This year marks the 50th Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. In honor of the ninth-oldest bowl game in college football history, we are counting down the top-10 games in the Peach Bowl’s existence.
10. 2016 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl – Alabama defeats Washington 24-7
The 2016 College Football Playoff semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl was the highest-ranked matchup in the 49-year history of the bowl as No. 1 Alabama took on No. 4 Washington for a berth in the College Football Playoff championship game. The Huskies raced to an early 7-0 lead, but it was all Alabama after that as the nation’s No. 1 defense did not allow Washington to cross the 50-yard-line until under two minutes remaining in the game in a 24-7 rout of the Huskies. With the win, Alabama booked its ticket to Tampa to face Clemson in the championship game. A total of 75,996 fans were in attendance, setting a Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and Georgia Dome record in the final college football game to be played in the stadium.
9. 1992 Peach Bowl – North Carolina defeats Mississippi State 21-17
This Peach Bowl was the first played in the Georgia Dome, and a sellout crowd of 69,125 established new Peach Bowl and Georgia Dome records. In the first quarter, Mississippi State jumped ahead 14-0, but the Tar Heels tied the game at 14 with a blocked punt returned for a touchdown. A fourth quarter interception returned for a score proved enough to cement the Tar Heels’ win 21-17 over the Bulldogs.
8. 1968 Peach Bowl – LSU defeats Florida State 31-27
LSU’s Mike Hillman passed for 229 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Tigers to a comeback win in the first Peach Bowl. Florida State jumped out to a 13-0 first half lead in cold, rain-swept Grant Field before LSU stormed back to take a 31-27 lead. The Seminoles’ Bill Cappelman tossed three touchdown passes, but the Tigers came out on top after Barton Frye, knocked down what would have been a game-winning touchdown reception by Florida State’s Ron Sellers, giving the Tigers the ball on downs and allowing them to run out the clock.
7. 1985 Peach Bowl – Army defeats Illinois 31-29
In a game that saw 16 Peach Bowl records broken or tied, Army defeated Illinois in one of the most offensively-dominated games in the Bowl’s history. The two teams combined for a Peach Bowl record 863 yards of total offense. Army’s 291 yards on the ground, including 107 by Cadet quarterback Rob Healy, proved to be worth more than Illinois’ 401 yards through the air by future NFL quarterback Jack Trudeau. The Fighting Illini’s two-point conversion attempt to tie the game with 34 seconds left failed giving Army the 31-29 victory.
6. 2012 Chick-fil-A Bowl – Clemson defeats LSU 25-24
In the first matchup of 10-win teams in Chick-fil-A Bowl history, No. 14 Clemson and No. 8 LSU proved to be one for the ages as Clemson came back from an 11-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat LSU, 25-24. Spurred by a late passing attack by quarterback Tajh Boyd, Clemson went 60 yards in just 1:39 during the game’s final drive. Kicker Chandler Catanzaro booted a 37-yard field goal as time expired to seal the victory. Clemson wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins set Bowl records with 13 receptions for 191 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown grab before halftime.
5. 2007 Chick-fil-A Bowl – Auburn defeats Clemson 23-20
The Chick-fil-A Bowl’s 40th anniversary game between No. 15 Clemson and No. 22 Auburn marked the first overtime game in Chick-fil-A Bowl history. In the fourth quarter, the two teams put up a combined 17 points leaving the game knotted at 20. In overtime, Clemson’s got the football first and settled for a 25-yard Mark Buchholz field goal. On Auburn’s possession, Brandon Cox hit Rodgeriqus Smith for 12 yards to set up a Kodi Burns seven-yard TD run that ended the game, as the entire Auburn team sprinted for the end zone to celebrate the 23-20 victory.
4. 1995 Peach Bowl – Virginia defeats Georgia 34-27
Virginia controlled the game and led 27-17 after three quarters. Early in the fourth quarter, Georgia kicked a field goal to narrow the margin to seven points. With 1:09 remaining, Georgia’s Jason Ferguson picked up a Virginia fumble and returned it 10 yards for a touchdown. The ensuing kickoff was run back by Virginia’s Demetrius Allen for record-setting and game-winning 83-yard touchdown resulting in a 34-27 Cavaliers win.
3. 1991 Peach Bowl – East Carolina defeats N.C. State 37-34
In the final Peach Bowl at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, East Carolina rallied from a 17-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat in-state rival N.C. State, 37-34. The game took place in front of the largest crowd (59,322) in Peach Bowl history at the time. Pirates quarterback Jeff Blake completed the last of his record-setting four TD passes to tight end Luke Fisher with 1:32 remaining to give ECU the 37-34 lead. N.C. State kicker Damon Hartman's 49-yard field-goal attempt as time expired was short and wide right.
2. 1998 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl – Georgia defeats Virginia 35-33
The No. 19 Georgia Bulldogs avenged their 1995 Peach Bowl loss to Virginia with a come-from-behind 35-33 victory. After No. 12 Virginia built a 21-point lead, the Bulldogs responded with 21 points of their own. Georgia took the lead for good on its first possession of the fourth quarter when senior running back Olandis Gary capped a 67-yard drive with a two-yard run. Then, a Quincy Carter quarterback sneak from one-yard out and an extra point conversion upped the Bulldog lead to eight points. Virginia responded as Aaron Brooks scrambled 30 yards to cut the lead to two points 35-33 with 1:34 remaining. The two-point conversion failed, seemingly icing the victory for Georgia. However, Virginia recovered the onside kick, setting up a 48-yard field-goal attempt with 19 seconds remaining. The kick sailed wide right, though, and Georgia held on for the 35-33 victory.
1. 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl – Texas A&M defeats Duke 52-48
The 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl was the first meeting between Duke and Texas A&M, as well the inaugural Chick-fil-A Bowl appearance for both teams. In a contest dominated by both teams’ offensives, Duke scored first and stayed ahead of the Aggies for the majority for the game. Going into halftime, the Blue Devils led the Aggies 38-17. Behind the arm of Heisman winner, Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M staged an epic second-half comeback in the highest-scoring game in the Bowl’s history. Twenty game records were tied or broken including points scored, total offense and first downs over the course of the game, resulting in a 52-48 Texas A&M victory. Manziel accounted for 455 total yards and five touchdowns.
This year’s Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl between No. 7 Auburn and No. 12 Central Florida kicks off at 12:30 ET Jan. 1 and can be viewed on ESPN.
About the Author
