Sugar Bowl

65th Annual
Sugar Bowl
January 1, 1999

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#3 Ohio State 24 (Final: 11-1, #2)
#8 Texas A&M 14 (Final: 11-3, #11)

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Official Game Stats – PDF

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First-Quarter Fireworks Get Buckeyes Rolling in 24-14 Sugar Bowl Triumph

How Ohio State and Texas A&M Met in the 1999 Sugar Bowl

After being the top-ranked team in the nation for much of the season, Ohio State suffered a shocking loss to archrival Michigan which meant it would miss out on the first BCS National Championship. However, the third-ranked Buckeyes still had a primetime placement as they headed to the Sugar Bowl to take on No. 8 Texas A&M.
 
Despite having two losses, the Aggies had posted a pair of big wins during the 1998 season – an upset of No. 2 Nebraska and a double-overtime victory over No. 1 Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship.
 
And they wasted little time aiming for another high-ranked feather in their caps.
 
After stopping Ohio State on its first drive, Texas A&M drove 59 yards, gaining ground on each of its six plays against the country’s No. 2-ranked defense, closing the drive with a nine-yard touchdown run by Dante Hall.

However, the Buckeyes settled down and took charge, building a near-insurmountable lead with three touchdowns in a span of six minutes, 35 seconds. That, in a nutshell, was the story of the 65th Sugar Bowl.
 
Ohio State’s spurt ignited with a 28-yard pass from Joe Germaine to Dee Miller on third-and-15 followed by an 18-yard scoring delivery from Germaine to Reggie Germany. Another Aggie three-and-out gave the ball back to the Buckeyes, who took the lead on back-to-back runs of 29 yards and 10 yards (to the end zone) by Joe Montgomery.
 
Even though the game was still in the first quarter, the outcome may have been put out of reach for the Aggies when A&M’s Shane Lechler suffered the first blocked punt of his career. Rich Coady missed a block on Derek Ross, and Ohio State’s outside rusher came firing through, smothering the ball as Lechler dropped it toward his foot. Kevin Griffin picked up the loose ball and returned it 16 yards for the touchdown that gave the Buckeyes a 21-7 first period margin.
 
It was the first blocked punt allowed by A&M since its 1993 Oklahoma game, and was the first blocked punt returned for a touchdown in the Sugar Bowl since 1965, when Syracuse’s Brad Clarke brought one back 28 yards against LSU.
 
Ohio State, which stretched its advantage to 24-7 by the half, should have had this one tucked away, but really couldn’t breathe easily. The Buckeyes managed only 57 rushing yards and 83 passing yards in the second half and kicker Don Stultz missed field-goal attempts of 49 and 47 yards, the latter ricocheting off the right upright.
 
The Aggies, with the help of three Ohio State penalties that accounted for 40 of the necessary 68 yards, scored a third-quarter touchdown on a seven-yard pass from Brandon Stewart to LeRoy Hodge to cut the Buckeye lead to 10.
 
A&M was in position to again pull off one its late game heroics. But just when it was needed most by Ohio State, senior linebacker Jerry Rudzinski rose to the occasion. With 10:30 to play in the fourth quarter, Stewart flung a swing pass – actually a lateral – out to Hall. Rudzinski tipped the pass, then beat Hall to the ball, recovering at the Aggies’ 48.
 
He later broke up a pass, and Antoine Winfield deflected yet another, forcing a punt with 6:40 remaining. Rudzinski’s final tackle, an open-field stop of fullback Ja’Mar Toombs after a short reception, helped stymie what turned out to be A&M’s last possession.
 
Other than the game’s opening drive and the penalty-aided touchdown drive in the third period, the Aggies never advanced beyond their 47, and even that was on a meaningless 19-yard completion on the final play of the first half.
 
“We played a great football team in Ohio State, and we came up a little short,” Aggie coach R.C. Slocum said. “When you’re playing a team as talented as Ohio State, you can’t fall behind like we did,”
 
Yet Ohio State never did quite shake the Aggies, who outgained the Buckeyes 152-140 in the second half. The Buckeyes, who scored no points after intermission, hardly had a powerful case for the dominance they need to impress voters.
 
No matter. Tennessee beat Florida State, 23-16, in Tempe to settle matters in the AP poll. Ohio State finished second.
 
Star receiver David Boston earned the Miller-Digby Award as the game’s Most Outstanding player after tallying 11 catches for 105 yards for the Buckeyes.
 
“We’ll play head-to-head with anybody,” a frustrated David Boston said, knowing full well Ohio State would never get that chance.

Story by Marty Mulé, who covered the game and the organization for decades for the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

1999

Louisiana Superdome
Att: 76,503
ABC Rating: 11.5

Texas A&M    7    0    7    0    –    14
Ohio State    21    3    0    0    –    24

SCORING SUMMARY
A&M: Dante Hall 9 yd run (Russell Bynum kick), 10:53 (1st)
OSU: Reggie Germany 18 yd pass from Joe Germaine (Dan Stultz kick), 8:34 (1st)
OSU: Joe Montgomery 10 yd run (Stultz kick), 4:10 (1st)
OSU: Kevin Griffin 16 yd blocked punt return (Stultz kick), 1:59 (1st)
OSU: Stultz 31 yd punt return, 0:16 (2nd)
A&M: Leroy Hodge 7 yd pass from Stewart (Bynum kick), 5:24 (3rd)

Texas A&M	Team Statistics	Ohio State
17	First Downs	25
27-96	Rushing	42-210
187	Passing	222
22-39-0	Comp-Att-Int	21-38-0
71	Return yards	71
10-39.8	Punting	7-44.3
1-1	Fumbles-Lost	3-0
6-43	Penalties	6-61
28:18	Time of Possession	31:42

Rushing Leaders
A&M: Ja’Mar Toombs 10-62, Dante Hall 11-53 TD, Parker 1-6, Stewart 5-(-25)
OSU: Joe Montgomery 9-96, Michael Wiley 16-88, Jonathan Wells 7-30, Keller 4-15, Germaine 6(- 19)

Passing
A&M: Brandon Stewart 22-39-0, 187 yards, 1 TD
OSU: Joe Germaine 21-38-0, 222 yards, 1 TD

Receiving
A&M: Chris Taylor 5-42, Derrick Spiller 5-43, Sirr Parker 3-9, Ja’Mar Toombs 2-19, Leroy Hodge 2-15 TD, Dante Hall 2-3, Campbell 1-20, Oliver 1-20, Bumgardner 1-6
OSU: David Boston 11-105, Michael Wiley 5-40, Reggie Germany 2-34 TD, Miller 1-28, Lumpkin 1-8, Keller 1-7

Miller-Digby Award recipient: David Boston, Ohio State receiver