In a rare meeting of the two current national champions in their divisions, the Louisiana State Tigers challenge the Mountaineers of Appalachian State in the opening game of the 2008 season.
One year ago, App. State went into the alma mater of LSU coach Les Miles, the University of Michigan, and defeated the Wolverines on their own field. Four months later, Michigan beat defending national champion Florida in the Citrus Bowl.
Fifty years ago this season, Ohio native Paul Dietzel brought the National Championship to LSU, defeating Clemson 7-0 in the Sugar Bowl to finish 11-0. Dietzel left LSU after the 1961 season to coach at West Point.
Following a stint as coach at South Carolina, Dietzel left the field, and eventually retired to the mountain resort town of Blowing Rock, N.C.
Blowing Rock. Five miles from Boone, N.C. The same Boone, N.C. that is home to Appalachian State University.
Adding to this strange confluence of events is the fact that Dietzel is publishing an auto-biography, "They Call Me Coach", due to hit the shelves the same week as App St takes on LSU. In Dietzel's last four years at LSU he went 36-7 with one national title and two other seasons with Top 10 rankings; #3 in '59 and #4 in '61. In Miles' three seasons at LSU he has one national title and a #3 in '06 and a #6 in '05.
Coincidence? Nonsense? Folly? Perhaps all three. But there is no escaping the possibility of a Mountaineer upset. If you can beat Michigan, you can beat LSU. Just ask the old Wolverine, Les Miles.
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