Orange Bowl squeezed out
August 21st, 2007, 11:55 pm · Post a Comment · posted by Dan Zeiger
The site of some of Arizona State football coach Dennis Erickson’s biggest victories is being vacated.
The University of Miami (Fla.) announced that it will leave the Orange Bowl after this season and relocate to Dolphin Stadium. The school signed a 25-year lease and expects to earn as much as $2 million annually in extra revenue due to the move.
Erickson, who coached the Hurricanes from 1989-94, was 37-2 in contests at the Orange Bowl, which opened in 1937. He won his second national title in the venerable facility with a 22-0 win against Nebraska in the 1992 Orange Bowl game and was coach when Miami’s NCAA-record 58-game home winning streak ended with a 1994 loss against Washington.
“I’m a die-hard Orange Bowl fan,” Erickson said. “We won a lot of games there, and the atmosphere there made it a tough place to play. I have fond memories of it, but (Dolphin Stadium) is a beautiful facility, a nice venue to play in. I’m sure it will be good for the fans. The school, I’m sure, put a lot of thought into (the decision).”
The absence of a primary tenant will likely lead to the demise of the Orange Bowl — it has been suggested as the site of a new stadium for baseball’s Florida Marlins — leaving a hole in football history.
No venue has staged as many notable games. And it’s not even close.On the Orange Bowl field, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Clemson, Miami and Florida State were among those that won national titles.
Two Orange Bowl contests between Miami and Nebraska were especially memorable. Bernie Kosar led the Hurricanes to their first No. 1 finish by edging a mighty Cornhuskers squad in one the biggest upsets in college football history in 1984. Eleven years later, Nebraska coach Tom Osborne removed the championship monkey from his back, beating Miami in Erickson’s last game as the school’s coach.
It is where Vince Lombardi was carried off the field as Green Bay Packers coach for the final time. Where Joe Namath made good on his guarantee. Where Lynn Swann walked on air to make three spectacular catches in Super Bowl X. Where Doug Flutie threw a long bomb into the night that somehow sailed past three Hurricane defenders to settle into the arms of Gerard Phelan.
And finally, the greatest game ever played — the 1981 San Diego Chargers-Miami Dolphins AFC playoff — took place at the Orange Bowl. Find me a better game. I dare you.
