GBI Top 15: Winning out West

In the 13th of our 15-week countdown series leading into Purdue's season opener against Toledo on Sept. 5, we break down our list of the 15 greatest Boilermaker football teams of all time.

The "P" in Purdue stands for persistence when talking about the Boilermaker football program under Coach jack Mollenkopf.

Despite numerous painful setbacks, the dream of going to the Rose Bowl was never allowed to die.

Finally, the kelly-green turf of the Rose Bowl on January 2, 1967 served as Purdue's "field of dreams." it was a dream come true for the many loyal followers of the grid exploits of the Old Gold and Black. It was a dream come true for past players and all the present players dressed in gold pants, white jerseys and gold helmets ready to battle the Southern California Trojans on that day. It was a dream come true for Coach Mollenkopf, who had spent 20 years (nearly half as an assistant football coach) at Purdue working for this goal. It was a dream come true for university Presidnet Fred Hovde, a Rhodes Scholar athlete who was remembered by most as the greatest supporter of athletics of any Purdue President in the school's history to that date. It was a dream come true for Athletic Director Red mackey, whose 25-year career as the head man of the athletic department (to that date) had achieved no greater success than having his football team representing the Big Ten in postseason play.

Purdue had been so close for so many years. In Mollenkopf's 10 previous seasons as head coach, the Boilermakers had been on the brink of making the trip West on several occassions, only to come a point or so short. A case in point was the 23-game span from the middle of the 1960 season until the start of the 1963 campaign. During that time frame, Mollenkopf's team lost 10 games by a total of 23 points. No margin of defeat was greater than five points.

the frustration level rose so high on campus that even the student newspaper, The Purdue Exponent, ridiculously called for the ouster of Mollenkopf after the 1965 season. Despite at 7-2-1 record, some thought, "Fat Jack Must Go."

Mollenkopf and the Boilermaker staff didn't spend many sleepless nights worrying about the statement, though. More than anything, Mollenkopf probably took offense to being called fat.

Had Mollenkopf known prior to the 1966 season what a roller coaster ride the 10-game schedule would be, he might have complained of insomnia. The Boilermakers returned a vast majority of the 1965 squad, including All-America quarterback Bob Griese. And the Boilers were among the nation's best, actually standing atop the national rankings for a week after defeating No. 1 Notre Dame. They were zeroed in on Pasadena in 1965 before a controversial pass interference call helped Michigan State to a second half come-from-behind 14-10 win at Ross-Ade Stadium. The following week, the stunned Boilermakers were downed at Illinois, 21-0.

But Purdue didn't have to worry about the Spartans in 1966. Due to the Big Ten no-repeat rule at the time, Duffy Daugherty's Green and White would have to watch from the sidelines on New Year's Day. Most forecasters agreed Michigan State and Purdue were the class of the league. It was time for Purdue to prove it, once and for all.

The ride was smooth for Purdue the first week as Purdue took its No. 8 national ranking and easily downed Mid-American Conference foe Ohio University, 42-3. Griese warmed up his arm completing 17 of 21 passes fir 230 yards and 3 touchdowns. In addition, the multi-talented redhead from Evansville, Ind., kicked all six extra points.

Griese's performance against the Bobcats was statistically reminiscent of his 19-of-22 day in the 25-21 win against top-ranked Notre Dame in 1965.

When the Boilers traveled to South Bend the following week to battle Ara Parseghian's Irish, in front of a national television audience, Notre Dame was determined to not let lightning strike twice.

And it didn't, although there were several explosions. A talented sophomore by the name of Marvin "Leroy" Keyes emerged on the scene in brilliant fashion as he caught a fumble by Irish back and former Pittsburgh Steeler great Rocky Bleier and raced 95 yards into the end zone. Purdue enjoyed the lead for only seconds as Notre Dame's Nick Eddy returned the ensuing kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown to knot the score.

From that point on, it was a battle won by a pair of sophomores playing their first college game: Irish quarterback Terry Hanratty and end Jim Seymour. Hanratty put the hosts ahead for good on an 84-yard bomb to his new found pal in the second quarter, the two connected on 39 and 7-yard scoring plays. On the day, Seymour set Notre Dame records for receptions (13) and yards (276). Amazingly, Hanratty completed only 3 passes to other Irish receivers totaling 28 yards.

But the Boilers didn't go down without a fight, Griese looked like he might have the chance of completing his second dramatic comeback against the Irish in as many seasons. Trailing 20-14 with five minutes left, Purdue received new life after All-America defensive back John Charles intercepted a Hanratty pass in the end zone and raced to the Boiler 14. Just three plays later, the comeback attempt was thwarted as Irish defensive lineman and NFL Hall-of-Famer Alan Page stripped Griese of the ball, and the Irish recovered. Griese had been running all day from the Irish pass rush.

As often is the case for Purdue against Notre Dame, the loss was costly in the injury department. Running back and Big Ten hurdles champion Lou Sims' broken leg and backup quarterback Jim Klutcharch's torn-up knee led the list of 17 injuries in the loss.

Sims' injury did clear the way for Keyes to play a little more offense. The spectacular sophomore from Newport News, Va., was a starting defensive back from day one, as Mollenkopf and his staff felt Keyes would get more playing time on defense due to quality depth in the Boiler backfield.

In Purdue's 35-23 victory over Hayden Fry's talented Southern Methodist team the following week, Keyes would get more playing time on defense due to quality depth in the Boiler backfield.

In Purdue's 35-23 victory over Hayden Fry's talented Southern Methodist team the following week, Keyes made the first of several successful cameo appearances with Griese's gang. After the Mustangs cut the lead to 14-7, Keyes made use of one his favorite weapons during his Boilermaker playing days-the halfback pass. In his first college aerial, Keyes connected with 1966 All-America end Jim Beirne for a 17-yard scoring play. In Keyes' career, he threw 8 touchdown passes out of 12 completions.

Another talented sophomore also had a big day for Purdue. Fullback Perry Williams, a converted high school quarterback from Cincinnati, Ohio, scored 4 touchdowns and rushed for 94 yards.

Griese broke four more Purdue records (completions, total offense, passing yardage and extra points) in a 35-0 conference-opening win over Iowa. Purdue was back in the top 10 of the national rankings after the victory but faced the unenviable task of playing Michigan and No. 2-ranked Michigan State on the road the next two weeks. It might be unfair to draw parallels between two games that were 37 years apart, but the 22-21 comeback victory at Michigan in 1966 was as essential to the success of that season as the 30-16 comeback win over the Wolverines in 1929. Coach Jim Phelan's '29 squad went on to capture Purdue's only undisputed Big Ten title.

In front of 79,642 at Michigan Stadium, Michigan was ahead 21-14 late in the third quarter when Bump Elliot's teamed turned charity-oriented. Purdue sliced the deficit to 21-16 when Bob Sebeck tackled indecisive punt returner Rick Sygar in the end zone for a safety. Sugar had debated about picking up a rolling Griese punt at the 1-yard line, then did and stepped into the end zone before being tackled.

A couple minutes later Michigan running back Carl Ward was dropped for a 14-yard loss at the Wolve 8-yard line by junior defensive back Dennis Cirbes on a crucial third down play. On fourth dawn, linebacker Frank Burke blocked Stan Kemp's punt and recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown giving Purdue a 22-21 lead. Burke was the unlikeliest of heroes. The elder statesman of the Big Ten, Burke was a 27-year-old father of two who had taken over the linebacker position after an injury to Bob Yunaska in the season-opener against Ohio.

Despite Burke's heroics, the game was dar from over. The Wolverines marched to the Purdue 1-yard line, only to fumble on successive plays-the second of which senior defensive back George Catavolos pounced on. Purdue was safe for a moment.

Michigan had one more chance at victory as it moved to the Purdue 18 behind the passing of Dick Vidmer. Once again the Boiler defense got tough, forcing a field goal attempt after linebacker Dick Marvel and defensive tackle Clanton King stood up fullback Dave Fisher on third-and-inches. Sygar, who had given Purdue a safety just minutes earlier, was sent in by Elliot, amidst a chorus of boos, to attempt a 35-yard field goal. The boot was short, the boos grew louder, and Purdue ran out the clock. The Boilermakers posted a win at Michigan for the fourth time in a row, the last three (1964-66) by a combined total of four points.

Mollenkopf put it best in the post-game press conference when he said, "We'll never win a more important ball game."

One of the biggest factors heading into the Michigan State game the following week in East Lansing was the unbeaten Spartans had been voted out of the No. 1 spot in the polls after hanging on to defeat Ohio State 11-8 in Columbus. That made Daugherty and his "Merry Monsters" a little mad. And All-Americas Bubba Smith, Clinton Jones, George Webster and Gene Washington had the talent to take their frustrations out on Purdue to the tune of an easy 41-20 victory.

Griese was impressive in front of a regional television audience completing 17 0f 29 passes and rushing for 53 yards, but he literally ran for his life the entire afternoon. Despite the loss, the Boilermakers were in the driver's seat of the conference because the Spartans were out of the competition for the Rose Bowl. It was just a question if the Boilermakers had enough gas to get to Pasadena.

A week later against Illinois, with just under 15 minutes left on the Ross-Ade Stadium clock, it looked like Illini linebacker Bruce Sullivan had siphoned the Purdue gas tank. Sullivan intercepted a Griese pass and returned it 93 yards for a touchdown giving the visitors a 21-10 lead. Griese, who was suffering thought his worst day with five interceptions, got the Boilermakers off the deck by marching the team downfield for a score-a short pass over the middle to tight end Marion Griffin cut the lead to 21-18 with 10:14 left.

The defense, which didn't give up a first down in the fourth quarter, gave the offense the ball three times in the game's final 10 minutes. The third time proved to be the charm, Purdue took over at its own 35 with 3:30 left. After completions to Beirne and back Bob Hurst, the Boilermakers settled at the Illini 37 with 1:50 remaining. After Griese picked up a scrambling five yeards, he nearly tossed this sixth of interception of the day into the hands of Sullivan.

As it turns out, the Illini hadn't given the Boilermakers all the reprieve they needed. On the next play, Griese, whose "worst performance at Purdue" yielded a record 288 passing yards, turned a broken play in the Rose Bowl, for all intents and purposes, by hitting Jim Finley for a 32-yard scoring pass. Purdue had escaped with an improbable 25-21 win.

From that point forward, the Boilermakers made it look easy. Backs Bob Baltzell and Williams rushed Purdue to its first victory at Wisconsin's Camp Randall Stadium in 22 years, as the defense shut down the Badgers, 23-0.

The following week, Roses bloomed in Minneapolis' 19-degree temperatures as the Boilers clinched the trip to Pasadena with a 16-0 win.

Minnesota entered the game still in the Rose Bowl race with a 3-1-1 league record but left the contest unable to do much against Purdue's defense. Griese passed only 17 times, completing 12 for 124 yards. But his 30-yard field goal gave Purdue a 3-0 halftime lead and his 13-yard scoring strike to Beirne increased the lead to 9-0 after three quarters.

"This is the greatest day of my life," exclaimed Mollenkopf just after being carried off the field by his players after the win. The Boilermakers were greeted by 3,000 jubilant fans when they returned to West Lafayette.

The defense ran its scoreless streak to 11 quarters and the offense used a 34-point second quarter to run roughshod over Indiana 51-6. The Hoosiers scored with just 28 seconds left. Griese was simply awesome in his final home appearance, completing 11 of 15 passes for 255 yards as the Boilers claimed the Bucket for the 17th time in 19 years.

Purdue's 8-2 regular season finish put them seventh in the national rankings, having lost only to national champion Notre Dame and second-ranked Michigan State. Griese was tabbed All-America for the second-straight year and became the first Boilermaker to be named MVP of the Big Ten.

He was also the first Purdue player to be a legitimate Heisman Trophy contender. But in the only negative post-season news, Griese was narrowly defeated by Florida's Steve Spurrier for the coveted prize. Spurrier's victory was reportedly helped when he was rumored to be a top pick of the New York Giants and that he supposedly had significantly more pro potential than Griese. The story made national news just before the vote.

As things would turn out, Griese was the NFL Hall of Famer while Spurrier rarely got off the bench in pro football.

There was little doubt who was going to be Purdue's opponent in the Rose Bowl. UCLA, owners of a 9-1 overall record, had beaten USC in the final conference game of the season. But, the Trojans had a 4-1 conference mark compared to a 3-1 record for the Bruins. USC was given the nod in a vote of Pac-8 members, but then the following week got hammered 51-0 by Notre Dame. The Men of Troy were hampered in the loss having to play without quarterback Troy Winslow in the loss to ND.

With that in mind, Purdue was established a two-touchdown favorite against USC.

Taking advantage of the school's first postseason bowl trip, thousands of Boilermaker faithful descended on Pasadena. Mollenkopf became the darling of the local sportswriters with his willingness to stay and answer questions after practice will sipping on a can of beer. The Boilermaker coach was having fun and so where his players.

Mollenkopf also took seriously Purdue's role as Big Ten representative. He knew better than to believe all the media "sandbagging" going on — saying there was no way the Trojans could stay with Purdue.

The Trojans did stay right with the Boilermakers and kept Purdue's offense off balance for most of the day. The Boilermakers controlled the ball for most of the first half but managed just one score, a short plunge by Williams. The teams headed to the intermission tied at 7.

A USC fumble at the Purdue 39 in the third quarter, recovered by defensive end Bob Holmes indirectly started Purdue and Williams on its second scoring march. Griese, who was limited to 10-of-18 passing for 139 yards, hit Beirne on a 39-yarder at the goal line, but Beirne fumbled the ball out of the end zone.

USC couldn't get out of the shadow of its own goal posts and after a short kick, Purdue had the ball at teh USC 37. This time the Boilermakers capitalized as Griese hit Hurst for gains 13 and 14, before Williams crashed in from the 1-yard line.

The majority of the game's excitement occurred with the clock wasn't running. A 19-yard touchdown pass from Winslow to Rod Sherman made it 14-13 Purdue with just 2:28 left in the fourth quarter. Stating that you don't play for a tie in the Rose Bowl, USC Coach (and former Boilermaker running back) John McKay decided to go for the win on a two-point conversion.

Purdue rushed Winslow hard on the play, forcing him to delay the pass to Jim Lawrence, who appeared to be open in the right portion of the end zone. Catavolos, the team captain, guessed right and intercepted the pass.

Contrary to legend, Catololos' heroics didn't end the game. USC tried an onside kick which Jack Calcaterra downed for the Boilermakers at the Purdue 48. Griese tried to run out the clock but missed by 21 seconds when whe was stopped inches short of a first down at the USC 43. On USC's first play from scrimmage, defensive lineman Fred Rafa broke through to sack Winslow.

With the clock winding down, and Boilermaker fans ripping down the wooden goal posts, the Trojans frantically tried to run one more play. As the clock approached zero, Rafa literally pounced on the ball.

The refs didn't like Rafa's antics and gave USC one more play. Winslow tried to pass one final time, but Rafa, who felt a sense of urgency to atone for his blunder, sacked Winslow again to end the game.

"It didn't matter if you win by 25 or by one," Mollenkopf said after being carried off the field for the second time in three games. "The big thing is to win, and we did.

"Nobody can say we ran up the score on them."

The rationale behind the ranking

One of Purdue's greatest teams, to be sure, the 1966 Boilermakers did something that no team has done before or since ... win the Rose Bowl. The only thing that keeps 'em from the top of the list is the fact it didn't win the Big Ten title and had no victories over ranked teams. But the fact its only two losses came to the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the land allows for much argument on the '66 squads rightful place in Boilermaker history.

1966 Results:

Overall Record: 9-2

Big Ten Record: 6-1

Head Coach: Jack Mollenkopf

Captains: George Catavolos and Bob Griese

Sept. 17 Ohio (W, 42-3)

Sept. 24 @#8 Notre Dame (L, 14-26)

Oct. 1 Southern Methodist (W, 35-23)

Oct. 8 Iowa (W, 35-0)

Oct. 15 @Michigan (W, 22-21)

Oct. 22 @#2 Michigan State (L, 20-41)

Oct. 29 Illinois (W, 25-21)