1991: Iowa, 34 vs. Washington, 46

The highest scoring Rose Bowl Game in history was marked by two scoring explosions, one by each team, and looked like a runaway at halftime, with Washington leading, 33-7, over a stunned 8-3 Iowa team.

“There’s not a whole lot I could tell them at halftime,” said Iowa Head Coach Hayden Fry after the game. “I just tried to keep their faith. My theory was that if Washington could do that in the first half, we could do it in the second half. I truly felt we could win.”

With just more than six minutes left in the game, Iowa almost made its coach a prophet. The Hawkeyes went on a 20-point tear in about four minutes to pull within 12 points. However, it was too little, too late, as Iowa quarterback Matt Rodgers threw his third interception – the fourth for the team – on the Hawkeyes’ final drive.

The 80 points were the most ever in a Rose Bowl Game, surpassing the 79 in 1963, when USC defeated Wisconsin, 42-37. It was also Iowa’s third consecutive Rose Bowl Game loss.

Washington quarterback Mark Brunell was named Player of the Game, tying a Rose Bowl Game record as he was responsible for four touchdowns – two rushing, two passing.

“He’s had a great year,” said Washington Head Coach Don James of Brunell. “He’s a fine young man. You saw what his feet can do for us. I think he’ll just get better and better as a passer, each game.”

Apparently James knew what he was talking about. Brunell went on to become a national champion, three-time Pro-Bowler and passed for more than 31,000 yards in 13 years in the NFL, including a league-leading 4,367 yards with Jacksonville in 1996.

Washington’s Travis Hanson opened the scoring with a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter, followed less than two minutes later by a 27-yard return of a blocked punt by the Huskies’ Dana Hall. Iowa answered with a 15-yard Nick Bell touchdown run in the second quarter. However, during the next 10 minutes, Washington scored 23 unanswered points, highlighted by Los Angeles native Charles Mincy’s interception return for a touchdown, one of two he had in the game.

“It’s my hometown,” Mincy said. “I’m from L.A., and I went to school in Pasadena. That was my first touchdown ever. I had never scored in Pop Warner football or college. Being in the Rose Bowl and my last game as a Husky, I can’t even tell you how it feels.”

That halftime lead and another score in the second half gave the Huskies all the breathing room they’d need, despite the late Hawkeye charge.

As for Fry’s words at halftime to his Hawkeyes, there must have been more said than he originally let on. When asked why Iowa moved the ball well in the second half, Fry said, “Because it’s a hell of a long walk back to Iowa.”

Attendance
101, 273

Weather
Bright and Clear; 77 degrees

Scoring
First Quarter
Wash – Hanson, 23-yard field goal
Wash – Hall, 27-yard return from a blocked punt (Hanson kick good)

Second Quarter
Iowa – Bell, 15-yard run (Hanson kick)
Wash – Hanson, 38-yard field goal
Wash – Mincy, 37-yard interception return (2-point conversion failed)
Wash – Brunell, 5-yard run (Hanson kick good)
Wash – M. Bailey, 22-yard pass from Brunell (Hanson kick good)

Third Quarter
Iowa – Rodgers, 7-yard run (Skillett kick good)
Wash – Brunell, 20-yard run (2-point conversion failed

Fourth Quarter
Iowa – Rodgers, 9-yard run (2-point conversion failed)
Iowa – Bell, 20-yard run (2-point conversion failed)
Wash – M. Bailey, 31-pass from Brunell (Hanson kick good)
Wash – Saunders, 12-yard pass from Rodgers (Rodgers pass to Velicer for 2-point conversion good)

Coaches
Iowa: Hayden Fry
Washington: Don James

Fun Fact
The 1991 Rose Bowl Game was the highest-scoring contest ever, the Washington Huskies defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes, 46-34.

Individual Stats
Rushing
Wash: Lewis 19-128; Bryant 3-47; Brunell 10-28; M. Jones 5-16; Turner 1-4; Barry 1-1
Iowa: Bell 11-64; Montgomery 4-26; Stewart 7-21; Kujawa 2-16; Rodgers 15-12

Passing
Wash: Brunell 14-22-163
Iowa: Rodgers 15-34-196; Hughes 1-1-66; Titley 1-1-53

Receiving
Wash: Pierce 4-32; Turner 3-36; Bailey 2-53; Kilpack 2-22; McKay 1-17; M. Jones 1-3
Iowa: Saunders 5-99; Bell 3-85; Stewart 2-40; Filloon 1-53; Hughes 1-12; Cross 1-9; Whitaker 1-9; Titley 1-1; Montgomery 2-6

Punting
Wash: Wyles 4-167
Iowa: Hujsak 5-200