About Phil Dawson’s Potential Valedictory Contest
December 30, 2010Browns Score 21 Points in 3rd Quarter – 1989 AFC Championship Game
December 30, 2010With all the negative sports stories coming from Cleveland this year, I thought I’d run down my five favorite Cleveland sports stories of 2010. They may not be the ‘top stories’ from the year, but they are the ones that resonate with me the most. Each day this week you can read my take and chime in with your own memory of the events. Today we come with #2:
The Buckeyes win the Rose Bowl.
Growing up watching the Bucks with my dad, there were 2 goals to every season. The first was to beat Michigan, and the second was to play in the Rose Bowl. National titles really weren’t a concern. “If you win the Big Ten and win the Rose Bowl, you will probably be voted the champ” my dad would say.
In the seventies Ohio State went to Pasadena six times. Only once did they come away victors. The eighties brought a single Rose Bowl bid, also a loss. In 1994 OSU won it’s only Rose Bowl of the decade, beating Arizona State and Jake Plummer on a Joe Germaine last minute drive.
Last year was Ohio State’s first January trip back to Southern California in 12 seasons. Three appearances in the National Championship game will keep you out of course. But for an old traditionalist like myself, I was thrilled to be back in the Rose playing against a Pac-10 team.
This wasn’t just any team they were facing either. This was an offensive juggernaut with speed to spare. And all the Buckeyes did was hold them to their lowest offensive output since week one.
Pryor had a great game. It still is his signature win as a Buckeye. The performance filled Columbus with hope for the coming season, and gave Pryor early contention for the Heisman.
Quite a difference that a year makes. But despite the controvesy and debate that will overshadow this year’s bowl game, it doesn’t take away my memories or satisfaction from last January’s big victory.