The Orange Bowl Story (1970)

[MedleyCane]

I remember the 1965 UM-ND game in the OB. Ara Parsegihian was the Irish coach. Ended in a scintillating 0-0 tie, which was of course a massive moral victory for unheralded UM. Larry Csonka was the FB on that ND squad. Think the Irish missed 3 or 4 FGs, several from fairly close in.

Csonka played at Syracuse, but ND had a bunch of big FBs during that era.

 

[hotshot]

By the way, Bobby Carlton had quite a life. I wonder if he was kin to former MLB pitcher Steve Carlton, who played at North Miami HS.

Remembering Miami High School Coaching Legend Bobby Carlton | Featured#

RIP Bobby Carlton. A 1952 graduate of Miami Senior High School, Carlton was one of the legendary figures of Dade County high school athletics, first as a head coach at Miami High and later as the first athletic director at Miami Southridge High School. He was a former All City lineman for the...

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Thanks again. All the Miami High coaches in the 50s and most of the 60s ended up legends. All of them went on to coach at UM. Guys like Charlie Tate, Ottis Mooney, and Bobby.

And, of course, Nick Kotys at Gables outdid them all in the HS ranks. Too many state championships (and mythical Nat'l Championships) to recall.

 

[hotshot]

Csonka played at Syracuse, but ND had a bunch of big FBs during that era.

I meant Larry Conjar (hey, they both start wih a C). Conjar was a fine ND FB who played later with the Browns, Eagles and Colts. Our only real chance to score in that 0-0 tie was when Conjar fumbled deep in ND territory in the first Qtr. Our offense went backwards, though, and we barely missed a long FG. Alan Page, Vikings HoF DE, was on that ND team. Jack Lynch, great Chiefs LB, too iirc.

 

[ScubaCane]

Feel for the young Cane fans who never got to witness the glory of the Cane games at the OB in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s. There was nothing like it.

 

[SWFLHurricane]

Interesting sociological comments Hotshot.
I caught the tail end of it when my family moved down to Hialeah early 1970s....In fact, the Mayor of Hialeah at the time was Dale Bennett and many of his supporters at the time waved the southern flag at his rallies. I also remember the big controversy when the first black student was attempting to matriculate at Miami Dade Christian HS. Heck, not too long ago I was at the Hecht athletic center looking at some of the old UM memorabilia and I noted a picture of the UM football team on the tarmac of Miami Airport, having return to a throng of fans after having upset Notre Dame (or Purdue).....Big crowd and some were waving Confederate flag....definitely different era.

Everyone of those Confederate Flags should have been shoved up their Azzes...

 

[ben]

What a find! Thanks for that.

The Stings HC, Bobby Carlton (who gives a run down on the game in the opening of the clip, played for UM and was a UM Asst under HC Fran Curci in the early 70s.

Carlton I think was born and raised in Miami. Listening to his accent, you'd think he was from South Georgia or Alabama. That's sort of a sociological comment on how Miami has changed over the last 60 years. Know anyone born and raised in Dade who talks like that today? Used to be common. "Dixie" was played regularly by the Band of the Hour at UM games in the OB back in the 60s. A very different time and place.

The old “miam-uh” accent

 

[GojiraCane]

Elephants can swim.

LOL on how I immediately know this.

As a kid my grandfather got me Guinness Book of World Records - Animal Facts and Feats. I was fascinated by the long sections talking about "what is the biggest great white shark" or "what was the longest crocodile ever". Fun stuff. Anyway, there's an aneccdote about an elephant going mad and swimming out into the ocean, where it was ultimately devoured by sharks.

 

[hotshot]

Feel for the young Cane fans who never got to witness the glory of the Cane games at the OB in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s. There was nothing like it.

For me, there'll never be anything like our very first Natty, in the OB in that classic W over Nebraska. Wish I coulda been there but was still an unbelievable watch on TV from my couch up here in Maryland.

 

[TheU 4ever]

Actually, the Gables QB was Tommy Warren, Larry Rentz graduated a year earlier.
My parents were friendly with the gracious Rentz family.
Tommy Warren would go on to play for FSU.
The game ended 14-13, wasn't really that close.
Sting defense was Unreal..

Game ended MHS 14 - Coral Gables 7! But you're right, the game was not that close. The great Stings defense was the difference.

 

[hotshot]

When Joe Robbie was lobbying for Miami to get an AFL franchise (to begin play in 1966), he reportedly used the 1965 game in the OB between MHS and CG as a sales point. Made the argument that game's attendance (48,000+) showed just how much South Florida loved football. A pretty compelling argument and he got his franchise.

 

[3GC]

Game ended MHS 14 - Coral Gables 7! But you're right, the game was not that close. The great Stings defense was the difference.

You are dead right on the score,,

 

[3GC]

Thanks for the correction on Rentz. And, I def recall Tommy Warren. He backed up former Dunedin HS star Bill Cappleman as FSU QB in the late 60s.

Wasn't the final score in the 1965 Cavs-Stings game 14-7? That I'm more sure about. And, yes, the Sting D collectively were the stars of that game.

Yes you are right on the score.
Attendance figures were odd, the OB was filled to the gills.
Also, my girlfriend was a MHS cheerleader. We went to the Stings victory party afterwards..

 

[Dorcane]

I could see in theory a referee influencing a game through bad calls, but to have coaches (a HoF coach) and a quarterback in on it? What would the NFL gain by this?

Just k ow Bubba once said this. They wanted a merger

 

[Dorcane]

Interesting sociological comments Hotshot.
I caught the tail end of it when my family moved down to Hialeah early 1970s....In fact, the Mayor of Hialeah at the time was Dale Bennett and many of his supporters at the time waved the southern flag at his rallies. I also remember the big controversy when the first black student was attempting to matriculate at Miami Dade Christian HS. Heck, not too long ago I was at the Hecht athletic center looking at some of the old UM memorabilia and I noted a picture of the UM football team on the tarmac of Miami Airport, having return to a throng of fans after having upset Notre Dame (or Purdue).....Big crowd and some were waving Confederate flag....definitely different era.

Grew up on Hialeah. Second Cuban family on the block. Christmas 1969 neighbors kids took all the Christmas lights and ornaments and blasted us as they called us every name in the book. I was a kid and my mother and older sisters were terrified. Next day Hialeah police, Henry Milander was Mayor, came by and made them pick up the shards of glass. Hialeah was a pretty red neck town. Another aside, that year the Hialeah football team, which lost to Gables in the State Semis, had a taped cross on the helmet that said Faith/Pride. Bucky Dent and Silvio Cardoso at running back. Can you imagine a Public High School doing that now? Crazy days my older sisters took me to the games as a 5 year old kid. Fun times!