Texas A&M
(#2) Kansas State
(#10) Texas A&M 36, (#1) Kansas State 33
Dec 05, 1998 | Football
December 05, 1998
The lights had been dimmed, and 60,798 fans had emptied out of the Trans World Dome as a handful of stadium workers began cleaning up and locking down. It was a typical scene with the exception of one worker who was charged with sweeping tiny pieces of tortilla chips off the artificial turf.
The once-oversized chips had been thrown on the field by overzealous Kansas State tans, anticipating a berth in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and a shot at the national title, at the end of the third quarter when their beloved Wildcats took a seemingly insurmountable 27-12 lead.
But now, only minuscule crumbs remained along the sidelines and back of the end zone. Apparently, the chips - like Kansas State's dreams - had been crushed and trampled by the Aggies during one of the wildest post-game celebrations, which followed perhaps the most fantastic finish in the history of Texas A&M football.
Texas A&M 36, Kansas State 33. In double overtime. With the entire college football world watching.
Call it a "chip-shock" that will be forever revered at Texas A&M and will haunt the previously top-ranked Wildcats forever more.
It was a day - especially after Bob Toledo's defenseless UCLA Bruims had been upset by Miami - that was supposed to be all about the Wildcats. But instead, the day belonged to A&M, the team with the heart of a lion.
"This team has so much heart, and we've shown it all year long," said senior quarterback Branndon Stewart. "And once we got the momentum on our side, we knew we were going to win the football game."
That's not all the Aggies won. They also won their first outright conference title since 1993 and earned their first Sugar Bowl bid since 1939.
The Aggies blurred the entire Bowl Championship Series picture by displaying the resiliency and resolve that has characterized this entire season. A&M trailed 10-0 after one quarter, 17-3 early in the second and 27-12 one-third of the way through the fourth.
But every time it appeared the Wildcats had put the Aggies away, A&M came storming back. And when senior tailback Sirr Parker took a quick slant 32 yards for the game-winning touchdown in the second overtime, maroon mayhem broke loose.
"I've never been a part of anything like that," said junior tailback Dante Hall. "Now, we get to take this party to New Orleans."
The Aggies are bound for Bourbon Street because of countless key plays turned in by numerous sources: Chris Taylor and Derrick Spiller each had four catches, totaling more 90 yards apiece. Matt Bumgardner made a spectacular catch that led to the tying score. After KSU held the Aggies to minus-35 yards rushing last year, Hall danced through the 'Cat defense one time after another.
Nguyen had 17 tackles and one key interception. Roylin Bradley had 13 stops and a key sack. Warrick Holdman forced two fumbles, including the critical one late in the fourth quarter. Toya Jones may have had the tackle of the day. and Rich Coady single-handedly destroyed several promising option plays.
Sophomore kicker Russell Bynum was 3-for-3 on field goal attempts. Punter Shane Lechler kept the ball away from lethal K-State returner David Allen all day long.
It certainly produced an incredible finish. Entering the fourth quarter, Stewart was just 4-of-11 for 89 yards and one interception. But he capped a 10-play, 78-yard drive with a 13-yard TD pass to Leroy Hodge to cut the lead to 27-19 with 9:20 left and then marched the Aggies from their own 10 to deep inside KSU territory on A&M's next drive.
The Aggies, however, appeared to lose their momentum and the game when Stewart's fourth-down attempt was batted down and the Wildcats took over with just over three minutes left in regulation.
"When we went back out there on defense, we didn't lose faith," Nguyen said. "We knew we had to make some-thing happen on defense."
They did. Holdman stripped K-State QB Michael Bishop of the ball and Cornelius Anthony recovered at the KSU 35. Given another chance, Stewart made the Wildcats pay.
Stewart hit Parker on a 9-yard touchdown pass with 7:05 left to pull the Aggies within 27-25 and then hit Parker again on the two-point conversion to even it up.
"Once we got it tied," Campbell said, "there was no way we were going to let it slip away."
It came perilously close to slipping away nn the game's final play. Bishop heaved a pass 70 yards in the air, which was batted around and caught by KSU's Everett Burnett at the A&M 1. But Jones prevented the touchdown when he drove Burnett backward.
In the first overtime, both teams traded field goals, and K-State had to settle for a field goal to begin the second 0T. But things still didn't look bright for the Aggies, as A&M faced a third-and-17 from the 32.
That's when Stewart (11-of-20 for 235 yards in the fourth quarter and beyond) hit Parker, who raced toward the end zone and drug a tackler as he stretched the ball toward the goal tine and hit the pylon.
"I'm 5-11, but on that play I was at least 6-foot, stretching out." Parker said.
On this day, Parker and all of his A&M teammates stood tall. In fact, the Aggies were soaring so high they probably didn't even need a plane flight to get back to College Station. Of course, the charter flight did make it much easier for the Aggies to carry back the Big 12 championship trophy that most people assumed had K-State's name written all over it.
