BOULDER, Colo. — Even through a rough start to the 1990 season and the highly debated “fifth-down” controversy, there the Colorado Buffaloes were in the closing seconds of the Orange Bowl, one stop away from a potential national title.
Defensive back Deon Figures intercepted a Notre Dame pass and ran around long enough for the clock to hit zero. His teammates piled on to celebrate, crushing his ribs with their weight. He could barely breathe and thought he might pass out.
A fond memory for sure, he said, because it paved the way to the Buffaloes’ one and only national football title. Painful for a reason beyond his bruised ribs: They had to split that 1990 national title with Georgia Tech.
“We wanted it all,” Figures recalled. “We wanted to sit at the top of the mountain — by ourselves.”
On Friday night, the Yellow Jackets and the host Buffaloes will meet for the first time ever on the football field. It’s a chance for bragging rights nearly 35 years after the programs became forever linked in the days when split titles were possible, long before major college football shifted to a tournament.