Best of the 1970s: Blue bloods, iconic coaches and historic rivalries rule college football

June 16, 2024

Editor’s note: Throughout the offseason, The Athletic is celebrating the 150th anniversary of college football, one decade at a time. For more on the 1970s, read Michael Weinreb on how top programs pursued increased power.

With two-platoon football in full effect but scholarship limitations slow to take hold, historic powerhouses and some of the sport’s most prominent coaches dominated college football in the 1970s.

The era was defined by the wishbone offense, transcendent running backs, all-time great defensive linemen and famous rivalries, from the Ten Year War between Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler to dramatic Notre Dame-USC games to annual high-stakes clashes between Nebraska and Oklahoma.

All-1970s team

QB: Jim Plunkett, Stanford. A three-year starter, Plunkett briefly held the FBS career passing record, throwing for 7,544 yards, including 2,980 to win the Heisman Trophy as a senior in 1970. He saved his best for last with 265 yards and MVP honors in leading Stanford to a 27-17 upset win against unbeaten No. 2 Ohio State in the 1971 Rose Bowl before he became the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. Plunkett and Auburn’s Pat Sullivan were the only quarterbacks to win the Heisman in the ’70s.

RB: Archie Griffin, Ohio State. Some backs are deserving of a spot for more impressive college seasons statistically (Billy Sims, Charles White), and others went on to more decorated professional careers (Earl Campbell). And yet Griffin stands alone with one achievement that makes his inclusion mandatory: He is the only two-time winner of the Heisman Trophy. Griffin took advantage of the lift of the freshman ban in 1972 and led the Buckeyes in rushing in each of his four seasons, all of which ended with top-10 rankings, Big Ten championships and Rose Bowl trips.

RB: Tony Dorsett, Pitt. Dorsett led a Pitt football renaissance that culminated in a national championship in 1976. He burst onto the scene with 1,686 rushing yards as a freshman and finished with 2,150 yards to win the Heisman as a senior. He became the first player to rush for a thousand yards four times and totaled 6,082 career yards, an FBS record that stood for more than 20 years before Ricky Williams broke it.

WR: Johnny Rodgers, Nebraska. Rodgers had 143 catches for 2,479 yards in three seasons from 1970-72, and he provided value beyond his receiving skills. He also sparked Nebraska as a change-of-pace runner and an explosive returner. He most memorably returned a punt 72 yards for a touchdown in the Game of the Century win against Oklahoma in 1971, and he finished his career with seven punt return TDs and one kick return TD. Rodgers played for national champions in each of his first two seasons, then won the Heisman as a senior.

WR: Ozzie Newsome, Alabama. The Crimson Tide thrived running out of the wishbone, and the 6-foot-4 Newsome took the top off defenses as a field-stretching split end. He started four years and averaged 20.3 yards per reception, catching 102 passes for 2,070 yards and 16 touchdowns in his career. He earned consensus All-America honors as a senior in 1977, when Bear Bryant called him the best end he’d ever coached and Alabama’s best athlete since Joe Namath.

TE: Ken MacAfee, Notre Dame. MacAfee is the last tight end to finish in the top 10 of the Heisman vote. He finished third in 1977, garnering 55 first-place votes in a campaign dominated by Texas running back Earl Campbell, whom MacAfee and the Irish beat for the national championship in the Cotton Bowl. A two-time consensus All-American, MacAfee racked up 128 catches for 1,759 yards and 15 touchdowns in his career.

OL: John Hicks, Ohio State. In the past 50 years, only three offensive linemen have finished in the top five of the Heisman vote: Ohio State’s Orlando Pace finished fourth in 1996, Nebraska’s Dave Rimington finished fifth in 1982 and Hicks topped all O-linemen as the runner-up in 1973. The star tackle won the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award and ended his career as the first player to start in three Rose Bowls.

OL: John Hannah, Alabama. An all-time great pro with the Patriots, Hannah established himself as a star guard in the early 1970s at Alabama. A unanimous All-American as a senior, Hannah was an integral part of the Crimson Tide’s transition to the wishbone.

OL: Jim Ritcher, N.C. State. Ritcher took home the Outland Trophy as a senior in 1979, becoming the first center to win the award. A two-time All-American, he went on to a long NFL career and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1998.

OL: Tom Brahaney, Oklahoma. The Sooners demolished opponents with their record-setting wishbone offense in the early 1970s. Brahaney was a driving force as a two-time consensus All-American center who blocked for the most prolific rushing offense in FBS history (472.4 yards per game) in 1971.

OL: Jerry Sisemore, Texas. Sisemore was a unanimous first-team All-American his final two seasons in 1971 and ’72. He began his career as part of the 1970 UPI national championship team and played tackle for three consecutive Southwest Conference champions as the Longhorns spearheaded college football’s wishbone obsession.

Few players have gotten to opposing QBs more relentlessly than Hugh Green. (Courtesy of Pitt Athletics)

DL: Hugh Green, Pitt. Green had a stunningly productive career from start to finish. He arrived in 1977, after Pitt won the ’76 national title, and played for three top-10 Panthers teams, was a consensus All-American each of his last three seasons and finished his career in 1980 as the Heisman runner-up and winner of the Maxwell, Outland and Lombardi awards. He racked up 49 career sacks and ranks second on Pitt’s all-time tackles list.

DL: Lee Roy Selmon, Oklahoma. Three Selmon brothers starred on Oklahoma defensive lines. Lee Roy, the youngest, became the most decorated. The No. 1 pick in the 1976 NFL Draft, Selmon was a standout on Oklahoma’s 1974 and ’75 national championship teams. As a consensus All-American his senior year, he was credited with 142 tackles and won the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award.

DL: Rich Glover, Nebraska. The 234-pound Glover was a game-wrecker as the middle guard who anchored the Cornhuskers’ early 1970s defenses. Nebraska didn’t lose a game and won national championships in his first two seasons. As a senior in 1972, Glover earned unanimous All-America honors, finished third in the Heisman Trophy race and won the Outland and Lombardi.

DL: Randy White, Maryland. The Terrapins struggled for most of two decades after Jim Tatum left following the 1955 season. That changed behind White and coach Jerry Claiborne, who moved White from fullback to the defensive line. White became the centerpiece of Maryland’s ascent back to the top 20. A consensus All-American in 1974, White won the Outland and Lombardi awards in 1974, when he had 24 tackles for loss.

DL: Ross Browner, Notre Dame. Browner was a key player on Notre Dame national championships as a freshman in 1973 and a senior in 1977. A unanimous All-American his final two seasons, Browner won the Maxwell Award and finished fifth in the Heisman race in 1977. Notre Dame credits him with 77 career tackles for loss, 32.5 more than second place in the school record book.

LB: Tom Cousineau, Ohio State. Cousineau was a playmaking machine in the final years of Woody Hayes’ tenure. A consensus All-American in 1977 and ’78, he had six career 20-tackle games, an Ohio State record 211 tackles as a senior and 569 total tackles in his career.

LB: Jerry Robinson, UCLA. Robinson became a consensus All-American as a sophomore in 1976, then followed with two more unanimous All-American seasons to finish a decorated career in which he racked up 468 tackles. He owns UCLA’s two highest single-season and single-game tackle totals.

LB: Mike Singletary, Baylor. The Bears struggled in Singletary’s first two seasons in 1977-78, but at one point as a sophomore, he made 33 tackles in one game against Arkansas, helping him finish with 232 that year. By the end of his career, he amassed 662 total tackles. All three are Baylor records. The Bears went 18-6 with back-to-back No. 14 finishes his final two seasons. Each time, Singletary was a consensus All-American.

DB: Tommy Casanova, LSU. Casanova helped LSU to three consecutive AP top-11 finishes from 1969-71. He was a first-team All-American each of his last two seasons, despite being hindered by an injury as a senior, and he was part of a 1970 defense that allowed just 8.7 points per game. Casanova also received some carries on offense and returned punts, including two for touchdowns in a 1970 win against Ole Miss.

DB: Kenny Easley, UCLA. Easley burst onto the scene with a UCLA freshman record for tackles in 1977, then was a three-time first-team All-American from 1978-80. Easley still holds the Bruins’ record for career interceptions (19) and is fifth in tackles. In addition to his defensive heroics, he returned punts and kicks.

DB: Dave Brown, Michigan. From 1972-74, Michigan finished in the top two nationally in scoring defense each year. Brown started in the defensive backfield all three of those seasons, earning consensus All-America honors each of the last two. He returned nine career interceptions for 202 yards, and he remains one of Michigan’s most accomplished punt returners.

Bob Devaney led Nebraska to back-to-back national titles to start the 1970s. (Courtesy of Nebraska Athletics)

Best teams of the 1970s

1. 1971 Nebraska. Bob Devaney pushed Nebraska to national prominence in the 1960s, and a national championship breakthrough came early in the 1970s. Though the 1970 team won the national title as the No. 1 team in the AP poll, it tied a USC team that finished 6-4-1 and shared the title with Texas and Ohio State and. In 1971, led by Johnny Rodgers and quarterback Jerry Tagge, the Cornhuskers left no doubt.

After opening at No. 2, they spent the rest of the season ranked No. 1, outscoring 13 opponents 507 to 104. The only team to stay within three touchdowns was No. 2 Oklahoma in a de facto national championship game on Thanksgiving. Sparked by Rodgers’ famous punt return touchdown, the Huskers beat the Sooners 35-31. For an encore, they crushed No. 2 Alabama 38-6 in the Orange Bowl to finish as the only undefeated team. They beat the teams ranked No. 2 (Oklahoma), No. 3 (Colorado) and No. 4 (Alabama) in the final AP poll.

2. 1972 USC. The Trojans spent all but one week ranked No. 1 in the AP poll despite being ranked No. 8 in the preseason. On the first Saturday, UCLA upset No. 1 Nebraska. The Trojans crushed No. 4 Arkansas 31-10 on the road, vaulted to the top spot and never let go. The closest thing to danger came in a 30-21 win at No. 15 Stanford.

Behind the running of Anthony Davis and the receiving of Lynn Swann, the Trojans won every game by at least two scores, capped by a 24-7 win at No. 14 UCLA, a 45-23 win vs. No. 10 Notre Dame and a 42-17 Rose Bowl win vs. No. 3 Ohio State to seal the national championship. The Trojans entered bowl season as the nation’s lone unbeaten and scored 35 second-half points to rout the Buckeyes to win John McKay his third of four national championships.

3. 1974 Oklahoma. Oklahoma’s perfect season happened quietly. NCAA sanctions banned the Sooners from the postseason and from appearing on network television, and they also were barred from the UPI coaches poll. Still, in his second year as head coach after a 10-0-1 debut, Barry Switzer led the Sooners to perfection and the AP national championship.

The Sooners fell from the top spot after opening with a 28-11 win against Baylor, but they regained it following Ohio State’s loss to Michigan State. They had the only perfect record, they beat No. 6 Nebraska 28-14 and they played just one close game, a 16-13 win vs. rival Texas. Led by halfback Joe Washington, the Sooners led the nation in scoring (43 points per game) and rushed an average of 73.9 times for 438.8 yards.

4. 1973 Notre Dame. With the UPI still naming the coaches’ national champion before the bowls, the 1973 regular season ended with a mess: Three major teams (Alabama, Notre Dame and Penn State) had perfect records, and another three (Oklahoma, Ohio State, Michigan) were undefeated with a tie. At the end of the regular season, both major polls ranked Alabama No. 1, so the UPI crowned the Crimson Tide national champions. Though the Nittany Lions were unbeaten and had Heisman winner John Cappelletti, they were ranked merely No. 6 thanks to a middling East-heavy schedule. No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 3 Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl became the AP national championship game.

The Irish had only one regular-season game decided by one score — a 14-10 win vs. Michigan State — and they also beat No. 6 USC 23-14. On New Year’s Eve in New Orleans, they finished their unbeaten season and validated their claim to No. 1 with a dramatic 24-23 win against the Crimson Tide, giving Ara Parseghian his second national championship.

5. 1979 Alabama. Bear Bryant had undefeated teams go unrecognized, and he had imperfect teams win or share national championships. In 1979, he did what only his first championship team had done: He coached a perfect team to an undisputed national title. After splitting with USC the previous season, the Crimson Tide opened at No. 2 behind the Trojans. When USC tied Stanford on Oct. 8, Alabama moved to No. 1.

It actually lost that spot to Ohio State following a close Iron Bowl win against Auburn, but a 24-9 win against No. 6 Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl combined with the Buckeyes’ Rose Bowl loss to USC locked up Bryant’s sixth and final national championship. Though the unit didn’t have a consensus first-team All-American, the Crimson Tide played suffocating defense, allowing just 5.6 points per game with five shutouts.

6. 1976 Pitt. After the end of the Jock Sutherland era in 1938, Pitt experienced nearly four decades of mixed results. When Johnny Majors arrived in 1973, he inherited a team with a 1-10 record. He made progress with the Panthers in his first three years and, in large part because of the presence of Tony Dorsett, they opened at No. 9 in 1976. A dream season followed: The Panthers bookended their regular season with dominant wins against Notre Dame and Penn State, and they routed No. 5 Georgia 27-3 in the Sugar Bowl. Pitt moved to No. 1 in mid-November following a loss by Michigan, and it rode Dorsett — who rushed for 2,150 yards, including the bowl — to a perfect 12-0 season.

Tony Dorsett and Johnny Majors led Pitt to the 1976 national title. (Courtesy of Pitt Athletics)

7. 1971 Oklahoma. The 1971 season felt like it could have ended like 1966, with two loaded, all-time great teams tying in late November. Alas, the Sooners lost 35-31 at home against Nebraska on Thanksgiving, spoiling a bid for a national championship. Beyond that loss, the Sooners were untouchable: They hold the FBS record for rushing yards per game (472.36), they scored 44.5 points per game (30-plus points in all but one game) and all 11 wins came by double digits. They won convincingly against teams ranked No. 3 (Texas), No. 5 (Auburn), No. 6 (Colorado) and No. 17 (USC). They had a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in halfback Greg Pruitt (third in the Heisman race) and quarterback Jack Mildren (sixth). The ’71 Sooners stand as one of the greatest teams to not win a championship.

8. 1978 USC. Alabama won the AP national championship thanks to its Sugar Bowl win against Penn State, but USC beat the Crimson Tide early in the season and won the UPI title. Sure, Alabama beat the top-ranked Nittany Lions and USC had the worse loss — 20-7 at Arizona State, which finished 9-3 and ranked 19th by the UPI — but the Trojans had the better overall résumé. Though they played close games, six of their 12 wins came against teams that finished ranked in the final AP top 20, including No. 12 Michigan State, No. 17 Stanford, No. 14 UCLA, No. 7 Notre Dame, No. 5 Michigan and, of course, No. 1 Alabama. Led by All-American tailback Charles White, the Trojans played a brutal schedule and had a season worthy of a national championship.

9. 1970 Nebraska. The 1970 season features three national champions: The AP crowned Nebraska, the UPI crowned Texas and the National Football Foundation crowned both Texas and Ohio State. The latter two were finalized before Texas lost the Cotton Bowl and Ohio State lost the Rose Bowl, both by double digits. Nebraska, ranked third in the AP poll before the bowls, shot to No. 1 after beating No. 5 LSU in the Orange Bowl. Nebraska tied USC 21-21 in its second game, then finished the season 11-0-1, with a bunch of rising stars that formed the core of the dominant 1971 undisputed championship team.

10. 1973 Oklahoma. Banned from the postseason in Barry Switzer’s first season upon getting promoted to replace Chuck Fairbanks, Oklahoma kicked off a remarkable run under its new coach with near-perfection. After tying then-No. 1 USC in its second game, Oklahoma won its final eight games, including six against ranked teams. Of those opponents, only Miami stayed within two touchdowns. The Sooners scored 36.4 points per game, and their defense did enough behind the trio of Selmon brothers on the line.

Johnny Rodgers’ punt returned TD sparked Nebraska against Oklahoma in 1971. (Courtesy of Nebraska Athletics / The Lincoln Journal Star)

Best games of the 1970s

1. 1971: Nebraska 35, Oklahoma 31. In 1946, Army and Notre Dame — with two of the most talented rosters ever — battled to a scoreless draw. In 1966, Notre Dame and Michigan State — perhaps the two best teams of the decade — decided nothing by tying 10-10. On Thanksgiving 1971, Nebraska and Oklahoma not only played a close game; they put on a show worthy of the Game of the Century hype. Both teams spent the season crushing opponents by double digits, with the Cornhuskers ranked No. 1 and the Sooners No. 2 for several weeks entering their showdown in Norman that would directly decide the Big Eight championship and almost certainly decide the national championship.

Nebraska’s Johnny Rodgers set the tone early when he fielded a punt with defenders around him at his own 28-yard line. He broke a tackle from hard-charging Oklahoma halfback Greg Pruitt, cut back to the left on a return that was supposed to go right and weaved his way down the field for a highlight-reel touchdown. After the Huskers went ahead 14-3, Oklahoma battled back, taking the lead on Jack Mildren’s 24-yard touchdown pass to Jon Harrison late in the second quarter. So it went: The next two touchdowns, in the third quarter, belonged to Nebraska’s Jeff Kinney. Oklahoma’s Mildren and Harrison scored in the fourth to retake the lead by three with 7:10 left.

Nebraska went on a 12-play drive, and Kinney punched in his fourth touchdown with 1:38 to play on a day in which he rushed for 171 yards. The Sooners out-gained the Huskers 467-362 but lost the turnover battle and gave up the play of the day to Rodgers, which launched Nebraska to a second consecutive national championship.

2. 1973: Notre Dame 24, Alabama 23. With No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 Notre Dame sandwiched around a No. 2 Oklahoma team owning a tie and banned from the postseason, the AP national championship would be decided on New Year’s Eve night in the Sugar Bowl. (For the last time, the UPI coaches poll tabbed its champion, Alabama, before the bowls.) The two powerhouses had never met, and they staged a classic that vaulted Ara Parseghian and the Irish to the title.

Notre Dame led 14-10 at halftime thanks to a 93-yard kick return touchdown by Al Hunter to answer the Crimson Tide’s first score. The teams traded scores in the second half. Alabama went ahead when Wilbur Jackson capped a 93-yard drive with a touchdown. Notre Dame answered after an Alabama fumble. With 9:33 left in the game, Alabama’s Richard Todd took a throwback pass from Mike Stock for a 25-yard touchdown … only for the PAT to miss. Trailing by two, Notre Dame drove 79 yards in 11 plays, setting up a go-ahead field goal with 4:26 to play.

Alabama stalled and punted, hoping to come up with a defensive stop as it backed Notre Dame up to its own goal line. But Irish QB Tom Clements completed a daring 35-yard pass to Robin Weber from his own end zone on third down to seal the national championship for Notre Dame.

3. 1978: Alabama 14, Penn State 7. Joe Paterno had coached three undefeated teams since taking over in 1966; none were crowned national champions. At last, the Nittany Lions climbed to No. 1 for the first time in November 1978 and had an opportunity to capture their first title.

Nobody scored until Alabama in the final seconds of the first half, when Tony Nathan’s 30-yard run set up Jeff Rutledge’s 30-yard touchdown pass to Bruce Bolton. The Lions answered in the third quarter with a 17-yard touchdown pass from Heisman runner-up Chuck Fusina to Scott Fitzkee after an interception, but Alabama went ahead on a touchdown run following Lon Ikner’s 62-yard punt return.

Another Alabama turnover gave Penn State a chance to erase the deficit. The Lions recovered a fumble at the 19-yard line, and they got to the doorstep on a Fitzkee catch in which he was wrapped up just shy of the goal line by Don McNeal. On third down, Matt Suhey went up the middle and was stopped a foot short. On fourth down, after a timeout, Penn State decided to go up the middle, again. When Mike Guman leaped, Barry Krauss met him high and short of the goal line for one of the most famous tackles in college football history.

It was the best chance the Lions would get. In the final minutes, a penalty for too many men on the field wiped out a bad Alabama punt, and Penn State also had a turnover on downs and threw an interception. Paterno’s first national championship would have to wait. Bryant won his fifth, splitting the poll titles with USC, which had beaten the Crimson Tide in September.

4. 1978: Notre Dame 35, Houston 34. Both teams dealt with frigid, windy weather, but quarterback Joe Montana’s flu added a challenge for Notre Dame. Whoever had the wind at their back had the advantage, and after Notre Dame went ahead 12-0 early, Houston scored the next 34 points and led by 22 midway through the fourth quarter.

Montana stayed in the locker room as the second half began, famously eating chicken soup to cope with the chills. He eventually returned, and though mistakes continued to be made, he led a fourth-quarter comeback. It began with Steve Cichy’s blocked punt return TD with 7:25 left. Montana’s touchdown and two-point pass then cut the lead to six with 4:15 to play. After Montana fumbled at the 20, the Irish stuffed Houston on a fourth-and-1 at the Cougars’ 29-yard line with under a minute left.

At the 8-yard line on the last play, Montana rolled right and completed a pass to Kris Haines in the front corner of the end zone. A penalty negated the first PAT attempt, but the second was good, giving Notre Dame a soup-fueled comeback with 23 unanswered points in the final eight minutes.

5. 1974: USC 18, Ohio State 17; and 1979: USC 17, Ohio State 16. From 1968 through 1984, USC and Ohio State met in six Rose Bowls, four won by USC and two won by Ohio State.

The meeting in the 1974 season was a rubber match after each team had won in a blowout in the previous two years. AP No. 1 Oklahoma was ineligible for the postseason and for the UPI poll, which for the first time took bowl results into account in crowning a champion. With the help of a loss by Alabama, UPI No. 2 Ohio State and No. 4 USC played for a share of the national title. The game came alive in the fourth quarter, with USC taking a 10-7 lead on a Pat Haden touchdown pass, and Ohio State responding with a touchdown and field goal to lead 17-10. Haden led an 84-yard drive late, finding the coach’s son, John McKay Jr., for a 38-yard touchdown. USC went for two and the lead, and Haden rolled right and connected with a diving Shelton Diggs to take the lead. When Ohio State missed a long field goal, USC claimed McKay’s fourth championship.

Five years later, USC played spoiler against unbeaten No. 1 Ohio State behind 247 rushing yards from Heisman winner Charles White. Both teams scored touchdowns on long passes in the second quarter, and Ohio State added three field goals to USC’s one to lead 16-10 in the fourth. But White rushed for 71 yards on the Trojans’ 83-yard winning drive, including a one-yard touchdown. A Ronnie Lott interception sealed the win and denied Ohio State a share of the national title with unbeaten Alabama.

Unbeaten Ohio State and Michigan tied 10-10 in 1973. (U-M Library Digital Collections. Bentley Image Bank, Bentley Historical Library)

6. 1973: Ohio State 10, Michigan 10. The 1973 game represented the peak of the Ten Year War between Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler. The two split their first four meetings, and Bo held a 3-2 edge in the last five. In between, the No. 1 Buckeyes (9-0) and No. 4 Wolverines (10-0) played to a draw that ruined both teams’ national championship dreams.

The Buckeyes led 10-0 at halftime, and Michigan battled back with a field goal in the third quarter and a Dennis Franklin touchdown on fourth-and-inches at the 10-yard line in the fourth quarter. When Michigan got the ball back, Franklin broke his collarbone. Without their starting quarterback, the Wolverines missed a pair of long field goals down the stretch.

Big Ten athletic directors voted on which team would represent the conference in the Rose Bowl. Franklin’s injury possibly played into the vote, which Ohio State won. The Buckeyes went on to blow out USC but finished second in the AP poll, while Michigan — because of a rule that allowed only one Big Ten team to play in the postseason — stayed home and finished sixth.

7. 1974: Michigan State 16, Ohio State 13. The Woody-Bo rivalry got all of the attention, but Michigan State was an unexpected thorn in the side of Ohio State, winning three out of four from 1971-74. No Spartans win was more devastating to Ohio State than 1974 in East Lansing. The Buckeyes went 10-0-1 the year before, and now they were 8-0, ranked No. 1 and seemingly heading for a national championship.

After Ohio State went ahead 13-0 in the fourth quarter, Michigan State rallied with big plays: Mike Jones caught a 44-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Baggett, and with 3:17 left, Levi Jackson broke off an 88-yard touchdown run up the middle to take the lead. With its perfect season on the line, Ohio State drove to the goal line for a controversial finish. Michigan State stuffed the Buckeyes just short (debatably), and the clock ran as the pile slowly cleared. In the ensuing confusion, time ran out before Ohio State snapped the ball and crossed the goal line (though not all its players were set).

Fans stormed the field to celebrate a Spartans win that, with Big Ten commissioner Wayne Duke in attendance, was disputed by Ohio State and Woody Hayes afterward. Chris Schenkel signed off the ABC broadcast by saying, “We will not give you a final score because it’s not official.” It took much of the next hour for Duke to attempt to consult with the officials, who had quickly fled the field, and declare 46 minutes after the final play that, yes, Michigan State won.

8. 1978 USC 27, Notre Dame 25. From 1965-80, nine of 16 rivalry meetings between USC and Note Dame featured both teams ranked in the AP top 10. The most memorable might be a blowout, when USC turned a 24-0 deficit into a 55-24 win in 1974. The best of the stretch happened in 1978 in a showdown between Joe Montana’s No. 8 Fighting Irish and Charles White’s No. 3 Trojans, who needed a win to have a chance to claim a national title.

The Trojans built a 24-6 lead through three quarters, but Montana led a fourth-quarter rally. It started with a 57-yard touchdown pass from Montana to Kris Haines. It continued with a 98-yard touchdown drive that trimmed the lead to five with three minutes left. It was completed with a 57-yard drive in which Montana threw a short TD pass to Pete Holohan with under a minute to play.

Notre Dame missed the two-point attempt, however, and USC went 70 yards in five plays behind Paul McDonald (281 passing yards) and White (205 rushing yards), setting up Frank Jordan for a 37-yard winning field goal. Thanks to Alabama’s Sugar Bowl win against No. 1 Penn State, the Trojans shared the national title with the Crimson Tide, whom they had beaten.

9. 1972: Auburn 17, Alabama 16. Punt Bama Punt. Long before the Kick Six, Auburn stunned an undefeated Alabama team with different special teams heroics. Auburn, ranked No. 9 with one loss, trailed 16-3 in the fourth quarter. It at least blocked one of the Tide’s extra points, which proved to be a sign of things to come.

With 5:30 left, Bill Newton blocked an Alabama punt, and David Langner returned it for a touchdown. A few minutes later, Newton blocked another punt, and Langner was again there to pick it up and return it for a touchdown that improbably pushed Auburn ahead 17-16. Langner then sealed the win with an interception, dashing Alabama’s national championship hopes.

10. 1977: Oklahoma 29, Ohio State 28. Oklahoma has won its only two trips to Columbus. In 2016, Baker Mayfield planted a flag at midfield of the Horseshoe. Nearly 40 years earlier, the hero of the day who antagonized the crowd was not a Heisman-winning quarterback; it was kicker Uwe von Schamann. The preseason No. 1 Sooners were ranked third when they visited the No. 4 Buckeyes on Sept. 24. They cruised to an early 20-0 lead. Ohio State staged a comeback after Oklahoma quarterback Thomas Lott was injured, and the Sooners finished with six turnovers. The Buckeyes led 28-20 in the fourth quarter when Oklahoma woke up and got a Peacock touchdown on a fourth-and-goal.

The Buckeyes stopped the two-point attempt, but the Sooners got another chance after recovering von Schamann’s onside kick. Soon after, von Schamann stepped back on the field for a 41-yard attempt to win. When Woody Hayes called a timeout, von Schamann directed the jeering crowd of 88,119 fans chanting “block that kick.” He then backed up his theatrics, making the kick for a one-point victory.

Best coaches of the 1970s

Minimum five seasons

1. Barry Switzer, Oklahoma. Switzer was promoted from offensive coordinator in 1973 following Chuck Fairbanks’ NFL departure and oversaw some of the most prolific offenses in college football history. In his seven seasons as head coach in the 1970s, Oklahoma had a 73-7-2 record (.902 winning percentage) with seven AP top-seven finishes and two national championships. The Sooners led the nation in rushing in five times in the decade and set the single-season FBS rushing record in 1971.

2. Bear Bryant, Alabama. Alabama finally integrated its football team in 1971, the same year it began using the wishbone offense. Bryant claimed split national titles in 1973 and ’78 and a sixth and final championship in 1979. He won 103 games in 10 seasons, losing just 16 and tying one, and his teams finished in the AP top 11 in the final nine years of the decade.

3. John McKay, USC. McKay won a pair of national titles in the 1960s, and he captured two more in the 1970s before leaving for the NFL following the 1975 season. In six seasons in the ’70s, McKay went 51-15-4 with three top-10 teams, including the title winners in 1972 and ’74.

4. Ara Parseghian, Notre Dame. Parseghian coached the first half of the decade, leading the Irish to a 47-8 record from 1970-74 with three top-10 finishes, including the 1973 national championship.

5. Joe Paterno, Penn State. After coaching the Nittany Lions to undefeated but unrecognized seasons in 1968 and ’69, Paterno did the same in 1973, when he had his only Heisman winner, John Cappelletti. Penn State finally reached No. 1 in 1978 but lost to Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Though national titles came later, Paterno had a 96-22 record with seven top-10 teams in the decade, establishing Penn State as a power.

6. Bo Schembechler, Michigan. Schembechler went 5-4-1 against Woody Hayes from 1969-78, and he followed a Big Ten title in his debut with at least a share of seven conference championships in the 1970s, with four trips to the Rose Bowl in that time. His Wolverines teams finished ranked in the AP top 10 in nine of 10 years in the decade, though they went 0-6 in bowl games.

7. Woody Hayes, Ohio State. Ohio State claimed a debatable share of the 1970 national title for Hayes’ final championship, and he proceeded to lead seven AP top-11 teams in the first eight years of the decade before everything came crashing down: a 7-4-1 1978 season, capped by his infamous Gator Bowl punch of Clemson player Charlie Bauman that resulted in his firing.

8. Darrell Royal, Texas. Royal ushered in the wishbone era in the late 1960s, winning a national title in ’69. The Longhorns claimed the UPI title in 1970, his third and final, and he finished strong with a record of 59-19-1 from 1970 through his final season in 1976.

9. Tom Osborne, Nebraska. Both of Nebraska’s national championships to start the decade came under head coach Bob Devaney with Osborne as the offensive coordinator. Osborne took over in 1973, and though he was often overshadowed by Switzer and Oklahoma, the Cornhuskers continued a long-lasting period of success, finishing No. 7, 8 or 9 in six of Osborne’s first seven seasons to end the decade. He had a record of 65-18-2 in that time.

10. Frank Kush, Arizona State. As a member of the WAC, the Sun Devils had undefeated seasons in 1970 and ’75 and 11-1 seasons in 1971 and ’73. The 1975 season ended with a Fiesta Bowl win against Nebraska that allowed Arizona State to finish No. 2. The Sun Devils (and Arizona) joined the Pac-10 in 1978. Kush had a .799 winning percentage in the decade.

(Top photo of the 1979 Sugar Bowl: Paul W. Bryant Museum / The University of Alabama)

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