Bluegrass Miracle
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The sports page of the Baton Rouge Advocate on November 10, 2002, the day after the "Bluegrass Miracle." The top photo shows Kentucky defenders deflecting the pass, and the large center photo shows LSU wide receiver Devery Henderson right after catching the pass. |
The "Bluegrass Miracle" refers to one of the most improbable finishes in NCAA college football history. It was a miraculous 74-yard game-winning touchdown pass by the #14 LSU Tigers with no time left on the clock against the Kentucky Wildcats on November 9, 2002 at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Kentucky.
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[edit] Background
Kentucky was the home team, but were the underdogs to the defending SEC champion Tigers. During the game, LSU was ahead by as many as 14 points, but Kentucky mounted a 4th quarter comeback. The comeback appeared to be complete when Wildcats kicker Taylor Begley made a 29-yard field goal late in the game, giving Kentucky a 30-27 lead. Before the kick, however, a Kentucky player called an ill-advised timeout, meaning that there were still 11 seconds left on the clock. LSU would get the ball back. But after the ensuing kickoff, the Tigers were pinned back at their own 9 yard line. On the first play of the series, the Tigers would quickly get the ball to their own 26 yard line on a pass from quarterback Marcus Randall to wide receiver Michael Clayton. LSU called a timeout after the play, but only 2 seconds remained on the clock. Because of the dire situation, their only chance for victory at this point was a rarely-successful Hail Mary pass. However, the chances for success were even less than normal, because LSU was too far away for the pass to reach the opponent's end zone. Kentucky players were so confident that they had won the game that they gave head coach Guy Morriss a Gatorade bath before the final play had taken place.
[edit] The Play
On the final play of the game, Tigers quarterback Marcus Randall took the ball and threw it from his own 18 yard line as far as he could downfield. Soon after Randall released the ball, triumphant Kentucky fans stormed the field around him. The pass was well short of the end zone by about 20 yards. However, the ball was deflected off the hands of LSU wide receiver Michael Clayton between the Kentucky 25 to 20 yard lines, into the hands of LSU wide receiver Devery Henderson just short of the 15 yard line. Henderson broke the shoestring tackle of the last Kentucky defender, and ran into the end zone with the game-winning touchdown.
[edit] Confusion and Aftermath
While Henderson crossed the end zone, the Jefferson Pilot Sports television broadcast accidentally posted the graphic "Kentucky 30, LSU 27--FINAL." LSU had actually just won the game 33-30. Kentucky fans who were already on the field could not believe what had happened. Fireworks were shot off when the game clock read "0:00", even prior to the hail mary pass. After the play, Tom Leach, Kentucky's radio play-by-play announcer, said, "how much heartbreak. Kentucky fans are up on the goal posts. I don't know why." LSU play-by-play announcer Jim Hawthorne was equally shocked and was also at a loss for an explanation; he initially said that LSU defensive back Jack Hunt (who had converted from wide receiver in 2002), not Devery Henderson, scored the touchdown. Hunt's uniform number was 8 and Henderson's was 9.
[edit] Naming the Play
On the day after the game, Baton Rouge's daily newspaper, The Advocate, ran the headline "HAIL TIGERS" on the sports page. The headline is a reference to the Hail Mary pass used to win the game. On back of the sports page, it also provided a shot-by-shot camera sequence of the play. The page also included a graphic outlining the sequence of events. They were accompanied by the headline "Dash 93 Right Berlin," which was the team's name for the play that won the game.
The play became permanently known as the "Bluegrass Miracle" after a poll of LSU fans was conducted on the LSU Sports website days later. Other website suggestions for the name included "The Bluegrass Bomb" and "Miracle on the Bluegrass." The website also received write-in votes for such names as "The Divine Deflection," "It Works Devery Time," and "The Lexington Longshot."
[edit] Awards and Records
The "Bluegrass Miracle" also won an ESPY award the following year for "Best Play." It beat out plays from Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Michael Vick and Barry Bonds. Devery Henderson accepted the award on behalf of the LSU team. It was the second time an LSU miracle play won an ESPY award. Warren Morris won an ESPY for his series-winning home run in the 1996 College World Series.
It also marked the second time in as many years that LSU foiled a Kentucky football comeback in the final moments of the game. In the 2001 game, also at Kentucky, the Tigers won 29-25 on a touchdown pass from Rohan Davey to Michael Clayton with 13 seconds left in the game. Earlier in the game, Kentucky had overcome a 12-point halftime deficit to take the lead in the 4th quarter.
[edit] Echoes
Five seasons later, Kentucky was faced with a similar situation against Louisville. Kentucky was up by 6 with very little time left. Brian Brohm threw a hail mary 50 yards down the field, which was deflected twice and caught by a Louisville receiver. This time however, the Kentucky defenders were able to tackle the receiver before he could get to the endzone.
Later in the same season, LSU came to Lexington for the first time since the Bluegrass Miracle, entering the game top-ranked in all three major polls (AP, Coaches, Harris). In a three-overtime thriller, the Wildcats erased some of the memories of the 2002 play, winning 43-37 and claiming their first win over a #1 team in over 40 years.
