Call me superstitious, but if IU keeps winning, I’m not stopping these posts anytime soon!
IU Football just pulled off an AMAZING win over Alabama — and their first Rose Bowl victory ever! My colleague was in Pasadena and said the sea of cream and crimson was unreal. News reports back that up, indicating there were over 70,000 Hoosiers in the seats. For context, the Rose Bowl holds between 90k-92k spectators – so wow! Who knew IU would turn Pasadena into “Memorial West”! Fingers crossed they see the same turnout in Atlanta for the Peach Bowl.
Even casual Hoosier fans likely know this is not IU’s first showing in the Peach Bowl. We’ve been there two other times, in 1988 and 1990. In 1988, we faced the Tennessee Volunteers. The final score was 27-22 in favor of the Vols, but newspaper accounts indicate IU put up a good fight. The Indianapolis Star reported, “Tennessee coach Johnny Majors said Indiana is a team ‘that will bloody your nose.’ But when the Hoosiers did just that in the 20th Peach Bowl, the Volunteers picked themselves up and countered with a pair of knockdown punches.” The paper continues to tell the heartbreaking tale of Tennessee pulling ahead in the last two minutes of the game.
It sounds like a game to remember with players to remember, as well. This team included Anthony Thompson, IU’s only other Heisman Trophy nominee. Thompson came in second but racked up a number of other awards during his IU career, including the Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Award, both incidentally bestowed upon current QB Fernando Mendoza. Other particular standouts include kicker Pete Stoyanovich, also an IU soccer player, who crushed a number of records during his IU days, which included a Peach Bowl record for his 52-yard field goal. (Fun fact: while researching for this blog post, I see Wikipedia tells us he was the kicking double for actor Sean Young in Ace Ventura, Pet Detective. I love my job.) QB Dave Schnell was named Offensive MVP for the game and was the first IU QB to lead Indiana to victories over Michigan and Ohio State in the same season.
Two years later, Coach Bill Mallory once again led his Hoosiers to Atlanta and the Peach Bowl, though some thought it was not deserved with a 6-4-1 record (the tie was Ohio State, 27-27; by the by, their opponents that year, Auburn, did not have a stellar record themselves at 7-3-1). In its recap of the game, the IU Alumni Magazine cites “déjà vu,” as once again, the final two minutes decided the game. With the clock ticking down, Auburn moved the ball 72 yards, bringing the final score to 27-23.
This Hoosier Peach Bowl team had its own standouts, with MVP Anthony Thompson still donning the cream and crimson and setting a NCAA Division 1-A record when he scored his 60th career touchdown against Michigan State. Teammates included sophomore Trent Green, whose IU career saw him throw for 5,400 yards with 23 touchdowns before moving onto many successful years in the NFL.
Congratulations to the Hoosiers on their advancement to Atlanta. Here’s to hoping history is…history…and there will be no need to watch Friday’s final two minutes through our fingers!