ever game in the state of the Arizona as they took on the Phoenix Cardinals(they changed the name to Arizona in 1994).

It would be an experience that the 49ers would like to forget while for the Cardinals it would be one of the greatest victories in team history.

 On March 15, 1988, the NFL voted to allow Brian Bidwell, owner of the St. Louis Cardinals, to move his team to Phoenix, Arizona as the Cardinals would play their home games at Sun Devil Stadium, home of the Arizona State Sun Devils, in Tempe which is about 10 miles away from downtown Phoenix.

For the Cardinals' inaugural season in Arizona, the team was led by head coach Gene Stallings, who was trying to get Phoenix to the postseason for the first time since 1982 and the first time in a non-strike shortned season since 1975.

At quarterback was Neil Lomax, an eight-year veteran who had thrown for a franchise record 4,614 yards in 1984 and 3,387 in 1987, which was tops in the NFL for most passing yards by a quarterback as his favorite targets were wide receivers Roy Green and J.T. Smith.

Following an 0-2 start to the season, the Cardinals would go on a four-game winning streak as Phoenix would improve its record to 5-4 entering their showdown with the 49ers.

While the Cardinals were just hoping to make it to the playoffs, the 49ers had dreams of making it back to the Super Bowl as San Francisco had won two Super Bowls earlier in the decade behind head coach Bill Walsh and quarterback Joe Montana.

However prior to the 1987 season, Walsh traded two NFL draft picks to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for quarterback Steve Young, as the creator of the West Coast offense thought that Montana was on the tail end of his career especially after a serious back injury sidelined Montana for several weeks during the 1986 season.

For the 1988 season, Montana would start the game at quarterback but at certain times would be replaced by Young for a series of two, leading to confusion on who really was the 49ers' starting quarterback as San Francisco went 6-3 over the first nine games of the '88 season.

With Montana bothered by his back, Young would get the start for the 49ers' trip to Phoenix to take on the Cardinals as Young hoped to rely on running back Roger Craig and wide receiver Jerry Rice to lead San Francisco to victory.

The 49ers got the ball to start the game as they would use their running game to drive down the field with the biggest run being a 21-yard run by Young as San Francisco moved 53 yards in eight plays to set up a 42-yard field goal by Mike Cofer to give the 49ers an early 3-0 lead.

Neither team could mount a drive for the rest of the first quarter until the 49ers put together a 10-play, 70-yard drive that spilled over into the second quarter as fullback Tom Rathman accounted for 30 yards on the drive with a 16-yard reception and two runs for 14 yards, all leading up to a three-yard touchdown run by Craig to increase San Francisco's lead to 10-0 with 12:06 to go in the second quarter.

The Cardinals would start their next possession at their 27-yard-line as a four-yard run by Stump Mitchell and a quarterback sack by the 49ers' defensive lineman Michael Carter and Larry Roberts would force a 3rd & 14 situation when Lomax completed a 22-yard pass to J.T. Smith only for him to fumble after a hit by San Francisco strong safety Jeff Fuller.

Linebacker Keena Turner would make the recovery to give the 49ers the ball at the Cardinals' 44-yard-line where Young would complete a 14-yard pass to Rice which was followed by a 25-yard run by Craig would give San Francisco a 1st & goal at the Phoenix five-yard-line.

However, the Cardinals' defense would keep the 49ers out of the end zone as a quarterback sack by Phoenix defensive tackle Bob Clasby would stall the drive and force San Francisco to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Cofer which increased the 49ers' lead to 13-0 with 8:24 left in the second quarter.

49ers running back Roger Craig would run for 162 yards on 26 carries and score one touchdown.

The Cardinals would then have its best drive of the game thus far as they drove from their 20-yard-line to the San Francisco 46-yard-line thanks in large part to running back Earl Ferrell, who carried the ball on the first three plays of the drive, as he gained 25 yards on his three carries.

But it was Ferrell who would cough up the football after a hit by 49ers linebacker Mike Walter as free safety Ronnie Lott would make the recovery to give San Francisco the ball at their 38-yard-line.

The 49ers would go three-and-out as a holding penalty would wipe out an eight-yard run by Rice on 3rd & 1 which was followed by Young was running for 11 yards on 3rd & 11 only for an illegal block push the 49ers back another 10 yards to set up 3rd & 21 when Young was sacked once again by Clasby forcing San Francisco to punt the ball back to the Cardinals.

The Cardinals would once again move into San Francisco territory and once again Ferrell would fumble the football as Turner would make his second recovery of the first half to give the 49ers the ball at their 42-yard-line with 1:34 left before halftime.

The drive would begin with a 19-yard pass from Young to Rice which was followed by two runs by Craig for 12 yards and then a 15-yard pass from Young to Mike Wilson to give the 49ers a 1st down at the Cardinals' 12-yard-line.

But the 49ers could not put into the end zone as they ended up settling for another field goal by Cofer, this one from 30 yards out which increase their lead to 16-0 as the first half came to an end.

After the Cardinals went three-and-out on their opening possession of the second half, the 49ers would put together a 12-play, 75-yard drive that took over six minutes off the clock and did not end until Young threw a three-yard touchdown pass to tight end Brent Jones, the first touchdown of Jones' career, to increase San Francisco's lead to 23-0 with 7:20 left in the third quarter.

At this point you couldn't blame Phoenix fans for thinking the game was over but there was hope on the Cardinals sidelines that they could come back and win as one year earlier, the Cards scored four touchdowns in the fourth quarter to overcome a 25-point deficit and defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-28 in the largest fourth quarter comeback in NFL history.

Going to a no-huddle offense, the Cardinals would start their next possession at their 26-yard-line as Lomax would complete a 15-yard pass to Smith on the first play of the drive as three plays later, Phoenix was faced with a 4th & 1 when Stallings decided to keep the offense on the field and go for the 1st down which they got when Ferrell ran for two yards to give the Cardinals a fresh set of downs at the San Francisco 48-yard-line.

After Ferrell caught a pass for nine yards then ran for four more yards to give Phoenix a 1st down, Lomax would hit Green in the corner of the end zone for a 35-yard touchdown to put the Cardinals on the scoreboard as they cut the 49ers' lead to 23-7 with 3:39 to go in the third quarter.

The 49ers would hold the ball for the rest of the third quarter as they drove from their 25-yard-line to the Cardinals' 37-yard-line where they would face a 3rd & 5 as the fourth quarter began with an apparent 1st down as Young scrambled for eight yards, only for it to be nullified by a holding penalty to set up 3rd & 15 when Young was sacked by Phoenix linebacker Kevin Harvey, forcing San Francisco to punt the ball back to the Cardinals.

Taking over at their 34-yard-line, the Cardinals would drive down to the field on the right arm of Lomax as he would complete four straight passes for 52 yards to move Phoenix to the San Francisco seven-yard-line when on 2nd & 5, Green dropped a sure touchdown that ended up costing the Cardinals four points as they settled for a 24-yard field goal by Al Del Greco to cut the 49ers' lead to 23-10 with 10:51 to go in the fourth quarter.

Cardinals quarterback Neil Lomax would 19 of 30 passes for 214 yards and threw three touchdowns passes in the second half alone.

Following a 49ers three-and-out, the Cardinals got the ball back at the 50-yard-line as a holding penalty would wipe out a 11-yard pass from Lomax to Ernie Jones on 3rd & 10 as Phoenix ended up punting the ball back to San Francisco, only to get a reprieve as a holding penalty on 49ers cornerback Eric Wright before the punt gave the Cardinals a 1st down at the San Francisco 45-yard-line.

However, the Cardinals would end up punting the ball to the 49ers anyway as San Francisco would begin its next possession at their nine-yard-line hoping to some run clock as Craig carried the ball on three straight plays, gaining nine yards to force another San Francisco punt as the Cardinals would once again take over possession at the 50-yard-line with 4:11 to play.

From there, Lomax would complete four straight passes to four different receivers for 48 yards to put the Cardinals at the 49ers' two-yard-line with a 1st & goal to go.

But two incomplete passes and a run by Ferrell that lost three yards would set up a do-or-die 4th & goal when Lomax found Jones for a five-yard touchdown to make it a 23-17 game with 2:17 left in the game.

Stallings decided against an onside kick as the Cardinals still had two timeouts plus the two-minute warning as the 49ers would take over at their 15-yard-line hoping to pick up a 1st down to put the game away.

Craig would run for seven yards on 1st down, then would lose one yard on 2nd down to set up 3rd & 4 when Young kept the ball on a bootleg around the left side as he would try to stretch the ball to pick up the 1st down while being pursued by Cardinals linebacker E.J. Junior.

Young and the 49ers that he picked up the 1st down but the referees spotted him short which was reviewed by the instant replay booth and upheld, forcing the 49ers to punt the ball back to the Cardinals, who took over at their 34-yard-line with 1:27 to play in the game and needing a touchdown to win.

The drive would begin with Lomax completing a nine-yard pass to Smith which was followed by a 14-yard pass to Jones to give the Cardinals a 1st down at the 49ers' 43-yard-line where Lomax would throw an incomplete pass to stop the clock.

Lomax would then hit Smith for nine yards before connecting with Jones for a 25-yard completion to put the Cardinals at the 49ers' nine-yard-line when Lomax threw a pass out of bounds to stop the clock with six seconds to go.

Having perhaps just one chance to get into the end zone, Lomax lofted a pass for Green in the back of the end zone, who would make the catch despite good coverage from 49ers defensive back Darryl Pollard to tie the game at 23 with three seconds to go.

The play would be reviewed and upheld as Al Del Greco would come on to kick the go-ahead extra point as the 49ers could not pull off a miracle on the ensuing kickoff as time expired with the Cardinals on top 24-23 to complete the second greatest comeback in team history.

The collapse against the Cardinals would not be the low point for the 49ers as they would fall to the Los Angeles Raiders 9-3 the following week to drop San Francisco's record to 6-5.

Walsh would then name Montana the starting quarterback for the rest of the season as the 49ers would go on a four-game winning streak to clinch the NFC West division title with a 10-6 record as San Francisco would beat the Minnesota Vikings 34-9 in the Divisional Round, then knocked off the Chicago Bears 28-3 in the NFC Championship Game to send the 49ers to their third Super Bowl in eight years.

In Super Bowl XXIII, Montana would lead the 49ers on 11-play, 92-yard touchdown drive in the final minutes of the game as his 10-yard touchdown pass to John Taylor would give San Francisco a 20-16 win and its third Lombardi Trophy in what would be Walsh's final game as the 49ers' head coach.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals seemed destined to return to the postseason especially after defeating the New York Giants 24-17 the following week to improve their record to 7-4 only to go on a five-game losing streak to end the season with a 7-9 record as Phoenix failed to earn a playoff spot.

The following season would be a tumultuous one for the Cardinals as Lomax missed the entire season because of an arthritic hip, which would lead to his retirement in 1990, while head coach Gene Stallings announced he would step down as head coach at the end of the season, only for general manager Larry Wilson to fire him and replace him with running backs coach Hank Kuhlmann.

The Cardinals would go 0-5 under Kuhlmann as they would finish the '89 season with a 5-11 record as it would they would have to wait until 1998 to finally earn a trip to the NFL postseason.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Wazzu Wins Apple Cup to Clinch 1st Trip to Rose Bowl in 67 Years

 

Washington State fans tear down the goal posts at Husky Stadium following the Cougars' win in the 1997 Apple Cup.

The mid-1990s saw a number of Big 10 and Pac 10 teams make unexpected runs to the Rose Bowl.

It all started with the Wisconsin Badgers, who ended a 31-year drought with their Big 10 championship season in 1993, followed by the Oregon Ducks in the Pac 10 who ended a 37-year drought with their Pac-10 championship season in 1994.

1995 saw the biggest shocker of them all when the Northwestern Wildcats, who had not had a winning season since 1971, made it to the Rose Bowl, followed by the Arizona State Sun Devils who won the Pac-10 in 1996 to play in the Grandaddy of Them All after a nine-year postseason absence.

For 1997, it was the Washington State Cougars' turn to shock the college football world as Wazzu entered its regular season finale with the Washington Huskies with a chance to earn a trip to play in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1930

The Cougars were led by head coach Mike Price, who was in his ninth season at Pullman as the Wazzu head coach after led the Cougars to bowl appearances in 1992 and 1994.

Wazzu was not expected to contend for the Pac-10 crown in 1997 as the Cougars were expected to finish seventh in the 10-team league.

But led by eventual Heisman Trophy finalist Ryan Leaf at quarterback, the Cougars jumped out to a 7-0 start as they climbed into the top 10 of the AP and coaches poll until a 44-31loss to Arizona State early in November ended Wazzu's chances of a undefeated season.

The Cougars recovered to win their next two games to improve their record to 9-1 as Leaf threw for 3,279 yards and 31 touchdowns during the first 10 games of the season as the Wazzu offense averaged 42.6 points per game with a wide receiving corps that was nicknamed the Fab Five and running back Michael Black, who needed just 13 yards to cross the 1,000 mark.

If the Cougars could defeat their intrastate rival in the "Apple Cup" and UCLA could beat USC, Washington State would be playing in the "Grandaddy of Them All" for the first time in 67 years.

Standing in the Cougars' way were the Washington Huskies, a team that had accustomed to playing in the Rose Bowl as the Huskies had made six appearances between 1977 and 1992, which included a share of the national title in 1991.

The Huskies made those appearances under head coach Don James, who had resigned prior to the 1993 season as it was revealed several Washington players had received improper benefits which led to the NCAA banning the Huskies from postseason play in 1993 and 1994.

James was replaced by his defensive coordinator, Jim Lambright, who was still the Huskies' head coach as the 1997 season began with many experts predicting that the Huskies would return to the Rose Bowl.

With an offense that featured quarterback Brock Huard, running back Rashaan Shehee, and wide receiver Jerome Pathon, the Huskies were neck + neck with the Cougars at the start of November was Washington stood atop the Pac-10 standings with a 7-1 overall record, their only loss being to the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

But injuries, including one to Shehee, led to the Washington's downfall as they dropped their next two games to fall to 7-3 and eliminated from playing in Pasadena on New Year's Day as the Huskies looked to spoil their rivals' chances of playing in the Rose Bowl with a win in the Apple Cup.

Despite the game being played at Husky Stadium in Seattle, the Cougars entered the game confident as evident by wide receiver Chris Jackson, who during the week saying that the Cougars would hang 40 or 50 points on the Huskies.

The Cougars would get the ball to start the game and while going three-and-out was not the end of the world, a much bigger problem was developing as during the drive, Leaf got his throwing thumb stuck in the face mask of linebacker Jason Chorak, leading to a dislocation of Leaf's thumb.

Leaf would hide the injury as he kept his throwing hand in a hand warmer as the game would go along.

Cougars quarterback Ryan Leaf would complete 22 of 38 passes for 358 yards and throw two touchdown passes.

Following the Cougars three-and-out, the Huskies got the ball at their 29-yard-line as they would put together their longest drive of the season in terms of plays(14) and time of possession(7:53) as Huard would fire a 15-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jerome Pathon to cap off the drive and give Washington a 7-0 lead.

The Cougars offense continued their slow start as they went three-and-out again on their next possession, only to get the ball back one play later as Huard threw a deep pass intended for wide receiver JaWarren Hooker, who tore his hamstring while running his route, leading to a easy interception by Cougars cornerback Adesola Moronkola to give Wazzu the ball at its 27-yard-line.

From there, the Cougars would drive 73 yards in 14 plays, which took over six minutes to complete as Leaf completed 4 of 5 passes for 47 yards on the drive with the biggest completion being a 24-yard pass to Shawn Tims on a 3rd & 9 at the Washington 44-yard-line.

All this would lead up to an eight-yard touchdown run by Black that with the extra point tied the game at seven with 12:53 to go in the second quarter.

The Huskies would turn it over again on their next possession as Huard would be intercepted again on another deep pass, this time by Cougars cornerback Ray Jackson, brother of Chris, to give Wazzu the ball at its 30-yard-line.

A 16-yard pass from Leaf to Tims to start the drive would give the Cougars a 1st down at their 46-yard-line as the next two plays lost three yards to set up a 3rd & 13 when Leaf threw a deep pass for Chris Jackson, who made the catch at the Washington 20-yard-line, then ran over Huskies free safety Tony Parrish to complete the 57-yard touchdown and give Wazzu a 14-7 lead with 9:24 left in the second quarter.

The Huskies seemed poised to tie the game as they would drive to the Cougars' 22-yard-line until Huard was picked off for the third time in the first half as Wazzu defensive end Shane Doyle hit Huard's elbow just as he was about to throw, causing a fluttering ball that was intercepted by free safety Lamont Thompson to end the Washington scoring threat.

Leaf would then complete passes of 15 yards to Kevin McKenzie, 22 yards to Shawn McWashington, and 29 yards to Tims on a 14-play, 86-yard drive that culminated with a 20-yard field goal by Rian Lindell that increased the Cougars' lead to 17-7 as the first half came to a close.

The Huskies would get the ball to start the second half only for it to end with another interception, this time as an Huard pass bounced off the hands of Pathon and into the hands of Thompson to give Wazzu the ball at the Washington 40-yard-line.

Methodically, the Cougars would drive to the Washington three-yard-line when Black tried to run into in for the touchdown until he was hit by Huskies linebacker Marques Hairston, causing a fumble that bounced into the end zone.

However, Cougars left tackle Rob Rainville was able to fall on the football in the end zone for the unlikely touchdown to cap off the 11-play, 40-yard drive and increase Wazzu's lead to 24-7.

An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty following the extra point on the Cougars would help give Washington great field position to start its next drive as Pathon returned the ensuing kickoff 26 yards to the Huskies' 54-yard-line.

From there, Huard complete a 23-yard pass to tight end Cam Cleeland, then hit Fred Coleman for a 38-yard touchdown to cut the Cougars' lead to 24-14, only 50 seconds after the Cougars' last touchdown.

The Cougars would begin their ensuing possession at their 24-yard-line but penalties would back them up to the five-yard-line when on a 3rd & 29, Leaf was picked off by Parrish, who would run it back for a 32-yard pick-six to bring the Huskies to within a field goal at 24-21 with 6:04 left in the third quarter.

With the momentum now in favor of the Huskies, the Cougars needed a score as they took over at their 20-yard-line where it took them four plays  to get to the 50-yard-line where Leaf threw a pass for Chris Jackson, who made the catch at the Washington 25-yard-line and then outran his defender to get into the end zone and push Wazzu's lead back to 10 points at 31-21 with 3:58 left in the third quarter.

Wide receiver Chris Jackson backed up his trash talk by catching eight passes for 185 yards and scoring two touchdowns.

The Huskies would respond with an eight-play, 66-yard drive that was capped off with an 18-yard touchdown pass from Huard to fullback Mike Reed to trim the Washington deficit back to a field goal at 31-28 with only 15 seconds left in the third quarter.

Wazzu would begin its next possession at their 34-yard-line with a 14-yard pass from Leaf to Chris Jackson, followed by a 38-yard run by Black would put the Cougars at the Huskies' 11-yard-line.

Two plays later, the Cougars were faced with a 3rd & 15 when Leaf threw a pass intended for Jackson which fell incomplete but drew a pass interference penalty on the Huskies cornerback Mel Miller to give Wazzu a 1st & goal at the Washington three-yard-line.

Two plays netted two yards to set up 3rd & goal from the one-yard-line where Leaf tried to sneak it in into the end zone as he would recover his own fumble in the end zone to increase the Cougars' lead to 38-28 with 13:14 left in the fourth quarter.

The Huskies looked to respond as they  moved to their 49-yard-line where on 3rd & 12, Huard completd a 22-yard pass to Pathon to give Washington a 1st down at the Cougars' 29-yard-line, only for it to be wiped out with a holding penalty which pushed the Huskies back to their 33-yard-line which would lead to a Washington punt.

The Cougars would then put together a 12-play, 62-yard drive that included Leaf completing two passes to Jackson for 28 yards on the drive that ended with a 29-yard field goal by Lindell that increased Wazzu's lead to 41-28 with 4:12 remaining in the game.

Huard would then throw his fifth interception of the game on the Huskies' ensuing drive as once again the ball bounced off the hands of Pathon and into the hands of Thompson, who tied a Pac-10 record for most interceptions by a freshman in one game with three.

Wazzu would punt the ball back to the Huskies who would drive 78 yards in six plays, culminating with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Huard to Pathon that cut the Cougars' lead to 41-35 with just nine seconds to go.

Any chance at a Washington miracle were dashed on the ensuing kickoff as McWashington recovered the onside kick, allowing Leaf to take a knee and run out the clock as the Cougars won the game 41-35 that tied with UCLA's 31-24 over USC, clinched Washington State the Pac-10 title and secured its spot in the Rose Bowl as Wazzu fans would come onto the field and tear down the goal posts at Husky Stadium.

The loss would drop Washington to #21 in the rankings as the Huskies accepted an invitation to play the Michigan State Spartans in the Aloha Bowl in Hawaii where Shehee returned for Washington as he ran for 193 yards and scored two touchdowns to lead the Huskies to a 51-23 victory.

The Huskies would move up to #18 in the final AP and coaches poll as they finished with a 8-4 record as Lambright would be fired the following season after Washington went 6-6.

As for the Cougars, they would meet the Michigan Wolverines in Pasadena on New Year's Day with the Wolverines eyeing at least a piece of the national championship if they won.

Trailing 21-16 with 29 seconds to go, Leaf led the Cougars from their seven-yard-line to the Michigan 26-yard-line where with two seconds left, Leaf would spike the ball to stop the clock, only for the clock to run out as the game came to a close despite Wazzu's pleas that one second was left when the ball was spiked as Michigan came away with the victory to finish #1 in the AP poll while the Nebraska Cornhuskers finished #1 in the coaches poll.

It would not take the Cougars very long to get back to the Rose Bowl as five years after their Cinderella run in 1997, Wazzu returned to the Rose Bowl as they shared the Pac-10 title with USC but earned the right to go to Pasadena based on the Cougars' overtime win over the Trojans during the season.

However, the Cougars would fall to the Oklahoma Sooners 34-14 in what would be Price's final game as Washington State head coach as he left to become the Alabama Crimson Tide head coach, only to resign before coaching a single game following an off the field scandal.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Titans Hold Off Rams Rally in Super Bowl Preview

Titans quarterback Steve McNair would throw two touchdown passes while running it for another touchdown in Tennessee's victory over the Rams.

On October 31, 1999, the St. Louis Rams traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to take on the Tennessee Titans in a Week 8 showdown that would end by a preview of the Super Bowl XXXIV.

The Rams were the biggest story going on in the NFL at that time as they had jumped out to a 6-0 start behind head coach Dick Vermeil, who was in his third season as the St. Louis head coach following a 14-year hiatus after a seven-year stint with the Philadelphia Eagles which included an appearance in Super Bowl XV and quarterback Kurt Warner who just a few years earlier was bagging groceries at a Hy-Vee store in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Following an ninth straight losing season, the Rams made some changes in the offseason as they signed quarterback Trent Green to become St. Louis' new starter while acquiring running back Marshall Faulk from the Indianapolis Colts and using their first round pick to select wide receiver Torry Holt who was to be paired up with all-pro wide receiver Isaac Bruce.

With all these pieces on offense and a new play caller in offensive coordinator Mike Martz, the Rams felt confident they could be a dark horse to make the playoffs for the 1999 season.

However in the third game of the preseason, Green tore the ACL in his left knee following a low hit by San Diego Chargers strong safety Rodney Harrison, knocking him out for the season as many experts believed that the Rams were destined for a 10th straight losing season.

But like what Vermeil said in his press conference following Green's injury the Rams rallied around Warner and played good football as they won their first six games by average of almost 25 points per game as Warner throwing for 1,531 yards and 18 touchdowns to direct an offense which averaged 36 points per game, coining the offense to be known as the "Greatest Show on Turf".

While the Rams were dominating their competition, the Titans were finding ways to win in their 5-1 start to the season, which was seen as a rebirth for their franchise in more ways than one.

Prior to the 1996 season, Houston Oilers owner Bud Adams announced he was moving the franchise to Tennessee with the goal of having a new stadium ready to go in the city of Nashville by the start of the 1999 NFL season.

The Oilers spent the 1997 season in Memphis(To read about their first game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2017/09/nfl-old-school-game-of-week.html)but after low attendance, the team played their games for the 1998 stadium at Vanderbilt University in Nashville before moving into their brand new stadium on the east bank of the Cumberland River for the 1999 season.

That wasn't the only change for the franchise as the team changed its nickname from Oilers to Titans as new uniforms and colors were also introduced for the 1999 season.

The first official game as the Tennessee Titans was a 36-35 comeback win over the Cincinnati Bengals,  before a sellout crowd at the 69,213 seas Adelphia Coliseum as quarterback Steve McNair threw for 341 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Titans to victory.

But after the win over the Bengals, the Titans would lose McNair for several weeks as he underwent surgery to repair an inflamed disk in his back.

Neil O'Donnell would fill in for McNair and with the help of running back Eddie George, the Titans would go 4-1 over the next six weeks which included narrow wins over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens and New Orleans Saints.

As the Titans prepared for their showdown against the Rams, head coach Jeff Fisher kept a tight lip on whether or not McNair would get the start at quarterback as it was not revealed until a hour before kickoff that McNair would get the nod.

Rams running back Marshall Faulk would run for 90 yards on 16 carries while catching six passes for 94 yards and a touchdown.

The Titans would get the ball to start the game as McNair would complete a 15-yard-pass to Yancey Thigpen on the first play from scrimmage, then run for 13 yards on a 3rd & 7 to give Tennessee a 1st down at the Rams' 49-yard-line.

Two plays later, McNair would find tight end Frank Wycheck for a 13-yard completion and another Tennessee 1st down at the St. Louis 35-yard-line as runs by George for 19 yards and McNair for 11 yards would lead to a 1st & goal at the Rams' one-yard-line.

That is when McNair threw an one-yard touchdown pass to fullback Lorenzo Neal to cap off the 11-play, 80-yard drive to give the Titans an early 7-0 lead.

After both teams punted on their ensuing possessions, the Rams had the ball at their 28-yard-line when Warner was sacked by Titans linebacker Joe Bowden, who stripped Warner of the ball, as fellow linebacker Baron Wortham would recover the fumble and return it 8 yards to give Tennessee the ball at the St. Louis 18-yard-line.

On the next play from scrimmage, McNair would complete a screen pass to George, who would run into the end zone for the 17-yard touchdown that would increase Tennessee's lead to 14-0 with 2:41 to go in the opening quarter.

It would go from bad to worse for the Rams on their next possession when Warner collided with fullback Jeff Robinson which led to another fumble recovery by Wortham to give the Titans the ball back at the Rams' 26-yard-line.

This time it would take Tennessee two plays to get into the end zone as McNair completed a 16-yard -pass to Kevin Dyson then ran it up the middle for the 10-yard touchdown to give the Titans a shocking 21-0 lead with 1:24 left in the first quarter.

Following the Titans' two touchdowns in a span of 77 seconds, the game turned into a defensive stalemate as both teams traded punts until there was 1:07 left before halftime when Warner scrambled for 22 yards to give the Rams a 1st down at the Tennessee 33-yard-line as St. Louis was hoping to get on the scoreboard before the end of the first half.

The drive would stall however as the Rams would be forced to settle for a 54-yard field goal attempt by Jeff Wilkins, which fell short of the uprights and no good to keep the score at 21-0 in favor of the Titans after the first 30 minutes of play.

St. Louis would get the ball to start the second half as Ron Carpenter returned the opening kickoff of the second half 37 yards to the Rams' 43-yard-line where Warner and the offense would begin their next possession.

After throwing an incomplete pass on 1st down, Warner connected with Faulk on a swing pass for a 57-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-7 just 27 seconds into the third quarter.

Following a Titans punt, the Rams got the ball back at their 41-yard-line as Faulk would run for two yards to begin the drive, which was followed by a roughing the passer penalty on Tennessee defensive tackle Josh Evans to give St. Louis a 1st down at the Titans' 42-yard-line.

Warner would then hit Az-Zhair Hakim for 11 yards then Bruce for 21 yards to give the Rams a 1st & goal at the Titans' 10-yard-line as an incomplete pass and a seven-yard run by Faulk would set up 3rd & goal from the three-yard-line when Warner found Bruce in the end zone for the touchdown to make it a 21-14 game with 7:55 remaining in the third quarter.

Rams quarterback Kurt Warner would complete 29 of 46 passes for 328 yards and throw three touchdown passes.

The Titans would respond with a nine-play, 65-yard drive that took four minutes off the clock as McNair would complete passes of 17 yards to George and 34 yards to Thigpen to help set up a 27-yard field goal by Al Del Greco which pushed Tennessee's lead back to double digits at 24-14.

After an exchange of punts, the Rams took over at their 32-yard-line as the fourth quarter began with Warner completing an eight-yard pass to Faulk which was followed by Marshall running for three yards and a 1st down at the St. Louis 43-yard-line.

However, the drive would end with another St. Louis fumble as Faulk would be stripped of the ball by Titans defensive back Steve Jackson as Bowden would fall on the loose football to give Tennessee the back at the Rams' 46-yard-line.

The Rams' defense would force the Titans to go three-and-out as both teams would again trade punts until the 7:15 mark of the fourth quarter when St. Louis took over at its 20-yard-line, needing two scores.

The drive would begin with a 14-yard pass from Warner to Holt for a 1st down at the Rams' 34-yard-line as a quarterback sack by Evans would force a 2nd & 16 when Warner hit Ricky Proehl for 18 yards and a 1st down at the St. Louis 46-yard-line.

A six-yard pass to Hakim followed by a seven-yard run by Faulk would give the Rams a 1st down at the Titans' 41-yard-line when another quarterback sack and a holding penalty would bring up a 3rd & 21 situation when Warner connected with Hakim again, this time for 25 yards to give St. Louis a fresh set of downs at the Tennessee 27-yard-line.

After an incomplete pass, Warner would complete a 12-yard pass to Faulk to give the Rams a 1st down at the Titans' 15-yard-line when Warner found running back Amp Lee for the 15-yard touchdown that with Wilkins' extra point cut the lead to 24-21 with 2:14 left in regulation.

Having spent all of their timeouts, the Rams had no choice but go for the onside kick in hopes that they could recover it and drive down for at least a potential game-tying field goal.

It worked as linebacker Lorenzo Styles would fall on the football to give the Rams the ball at their 42-yard-line with 2:09 remaining for them to keep their undefeated season going.

Following a false start that pushed the Rams back five yards, Warner would complete a four-yard pass to Faulk followed by a 15-yard pass to Holt to give St. Louis a 1st down at the Tennessee 44-yard-line.

Three plays later, the Rams were faced with a do-or-die 4th & 10 when Warner found Hakim for 15 yards and a 1st down at the Titans' 29-yard-line as Warner would then spike the ball to stop the clock with 59 seconds remaining.

Warner would then complete passes of five yards to Hakim and four yards to Proehl to bring up a 4th & 1 at the Titans' 20-yard-line when Vermeil sent in the field goal unit to try and tie the game to send it into overtime.

However, Wilkins' 38-yard kick would sail wide right and no good, allowing the Titans to take a knee to run out the clock on their 24-21 victory to hand the Rams their first loss of the season while Tennessee improved to a 6-1 record.

Titans running back Eddie George had 17 carries for 68 yards while catching three passes for 35 yards and a touchdown.

The Rams would recover from the loss to finish the season with a 13-3 record which not only clinched the team's first playoff berth in 10 years but also earned them the #1 seed in the NFC playoffs thanks in large part to Warner's MVP season while the Titans would also finish the season with a 13-3 record but had to play in the Wild Card round of the AFC playoffs as they finished one game behind the Jacksonville Jaguars for the top seed in the AFC.

In the playoffs, the Titans stunned the Buffalo Bills 22-16 in their Wild Card game with a game-winning kickoff return by Kevin Dyson in the final seconds that would become known as the "Music City Miracle" as Tennessee would then knock off the Indianapolis Colts 19-16 in the Divisional Round and then beat the Jacksonville Jaguars for the third time in the 1999 season as the Titans' 33-14 victory clinched their trip to the Super Bowl in team history.

Meanwhile, the Rams knocked off the Minnesota Vikings 49-37 in a Divisional Round shootout behind Warner's six touchdown passes then won a 11-6 slugfest over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Championship Game to send the Rams to the Super Bowl for the first time in 20 years.

In Super Bowl XXXIV, the Rams would jump out to a 16-0 lead, only to have the Titans rally and tied the game with 2:12 to go in regulation to which St. Louis responded with a 73-yard touchdown pass from Warner to Bruce to put the Rams back on top at 23-16 with 1:48 to play.

The Titans would drive from their 12-yard-line to the St. Louis10-yard-line where on the final play of regulation, McNair completed a slant pass to Kevin Dyson, who was tackled at the one-yard-line by Rams linebacker Mike Jones as time expired with the Rams claiming their first Lombardi trophy with the 23-16 win.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Notre Dame Nips Texas A&M in Cotton Bowl

You couldn't blame the Notre Dame Fighting Irish or its fans for being angry that they had to play the Texas A&M Aggies in the Cotton Bowl Classic on New Year's Day in 1994 as they felt, especially their head coach Lou Holtz, that they should be playing for the national championship.

Late in the '93 regular season, the #2 ranked Irish defeated #1 Florida State 31-24 in the "Game of the Century" to claim the #1 ranking with a 10-0 record(If you want to read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2018/11/college-football-old-school-game-of.html).

The experts felt that a rematch should occur in that year's Fiesta Bowl if the Irish and the Seminoles won out for the rest of the regular season.

But one week after their win over Florida State, the Irish would be upset by #17 Boston College 41-39 as the Eagles won the game on a 41-yard field goal by David Gordon as time expiered, which would drop Notre Dame from #1 to #4.

The shocking loss also derailed the chances of a Florida State-Notre Dame as the Seminoles would win their final two games of the regular season to finish the season as the #1 team in the country which earned them an invitation to play #2 Nebraska Cornhuskers for the national championship in the Orange Bowl.

This led to the Irish accepting an invitation to return to Dallas to play in the Cotton Bowl where some of the Irish faithful hoped that a decisive victory over the Aggies could sway voters in the AP or Coaches Poll to vote Notre Dame #1 after all the bowl games.

The Irish were led by senior quarterback Kevin McDougal, who only become the Irish's starting quarterback when incoming freshman Ron Powlus broke his collarbone one week before the start of the 1993 season.

McDougal led a run-oriented offense that averaged 260.7 yards per game and featured a stable of running backs including Lee Becton, who rushed for 1,044 yards during the season while on defense, the Irish were led by All-American free safety Jeff Burris and cornerback Bobby Taylor that a unit that allowed 17.6 points per game.

The Irish were favored by a touchdown over their opponents, the Texas A&M Aggies, who came into the game ranked #6 in the coaches poll and #7 in the AP poll with a 10-1 record, their only loss being a 44-14 beatdown by the Oklahoma Sooners in the second game of the season.

A&M was led by R.C. Slocum, who had led the Aggies to their third straight Southwest Confernce championship and third straight trip to the Cotton Bowl

Under Slocum, the Aggies became known for their defense nicknamed the "Wrecking Crew" which led the nation in total defense in 1991 and was strong again in 1993 as the "Crew" led by All-American defensive lineman Sam Adams and cornerback Aaron Glenn allowed just 10.8 points per game during the regular season.

But if the Aggies were going to upset the Irish they were going to need a strong performance from their offense which scored a total of just five points in A&M's previous two Cotton Bowl appearances, including a 28-3 loss to the Irish one year before.

 Notre Dame would get the ball to start the game as they would drive 91 yards in 13 plays with all but one of those plays being a run as McDougal would keep it himself on a quarterback option for a 19-yard touchdown that put the Irish on top 7-0.

Not to be outdone, the Aggies would also drive for a touchdown on their opening possession of the game as A&M would drive 79 yards in 10 plays as quarterback Corey Pullig completed passes of 21 yards to Thomas, nine yards to tight end Greg Schorp, and 18 yards to running back Clif Groce, to set up an eight-yard touchdown run by running back Greg Hill, the first touchdown A&M had scored in a Cotton Bowl since their win over the Irish six years earlier.

Following a Notre Dame punt, the Aggies would get the ball back at their 40-yard-line as A&M would quickly drive to the Irish 22-yard-line as Hill busted loose for a 20-yard run which was followed by an 18-yard pass from Pullig to wide receiver Brian Mitchell.

However, the drive would stall as Pullig would throw three straight incomplete passes, forcing the Aggies to call on Terry Venetoulias to attempt a 39-yard field goal which would be blocked by Notre Dame cornerback Bobby Taylor to keep score at 7-7 as the first quarter came to an end.

Notre Dame running back Lee Becton ran for 138 yards on 26 carries.

The two teams would exchange punts at the beginning of the second quarter until the Aggies took over at their 23-yard-line as they would put together a drive that would last over seven minutes which included two 4th down conversions.

The first one came at the A&M 44-yard-line as Pullig sneaked for two yards to pick up the 1st down on a 4th & inches and the second one come on a 4th & 1 at the Notre Dame 15-yard-line as Pullig found running back Detron Smith wide open for the touchdown to give the Aggies a 14-7 lead with 2:56 left before halftime.

The Irish would hold the ball for over two minutes before punting it back to the Aggies who ran out the clock to go into the halftime break up 14-7 and set to get the ball to start the second half.

But the Aggies would go three-and-out on their opening possession of the second half which was compounded by a 12-yard punt by Kevin Bennett which gave the Irish great field position as they would begin their ensuing possession at their 49-yard-line.

From there, the Irish would drive 51 yards in eight plays, all of them runs, as Becton carried the ball four times for 32 yards on the drive, which culminated with a two-yard touchdown run by fullback Ray Zellers that help tied the game at 14 with 10:21 to play in the third quarter.

The Aggies would respond with a 10-play, 80-yard drive which saw running back Leeland McElroy run for 21 yards on the first play of the drive and then for 16 yards later in the drive to set up Rodney Thomas' one-yard touchdown run to put A&M back in front at 21-14 with 6:50 left in the third quarter.

Back came the Irish as they would move 65 yards in seven plays on a drive where Becton ran the ball three times for 30 yards and McDougal completed a 18-yard pass to Zellers, all leading up to a two-yard touchdown run by fullback Marc Edwards that with the extra point tied the game once again, this time at 21 with 3:48 remaining in the third quarter.

After both teams punted on their next possessions, the Aggies got the ball back at their 36-yard-line as A&M would overcome a 3rd & 17 situation as Pullig completed a 24-yard pass to wide receiver Tony Harrison to give the Aggies a 1st down at the Notre Dame 47-yard-line.

But two plays later, the Aggies would turn it over as Notre Dame linebacker Pete Bercich made a diving interception to kill the A&M drive and give the Irish the ball at their 45-yard-line.

It was a bit of redemption for Bercich as he had a potential interception slip through his fingers on Boston College's eventual drive for the game-winning field goal.

The Irish would advance to the A&M 43-yard-line before punting it back to the Aggies, who took over at their 10-yard-line as they would go three-and-out as they would be forced to punt and give Notre Dame great field position for their next drive.

The field position would become even greater as Michael Miller would return the punt 38 yards to the A&M 22-yard-line where the Irish would take over with 3:55 left in the game and a short field to drive for the go-ahead score.

Becton would run for eight yards on 1st down but would lose a yard on 2nd down to set up 3rd & 3 where Zellars picked up just one yard to bring up 4th & 2 as the Irish lined up to go for the 1st down only to call timeout with 2:22 left as an attempt to draw the Aggies offsides failed.

On came Kevin Pendergast, who would come on and kick a 31-yard field goal that split through the arms of a diving Glenn, who was attempting to block the kick, and just inside the right upright for a successful kick to give the Irish a 24-21 with 2:17 to go in the game.

The Aggies would begin their ensuing possession at their 31-yard-line with a chance to drive down for a potential game-tying field goal or game-winning touchdown, only to turn it over on the first play from scrimmage as at the end of an 11-yard run by Thomas, Irish free safety Jeff Burris would hit Thomas so hard it jarred the ball loose.

Taylor wound up recovering the fumble to give Notre Dame the ball at the Aggies 42-yard-line, giving the Irish a chance to run out the clock and clinch the victory.

However, the Aggies would force a three-and-out as they would spend their last two timeouts as A&M would start their next possession at its 20-yard-line with 1:10 remaining.

Pullig would give the Aggies hope for a miracle as he completed a 32-yard pass to Schrop to give A&M a 1st down at the Notre Dame 48-yard-line only to be followed up with a quarterback sack and an incomplete pass to force a 3rd & 17 at the Aggies 41-yard-line.

That is when Pullig connected with Harrison for a 24-yard completion that the junior wide receiver hoped to make a bigger play as he tried to lateral the ball to McElroy on a hook-and-ladder play which was disrupted by Taylor whose hit on Harrison caused him to pitch the ball over McElroy's head and into the arms of Notre Dame defensive lineman Renaldo Wynn.

Wynn's recovery allowed the Irish to take a knee to run out the clock as Notre Dame would come away with the 24-21 win for their second straight win in the Cotton Bowl.

The loss would only drop the Aggies one place in the final Coaches poll and two places in the final AP poll as they would finish #8 and #9 respectively in what would be their final trip to the Cotton Bowl as members of the Southwest Conference as the conference would dissolve following the 1995 season as A&M would join the Big 12 conference in 1996.

As for the Irish, they would finish #2 in both the AP and coaches' polls despite Holtz's campaigning that Notre Dame be voted #1 as Florida State would defeat #2 Nebraska 18-16 in the Orange Bowl as the Seminoles be declared the national champion for 1993 despite their loss to the Irish.

Kevin Pendergast looks on as to see to his game-winning field goal sail through the uprights.

The Aggies would begin their ensuing possession at their 31-yard-line with a chance to drive down for a potential game-tying field goal or game-winning touchdown, only to turn it over on the first play from scrimmage as at the end of an 11-yard run by Thomas, Irish free safety Jeff Burris would hit Thomas so hard it jarred the ball loose.

Taylor wound up recovering the fumble to give Notre Dame the ball at the Aggies 42-yard-line, giving the Irish a chance to run out the clock and clinch the victory.

However, the Aggies would force a three-and-out as they would spend their last two timeouts as A&M would start their next possession at its 20-yard-line with 1:10 remaining.

Pullig would give the Aggies hope for a miracle as he completed a 32-yard pass to Schrop to give A&M a 1st down at the Notre Dame 48-yard-line only to be followed up with a quarterback sack and an incomplete pass to force a 3rd & 17 at the Aggies 41-yard-line.

That is when Pullig connected with Harrison for a 24-yard completion that the junior wide receiver hoped to make a bigger play as he tried to lateral the ball to McElroy on a hook-and-ladder play which was disrupted by Taylor whose hit on Harrison caused him to pitch the ball over McElroy's head and into the arms of Notre Dame defensive lineman Renaldo Wynn.

Wynn's recovery allowed the Irish to take a knee to run out the clock as Notre Dame would come away with the 24-21 win for their second straight win in the Cotton Bowl.

The loss would only drop the Aggies one place in the final Coaches poll and two places in the final AP poll as they would finish #8 and #9 respectively in what would be their final trip to the Cotton Bowl as members of the Southwest Conference as the conference would dissolve following the 1995 season as A&M would join the Big 12 conference in 1996.

As for the Irish, they would finish #2 in both the AP and coaches' polls despite Holtz's campaigning that Notre Dame be voted #1 as Florida State would defeat #2 Nebraska 18-16 in the Orange Bowl as the Seminoles be declared the national champion for 1993 despite their loss to the Irish.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Vikings' First NFL Game is a Dominant Win over Bears

 

On January 28, 1960 the National Football League announced that they would be added a new franchise in Minneapolis, Minnesota that would begin play in 1961 and become to be known as the Minnesota Vikings.

For their first season, the Vikings hired Norm Van Brocklin as their first head coach despite the fact the former NFL quarterback who had no coaching experience as he had just retired after the 1960 season in which he led the Philadelphia Eagles to the NFL championship.

With the head coach vacancy being fulfilled, the Vikings began to fill out a roster through free agency, the expansion draft and NFL draft as Minnesota would sign quarterback George Shaw, the man Johnny Unitas replaced as starting quarterback in Baltimore, and acquire running back Hugh McElhenny from the San Francisco 49ers, who had run for 4,288 yards and caught 195 passes for 2,666 yards during his nine seasons with the Niners.

In the collegiate draft, the Vikings would easy the #1 overall pick to select running back Tommy Mason from Tulane, the first of a class of 20 players that included in the third round, the selection of quarterback Fran  Tarkenton from the University of Georgia.

Tarkenton would serve as the backup to Shaw as the Vikings prepared to host the Chicago Bears at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota on September 17, 1961 for the first ever NFL game played in the state of Minnesota.

The Bears entered the 1961 season hoping to bounce back from a losing season the year before as they finished with a a 5-6-1 record for only the sixth losing season since their inception back in 1920.

Led by head coach George Halas, the Bears came into the game with the Vikings as a two-touchdown favorite as many experts believed Chicago would easily dispatch of Minnesota to get the '61 season off to a good start for the "Monsters of the Midway".

 The Vikings would begin their first offensive possession in team history at their 24-yard-line with an incomplete pass that would become a 23-yard gain as Bears cornerback J.C. Caroline was called for pass interference to give Minnesota a 1st down at their 47-yard-line.

From there, the Vikings would drive to the Chicago four-yard-line until Mike Mercer came on to kick a 12-yard field goal(The goalposts were at the goal line in 1961)to give Minnesota a 3-0 lead.

The Bears get the ball at their 26-yard-line for their first drive of the game as they drove to the Vikings' 30-yard-line until a comedy of errors would push Chicago backwards.

First, Gallimore fumbled a handoff from Brown which resulted in a fumble which was recovered by the quarterback but not after a loss of 11 yards to set up 2nd & 21 when Brown was sacked for a 10-yard loss which was followed by a two-yard loss by Casares that would force the Bears to punt on 4th & 33 where  center Mike Pyle's snap sailed over the head of punter John Adams and was recovered by the Vikings at the Chicago 14-yard-line, giving Minnesota a golden opportunity to increase their lead.

However, the Vikings could only muster three yards on three plays, forcing them to settle for a 18-yard field goal by Mercer which would sail wide left of the goalposts and no good as the Bears would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line.

But just one play later, the Vikings would have the ball back as linebacker Clancy Osborne intercepted a Brown pass to give Minnesota the ball at the Chicago 20-yard-line to give the Vikings another chance to get into the end zone.

The Vikings would drive to the Bears' one-yard-line where they would face a 4th & goal when Van Brocklin decided to go for the touchdown instead of kicking a field goal as Shaw tried to sneak into the end zone only to be stopped for no gain to keep the score at 3-0 as the first quarter came to an end.

Following a Chicago three-and-out, the Vikings would take over at the Bears' 31-yard-line when Van Brocklin took out Shaw and inserted Tarkenton in as quarterback.

Fran Tarkenton would come off the bench to complete 17 of 23 passes for 250 yards and throw four touchdown passes while running it for another touchdown.

The change at quarterback would pay off as Tarkenton would complete a 15-yard pass to fullback Mel Trippett on 2nd & 8 which was followed by a 14-yard touchdown pass to Bob Schnelker, the first in Vikings history, to increase Minnesota's lead to 10-0 just 87 seconds into the second quarter.

The Bears would begin their next drive at their 34-yard-line where they would advance to the Vikings' 26-yard-line when on 4th & 6, Halas decided to go for the 1st down, which he got when Brown connected with wide receiver Johnny Morris for a 23-yard completion to give Chicago a 1st & goal at the Minnesota three-yard-line.

After he was stopped for no gain on 1st down, Casares would punch it in for a three-yard touchdown to cut the Vikings' lead to 10-6 as the extra point would not be attempted as holder Dick Norman would fumble the snap from center.

Following an exchange of punts, the Vikings would get the ball back at their 42-yard-line as a 26-yard pass from Tarkenton to Jerry Reichow and an nine-yard run by the rookie quarterback put Minnesota at the Bears' 23-yard-line until Tarkenton fumbled the football which was recovered by Chicago linebacker Roger LeClerc to end the drive and allow the Bears to run out the clock in the first half with the Vikings on top 10-6.

The Bears would get the ball to start the second half as they would start their ensuing possession at their 20-yard-line only for Gallimore to lose the football on the first play from scrimmage as Vikings linebacker Rip Hawkins would make the hit that would force the fumble that was recovered by strong safety Rich Mostardi to give Minnesota the ball at the Chicago 27-yard-line.

Tarkenton would complete two passes to McElhenny for 13 yards to give Minnesota a 1st down at the Chicago 14-yard-line when an incomplete pass followed by a quarterback sack by Bears linebacker Joe Fortunato for a 15-yard loss would set up 3rd & 25.

That is when Tarkenton connected with Reichow for a 29-yard touchdown that would increase Minnesota's lead to 17-6 with 12:37 to go in the third quarter.

After forcing the Bears to punt on their ensuing possession, the Vikings got the ball back at their 29-yard-line as four plays took Minnesota into Chicago territory to the Bears' 49-yard-line when Tarkenton hit Reichow again, this time for a 48-yard completion to give the Vikings a 1st & goal at the one-yard-line.

Three running plays that resulted in a cumulative loss of one yard would set up 4th & goal when the Vikings decided to go for the touchdown which they got when Tarkenton completed a swing pass to McElhenny, who was able to get into the end zone for two-yard touchdown to push the Minnesota lead to 24-6 with 3:10 left in the third quarter.

Things would go from bad to worse for the Bears on their next drive as Brown would be intercepted again, this time by Vikings free safety Charlie Sumner to give Minnesota the ball at the Chicago 49-yard-line.

Seven plays later, the Vikings were back in the end zone as Tarkenton ran it in for a three-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to extend the Vikings' lead to 31-6.

Halas would insert Billy Wade at quarterback on the Bears' next possession which lasted only two plays as Wade would be intercepted by Vikings cornerback Jack Morris, whose 25-yard return gave Minnesota the ball at the Chicago 17-yard-line.

A pass interference penalty would push the Vikings back 15 yards to the Chicago 32-yard-line where they would face a 1st & 25 when Tarkenton found Dave Middleton for a 24-yard completion to set up 2nd & 1 where a three-yard run by Triplett gave Minnesota a 1st & goal at the Bears' five-yard-line.

Two runs by Doug Mayberry for three yards and an incomplete pass would bring up 4th & goal when Van Brocklin again went for the touchdown instead of the field goal as Tarkenton would find Middleton in the back of the end zone for the touchdown to push the Vikings' lead to 37-6 with 10:28 to go in the game.(The extra point was blocked by the way).

The Vikings celebrate in the locker room following their historic upset over the Bears.

The Bears would get into the end zone one more time before the end of the game, a 10-yard touchdown pass from Wade to Gallimore, as the Vikings came away with a stunning 37-13 win in their first game in team history.

The Bears would bounce back from the embarrassing loss to have a winning season as they would finish with an 8-6 record which included a 52-35 win over the Vikings in the final week of the regular season.

As for the Vikings, their win over the Bears would be the highlight of their inaugural season as they would finish with a 3-11 record as Minnesota would have only one winning season during Van Brocklin's tenure as head coach which lasted through the 1966 season.

Van Brocklin would be replaced by Bud Grant, who in his 19 seasons in Minnesota, would lead the Vikings 11 division titles and four trips to the Super Bowl, with Tarkenton as the quarterback for three of those four Super Bowl appearances.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Iowa State Beats Iowa in Triple Overtime Thriller

Iowa State players hold up the CyHawk trophy after their win over Iowa in 2011.

While most college football rivalries often have their annual meeting towards the end of the season, the rivalry between the Iowa Hawkeyes and Iowa State Cyclones occurs at the beginning of the season as the two schools separated by 127 miles have met annually in September since the renewal of the series back in 1977(They played in November in 2001 because of the 9/11 attacks and did not play in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic).

Their game on September 10, 2011 is regarded as one of the best in the series as the Cyclones played host to their intrastate rival at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames with the winner set to receive the CyHawk trophy.

Iowa came into the game on a three-year winning streak in the rivalry having held the Cyclones to just 15 points over the previous three meetings.

Iowa was led by head coach Kirk Ferentz, who was in his 13th season as the Hawkeyes' head coach having led the Hawkeyes to bowl games in nine of his 12 seasons in Iowa City after taking over for the legendary Hayden Fry before the 1999 season.

The Hawkeyes were looking to improve off a 8-5 season the previous year as they returned running back Marcus Coker who had run for 219 yards in Iowa's 27-24 win over Missouri in the 2010 Insight Bowl, along with wide receiver Marvin McNutt, who lead the team with 54 catches and 861 yards in 2010 to go along with new starting quarterback James Vanderburg.

The Hawkeyes easily dispatched of Tennessee Tech 34-7 in their regular season opener before traveling to Ames to take on the Cyclones who looking to beat their intrastate rival for the first time since 2007.

Iowa State was led by head coach Paul Rhoads, who was in his third season as the Cyclones' head coach having led Iowa State to a bowl game in his first season in 2009 only to go 5-7 in 2010 and not make it to the postseason.

Like the Hawkeyes, the Cyclones had a new starting quarterback in junior Steele Jantz, who led Iowa State a narrow 20-19 win over Northern Iowa as he scored the game-winning touchdown with a one-yard run with 40 seconds left in the game.

If Iowa State was going to beat Iowa, they would need a better performance from Jantz, who overcome three interceptions to lead the Cyclones to victory the previous week.

The Cyclones got the ball to start the game as they would drive from their 26-yard-line to the Hawkeyes' five-yard-line in 10 plays to set up a 1st & goal when center Tom Farniok's shotgun snap went over Jantz's head and was recovered by Iowa defensive end Broderick Binns at the 18-yard-line to end Iowa State's first drive of the game.

The Hawkeyes would then put together a 12-play, 82-yard drive that over six minutes to complete as Vanderburg completed passes of 32 yards to Keenan Davis and 12 yards to Marvin McNutt that would move Iowa down into Cyclone territory where Vanderburg found Kevon Martin-Manley for a six-yard touchdown to give Iowa a 7-0 lead.

Following an Iowa State three-and-out, the Hawkeyes got the ball back at their 25-yard-line as their second drive of the game began with a 24-yard pass from Vanderburg to tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz  which was followed by five straight runs by Coker for 24 yards to put Iowa at the Cyclones' 27-yard-line as the first quarter came to an end.

As the second quarter began, Vanderburg would throw the ball on three straight plays, only completing one of those passes for four yards, forcing the Hawkeyes to settle for a 42-yard field goal by Mike Meyer to extend their lead to 10-0.

Iowa running back Marcus Coker(34) would carry the ball 35 times for 140 yards two touchdowns.

After an exchange of punts, the Cyclones drove to the Iowa 12-yard-line only to turn it over again as running back Shontrelle Johnson fumbled the football after a hit by Hawkeyes defensive lineman Thomas Nardo which was recovered by linebacker Tyler Nelsen Iowa the ball back at their five-yard-line.

But two plays later, the Hawkeyes would give it right back to the Cyclones as Coker would be stripped of the football by cornerback Leonard Johnson as linebacker Jake Knott would recover the fumble to give Iowa State the ball at the Iowa 12-yard-line.

Two runs by running back James White gained only one yard to set up 3rd & 9 when Jantz found wide receiver Darius Reynolds for a 11-yard touchdown to put the Cyclones on the board and the cut the Iowa lead to 10-7 midway through the second quarter.

The Iowa State defense would force the Hawkeyes to punt on their ensuing possession to give their offense the ball back at their 43-yard-line as Jantz completed three of four passes for 23 yards while running for 13 yards on four carries to set up a 54-yard field goal by Grant Mahoney, the fifth time he had made a field goal of more than 50 yards in his collegiate career, to tie the game at 10 with 41 seconds left in the first half.

The Hawkeyes would go three-and-out to start the second half but would pin the Cyclones back to their five-yard-line thanks to a 59-yard punt by Eric Guthrie as Iowa State would make it to its 18-yard-line until the Cyclones fumbled the football for the third time in the game as tight end Reid Branderhorst would lose the football following a jarring hit by Iowa linebacker Christian Kirksey, who would also make the recovery at the Iowa State 21-yard-line.

Iowa would move to the Iowa State two-yard-line thanks to passes of 12 yards to Davis and eight yards to Martin-Manley to help set up a 20-yard field goal by Meyer to give the Hawkeyes a 13-10 lead.

The Cyclones would get great field position to start their next drive as Josh Lenz returned the ensuing kickoff 51 yards to the Hawkeyes' 44-yard-line as Iowa State would drive 20 yards in six plays to set up a 42-yard field goal attempt by Mahoney, only for the kick to sail wide left and no good to keep the score at 13-10 in favor of Iowa.

From there, the Hawkeyes would drive to the Cyclones' 32-yard-line thanks to two passes from Vanderburg to Davis that totaled 28-yards and a 15-yard face mask penalty on Iowa State cornerback Jeremy Reeves, which would lead to a 50-yard field goal by Meyer which increased Iowa's lead to 16-10 with 3:58 left in the third quarter.

The Cyclones would begin their next drive at their 27-yard-line as a 57-yard pass from Jantz to wide receiver Aaron Horne, the longest pass play for Iowa State in six years, would help set up Jantz's eight-yard touchdown pass to Lenz that with the extra point gave the Cyclones their first lead of the game at 17-16 with 1:52 to go in the third quarter.

Following an Iowa three-and-out, the Cyclones would get the ball back at their nine-yard-line as Iowa State would take five minutes off the clock as they drove to the Hawkeyes' 20-yard-line when Zach Guyer would come on to attempt a 38-yard field goal.

However, Guyer's kick would sail wide right to keep the score at 17-16 as the Hawkeyes would take over at their 20-yard-line.

The Hawkeyes would drive 80 yards in 11 plays as Vanderburg connected with McNutt for 14 yards to start the drive and later in the drive for 29 yards to set up an one-yard touchdown run by Coker that with a two-point conversion where Vanderburg completed a pass to Davis in the end zone, gave Iowa a 24-17 lead with 5:50 left in regulation.

Iowa State quarterback Steele Jantz would complete 25 of 37 passes for 279 yards and throw four touchdown passes to go along with 42 yards on 16 carries.

Another long kickoff return, this time by Johnson for 40 yards, gave the Cyclones great field position as they begin their next drive at their 41-yard-line.

A false start penalty followed by two plays that picked up zero yards would set up 3rd & 15 from the Iowa State 36-yard-line when Jantz hit Horne for 19 yards and a 1st down at the Iowa 45-yard-line.

Two plays later, the Cyclones were faced with a 3rd & 10 when Jantz scrambled long enough for him to fire an apparent 45-yard touchdown pass to Chris Young only for a holding penalty to be called which negated the touchdown and pushed Iowa State 10 yards back to its 45-yard-line where they would face a 3rd & 20 situation.

That is when Jantz fired a deep back-shoulder pass that was caught by Reynolds for 40-yard gain to give Iowa State a fresh set of downs at the Iowa 15-yard-line.

An incomplete pass followed by a nine-yard pass to Darius Darks followed by a run by Jantz for no gain would set up a 4th & 1 when Jantz was able to run for two yards to pick up the 1st down and give the Cyclones a fresh set of downs at the Iowa four-yard-line.

Following two straight incomplete passes, Jantz would scramble around in the pocket before firing a four-yard touchdown pass to Darks that with the extra point tied the game at 24 with 1:17 remaining in regulation.

The Hawkeyes would take over at their 20-yard-line with two timeouts in their pocket 77 seconds to drive into Iowa State territory and maybe attempt a game-winning field goal in the final seconds.

Instead, Coker would run the ball twice for six yards to run out the clock and send the game into overtime, the first time in CyHawk series history that the game had gone into overtime.

Iowa would get the ball to start the overtime period as Vanderburg completed a six-yard pass to McNutt on the Hawkeyes' first play of the extra period which was followed by four straight runs by Coker with the last run being for four yards and a touchdown to give Iowa a 31-24 lead.

Needing a touchdown to extend the game, the Cyclones' overtime drive would begin with a 14-yard run by Johnson that along with a horse collar tackle on Hawkeyes free safety Micah Hyde gave Iowa State a 1st & goal at the Iowa five-yard-line.

But after two runs by Jantz gained only one yard followed by an incomplete pass, the Cyclones were faced with a do-or-die 4th & goal at the Iowa four-yard-line.

That is when Jantz would find Reynolds in the back corner of the end zone for a four-yard touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 31 and send it into a second overtime period.

It would take the Cyclones seven plays to get back into the end zone as a 13-yard run by Jantz on a 3rd & 9 at the 14-yard-line would set up an one-yard touchdown run by White which would give Iowa State a 38-31 lead.

It would only take the Hawkeyes two plays to get back into the end zone as Vanderburg connected with Davis for a 23-yard touchdown that with the extra point tied the game at 38 and sent it to a third overtime period.

Iowa would be unable to move the football on their third overtime possession as Vanderburg completed only one of three passes for four yards leading to Ferentz to send in the field goal unit to attempt a 39-yard field goal only for Iowa State get called for an illegal substitution penalty that moved ball yards forward to make it 4th & 1.

Instead of gambling to try and convert the 1st down, Ferentz sent in the field goal unit as Meyer would go on to kick a 34-yard field goal to give Iowa a 41-38 lead but giving the Cyclones a chance to win the game if they could score a touchdown on their ensuing possession.

Iowa State running back James White scores the game-winning touchdown.

A five-yard pass from Jantz to Lenz followed by a three-yard run by White would set up 3rd & 2 at the Iowa 17-yard-line when Jantz found Darks for nine yards to give the Cyclones a 1st down at the Hawkeyes' eight-yard-line.

Jantz would keep the ball and run for four yards on 1st & goal to put Iowa State at the four-yard-line when Steele tossed the ball to White on a quarterback option play to the right side as the sophomore running back who would run it for the game-winning touchdown to give the Cyclones a 44-41 triple overtime victory and the CyHawk trophy to Iowa State for the first time in four years.

The loss to Iowa State would begin up-and-down season for the Hawkeyes as they could never gain consistency during the regular season as they wound up going 7-5 and back to the Insight Bowl where they would play the Oklahoma Sooners where Bob Stoops, a former Iowa defensive back, would lead the Sooners to a 31-14 victory over his alma mater.

As for the Cyclones, they would win their next game over UConn to improve their record to 3-0 only to go on a four-game losing streak to fall behind .500.

Iowa State would then win its next three games, including a 37-31 overtime upset over #2 Oklahoma State to improve to 6-4, which was followed by two straight losses to end the regular season with a 6-6 record as the Cyclones would be invited to play Rutgers in the Pinstripe Bowl where they would fall 27-13 to end the season with a 6-7 record.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: East Carolina's Un"Believe"able Peach Bowl Comeback

East Carolina players hold up the Peach Bowl trophy after their comeback win over the Wolfpack

In 1987, the East Carolina Pirates knocked off the North Carolina State Wolfpack 32-14, marking the third time in five years that the Pirates had defeated the Wolfpack in a series which began in 1970.

Following the Pirates' victory which ECU fans tore down the goal posts of Carter-Finley Stadium, the home stadium of the Wolfpack, the rivalry was terminated by NC State which was a blow to East Carolina as they were a small independent while the Wolfpack played in the ACC.

Over four years later, the two programs separated by 85 miles would travel down to Atlanta Fulton County Stadium where they would face off in the 1992 Peach Bowl on New Year's Day to cap off the 1991 college football season.

The '91 season was a magical one for the Pirates as they went 10-1 in the regular season with their only loss being a 38-31 heartbreaker to Illinois in their season opener when ECU's rally from a 28-point deficit fell short.

Led by third year head coach Bill Lewis and senior quarterback Jeff Blake, the Pirates would not lose again during the regular season as they climbed to #12 in the polls after 4th quarter comeback wins over Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and Virginia Tech, leading to ECU fans to adopt the slogan "I Believe".

The Pirates would be invited to play in the Peach Bowl, marking the first time East Carolina had played in a bowl game since 1978 as nearly 20,000 fans would make the drive down to Atlanta to see their beloved Pirates take on the Wolfpack.

NC State came into the game ranked #21 in the country with a 9-2 record under head coach Bill Sheridan who was about to finish his sixth season as the Pack's head coach having led them to their fifth bowl appearance since his tenure began in 1986.

The Wolfpack were led by a strong running game which featured the stable of Anthony Barbour, Gary Downs, and Greg Mainor as the Pack ran for at least 200 yards in six of their 11 games during the season.

NC State welcomed back quarterback Terry Jordan for the Peach Bowl as he broke his left collarbone in the team's fourth game of the season as the Wolfpack looked to win their 10th game which would be the first time in school history that the Pack had achieved that feat.

 After the Pirates went three-and-out to start the game, the Wolfpack would begin their first possession of the game at their 32-yard-line as they would attempt only one pass on a 12-play, 68-yard drive that culminated with a two-yard touchdown run by Downs to give NC State a 7-0 lead.

Following a 35-yard return by Dion Johnson on the ensuing kickoff, the Pirates would drive 57 yards in six plays as Blake would complete all four of his passes for 42 yards on the drive with the last completion being a five-yard touchdown to running back Cedric Van Buren to help tie the game at seven with 5:22 to go in the first quarter.

The Pirates would force the Wolfpack to punt on their next possession to give their offense the ball back at their 40-yard-line as they would convert on a 3rd & 23 as Blake hit wide receiver Hunter Gallimore for a 33-yard completion to give ECU a 1st down at the 50-yard-line.

However on the next play, Blake would be picked off by NC State cornerback Sebastian Savage, whose 14-yard return would give the Wolfpack the ball at their 46-yard-line.

From there, the Wolfpack would run the ball six straight times to drive to the East Carolina four-yard-line when Jordan put the ball in the air and completed a four-yard touchdown pass to tight end Todd Harrison to give NC State a 14-7 lead just 50 seconds into the second quarter.

After both teams went three-and-out on their ensuing possessions, the Pirates would get the ball back at their 30-yard-line when they would rely on the running game to drive down the field as Van Buren carried the ball five times for 49 yards to lead ECU to a 27-yard field goal by Anthony Brenner to cut the NC State lead to 14-10 with 6:41 left in the second quarter.

The Pirates would take their first lead of the game with 1:39 left before halftime when Blake threw a bomb down the left sideline that was caught by Gallimore for a 55-yard touchdown to give ECU a 17-14 lead which they would hold after the first 30 minutes of play.

East Carolina quarterback Jeff Blake would complete 31 of 51 passes for 378 yards and four touchdown passes while running it for another touchdown.

NC State would get the ball to start the second half as they would drive 58 yards in 10 plays for the go-ahead touchdown as Jordan threw a short screen pass to wide receiver wide receiver Robert Hinton who would dodge two ECU defenders for the 14-yard touchdown to give the Wolfpack a 21-17 lead.

The Wolfpack defense would force the Pirates to go three-and-out on their ensuing possession to give their offense the ball back around midfield only to give it right back to ECU as linebacker Robert Jones would intercept a Jordan pass and return it 20 yards to give East Carolina the ball at the NC State 31-yard-line.

But the Wolfpack defense would allow only two yards on three plays to force a 46-yard field goal attempt by Brenner, which he missed to keep the score at 21-17 in favor of NC State as the Wolfpack offense would take over at their 29-yard-line.

From there, the Wolfpack would drive 71 yards in eight plays as Jordan completed two passes to wide receiver Charles Davenport for 39 yards to help set up an one-yard touchdown run by Manoir to increase the NC State lead to 10 points at 27-17 as the extra point would be blocked by Jones.

The score was still 27-17 as the game moved into the fourth quarter when Gallimore would muff a NC State punt that was recovered by wide receiver Shad Santee to give the Wolfpack the ball at their 49-yard-line as Jordan would lose one yard on a quarterback option run to set up 2nd & 11 at the NC State 48-yard-line.

That is when Jordan threw a backyard pass to running back Ledel George who then threw a deep pass for Davenport, who made the catch around the East Carolina 10-yard-line and then ran into the end zone for the 52-yard touchdown that with the extra point extended NC State's lead to 34-17 with 13:01 to go in the fourth quarter.

Things seemed hopeless for the Pirates especially after their ensuing possession ended in an interception when Blake threw a deep pass that was picked off by NC State defensive back Mike Reid.

But the Pirates would catch a break after they forced the Wolfpack to punt which ended up being a disaster for NC State as Tim Kilpatrick would shank the kick as it traveled only 10 yards to give ECU the ball at the Wolfpack 32-yard-line with 8:41 to play.

Lining up in the shotgun formation, Blake would start the drive with a nine-yard completion to Johnson followed by an eight-yard completion to Van Buren to give ECU a 1st down at the NC State 15-yard-line.

After throwing an incomplete pass, Blake would find Fisher for 13 yards to give the Pirates a 1st & goal at the two-yard-line as Blake would threw two straight incomplete passes to set up a 3rd & goal when the quarterback ran it in for a two-yard touchdown to cut the NC State lead to 34-24 with 7:26 to go in the game.

The East Carolina defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball back at their 20-yard-line as Blake would complete eight of 10 passes for 77 yards on the drive that was capped off with a 17-yard touchdown to Johnson to make it an one-score game at 34-30 with 4:18 remaining.

The Pirates would go for two after the touchdown but would fail to convert as Blake was stripped of the ball by NC State linebacker Tyler Lawrence to keep the score at 34-30, meaning that ECU needed a touchdown to win the game.

Hoping to pick up a few 1st downs to run out the clock, the Wolfpack went to their bag of tricks on the opening play of their next possession as they attempted an end around with the ball ending up in the arms of Davenport, only for the receiver to be dropped for a nine-yard loss by Pirates linebacker Jerry Dillon which ultimately killed the drive and forced another NC State punt.

Making up for his muffed punt earlier in the 4th quarter, Johnson would return the punt 27 yards to the NC State 41-yard-line where the Pirates would take over with 2:37 to go in the game.

The drive would begin with Blake hitting Johnson for eight yards to set up 2nd & 2 when disaster nearly struck for the Pirates as Fisher was stripped of the ball following another completion only for Van Buren to recover the fumble to give ECU a 1st down at the NC State 30-yard-line.

An incomplete pass and an eight-yard completion to Fisher would set up 3rd & 2 when Blake found Fisher again at the 15-yard-line who then split the NC State defense and dove into the end zone for the 22-yard touchdown that with the extra point gave East Carolina a 37-34 lead with 1:32 to play as Blake had completed 15 of 21 passes for 158 yards on the Pirates' last three drives.

Tight end Luke Fisher dives for what would be the game-winning touchdown.

Despite having given up 20 points in a span of 5 minutes and 54 seconds, the Wolfpack had a chance to win the game as they would begin their next drive at their 29-yard-line with all three timeouts left in their pocket.

Jordan would complete three straight passes to running back Chris Williams for 23 yards then would find Davenport for 12 more yards to put NC State at the ECU 36-yard-line when the Wolfpack burnt their first timeout with 26 seconds to go.

The timeout helped the Pirates more than it did the Wolfpack as ECU defensive lineman Zaim Cunmulaj and Derek Taylor chased Jordan out of the pocket and dropped for a quarterback sack which resulted in a 17-yard-loss for NC State as it was forced to spend its second timeout with 15 seconds to go.

Facing a 2nd & 27 situation, Jordan would complete a 23-yard pass to Hinton to put NC State at the ECU 32-yard-line as the Wolfpack would spend their final timeout with six seconds remaining.

Instead of attempting a Hail Mary to win the game, Sheridan would send in the field goal unit as Damon Hartman would come on to attempt a 49-yard field goal that salvage a tie for the Wolfpack(There was no overtime in FBS Football in 1991).

However, Hartman's kick would sail wide right as time expired with the Pirates on top 37-34 as many of the 20,000 East Carolina fans rushed onto the field to celebrate their Pirates' record 11th win of the season.

East Carolina would finish the season ranked #9 in both the AP and coaches polls while the Wolfpack would finish #24 in the AP and #25 in the coaches poll.

Almost a week after the Pirates' win in the Peach Bowl, Lewis would leave Greenville to become the head coach of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets where he lasted only two and a half seasons as he resigned following a 1-7 start during the 1994 season while Blake would go on to a 14-year NFL career which was highlighted by his 1995 + 1996 seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals where he there for over 3,500 yards in each season.

As for the rivalry between the Pirates and the Wolfpack, it has not become an annual affair but it has been played 14 time since their meeting in the 1992 Peach Bowl with both teams winning seven games each during that span.