Top 10 College Football Games That Had Divine Intervention
6. 1982: Cal Golden Bears Beat Stanford Cardinal 25-20
The only play in the 1980s that stands with more fame than the Hail Flutie play against Miami is the Stanford-Cal game of 1982. Hailed as “The Play,” John Elway and the Stanford Cardinal were 5-5, and Elway was desperate to close out his college career with a bowl appearance.
After taking a 20-19 lead with 3 seconds left, it seemed all but certain. But in the most improbable play ever, the idiotic Stanford band decided to run out on the field and celebrate before the game was over. The band acted as blockers for Cal players returning squib kicks with multiple laterals that resulted in them scoring the game-winning touchdown.
Stanford fell to 5-6, Elway would never make a bowl game in his career, and this would likely be the most heartbreaking loss ever experienced. Cal, meanwhile, improved to 7-4, and the game only added to this great rivalry.
When you appear to be cursed from making a bowl game and your team blows it’s final game thanks to a squib kick returned for a touchdown aided by your own school’s band, a higher power has to appear to be working against you somehow. That was clearly the case for Elway and the Cardinal here, and his curse carried into the NFL until he broke through and won a Super Bowl in 1997.
Next: No. 5 Ranked College Football Game With Divine Intervention