The Last Time Oklahoma Played Michigan, the Sooners Didn't Expect to Win a National Championship

WATCH THE NBC BROADCAST OF THE 1976 ORANGE BOWL HERE

But the ’75 team was only supposed to go to Miami and have a good time — not win a national championship.

That fell on Michigan’s arch rival, No. 1-ranked Ohio State, who was 11-0 and playing in their fourth consecutive Rose Bowl as a two-touchdown favorite over UCLA. The Buckeyes had beaten the Wolverines 21-14 in the season finale and OSU coach Woody Hayes was on his way to another national title. 

But Hayes, Archie Griffin and the Buckeyes lost 23-10 to a young Bruins coach named Dick Vermeil, kicking the door open for a Sooner repeat.

“We figured Ohio State wins, we don't have shot,” Owens said. “I think when we found out Ohio State had lost, obviously it gave us an added incentive.” 

“UCLA did us a favor,” halfback Joe Washington told Sooners on SI. “They beat Ohio State, and here we go again.”

Bowls and Polls: a Tangled Mess

In the year 2025, the College Football Playoff tells us without fail who will win the national championship — this team or that team. But before the CFP, before the BCS, it was up to the voters in the Associated Press Poll and the UPI Coaches Poll, and they decided after all the bowl games were finished. It was almost never a 1-2 matchup in the same bowl game. Because of conference alliances — Big Ten and Pac-10 to the Rose Bowl, Big Eight to the Orange Bowl, SEC to the Sugar Bowl, etc. — a national champion often had to be extricated from the tangle of bowl games. 

“That happened every year,” Switzer told Sooners On SI. “It happened (in 1985) when Tennessee and Johnny Majors beat Miami and Jimmy Johnson in the Sugar Bowl and we beat Penn State. We win the national championship. Penn State, 12-0, they’ll be national champions if they win. We beat their ass and we win it. So it took a lot of that (stuff) at the end of the year in bowl games before the playoffs.”

Moreover, this was the first time the Big Ten had allowed more than one of its members to participate in a bowl game, and it was just the seventh bowl game in program history for the Wolverines. For the Sooners, it was their 17th postseason appearance.

OU was the defending national champ, and Switzer had yet to lose a game in two-plus seasons. The Sooners started 1975 at No. 1, but dropped to No. 2 behind Ohio State after two close victories over Miami and Colorado. A fumble-fest against Kansas in Norman resulted in a 23-3 defeat — Switzer's first career loss — and it looked like OU would head to Miami having settled for its fourth straight Big 8 Conference crown.

Oklahoma’s offense wasn’t particularly sharp that night in Miami. OU ran the football 65 times for 282 yards, but had to switch schemes in the third quarter to achieve consistent success. Also, the Sooners fumbled four times and lost three, including one in the red zone and one that produced Michigan’s only points.

The excitement about playing on television for the first time in three years and being in their first bowl game in two years was palpable. In fact, Switzer’s third OU team probably went into the Orange Bowl with a case of the nerves — finally playing on the big stage under the bright lights.

“I think you hit the nail on the head,” Washington said.

Making the Most of Their Chance

Wearing his trademark silver shoes, “Little Joe” fumbled two times himself, including once on a punt return. Still, he led OU with 76 yards rushing and became the Big Eight’s career rushing leader with 4,071 yards.

Davis completed only 3-of-5 passes for 63 yards — all to Owens. It was Davis’ daring deep throw on first-and-25 to Owens in the middle of the second quarter that finally punched a hole in the center of a ferocious Michigan defense and turned on the scoreboard.

OU had eight first-team All-Americans that season, and Owens and wideout Billy Brooks were two of them despite virtually no receiving numbers in Switzer’s run-heavy attack. Owens went into the game with just nine catches for 241 yards on the season, while Brooks finished his year with just five catches for 114 yards. (Both went on to star in the NFL.)

But in the Orange Bowl, on the next play after Owens went up over future NFL safety Dwight Hicks to bring in a 40-yard reception, Brooks took an option-pitch reverse 39 yards for a touchdown. Brooks made a man miss deep in the backfield, then accelerated, weaved through defenders and picked up some key blocks on his way to the end zone.

“That’s two athletic guys,” Washington said. “Brooks, at 6-4, you wouldn't think that he has the movement and finesse that he had. And Tinker, at 5-11, you wouldn't believe that he could go up and just take balls from people, you know what I mean?”

Michigan’s roster included eight players who earned All-Big Ten honors, including four on offense. Gordie Bell led the conference with 1,335 rushing yards, but gained just 53 yards on 18 carries against a Sooner defense loaded with three All-Americans up front in Dewey Selmon, Lee Roy Selmon and Jimbo Elrod.

Those three tormented Schembechler’s offense all night, but it was Jerry Anderson who changed the tenor of the game for good when he chased down Michigan quarterback Rick Leach — a freshman left-hander who also starred in baseball — with a crunching hit on the sideline.

“I tell you what, that Jerry Anderson knocked that Leach’s ass up under the bench over there and he (almost) never came back into the game,” Switzer said. “Jerry Anderson was a killer. (Leach) made a mistake, scrambled on the inside of the field and Jerry Anderson hit him and knocked him — I remember that — he rolled up underneath the benches.”

Schembechler launched a tirade on the officials for the hit, but Leach was all but done. NBC announcer Jim Simpson said after halftime that Leach had “a slight concussion,” but he returned early in the fourth quarter and played three series before leaving with a leg injury and coming back again for the final drive.

Clutch Plays and Good Coaching

Leach’s injury made zero difference in the final outcome. Leach and backup Mark Elzinga started the game with 15 consecutive incompletions before Leach connected on two passes late in the fourth quarter. Leach’s first throw was intercepted by Scott Hill, and so was his last. 

Michigan’s only offensive success came early. Schembechler ended one promising first-quarter drive by punting on fourth-and-inches (it died inside the OU 1-yard line). Another resulted in Bob Wood’s 51-yard field goal that fell short. By then, the Wolverines had run 35 plays to OU’s 10.

Another Wolverine drive ended on the final play of the first half with another Wood field goal that fell short, and Michigan had run 18 offensive plays that resulted in zero or negative yards.

Owens — who also punted for the Sooners that season and averaged 35 yards on nine punts against Michigan — turned in another clutch play just before halftime. 

Another OU drive was stuffed, and Owens lined up on fourth down with his heels on the goal line. He looked up at Michigan’s rush unit and didn’t like what he saw.

“The most pressure I ever felt as a college player,” Owens said. “I knew they were going to try to block it. … All I thought about was, ‘If it's a good snap, I got to catch it, and I got to get rid of it.’ And all I did was get rid of it. And I bet I didn't kick it 30 yards.

“Anyway, I knew that our defense could stop ‘em.”

Senior fullback Jimmy Littrell got hurt, and former walk-on Jimmy Culbreath replaced him early in the third quarter — with mixed results. Culbreath fumbled his first carry and Michigan recovered, setting up another UM drive that nearly produced points.

Instead, Bell threw a halfback pass into the end zone that was easily intercepted by OU cornerback Sidney Brown.

That’s when Switzer and offensive coordinator Galen Hall changed things up. Michigan’s defense had bottled up OU’s triple option, so Oklahoma switched to a running attack more focused on power blocking and counter rushes.

“We couldn't run the wishbone laterally on them, because they were real quick — real quick,” Washington said. “But we started running those little belly plays, and those guys started blocking that counter for me — oh my goodness, we knew it was kind of good night Irene then.” 

Culbreath busted one for 13 yards and Elvis Peacock went for 6 — but then Peacock fumbled.

On the Sooners’ next drive, Davis scrambled for 9, Culbreath powered for a first down, Peacock got 14, Culbreath ran for 8, and Davis ran the option for 8. On second-and-20 following a clipping penalty against Brooks, Culbreath slipped ahead for 8 and then, on the first play of the fourth quarter, Davis finished it with a 9-yard option keeper around the left edge for a 14-0 lead.

Sooner Fumbles Left the Door Ajar

That should have been insurmountable, but not with OU’s fumble-prone offense. Coming off their goal line again after a Michigan punt, Culbreath and Davis botched a handoff and the Wolverines recovered at the OU 2. 

“Otherwise,” Owens said, “I don't think they would have scored.”

“They had a 2-yard scoring drive,” Switzer said, “or it would’ve been 14-0.”

Bell plowed in for the touchdown to make it 14-6 with 7:02 to play. Leach — who returned to the field to start the fourth quarter — tried to run in a 2-point conversion, but Dewey Selmon stuffed him into a pileup at the goal line, and Leach had to limp off.

Michigan’s onside kick caught the Sooners completely off guard, but OU still fell on the football. 

The Wolverines had two more offensive possessions, and Leach finally completed a couple of throws, but his final toss was intercepted by Hill as the clock expired.

(In an interesting twist, Michigan inserted a senior offensive lineman into the game for the final two plays at left guard — guy by the name of Les Miles.)

Superior Skill, Supreme Swagger

Adding even more context to OU’s fifth national championship, Switzer recalled the unlikelihood of the Sooners even being in the Orange Bowl after the loss to Kansas and a near-setback at Missouri the following week.

“Thing about the Michigan game people forget, we were there because of two plays — two consecutive plays — and they happened in the Missouri game,” Switzer said. “If Joe Washington didn't go (71) yards for a touchdown on fourth-and-1 or 2, and then make the (2-point) conversion, we'll never have the opportunity to play Michigan in the Orange Bowl.”

“He's being nice,” Washington said. “But I’ll tell you what, when you look at that Missouri game and that (71)-yard run, you see, Tinker Owens, Jim Littrell, Victor Hicks, you see those three guys make key blocks — and a couple of them made two! Let me tell you something. From the time when I when I touched that ball and I made that cut behind Victor Hicks, I knew then I had the first down. But when I made that next cut, you know what I was thinking? ‘This might go to the house.’ ”

That combination of elite talent and supreme confidence powered Switzer’s early OU teams to two national championships, and the return of that swagger and skill in the mid-1980s brought him another one in 1985. Four players from that team are now in the College Football Hall of Fame.

“If they had playoffs back then,” Washington said, “ … I guarantee you, we would have won four.”

“We went 54-3-1 with the Selmons,” Switzer said. “When the Selmons played, think about that, we won 54, lost three and tied one. We damn near won 58 in a row! Should have. We were better than  teams we lost to. You think about Kansas (in 1975). We lost to … Kansas, they were 6-5. 

“That's really something, to have that type of talent, that era, and just dominate like that.”

Before that OU team climbed onto the plane to go home, they climbed from No. 2 to No. 1 in the polls the next day. 

But they needed to overcome a No. 4-ranked Michigan squad to do it.

“Yeah, they had great players,” Owens said. “We had great players. Obviously, I think the best team won. But I’m a Sooner, so I’m always gonna think that. 

“It's hard to believe it's been 50 years. The good news is, I can remember a lot of it.”