Comparisons from History: 2007 Revisited

"Changes in history usually occur after some kind of catastrophic event," Alabama coach Nick Saban said towards the beginning of his weekly press conference. "It may be 9-11, which sort of changed the spirit of America relative to catastrophic events. Pearl Harbor kind of got us ready for World War II, or whatever, and that was a catastrophic event."

While an Alabama spokesman later said Saban was simply talking about challenges facing the team and coming back from incredible adversity, I personally was inspired by Coach Saban’s comparisons.  For some people, college football is just a game.  For others who aren’t quite so lucky—who suffer through obsession—an average ho-hum Saturday can quickly turn into a personal American tragedy. 

That said, as the year winds down, I have taken a look back at some memorable games this year that brought to mind other great explosions of the powder keg that is world history.

 
Michigan’s loss to Appalachian State

I'm going to go with World War I, the Great War, for this one.  

This game officially ignited the fuse and told the world that we were in for a crazy, clumsy, bloody year.  It made the world seem so senseless for the first time for Michigan fans, when everything seemed to be getting better and safer.  This game was fought in the trenches, a battle of attrition that was only broken by a random field goal. 

Little did college football fans know that rather than being the upset to end all upsets, this loss was only foreshadowing an even scarier crop of games than anyone could ever imagine.

The shattering of Europe and everything the old guard stood for, and the impending doom for everything that was right in college football.

 
USC’s loss to Stanford

Vietnam. 

Jim Harbaugh was talking up a storm about USC (Dee dee mao!), psyching out an entire generation, while his red-clad group of leftist intellectuals staged a coup.  The Men of Troy were the perfect Americans: they had not lost a war in so long, the mere thought was unthinkable. 

Call it imperial hubris. 

Just as there was no way that North Vietnam, a group of hungry yet rag tag weaklings, could topple the mighty United States, Pete Carroll’s men expected to roll over the puny Cardinal without much of a fight.  After a shocking four quarters of escalation, in which USC took heavy casualties—including young Lt. John David Booty—Charlie crept in and blew up the men of Troy with a shoebox bomb at the bar of their own watering hole, a 4^th and 20 at the Coliseum. 

The shell-shocked, disillusioned faces of Trojans everywhere would come to represent the lost innocence of a generation of young, starry eyed kids.  The domino effect would later take its toll as Saigon and South Florida fell.  Both the Trojans team and the US Army were full to the brim with draft picks, mostly from the inner cities.  Both would turn to alcohol and recreational drug use to cope.

 
Dennis Dixon’s Blown Knee and The Ducks’ Implosion to Arizona

Little Bighorn.

Oregon, led by its inspiring, talented and experienced Custer, was looking to pacify the Pac-10 and round up a BCS title.

Then, a bunch of damn sneaky Indians take advantage of a wounded regiment and an injured Custer.  Custer fights valiantly across the river/goalline, attempting to lead his men despite the odds being badly against him. But Custer goes down and his confused team gets annihilated without his seasoned leadership. 

An outnumbered regiment falls to a wily, rowdy tribe of Arizona Wildcats.

 
Oklahoma’s Loss to Colorado

The French and Indian war, also known as Queen Anne’s war.

Oklahoma, like France, was looking to expand its territory.  It had been on a good run, climbing its way back to the top and looking to grab the crown jewel of the college football world: Canada’s fur trade and the Mississippi...er, I mean a BCS title. 

Then, a group of colonials and indians spoil the empire. To compensate its ally, Spain, for its loss of Florida, France ceded its control of French Louisiana west of the Mississippi. 

Oklahoma lost its dominance of the Big 12.  France's colonial presence north of the Caribbean was reduced to the tiny islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, but it would be back, only to be demolished again. 

Oklahoma would be back, only to be shafted by the efficient Wiermacht, the Texas Tech offense.