[Tyler Bridges]

It was an unhappy outcome for Stanford fans. But there's an amazing story behind The Play, and I tell it in my upcoming book. I'm a 1982 grad who played in the LSJUMB. For the book, I interviewed 375 people (coaches and players for both teams, members of both bands, referees, 21 of the 22 players on the field for The Play), reviewed more than 1,500 newspaper articles on the 1982 season for both teams and watched all the available footage. John Elway and Ron Rivera have written the forewords. Rod Gilmore, Ivan Maisel and Gary Tyrrell have written blurbs praising the book. So have three Cal folks, including Gary Plummer and Joe Starkey. Pub date is Nov. 1. You can pre-order it now. https://www.amazon.com/Five-Laterals-Tro...1637271158

[Tyler Bridges]

It was an unhappy outcome for Stanford fans. But there's an amazing story behind The Play, and I tell it in my upcoming book. I'm a 1982 grad who played in the LSJUMB. For the book, I interviewed 375 people (coaches and players for both teams, members of both bands, referees, 21 of the 22 players on the field for The Play), reviewed more than 1,500 newspaper articles on the 1982 season for both teams and watched all the available footage. John Elway and Ron Rivera have written the forewords. Rod Gilmore, Ivan Maisel and Gary Tyrrell have written blurbs praising the book. So have three Cal folks, including Gary Plummer and Joe Starkey. Pub date is Nov. 1. You can pre-order it now. https://www.amazon.com/Five-Laterals-Tro...1637271158

[martyup]

His knee was down.

[martyup]

His knee was down.

[BigEasyCard]

It was an unhappy outcome for Stanford fans. But there's an amazing story behind The Play, and I tell it in my upcoming book. I'm a 1982 grad who played in the LSJUMB. For the book, I interviewed 375 people (coaches and players for both teams, members of both bands, referees, 21 of the 22 players on the field for The Play), reviewed more than 1,500 newspaper articles on the 1982 season for both teams and watched all the available footage. John Elway and Ron Rivera have written the forewords. Rod Gilmore, Ivan Maisel and Gary Tyrrell have written blurbs praising the book. So have three Cal folks, including Gary Plummer and Joe Starkey. Pub date is Nov. 1. You can pre-order it now. https://www.amazon.com/Five-Laterals-Tro...1637271158

Tyler,

Congratulations on the upcoming publication of Five Laterals and a Trombone.  I recall first learning of your idea for this book more than five years ago as you and I enjoyed watching Stanford Football at the Blind Pelican in New Orleans.  Sadly, the quality of the football has declined, and the Blind Pelican is no more.  But The Play will be discussed for decades to come!

Geaux Cardinal!

[BigEasyCard]

It was an unhappy outcome for Stanford fans. But there's an amazing story behind The Play, and I tell it in my upcoming book. I'm a 1982 grad who played in the LSJUMB. For the book, I interviewed 375 people (coaches and players for both teams, members of both bands, referees, 21 of the 22 players on the field for The Play), reviewed more than 1,500 newspaper articles on the 1982 season for both teams and watched all the available footage. John Elway and Ron Rivera have written the forewords. Rod Gilmore, Ivan Maisel and Gary Tyrrell have written blurbs praising the book. So have three Cal folks, including Gary Plummer and Joe Starkey. Pub date is Nov. 1. You can pre-order it now. https://www.amazon.com/Five-Laterals-Tro...1637271158

Tyler,

Congratulations on the upcoming publication of Five Laterals and a Trombone.  I recall first learning of your idea for this book more than five years ago as you and I enjoyed watching Stanford Football at the Blind Pelican in New Orleans.  Sadly, the quality of the football has declined, and the Blind Pelican is no more.  But The Play will be discussed for decades to come!

Geaux Cardinal!

[Phogge]

While producing, directing and shooting long form commercials and recruiting motion pictures (film!) for Geiger and Cavalli/Rose we had two cameras rolling on The Play. I was standing with Paul Wiggen and Elway in the Stanford bench area with my back to the kickoff. I remember that en masse we advanced over the sideline toward mid field and abruptly retreated back over the line. I was rolling the entire time. There were some incredulous expressions on peoples' faces.

Our top camera covered the entire play from the press box at a slightly different camera angle than the TV coverage. In those days we had camera reports with footage counts so we could print "takes" and not print (shooting 16mm negative) outtakes if so desired. Long story short we processed the film the following week but I waited to print before I talked with Bob Rose. He told me that, "Andy doesn't want anyone to see anything from that game."

Here's the rub. The top camera was shooting high speed meaning that there were many more frames of the action than the old NTSC TV. If the knee was down then we got it. The original negative sits in a safe place never to be viewed. For history's sake it was a better story than if we had proved the game was over and all the laterals never mattered.

[Phogge]

While producing, directing and shooting long form commercials and recruiting motion pictures (film!) for Geiger and Cavalli/Rose we had two cameras rolling on The Play. I was standing with Paul Wiggen and Elway in the Stanford bench area with my back to the kickoff. I remember that en masse we advanced over the sideline toward mid field and abruptly retreated back over the line. I was rolling the entire time. There were some incredulous expressions on peoples' faces.

Our top camera covered the entire play from the press box at a slightly different camera angle than the TV coverage. In those days we had camera reports with footage counts so we could print "takes" and not print (shooting 16mm negative) outtakes if so desired. Long story short we processed the film the following week but I waited to print before I talked with Bob Rose. He told me that, "Andy doesn't want anyone to see anything from that game."

Here's the rub. The top camera was shooting high speed meaning that there were many more frames of the action than the old NTSC TV. If the knee was down then we got it. The original negative sits in a safe place never to be viewed. For history's sake it was a better story than if we had proved the game was over and all the laterals never mattered.

[martyup]

Phogge, did Tyler interview you?  If not, STOP THE PRESSES!

[martyup]

Phogge, did Tyler interview you?  If not, STOP THE PRESSES!

[BruceH]

Here's the rub. The top camera was shooting high speed meaning that there were many more frames of the action than the old NTSC TV. If the knee was down then we got it. The original negative sits in a safe place never to be viewed. For history's sake it was a better story than if we had proved the game was over and all the laterals never mattered.

What, what???? "We had a three-camera Cinerama set-up rolling in Dealey Plaza that day, but we never printed the film and the negatives are locked away in a vault two miles underground because... why again?"

[BruceH]

Here's the rub. The top camera was shooting high speed meaning that there were many more frames of the action than the old NTSC TV. If the knee was down then we got it. The original negative sits in a safe place never to be viewed. For history's sake it was a better story than if we had proved the game was over and all the laterals never mattered.

What, what???? "We had a three-camera Cinerama set-up rolling in Dealey Plaza that day, but we never printed the film and the negatives are locked away in a vault two miles underground because... why again?"

[Bampa]

His knee was down.

 +1000

[Bampa]

His knee was down.

 +1000

[cardcrimson]

His knee was down.

 +1000

It's irrelevant if his knee was down. The ref right there signaled the play dead. Game over.

Phogge, would love to see Ford's phantom touchdown, too. . . .

[cardcrimson]

His knee was down.

 +1000

It's irrelevant if his knee was down. The ref right there signaled the play dead. Game over.

Phogge, would love to see Ford's phantom touchdown, too. . . .

[Phogge]

There is a chance that we could show the lateral path being forward but our angle is probably close to the same spot as the TV. But I'm not touching it unless there is some big cash interested. At the end I'm more mercenary than historian.

[Phogge]

There is a chance that we could show the lateral path being forward but our angle is probably close to the same spot as the TV. But I'm not touching it unless there is some big cash interested. At the end I'm more mercenary than historian.

[cardcrimson]

There is a chance that we could show the lateral path being forward but our angle is probably close to the same spot as the TV. But I'm not touching it unless there is some big cash interested. At the end I'm more mercenary than historian.

Don't need film for the last lateral. Not sure the exact yardlines, but the ball was tossed over the shoulder at the 25 and caught at the 23. Clear as can be on the TV footage. . . .

[cardcrimson]

There is a chance that we could show the lateral path being forward but our angle is probably close to the same spot as the TV. But I'm not touching it unless there is some big cash interested. At the end I'm more mercenary than historian.

Don't need film for the last lateral. Not sure the exact yardlines, but the ball was tossed over the shoulder at the 25 and caught at the 23. Clear as can be on the TV footage. . . .

[Tyler Bridges]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

[Tyler Bridges]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

[GaryT]

It was an unhappy outcome for Stanford fans. But there's an amazing story behind The Play, and I tell it in my upcoming book. I'm a 1982 grad who played in the LSJUMB. For the book, I interviewed 375 people (coaches and players for both teams, members of both bands, referees, 21 of the 22 players on the field for The Play), reviewed more than 1,500 newspaper articles on the 1982 season for both teams and watched all the available footage. John Elway and Ron Rivera have written the forewords. Rod Gilmore, Ivan Maisel and Gary Tyrrell have written blurbs praising the book. So have three Cal folks, including Gary Plummer and Joe Starkey. Pub date is Nov. 1. You can pre-order it now. https://www.amazon.com/Five-Laterals-Tro...1637271158

"If you've seen only the incredible kick-off return known as The Play, Five Laterals and a Trombone is required reading. Tyler Bridges has written a compelling story about the unique Cal-Stanford rivalry and its traditions; the sometimes-interwoven backstories of some of the 85th Big Game's main characters; in-the-huddle perspectives from many of those who took the field that day; and a page-turning account of the first 59:56 of the Big Game. I was there among the 80,000 at Memorial Stadium that day, and I lived the game's final moments -- and I've relived them hundreds of times subsequently. And yet, I needed to read on, to find out how the game would end. [Spoiler alert: Good Guys lost.]"

[GaryT]

It was an unhappy outcome for Stanford fans. But there's an amazing story behind The Play, and I tell it in my upcoming book. I'm a 1982 grad who played in the LSJUMB. For the book, I interviewed 375 people (coaches and players for both teams, members of both bands, referees, 21 of the 22 players on the field for The Play), reviewed more than 1,500 newspaper articles on the 1982 season for both teams and watched all the available footage. John Elway and Ron Rivera have written the forewords. Rod Gilmore, Ivan Maisel and Gary Tyrrell have written blurbs praising the book. So have three Cal folks, including Gary Plummer and Joe Starkey. Pub date is Nov. 1. You can pre-order it now. https://www.amazon.com/Five-Laterals-Tro...1637271158

"If you've seen only the incredible kick-off return known as The Play, Five Laterals and a Trombone is required reading. Tyler Bridges has written a compelling story about the unique Cal-Stanford rivalry and its traditions; the sometimes-interwoven backstories of some of the 85th Big Game's main characters; in-the-huddle perspectives from many of those who took the field that day; and a page-turning account of the first 59:56 of the Big Game. I was there among the 80,000 at Memorial Stadium that day, and I lived the game's final moments -- and I've relived them hundreds of times subsequently. And yet, I needed to read on, to find out how the game would end. [Spoiler alert: Good Guys lost.]"

[cardcrimson]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

[cardcrimson]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

[Tyler Bridges]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

[Tyler Bridges]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

[Red80]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

[Red80]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

[Spiny_Norman]

Tyler, did you interview either of the KZSU announcers, Joe Mitchner or Jim Grundberg? They reminded listeners before the final kickoff about the ending of the previous week's SMU-Texas Tech game with a kickoff return lateral play working for a TD at the end of the game to pull out a win for the Mustangs. It was a prescient observation.

[Spiny_Norman]

Tyler, did you interview either of the KZSU announcers, Joe Mitchner or Jim Grundberg? They reminded listeners before the final kickoff about the ending of the previous week's SMU-Texas Tech game with a kickoff return lateral play working for a TD at the end of the game to pull out a win for the Mustangs. It was a prescient observation.

[cardcrimson]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

That's the photo, the ref looked like he was flying down the field. Was in the Daily, as well. I have it somewhere. If memory serves, a grad student happened to snap the pic while the play was unfolding. Forgot about it until he/she developed the film weeks/months later.

[cardcrimson]

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

That's the photo, the ref looked like he was flying down the field. Was in the Daily, as well. I have it somewhere. If memory serves, a grad student happened to snap the pic while the play was unfolding. Forgot about it until he/she developed the film weeks/months later.

[Tyler Bridges]

Tyler, did you interview either of the KZSU announcers, Joe Mitchner or Jim Grundberg? They reminded listeners before the final kickoff about the ending of the previous week's SMU-Texas Tech game with a kickoff return lateral play working for a TD at the end of the game to pull out a win for the Mustangs. It was a prescient observation.

They're in the book!

---

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

That's the photo, the ref looked like he was flying down the field. Was in the Daily, as well. I have it somewhere. If memory serves, a grad student happened to snap the pic while the play was unfolding. Forgot about it until he/she developed the film weeks/months later.

His arms out stretched out, looking like an airplane, not above his head

[Tyler Bridges]

Tyler, did you interview either of the KZSU announcers, Joe Mitchner or Jim Grundberg? They reminded listeners before the final kickoff about the ending of the previous week's SMU-Texas Tech game with a kickoff return lateral play working for a TD at the end of the game to pull out a win for the Mustangs. It was a prescient observation.

They're in the book!

---

I interviewed the two referees who had the call on whether Dwight Garner's knee was down. That's in the book!

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

That's the photo, the ref looked like he was flying down the field. Was in the Daily, as well. I have it somewhere. If memory serves, a grad student happened to snap the pic while the play was unfolding. Forgot about it until he/she developed the film weeks/months later.

His arms out stretched out, looking like an airplane, not above his head

[WBB fan]

Thanks for letting us know about the upcoming publication. I've just ordered a cc for my husband for Christmas (though there will be lots of shouting about "his knee was down" as he read it. I still remember walking out of the stadium afterward and my eight-year-old daughter saying over and over, "it's not fair."

[WBB fan]

Thanks for letting us know about the upcoming publication. I've just ordered a cc for my husband for Christmas (though there will be lots of shouting about "his knee was down" as he read it. I still remember walking out of the stadium afterward and my eight-year-old daughter saying over and over, "it's not fair."

[lex24]

Tyler, did you interview either of the KZSU announcers, Joe Mitchner or Jim Grundberg? They reminded listeners before the final kickoff about the ending of the previous week's SMU-Texas Tech game with a kickoff return lateral play working for a TD at the end of the game to pull out a win for the Mustangs. It was a prescient observation.

They're in the book!

---

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

That's the photo, the ref looked like he was flying down the field. Was in the Daily, as well. I have it somewhere. If memory serves, a grad student happened to snap the pic while the play was unfolding. Forgot about it until he/she developed the film weeks/months later.

His arms out stretched out, looking like an airplane, not above his head

One of the things that gets lost is Elway called time out too early.  8 seconds, I believe.  He put his hands to his helmet right after. I always wondered if that was just the wow of the moment.  Or if he knew he’d called it to quick.  I suspect the former.

---

Also, didn’t a few Cal players drift onto the field?  Stanford certainly had some that did.  Stanford was gonna be penalized, thus an extra play.  Always wondered about offsetting.

[lex24]

Tyler, did you interview either of the KZSU announcers, Joe Mitchner or Jim Grundberg? They reminded listeners before the final kickoff about the ending of the previous week's SMU-Texas Tech game with a kickoff return lateral play working for a TD at the end of the game to pull out a win for the Mustangs. It was a prescient observation.

They're in the book!

---

Did you ask why one of them was caught on film signaling the play dead?

I've seen no video of a ref calling the play dead. There's a photo of a ref with his arms by his side.

I have a copy of the SF Chronicle showing a ref with his outstretched hands signaling that the play was over.

That's the photo, the ref looked like he was flying down the field. Was in the Daily, as well. I have it somewhere. If memory serves, a grad student happened to snap the pic while the play was unfolding. Forgot about it until he/she developed the film weeks/months later.

His arms out stretched out, looking like an airplane, not above his head

One of the things that gets lost is Elway called time out too early.  8 seconds, I believe.  He put his hands to his helmet right after. I always wondered if that was just the wow of the moment.  Or if he knew he’d called it to quick.  I suspect the former.

---

Also, didn’t a few Cal players drift onto the field?  Stanford certainly had some that did.  Stanford was gonna be penalized, thus an extra play.  Always wondered about offsetting.