When There Were Ties

How many of you are old enough to remember the 10-10 tie Notre Dame and Michigan St. played in 1966? Probably only a few of us. The game was played on November 19, 1966 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. I waited and waited for that doggone game and I sat there and watched every minute of it. You see, back then there was only one college game televised per week. That’s right, ONE! There was no ESPN, FOX, TNN, BTN, or anything other than the big three - ABC, NBC, and CBS. Only one had the rights to the game of the week. So, I looked forward to that one game on TV every week and it was just about always the premier game in the country. They could afford to be very picky.

Notre Dame and Michigan St. were ranked #1 and #2 all season. Notre Dame was ranked #1 in one poll and #2 in the other. MSU was ranked #2 in one poll and #1 in the other. So, who was really #1? This game would decide it. They both came into the game undefeated, ND 8-0 and MSU 9-0. The buildup for the game was tremendous; this was the first time in 20 years that a college football game was given the "Game of the Century" tag by the national media. The Spartans were coached by old Duffy Daugherty, the veteran coach of the Big Ten. The Irish were coached by the legendary Ara Parseghian, one of the best. I was about 15 years old and a football junkie. On Saturday mornings I played on the high school sophomore team, Friday nights I went to the varsity game, Saturday afternoon I watched the college game of the week and on Sunday I watched the Bears or Packers. Homework? I don’t remember doing it-I disliked school work very much. I’m not proud of that, but that was me. Oh yeah, no girlfriend either. Got in the way of football. So, there I sat in front of that TV with my Pepsi and snacks.

Irish quarterback Terry Hanratty was knocked out after getting sacked in the first quarter by Spartan defensive lineman Bubba Smith. Michigan State jumped out to 7-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter. Later in the half they added a field goal for a 10-0 lead. But the Irish came right back scoring on about a 35 yard pass play. MSU took a 10-7 lead to the half. I was enjoying a great game. Notre Dame tied the game early in the 4th quarter on a field goal. Who was going to get the winning score? I was ready for an exciting finish. Late in the game, Notre Dame had the ball on its own 30-yard line with 1:10 to go. They needed about 40 yards for a game-winning field goal. But Coach Parseghian, not wanting to risk a turnover that could hand the game to the Spartans, chose to run the clock out, preserving the tie and Notre Dame's # 1 ranking. The last play of the game was a QB sneak by Notre Dame that gained 5 yards. Game over. I sat there, Pepsi in hand, staring blankly at the TV. A tie? I waited and watched all that for a tie?

For over 40 years, Parseghian has defended his end-of-the-game strategy, which left many fans feeling disappointed at the game not having some sort of resolution. Michigan State fans and other Notre Dame detractors called him a coward, and college football expert Dan Jenkins lead off his article for Sports Illustrated by saying Parseghian chose to "Tie one for the Gipper." In that same article, Parseghian was quoted as saying, "We'd fought hard to come back and tie it up. After all that, I didn't want to risk giving it to them cheap. We get reckless and it could cost us the game. I wasn't going to do a jackass thing like that at this point."
The tie resulted in 9–0–1 seasons for both Michigan State and Notre Dame. The final AP poll put the Irish and the Spartans at #1 and #2, ranking both teams above the undefeated and two times defending national champion 11–0 Alabama. Both schools shared the MacArthur Trophy, while Alabama was denied recognition for its accomplishment.

We no longer have ties, and I’m thankful for that, but we do have the BCS and so controversy remains a part of college football. But I’ll never forget that game and in fact was the 2nd greatly anticipated game for me in less than a year. I went to local high school game that was dubbed “Game of the Century” in 1965, but that’s another story. I’ll share that with you soon. Right now, its playoff time in Illinois and I get to watch more football. The fun just never ends. Keep following the documentaries on www.chiefpigskin.com and enjoy the greatest team sport ever.

Patience

There was a kindergarten teacher who was getting her students ready to go home for the day. She noticed that one little boy was struggling with his cowboy boots. He was having a hard time getting them on, so she decided to go over and help him. She pushed and pushed, he pulled and pulled, finally, she got the boots on. The little boy looked up at the teacher and said," They’re on the wrong feet." So she took the boots back off of the little boy. She pulled and pulled, he pushed and pushed, and finally they got the boots off. She switched the shoes to the other feet and pushed and pushed as the little boy pulled. Finally, they got the boots back on. The little boy looked at the boots, then looked at his teacher and said, “These are not my boots." So, the teacher helped him get the boots back off with much pushing and pulling. When they finally got them off the little boy looked at the teacher and said, "They are my brother’s boots. My mom told me to go ahead and wear them today”. So the teacher helped the little boy put the boots back on. She pushed; he pulled until they got the boots back on. She took the little boy over to get his coat on and helped him with his coat and put on his hat. "Where are your mittens?" she asked. "They’re in my boots," replied the little boy.

Patience is required of a kindergarten teacher. Heck, patience is required of all of us. We need to have patience with our own children, our spouse, friends, and coworkers. And we certainly need to have patience with our team when the season is not going as planned. Or, maybe the season is going like you thought it would. You knew it was going to be a long year. Either way, this is the time of year when we are tested. Not everyone is undefeated or only has 1 or 2 losses at this point. For every 7-0 team there is an 0-7. For every 6-1 team there is a 1-6, and so on. I’ve been on both sides and believe me; I know how tough it is to hang in there with many disappointments.

But the fact is we have to keep coaching, keep teaching, and keep doing things the right way. The kids deserve that, and they’re watching us. So my encouragement to you is to be patient and stay the course. When all is said and done, you won’t be sorry. By the way, I’ve noticed on Chiefpigskin.com that some of the teams doing documentaries are struggling. Not all are winning every game. Real teams, real life, and we’re all in it together.

For the teams that are winning, it’s getting exciting. The playoffs are just around the corner and I can’t wait. Good luck down the stretch!

Wildest Night Ever!

Mind you, I’ve been a big baseball all my life so I’ve witnessed a lot of baseball. But last Wednesday night was the most exciting night I’ve ever seen in baseball. I heard one sportscaster compare it to March Madness and I thought that was a fair comparison. Now, I know I usually write about football so a baseball story might be a bit unusual, but the name of my blog is Footballfathershusbandsandlife, which under the life part means I get to write about anything. Anyway, what a great night of baseball.

I’m sitting there Wednesday night to see if my beloved Cardinals could win the NL wildcard outright or at least force a one game playoff with the Braves. That was excitement enough right there for me, especially since they had stormed back from 10 ½ games out on August 25. They blasted the Astros and retreated to watch the Braves on the clubhouse TV who were hanging on to a one run lead over the Phillies going to the 9th. But the other games for the AL wild card were crazy. Tampa Bay had come from 9 ½ back to catch Boston. They were playing the Bronx Bombers and were down 7-0 going to the bottom of the 8th-game over, right? Then on the other channel I saw the Red Sox clinging to a 1 run lead over the Orioles in late innings (with a rain delay) hoping to hold off the Rays. Three games were still being played to determine playoff spots. I watched in disbelief as the Rays got 6 in the bottom of the 8th. I thought, “They darned near pulled it off”. The Braves then blew their 1 run lead in the 9th and went to extra innings. The Red Sox/Oriole game restarted and the Sox stopped them in the 8th. Meanwhile, it was the bottom of the 9th in Tampa with 2 out and two strikes in the bottom of the 9th. What happened next caused me to almost fall out of my chair. A player from the Rays, I can’t even remember his name, hits a shot down the right field line that just gets over the wall and the Rays are goin’ nuts! That game goes to extra innings. The Braves then gave up a run to the Phillies in the 9th and lost in the 12th losing a heartbreaker 4-3. Season over. As happy as I was for my Cards, I felt bad for the Braves. Blowing a big lead is tough. So, the Cardinals were in. Several minutes later I watched Longoria hit a walkoff homer against the Yanks and the Rays had won! Unbelievable. Three minutes later I watched the Orioles rally for two in the bottom of the 9th to sink the Sox. Another blown lead. If I hadn’t seen all this happen with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. Other than watching my favorite team win world series titles, it was the most exciting time in baseball I ever witnessed.

I don’t know what’s going to happen in the playoffs but one thing is sure. The regular season ended with a bang. The Phillies are the clear favorite, their starting pitching is ridiculously good and their offense is solid. The Yankees will be hard to beat in the AL and are probably the favorites there. But I’ve played, coached, and watched sports my whole life and one thing I’ve learned-ANYTHING, and I mean ANYTHING, can happen. So, let’s enjoy the playoffs, and in the meantime, football is heating up as well. Keep checking out the documentaries on Chiefpigskin.com to see what’s happening in high school football in North America. Good luck down the stretch of another exciting high school football season.