Colorado State University Athletics
Memorable Moments: The Kick That Was – Then Wasn’t
10/3/2024 2:00:00 PM | Football
Pandemonium turns to despair 30 minutes after the 1974 BYU game
Looking back into the archives of CSU football, there is one football game which goes down as one of the wildest finishes to a game; it even achieved national attention. Saturday marks the 50th anniversary of a game, one many CSU fans were not around to witness, let alone were born when it happened. It occurred on Oct. 5, 1974, at Hughes Stadium, and while BYU is no longer a rival of the Rams, 50 years ago, a game against the Cougars was highly important in the Western Athletic Conference race.
It is interesting to note that in a 2008 phone interview with former head coach Sark Arslanian, nothing got his then 84-year-old blood boiling more than when he recounted the events of this game.
The Rams had played a very close game with BYU all day but with 10 seconds remaining and the Rams behind 33-27 against a very tough BYU team, the game appeared over. The Rams' defense had different ideas when CSU's All-American linebacker Kevin McClain forced BYU quarterback Gary Sheide to fumble on the Cougar 15-yard line. CSU senior guard Wes Cervany recovered, and the offense had to perform a miracle.
In a Hollywood-type ending, Mark Driscoll made a 15-yard pass to Willie Miller for a touchdown which tied the game. Bedlam broke out all over Hughes Stadium and on the field as the Ram players mobbed their star receiver. The referees threw cold water on the Rams and penalized them for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for the excessive celebration. This backed the ball up to the 17-yard line. With Mike Deutsch holding, Clark Kembel kicked the extra point as one official signaled no-good and another referee signaled "good, then no-good, then good."
The Rams burst into excitement and headed to the locker room with their second consecutive win over the exceptionally tough Cougars in an amazing ending. Arslanian said, "This is the sweetest victory of my career."
Or so he thought.
With an ecstatic Rams team and coaches celebrating in the Hughes Stadium locker room, John Adams, supervisor of WAC officials entered the press room to make a disturbing announcement. Adams explained that the official who appeared to signal that the kick was good, made a signal used by the WAC officials to get the ball. Arslanian was visibly upset, knowing if there had been a mistake, it would have been overturned right away on the field, not after the teams went to the locker rooms.
The officials declared a 33-all tie as LaVell Edwards' Cougars slipped past the Rams and eventually won the 1974 WAC title. In 2008, Arslanian could not forget what a heartbreaker of an ending to this game had been even after 35 years.
"When the officials announced the game as a tie 30 minutes after it ended, all local and national media had already reported it as a 34-33 win for CSU," Arslanian said.
Arslanian remembered that, "The Coloradoan reporter had been the only member of the press left in the room when the officials overturned the call, making the local paper the only news agency to report the tied score."
The reason it took 30 minutes for the final score to be reported is the officials had spent that time in the BYU locker room to hear the Cougars' complaints.
In the 2008 interview with Arslanian, he went on to say, "I didn't know what they had to talk about for 30 minutes in the BYU locker room after the game, but I will let you decide what they may have discussed."
While no film footage of the extra-point has surfaced, the game will go down as the most infamous ending to a Rams football game.
Were you there? Did you play in this game? We want to hear from you about whether this extra point was good or no good. Email me at football@coloradoaggies.com
It is interesting to note that in a 2008 phone interview with former head coach Sark Arslanian, nothing got his then 84-year-old blood boiling more than when he recounted the events of this game.
The Rams had played a very close game with BYU all day but with 10 seconds remaining and the Rams behind 33-27 against a very tough BYU team, the game appeared over. The Rams' defense had different ideas when CSU's All-American linebacker Kevin McClain forced BYU quarterback Gary Sheide to fumble on the Cougar 15-yard line. CSU senior guard Wes Cervany recovered, and the offense had to perform a miracle.
In a Hollywood-type ending, Mark Driscoll made a 15-yard pass to Willie Miller for a touchdown which tied the game. Bedlam broke out all over Hughes Stadium and on the field as the Ram players mobbed their star receiver. The referees threw cold water on the Rams and penalized them for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for the excessive celebration. This backed the ball up to the 17-yard line. With Mike Deutsch holding, Clark Kembel kicked the extra point as one official signaled no-good and another referee signaled "good, then no-good, then good."
The Rams burst into excitement and headed to the locker room with their second consecutive win over the exceptionally tough Cougars in an amazing ending. Arslanian said, "This is the sweetest victory of my career."
Or so he thought.
With an ecstatic Rams team and coaches celebrating in the Hughes Stadium locker room, John Adams, supervisor of WAC officials entered the press room to make a disturbing announcement. Adams explained that the official who appeared to signal that the kick was good, made a signal used by the WAC officials to get the ball. Arslanian was visibly upset, knowing if there had been a mistake, it would have been overturned right away on the field, not after the teams went to the locker rooms.
The officials declared a 33-all tie as LaVell Edwards' Cougars slipped past the Rams and eventually won the 1974 WAC title. In 2008, Arslanian could not forget what a heartbreaker of an ending to this game had been even after 35 years.
"When the officials announced the game as a tie 30 minutes after it ended, all local and national media had already reported it as a 34-33 win for CSU," Arslanian said.
Arslanian remembered that, "The Coloradoan reporter had been the only member of the press left in the room when the officials overturned the call, making the local paper the only news agency to report the tied score."
The reason it took 30 minutes for the final score to be reported is the officials had spent that time in the BYU locker room to hear the Cougars' complaints.
In the 2008 interview with Arslanian, he went on to say, "I didn't know what they had to talk about for 30 minutes in the BYU locker room after the game, but I will let you decide what they may have discussed."
While no film footage of the extra-point has surfaced, the game will go down as the most infamous ending to a Rams football game.
Were you there? Did you play in this game? We want to hear from you about whether this extra point was good or no good. Email me at football@coloradoaggies.com
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