NCAA Football Twilight Zone

Beginning with the Boise State, Oklahoma football game of 2007, strange things have been happening in the world of college football. These events have not only been interesting, but they have been great for NCAA football. The unthinkable, the impossible, and things that have never happened before have occurred this year on more than one occasion. A new era has dawned in the college game, and I expect it to continue. We have learned that a David can actually take down a Goliath. We have also learned that heart and will can spurn unconceivable upsets. Are we in a twilight zone era for college football, and if so, how long will it continue?

Upsets have happened in previous years, but never like the last year and a half. Starting with one of the greatest games that will ever occur on such a large stage, Boise State, Oklahoma. It was the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, and #7 Oklahoma was an overwhelming favorite as a Big 12 powerhouse, over a team that most people believed only made it their because of their cupcake WAC schedule. After a regulation of great football, highlighted by the Bronco’s fifty yard hook and ladder miracle to tie the game with seven seconds to go in regulation, the Boise State had proven that they belonged on the same field as the Sooners. The hook and ladder play was one of the most innovative and clutch plays ever in such a big game. It wasn’t even the most innovative or clutch play in its own game though. In overtime, after matching the Sooner’s touchdown, Boise State coach Chris Peterson made huge decision to go for two and win the game rather than taking the extra point and going to another overtime against a much deeper and bigger team. The decision paid off, as Boise State ran one of the most memorable college football plays ever. The Statue of Liberty, another amazing trick play was ran in by Ian Johnson to cap off the first game of the twilight zone era.

The next season of college football came around in the fall of 2007, and one of the first games of the season turned out to be arguably the greatest upset of all time. Appalachian State walked into the Big House as the ultimate David. They were a Division 1aa powerhouse, that #5 Michigan simply overlooked and took for granted. After four quarters of football, the team full of players who were not even considered good enough out of high school to play for a team like Eastern Michigan, proved to be a better football team than a team full of high school All-Americans, the Big 10 preseason favorite Wolverines. A lasting image of an Appalachian player blocking Michigan’s attempted kick to win the game, and running it back was a fitting finish to such a monumental upset.

The upsets didn’t stop there however. Two more impossible outcomes happened. Stanford, a 40 point underdog to USC, playing without it’s starting quarterback, walked into the Coliseum and shocked the number one team in the country, ending it’s 36 game home winning streak. An outcome like this simply was not supposed to happen, and really spread wise, for the gamblers out there, it was unthinkable. Granted, the Trojan’s starting quarterback, John David Booty, did hurt his finger a little, but USC’s second string would have been a 30 point favorite against the Cardinal. They were a bad team that had lost by 38 points to Arizona State at home just one week before!

The final extraordinary game happened in Lexington, Kentucky and I was lucky enough to be there, in the student section. Kentucky had started the season 5-1 and was off to their best start in years. The Wildcats had lost to South Carolina 38-23 the previous week, but #1 LSU was not overlooking the 17th ranked Cats, who had already knocked off a top 10 team, Louisville, in Commonwealth Stadium. It was the greatest football game I have ever been to. Kentucky kept it close throughout the first half, but LSU looked like an NFL team out there, and was simply pushing Kentucky around. One could just feel that LSU was going to take over the game at some point, unless you were a true blue fan who had drank some blue kool-aid. Late in the third quarter, LSU went up 27-14, and most of the nation probably thought the game was over. The Cats did not, and battled back with a touchdown and two field goals, while holding LSU scoreless in the fourth quarter to tie it up and send it to OT. After two overtimes of back and forth football, Heisman candidate Andre Woodson drove his team to the seven yard line. On third down he hit Steve Johnson in the end zone to put the Wildcats up 6. The Tigers were soon forced into a fourth and two situation, and gave the ball to their bull, Jacob Hester, who was stopped in an epic play of smash mouth football, by a pain train, Braxton Kelley. Kentucky football, a program once notorious for losing, had put itself on the map officially. The field was stormed, and yes, I took part.

These games were not supposed to happen, according to the talent differential from the favorite to the underdog, but did because of the heart and will of each of the players who helped take down the powerhouse programs. Great coaching is also necessary, as football is about execution. Every college football fan loves when these big time upsets occur, unless their team was the one who lost to the underdog. It is great for the game, and I expect these incredible upsets to continue to occur in the future, as there is two teams in each game. Lower level teams are becoming more talented each year as more good football players are being produced each year. No matter how big or fast each team is, there will always be the chance that the underdog can pull off the impossible if they have kids who can play the game. Will this era of craziness in college football continue next season? Who will be the next App State or Kentucky? Guess we’ll just have to wait and find out!