1993 USF&G Insurance Sugar Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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59th edition Bowl Coalition National Championship Game | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date | January 1, 1993 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Season | 1992 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stadium | Louisiana Superdome | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Location | New Orleans, Louisiana | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
MVP | Alabama RB Derrick Lassic [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Favorite | Miami by 8 points (36) [2] [3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Referee | Rogers Redding (SWC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Attendance | 76,789 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Network | ABC Sports | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Announcers | Keith Jackson, Bob Griese and Jack Arute | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 1993 Sugar Bowl took place on January 1, 1993, in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the final game of the 1992 college football season and served as the first National Championship game selected by the Bowl Coalition, predecessor to the Bowl Alliance, BCS, and later the College Football Playoff. The game featured two unbeaten teams in the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Miami Hurricanes. Alabama would get the win over Miami, 34–13, to finish the season 13-0 and lay claim to the 12th national championship in program history. It was Alabama’s first national championship since 1979.
Miami, out of the Big East conference, was led by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Gino Torretta, and was playing for back-to-back undefeated seasons and consecutive National Championships.
Alabama also entered the matchup undefeated, following their 28–21 victory over the Florida Gators in the inaugural SEC Championship Game.
This was the inaugural season of the Bowl Coalition, which was intended to ensure that the national championship would be decided on the field. Its formula worked as intended, forcing the first bowl matchup between the consensus #1 and #2 teams in the nation since the end of the 1987 season. As Big East champion, #1 Miami was not contractually obligated to a bowl. The Hurricanes were thus free to face #2 Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, which the Crimson Tide hosted as SEC champion.
Miami was heavily favored and came into the game on a 29-game winning streak; the Hurricanes had not lost since a 29–20 loss to Notre Dame in 1990. Alabama's defense held the Hurricanes to just 13 points, intercepting Torretta three times, en route to a consensus national championship. Alabama rushed for 267 yards—67 more yards than the Hurricanes had allowed all season. At one point, the Tide lined up all eleven players on the line of scrimmage. The confused Torretta was picked off by George Teague, who returned it for a touchdown. [4]
A legendary play in Alabama football lore, known as "The Strip", [5] occurred when Miami wide receiver Lamar Thomas caught a deep pass from Torretta and was sprinting for what seemed like an 89-yard touchdown. However, Teague caught Thomas from behind, stripped the ball from him, and started running the other way before being tackled. [6] The play became famous following Thomas's pre-game comments regarding the SEC, the superiority of the Miami receiving corps, and the manhood of the Alabama defensive backs. [7] While the play was negated by an Alabama offside penalty, it still ultimately prevented a Miami touchdown, as Miami would have simply declined the penalty had the strip not taken place. [6]
Torretta threw three interceptions after only throwing four in the entire season. It drew parallels to Vinny Testaverde's five-interception performance in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl. [6] Following the poor performance, some reporters began to question whether Torretta deserved the Heisman. [8]
The Crimson Tide's victory meant not only their 12th national championship but also the first since legendary coach Paul "Bear" Bryant died in 1983 less than five weeks after coaching his last game. Alabama's coach Gene Stallings was one of the Junction Boys, the group of Texas A&M players who endured Bryant's punishing 1954 summer camp. It would be the school's last national football championship until Nick Saban's first as Alabama head coach in 2009.
Quarter | Time | Team | Scoring Information [9] | Score | |
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Alabama | Miami | ||||
1 | 10:56 | Alabama | 19–yard field goal by Michael Proctor | 3 | 0 |
7:49 | Miami | 49–yard field goal by Dane Prewitt | 3 | 3 | |
2 | 10:48 | Alabama | 23–yard field goal by Michael Proctor | 6 | 3 |
6:09 | Alabama | Sherman Williams 2–yard touchdown run, Michael Proctor kick good | 13 | 3 | |
0:00 | Miami | 42–yard field goal by Dane Prewitt | 13 | 6 | |
3 | 10:12 | Alabama | Derrick Lassic 1–yard touchdown run, Michael Proctor kick good | 20 | 6 |
9:56 | Alabama | George Teague 31–yard interception return for touchdown, Michael Proctor kick good | 27 | 6 | |
4 | 12:08 | Miami | Kevin Williams 78–yard punt return for touchdown, Dane Prewitt kick good | 27 | 13 |
6:46 | Alabama | Derrick Lassic 4–yard touchdown run, Michael Proctor kick good | 34 | 13 | |
Final Score | 34 | 13 |
George Theo Teague is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) who played for the Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins. He played college football at the University of Alabama.
Gino Louis Torretta is an American former football player who was a quarterback for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes, where he won the Heisman Trophy in 1992 and was a member of the national championship teams of 1989 and 1991. He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 1993 NFL draft and was a member of several NFL teams, but never became a regular starter as a pro. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.
The 1992 NCAA Division I-A football season was the first year of the Bowl Coalition and concluded with Alabama's first national championship in thirteen years—their first since the departure of Bear Bryant. One of Bryant's former players, Gene Stallings, was the head coach, and he used a style similar to Bryant's, a smashmouth running game combined with a tough defense.
Lamar Nathaniel Thomas is an American football coach and former player who played professionally as a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes, earning All-American honors in 1992.
The Alabama Crimson Tide football program represents the University of Alabama in the sport of American football. The team competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The team is currently led by Kalen DeBoer. The Crimson Tide is among the most storied and decorated football programs in NCAA history. Since beginning play in 1892, the program claims 18 national championships, including 13 wire-service national titles in the poll-era, and five other titles before the poll-era. From 1958 to 1982, the team was led by Hall of Fame coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, who won six national titles with the program. Alabama then had a dominant run under head coach Nick Saban between 2007 and 2023, resulting in six further national titles. The team's rallying cry is "Roll Tide!".
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The 1992 Alabama Crimson Tide football team represented the University of Alabama in the 1992 NCAA Division I-A football season. This was the team's third season under head coach Gene Stallings. They played their home games at both Bryant–Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama. They finished the season undefeated with a record of 13–0 and as National Champions. The team was noted especially for its strong defense, which led the nation in fewest points allowed and, in a strong bowl game performance, prevented defending national champion Miami from scoring an offensive touchdown.
The Florida State-Miami football rivalry is one of the most storied and intense rivalries in college football. It pits the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University (FSU) against the Miami Hurricanes of the University of Miami, two of the most prominent and successful football programs in the state of Florida. Over the years, the rivalry has produced dramatic games, national championship implications, and countless memorable moments, particularly during the 1980s and 1990s. The rivalry is fueled by geographical proximity, recruiting competition, and a history of high-stakes games.
The 1992 SEC Championship Game was played on December 5, 1992, at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama. The Southeastern Conference (SEC) was the first conference in NCAA Division I college football to host a post-season conference championship game, and the 1992 game was the first time the SEC Championship Game was held. The inaugural match-up determined the 1992 SEC football champion. The Alabama Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama, winners of the SEC Western Division, defeated the Florida Gators of the University of Florida, who won the SEC Eastern Division, by a score of 28-21.
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Wide Right II is a colloquial name for the 1992 college football game between the Miami Hurricanes and Florida State Seminoles. The game is notable in the Florida State–Miami football rivalry and derives its name from the colloquial name Wide Right I, played during the immediately preceding season. Like its predecessor, the game had decisive national championship implications and ended with a Florida State kicker missing a game-altering field goal in the waning seconds.
The 1990 Sugar Bowl was the 56th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Monday, January 1. Part of the 1989–90 bowl game season, it featured the second-ranked independent Miami Hurricanes and the #7 Alabama Crimson Tide of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Favored Miami won 33–25.
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... I thought it correct to label Gino "good, and successful" but not "great, and best player in the land."