Welcome to the solid Verbal. I'm that for me. I'm a man, I'm for I've heard so many players say, well, I want to be happy. You want to be happy for day Ado State?
Is that?
Whoo whoo and no, Dan and.
Tie, welcome back to the Solid Verbal, Boys and girls. My name is Ty hilden Brandt, joining me as always still way way over there and beautiful in sunny in southern California. My man, Dan Rubinstein, Sir, how are you?
I'm great, Ty, I have set up the claws two point zero. Before I was, before we recorded, I was kneeling in front of a bed, I was sitting at a card table. I have now hung a comforter behind me and am standing not in a walking closet, but a regular closet I have walked into and I am now speaking into pillows about a game and a time that you know the Stefanel sketch like this club has it all, This game and this time has it all.
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Yeah.
Today, today we're going to put a cap on the two thousand and six college football season. It wasn't the National Championship game, but for all intents and purposes, the two thousand and seven Fiesta Ball on New Year's Day was the capstone game for that season.
I think it's all intense, double purposes. Yeah, it's absolutely the game people remember about this time in this bowl season and this season in general. And we went through a little bit of two thousand and six, and I guess we can get into it momentarily from a college football perspective. And you know, I've got my early two
thousand and seven billboard charts in box office. But yes, when you think of this time, sure you can look fondly back at Percy Harvin and Troyce Smith and what maybe perhaps Troyce Smith wasn't able to do against Percy Harvin's team in the National Championship. But where USC was, where LSU was, Michigan, Wisconsin, Rutgers, even Texas BYU Arkansas. All of these programs had wild seasons, wild games. Your
Notre Dame fighting Irish, not my Oregon Doux. But in terms of seminal not just moments, but a series of moments we have this has been the game that has been the most requested to look back upon with twenty twenty eyes, and it has been the game we look at the Bush push, you know, like, wow, Wow, these offenses are a little bit more boring than I remember. And you look back at Auburn Oregon and you're like, oh, well, the Oregon offense was worse than I remember it, even
though it was a Chip Kelly team. And we look back at Miami Ohio State and you're like, well, man, I don't know about this Ohio State offense. I can't believe they pulled it out with thirty five yards of scoring yardage on offense. Looking back at the Boise State Oklahoma game, I remember essentially nothing before those crazy, weird, wild moments, and it floored me more than perhaps all of those previous three rewatches combined. I don't know about you, Well, this game was different.
It was different because of what it symbolized, right, the other games that we've done Notre Dame USC two blue blood programs. Right, Yes, we had Miami, We've had Ohio State, We've had Oregon, We've had Auburn. Like these are name brand programs at this point in time, but Boise State, at least back in two thousand and seven still very much carried with them this aura of the underdog. They were in the whack at that point in time. They
won the whack. So to have the opportunity to play up against a traditional power like Oklahoma, that was a pretty significant event, pretty significant moment in college football, especially since there was so much steam at the time. I remember about Boise State potentially getting a shot at the national championship? Are they good enough? Do they deserve to be there? This was that game. This was that moment.
So you're right.
We got a ton of requests from people who wanted to go back through this game, who have relived moments for us of this game on our social media feeds.
We were certainly due to.
Talk about d two thousand and seven Fiesta Ball again between the Boise State Broncos and the Oklahoma Sooners. The game went to overtime, Boise State one forty three to forty two, on a statue of liberty play right not to bury the lead. Going in to the game, Oklahoma was a healthy seven and a half point favorite.
M HM.
Things got weird in the fourth quarter, which we will get into, including twenty five straight points by Oklahoma to take the lead. Their first lead of the game was just over a minute left. Both teams ended up scoring a combined twenty two points in the final minute and a half of regulation and then fifteen points in overtime. And that's all on top of the trick plays, which I know we're going to talk extensively about here, but
let's start here just to provide some context. I'm read the passers by Dan college football landscape going into this game, because you're right, two thousand and six was a nutso year in college football.
So Florida wins the national championship going away from Ohio State. That is Chris Leak and Tim Tebow as a change of pay sort of short yardage trick play quarterback, so it was not the full Tebow experience. Troy Smith wins the Heisman. We have this crazy one versus two Ohio State Michigan. Will they play each other in a rematch National Championship after they played too I believe it was forty two to thirty nine late in November for their
rivalry game. So that was a talking point, that was a narrative, and you mentioned the Boise State going undefeated, the talking point do they deserve a shot at the national championship? And right away into this game, by the way, there was that narrative that David versus Goliath. Literally it was David versus Glythe is how they talked about Boise State. And I suppose for some reason, Oklahoma I guess their blue blood status and they had won a national championship
what six years prior over Florida State? Is that right? Two thousand? That sounds sure right? So yeah, Oklahoma also appears in two national championships after that and before this game, losing to USC and losing to LSU. So that wasn't a great way to go into another large game in early January, but they were here once again. You had Steve Slayton and Pat White. By the way, at West Virginia, Auburn finishes in the top ten. No, you have the beginning of the Colt McCoy era post Vince Young Texas.
I think Keevin Sneed comes in there a little bit before transferring out and ends up at Ole Miss Wisconsin and PJ. Hill. There's a lot of those guys, and we'd be remiss if we didn't mention the other I think the biggest other group of five story for a number of weeks during this time, which was Hawaii and Colt Brennan right right, oh, and big time you look, you look at the sort of the country's leaders in yardage, passing, receiving, rushing.
It wasn't as fun as looking back at two thousand and three to me in terms of where college football was at. It was good, but there were a lot of names that had that just floated into the ether pretty quickly. You're like, hey, I guess that guy did exist. And cal was fun that year, but it's you know, for every Marshawn Lynch and Deshaun Jackson and Justin Forcett
that we still remember. You look back and you're like, oh, yeah, Nate Longshore, that was the guy tasked with making that engine go in the then Pac ten And you know, Louisville was good at this time. USC we can talk about with just like an absurd recruiting class going into the season with their five blue chip running backs on the cover of Sports Illustrated and losing at Corvallis for at least the first time in two years or the second time. It's the first time two thousand and six.
They lose again in two thousand and eight in Corvallis, so that their struggles with Oregon State begin there. They end up winning the Rose Bowl. LSU has jimbo Fisher and Bo Polini as coordinators. It's a coach time, great coach, very very good coach here, and very very good coach game in terms of that guy is on this staff as well in talking about that festival between Boise and in Oklahoma.
I'm looking right now at the top passers from the two thousand and six college football season, and this is going to be a theme that we play over and over again as we go back through this game. How far down on this list do I need to go before I get to what I do consider the first NFL quarterback to have any amount of longevity?
So this is in what category? Like rating?
This is yards per attent, yards per attempt. I'm looking at the full list here. There's one hundred names on this list. How far down on that list do I have to go before I can find a quarterback that's played, you know, a fair amount in the NFL.
Who could be described as a respectable NFL career quarterback. I would say a career backup, Okay, class so not even So I was going to say, how far down do you have to go to get to Brady Quinn? I would say probably not in the top fifteen, because I remember looking at the top and shout out Kevin Cobbs, shout out JaMarcus Russell and John Beck. But I wouldn't consider them with length consider them to be quote NFL quarterbacks at this point.
This is again based on yards per attempt. Let me read through this, okay, okay, Cult Brennan, Brian Brahm, John Beck, JaMarcus Russell, not going to talk too much about you, Russell, Jared Jared Zabranski, a name man you should get used
to hearing as we go through this game. Tyler Palco from Pitt Kevin Cobb, who the Eagles reached for and did get much out of, Eric Ainge, Bobby Reed, Jordan Palmer, Andre Woodson, Adam I can't even say this guy's name from San Jose State, Chase Holbrook, Zach Taylor, Troy Smith won the Heisman, didn't do much at the next level. John Stocko, who was at Wisconsin for about eighteen years.
He's a low key favorite of yours too.
Love John Stockoe, Chris Leak, who had a great campaign won the national Championship, Matt Grothe from USF, and all the way down at number nineteen you get to Colt McCoy, who's by and large been a backup at the next level. But I say all this to underscore the fact that it really was not a great quarterback year. Despite the fact that it was a nuts a year in college football with a lot of excitement, wasn't a great quarterback year.
And that is.
I think at least where I want to steer this discussion as we get into this actual game.
I have some good year for quarterbacks, goodyear for quarterbacks named Colt, though between McCoy and not true high watermark for cults, I don't see any Rockies or Tom Thums though. Okay, so where do we want to start right now? Do we want to get into the game. Do you want to talk about the context of both Oklahoma and Boise State, going into this game.
Absolutely so Boise State. Boise State sort of the easy one. There had been momentum building around Boise State for years, and Boise State actually, by the time all was said and done, was the only team in the two thousand and six Slash seven season to finish undefeated, only team to finish undefeated that year. They had an interesting cast of characters. If I do say so myself. Their personnel in the secondary really jumped out me. A young Kyle Wilson who went on to a good NFL career. We
had a young Orlando Scandric. Both those guys were younger and in the defensive backfield. They also had Ryan Clady, who played a long time in the NFL sure along their offensive line. I think he was like a red shirt sophomore something like that. Otherwise, though, it was really just a bunch of good team guys.
You know.
We texted back and forth about Jared Zabranski, and I said fifth in yards per attempt. There was an intensity that came off of Zabranski that when we get to our question of who was the best player on the field, Zabranski makes a really strong case for being the best player on the field that night, just because of that intensity. Dan.
I always have a healthy amount of respect for people who are able to maximize, absolutely get every single drop out of their athletic potential. And that is what Jared Zebranski was able to do. I don't say that in any sort of disrespectful tone or way. He got everything that he possibly could have out of his ability culminating
in this game. Also important to know, by the way, and you talk about the best player in this game or the best player on Boise State, this Boise team, when you look at them, you mentioned there were a couple NFL players. Those were the exceptions die. This was a team in the whack for at this point six or seven years. They've only been and it was called one A at this point. They had only been a Division one A program since nineteen ninety seven. Obviously, who
do they bring in? They need a steady hand to make the transition. Gotta be Houston nutt, Gotta be Houston nut Gotta here he leaves. They they it's dirt Cutter, It's Dan Hawkins. But there wasn't. Even though it feels like a culmination for Boise State, because they win, they go twelve and one, thirteen and one, eleven and one, they have a nine one year, then they go thirteen ozho in two thousand and six. This is year one of Chris Peterson, and he doesn't even though he was
there before. It's he overhauls the staff because Dan Hawkins takes five or six coaches with him to Colorado. So this is a new program, even though there is a good amount of momentum, whereas Oklahoma they're used to this stage. They've been to two, if not three national championships recently. They have what I would argue to be the running back who runs with the most furious head of steam that I think we've seen in the modern era in Adrian Peterson. They have speed on the outside that Boise
simply doesn't. They have you know, Rufus Alexander at linebacker, who I think is the All Big twelve defensive player of the year that season, and Cjiu, who is you know, a legit top level player on the line for Oklahoma. This Oklahoma squad, even though it was a weird transition two thousand and five, was Rhet Bomar, and he certainly didn't seem like the answer, but kind of also was
the quarterback of the future. He gets kicked off the team in August for a no show job at a car dealership, thrusting Paul Thompson, who was largely fine during the regular season during the regular season. You need to there's your caveat largely fine during the regular season, thrust
him into the starting role. But you figure with a healthy amount of high level talent playing indoors, with what I would say is the speed advantage, the depth advantage, and the experience, the experience on this stage, that Oklahoma is in a pretty good spot going into this fiesta. Yeah, for sure.
And one thing that you did leave out was that Adrian Peterson broke his collar bone. Oh yeah against Iowa State that season. Yeah, and he rushed for some insane amount of yardage. I guess it was a little over one thy and twelve touchdowns in just seven games. He was very, very good. This game actually represented his return to football. He suited up after three months on the shelf with the broken collar boom, so his talent was
on full display. We saw it a little bit more as the game wore on, what ap all Day could bring to the field. He obviously scored in overtime as well, but for sure a much more talented Oklahoma squad. Now, they didn't play as well as Boise as a team, and ultimately that's what led somewhat to their demise. But two teams coming at this from very different points of view. Oklahoma that year finished eleven and three, So they lost
to Boise in the postseason. They also lost the Red River shootout to Texas, and then I believe they lost by one on the road to your Oregon Ducks.
Do you remember why they lost by one to my Orgon Ducks. That would be an on side kick that was judged to have gone ten yards that Oregon recovered near the end of the game. Controversially decided that it had gone ten yards, and maybe it didn't, maybe it didn't, but it did give Oregon. Oregon had blocked a field
goal and scored to get there. It gave Oregon another last second chance, and upon further review, it may have been a generous call on the field that favored the home the hometown Ducks, and Oregon did get just absolutely murdered the year before in Norman in the home and home. So I don't know if that changes what Oklahoma's postseason looks like because it's a non conference game and they had still won the Big Twelve and had a loss
on their schedule. Who knows, but yeah, that was That was a to bring up both the Boise game and the Oregon game on the same show because it was the same year. I don't think a lot of Oklahoma fans are listening to this show because of the topic, but I am sorry we did. We did not give you a trigger warning.
This game was on Fox, it was part of the BCS Bull Bash, and one of the things that jumped out at me on the rewatch was just how modern the product felt. Oftentimes you go back, you watch some of these old games and it just feels like a dated product. Back in two thousand and five when we did the Notre Dame game, a lot of equips by one Tom Hammond about oh HD, look at that hope you're watching in high definition. We had high definition in two thousand and seven, and in the watch back, it
really felt like more of a modern product. We had an announcer combination of Tom Brenneman as the main play by play guy, serving I think a necessary purpose to balance out the unbridled optimism of Barry Alvarez who was in the booth, and Charles Davis who was also in the booth, a three man booth up there. We had Chris Myers on the sidelines. We'll need to talk about
him a little bit later. A little bit later, this game was played in Glendale at the new Cardinal Stadium, I believe, for the first time after many years of being hosted at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe. As they said on the broadcast, they had to bring in an additional twelve thousand seats for this football game. Wow, which I don't feel like is a commonality among most of.
The bowl games we talk about. So there was suffice to.
Say, Dan, there was a lot of interest going into this football game. This truly was, as he said earlier, a David versus Golias scenario in college football.
Yes, and our second rewatch that takes place in the stadium also the home of the Auburn Oregon game a few years later, three years later, four years later or whatever. And the same referee from that game, same really ref from It's a big ten ref and big ten crew. I believe it's the full crew is big ten, same head ref from the Michael Dyer was definitely down. Game officiated and oversaw this game between Boise State and in Oklahoma. It was You're right, You're absolutely right that it was
a modern production. Good replays, good slow motion, good angles, good audio, good good audio, mixed crowd and broadcasters. You're right about Tom Brenneman balancing out the excitable three man booth with him, Charles Davis and Barry Alvarez, almost like the glass of cold milk when you're really attacking some spicy buffalo.
And you know, I felt, I really truly felt, and I didn't even remember who was calling this game when I went back to watch. Right when I heard Tom Brenneman, I was like, oh wow, I like, I have nothing against Tom Brenneman.
But now he did it. I thought he did it. Other than the very end, which we can get to, I thought he did a reasonably good job. And by the way, this is New Year's Day two thousand and seven, when we really had the good It was nice to have New Year's Day games, the huge New Year's Day games. Do you remember where you were watching this game? I
think I was at home with Mammy h watching this game. Okay, now was this the same night as the Sugar Bowl, the JaMarcus Russ pulling down the Notre Dame pants game.
I believe it was because they actually referenced it on the broadcast. Tom Brennanan Tom Brennanman got in a little quip about Notre Dame losing eight straight Bowl games or whatever it is. Thanks Tom, Yeah, yeah, thank you Tom. But what I was gonna say is, when I found out that Brennanman was paired up with Barry Alvarez, A Charles Davis made perfect sense. I actually thought Fox did a really good job pairing those three together.
It worked out.
The game itself will go down in history as one of the all time greats. I know we say that each week we do one of these episodes. Hopefully by now it's clear we're trying to focus on some of the great games. That's why they all fit the bill. Yeah, Boyse opens up a quick fourteen to nil lead. Oklahoma comes back eventually about midway through the third quarter. It's sort of looking like this thing is over. Boyse jumps out to a twenty eight to ten lead. To that point,
they had been much much better as a team. They had been much more responsible with the football, and it seemed like this was very certainly going to go in their direction just quickly.
My first half thoughts are because I've criticized a lot of the offense and like it seems old fashioned and overly conservative watching these old games, the old quote unquote old games. I understand it's all relative, but Boise State's offense is an absolute joy. The shifts, the motion, the creativity, the ability to get the most out of not hugely top level talent, and I think by the end of Chris Peterson's time, especially during the Kellen Moore era, the
talent was at a much higher level. He really built that program impressively. But for them to move the ball forward to get a terrific underthrown long ball touchdown early on, which I think was eventually matched by Paul Thompson's own underthrown deep ball for a touchdown for Oklahoma, I thought, especially early on, Boise came out with an incredible game plan.
Oklahoma looks stunned going down as they did. I think Boise had a short field after a fumble so that it was an easy punch in from I think under ten yards and then Boise punts three straight drives. Paul Thompson throws his first interception of the day, which was not great. Boyse's unable to turn that into anything. A couple more punts, Boise drives down the field. I think it's a sixty plus yard drive and they get up
twenty one to ten. Another Paul Thompson interception, Oh, awful interception, and then another backbreaking or so it seems, pick six. Like at this point Paul Thompson has thrown three interceptions. This is I think in the third quarter. At some point it's deeper into the third quarter. Paul Thompson, his each interception is worse than the last.
Oh, man, that's I have. I actually have that exact Oh good for a bitch down on my crib sheet because he was so truly bad. Remember we talked about Ken Dorsey and his second quarter. Yes, Paul Thompson's third quarter was a bit of a sight to behold because it really felt like he didn't do anything right and even the passes he completed were by accident.
It seemed that he had he was jittery, he didn't trust his eyes at all for the majority of this game, and it really hurt Oklahoma. I don't fully think. And this was weird to behold because they had the Kevins, Someone and Smith running the Oklahoma offense, which these two eventually become modern legends in terms of opening up offenses and generating a ton of yards and a ton of points.
But for whatever reason, Paul Thompson's either his understanding of the offense or just his nerves in the game, the offense didn't seem constructed for his ability and strengths because he didn't make plays. He was a wide receiver of the previous year, right, So take that for what it's worth. Every pass was thrown with what I would say was maximum force, with the exception of a couple fades that they tried down near the goal line, there really wasn't
any touch on these passes. Barry Alvarez referred to Paul Thompson as a street thrower, which I have no idea.
That's uncomponent what that means, but very uncomfortable. I spent a good deal of my rewatch trying to figure out what the hell he meant. But I kept asking the question like you had Adrian Peterson, and I know he got hurt. He was out for a good chunk of the Year. But in this game, we saw Paul Thompson use his legs. He was a runner, he's a big kid,
he played receiver. Sure, if they had simply run some variation of a read option with Paul Thompson and Adrian Peterson, would they not have been better off in this football game?
Yes? And no. I mean I think maybe it's in the NFL where Adrian Peterson has been insistent that he wants to run from under center. He wants that downhill element to him, So maybe he wouldn't have wouldn't have been at as dominant without running a sort of eye system. So it sort of forced them to run two different offenses at once. And Adrian Peterson, even though he did make plays in this game, wasn't a huge consistent factor.
He didn't have a seventy three yard run, he didn't average eight point nine yards per carry in this game. He did not dominate Boise State. The Broncos very wisely made Paul Thompson beat them, or tried to make Paul, or at least they said, if we're going to lose, it'll be at the hands of Paul Thompson, not Adrian Peterson. So Yes, in theory Adrian Peterson and Paul Thompson in the backfield with a sort of RPO more modern read
option type offense would have been beneficial. I just maybe it was a little ahead of Oklahoma's time.
Yeah, the Paul Thompson thing, Dan, it was tough to watch, especially when you see a young Sam Bradford just roaming by on the sidelines. I know he wasn't a highly touted recruit, but he would go on to in the starting job for the two thousand and seven season and then obviously the Heisman Trophy in two thousand and eight. So his career, both in college and on the pro
level to some extent, worked out pretty well. I just I kept coming back to like, if anybody else were that Oklahoma quarterback, I feel like they would have been good enough to win this game. Paul Thompson just gave them nothing. Nothing out there, especially in the third quarter. The second interception he threw in the third quarter was tipped.
It wasn't entirely his fault, but there was one like the first one he threw where it was a jump ball across his body into quadruple coverage, like thirty yards down the field.
It was an arm punt.
It was essentially an arm punt, trusting his arm strength a little too much, very poor decision making. If anybody else had been quarterback for Oklahoma, I feel like it
would have been a different outcome. And I say that not to detract at all from what Boise State did, because Boise State sure gave away the lead, But what they did in that final minute and a half of regulation, what they did in their first series in overtime, will go down in college football lore as like maybe the greatest two drives in the history of the game.
Does Kevin Cobb win this game for Oklahoma? Probably? Kevin Cobb had a good year that year for Houston. He did, he did, I mean not terribly far away for Houston, right.
No, So, okay, we moved to the third quarter. We talked a little bit about the third quarter. But Boise eventually works their way up to a twenty eight to ten lead on.
An egregious pick six that Paul Thompson throws just directly to a Boise defender who jogs in. But when Boise gets the ball back, they punt it. It hits a Boise player in the back of the leg.
Yes, Oklahoma gets the ball deep in Boise territory, apl Day runs in twenty eight to seventeen. Then as we turned to the fourth quarter, we had a field goal by Garrett Hartley went on to an NFL career twenty eight to twenty. We have a touchdown pass from Paul Thompson to Quentin Cheney with about a minute and twenty six left, they get the two point conversion. It's a tip pass, but Joaquina Glacias hauls that in to tie
it up at twenty eight all. And then as Boise State gets the ball back on the ensuing drive after the kickoff, Jared Zabranski big Z is intercepted by Marcus Walker from Oklahoma, who runs at thirty four yards for a pick six. In the blink of an eye, Oklahoma is now up by seven points, by a thirty five to twenty eight score, and that is where Daniel in the final minute of this game, things really went pretty haywired, didn't they.
I will yeah, I'll add a couple of things. Obviously, we have the Boise fumble that leads to Oklahoma driving the field and scoring. Boise dropped that what would have been a game ending pick in the m zone that ended up tipping and that gets caught to come within two before the conversion. A great conversion, by the way, really, I mean it was I'm sure the highlight of Paul Thompson's game, if not career, just scrambling around and throwing
it successfully away from his body. Jared Zebranski with what they have two timeouts and like a minute and a half left he throws It was like a hold my beer, pick six. It was so bad, and Oklahoma runs that in to take the lead. The drive for Boise. I'm more impressed with what Boise was able to do, but what Oklahoma decided to defend Boise with, which was three man rushes playing way way off soft prevent coverages. This is a Brent Venables defense. This is not some name
that we don't remember all these years later. This is a big, big deal defensive coordinator. Maybe he wasn't back then, maybe this was sort of early on for him, but the strategy that they took and they did pretty well. Boise gets to midfield, but they get after Jared Zebranski pretty well, and it sets up a fourth and eighteen tie. And if there's one enemy of of I guess pressure, right. It's the idea of giving a team when their backs are against the wall. I call it the continuum tie
time in space. They rush three, they play off the receivers, and this to me was maybe the play. I mean, we have the crazy Alabama Georgia ending from a couple of years ago, but in terms of the creativity, the stones of the moment and the execution, I can't imagine a more beautiful college football moment than the hook and ladder Boise State pulls off. In this moment.
You could live five hundred years and never see a trick play work that well.
Everything about it was perfect.
Thing about that play was beautiful and perfect, even the receiver taking a few extra steps with the ball to really really sell it. You know, he sold it, Yeah, I mean he just like they just had the whole thing engineered in some sort of football laboratory to be absolutely perfect. So they run the hook and ladder. Right, the pass is completed, it's a score. It's lateraled back. It goes for a thirty five yard touchdown with seven seconds left to make it thirty five thirty five. Now,
obviously you're watching it a home. This is an incredible moment. I don't know where I was, but I remember going crazy, standing up out of my chair, like I cannot believe what I just saw here. Trick plays like that are once in a generation, rarely if every do you see
one work? Do you see one worked that well? But what we didn't know at the time is we're watching this in real time, is that Chris Peterson is just gonna empty the frigging clip like every trick play, every every misdirection play he's got in the playbook on the armband he is. He just decides in that moment he is gonna show off his stones. And that's what we saw as we go into overtime.
Dan, Yes, it one hundred percent is the confidence from Chris Peterson. Even you said when you watched the pregame when they were sort of talking about the David Versus Goliath narrative, you said that was just like a glow about Chris. Oh yeah, that he's just like, we're just gonna have fun. We're just gonna mess around and do whatever. We don't care, like what do we have to lose. There's no pressure on us.
He ran like five trick plays on two possessions overtime starts. First play, Adrian Peterson just bulls through everyone scores twenty five yard touchdown run. Garrett Hartley makes the kick forty two to thirty five, So then Boise gets the ball back. They have to score, and this is again where Chris Peterson just decides, you know what, efitt, We're gonna run every trick, every misdirection play we've got in the playbook. Eventually they end up scoring on a six yard pass
from Vinnie Peretta to Derek Schuman, a tight end. By the way, he wore number ninety one, which I don't know if I've ever seen before.
Yeah, I love a good, like weird position group number. Didn't Evan Weaver wear like eighty seven for Yal as a linebacker? I love a good weird number number ninety one. Derek Schuman catches the touchdown. What does Chris Peterson decide to do? He's going for the win. He's going for two. A fit going for two.
That, of course, is when they take the bubble wrap off a statue of liberty play. Ian Johnson runs in from three yards away to give the Boise State Broncos a huge forty three to forty two upset victory in the Fiesta Bowl. David has a Fish knocked out Goliath, and at least for that moment in college football, unless if you were an Oklahoma fan, all was right in the world.
Yes, that was okay. So what is it? Vinnie Peretta Is his name? Vinnie Peretta. Yeah, So he's sort of an all purpose receive a running back and he every time it seemed that he ended up in the backfield and not Ian Johnson, who had a very nice game. And we'll get to Ian Johnson momentarily. We haven't mentioned his name, but every time Vinnie Peretta ended up in a formation near the quarterback, it seemed like Boise State
was at least attempting a trick play. There was like a throwback and nothing was there, and he just sort of ran. And there was another instance where it looked like they were trying to set something up, and Vinnie Peretta appears next to Jared Zebranski, not their all conference running back Ian Johnson, who had really other than the fumble helped to pace Boise State's effort that night, and to Oklahoma's credit, was it Derek Schuman number ninety one
tight end Derek Schuman. Yep, he's covered by a linebacker on the play. It's not like he leaks out without anybody noticed. In the defense, he's accounted for. Vinny Paretta just throws a good pack. Yeah, he throws a really nice past six yards for the time to get within one. Does Oklahoma win if any Peretta is their quarterback? That's so mean, I'm serious. The answer is yes, No, they don't win with any Peretta. No, absolutely not. Can we please talk about the Statue of Liberty real quick? Oh
we have to, don't we another iconic play? So the Statue of Liberty sees boyse lineup Jared Zabranski next to Ian Johnson, which is totally normal in the shotgun formation, and oh no, he's under center, I believe, and they go trips right. Oklahoma, trying to take every precaution, moves four dudes in the area of three receivers, and suddenly, ty, I mean, I went to a state school, but my math tells me we've got a bit of a mismatch on the line
of side. I think that's accurate. Yeah, that's accurate. It's then it's essentially because there's one guy sort of in the slot for Oklahoma. We have six guys on the line, so I think it's five linemen and a tight end for Boise State. Six guys in there blocking with six guys in the box for Oklahoma. So we have a
hat on a hat no matter what. So if Jared Lebronski just hands it to Ian Johnson, there's a good shot he's picking up two yards in this scenario, there's he's a good running back with a pretty good offensive line. He just run behind Ryan Clady and you're there. What happens is, as we all know the statue of Liberty, Jared Leebranski fakes the screen horizontally to a receiver who
sells obviously a great job coaching. Chris Peterson, former wide receiver coach, sells the fake pass and he puts it around his back and Ian Johnson takes it in untouched with a great seal on the edge it would think it was Ryan Clady and ends up blocking two guys, yeah, to help seal that edge. As Oklahoma starts running the wrong way, which is to be expected on a statue of liberty, and Ian Johnson runs it in untouched, launches the ball into a sea of blue and orange.
So, for those of you playing the home game wondering, what's a statue of liberty, statue of Liberty was a fake pass. Jared Zabranski sort of pulls the ball down, puts it behind his back. Ian Johnson grabs it, runs it for a touchdown. My problem with this play was I didn't feel like Ian Johnson sold it. Can we watch it like he's sort of standing there like casual
address James Franklin in the backfield. Now it worked, it worked great, true, but he just didn't sell it the way I would have expected for a successful trick play, certainly one of that magnitude.
So to take a step in terms of I'm going I'm in here for pass. Yeah, yeah, I just I guess I expected more in that. Of course, I'm splitting hairs here. It's ridiculous. But on the watch back, it didn't seem like he sold it.
It did feel like something was a little bit off from the comfort of my couch, But it worked.
Right, It worked forty three. It definitely worked to forty two.
A great play, a great sequence for Boise State, a great win as they finished the year thirteen to zero again, the only undefeated team that year in all of college football. A great story. Pandemonium ensues, right, We've got all sorts of stuff going on. We've got Chris Myers out there, try and interview some of these folks. I think he talks to Jared's a branski z Man's all fired up, all fired up, throw it around the horn, get some
commentary on what just transpired. Everyone is still catching their breath. And then we go down to Chris Myers for what I think will also go down in college football lore as one of those weird, iconic moments that could only happen in this sport. Chris Myers is on the sidelines interviewing Ian Johnson. Ian Johnson the star running back for Boise that year. He led the nation in rushing touchdowns.
He had a really good year, went on, didn't really do much in the NFL, had a cup of coffee, but had a great year for the Boise State Broncos. Ian Johnson's on the sidelines. He's got his girlfriend in his arm. She's a cheerleader. Just a really happy story. Chris Myers does this really thoughtful interview with Ian Johnson, who's overcome.
And he's very diplomatic, because Myers and everybody on the field, they're being asked, these Boise players, do they deserve a shot at Florida or Ohio State, And they're all very diplomatic or they're confident. It's good, it's good TV. It's all American college football. It's all American college football. Zabranski said, yeah, we deserve a chance. Ian Johnson was he didn't want to wade into territory. So we got our bowl game, right, we got our win, we proved all we could prove.
We're happy to be here. Right.
Then, at the conclusion of the interview, and I had to watch this like eight times to fully comprehend it.
Chris Myers, it's wild.
And otherwise fantastic journalist and sideline reporter and commentator for many many years, dating all the way back to his time at ESPN, sort of passively dismissively concludes the interview by saying, Okay, I know now you want to propose to your girlfriend, so go ahead. And his girlf ultimate ce Block, Yeah, his girlfriend. Ian Johnson's girlfriend had no idea that this was coming, none whatsoever. Dan, All right, I know you're gonna propose to your girlfriend, congratulations verbatim.
Her face changes is she takes on this look of complete surprise. Ian Johnson stumbles a little bit, because who the hell wouldn't stumble trying to propose amid all that craziness, Not to mention, this boob just spilled the beans on your surprise plan. He pops to his knee offers a marriage proposal. She of course says, yes, they're still married today.
Are you telling me Chris Myers did not tee you up for you proposing to the solid wife Kate. I think that's what I'm saying. Yeah, So what I think happened is somebody told Chris Myers that he was going to do this, and I think Chris Myers took that as sort of a lighthearted thing. What Chris Myers says is, so, now, what are you gonna do? You're gonna propose to your girlfriend? Right, And when he when Ian Johnson gets down on one knee, Chris Meyer says, oh, he's actually doing or something along
those lines. And so I don't know if Chris Myers got a tip off that he thought was a joke. I think maybe he got a tip off and the intent was to have him say, and I understand you have a question you want to ask, like to tee him up in a more responsible, respectful way, right, Don't you think I don't mean to call Chris Myers a booth?
That wasn't nice, But this was this was this was not his finest broadcast moment spilling the beans. I'm sure he would say it, but to your point, it did not sound as if he took it seriously because there was a little quip like, oh wait, you're actually doing it. Okay, of course he did actually do it, and a fun story that goes along with this game forevermore. What are your other thoughts on this game now that we've walked
through the whole thing? A good coach game. I know you mentioned Brent Venables for Oklahoma, but yes, a bunch of other big name guys that took part in this game.
Yeah. So, Brian Harson is the offensive coordinator for Boise State, though Chris Peterson is calling the offense justin Wilcox is calling the defense a good defense that you was opportunistic and tackled really well. This was not a highly talented, a highly deep defense, but they played crazy hard and they played very well. Corey Hall led things in the middle for Boise stated a really nice linebacker for them. A few other things that jumped out to me beyond
the coaches in this game. I think what mars Cel Yates was in the secondary, I believe for for Boise State. He goes on to be a coordinator a couple places, one even just running out onto the field. Boise has some literally whack uniforms. This is still a time in which I don't even remember if it was Nike or Adidas, where even a high level top ten, top twenty five, top forty. I know they're not considered a group of
five at this point, but it's a whack school. Their uniforms are three rungs below the nicer uniforms of college football. It's a very It's an East Bay look for Boise State, and that sucks. They eventually did a lot better. I'm sorry they were on a stage that big. They should have had new uniforms for the Fiesta Bowl, and they
deserved better. I don't know, Sorry, whatever it was, Nike, Adidas, whoever number two you mentioned the coaches, I thought back at this game only like as I mentioned, only remembering the end the fireworks at the end of the game. I knew that it was sort of back and forth to some extent, and Jared Zebranski made plays, and I remember Adrian Peterson was in the game, and I remember, you know, Malcolm Kelly and Joachina Glessias. I remember all
of these names. My assumption was it was back and forth. Boise pulls it out at the end watching back, Boise wants credit for fixing a roof it destroyed, and that colors things a little bit differently for me. When you're up twenty eight to ten with the ball with five minutes left from the third quarter, and you turn the ball over a couple of times, backbreaking interceptions, fumbles, you stall out on offense a ton against a defense that's good. Again,
I mentioned Rufus, Alexander. I think you finished with seventeen tackles in this game. May have been the best player in this game, ye, I mean the best presence. The best person in this game is Chris Peterson. I think we can probably agree on that. Sure, But the fact that Boise State is up three possessions, if my math is correct, with the ball deep into the game and need to reach into the ultimate quiver to pull out trick arrows, to pull out a game with that sort
of lead. It doesn't change how fun and exciting and entertaining the end was, but it colors a picture more fully that I didn't fully remember. And so it was great at the end, but damn, Boise State almost choked away this incredible opportunity to make a national statement and needed magic to save it.
Do you think that by virtue of blowing that lead and in a weird way, creating these moments, that it has made Boise State a better football program?
Oh, there's no question. I'm just looking back and saying the complete picture is boise almost choked away this golden opportunity to be you know, David to Oklahoma's quote unquote Goliath. This was still it wasn't an amazing Oklahoma team, was a good Oklahoma team, but it just colors things a little bit differently for me. Now, these are these are
immortal moments. So I'm glad on a certain level, on an entertainment level, that Boise State chokes away this lead and they didn't have the depth to really step on the gas for four quarters the entire time. Maybe they eventually do. When you look at what you know, the Kellen Moore era had in store for Boise State. But it definitely it jogs back memories that I didn't even remember, and so that that changes things a little bit for me, that they need this magic to pull out the not choke.
And that's all it is for me. That it just it's a little less impressive from a football standpoint. It loses nothing from an entertainment standpoint.
The other thing that stood out to me they Oklahoma Sooners playing football since eighteen ninety five. This is a program that's you know, been around a while. They've had a ton of success. Boise State at that point was what ten years into to their Division One status.
Yes, yeah, Big Sky to Big West. Yeah.
So I understand the structure of college football painting this game as a David versus Goliath moment for sure. So only a seven and a half points spread, Yeah, seven and a half points happens every week on games that we preview, and in virtually all of those cases we are not talking about a David versus Goliath moment. So there was a little bit of marketing, a little bit of packaging that I think made this game a little bit more exciting.
Yeah, when Boise State had pretty much handled everybody impressively. It was close against Wyoming. They blow out Oregon State, a Pac ten team. They have a close call against San Jose State on the road. I think they win by a field goal. You look at the network these games around, it's local Boise television only. There is no national presence outside of they have ESPN two for Fresno. They have you remember versus oh Man. Wow? Oh, they have Versus for the Utah game. They the Oregon State
game was on ESPN. But there's a lot of KTVB broadcasts thrown into this Boise schedule. Channel seven, NBC affiliate in Boise, Idaho, shout out to the Treasure Valley. So that stood out to me too. That Boise and even if you look at their previous years, their bowl games that they played in and seven and a half felt about right, even with a thirteen to oher record. The year before that, they lose in the MPC Computers Bowl to Boston College. They lose to Louisville and the Liberty Bowl,
which is essentially a virtual home game for Louisville. I mean it's very close. The Fort Worth Bowl, they beat TCU the year before that and the Humanitarian Bowl, which is local. They beat Iowa State the year before that, so in terms of stages, I would not have been surprised if it was ten thirteen points spread. If Vinnie Peretta was.
Playing, I guess yeah, yeah, yeah, incredible. Boise State wins again. They finished the year is the only undefeated team. Obviously, the program has gone to great heights ever since then. But this was a seminal moment, not just in the history of the Boise State program, but really in the history of postseason college football, certainly BCS era college football.
Let me ask the question that I've been asking about all of these games, and there are a number of different ways that I think you could answer this one. Who was the best player slash presence on the field. Is it Chris Peterson?
Yeah, yeah, it's one hundred percent Chris Peterson. There are guys who made plays here and there. Adrian Peterson is the clear best player big picture, but in a vacuum on the field that night, Yeah, I mean Zabranski took too much off the table for everything he put onto it. Paul Thompson made plays at times, but took way too much off as well. I think it's Peterson, especially with how well Boise State comes out of the shoot to start the game that you know, whether it's scripting ten
to fifteen plays, they came out so impressively. They started and finished this game with so much poise and a poise, poissy poise and a plan that it's it's Peterson's shining moment to this day.
Let me ask you this about Chris Peterson. If he's subbed in for Paul Thompson, does Oklahoma win emails solid well.
I want to make something else clear. Yeah, go ahead, Yes, I want to make something else abundantly clear. If for some reason, this were in the playoff era and say Boise State, it was like a two to three matchup between Oklahoma and Boise State and it was a one to four. I know it wasn't between Ohio State and Florida, and Boise State ends up in the championship game against we'll say Florida because they handled Ohio State. We know that Boise State, the Broncos would have been so mo
by the Gators. They would have been I want, absolutely I roll the Boise State story. I love the idea of saying let them decided on the field, Let them get a shot. Suh moked.
That was a good Florida team, A really good Florida team. It was really good, really good Florida team. This is the kind of game that, gosh, if it were a playoff, setting takes a little bit of the wind out of your sales, doesn't it.
I don't care who you are, what would you set the line at? Oh, gosh, for Florida Boise? Knowing what we know about those two programs at their absolute best fourteen fourteen and a half, I think, yeah, at least you're I think you're well into double digits.
It would it would have come down at game time too, because Boyse would have been a very strong public play. People would have wanted to bet Boyse even if they didn't truly believe they could cover suh moked.
All right, okay, well I will can I can I add a couple of more items of context as I like to do. Please, Which of these ten songs which were number one that well here we go would you most would you most like to listen to? I don't
remember the music that was involved in this game. I don't think there was a clear pop song intro, but maybe I'm wrong, lips of an angel from Hinder, Oh Boy, Shorty like Mine from Bow Wow, We Fly High, Jim Jones, How to Save a Life from the fray, Jesus say it right, Nellie Fertado, My love justin Timberlake, smack that Acon fer Delicious. I don't need to tell you the artist there, right, I want to love you also Acon and irreplaceable Beyonce. Akon had a year that year. Akon had a hell of a year.
Yeah, Akon had a year. I guess I go Timberlake. But a couple options there.
And on the uh in the box office tie, which of these are you most likely? I'm assuming you just anything Acon You're most likely to put on?
Right?
Sure? Box office college football related movie number ten, We Are Marshall.
I wrote a review of that movie at the time, I was writing for Fox Sports, and I tore it to shreds oh.
Tore it to shreds all right, all right out.
And I had every Marshall fan in the universe sending me angry emails.
A thundering herd of angry Marshall fans. Rocky Balboa, The Good Shepherd, Charlotte's Web, Happily Never After, Dream Girls, Freedom Writers, Children of Men, which I haven't seen and I've heard is incredible. I don't know if you've seen Children No Men, The Pursuit of Happiness and Number One Night at the Museum. Oh wow, Holy, I would see Children of Men ahead of the rest of that that spread. Ah, wasn't Dreamgirls with Jennifer Heibowen for sure. I've never seen that one either,
Beyonce Eddie Murphy. Ah man, I have no idea.
That's not a good nothing there is really jumping out at me.
I've also got code named The Cleaner starring Cedric the Entertainer, finishing just outside of the top ten. So that is two thousand and one and should also mention the MTV New Year's Eve special the night before was co hosted by Chamillionaire and Laguna Beach's own Steven Yes, tying it all that to the solid verbal Stephen Coletti's ex girlfriend has a car that blows up on the side of the road, starts smoking, and what does she say? Toy Zo, Donezo,
done zo. All right, well we are donezo, shout out christ and Cavalieri. With this show, our rewatch our reliving our making peace with the two thousand and seven Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Congratulations all these years later to Boise State Broncos on an incredible forty three to forty two win. We hope everyone out there is staying safe. Obviously these are very uncertain times. We do appreciate your time here with us as we talk about some great games from
college football's past. I have really enjoyed doing this. Not only have I enjoyed doing this, one of my favorite parts of this is the PostScript. You mentioned a couple of things about where guys have gone on to play US. Eddian Johnson had a cup of coffee in the NFL. Who do you think wins the PostScript? Of all of these big personalities. We have head coaches Rustin Wilcox is at cal We have Brent Venables as a legendary defensive
coordinator now at Clemson. We have all these guys who have gone on you know mentioned Orlando Scandric and Kyle Wilson as NFL players, and Chris Peterson now recently retiring after moving on to Washington. What is the most fascinating Who is the most victorious figure? PostScript? Because this game
arguably cemented Big Game Bob. Maybe maybe for Bob study because he goes on to win a lot, but in those big games at Oklahoma getting killed by USC, which, by the way, who is the defensive coordinator that one year for Oklahoma against SC in the national championship, bopul o'calini. Yeah, fifty five fourteen, I believe. And just it happens year after year where Oklahoma seems to be in a good place and then they lose a huge game and just
they can't quite get over the hump. They get to the playoff with Baker Mayfield, can't quite get there, and after losing two nowtional championships and then a festa bow against the whack champion, Big Game Bob sort of becomes cemented into Stone I think. Right, so I'm guessing that's your answer. I think it is. I think it's the most fascinating version. He's an XFL GM and head coach. Very briefly, yeah, very briefly. I don't know. As a beard, yeah I don't.
I mean, Bob Stoops is a good one and probably overlooked by many folks who think back to this game. I just keep coming back to Chris Peterson. This was Peterson's first year. He went in there, guns a blazing, and if you're gonna win a game, if you're gonna do it in as dramatic a fashion as possible, this is the.
Way to do it.
And from that moment on, Chris Peterson was sort of a legend. You know, he was highly sought after a year. Yeah, he was highly sought after pretty much every year following that game, and not just by schools the size of Boise State, ones that were much much bigger. Eventually he does jump over to Washington. Now he's going to be working as more of an administrator. But Chris Peterson cemented his legacy in college football with this win.
By the way, I watched this game alone in my apartment. I was roommates with Liney Fan Scott and West Coast Kevin. At the time. I had just come back from vacation, some sort of winter vacation. This was after my first season as the college football tour guide doing videos in the Pac ten at Tailgates. I come back from vacation, I'm watching this game. I forget if I was in my room or if I was in the living room,
and I don't remember. Also if Kevin was just passed out in his room sleeping, because this was in the West Coast, it wasn't that late, this was in La or if his then girlfriend now wife was with him and I didn't want to interrupt them, so I was not screaming. I was doing, like you know what a silent scream is like, Sometimes you get a shot and you get so much pain, you got the doctors, or you just sort of yelp and don't make any noises,
your face turns red. That's what I was doing as I watched this game, not wanting to wake up or disturb potentially a sexy time for West Coast Kevin. And so that's what I was doing, silently yelling as this game unfolded.
At the end, all right, well, fun, fun show. Thank you again for giving us so much of your time. Hope you're out there, Hope you're staying safe. We've both enjoyed doing this. So we'll have to go back in the lab and figure out if there are any other games that have been requested by the verball er hood.
Yes, by all means.
If you want to reach out on social media or at Cliverble at gmail dot com and let us know what games we should try to cover next. Ord knows we've got plenty of time and an infinite number of possibilities. We've done four of them now. Each one has been more exciting than the last. So if you're cool with it, Dan, we can keep doing this for a few more weeks.
They're not playing any games this weekend, are they? I don't think so. All we said is on our Instagram live feed, which, by the way, follow just solid verbal on Instagram or Twitter or whatever you want. It has to be from the nineties. We've done early two thousands, we've done mid two thousands. We sort of focused on either just into the solidverbal tenure or just before leading up to the solidverbal tenure that started in two thousand
and eight. We want a game that is a fascinating, interesting, wild rewatch from the nineties. So if you could suggest that either Twitter, email, soliverble at gmail, dot com, Reddit, any of those places, we will see it from the nineteen nineties. The next one of these shows we do. That's where we want to focus on what it has to be four x three. We got to do standard deft for this next one. All right, Well, Daniel, it's been a pleasure talking to you. As always, we will
reconvene in a week. In the meantime, you stay safe out there, okay, thank you very much. You do the same for my good friend.
Dan Rubenstein out there on the West coast, for myself, Ty hilden Brand all the way over here back east.
We will catch you all week. In the meantime, stay solid face.