Darnell Autry was named one of five Heisman Trophy finalists. I recently told that story inan extensive oral history of the season, which culminated in Northwestern's second ever trip to the Rose Bowl, and first since 1949. On October 5, 1996, Northwestern faced Michigan, winning 17-16 (tapes 5A-5C). And not only buy into it, but sell it to other guys. ", Cal mounted a serious last-ditch drive of its own. - The video recordings on this web site are from material in the collections of the University Archives of Northwestern University Libraries, are provided for use by its . Ben Bolch: The one thing that told me this was a huge deal was that the Penn State game was played in bitter cold, and I had some friends from my town, and I got them tickets. 1996 Northwestern Wildcats Roster. He was one of the best in the world, so what he wanted to do to challenge himself was stretch a tight-rope across Niagara Falls. Michigan went 9-0 (6-0) to win the conference crown . ", Stewart Mandel: They played at Minnesota, and the game wasn't on TV, but there was some sort of close circuit TV, and one of the hotels in Evanston had a watch party for students, and lots and lots of people went. two folders (box 52 folder 18, box 53 folder 1) contain the results of various women's . Adande: I was covering the US Open when they beat Notre Dame. And he fired into me, and we're pushing against each other, and I'm blocking him, and Darnell makes a cut and gets tackled. We were trying to get to our seats, we were snaking through this area underneath the stadium, and we were waiting in this line to get to our seats. My position coach shared a little story with us, that Lou Holtz had rebuffed him in earlier attempts to possibly work for Notre Dame. 8. U.S.C. ", Tunnicliff told the L.A. Times: "When Don Burson called it in the huddle, I could have kissed him.". You learned how to work together. (Read our "'49 Rose Bowl Trivia" to see what Voigts has in common with current Wildcat coach Pat Fitzgerald [SESP97].). They had Jim Delaney, the mayor of Evanston, and some other political types. ", "Everybody was out of their dorms," Day recalls. "I would just like to hear someone from Northwestern admit it. "Burson was always funny," says guard Bob Nowicki (EB52). You know, I live far away, in Seattle, and with my career, it's hard to be out there as much as I'd like. NinjaBowTique. We knew if we were going to beat Iowa, we had to keep him bottled up. They were the punchline in sports, both football and basketball. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). "Oh God, that was a blast," Sawle says of the train trip home. What made it so special was that we led the nation in scoring defense, but did not have a player drafted that year. I think Wisconsin was one of them. Steve Schnur (Junior quarterback): There's this guy that's a stonecutter, and he shows up every day, and his job is to break apart these big boulders, and he takes a hammer and whacks away at this boulder over and over and over all day, and eventually the boulder breaks. Down 210 in the fourth quarter, the Trojans scored three straight touchdowns, with the final coming with 33 seconds remaining. Near the end of the season, Northwestern won vs. Purdue on November 16, 1996 with a final score of 27-24 (tapes 10A-10D). Final score, NU: 20, California: 14. The man who transformed the Northwestern University Wildcats into a championship-winning team--the top story in college football in 1995--and who was named Coach of the Year discusses his leadership philosophies, his coaching techniques, and his winning year. The ball was snapped through Burson's legs to Tunnicliff, Nemeth recalls. Northwestern (#7) vs. California (#4). By edict of Voigts, the Northwestern players were to avoid their press clippings, pro or con. Marred by decades of futility, things began to change in the Wildcats first game of that Rose Bowl season. And when coach Barnett called it, I was like, "Okay! And you go to New York, and they fly your parents out there. The Ducks-Badgers' Rose Bowl audience is within 4% of last season's Ohio State-Washington Rose Bowl Game audience, which is the most-watched non-Semifinal New Year's Six matchup. Good luck today!" Terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. 9 Notre Dame 17-15 in South Bend, putting the school in the AP poll for the first time since 1971. Schnur threw a lateral screen to D'Wayne Bates, who then threw down the middle of the field to Darren Drexler. "Tunnicliff was missing a finger from a combat injury [as a tank driver in Germany]. Nemeth was among the key blockers. The most strength, the most energy, the most drive. The 1996 Rose Bowl was the 82nd Rose Bowl Game.It was the 50th game in the series featuring the Big Ten Conference and the Pacific-10 Conference.The USC Trojans defeated the Northwestern Wildcats, 41-32, on the strength of two touchdown passes from USC quarterback Brad Otton to wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson.Johnson was named the Rose Bowl Player Of The Game. You give 'em a hug, and you'll tell 'em you love 'em, and you'll always be that to each other. 1. There was a question that was asked of me, I believe by Larry Watts, was, "What do you say to [backup long snapper] Larry Curry?" That's what I was always taught by coach Brown. It's crazy that even now, 20 years later, I can remember those names on that wall. The Northwestern Wildcats had a string of losing seasons stretching back to 1972, and had not appeared in the Rose Bowl for 47 years, a win in January 1949. If you asked me today if I miss playing football, I'd tell you no, I don't miss playing football, I miss being in those locker rooms with my best friends in the world, and laughing and joking. In fact, if Notre Dame is used as a compass, Northwestern should have its way in this Rose Bowl. And I truly believe if would've not lost that game, we would've lost another game or two down the road. "One of the things I think about most often from that game is Frank's TD," says fellow halfback Tunnicliff. ", As Forman recalls, "I was a left tackle lining up outside the right end. It's what remains the game's most vivid memory, says Aschenbrenner. Jason Wendland: I've gotta admit, I'm a pretty cynical guy, and I was surprised with myself, especially looking back on it, how much I bought into the whole Musseau/Barnett storytelling. There are professional athletes that are in the Hall of Fame, that have made millions, that don't get the same kind of love that our team gets. The 1996 Rose Bowl was the 82nd Rose Bowl Game. And that was the truth. He had almost like a skeleton facial art. "We were proud of wearing dark jerseys that day because of the flip of a coin," Perrcione says, "and we always seemed to play better when we wore dark jerseys.". And many of them are overachievers. "Waldorf came into the locker room after the game to congratulate us and he said, 'I knew that today I could not lose,'" says Sawle. Ryan Padgett: There was more recognition from your classmates, and there would actually be allusions from your professors to the game that weekend. "There was total silence from this gigantic crowd," says Forman. William Bennett (Senior safety): I was very mad, very disappointed. The University Archives' virtual exhibit on Football at NU: http://www.library.northwestern.edu/archives/exhibits/football/home.htm. Greg Meyer (Offensive coordinator): My younger daughter, Makenzie, was five years old at the time, and when we went to the Notre Dame game, my wife and both daughters came to the game with one of the neighbors. "Even the national media felt we didn't have a prayer and were pretty upset we were selected. The 82nd Rose Bowl USC and Northwestern photocopied roster, 1996-01-01, Box: 1, Folder: 5. minutes Missouri move never night . So fast forward to my senior year, it was a personal challenge. But the rules were the rules. And now to see the success they're having in life, and as fathers, is really inspiring to me. I remember calling my mom from O'Hare after my visit on my way home, and she was all excited, she said a scholarship spot had just opened up at Washington. And I remember introducing Gary as "The coach of the 1995 Wildcats and the coach of your 1996 Wildcats," and the place goes crazy. It was a gradual build-up, and the Michigan game was the big moment, because then it was like, "Oh, okay, this is real. On the Bears' next play from scrimmage, All-America fullback Jackie Jensen, considered by many the best athlete ever at Cal (read more about Jensen in our "'49 Rose Bowl Trivia"), answered with a 67-yard scoring run to make it 7-7. Part of the Northwestern University Archives Repository. And by the end of it, it was the whole campus. It never was. We'll move everybody out, he will be able to score,'" Keddie recalls saying in the huddle. "My reaction was, 'I'm going to get to that goal line if I have to carry the whole stadium.'". No School! And people would say, "What's A.R.T. Here's what ensued, in the Rose Bowl's wildest fourth quarter: --Vander Kelen immediately took Wisconsin 80 yards, Lou Holland scoring on a 13-yard sweep. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Bowl Game: Lost Citrus Bowl 48-28 versus Tennessee. See more videos from Northwestern News. February 6, 2012 / 9:00 AM Gary Barnett: It was something that they were willing to buy into, that nobody else needed to know about, it was just us, and it was so important to us that we would keep it to ourselves. But they listened to me, so we got away with it. If you have any questions or comments, please e-mail the editors at letters@northwestern.edu. "It just happened so quickly. People ask them, "So you played for Northwestern, were you a part of that good team back in 95?" Within each sport, records are grouped chronologically; each season will have folders containing programs, statistics, and press releases, as well as other information generated during the season (such as box scores, recruiting records, rosters, and miscellaneous material). We got behind.". Autry ended up finishing fourth in the voting. Rob Johnson: One of the galvanizing moments happened in the press conference after the game. So the minute the coach heard, he came to me, I called both players the one who claimed he knew what was going on, and the one who he was blaming called them together, and I said to the player that was being accused, I said to him, "This is what the accuser is saying about you. As Forman holds court with sons and grandsons in the reunion hotel lobby, one of his boys proudly wears a T-shirt with a black and white photo of Forman airborne, parallel to the Rose Bowl turf, about to take out the defender on Tunnicliff's game-winning touchdown. But it was still a prestigious event, it was starting to catch on. Well I was driving an automatic transmission car at that point. The Minnesota Vikings have like a Nordic horn that they blow, andGraham Gnos and I ran through the bowels of the Metrodome, and we went and foundit in a room in the basement. ", To this day, the Bears rue Northwestern's "phantom" score and the judgment of the legendary Berwanger. 1996 Rose Bowl: Southern California - 41, Northwestern - 32 Between 1948 and 1995, NU football ranged from mediocre to terrible. I gave everyone a shirt and told em what it was. Here you are with a steering wheel, you also have a shift, and you have to move these three pedals at the same time. And it was one of those things, when they're ready to hear, they'll buy into whatever you're saying, that's what they did. And I remember looking to the large stand, and I remember seeing a sign that said, "Barnett 3:16" and a sign next to it that said "Rose Bowl." While with the Wildcats as a graduate assistant coach (1994-96), Limegrover helped the team to a pair of bowl appearances (Citrus and Rose) and two Big Ten Championships. According to the Dec. 22, 1948, L.A. Times, 3,000 people waited in line all night to buy tickets. Do you have a blog? $8.99. Everybody loved us before, they were blaming us now. Aschenbrenner, the left halfback who had 11 carries for 119 yards and also excelled as the punter and a kick returner, says, "I was really winded, and we were closer to the sideline on my side he [Burson] called Tunny, and I was happy. Northwestern University Archives. And I kinda snapped and said, "Look, there's not one person that's responsible for that loss. And I remember for the first time, during the fourth quarter, not being able to hear Fitzy make calls. This year, we didn't. He tries to cut you, you step on his hands. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) And we're like, oh shit.' But he adds, seconds later, "They published pictures of some of the men having a beer in a bar. My most vivid memory is standing in front of all these guys interviewing me, and somebody threw a soda can that was about half-full from up in the stands, and it hit me right in the back. I wanted him to be confronted in front of the guy he was accusing. I was just happy to be there. $11.99 (25% off) More colors. Coach: Bob Voigts. He demanded a lot of people. Ryan Padgett (Senior offensive guard): I will never forgive [the players who threw games], because when Barnett came in, that team was used to losing. And it had all the pictures of the guys on the wrestling team on the walls. And I tried to step on his hands getting up. Members of the court were: Queen Keli Hutchins, San Marino, San Marino High School; Princesses Lissa Anderson, Pasadena, Blair High School; Sarah Clinton, Arcadia, Arcadia High School; Nancy Grace, South Pasadena, Mayfield Senior School; Katherine Kingston, San Marino, San Marino High School; Jennifer Lai, Pasadena, Westridge School for Girls; and Sara Packer, La Canada, La Canada High School. The stadium is known for hosting the annual Rose Bowl Game, but it has also earned its world-class reputation by hosting five NFL Super Bowls, 1984 Olympic soccer matches, the 1994 Men's World Cup, the 1999 Women's World Cup, four BCS . I'm just thankful for who they are. Forman says the team's big-game experiences had the players very upbeat to begin with and Voigts reinforced that as New Year's Day drew near. But I thought it was really cool. I had never been in New York before, and that was eye-opening. The ball was snapped and I took two or three steps to the right and headed directly toward the goal line where a man was standing, and it was a very simple maneuver I took him out," he says with a laugh. Result . And in reality, he was the only one who had the nerve to go up and say it. Not everybody had bought into the idea that a winning football program could have wide-ranging benefits for the university. Here's every winner from the game and notable moments from its 100-plus years of history.