Clemson and LSU meet in a battle of undefeated teams Monday in New Orleans’ Superdome for the College Football Playoff championship. The venue has played host to a number of great games. Some of the memories are indelible.
1975 Sugar Bowl
On Dec. 31, 1975, Alabama beat Penn State 13-6 in first Sugar Bowl game played in the Superdome. The first college football game at the venue featured a meeting of coaching greats in Alabama’s Bear Bryant and Penn State’s Joe Paterno. The most memorable moment came when Alabama’s Barry Krauss and Murray Legg jumped high over the line to stop running back Mike Guman on fourth-and-1.
2004 Sugar Bowl
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Nick Saban’s LSU Tigers defeated Oklahoma, 21-14, to win the BCS National Championship for the 2003 season at the 2004 Sugar Bowl.
2018 Sugar Bowl
In a game where every yard was a struggle, the Crimson Tide defenders accounted for a pair of touchdowns 13 seconds apart in the third quarter to turn an offensive slog into a rout of the defending national champions. This game marked the last time Clemson lost before embarking on its current 29 game winning streak.
Michael Jordan powers the Heels
The championship game in the 1982 Final Four featured Patrick Ewing and Georgetown against North Carolina, which was led by James Worthy, Sam Perkins and Michael Jordan. Jordan, a freshman hit a jump shot from 16 feet on the left side with 15 seconds remaining, giving North Carolina the national championship.
Smart shot powers Hoosiers
The 1987 Final Four championship game saw Indiana, coached by Bob Knight, win, 74-73, over Syracuse when Keith Smart hit a game-winner in the final seconds.
Webber’s whoops
The 1993 NCAA Final Four saw North Carolina, coached by Dean Smith, win the national title with a 77-71 victory in the championship game over Michigan. The most memorable play came in the last seconds as Michigan’s Chris Webber tried to call a timeout while double-teamed by North Carolina. Michigan had already used all of its timeouts, so Webber’s gaffe resulted in a technical foul.
Pete Maravich scores 68 points
Pete Maravich’s finest moment with the Jazz, and perhaps in his NBA career came at the Superdome, when he scored 68 points against the Knicks and broke Jerry West’s record for most points by a guard in NBA history (since passed by Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant among others). The effort came on Feb. 25, 1977. Maravich made 26-of-43 field goals and 16-of-18 free throws and remember this was before there was a 3-point shot in the NBA.
Vikings 26, Saints 20
Kyle Rudolph celebrated when he caught a TD pass from Kirk Cousins in overtime to give Minnesota Vikings a victory in overtime against the Saints in a Wild-Card game after the 2019 regular season.
Saints 31, Vikings 28
In the NFC Championship on Jan. 24, 2010, a field goal in overtime lifted New Orleans to a 31-28 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Brett Favre threw away Minnesota’s best chance to win, tossing an interception deep in New Orleans territory in the closing seconds of regulation. Then the Saints won the coin toss and ended it on Garrett Hartley’s kick 4:45 into OT.
Rams 26, Saints 23 (OT)
The Rams stunned the New Orleans Saints with Greg Zuerlein’s 57-yard field goal in overtime for a 26-23 victory in the NFC Championship Game last season — an outcome that might not have been possible without an egregious mistake by the officials in the closing minutes of regulation. Los Angeles cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman committed a blatant interference penalty with a helmet-to-helmet hit on Tommylee Lewis well before the pass arrived inside the 5, forcing the Saints to settle for Wil Lutz’s 31-yard field goal that made it 23-20 with 1:41 left in regulation.
Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII was the first Super Bowl played in the Superdome. The Dallas Cowboys beat the Denver Broncos, 27-10. Cowboys defensive tackle Randy White and defensive end Harvey Martin were named co-Super Bowl MVPs.
Super Bowl XV
The Oakland Raiders beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 27-10, in Super Bowl XV. Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett threw three touchdown passes, including an 80-yarder to Kenny King, as the Raiders became the first wild-card team to win the Super Bowl. Plunkett was named Super Bowl MVP.
Super Bowl XX
Super Bowl XX was the third Super Bowl played in the Superdome. The Chicago Bears beat the New England Patriots, 46-10. The Bears scored a then-Super Bowl-record 46 points. The Bears’ league-leading defense tied a Super Bowl record for sacks (seven) and limited the Patriots to a record-low 7 rushing yards.
Super Bowl XXXI
Super Bowl XXXI was the fifth Super Bowl played in the Superdome. The Green Bay Packers defeated the New England Patriots, 35-21. Desmond Howard returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown while Brett Favre threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score. Howard, en route to garnering the MVP trophy, established a Super Bowl record with 244 total return yards.
Super Bowl XXXVI
Super Bowl XXXVI was the sixth Super Bowl played in the Superdome. The New England Patriots defeated the St. Louis Rams, 20-17, in one of the greatest upsets in NFL history. Adam Vinatieri’s 48-yard field goal as time expired gave the Patriots their first Super Bowl title.
Super Bowl XLVII
The Ravens jumped to a 28-6 lead early in the third quarter of Super Bowl XLVII, but the 49ers battled back after a 34-minute delay because of a power outage. The Ravens managed to hold on for a 34-31 victory. The power failure was attributed to a device installed specifically to prevent a blackout. Entergy New Orleans, the company that supplies power to the Superdome, announced the device, called a relay, had been installed in switching gear to protect the Superdome from a cable failure between the company’s incoming power line and the lines that run into the stadium.
The Steve Gleason game
On Sept. 25, 2006, the New Orleans Saints defeated the Atlanta Falcons, 23-3, in first game back in the Superdome following the Hurricane Katrina disaster. The emotional victory has been immortalized outside the Superdome with a statue of the game’s hero — Steve Gleason — blocking a Falcons punt.
