The Big Show: WVU-OSUSaturday, September 5, 1998. A beautiful blue-sky day in Morgantown. The sun shone down on tens of thousands of people dressed in blue and gold, red and silver. All day, from dawn to dusk, they gathered to share the excitement of a very special football contest. Kickoff time coincided with the rise of a full moon above the hills surrounding the stadium, and it seemed as if Almost Heaven had lost the almost. It had been 101 years since the West Virginia and Ohio State football teams first met in Parkersburg, 101 years since the Mountaineers' first and only victory over the Buckeyes—albeit in a very brief series that spanned just five games. Anticipation built for weeks prior to the game, with scalpers selling tickets for more than ten times their original cost, and fans living in border towns trading good-natured jabs about the game's outcome. Morgantown, renamed "Touchdown City," put on its best front as media crews arrived to cover the event. When 68,409 fans—the largest opening-day gathering and the third-largest in Mountaineer Field history—and a national prime-time CBS television audience focused their collective attention on Morgantown, it seemed as if the 11th-ranked Mountaineers might have a chance to upset the No. 1 team in the nation. |
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It just wasn't in the cards for the WVU team to win the game, though. The Mountaineers lost to the Buckeyes 34-17. Disappointing, but by no means disheartening. "They're a handful," said Coach Don Nehlen. "And they'll be a handful for anyone, not just us." CBS broadcast its college football show from Morgantown that day, and a set was erected between the Mountaineer Field end zone and the Puskar Center. From there, college football legends Terry Donahue and Lou Holtz and commentators Craig James and Sean McDonough held forth on games played across the nation. The ceremonial coin toss before the game was also very special. Hall of Famer Sam Huff represented WVU as honorary captain, while Ohio State was represented by honorary captain Archie Griffin. A WVU tackle who became one of the all-time great NFL linebackers, Huff was drafted in the third round by the New York Giants in 1956 and was the first defensive football player to make the cover of Time magazine. Griffin, a Buckeye legend who is now an associate director of athletics at Ohio State, was the fifth junior ever to win the Heisman Trophy in 1974. He won his second Heisman in 1975, the only player ever to win the coveted trophy twice. In addition to the regular CBS feed, the game was broadcast in the Columbus area via high definition television (HDTV). It was just the second college football contest ever to be televised this way, last season's Duke-North Carolina State game being the first. |
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