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6B
♦ TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2006
The passless upset
30 years ago, Tech defeated Notre Dame without a pass
(Editor’B note: The fol
lowing is excerpted from the
2006 book “Stadium Stories:
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets”
by Adam Van Brimmer and
published by The Globe
Pequot Press.)
By Adam Van Brimmer
Morris News Service
Notre Dame’s defenders
danced and gyrated. They
jumped on each other and
whacked on one another’s
helmets.
It seemed as if they’d just
won a national champion
ship, not sacked Georgia Tech
quarterback Gary Lanier on
the second play of regular
season game.
Lanier got the sack cele
bration’s message, though: If
you’re going to drop back to
pass against this defense, it’s
going to be a long afternoon.
The Fighting Irish came
to Atlanta on Nov. 6, 1976
ranked No. 11 in the coun
try. Defensive tackle Bob
Golic, who would go on to
a Pro Bowl NFL career,
anchored one of the nation’s
top defenses, and the Irish
were heavy favorites against
a Georgia Tech team with a
3-4-1 record and a true fresh
man at quarterback.
Lanier got to his feet slow
ly after the sack. He wasn’t
hurt. He just needed some
time to figure out what hap
pened. One second he was
carrying out a play-action
fake, the next Notre Dame’s
Ross Browner was on his
back, driving him to the
turf.
Then came the sack dance.
As Browner celebrated, an
audible groan escaped from
the capacity crowd of 50,079
at Grant Field. Yellow Jacket
Coach Pepper Rodgers sighed
too and signaled for a time
out. As Lanier came off the
field, Rodgers turned to his
offensive assistant coaches.
“That’s the last time
they strut on Grant Field,”
Rodgers told them. “They’re
Georgia sees benefits in playing l-AA schools
By MARC WEISZER
Morris News Service
After Erik Losey and his
teammates were knocked
around in a lopsided loss
at Auburn last season, the
senior center approached
Western Kentucky ath
letic director Wood Selig to
express his gratitude.
“He was absolutely
drained. He had spent every
ounce of energy on that
field giving up 75 pounds
per player across from
him and he said, ‘I want
to thank you,’ “ Selig said.
“I’m looking at him and I’m
like, ‘Look at you, and you
want to thank me?’“ Selig
has given Western Kentucky
players chances to play
on big stages the past six
years: Two games at Kansas
State, two at Auburn, a
game at Wisconsin and now
Saturday’s trip to Sanford
Stadium to play Georgia.
The Bulldogs will provide
a similar platform for other
I-AA programs the next
three seasons.
Next year, it’s Western
Carolina. In 2008, Georgia
Southern comes to town.
Appalachian State visits in
2009.
It’s a no-lose situation for
Western Kentucky, which
earns a $400,000 “guaran
tee”, and nearly a no-win
situation for Georgia.
“We were talking about it
in the meeting room, if we
beat Western Kentucky by
100, they’re going to be like,
‘Well, that’s what you’re
supposed to do’“ receiver
Mikey Henderson said. “And
if we beat them by a close
game, like* 28-14, people
will be like, ‘They’re sorry.’
It’s one of those games it
seems like lose-lose, but we
can learn a lot from play
ing them.” Georgia projects
making $1.6 million from
the Western Kentucky game.
Playing I-AA games makes
sense for Georgia because it
sets up another home game
without a return trip.
going to have to squat and
stop the option from now on.
I’m not calling another pass
play.”
Lanier made it to the side
line in time to hear the end
of the conversation. “Coach,
I don’t have a problem with
that. That’s fine with me,”
he told Rodgers.
Thirty years later, coach
and quarterback still recall
the conversation the same
way. Lanier’s had his share of
practice in telling the story:
He’s asked about the Notre
Dame game dozens of times
a year.
At football and basketball
games.
At Georgia Tech club meet
ings.
On the street.
The game made him a pseu
do-celebrity and gave him an
athlete’s most coveted gift: a
claim to fame. Gary Lanier
is the quarterback who beat
Notre Dame without throw
ing a pass.
“It’s ironic that you can
be remembered for some
thing like that,” Lanier said.
“You’d think the quarterback
would be the last player to be
remembered for a game like
that.”
Lanier’s a part of Georgia
Tech lore instead. He became
a forgotten player later in
his career, losing the starting
job his junior season when
the Jackets switched from
the triple-option offense to
an I-formation set. But Tech
followers will always recall
the day he ran and pitched
the Yellow Jackets to a 23-14
upset of the Fighting Irish.
Lanier lacked passing
prowess. He had the arm and
height of a second baseman,
not exactly a good combi
nation for a major college
quarterback. He stood 5-foot
-9 - with his cleats on -- and
his time in the 40-yard dash
never caused a timekeeper to
do a double-take. He was so
inept as a passer he worked
with the flankers, not the
quarterbacks, during indi-
“More and more schools
are wanting home games +
the non BCS conferences
-j- so it’s becoming a chal
lenge,” Georgia associate
athletic director Arthur
Johnson said. “They want
you to return the games.”
On the flip side, Georgia ath
letic director Damon Evans
has upgraded future sched
ules with matchups against
Colorado, Arizona State,
Louisville and Clemson,
and the school is close to
adding Oregon State for a
series, starting next season.
Georgia Tech annually is
one of the four nonconfer
ence games on Georgia’s
schedule.
“We’re going to get one
that has a little bit of a
national flavor, and the other
three we’ll play good football
teams,” Georgia coach Mark
Richt said. “I don’t really
distinguish them as I-AA or
whatever. Whoever we line
up to play, I’m fired up. Let’s
go.” The NCAA’s permanent
adoption of a 12-game sched
ule also means that more I-A
teams are looking to schedule
I-AA schools. Arizona State,
Virginia Tech, Colorado,
Maryland, N.C. State and
Texas A&M will play I-AA
teams this weekend.
So is lowa of the Big
Ten, which paid Montana
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Morris News Service
Gary Lanier, pictured, once led Georgia Tech in an upset
over Notre Dame.
vidual drills at Georgia Tech
practices.
Rodgers and Lanier often
joked about the quarter
back’s skills. Lanier would
come in the day after a game
and tell Rodgers, “Coach,
I’ve been watching TY and
a forward pass there is when
you throw it down the field.”
Rodgers always had the same
response: “No, a forward
pass for you Lanier is a pitch
backwards. That’s your best
pass.”
Lanier arrived at Georgia
Tech in August of 1976 figur
ing the only passes - forward
or backward -- he’d throw
that fall would be in practice.
His goal? Make the travel
squad. Maybe earn a letter.
He ended up doing much
$650,000 to play, The New
York Times reported.
“Usually the size of the
check is inversely propor
tional to the perceived
chances of winning by those
who offered the checks,”
Selig said.
Western Kentucky also
received a $400,000 pay
check from Auburn, which
won 37-14.
“I have to compliment
Damon Evans for his nego
tiating skills,” Selig said.
“We were talking and he
said, ‘How much did you get
from Auburn last year?’ I
said $400,000.’ • He told me,
‘Well, we can’t pay you a
penny more.’ I said ‘Damon,
the cost, the travel, the infla
tion that’s hit between last
year and this year, certainly
it’s worth another SIO,OOO
or $25,000.
He said we can’t pay a
penny more. We’ll get eaten
alive if we’re paying more
than Auburn’s paying.”
That money isn’t chump
change at a school whose
football program has a $2.3
million operating budget,
nearly four times less than
Georgia’s SB.B million bud
get.
South Carolina, Vanderbilt,
Arkansas and Kentucky also
are playing I-AA teams this
season.
SPORTS
more.
By the fourth game of the
1976 season, Georgia Tech
had lost two quarterbacks
to injury. Mike Jolly was the
starter, Lanier his back up.
The Yellow Jackets played
host to Virginia on Oct. 2,
1976. They were winless, but
Jolly had led them to a tie with
Clemson the week before. He
carried that momentum over
against the Cavaliers, stak
ing the Jackets to an early
lead.
Early in the second quarter,
though, a defender rolled up
on Jolly’s ankle. The injury
would end not just his sea
son but his career. As Jolly
was helped from the field,
Rodgers looked at Lanier and
took a deep breath.
To most fans, matchups
with I-AA schools draw a
collective yawn, and even
players prefer matchups
with the name schools.
“To me, I kind of want to
play somebody. like a USC
or Colorado or somebody
like that at first or close to
the beginning of the sea
son,” Georgia running back
Danny Ware said. “I think
that’s a big challenge, just
trying to prove how good is
the SEC.
“Whatever they put on the
schedule is who we’ve got to
prepare for.” This week it’s
Western Kentucky, a team
that won the I-AA champi
onship in 2002 but is bet
ter known at Georgia as
the school where basketball
coach Dennis Felton previ
ously coached.
“Playing people like this
could be like a warmup,
obviously, since it’s the first
game of the season and you
can see where you’re at,”
Henderson said. “I guess it’s
a good privilege to have, but
you always want to play the
best schools and see how we
stack up.”
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“It was like he was say
ing to himself, Either put in
Lanier or fold,” Lanier said.
“So he put me in. I didn’t
have a whole lot of time to
think about it or I probably
would have gotten really ner
vous.”
Lanier made good on
the battlefield promotion.
Virginia’s defense keyed on
the quarterback, which left
backs Eddie Lee Ivery and
David Sims with open run
ning lanes. Lanier pitched it
them again and again.
Georgia Tech beat Virginia,
35-14, and Lanier came away
confident.
Despite the early success,
no one expected Lanier and
the Yellow Jackets to keep
the score close against Notre
Dame, let alone beat the
Irish.
Those in Georgia Tech’s
locker room believed,
though. Notre Dame hadn’t
faced an option team all
year, and preparing for the
unique offense is hard to do
in a week of practice, par
ticularly late in the season
when players are tired and
injured. Plus, the Irish came
into the game confident. Too
confident.
And their arrogance grew
in the first half. First came
the sack of Lanier. Then
they took a 14-3 lead with
just under two minutes left
before halftime.
Rodgers and Lanier saw
cracks in the Irish defense
by the middle of the second
quarter. Notre Dame was
playing the option well but
had become overzealous in
outside pursuit.
Rodgers began to exploit
the weakness following
Notre Dame’s second score,
calling a cross-buck play.
Lanier would fake the hand
off on the fullback dive like
usual, but instead of rolling
down the line on the option,
he’d quickly hand the ball to
Sims or Ivery coming back
the opposite direction.
The misdirection con
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fused the Irish defense, and
Georgia Tech scored just
before halftime to pull with
in 14-10. Rodgers’ halftime
speech was short and sim
ple. “See these guys aren’t
any better than you guys,”
he told his team.
Georgia Tech’s efficiency
continued to fluster the Irish
in the second half. Rodgers
continued to mix the cross
buck into his play-calling in
the second half. Sims scored
on a 10-yard run to give the
Jackets a 16-14 lead with 2
minutes, 59 seconds left in
the third quarter.
Sims extended Georgia
Tech’s lead to nine points
midway through the fourth
quarter. He scored on a 16-
yard run to make the score
23-14. Notre Dame’s backup
quarterback threw an inter
ception on the ensuing pos
session, and Lanier ran out
the clock from there.
The upset stunned the
crowd. Lanier spent the rest
of the day celebrating with
his family and high school
coach, all of whom had come
up from Savannah for the
game. He went to bed early,
though, anxious to get up
Sunday morning and read
the newspaper headlines.
Rodgers told reporters
something that made Lanier
laugh instead.
“Of all the quarterbacks
who have beaten Notre
Dame, Lanier was the worst,”
the coach said. “That was
such a great line,” Lanier
said. “Pepper was so good to
me. He gave me an opportu
nity when nobody else would.
I was fortunate to be sur
rounded by a lot of great
players that day, and I think
that was the point he was
really trying to make.”
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