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There will never be another regular season college football game like Florida State versus Notre Dame in 1993. That's not hyperbole. That's the truth.
For one, the regular season will never be the same. With the forthcoming college football playoff, two teams as good as the 1993 versions of Florida State and Notre Dame would almost certainly be assured of making the semifinals.
More importantly, though, we live in a different world. The two most recent "Game of the Century" games had insufferable buildup, with fans practically sick of LSU/Alabama in 2011 and Ohio State/Michigan in 2006 before the game even started. The BCS finally died because fans revolted to an LSU/Alabama rematch because they couldn't stomach another six weeks of talking about.
That was not the case in 1993. The 24-hour sports media cycle was still a decade away. There was only one ESPN and no Internet. We wanted more coverage of the game. We were desperate for anything. Remember, this is the game that spurred ESPN's College Gameday to make its first road trip and spawned one of the sport's great traditions.
There was also the programs involved. Florida State had still not won a national title, which seems absurd to comprehend, but they had always been the bridesmaid. Notre Dame was still a dominant program, a national title contender year-in and year-out, just five years removed from its last national title and a string of three straight big New Year's Day bowl victories. Throw in Charlie Ward, the future Heisman winner who was changing college football forever, and it was just different.
To sum up this perfect game is this perfect, over-the-top intro from NBC and narrated by Bob Costas. This is a game that is the standard for college football ratings as nothing has topped it in 21 years. Close to 40 million people watched the game and NBC executives were wishing and praying for a rematch in the Fiesta Bowl. How different is that from 2011?
So when Bob Costas says this is a game child dream of playing in as they grow up, well, he is speaking the truth.
If this doesn't give you goosebumps, you don't like football. As a bonus, the full game is below too.
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There will never be another regular season college football game like Florida State versus Notre Dame in 1993. That's not hyperbole. That's the truth.
More importantly, though, we live in a different world. The two most recent "Game of the Century" games had insufferable buildup, with fans practically sick of LSU/Alabama in 2011 and Ohio State/Michigan in 2006 before the game even started. The BCS finally died because fans revolted to an LSU/Alabama rematch because they couldn't stomach another six weeks of talking about.
That was not the case in 1993. The 24-hour sports media cycle was still a decade away. There was only one ESPN and no Internet. We wanted more coverage of the game. We were desperate for anything. Remember, this is the game that spurred ESPN's College Gameday to make its first road trip and spawned one of the sport's great traditions.
There was also the programs involved. Florida State had still not won a national title, which seems absurd to comprehend, but they had always been the bridesmaid. Notre Dame was still a dominant program, a national title contender year-in and year-out, just five years removed from its last national title and a string of three straight big New Year's Day bowl victories. Throw in Charlie Ward, the future Heisman winner who was changing college football forever, and it was just different.
To sum up this perfect game is this perfect, over-the-top intro from NBC and narrated by Bob Costas. This is a game that is the standard for college football ratings as nothing has topped it in 21 years. Close to 40 million people watched the game and NBC executives were wishing and praying for a rematch in the Fiesta Bowl. How different is that from 2011?
So when Bob Costas says this is a game child dream of playing in as they grow up, well, he is speaking the truth.
If this doesn't give you goosebumps, you don't like football. As a bonus, the full game is below too.
Follow me on Twitter
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