1982: Pitt 24, Georgia 20
Georgia’s lead was the result of two Herschel Walker touchdowns, and five turnovers against the Bulldogs’ opportunistic and elastic bend-but-don’t-break defense. Georgia led 7-3, the Panthers took two leads, 10-7 and 17-13, but the Bulldogs found an answer each time and went ahead 20-17 on a leaping six-yard catch of a Buck Belue pass by tight end Clarence Kay with 8:13 to go. Pitt took over at its 20 with 3:46 remaining. By the time the Panthers reached the 33, they had almost run out of downs and time. Timeout was called. While Dan Marino and Jackie Sherrill were deciding on 69-X as the best chance of picking up the first down on fourth-and-five, Georgia defensive coordinator Bill Lewis called for an all-out blitz. Marino took the snap. His backs picked up the on-coming linebackers. The other receivers adjusted and went deep against Georgia’s single coverage. Instinctively, Marino took a deeper step than usual and signaled out John Brown, a former wide receiver turned tight end, who was breaking down the center of the field. There was the touchdown, and there was the Sugar Bowl.