From: owen@ducvax.auburn.edu
Subject: Re: bowls, etc
Organization: Auburn University, AL
Distribution: usa
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1993 13:49:31 GMT

In article <1i8ebjINNakq@crcnis1.unl.edu>, holliday@cse.unl.edu (david holliday) writes:
> "al sorhaindo" writes:
> 
>>Their point is well taken though that "upsets" are not uncommon.
>>Miami's three victories over the number one team when they were #2
>>doesn't even include their monumental upset over Nebraska because
>>the Hurricanes entered that Orange Bowl no higher than #3.
>> (Auburn was higher in the pre-bowl standings)
> 
> Aarrrgghhh. Must people still bring up that first Nebraska-Miami Orange
> Bowl? :-) I believe the poll situation was Nebraska #1 (all season), Texas #2,
> (all season), Auburn #3, and Miami #4. I remember Texas losing, but I
> can't remember who beat them. I'm not too sure about Auburn, but I seem to
> remember that there was some concern on Miami's part on whether or not they
> would be #1 after their victory.

Still a sore point here at Auburn.  I believe Miami was actually #5 in the
pre-bowl polls (#'s 2 and 4 lost earlier in the day, before the Sugar and
Orange Bowls).  Auburn played a very good Michigan team, which had gotten
off to a bad start (losing 3 of their first 4 or 5, but finishing strong
at 8-3) in the Sugar.  With number 2 having already lost, Dye went even
more conservative than usual, refusing to pass even though Michigan was
putting 9 and 10 men (and on a few plays, 11) within 3 yards of the line of
scrimmage to try to stop the run.  Dye thought all he had to do was win,
and hope Miami won, all of which happened.  The pollsters, however, were
not impressed.

The MNC was actually won for Miami in August, when Sports Illustrated ran
a long cover story on Nebraska in their College Football Preview issue,
going so far as to say that Nebraska was the best college football team
to ever put on cleats, and probably as good as several NFL teams.  Most
other writers toed the party line after that, and these assumptions went
unchallenged through most of the season, given that Nebraska managed to
go into the bowls undefeated.  This was accomplished with perhaps the
softest schedule in the history of college football.  The only decent
teams on their schedule were Oklahoma (having a down year, for them) and
Oklahoma State (who were good, but not great).  Only having to get up
for 2 games all year, Nebraska just barely managed to beat these 2 only-
slightly-above mediocre teams.  Their uniforms were the Emporer's Clothes,
but nobody in the press seemed to notice.  So when Miami beat them, it
was not, IMHO, that much of an upset.  It was, however, a great ball game,
and the hype surrounding it (NBC promoted it for weeks as being for the
MNC, even though there were 3 teams between Miami and Nebraska in the polls)
convinced the voters that Miami deserved it.  Had Dye let Randy Campbell
throw the ball a few more times, and Auburn's victory over Michigan would
not doubt have been a little more decisive, it probably would have been a
different story, and justice would have been served ;-).  Ah, the taste of
sour grapes!

Larry Owen

p.s. If there is another coaching change at Auburn while Schnellenberger
  is still coaching, and his name comes up, don't believe it.  He will
  *never* coach at Auburn after the way he shamelessly campaigned for
  the MNC after this Orange Bowl, costing Auburn the championship.