2009 Orange Bowl
The 2009 FedEx Orange Bowl was the 75th edition of the annual American college football bowl game known as the Orange Bowl. It pitted the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) champion Virginia Tech Hokies against the Big East Conference champion Cincinnati Bearcats on January 1, 2009, at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Virginia Tech defeated Cincinnati, 20–7. The game was the second contest in the 2008–2009 Bowl Championship Series (BCS) of the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season and was the concluding game of the season for both teams. The game was televised in the United States on FOX, and an estimated 9.3 million viewers watched the broadcast live.
2005–06 NCAA football bowl games
The third BCS game, the Orange Bowl, was played at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 3, 2006, and saw Big Ten co-champion Penn State defeat ACC championship game winner Florida State, 26–23, in a triple overtime game marked by tight defense, inconsistent offense, and streaky special teams. The Nittany Lions capped a season they began unranked in both the USA Today coaches’ and AP writers’ polls by winning a record 21st bowl game for coach Joe Paterno, at 79 the oldest coach in Division I-A and with 354 victories the second-winningest; Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden, at the age of 76, failed to add to his current Division I-A record of 359 victories (19 in bowls). Each coach was older than the game itself; this was the 72nd Orange Bowl held. Each team had four possessions during the first quarter, and only Penn State scored; running back Austin Scott, who led his team in rushing with 110 yards on 26 carries on the day, capped an eight-play, 85-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run. The Nittany Lions failed to capitalize on a second-quarter interception thrown by Florida State quarterback Drew Weatherford, and Seminoles senior wide receiver Willie Reid, who gave his team excellent field position on several drives, averaging 25.7 yards over seven punt returns, returned a Jeremy Kapinos punt 87 yards for a touchdown, tying the game at seven with 4:09 to play in the first half. After a defensive stop, the Florida State offense scored in one play, as Weatherford hit running back Lorenzo Booker, who finished with three catches for 69 yards, for a 57-yard touchdown; kicker Gary Cismesia, however, missed the extra point, and so a 25-yard scoring pass by quarterback Michael Robinson to wide receiver Ethan Kilmer, who accumulated six receptions totaling 79 yards on the day, gave Penn State a 14–13 halftime lead. Each defense controlled the opposing offense in the third quarter, and the longest drive achieved was one of 19 yards. Each defense played well throughout the game, and the teams combined to convert only 11 of 38 third down attempts. As Florida State faced a third down at its own seven-yard line early in the fourth quarter, Weatherford was penalized for intentional grounding while in the end zone, and Penn State was assessed a safety, giving the Nittany Lions a 16–13 lead. Weatherford was pressured by Penn State much of the day as the Nittany Lions defense stopped the Florida State running game early (senior running back Leon Washington gained just 30 yards on six carries to lead his team and overall the Seminoles averaged just 1.0 yards per carry), but finished the day with serviceable numbers, having completed 24 of 43 passes for 258 yards; Reid was his favorite target as he caught four passes for 55 yards. Penn State took possession off the free kick at the Florida State 47-yard line, and Robinson drove his team to the five-yard line before fumbling; the loose ball was recovered by the Seminoles. Robinson was active as a passer for the game, completing 21 of 39 throws for 253 yards, but he was held in check by the Seminoles rush defense, gaining only 21 yards on his 17 carries. Weatherford drove the Seminoles to the Penn State 30-yard line, converting a crucial third-down with a 39-yard pass to wide receiver Chris Davis, who caught three passes for 55 yards in the game, before the Nittany Lions defense tightened, and Cismesia made a 48-yard field goal to tie the game at 16. On the ensuing Penn State possession, Robinson drove his team to the Florida State 12-yard line—the key play was a 38-yard pass play to wide receiver Jordan Norwood, who caught six passes for 110 yards—but freshman kicker Kevin Kelly missed a 29-yard field goal with seconds left in the game, sending the game to overtime. The box score at the end of regulation demonstrated each team's sound defensive play and poor discipline; Penn State had gained just 20 first downs (doubling Florida State's 10), the teams had combined to punt 20 times, and the teams had been flagged for 21 penalties (losing 172 yards). Though Penn State held a 100-yard advantage in total offense and had an eight-minute edge in time-of-possession—without suspended linebacker A.J. Nicholson, the Seminoles struggled to stop the run—Florida State kept the game close by forcing two Nittany Lions turnovers in Seminoles territory. In the first overtime, Cismesia missed another kick for the Seminoles, this a 48-yard field goal, but Kelly failed to connect on a 38-yard attempt that would have given his team the win. Penn State took the ball to begin the second overtime and after Robinson hit Kilmer for 17 yards to take the Nittany Lions inside the two-yard line, Scott scored his second touchdown of the game and Kelly made the extra point to put Penn State up seven points; Florida State responded almost immediately, though, as Weatherford threw to Reid for 11 yards and to Greg Carr for 12 before fullback B.J. Dean made his only carry of the day count, scoring from one yard out—Cismesia's extra point tied the game at 23. After their defense held Florida State to four yards in the third overtime and after Cismesia missed his third kick of the game, a 38-yard field goal attempt that hit the right upright, Robinson found freshman wide receiver Justin King for one of King's five catches on the day and then ran for a first down, setting up a 29-yard field goal try by Kelly, who, in making the kick, redeemed himself after twice missing field goal tries that would have given his team the win, ending a game that lasted until 12:59 AM US EST, prompting Paterno to query an Orange Bowl official at the trophy ceremony, "How long were we here, three months?" The win evened Paterno's record against Bowden; the two had tied once and Bowden's Seminoles defeated Paterno's Nittany Lions in the inaugural Blockbuster Bowl in 1990, which was played in then-Joe Robbie Stadium. Penn State won without the services of Dick Butkus Award winner Paul Posluszny, who was injured early in the second half and did not return; after having been taken for x-rays, however, Posluszny returned to the sidelines to motivate his team. The Nittany Lions finished third in the final writers (AP) and coaches' (USA Today) polls.