The Bowl Game Experience – Issue 3

THE OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF

AUGUST 2019 | ISSUE 3

Eleven Years, a Notre Dame–USC History

BY ANDY FURILLO

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CELEBRATING 150 YEARS OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL

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hey were born two months and 207 miles apart, in company towns of coal and rubber, destined to lead two of college football’s greatest empires.

Over 11 years, their teams clashed from South Bend to South Central, amid rain and glare and mud and grit and the roar of nearly threequarters of a million people who watched their teams play each other — more often than not — with the outcome playing Anthony Davis was key in helping USC win the 1972 National Championship. a crucial role in deciding the national championship.

Ara Parseghian of Akron, OH and John McKay the national championship if only they hadn’t of Shinnston, WV coached the Notre Dame-USC been upset in it by the other. Seven times, both rivalry to the height of its prominence. Five teams finished the season ranked in the top ten. times in the 11 years that they faced each other, Neither team ever finished any of those seasons from 1964 to 1974, the winner went on to finish ranked lower than 20th.

No. 1 in at least one of the post-season polls.

Bo Schembechler and Michigan vs. Woody Twice, the winner of the game would have won Hayes and Ohio State; Barry Switzer and

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Oklahoma against Tom Osborne and Nebraska; All-American halfback Nick Eddy, as reported on the Bobby Bowden and Florida State taking on Jimmy official Notre Dame athletics website: Johnson or Dennis Erickson at Miami — there have “McKay saw what was happening,” Eddy said, “so been lots of great coaches and traditional rivals he sent in a player with strict orders to stand over who created their own histories in their own eras.

Goeddeke and not touch him. That was about the Parseghian and Notre classiest thing I’ve ever seen Dame against McKay and in football.”

USC merits as strong an Students of the series argument as any of them as can all recount the dozens the best coach-and-program of memorable moments matchup ever. from the Parseghian-McKay Over the course of years. Chief among them: their rivalry, McKay and Rod Sherman’s touchdown Parseghian demonstrated catch for USC to ruin the respect they held for Notre Dame’s national each other by incorporating championship try in ’64; the the best of the other’s famous “Remember” game program into their own — the next year in ’65 when the the Trojans, after a couple of Irish destroyed USC in South mid-60s physical beatdowns, Bend; Notre Dame backup beefing up to hold up its end QB Coley O’Brien leading the NICK EDDY of the big-man competition; ’66 wipeout; Adrian Young’s and the Fighting Irish, intercepting four passes burned to a crisp by USC’s and O.J. Simpson running speed, eventually adding for three touchdowns for in its own element of the Trojans’ eventual ’67 athleticism. national championship; If any one moment of the ties of ’68 and ’69; the Parseghian-McKay USC wrecking another series tells the story of the Notre Dame national respect they demonstrated championship in the for each other, it came at Coliseum mud on a day in the end of Notre Dame’s which Joe Theismann threw 51-0 victory in 1966. In the for a school-record 526 final seconds of the Trojans’ yards in a the ’70 Irish loss; most humiliating defeat a 2-4 USC team upsetting in its history, Parseghian undefeated Notre Dame in relented to the pleadings the ’71 game that included of his injured senior center, a 20-minute brawl; Anthony George Goeddeke, who Davis returning two kickoffs had separated his shoulder for USC’s ’72 national the week before during the champs; Eric Penick’s 85fabled 10-10 tie against Michigan State, to send him yard run to highlight Notre Dame’s ’73 win and pave onto the field for the last play of the rout in the Los the way to an Irish national title; and finally, Anthony Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Davis doing it again to Notre Dame, another kickoff From his sideline, McKay picked up on the return that helped the Trojans turn a 0-24 deficit into substitution, according to a quote from Fighting Irish a 55-24 victory in ’74.

“

McKay saw what was happening… so he sent in a player with strict orders to stand over Goeddeke and not touch him. That was about the classiest thing I’ve ever seen in football.”

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Q&A

USC Trojan Mike Garrett won the Heisman Trophy in 1965.

Andy Furillo’s work has appeared in the San Francisco Examiner, Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, The Sacramento Bee & other newspapers. He is the author of two books, “The Steamer: Bud Furillo and the Golden Age of L.A. Sports” a chronicle of his father’s life & times as one of LA’s legendary columnists; and a novel, “The First Year,” published in 2017.

ROGERS REDDING

NATIONAL COORDINATOR OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL OFFICIATING

2019 Rule Changes

Every season, college football's rules are changed in some fashion, sometimes dramatically, but most times not. Rogers Redding is the National Coordinator of Football Officials. In this Bowl Game Experience Q&A, Redding outlined some changes for 2019, and the process whereby rules changes come to pass.

IN YOUR VIEW, WHAT IS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT RULE CHANGE FOR THIS SEASON? Let me suggest two changes — one in how the game is played, and the other in how it is administered. The playing rule change of greatest significance is the change in the blindside block. By definition, a blindside block is "an open field block initiated from outside the opponent's field of vision, or otherwise in such a manner that the opponent CONTINUED

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CELEBRATING 150 YEARS OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL

“Just the talent level from both teams,” recalled Dan McGrath, the former sports editor of the Chicago Tribune who grew up Irish Catholic on Chicago’s South Side and has loved Notre Dame ever since. “It was a great rivalry, the kind of rivalry where they didn’t hate each other, where they genuinely respected each other, and where they went after each other. You just looked forward to that game every single year.”

Over the 11 years, NFL teams drafted 27 USC and Notre Dame players on the first round, including three whom they made the overall first pick. The College Football Hall of Fame enshrined a combined 64 Trojans and Fighting Irish from those teams. Five of the players made the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Three of them — John Huarte for Notre Dame in ’64, and Mike Garrett in ’65 and Simpson in ’67 for USC — won the Heisman Trophy.

Then, of course, there were the coaches.

Parseghian and McKay each won multiple coach of the year awards, and both earned inductions into the College Football Hall of Fame — for the players they developed and the history they created.

“Always,” said Steve Bisheff, the long-time Southern California sports writer who is a USC graduate, “an epic game.”

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AUGUST 2019 | ISSUE 3

FIRST ACT

Kickoff Games Remain a Big Part of College Football

BY STEPHEN HUNT

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etween 1983 and 2002, the Kickoff Classic, a and Saban jumped at the chance to play on such a game where two top teams squared off at New big stage.

Jersey’s Giants Stadium, started each season.

“I said Nick, I’m starting this thing in Atlanta and An NCAA rule change made those games disappear would love to have you guys play,” Stokan recalled. in 2002, but their absence “He said ‘Gary, we’d love on the national schedule to. If we can be successful didn’t last long. winning recruiting wars in These neutral-site games Alabama and finish second returned in 2008 with the in Georgia, we’ll play for Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game at national championships.’

Atlanta’s Georgia Dome as Sports Illustrated had a Alabama defeated Clemson picture of the game (on the 34-10. cover) and said, ‘Alabama’s “In 2006, we bid for the back.’ Nick Saban has said BCS Championship Game that was the start of the and the commissioners successful run Alabama has decided to stay with the been on. We average almost four then-BCS bowls. We 70,000 people. It’s changed said if we can’t get into the the face of the frontside of BCS on the backside, let’s the college season.” start a BCS bowl on the Alabama will appear GARY STOKAN frontside of the season,” for a sixth time in Atlanta, Gary Stokan, President and this time against Duke at CEO of Peach Bowl, Inc. said.

Mercedes-Benz Stadium on August 31.

Stokan had a personal relationship with Nick In 2009, the Cowboys Classic, which paired BYU Saban, then in his second season coaching Alabama, against Oklahoma at Cowboys Stadium (now AT&T

“

In 2006, we bid for the BCS Championship Game and the commissioners decided to stay with the four then-BCS bowls. We said if we can’t get into the BCS on the backside, let’s start a BCS bowl on the frontside of the season.”

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Q&A

Alabama and Florida State kicked off the 2017 season in Atlanta.

cannot reasonably defend himself." The new rule says that it is now illegal for a player "to deliver a blindside block by attacking an opponent with forcible contact." The key words are "attacking.... with forcible contact." Note that this does not eliminate all blindside blocks, but it makes it illegal to blindside an opponent in attack mode with forcible contact.

The key administrative rule change is a progressive penalty for targeting. If a player is charged with a third (or more) targeting foul any time during the season, he is not only disqualified for that game, but he is also ineligible for the entire next game — whenever that game is played.

For the first two targeting fouls, there is no change from the 2018 rule: he is disqualified from the game for a first-half foul and the first half of the next game for a second-half foul. Starting in 2019, the progressive penalty kicks in with the third targeting foul. A third targeting foul, he is immediately disqualified and must also sit out the entire next game.

WHEN A RULE IS CHANGED, WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE UNDERTAKEN FROM THE 'SUGGESTION' PHASE TO AN ACTUAL CHANGE? Suggestions for rules changes typically come to the NCAA football rules committee from coaches, commissioners, officials, conference personnel, media people, etc. The committee may receive suggestions for changes at any time, and then the committee decides whether to formally consider the suggested change.

The committee will discuss the proposed change, either at its in-person meetings or on conference calls, and decide whether to go forward to recommend the new change.

CONTINUED

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Stadium) in Arlington, Texas, joined the mix. Known as the AdvoCare Classic since 2014, this game has featured Alabama three times and LSU and TCU twice each. This year’s August 31 contest matches Oregon against Auburn.

“When the stadium was being built, the Jones family thought college football would be a big part of the stadium,” said Chad Estis, Dallas Cowboys Executive VP of Business Operations. “Obviously, going into year 11 it’s worked really well. We’ve had a lot of interest from schools, incredible matchups, great atmospheres.”

College teams want the opportunity to play in an NFL stadium like AT&T, home of the Dallas Cowboys, but that’s not the only reason Arlington is such a desirable destination.

“They’re basically creating a bowl-like experience to start the year. The recruiting might be the most significant part,” Estis said. “Coaches know that kind of exposure, playing a prime-time, nationallytelevised game against a strong opponent in DallasFort Worth is a nice tool from a recruiting perspective.

There’s (also) the money. We make guarantees and schools certainly view that as important.”

In 2013, Oklahoma State defeated Mississippi State 21-3 at Houston’s NRG Stadium in the inaugural

ROGERS REDDING, CONTINUED

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THE OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF

AUGUST 2019 | ISSUE 3

AdvoCare Texas Kickoff. Successfully running the Texas Bowl since 2006 and then a kickoff game raised Houston’s visibility in the sports landscape, helping land the Bayou City in the CFP National Championship rotation.

“As we look to the future, the scheduling philosophy has certainly changed. The CFP has been of great benefit for the neutral-site games because the ability to play a quality Houston has hosted the Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl since 2006 and opponent early in the season has not the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff since 2013. been as detrimental to teams wanting to make it into that final four,” David The 2019 game features Washington State Fletcher, Lone Star Sports & Entertainment Executive and Houston on September 13, matching Dana Director, said. “You look no further than Ohio State Holgorsen, UH’s new coach, against Mike Leach. the first year.”

“It’s going to be a lot of fun seeing Dana and Mike,”

2018 TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS TOTAL OFFENSE

YARDS PER GAME

1 Oklahoma......................570

2 Ohio State......................536 3 Clemson.........................527 T-4 Memphis........................523 T-4 UCF..................................523 6 Alabama.........................522 7 Houston..........................513 8 West Virginia..................512 9 Ole Miss..........................511 10 Oklahoma State.............500

TOTAL DEFENSE

YARDS PER GAME

1 Michigan.........................263 T-2 Miami..............................268 T-2 Mississippi State............268

4 Clemson.........................277 5 So. Mississippi...............278 6 Appalachian State.........279 7 Iowa................................290 8 Cincinnati.......................291 9 Army...............................294 10 Alabama.........................295

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RUSHING OFFENSE

YARDS PER GAME

1 Georgia Tech..................325

PASSING OFFENSE

YARDS PER GAME

8 UCF..................................265

9 Ohio................................259

T-9 Hawai'i............................310

10 Clemson.........................248

T-9 Oklahoma State.............310

2 Army...............................313 3 Air Force.........................284 4 Memphis........................280 5 Navy................................276 6 Wisconsin.......................273 7 Georgia Southern..........266

1 Washington State..........374 2 Ohio State......................364 3 Texas Tech.....................353 4 West Virginia..................351 5 Ole Miss..........................346 6 Alabama.........................324 7 Oklahoma......................323 8 NC State.........................313

RUSHING DEFENSE

YARDS PER GAME

1 Michigan State.................81 2 Texas A&M.......................92 3 Clemson...........................93 4 San Diego State...............95 T-5 Utah................................102 -5 Cincinnati.......................102 T T-7 So. Mississippi...............103 T-7 Iowa................................103 T-9 Marshall.........................104 -9 Mississippi State............104 T

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PASSING DEFENSE

YARDS PER GAME

1 Miami..............................141 2 Michigan.........................146 3 Appalachian State.........148 4 Central Michigan...........151 5 Eastern Michigan...........160 6 Mississippi State............164 7 Temple............................166 8 Bowling Green...............168 9 Florida.............................173 10 Tulsa...............................175

Fletcher said. “Mike’s been a mentor and colleague with Dana. They have very fast-paced philosophies as it relates to offense. We expect a great show.”

Charlotte joined the mix in 2015 with the first Belk College Kickoff at Bank of America Stadium as South Carolina edged North Carolina, 17-13. On August 31, the Gamecocks, who will make their third appearance in the game, and Tar Heels meet again.

Charlotte also hosts the Belk Bowl in late December.

The Camping World Kickoff between Florida and Miami (FL) will be the first game of the 2019 season on August 24.

ROGERS REDDING, CONTINUED

DO SOME YEARS PRODUCE MORE RULES CHANGES THAN OTHERS, OR IS IT SOMEWHAT THE SAME YEAR-TO-YEAR? The process is that in odd-numbered years the rules committee may only make changes that directly impact the safety of the players. In even-numbered years, any proposed new rules or changes in existing rules are on the table. There doesn't seem to be a measurable trend in numbers of proposed changes from year to year.

WHAT OTHER RULE CHANGES WILL FANS SEE THIS YEAR? This one also has to do with the targeting rule. Every targeting foul is reviewed by the Instant Replay Officials, which has been the case for several years.

Starting this year, the targeting foul will either be 'confirmed' or 'overturned' by the Instant Replay Official — that is, the ruling of 'stands' is no longer possible for targeting. For other plays that are reviewed, such as whether a pass is complete or not, "stands" is still a possible outcome. But for targeting, "stands" is no longer possible.

HOW OFTEN DURING THE YEAR DOES THE RULES COMMITTEE MEET? WHO COMPRISES THIS GROUP? The rules committee meets in person once each year, typically in late February/ early March. There are 12 voting members, each of whom serves a three-year term.

The members are equally divided among the four divisions: FBS, FCS, D-II, D-III. They are head football coaches and conference administrators. A majority are head coaches.

Stephen Hunt is a North Texas-based freelance writer who has covered college football and myriad of sports since 2000. He also works as a TV broadcast assistant for Dallas Mavericks and Texas Rangers home games and does various college and pro games for CBS, ESPN and Fox.

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The most recent addition is the Camping World Kickoff in Orlando, Florida, first played in 2016 when Florida State defeated Ole Miss 45-34. After not having a game in 2017, the series renewed last season with Alabama defeating Louisville.

The 2019 edition will see in-state rivals Florida and Miami square off on August 24 at Camping World Stadium. “You’d like it to be (every year), but you put together games you think make sense for the teams and for the marketplace,” Florida Citrus Sports CEO Steve Hogan said.

In addition to the Camping World Kickoff, Florida Citrus Sports also operates the Camping World Bowl, the Florida Blue Florida Classic between two historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), a game played for over 20 years, and has recently partnered with the NFL to run the Pro Bowl.

Q&A

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