Jan. 3, 2002, Rose Bowl Stadium
Miami 37, Nebraska 14
PASADENA -- In 2002, for the first time since 1947, the Rose Bowl Game didn’t host a Big Ten-Pac 10 matchup; it hosted the national championship in the Bowl Championship Series.
And like the first Rose Bowl Game exactly 100 years earlier, the 2002 Rose Bowl Game wasn’t even a full game. In 1902, Michigan was so soundly thrashing Stanford, the game was called early. In 2002, Miami was so soundly defeating Nebraska, the game could have been called at halftime.
Yes, technically, the 2002 Rose Bowl Game was indeed a full game – they did play all 60 minutes – but if you would have asked the players, coaches, fans, referees, statisticians, hot dog vendors, program vendors and the guy who cleans the stands afterward, Miami was crowned national champion by halftime.
The Hurricanes raced out to a 34-0 lead at intermission – the highest point total in any half in Rose Bowl Game history – and finished it off in the second half for a 37-14 win, the national championship, their 22nd straight Division I win and a perfect season. And they did all this as validation of a rough stretch following severe sanctions beginning in 1996, a 5-6 record in 1997 and a 2000 season in which they believed they deserved a shot at the national championship and didn’t get it.
“For me, it smells like roses,” said senior Miami wide receiver Daryl Jones. “It is so sweet for me to go from 5-6 to 12-0.”
Added Miami Head Coach Larry Coker: “Obviously, it is a very exciting moment for us. We have a tremendous group of men. I am especially proud of them for the obstacles they have overcome. And to win it decisively makes it special. This team came back to win the national championship and to win it at the Rose Bowl, a great venue, is very special.”
Junior quarterback Ken Dorsey and sophomore wide receiver Andre Johnson led the Hurricane assault. It seemed fitting that the duo who connected for 199 yards and two touchdowns also shared Player of the Game honors. Dorsey, a Northern California native, threw for 362 yards – the fourth-best total in Rose Bowl Game history – and three touchdowns.
The story of the game was an 11-minute stretch in the second quarter when the Hurricanes scored 27 points. That stretch included a 39-yard touchdown run from Clinton Portis, a James Lewis 47-yard interception return for a touchdown, a 21-yard strike from Dorsey to Jeremy Shockey and an 8-yard throw to Johnson before the half.
Nebraska’s biggest bright spot was the 197 yards rushing they amassed in the game – helped largely by Heisman Trophy winner Eric Crouch’s 114. The Miami pass defense, however, held him to just five completions for 62 yards.
|
Score by Quarters |
|
Miami (FL) |
7 |
27 |
0 |
3 |
37 |
|
Nebraska |
0 |
0 |
7 |
7 |
14 |
|
|
Miami (FL) |
Nebraska |
|
First Downs |
18 |
16 |
|
Rushing Yards |
110 |
197 |
|
Passess Attempted |
35 |
15 |
|
Passes Completed |
22 |
5 |
|
Had Intercepted |
1 |
1 |
|
Passing Yards |
362 |
62 |
|
Punting/Avg. |
4/35.8 |
5/40.6 |
|
Fumbles/Lost |
2/0 |
4/2 |
|
Penalties/Yards |
12/85 |
4/26 |
Scoring Summary:
UM: Johnson 49 yd pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick); UM: Portis 39 yd run (Sievers kick); UM: Lewis 49 yd interception return (Sievers kick); UM: Shockley 21 yd pass from Dorsey (kick failed); UM: Johnson 8 yd pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick); NU: Davies 16 yd run (Brown kick); Groce 71 yd punt return (Brown kick); UM: Sievers 37 yd field goal
MOPs: Ken Dorsey, Andre Johnson (Miami)