Two of the best college football programs on the East coast squared off in the Orange Bowl for a regular season showdown. For the favored Nittany Lions, the ending was one of the more epic in program history. And for the up and coming Hurricanes, it showed that they were building something special that would lead to their 2001 national championship squad. Penn State couldn't necessarily run the ball with ease, but the two quarterback system with Kevin Thompson and Rashard Casey seemed to be enough to keep the Miami defense guessing. And although Eddie Drummond caught a bunch of key passes to move the sticks, the common denominator was Chafie Fields who ended up with a career day on the backs of two long bombs for touchdowns. The last one being one of the more exciting touchdowns that Penn State fans can remember about the 90's. The defense played well, especially early on, making plays and forcing Miami to win the broken plays. In the second half, the Hurricanes did just that, as they began to move the ball and put touchdowns on the board. Two of those, thanks to runningback James Jackson on off-tackle runs, which was uncharacteristic of the Penn State defense to give up, in those situations. But in the end, it was the defense picking off Miami quarterback twice, to seal the win.
Penn State's Top Performers:
Chafie Fields: 5 catches, 177 yards, 2 TDs
Kevin Thompson: 9-14, 146 yards, TD
Rashard Casey: 6-8, 106 yards, TD, Int.
Penn State survived it's huge early season test to remain undefeated with the victory, and to keep it's national title hopes alive. Miami, suffered it's first loss of the season to Penn State to stand at 2-1. The Hurricanes would finish 1999 with a 9-4 record, including a Gator Bowl victory over Georgia Tech. They would come in at #15 in the national rankings.