1980 TANGERINE BOWL MAC

Wonderful, Sloth, and a future NFL receiver playing quarterback. On one sideline, you had three future coaching greats and one of the best linebackers of all-time. Not all of it was elite football-playing talent. But in between, in late 1972, 20,072 attendees witnessed a strangely awesome amalgamation of elite talent. In the years after 1972, the Tangerine Bowl became an annual home for Miami (Ohio) to defeat local power conference teams - Florida in 1973, Georgia in 1974, South Carolina in 1975. In the years leading up to 1972, it was basically an opportunity for Toledo to finish incredible seasons with blowout wins (56-33 over Davidson, 40-12 over William & Mary, 28-3 over Richmond).

1980 TANGERINE BOWL MAC

But in the 1970s, it was a mid-major showcase pitting the MAC champion vs. The back story: The Tangerine Bowl would eventually become the Citrus Bowl and start frequently hosting high-level SEC, Big Ten, or ACC teams. The stakes: The 1972 Tangerine Bowl title! Rose Bowl breakthroughsġ924 Notre Dame, 1925 Alabama, 1931 USC, 1993 Wisconsin, 2004 Texas Offensive innovationġ906 Chicago, 1943 Iowa Pre-Flight, 1968 Texas, 1991 Florida, 2007 Oregon Dramatic seasonsġ960 Iowa, 1965 UCLA, 1978 Missouri, 1982 Pitt, 2013 Auburn Star powerġ923 Illinois, 1938 TCU, 1980 Georgia, 1984 Boston College, 1999 Virginia Tech On the riseġ951 Michigan State, 1962 Nebraska, 1970 Alabama, 1981 Florida State, 2002 USC Mid-majorsġ930 Utah, 1970 Dartmouth, 1972 Tampa, 1974 Miami (Ohio), 2010 Boise State Greatness deniedġ941 Northwestern, 1968 Purdue, 1973 Michigan, 1988 Miami, 1990 Virginia, 1998 Ohio State Incredible defenseġ938 Tennessee, 1957 Auburn, 1959 Ole Miss, 1985 Oklahoma, 1993 Texas A&M, 2011 LSU Perfectionġ917 Georgia Tech, 1940 Minnesota, 1945 Army, 1947 Notre Dame, 1955 Oklahoma, 1959 Syracuse, 1991 Washington Over the coming weeks, we’re going to take a look at some of the biggest games from these 50 best* teams.

The title is a misdirection - it’s not about the best teams it’s about college football at its best and most interesting.

My second book, The 50 Best* College Football Teams of All Time, came out in March.

1980 tangerine bowl