It's December 9th, 1994. The regular season is over and these are the top 4 teams set to face off in the playoff. No bowls have been played. Who do you think will win and why?
#1 Nebraska vs #4 Colorado
#2 Penn State vs #3 Miami
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The Teams:
#1 Nebraska, 12-0, Big 8 Champions
8th in scoring offense
3rd in scoring defense
40th in strength of schedule
The Cornhuskers were in the top 5 all season long and didn't lose a game. From shutting out #24 WV in the kickoff classic, they beat the other 3 ranked opponents by double digits as well, in #13 UCLA, at #16 KSU, and #2 Colorado. The Blackshirts' defense held half their schedule to single-digit scores and the Nebraska option offense put up 40+ in half their games.
Despite QB Frazier missing most of the season with blood clots, backup QB Berringer kept the Huskers moving with very good passing numbers in limited attempts. Add to that 340 yards per game on the ground, and UNL was prolific on offense. I-Back Lawrence Philips had his best year in '94, with 1700 yards and 16 TD. When your FB averages over 7 ypc, you know the option is rockin'!
The Defense was stout vs run and pass - teams completed only 47% of passes and ran for under 80 yards per game.
The return game and punting were good, but FG kicking was a mess - only making half their attempts on the season.
*Frazier would be healthy to play in the playoff, as he did in the bowl game in 1994
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#2 Penn State, 11-0, Independent
1st in scoring offense
30th in scoring defense
8th in strength of schedule
The only other undefeated team in 1994, Penn St was in the top 10 all year. Three of their wins were against ranked teams (#14 USC, at #5 Michigan, and a huge blowout vs #21 OSU). That win over the Bucks got PSU to #1, but they fell to #2 after a deceptively close win vs Indiana and again the next week vs Illinois.
The Nittany Lion offense was all-time great. It was balanced (270 passing/250 rushing), efficient (QB Collins 173 pass rating), and explosive (both leading WRs averaged 20 ypc). Nearly had two 1,000 yard receivers (Engram & Scott) and a 1,500 yard rusher (Carter) who averaged 7.8 ypc and 23 TD.
The defense, however, didn't stop many foes. Seven teams scored 20+ on PSU, which is very high for an undefeated team. It didn't matter, though, because their offense was that good.
Add to that great FG kicking and poor punting, with a decent return game, and PSU was a tough out.
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#3 Miami, 10-1, Big East Champions
#22 in scoring offense
#2 in scoring defense
#33 in strength of schedule
A relatively odd Hurricanes squad - the offense was very average, lacking those big passing numbers most Miami teams had during the era. This team was all defense, and what a defense it was!
Miami's incredible 58-game home winning streak was snapped in September, losing to #17 Washington, but after that, Miami won their last 8 games. Half of those were against ranked teams: #3 FSU, #13 VT, at #10 Syracuse, and #25 BC.
QB Frank Costa struggled, throwing as many INT as TD and lacked a dominant WR. The running game probably kept Miami in the playoff hunt offensively. Their RB-by-committee had a good ypc average and kept the chains moving.
The pass D was elite, giving up only 125 yards through the air, per game @ under 50% completion rate. A good pass rush with Kennard Lang and a sideline-to-sideline fast LB in Ray Lewis limited opponents' scoring. Miami only allowed 2 teams to score over 14 points on the year - the loss vs UW and in a comfortable win over FSU.
The return game was good and kicker Prewitt only missed 1 FG all season, but the Canes struggled to find a consistent punter (3 players punted on the year).
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#4 Colorado, 10-1
4th in scoring offense
25th in scoring defense
27th in strength of schedule
The Buffaloes spent the season ranked in the top 10, despite losing at #3 Nebraska. They beat the other five ranked teams on the slate, though - #10 Wisconsin (by 38), at #4 Michigan (Hail Mary), at #16 Texas, #22 OU (by 38) and #19 KSU.
QB Kordell Stewart led a more balanced offense than CU was used to in '94, as the Buffs threw for 200 yards per game in addition to their nearly 300 yards/gm rushing. His 10-3 TD to INT ratio helped the offense put up big numbers, as did RB Salaam (Heisman winner). His 2,000 yards and 24 TD on the ground carried the load. Stewart's main target was Michael Westbrook at WR.
On defense, Colorado wasn't elite, but they were good enough. The Pass D struggled giving up yardage, but did snag its share of INTs. Teams could only rush for 3 ypc on the Buffs on the year.
Special teams weren't a CU specialty, as none of them stood out.
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***The SEC may have cost itself a playoff spot in 1994, as #3 Alabama was undefeated going into the SECCG, losing to Florida. The Gators wound up ranked 5th and out of the potential playoff.
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Award-Winners involved:
RB Rashaan Salaam, Colorado (Heisman, Walker, Camp, All-American)
DT Warren Sapp, Miami (Nagurski, Lombardi, AA)
QB Kerry Collins, Penn State (O'Brien, Maxwell, Baugh, AA)
WR Bobby Engram, Penn State (Biletnikoff)
CB Chris Hudson, Colorado (Thorpe, AA)
OT Zach Wiegert, Nebraska (Outland, AA)
HC Tom Osborne, Nebraska (AFCA Coach of the Year)
HC Joe Paterno, Penn State (Camp Coach of the Year)
WR Michael Westbrook, Colorado (AA)
G Brenden Stai, Nebraska (AA)
LB Ed Stewart, Nebraska (AA)
