College football’s 150th anniversary: The 150 best moments that stood the test of time

30. The Phantom Touchdown (1979)

College football is prone to controversial calls, because like every other sport it is dependent on the fallible eyes of officiating crews. One of the most controversial — and by extension most memorable — plays transpired in 1979 at the Rose Bowl in the season-ending showdown between USC and Michigan.

Midway through the second quarter, the Trojans were up 7-3 and driving deep into Wolverines territory. Charles White, the standout running back who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy as a senior the following season, took a handoff from three yards out and tried to dive over the mass of bodies for the goal line.

The ball popped loose, and the Pac-10 umpire who saw the fumble marked the ball dead and signaled a change of possession. A Big Ten line judge came in and overruled the call, signaling touchdown. Despite admitting after the fact that he did not have the ball when he crossed the goal line, the touchdown stood and USC went on to win 17-10 thanks to White’s “phantom touchdown”.

29. Rattlers and Spartans Break Color Barrier in the South (1969)

In 1969, racial segregation was still very much a thing on the football field. One game in the Sunshine State would irrevocably break that color barrier in a way that individual pioneers could not.

Florida A&M was a historical black college powerhouse under iconic coach Jake Gaither who came into 1969 having won three of the past four Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles. In the centennial year of college football, they executed a landmark victory against a University of Tampa team that at the time was a burgeoning independent NAIA powerhouse.

The Spartans, a predominantly white program, helped break the color barrier in the south with their showdown against the Rattlers at Tampa Stadium. Florida A&M won a tight 34-28 contest. This landmark game between an HBCU and a private white institution helped demonstrate the futility of perpetuating segregation in the game of college football.

28. Woody Hayes Throws a Punch (1978)

Woody Hayes spent 28 seasons in Columbus, building up Ohio State into one of the preeminent programs in college football. For nearly three decades, his presence on the Buckeyes sideline was a given. In a single moment, though, Hayes let his temper get the best of him and lost his job as a result.

The Buckeyes arrived at the 1978 Gator Bowl with a 7-3-1 record that put them fourth in the Big Ten behind both Michigan schools as well as Purdue. Facing a Clemson team that finished atop the ACC and played out the regular season with only one loss along the way, the Buckeyes found themselves down 17-15 late in the fourth quarter.  Art Schlichter went back to pass, but Clemson nose guard Charlie Bauman picked off the pass and bolted downfield.

Run out of bounds on the Ohio State sideline, Bauman stood up and was punched in the throat by Hayes. A bench-clearing brawl ensued, the Buckeyes received two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties (for the punch by Hayes as well as his subsequent confrontation with the referee), and the Tigers ran out the clock for the victory. The following day, Hayes was relieved of his coaching duties and an era was ended with a single punch.