The Play (American football)
"The Play" was a last-second, game-winning kickoff return for a walk-off touchdown that occurred during a college football game between the Stanford Cardinal and California Golden Bears on Saturday, November 20, 1982. Given the circumstances and rivalry, the wild game that preceded it, the very unusual way in which "The Play" unfolded, and its lingering aftermath on players and fans, it is recognized as one of the most memorable plays in college football history and among the most memorable in American sports.
Stanford had taken a 20–19 lead on a field goal with four seconds left. The Golden Bears used five lateral passes on the ensuing kickoff return to score the winning touchdown in the game's final seconds and earn a 25–20 victory. Believing that the game was over, members of the Stanford Band came onto the field midway through the return, which added to the confusion and folklore. There remains disagreement over the legality of two of Cal's backward pass attempts, adding to the passion surrounding the traditional rivalry of the annual "Big Game."
Background
This was the two teams' 85th Big Game, and was played on Cal's home field, California Memorial Stadium. Although Cal was guaranteed a winning record for the season, no bowl game was looking to invite them. The implications of this game were far more important to Stanford, led by quarterback John Elway, who was playing in his last regular-season college game before heading to the National Football League. The Cardinal were in the midst of an exciting season—they were 5–5 but had victories over highly ranked Ohio State and Washington—and needed one more win to be eligible for a bowl game. Representatives of the Hall of Fame Classic committee were in attendance, apparently to extend an invitation to Stanford to play Vanderbilt if the Cardinal won.Also at stake was possession of the Stanford Axe, an axe-head trophy that is awarded to the winner of this annual matchup. Its origin dates back to 1899; however, after years of increasingly more elaborate thefts of the Axe by students from one or the other school, in 1933, the two schools agreed that the winner of the Big Game would take possession of the Axe. The plaque upon which the Axe is mounted carries the score of previous Big Games.
Game summary
Cal took a 10–0 lead at the half on a field goal and a two-play, 55-yard touchdown drive that consisted of long passes from Gale Gilbert to Mariet Ford, including a diving catch by Ford in the end zone.Cal missed another field goal on its first drive of the second half, which was answered by an 80-yard touchdown drive by Stanford for the Cardinal's first score. The drive included a controversial catch by Mike Tolliver, who appeared to have been out of bounds, and was capped by back-to-back passes from John Elway to running back Vincent White.
Stanford took its first lead of the game, 14–10, on another touchdown reception by White, but relinquished the lead after a Cal field goal and touchdown pass from Gilbert to Wes Howell to make the score 19–14 Cal.
A failed two-point conversion by Cal after their latest touchdown loomed large, when Stanford subsequently cut the Cal lead to 19–17 on a field goal and was thus just another field goal away from re-taking the lead.
After losing the ball on a fumble on its next possession, Stanford got the ball back on its own 20-yard line with 1:27 left. At that point, the lead had changed twice in the second half and would do so two more times in the game's final moments.
The situation
With Cal leading 19–17 late in the fourth quarter, Elway and the Cardinal had one final chance to score the go-ahead points. Needing just a field goal to win, Elway overcame an early fourth and long deep in Stanford territory and got the Cardinal to the Golden Bears' 23-yard line. With eight seconds remaining, Stanford kicker Mark Harmon hit a field goal to give the Cardinal a 20–19 lead.However, two things happened that would play into what would follow. Elway had been instructed by head coach Paul Wiggin to call timeout with eight seconds left to give his team two chances to kick in case the snap was botched on the attempt; if he had waited an additional four seconds to call the timeout, Harmon's kick would have been the final play of the game and Stanford would have won. Not only that, but Stanford was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the play, so not only would they have to kick it back to Cal, but from 15 yards farther back than normal. Because Harmon was likely to execute a squib kick on the ensuing kickoff, Cal would not have as great a distance to cover once the kick was fielded.
Still, with only four seconds left on the clock, the Golden Bears would almost certainly need to score a touchdown on the ensuing kickoff to win barring any defensive penalty; Cal radio announcer Joe Starkey remarked on KGO radio that "only a miracle" would help. As the teams got ready for the kickoff, Cal defensive back Richard Rodgers told the rest of the special teams players, "Don't get tackled with the ball."
Cal rushed onto the field without 11 players on their special teams unit, which defensive back and return man Kevin Moen spotted right away. When he noticed this, he moved a few yards away from his normal position. As was expected, Harmon executed the squib kick. The ball bounced right to Moen, who fielded it at the Cal 45.
Here is the sequence that followed.
- Moen tried and failed to make any progress with the ball. He spotted Rodgers to his left and lateraled the ball to him.
- Rodgers was very quickly surrounded, gaining only one yard before looking behind him for Dwight Garner, who caught the ball around the Cal 45.
- Garner ran straight ahead for five yards, but was surrounded by five Stanford players. However, while being tackled, he managed to pitch the ball back to Rodgers. It was at this moment, believing that Garner had been tackled and the game was over, that several Stanford players on the sideline and the entire Stanford band ran onto the field in celebration.
- Rodgers dodged another Stanford player and took the ball to his right, toward the middle of the field, where at least four other Cal players were ready for the next pitch. Around the Stanford 45, Rodgers pitched the ball to Mariet Ford, who caught it in stride. Meanwhile, the Stanford band, all 144 members, had run out past the south end zone—the one the Cal players were trying to get to—and had advanced as far as twenty yards downfield. The scrum of players was moving towards them.
- Ford avoided a Stanford player and sprinted upfield while moving to the right of the right hash mark, and into the band, which was scattered all over the south end of the field. Around the Stanford 27, three Stanford players smothered Ford, but while falling forward he threw a blind lateral over his right shoulder.
- Also on the field were "several Stanford cheerleaders, assorted spectators, three members of the Stanford Axe Committee" and "at least 11 illegal players who had wandered onto the field."
- Moen caught it at about the 25 and charged toward the end zone. One Stanford player missed him, and another could not catch him from behind. Moen ran through the scattering Stanford Band members for the touchdown, which he famously completed by running into unaware trombone player Gary Tyrrell.
Moffett signaled the touchdown, rendering the illegal participation penalty on Stanford irrelevant and ending the game, making the final score 25–20 in favor of Cal.
Controversy
The officials' ruling of a Cal touchdown was highly controversial at the time, and The Play has remained a source of often intense disagreement throughout the intervening decades, particularly between ardent Stanford and Cal fans. The controversy centers on the legality of two of the five laterals as well as on the chaos that ensued when the Stanford team and band entered the playing field while the ball was still live.Many Stanford players and coaches objected immediately to the third lateral, from Dwight Garner to Richard Rodgers, asserting that Garner's knee was down moments beforehand. Kevin Lamar, a Stanford player who was in on the tackle, maintains that Garner's knee had hit the turf while he was still in possession of the ball; Garner and Rodgers themselves, however, assert the opposite. TV replays were inconclusive; due to the distance from the camera and the swarm of tacklers, one cannot see the exact moment Garner's knee may have touched.
Finally, while the replay of the tackle of Garner is not conclusive, Stanford was clearly guilty of illegal participation, both from too many players on the field and the band. At least two game officials immediately threw penalty flags on Stanford for having too many men on the field. A football game cannot end on a defensive penalty, so had any of the Cal ball carriers been tackled short of the end zone, Cal would have had at least one unclocked play from scrimmage, and perhaps a touchdown outright for outside interference. The game referee, Charles Moffett, noted this as a likely outcome in a subsequent interview. Rule 9-1, Article 4 of the official NCAA football rules, "Illegal Interference", allows the referee to award a score if "equitable" after an act of interference. For example, officials in the 1954 Cotton Bowl Classic awarded a touchdown to Rice after Alabama fullback Tommy Lewis jumped onto the field from the sideline to tackle Rice running back Dickey Maegle as he was running toward a touchdown.
The NCAA's instant replay rules were not adopted until 2005, more than two decades later, so the officials could not consult recorded television footage to resolve these issues. It is unclear whether instant replay would have had any impact, as a field ruling cannot be overturned unless there is "indisputable video evidence" to the contrary.