2005 Sun Bowl

2005 Vitalis Sun Bowl
1234 Total
Northwestern 220313 38
UCLA 722714 50
Date December 30, 2005
Season 2005
Stadium Sun Bowl Stadium
Location El Paso, Texas
MVP Chris Markey (UCLA RB) and Kahlil Bell (UCLA RB)
National anthem Northwestern Wildcat Marching Band
Referee Dan Romeo[1]
Halftime show Northwestern Wildcat Marching Band & Diamond Rio
Attendance 50,426
Payout US$1.575 million per team[2]
United States TV coverage
Network CBS
Announcers Verne Lundquist, Todd Blackledge, Tracy Wolfson

The 2005 Sun Bowl, known as the Vitalis Sun Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 30, 2005 in El Paso, Texas. It was the 72nd Sun Bowl. It featured the UCLA Bruins, and the Northwestern Wildcats. UCLA overcame a 22-0 deficit to Northwestern in the first quarter to win 50-38. This is the biggest comeback in UCLA football history.[3] UCLA running backs Chris Markey and Kahlil Bell shared the most valuable player award, the first such shared award in Sun Bowl history. Defensive tackle Kevin Mims of Northwestern won the Jimmy Rogers, Jr. Most Valuable Lineman award.

The game would unexpectedly be Randy Walker's last as Northwestern head coach. Walker died of an apparent heart attack the following June.

Game summary

The weather was clear and 56 degrees Fahrenheit.[3]

Northwestern's Joel Howells started the scoring with a 33-yard field goal to give Northwestern an early 3-0 lead. Kevin Mims later scored on a 33-yard interception return to increase Northwestern's lead to 9-0. Mark Philmore rushed 19 yards for a touchdown to put Northwestern up 15-0. However, the kicker missed his second consecutive extra point attempt.

Nick Roach intercepted another UCLA pass and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown to give Northwestern a 22-0 first quarter lead. At the end of the quarter, running back Kahlil Bell put UCLA on the board, by rushing for a 5-yard touchdown run to cut the lead to 22-7. Less than 2 minutes later, quarterback Drew Olson connected with wide receiver Ryan Moya for a 58-yard touchdown pass, to cut the lead to 22-14.

Kahlil Bell scored his second rushing touchdown of the game by rushing 6 yards for a touchdown. Drew Olson then found tight end Marcedes Lewis for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 22. With 29 seconds left in the first half, Olson found wide receiver Marcus Everett for an 8-yard touchdown pass to give UCLA a 29-22 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, Olson connected with Michael Pitre for a 5-yard touchdown pass, to extend the lead to 36-22. Amado Villarreal connected on a 31-yard field goal for Northwestern, to cut the lead to 36-25.

The last 2:30 of the game featured a lot of scoring. Quarterback Brett Basanez found Mark Philmore for an 8-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 36-31 with 2:29 remaining. The ensuing onside kick was recovered by Brandon Breazell and returned 42 yards for a touchdown, extending UCLA's lead to 43-31. With 24 seconds in the game, Basanez found wide receiver Shaun Herbert for a 5-yard touchdown pass, pulling NU to 42-38. The ensuing onside kick was recovered by Brandon Breazell, and once again returned 45 yards for a touchdown. That made the final margin 50-38.

Scoring

First quarter

Second quarter

Third quarter

Fourth quarter

Aftermath

The 2005 Sun Bowl game, sponsored by Vitalis, had a $1.5 million payout.[4]

UCLA Bruin team comeback records

This was the third record setting comeback for the 2005 UCLA Bruin football team. As of the 2007 season, they rank first, second, and third in all time scoring comebacks to win for the UCLA Bruins.[3]

  1. Down 22 points in the first quarter vs. Northwestern (2005 Sun Bowl) 0-22 / Final Score: 50-38
  2. Down 21 points in the fourth quarter at Stanford (2005) 3-24 / Final Score: 30-27ot
  3. Down 21 points in the second quarter at Washington State (2005) 7-28 / Final Score: 44-41ot

Sun Bowl records

The Northwestern Wildcats broke five records.

The UCLA Bruins broke three records.

Together Northwestern and UCLA broke or tied six records.

In addition, Brett Basanez tied the individual record of 38 completions and broke the offensive yardage record at 448 yards.

Sun Bowl Legends

CBS Announcer Verne Lundquist who had been the Sun Bowl broadcaster starting in 1988, and former UCLA Bruins coach Terry Donahue were named Legends of the Sun Bowl.

References

External links

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