The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall

It is no secret that I love narrative in video games, and where it doesn’t exist, I create it, in much the same way that sports writers and broadcasters turn individual games and player match ups into epic stories about heart, grit, determination and in some cases, revenge. And if you have an active imagination like I do, you can sometimes bring those same storytelling skills to your own sports gaming.

It is probably safe to say that the majority of gamers have played a sports title at one point or another, and even though I own a very balanced game library, I have always enjoyed the challenges that sports titles provide. In particular though, I’ve always had a thing for football from even my earliest days in gaming (though surprisingly enough, it turns out that I’ve had more games of the FIFA variety of football than NFL, but that’s another story).

For those out there that have some decent experience with sports titles, I know that there are likely certain matchups that you’ve had that you will remember for the rest of your life.

This is the story of one of mine.. a condensed tale of gridiron glory.

Now EA’s NCAA Football series is sort of like Madden‘s collegiate little brother, and the 2000 edition was where I started my odyssey with this franchise. And I really enjoyed it, and frankly, I went a little crazy when it came to recording statistics during my dynasty, because that’s just how I am. So now I can look back fondly on my years of play and remember some of my most thrilling moments.

I should also mention that I’ve always been a sucker for the underdog, so I tend to play as really bad teams and then build them up into a powerhouse. I mean, what sense of triumph is there if you pick the best team and just destroy everyone else. Those kind of victories feel hollow.

My first 10 seasons, I coached the initially underperforming Iowa State and I didn’t really have any games that I would describe as an instant classic. Sure, there were some memorable games, but none which I would put on a list with some of the real world classics of college football like Stanford-Cal 1982, the Game of the Century between Nebraska and Oklahoma in 1971 or the excitement of the Hail Mary pass at the end of the Boston College/Miami game in 1984, and so I thought on some level I was destined to never have a game like that.

That was until I changed schools.

After coaching ISU to an absolutely dominating position in the Big 12, I accepted a position as the coach of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, and they were epically bad before I got there (ranked 106 out of 114 teams at that point) and it had been like that for years. However, I was able to get them into the top 25 after some close games and a couple losses, including one to Tobacco Road rival North Carolina the week before the great game in question.

The conditions were portentious for this game as well. It was a stormy mid-November evening, and I was scheduled to play the #1 team in the nation, the undefeated Clemson Tigers. Through the previous decade in my dynasty, my former team and Clemson had clashed a few times, and 8 years before, they had almost cost me a chance at a National Championship, so there was definitely a rivalry there, and that loss was at the back of my mind going into the game.

Clemson also had another advantage, as they were playing at home, and their stadium, nicknamed Death Valley, is one of the toughest places to play in college football.

Things did not look good for Wake Forest after Clemson won the toss and scored easily on their first drive. But I was able to slowly make my way back down the field to even things up and the game soon became a defensive battle, as every yard was a slog through the mud and we each had to fight for every first down. A pair of matching touchdowns was score, and with a seconds left in the half, Wake Forest was able to push ahead with a field goal to take a 17-14 lead, giving us some breathing room, and we would certainly need it.

Because on the Demon Deacon’s first possession of the second half, our quarterback took a brutal hit behind the line of scrimmage and he twisted his knee. Most of the time, this wouldn’t have been that big of a deal, but it just so happened that our backup quarterback was also injured, so a freshman halfback had to take the field in that position, and I had to run an entirely different offense from the same playbook on the fly.

After a shaky start, including an interception for Clemson that lead to a touchdown, the next half-hour became a tale of two offenses getting the work done. It was for the most part tit-for-tat,  with that field goal keeping me ahead when it counted

So as the end of the game approached, the score stood at 38-35, and Wake Forest just had to stop Clemson from scoring on a long bomb to win the game, which is always a dicey situation.

Their QB threw it towards the end zone from about our 40, and it was knocked down in the end zone as time ran out.

Game over, right?

Not quite. Unfortunately, we received a pass interference penalty, so Clemson got 15 extra yards and one more chance to put points on the board, which they used to kick a field goal and the game went into overtime.

Wake Forest wins the coin toss and we force Clemson to go on offense first, and they easily score a touchdown in two plays so we forced to try to match that.

And it was at that moment that my injured QB limped back onto the field, and he converted in not one, but two different fourth down situations, including a sneak for a first down and we eventually punch it in to score.

Now, at this point I know that if we keep going through these series, Clemson will eventually stop me, and I also know that our defense is incapable of stopping their offense, so I made a decision: we had to go for 2. It was risky, but taking that risk was better than letting my fatigued team and injured QB tempt fate by continuing.

I chose a simple HB toss to try to get the conversion, and it was looking good. However, as my halfback approached the goaline, he was tackled and fumbled the ball, but the backup HB, the one who had filled in as quarterback for half the game, picked it up and completed the play, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat in one of the most improbable of plays.

And with victory, a series of other events took place which made the win even more satisfying. Firstly, Clemson was no longer in the hunt for the National Championship. What’s more, because I lost to one team in the conference and Clemson lost to one team in the conference, and Wake Forest was that team, well, we won the conference and a very prestigious invitation to the Orange Bowl against Syracuse, which ended in victory as well. Clemson had to settle for the Gator Bowl against Miami, which they also lost in a blowout. And when the final polls were released, Wake Forest was also ahead of Clemson.

Ah, it always feels good to stick it to a rival, and it is even better when it really hurts.

At the time, I didn’t know that this victory over Clemson was also going to be the start of a winning streak that culminated in a National Championship victory over Iowa State the following season, which was yet another great game in my career. But again, that is another story.

Almost a decade later, I can still remember that transcendent night in a virtual November when all the pieces came together and for one shining moment, I had done what had seemed impossible just hours before.

If it had been a real game, I know would have watched it repeatedly on ESPN Classic if I wasn’t involved. But no tape exists… merely my recollections and my copious notes.  The closest I got to seeing this game again in real life was the Fiesta Bowl between Oklahoma and Boise State in 2007.

As a non-athlete, I think this game against Clemson was the closest I was ever going to come to experiencing the true thrill of victory, and even if it paled in comparison to the real thing, even that little taste was enough for me.

In telling this tale, it makes me wonder if anyone else played a legendary game in any sports title that you think is worth sharing, because I would certainly love to read those stories.