New Year’s Day bowl memories: Part 8

Tim Brown won the 1987 Heisman and played his last ever college game in the 1988 Cotton Bowl against Texas A&M.

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The 1988 New Year’s Day bowl season was the last one of the decade where I actually watched them on the farm, and it was a bit anticlimactic for me. One of the games I wanted to watch wasn’t actually being broadcast on peasant vision. The Oklahoma Sooners and Miami Hurricanes were both undefeated and ranked number one and two respectively and set to play in the Orange Bowl to determine the national champion.

I would have to hear it on my ghetto blaster via radio.

Sill, I did enjoy the games I was able to see on peasant vision.

Heisman hype
New Year’s Eve 1987 was the first time I went to a New Year’s Eve party, and the last time I really hung out with some of my high-school friends. My best friend Chris Vining and I had gone off to university in Edmonton, and were back on Christmas break. We got invited to a party at our friend Dave’s in Coaldale. It was a really good time, and I ended up crashing at Chris’ place.

In the morning, we awoke. The world was our oyster, college football wise, because he had cable TV.

First up was the Cotton Bowl. My only interest in this game was that Tim Brown of Notre Dame, who had won the Heisman, was playing. Although in Edmonton I had cable TV in res, I did not watch much college football. I was too busy enjoying university life.

Back then, I had not yet fallen in love with Notre Dame football. That came a year later. Still, I wanted to see how good Tim Brown was, given he was billed as a return specialist.

The Irish were playing the Texas A&M Aggies, and looked good early. Brown had a good kick return to start the game and scored the game’s first touchdown. They would add a field goal but, when the Aggies later intercepted an Irish pass in the end zone, that was the beginning of the end. The Aggies scored 32 unanswered points to win 35-10.

The players I recall from Texas A&M were quarterback Bucky Richardson, and linebacker Adam Bob, who were the game’s offensive and defensive most valuable players. I remember how much Vining loved saying Adam Bob ‘s name – “Adam BAWB”.

Adam Bob would go on to play for the New York Jets, and Bucky Richardson would play for Houston, Dallas and Kansas City.

Tim Brown would go on to a Hall of Fame career with the Raiders, in Oakland and Los Angeles, and ended his career with Tampa Bay.

Snow comes to Pasadena
I am pretty sure I stayed at Vining’s into the early afternoon hanging out, watching the Cotton Bowl, because I have absolutely no memory of the Fiesta Bowl between Florida State and Nebraska.

Instead, I did watch the Rose Bowl and I was back on the farm for that game. The Michigan State Spartans were playing the USC Trojans, and there were a few guys I really liked. Michigan State had runningbacks Lorenzo White and Blake Ezor, linebacker Percy Snow, receiver Andre Rison, defensive tackle Eric Moten, and quarterback Bobby McAllister.

I also noticed they had a Canadian playing offensive line named Tony Mandarich. I wondered if he was related to John Mandarich who had just won a Grey Cup with Edmonton a few months earlier. In fact, Tony was John’s younger brother.

USC was led by quarterback Rodney Peete who was one of my all-time favourites.

The teams went back and forth in a game dominated by defence. The Trojans tied the game at 17-17 early in the fourth quarter but Michigan State went down and kicked a game-winning field goal.

Percy Snow was named the most valuable player for making 17 unassisted tackles and helping force five turnovers, while Lorenzo White rushed for more than 100 yards.

White would go on to play for the Houston Oilers and finish his career in Cleveland; Ezor played for Denver then spent a year with Edmonton in the CFL; and Snow played for Kansas City where his career was cut short by injury from an off-field accident.

Rison had a stellar NFL career with Indianapolis, Atlanta, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Green Bay where he won a Super Bowl, Kansas City, Oakland and finished with two years in the CFL with Toronto. Moten played for San Diego; and McAllister had some time in the CFL, signing with Saskatchewan, being released before he played with them and playing eight games for Toronto.

Tony Mandarich was the highest drafted offensive lineman to that point in history, going second overall to Green Bay. However, he had used steroids and it turned out he may not initially have had the best footwork for an NFL lineman. Soon, he was a draft bust and out of football. He would clean up his act, and mounted a comeback to have a serviceable career with Indianapolis.

Rodney Peete would lead USC to another Rose Bowl then have a great career in the NFL primarily with Detroit where he was a starter and ran their Silver Streak offence. He also played for Dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, Oakland and Carolina. Interestingly, he was married to Holly Robinson who starred in the ABC Friday night comedy “Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper”.

Parting thoughts
The game I really wanted to see was the 1988 Orange Bowl. I still cheered for the Oklahoma Sooners and they were undefeated and ranked number one in the country. They were set to play the Miami Hurricanes, who were ranked number two, in the Orange Bowl for the national championship.

Inexplicably, the game was not televised on peasant vision and I cannot remember why. So, I grabbed my ghetto blaster and actually found the game on radio. I listened as long as I could, but as the game went along the reception got worse and worse.

Ultimately, I had to wait for the news to learn Miami beat the Sooners and won the national championship. In three years – 1985, 1986, 1987 – the Sooners had lost just three games total – all to Miami.

The reason I started cheering for Notre Dame was they beat Miami the following year, cementing a place in my heart. Oklahoma also ended up having recruiting violations and other issues which turned me off the Sooners.

New Year’s Day 1988 would be the last time I really watched bowl games at home. The next year, I actually returned to Edmonton for New Year’s Day and that became a pattern.

So 1988, was the end of an era for me.