Rivalry Rewind: 1997 Motor City Bowl – Ole Miss vs Marshall

1997 seems so long ago now but this was one of the most important bowl games for Ole Miss and a great reward for the Ole Miss freshman class of twenty years ago.

The seniors that played their last college game this night had to endure severe NCAA sanctions and worked, sweat and bled for the one chance to get to this first ever Motor City bowl game.  This was also the only time an SEC team played in the Motor City Bowl.  It is now the Little Ceasars Bowl and is a Big 10/MAC matchup.

In 1994, this group saw the NCAA hand down some of the most severe sanctions even placed on a team, four years probation, a two year bowl ban for 1995 and 1996, scholarships were stripped in half and they slashed the number of future on-campus recruiting visits; they even instituted a TV ban for the 1995 season.

This group could have easily quit and had the chance to transfer without penalty, but the guys stuck together with only one player leaving the team. The rest of the class, along with quality upper-classmen faced the storm of an SEC schedule with the hope that one day it would pay off.

It took a gutsy, last second win in the Egg Bowl to pull it off but the team who had sacrificed every bit of individual glory was able to celebrate as a team in Detroit for Christmas in 1997.

Ok, Detroit is probably not your ideal vacation spot, but for these guys it was sweet indeed!

The entire trip was such a high, I can’t understand how the team ever focused on the game with all the celebrating leading up to the event.  In 1997, no one on the team had experienced a bowl game and all the distractions of public appearances and media attention; so for this group, you can bet they enjoyed every minute of it.

With all the hard work and time they spent getting here the Rebels weren’t ready to give up now.

Ken Lucas got the Rebels out to midfield on the opening kickoff and Rebel QB Stewart Patridge hit Grant Heard down the sideline for a 54 yard play down to the two yards line.  On the next play, the electric senior running back John Avery stuck it in the endzone for the early seven-point lead.

It didn’t take long for the Rebels to get punched in the mouth as on Marshall’s first play from scrimmage, future NFL QB Chad Pennington hit another future NFL star Randy Moss on an 80 yard bomb for a touchdown.

Marshall added two more scores to make things 17 to 7 before halftime.

Ole Miss’ Stewart Patridge was picked off as he was driving for the lead and Pennington found LaVorn Colclough wide open for the touchdown.

Senior cornerback Malikia Griffin who gave up the long pass to Moss may have gotten outplayed on the first play but he did a great job the rest of the game containing Moss and preventing another score from the future NFL hall-of-famer who had scored 25 touchdowns that year. Much like the Ole Miss team during his career, Griffin was determined to do his job and give him team a chance.

After the break, Ole Miss came out charging in the third quarter.

Thanks to a long punt return from Andre Rone and some help from Herd penalties, the Rebels found themselves in Marshall territory. In six more plays, Patridge hit Andre Rone on a quick inside slant to the end zone, closing the gap 17-14.

The next Ole Miss possession saw Patridge march his team down the field for 72 yards in 11 plays and ended with a 20 yard pass to freshman stud Deuce McAllister to put Ole Miss back on top with 6 minutes left in the third quarter, 21-17.

Chad Peninngton answered right back with a long drive of his own putting together 11 plays in 80 yards to reclaim the lead, 24-21.

Deuce McAllister answered on the next drive racking up 32 yards and Patridge found Heard again from the 19 yard line notching another lead change, 27-24 after a missed extra point kick.

With only 2.57 minutes remaining in the game, Marshall scored again in what could have cut the lights out in the Pontiac Dome. Pennington hit Doug Chapman out in the flat to put Marshall up 31-27. But in what had become the norm this year, Ole Miss’ Stewart Patridge put the team together again on the sidelines and willed his team to the win.

It was reminiscent of the previous game against in-state rival MSU where Head Coach Tommy Tuberville faced the prospect of going for overtime on the road or going for two in regulation. The entire team huddled up on the sideline in Starkville and the seniors had no other plans but to go for the win.

After all the adversity and conflict and struggle this team had been through over the last four years, Mississippi State and likewise; Marshall, could not deny the Rebels of their goal.

As the Rebels approached the end zone, Deuce’s number was called and he showed what would become his signature move of high jumping the crowd at the line and holding the ball out in space to break the plane of the endzone.

A move that no doubt has momentarily stopped many Ole Miss’ fans hearts, it was effective because Deuce is so athletic.  He would get the ball over the line before defenders could knock it out of this hands. In most cases they were still unable to knock it loose of his strong grip even when fully extended away from his body.

Randy Moss had one last chance to win on the last play but another Rebel senior, Broc Kreitz, stripped him of the ball and the Reb’s celebration continued with a 34-31 win.  This magical season could not have ended any better short of an SEC championship.

To this group of Rebels, with all the disadvantages they had in recruiting and roster depth, winning a bowl game, any bowl game, was a super human feat and indicative of the power of teammates.

This group of guys helped each other through some dark days and hard times to get to Glory, but they also helped keep the program together. Without guys like Patridge, Nate Wayne, Broc Kreitz, John Avery and others, Ole Miss would have taken a lot longer to recover. It’s possible the program could have cratered had the freshman class left in 1994 and the subsequent recruiting effect that would have followed.

I always think back to this game as one of the most important wins for Ole Miss, not because of this groups overall talent but because of the teamwork and the love they had for each other and their school, and they certainly haven’t gotten the credit they deserve.

When Ole Miss is winning 10 plus games this year, don’t forget the group that helped make it possible!