Excerpt: Gordon’s run into record books a thing of beauty
October 27, 2016 | Football
Reliving Melvin Gordon’s magical performance against Nebraska
This excerpt from "100 Things Wisconsin Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die" by Jesse Temple is printed with the permission of Triumph Books. For more information and to order a copy, please click here.
BY JESSE TEMPLE
100 Things Wisconsin Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die
The chant began from the highest seats of Wisconsin's student section, slowly trickling downward until it spilled into the front rows and spread — expansively, triumphantly — across Camp Randall Stadium. On a day in which 80,539 people witnessed perhaps the greatest display by a running back in the history of college football, acknowledging the man responsible seemed the only appropriate thing to do.
With No. 20 Wisconsin well on its way to a 59-24 decimation of No. 16 Nebraska on Nov. 15, 2014, the rhythmic calls poured forth.
MEL-VIN GOR-DON! MEL-VIN GOR-DON!
Moments earlier, Gordon had zipped into the end zone on a breathtaking 26-yard touchdown run as the third quarter expired, a heavy snowstorm pounding the turf around him. The play call, Fire Zulu Curve, was designed for Gordon to wade through a small hole behind his fullback on the weak side of the field. In typical Gordon fashion, however, he made the ordinary look magnificent, cutting across the field past three would-be tacklers, leaping toward the end zone and into the record books.
When the play was over, Gordon — a fourth-year junior from Kenosha, Wisconsin — had broken the single-game Football Bowl Subdivision rushing record and earned his last carry. The final total: 25 carries, 408 yards and four touchdowns. Former TCU running back LaDainian Tomlinson's record of 406 yards, set Nov. 20, 1999, against Texas-El Paso, was now only second best.
Gordon jumped into the arms of teammates. He smiled wide. Then, he heard the announcement declaring the record over the public address system. He stuck his red mouth guard in his teeth, pumped his left fist and held up the Wisconsin "W" with his hands as the camera panned on him. The chants continued.
MEL-VIN GOR-DON! MEL-VIN GOR-DON!
It was, quite simply and without hyperbole, an evening and a performance for the ages.
"I didn't even know I was close to a record like that," Gordon said afterward. "I was kind of just running to win. … I knew they would all sell out going to the left, so I just pressed it a little bit, cut back and just made it happen."
Badgers coach Gary Andersen, sitting next to Gordon at the postgame podium as he described his record-setting run, quickly interjected.
"Yeah, just made it happen," Andersen deadpanned. "See how easy it is?"
Few players, if any, could make something look as easy as Gordon did against a Cornhuskers team that entered with one of the best run defenses in the nation. And given the circumstances, the opponent and the mind-numbing cold, it made Gordon's performance somehow seem even more remarkable.
The winner of the game would be in prime position to capture the Big Ten West division with two regular-season games remaining — a feat the Badgers ultimately achieved. On top of that, the game time temperature of 26 degrees was the coldest Badgers game at Camp Randall Stadium in 50 years — since a Nov. 21, 1964, contest against Minnesota (11 degrees). Snow flurries began dancing through the stadium early in the second quarter and never relented.
It was exactly the type of game Gordon envisioned for himself when he bypassed the NFL draft a year earlier, and it represented his signature moment at UW. Gordon would go on to be a Heisman Trophy finalist and finish second behind Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota for college football's highest honor. He rushed for 2,587 yards — second-most in FBS history — with 29 touchdowns and averaged 7.5 yards per carry.
Against Nebraska, Gordon ran for gains of 42, 62, 44, 43 and 68 yards. He powered past the first wave of defenders, only to juke or leap over the second wave. Nebraska had not allowed more than 188 yards rushing in a game the entire season, but Gordon eclipsed that mark in the first half and entered halftime with 238 yards rushing.
"I give Wisconsin a lot of credit," said Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, who described his team's tackling as atrocious. "Gordon is a hell of a back, but we played a big part in that, too."
That day, Gordon knocked down longstanding records with ease. He surpassed former Badgers Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne's 1996 single-game program rushing record of 339 yards. He then beat Indiana tailback Anthony Thompson's Big Ten record of 377 yards established in 1989. That set the stage for the final carry, with Gordon sitting on 382 yards, to break Tomlinson's mark.
"Here comes Melvin to the 25, to the 20, Gordon 15, 10, 5, touchdown, Wisconsin!" Badgers radio announcer Matt Lepay screamed on the live broadcast. "Record-breaking run. Melvin Gordon. Four-oh-eight!"
Soon after, Tomlinson himself couldn't help but marvel at Gordon's achievement and chimed in on Twitter: "That kid [Melvin Gordon] bad!! Congrats on breaking the NCAA single game rushing record. #respect"
"It's a great feeling to see your hard work pay off," Gordon said. "My teammates were so excited, too, they got me amped up. I was trying to hold back a little bit. But after they told me, man, I felt so good."
Oklahoma running back Samaje Perine would break Gordon's record one week later with 427 yards rushing against Kansas. But it couldn't diminish a stunningly dominant performance from Gordon, whose totals could have been even higher if not for the blowout victory.
Andersen pulled Gordon for the fourth quarter, hugged him and told him how proud he was of the accomplishment. And when the game was over, Gordon soaked in the scene at midfield, snow clinging to his dreadlocks. Teammates patted Gordon on the back, then fell to the turf and made snow angels.
"I'm glad the atmosphere was the way it was with the snow falling," Badgers left tackle Tyler Marz said afterward. "It was a beautiful scene."
Nothing more beautiful, of course, than Gordon galloping his way into the record books.
Jesse Temple covers Wisconsin and the Big Ten Conference for ESPN.com.
