Historical Hypothetical: What if FSU Converts vs. Miami in 1987?

At its peak, Florida State and Miami is one of college football’s best rivalries. The annual contests between the Seminoles and Hurricanes have without question had their moments over the years, but until recently and thanks largely to Dalvin Cook, the close ones always seemed to go Miami’s way.

The most memorable contests in the rivalry to the chagrin of FSU fans ended on missed kicks, but for the Seminoles, there was perhaps no more heartbreaking defeat to their rivals than the Oct. 3, 1987 contest in which No. 3 Miami edged fourth-ranked FSU in Tallahassee, 26-25.

“There wasn’t any doubt how much talent was on the field that day,” said Pat Carter, an FSU senior tight end at the time. “It was ridiculous.”

Some of the names featured in that contest for Florida State were running back Sammie Smith, linebacker Paul McGowan and of course cornerback Deion Sanders. Some of the names for Miami included Daniel Stubbs, Bubba McDowell, Bennie and Brian Blades and “The Playmaker” Michael Irvin.

The game was ultimately decided on a missed 2-point conversion attempt as Florida State quarterback Danny McManus’ pass for Carter was knocked away, allowing Miami to hold on for a 1-point victory.

“If I had just been able to get near it, I would have caught it,” Carter said. “The ball was supposed to be thrown near the back pylon, that’s how we always practiced it. That wasn’t one of Danny’s better throws. We knew Danny could throw the ball, but that was just one where we didn’t execute.”

For most of the day in 1987, Florida State was in control. FSU led 19-3 late in the third quarter, thanks to a short touchdown by Dayne Williams, a blocked punt return for a score by Alphonso Williams and two Derek Schmidt field goals. Miami however, would answer with 23 straight points on three long touchdown passes from quarterback Steve Walsh — one to Brian Blades and two to Irvin, including the 73-yard go-ahead score with 2:22 to play.

“You’ve got to take your hats off to Miami; they made some plays,” Carter said. “There was never a time where we took the foot off the gas. They just stepped up and made the plays when they had to.”

Trailing 26-19, McManus engineered an 83-yard scoring drive for FSU, capped with an 18-yard scoring strike to Ronald Lewis with 42 seconds remaining. After the 2-point conversion failed, Miami recovered the ensuing onside kick to seal the victory, leaving many to wonder how the 1987 season would have turned out had the Noles been able to convert on the conversion try.

“I could always look at it this way too: what if the ball was thrown in the right place and I never caught it? I would have had to live with that,” Carter said about the 2-point conversion attempt. “I wouldn’t put it on one person. We should have never let them come back on us anyway.”

That would be the only game the Seminoles would lose that season as FSU capped an 11-1 campaign with a 31-28 victory over Nebraska in the Fiesta Bowl to finish ranked second nationally. Miami completed an undefeated 12-0 season with a 20-14 win over top-ranked Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl to claim its second national championship. Had the Seminoles been able to convert against Miami, Carter said there’s “no doubt about it” that FSU would have claimed its first title.

“If we win that game, we would have been national champs,” Carter said. “We were a pretty talented team that year. Coach (Bobby) Bowden had compiled some really gifted athletes on that team.”

Though Florida State was unable to claim the national championship, the 1987 season served as the beginning of a streak of 14 straight top-5 finishes — something Carter said he takes pride in.

“It’s a great feeling, but this is my theory on it: the Florida State I left was not the Florida State I came to which means I was part of something great there that took place,” Carter said. “I knew they were on the upswing. We were the best team that never won a championship, I can say that. This is just my opinion, I’m a little biased, (but) I think we could have beat two of those other three (national championship) teams. I think the (20)13 team, they would have smashed us, but I think we could have beat the other two teams.”

Another aspect of the contest to consider is what would have happened if Bowden had decided to kick the extra point? The 1987 game took place long before there was overtime in college football and Schmidt had missed an extra point earlier in the game.

“I think if we kicked the extra point and go with the tie, I think (the national championship is) ours,” Carter said. “At the same time when you look back on it, I wish we would have won, but if we were to do it again, I still think I’d want us to go for two.”