August 30 - Where Are They Now? Wednesday - Kickoff Classic

This week's WHERE ARE THEY NOW? WEDNESDAY is dedicated to the start of College Football Season this week. This week used to have a holiday atmosphere with the opening game aptly named The Kickoff Classic.

The Kickoff Classic was a season-opening college football game played at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey from 1983 to 2002. It usually featured two top-ten teams fighting it out at this neutral location. Rules changes by the National Collegiate Athletic Association brought an end to the series.

Penn State appeared in the game four times. Ohio State, USC, Syracuse, and Nebraska each appeared three times.

I attended all three of Ohio State’s games.

1986 – Alabama 16, Ohio State 10. This was one of the last official appearances of Captain Buckeye. Ohio State had several chances to win the game in the final moments. Chris Spielman was the MVP in a losing cause. Below is the group that traveled from Dayton to the game.

1995 – Ohio State 38, Boston College 6. The game got off to a great start as Shawn Springs returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown. Ohio State never looked back. The game MVP was Eddie George.

1999 – Miami 23, Ohio State 12. Miami showed that their classlessness was not limited to their players. The Miami fans wanted to start a post-game brawl even though they won. The quick thinking of a Buckeye fan commandeering a limo saved the day. The season went from bad to worse as OSU ended up 6-6. Here are some pictures from that game.

Pre-Game Pep Rally

1999 Kickoff Classic

1999 Game Attendees

The Limo Arrives

Safely Inside The Limo

As a west coast alternative, Disney sponsored the Pigskin Classic from 1990-1994. It was played in Anaheim Stadium. I attended the 1994 game where OSU beat Fresno State 34-10.

The beauty of first game “bowl game” is that they were scheduled well in advance. There was ample time to organize a road trip with 8-10 of your closest friends.

Now, teams schedule cupcakes or Division 1-AA foes to start the season. Some samples of nail-biters coming this weekend include:

* Montanan State at Colorado
* Florida Atlantic at Clemson
* Western Kentucky at Georgia
* Louisiana-Lafayette at LSU
* North Texas at Texas
* Louisiana Tech at Nebraska

The first game on TV this year will be Boston College at Central Michigan on August 31. Oh, the intrigue. According to the Sagarin Ratings, it will be #19 versus #115 respectively.

This week's WHERE ARE THEY NOW? WEDNESDAY is THE KICKOFF CLASSIC.

Come on NCAA, give us back our College Football Opening Day.