Alright, listen up, y’all. We gonna talk about this 1997 football championship thing, you know, the one them college boys was fightin’ over. Don’t rightly know all the fancy names and places, but I’ll tell ya what I heard.
See, back in ’97, there were these two teams, real good ones, everyone said. Nebraska and Michigan, I think. Sounded like a buncha strong fellas, runnin’ and jumpin’ and throwin’ that ball around. Folks were goin’ crazy over ’em, cheerin’ and hollerin’ like it was the end of the world.
Now, them coaches, they had their own way of pickin’ the best team. They called it a “poll,” like they was countin’ chickens or somethin’. Anyways, the coaches, they said Nebraska was the best. Gave ’em some kind of shiny trophy, I reckon.
But then, there was this other bunch, the AP folks, I guess they were reporters or somethin’. They looked at things different. They said Michigan was the top dog. Said they played a perfect season, didn’t lose a single game. Twelve and nothin’, that’s what they said. Beat everyone they played, fair and square.
So, there ya have it. Two champions. Made things confusing, didn’t it? Folks arguin’ back and forth, “Nebraska’s better!” “No, it’s Michigan!” Sounded like a hen house full of squawkin’ chickens to me.
- Nebraska had this coach, Osborne, they said. Won a bunch of championships before. Folks liked him, said he knew his stuff.
- And Michigan, they had a whole team of tough guys. Runnin’ backs, quarterbacks, big ol’ linemen. They played in somethin’ called the Rose Bowl, beat someone. Don’t remember who, but it was a big deal.
This whole thing, they called it a “mythical national champion.” Don’t ask me why. Seems silly to call somethin’ mythical when there were real fellas playin’ and sweatin’ and breakin’ bones out there. But that’s what them city folks do, always makin’ things complicated.
They even had some fella winnin’ a ‘Lombardi Award.’ Sounded fancy, maybe it was a big shiny belt buckle or somethin’. And they talked about a “Big 12 Defensive Player,” musta been a tough one, that fella, stoppin’ everyone from scorin’.
Now, this Michigan team, they hadn’t won a championship in a long while. Folks said it had been since the 40s, way back when my pappy was a young buck. Notre Dame, they won a few back then, too. Guess they were good back in the day.
Then, twenty years later, they had some kind of party, gettin’ them Michigan fellas back together. Rememberin’ the good ol’ days, I suppose. One of the coaches, Carr I think his name was, he wasn’t too keen on goin’. Said it was about the players, not him. Guess he was a humble fella, didn’t like all the fuss.
So, that’s the story, as best as I can tell it. Two teams, two champions. Nebraska and Michigan, fightin’ for the top spot. Folks yellin’ and cheerin’, coaches votin’, and reporters writin’. A whole lotta fuss over a football game, if you ask me. But hey, it gave folks somethin’ to talk about, kept ’em entertained. And in the end, I guess that’s all that matters, right? Givin’ folks a good time, even if it’s just watchin’ a buncha young fellas run around with a pigskin.
Tags: [Michigan National Championship, 1997 National Championship, University of Michigan, Nebraska Football, College Football History, Rose Bowl, Lombardi Award]
