Miami-Duke finish joins wildest in college football history
Ninety-one yards. Eight laterals. Four officiating mistakes, according to the ACC. No time left on the clock. And, after all of it, a 30-27 Miami victory on Saturday night against Duke that immediately joined college football lore.
The end of Miami’s victory at Wallace Wade Stadium immediately joined a short list, taking its place alongside the wildest finishes in college football history. A look at the company it keeps:
Stanford at Cal, Nov. 20, 1982
The ending most similar to what happened at Duke on Saturday night came here, on what’s remembered simply as “The Play.” Stanford took a 20-19 lead on a field goal with seconds left. Then came the ensuing kickoff. Cal used five laterals, some of which might have been illegal, during a touchdown return that gave it a 25-20 victory as time expired. Oh – and did we mention the return went through the Stanford band, which was on the field thinking the game had ended? Or that one of the laterals might have come after a Cal player should have been ruled down? (Sound familiar, Duke?)
Colorado at Missouri, Oct. 6, 1990
There’s still debate about whether Colorado quarterback Charles Johnson crossed the goal line on a quarterback sneak to give the Buffaloes a 33-31 victory as time expired. What’s not debatable: the game-winning play came on “fifth down,” after the chain crew failed to flip the down marker on second down. Colorado went on to win a share of the national championship with Georgia Tech.
Alabama at Auburn, Nov. 30, 2013
The Iron Bowl was tied at 28 with one second to play when Alabama lined up for a 57-yard field. You know how this story ends: The field goal attempt was short and Auburn’s Chris Davis caught it in the back of the end zone, began running and didn’t stop until he reached the other end of the field. His 100-yard touchdown return gave Auburn the 34-28 win and gave the Iron Bowl its most dramatic finish ever.
Michigan State at Michigan, Oct. 17, 2015
It was the craziest, wildest ending in years … until the very next week at Georgia Tech, and until Saturday night at Duke. But still: Michigan led 23-21 in the final seconds and needed only to get off a punt and not allow a touchdown return to wrap up a long-awaited victory against a fierce rival. But the snap was low, punter Blake O’Neill couldn’t hold onto it and Spartans safety Jalen Watts-Jackson returned it 38 yards for a touchdown and a 27-23 Michigan State win as time expired.
Florida State at Georgia Tech, Oct. 24, 2015
One week after the theatrics at Michigan, Georgia Tech beat Florida State 22-16 after blocking a field goal, scooping up the loose ball and returning it for a game-winning touchdown with no time remaining. The Seminoles hadn’t lost a regular-season game since 2012, but that was before Georgia Tech defensive back Lance Austin recovered the blocked kick and began his improbable sprint down the field.
Andrew Carter
This story was originally published November 1, 2015 at 5:10 PM with the headline "Miami-Duke finish joins wildest in college football history."