1992 Orange Bowl

The 1992 Orange Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1 in Miami, Florida.[3] The 58th edition of the Orange Bowl featured the Miami Hurricanes of the Big East Conference and the Nebraska Cornhuskers of the Big Eight Conference.[4][5] Played at night, it was the final game of the bowl season and the 1991 NCAA Division I-A football season.

1992 Federal Express Orange Bowl
Miami Hurricanes Nebraska Cornhuskers
(11–0) (9–1–1)
Big East Big Eight
22 0
Head coach: 
Dennis Erickson		 Head coach: 
Tom Osborne
APCoaches
12
APCoaches
1111
1234 Total
Miami 13090 22
Nebraska 0000 0
DateJanuary 1, 1992
Season1991
StadiumOrange Bowl
LocationMiami, Florida
MVPLarry Jones (FB, Miami)
FavoriteMiami by 9 points [1][2]
RefereeRon Winter (Big Ten)
Attendance77,747
United States TV coverage
NetworkNBC
AnnouncersDick Enberg and Bill Walsh

Top-ranked Miami entered with an 11–0 regular season record and eleventh-ranked Nebraska was at 9–1–1. It was a rematch of the 1984 and 1989 editions, both Miami wins. This shutout win gave the Hurricanes their fourth national championship (1983, 1987, 1989), capping their "decade of dominance."

Game summary

Playing on their home field, the Hurricanes raced to a quick start as quarterback Gino Torretta threw an 8-yard touchdown to wide receiver Kevin Williams, which was followed by two 24-yard field goals by Carlos Huerta. After a scoreless second quarter, it was 13–0 at halftime. Miami dominated the second half with a touchdown run by fullback Larry Jones and a third field goal by Huerta, this one from 54 yards. The score was 22–0 after three quarters, and the Miami defense successfully held off Nebraska, as the fourth quarter was scoreless.[4]

During the game, the studio for the American feed caught on fire, and had to switch to a Japanese feed.

The shutout was the first for Nebraska in over eighteen years, and they dropped to fifteenth in the final AP poll.[6][7] It was the Huskers' fifth consecutive bowl loss, a streak that extended to seven.

Scoring

First quarter

Second quarter

No scoring

Third quarter

  • Miami – Larry Jones 1 run (Torretta pass failed), 11:19
  • Miami – Field goal, Huerta 54, 2:33

Fourth quarter

No scoring
Source:[4]

Statistics
Statistics    Miami     Nebraska 
First Downs259
Rushes–yards44–18238–82
Passing yards25789
Passes19–41–27–19–2
Total yards439171
Punts–average5–338–39
Fumbles–lost3–03–2
Turnovers by24
Penalties-yards12–1436–36
Time of possession34:2925:31
Source:[4]

Aftermath

The win completed a perfect season for the Hurricanes, maintaining their #1 ranking in the AP Poll, but they did not receive the top ranking in the Coaches' Poll, which went to Washington of the Pac-10 Conference. The Huskies, second in the AP, had achieved an identical 12–0 record, completed with a 34–14 win over #4 Michigan in the Rose Bowl. For a second consecutive year, major college football finished with two teams splitting the title,[6][7][8] which led the major athletic conferences to form the Bowl Coalition in the following year to help better determine a national champion.

A fantasy article in Sports Illustrated titled "The Dream Game" had Washington narrowly defeat Miami in a playoff.[9]

Nebraska and Miami faced off in another Orange Bowl rematch three years later, and Nebraska finally won. It broke the Huskers' seven-game losing streak in bowls and vaulted them to the first of two consecutive national titles. A four-game winning streak in bowls began, with three national championships (1994, 1995, 1997) in four seasons at the end of head coach Tom Osborne's career in Lincoln.

See also

References
  1. "The latest line". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 1, 1992. p. D4.
  2. "Betting line". Reading Eagle. January 1, 1992. p. D7.
  3. "Blackout Forces NBC to Call an Audible in Orange Bowl". Los Angeles Times. 2 January 1992. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  4. Walker, Ben (January 2, 1992). "Miami makes its pitch with Orange Bowl shutout". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. p. 1B.
  5. Moran, Malcolm (January 2, 1992). "'Canes win easily..." Wilmington Morning Star. (North Carolina). (New York Times). p. 6B.
  6. Wojciechowski, Gene (January 3, 1992). "Huskies, Miami share title". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). (Los Angeles Times). p. 1B.
  7. Warner, Rick (January 3, 1992). "Washington, Miami share No. 1 rating". Wilmington Morning Star. (North Carolina). Associated Press. p. 1C.
  8. "Coaches, scribes aren't unanimous". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). wire reports. January 3, 1992. p. C1.
  9. Murphy, Austin (January 13, 1992). "The Dream Game". Sports Illustrated. p. 34.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.