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This Day in Big Ten History |
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| Throughout the 2008-2009 Big Ten season we'll unveil big historical events each day from across the Big Ten Conference's long and illustrious history. Check back daily to get your steady dose of Big Ten history. |
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September
| 1 |
| (2007) Appalachian State pulled off the unthinkable and topped No. 5 Michigan, 34-32, in the season opener at the Big House. (2002) Minnesota defensive lineman Brandon Hall was fatally shot on a Minneapolis street, hours after the redshirt freshman played his first college game, a 42-0 win over Southwest Texas. (1946) The conference voted to enter into a five-year agreement with the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Conference permitting a Conference representative to play a PCC representative in the January 1 Rose Bowl football game. (2001) Nearly one year after suffering what doctors thought was an injury that would result in permanent paralysis of the legs, former Penn State cornerback Adam Taliaferro led the Nittany Lions onto the field for their season-opening game against Miami. |
| 2 |
| (1989) The Glasnost Bowl was set to be played in Moscow's Dynamo Stadium between Southern California and Illinois, but the two schools eventually pulled out and the game was played in Los Angeles on Sept. 4, 1989. (1995) Michigan and Illinois kick off the 100th season of Big Ten football competition with the first Conference game. The Wolverines knocked off the Illini, 38-14. |
| 3 |
| (1993) Bobby Engram hauled in a school-record four touchdowns to help lead Penn State past Minnesota, 38-20, in the team's inaugural Big Ten football game. |
| 4 |
| (1972) Indiana alum and U. S. swimmer Mark Spitz won a record seventh gold medal at the Munich Summer Olympics. Spitz, who became the first athlete to win seven gold medals in an Olympiad, set the world record in all seven events. (1999) Antwaan Randle El accounted for 272 of Indiana's 371 total yards and was involved in all three scores in the Hoosiers' 21-9 season-opening victory over Ball State. (2006) Former Minnesota baseball star Dave Winfield was inducted into the inaugural class of the College Baseball Hall of Fame. Winfield, who made the MLB Hall of Fame in 2001, has since been joined by Jim Abbot (Michigan), Steve Arlin (Ohio State) and coach Bob Todd (Ohio State). |
| 5 |
| (1998) Minnesota freshman receiver Ron Johnson caught a pass in his collegiate debut against Arkansas State, starting a streak of an NCAA-record 46 consecutive games with at least one reception. |
| 6 |
| (2001) Star Indiana quarterback Antwaan Randle El got his first start at wide receiver, a move that was made to bolster his NFL Draft stock and lasted all of one game. Indiana lost 35-14, as eventual NFL star Philip Rivers tossed three touchdown passes. (1997) Purdue wide receiver Brian Alford caught 10 passes for a then-school-record 209 yards in a 36-22 loss to Toledo. Four weeks later, Alford rewrote the record book, with 215 yards on five receptions, but Selwyn Lymon (238) and Chris Daniels (301) have since surpassed him. (2003) Wisconsin quarterback Jim Sorgi hit Lee Evans for a school-record 99-yard touchdown reception against Akron in a 48-31 win. |
| 7 |
| (1996) Alex Smith outgained Toldeo, 174-151, and Jason Spear scampered for three touchdowns, as Indiana cruised to a 40-6 road rout. The victory was one of just three for the Hoosiers in a tough season. (1987) Former Ohio State golfer Rosie Jones won the LPGA Rail Charity Golf Classic. (1991) Behind 706 total yards, Penn State drilled visiting Cincinnati, 81-0, at Beaver Stadium. |
| 8 |
| (1991) Penn State's first competition in the Big Ten was a men's soccer game in a 5-3 loss to Indiana. (1979) Behind two second-half Tim Clifford touchdown passes, Indiana rallied from a 26-3 halftime deficit to beat Iowa 30-26 and set the program's biggest comeback at the time. (2001) Michigan wide receiver Marquise Walker caught a school-record 15 passes in a 23-18 loss at Washington. Walker equaled his record nine games later against Ohio State. |
| 9 |
| (2006) Iowa's defense stopped Syracuse on seven consecutive plays inside the 2-yard line to seal a 20-13 double-overtime win at the Carrier Dome. (2006) Behind Anthony Gonzalez's eight receptions and 142 receiving yards, No. 1 Ohio State went into Austin and knocked off No. 2 Texas, 24-7. The Buckeyes fell to the Longhorns the previous season, 25-22, in Columbus. |
| 10 |
| (2000) Bob Knight was fired for what then-president Myles Brand called a "pattern of unacceptable behavior." Knight, who had been the Hoosiers head coach since 1971, was offered a chance to resign, but did not take it. |
| 11 |
| (1983) Former Penn State running back Franco Harris becomes the third NFL player to rush for 11,000 career yards. (1908) Eventual Minnesota football standout and Michigan State coaching legend Biggie Munn was born. (2001) Following the tragic attack on the World Trade Center, the Big Ten opted to cancel all athletic events for the following weekend. The Conference also pledged a $1 million scholarship contribution to assist the families of those affected by the attacks. |
| 12 |
| (1998) In a 48-20 triumph, the Illini limited Middle Tennessee State to 69 total yards, including minus-9 on the ground. Meanwhile Illinois' Rocky Harvey and Steve Havard ran for 215 and 175 yards, respectively. (1948) The conference adopted new Eligibility Rule 6, providing that the award of scholarships to athletics must conform to academic standards set by the Conference. |
| 13 |
| (1997) Iowa running back Tavian Banks ran for a program-record 314 yards on 29 carries in a 54-16 win over Tulsa. (1997) Indiana quarterback Jay Rodgers completed 27 of 39 passes for a program-record 408 yards to lead the Hoosiers past Ball State, 33-6. |
| 14 |
| (1996) Minnesota's Tutu Atwell hauled in a 18-yard touchdown pass from Corey Sauter with 15 seconds left to propel the Gophers to a 26-23 come-from-behind victory over Ball State. Sauter completed 23 of 35 passes for 397 yards, including 228 to Ryan Thelwell. |
| 15 |
| (1973) Indiana coach and future ESPN analyst Lee Corso makes his debut as Hoosier coach and has his players warm up in the field house before the game and hop onto a double-decker bus to make a dramatic entrance to the field. The bus gets stuck in traffic and the team almost misses the kickoff against Illinois. |
| 16 |
| (1996) Minnesota baseball standout Paul Molitor became the 21st player in MLB history to record his 3,000 hit. Molitor would be inducted into the Hall of Fame eight years later as a Milwaukee Brewer. |
| 17 |
| (1966) Michigan wide receiver Jack Clancy racked up a school-best 197 receiving yards on 10 receptions 41-0 season-opening win over Oregon State. (2005) The Michigan State football team shocked Notre Dame, 44-41, in overtime and planted the school's flag near midfield in South Bend. |
| 18 |
| (1999) Vinny Sutherland returned a punt 64 yards for a score and added a touchdown reception to help lead Purdue to a 58-16 rout over Central Michigan. Sutherland finished the day with seven receptions for 134 yards, and amassed 142 return yards. |
| 19 |
| (1981) Michigan State kicker and eventual NFL star Morten Andersen booted a Big Ten-record 63-yard field goal in a 27-13 loss to Ohio State. (1970) Iowa defensive standout Dave Clement registered a program-record 29 tackles in a 21-14 loss to Oregon State. |
| 20 |
| (1997) Ohio State held off a furious Arizona comeback bid to claim a 28-20 victory at Ohio Stadium. The Wildcats, who trailed 28-0, erupted for 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter before the Buckeyes clamped down. |
| 21 |
| (2007) Penn State volleyball coach Russ Rose became just the third coach to win 900 games with a victory over Michigan State. (1996) Indiana and Kentucky combine for just 179 passing yards in a 3-0 Wildcat win. (1946) The Indiana football team's longest all-time winning streak was snapped, at eight, following a 15-6 loss to Cincinnati. Twenty-two years later, Indiana once again rattled off an eight-game winning streak before losing to Minnesota. (1974) Former Illinois football player Mike Gow picked off a program-record four passes in a 41-7 rout at Stanford. |
| 22 |
| (1990) Howard Griffith scored an NCAA-record eight touchdowns in a 56-21 rout of Southern Illinois. (2001) Thanks to the groundwork of Anthony Davis (37 carries, 200 yards) and Brooks Bollinger (23 car., 112 yds), Wisconsin rattled off 85 plays, to Penn State's 45, and owned time of possession, 41:53-18:07, en route to an 18-6 win. |
| 23 |
| (2006) Michigan State retired Charles ""Bubba"" Smith's number, No. 95, at halftime against Notre Dame – a game which marked the 40th anniversary of the ""Game of the Century"". (1995) Receiver Terry Glenn rewrote the Ohio State record books when he caught nine passes for a program-best 253 yards in a 54-14 win at Pittsburgh. |
| 24 |
| (1994) The Colorado football team shocked Michigan, 27-26, on the final play as Kordell Stewart threw a 64-yard scoring strike to Michel Westbrook as the gun sounded. (2005) Michigan State quarterback Drew Stanton threw for a school-record five touchdown passes to five receivers to lead the Spartans to a 61-14 win over Illinois in the Big Ten opener. |
| 25 |
| (1999) Purdue all-time leading passer Drew Brees hooked up with receiver Vinny Sutherland on a school-best 99-yard touchdown reception against Northwestern in a 31-23 win. |
| 26 |
| (1998) Iowa kicker Tim Douglas booted a program-best 58-yard field goal to help lead the Hawkeyes to a 37-14 win over Illinois. (1970) Colorado knocked off Penn State, 41-13, to snap the team's program-best 23-game winning streak, dating back to Sept. 21, 1968. (1942) Wisconsin running back Elroy Hirsch ran for a 60-yard touchdown to knot the score in the Badgers' 7-7 tie against Notre Dame. Because of that play, Hirsch earned his nickname, Crazy Legs. |
| 27 |
| (1997) In a game that saw Notre Dame outgain Michigan, 354-345, Michigan's Chris Floyd ran for a game-winning, 14-yard touchdown in the third quarter to send the Wolverines to a 21-14 victory at Michigan Stadium. |
| 28 |
| (1940) Michigan's Tom Harmon runs back the opening kickoff 94 yards for a TD against California, returns a punt 72 yards for TD, rushed for two more scores and passed for another in Michigan's 41-0 romp over the Bears. (2002) Penn State quarterback Zach Mills threw for a program-best 399 yards on just 23 completions, but it wasn't enough in a 42-35 loss to Iowa. |
| 29 |
| (2001) In a game that was postponed two-plus weeks earlier due to 9-11, Wisconsin's defense limited Western Kentucky to one completion and 28 passing yards in a 24-6 victory at Camp Randall Stadium. Anthony Davis paced the offensive attack, scoring twice and running for 89 yards. |
| 30 |
| (2001) Former Michigan quarterback Tom Brady received his first NFL start in place of the injured Drew Bledsoe. Brady, who led New England to a 44-13 win over Indianapolis, never relinquished the starting role, and has gone on to win three Super Bowls. (2000) Former Buckeye Katie Smith won her first gold medal as the U.S. women's basketball team beat Australia, 76-54, in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. (1995) Northwestern's Paul Burton blasted a program-tying 90-yard punt in a 31-7 win over Indiana. Steve Toth also booted a 90-yarder, 61 years earlier. |
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