1997 Fiesta Bowl (January)
Encyclopedia
The 1997 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl game was a post-season college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 bowl game
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...

 between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the on January 1, 1997, at Sun Devil Stadium
Sun Devil Stadium
Sun Devil Stadium is an outdoor football stadium, located on the campus of Arizona State University, in Tempe, Arizona, United States. The stadium's current seating capacity is 71,706 and the playing surface is natural grass...

 in Tempe, Arizona
Tempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...

. Penn State defeated Texas, 38-15. The game was part of the 1996-1997 Bowl Alliance
Bowl Alliance
The Bowl Alliance was an agreement among college football bowl games for the purpose of trying to match the top two teams in a national championship bowl game and to provide quality bowl game matchups for the champions of its member conferences...

 of the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season
1996 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the Florida Gators crowned National Champions, but not as unanimously as the Bowl Alliance would have hoped....

 and represented the concluding game of the season for both teams.

The Longhorns, who were fresh off of their upset of No. 3 Nebraska
1996 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team
The 1996 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Tom Osborne and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.-Schedule:...

 in the First ever Big 12 Championship Game, went into their second straight Alliance bowl with a five-game winning streak.

Texas outgained Penn State 242-95 yards in the first half and posted a 12-7 lead at the half. Quarterback James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...

 completed 13 of 18 passes for 150 yards and Ricky Williams
Ricky Williams
Errick Lynne "Ricky" Williams, Jr. is an American football running back for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints fifth overall in the 1999 NFL Draft...

 ran for 47 yards and a touchdown on nine carries in the first 30 minutes. However, an interception, two drives which were stopped at the Penn State 11, and a failed two-point conversion allowed the Nittany Lions to remain close.

Penn State’s opening score was set up by a Brown interception at the Texas 26 on the second play from scrimmage. The Lions drove to the end zone in four plays, which ended in a four-yard touchdown pass from Wally Richardson
Wally Richardson
Wallace Herman "Wally" Richardson is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the seventh round of the 1997 NFL Draft. He started at QB for the XFL's NY/NJ Hitmen. He played college football at Penn State.-References:...

 to Curtis Enis
Curtis Enis
Curtis D. Enis is a former professional American football player. For three seasons he played running back for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League...

.

The Longhorns bounced back and drove to the Penn State seven, and Phil Dawson
Phil Dawson
Philip Drury Dawson is an American football placekicker for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League. He holds the franchise record for most field goals made, passing Hall of Famer Lou Groza in 2010...

 connected on a 28-yard field goal to cut the lead to 7-3.

The Lions ended with a three-and-out on consecutive possessions and, on their first possession of the second quarter, Texas planned another solid drive and found the endzone as Williams charged ran across the goal line for a seven yard score. The two-point conversion failed.

The third quarter was the turning point in the game. Penn State scored 21 points with three rushing scores and limited the Longhorns to just a field goal. Penn State led 28-15 at the end of the third quarter.

On the Lions’ final series of the third quarter, Chafie Fields
Chafie Fields
Chafie Ali Fields is a sports and talent agent. He is a former professional American football wide receiver in the National Football League. He played college football at Penn State University....

 set up a one yard touchdown run by Anthony Cleary on a 85 yard double-reverse to the Texas five yard line.

Texas failed to produce any more offense as Penn State scored 10 more points to seal the 38-15 victory. Penn State outgained the Texas offense 425-360, 330-118 in the second half.

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