MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Thirty-five members of the 1969 Mountaineer Peach Bowl team including Bobby Bowden are making the trip to University City for Homecoming weekend.
The team holds the second best season record in the history of the Mountaineer football program.
Reunion organizer and offensive tackle on the team Mickey Plumley says the game was his last as a Mountaineer, there was a lot of anticipation about the game plan and the weather was bad.
“It was a mud bath,” Plumley said,”Is the biggest memory. It was dry right up until game time and then it just poured buckets, I think it rained four inches within an hour of kickoff.”
Plumley says the offense had run the I-Formation for three years prior to the Peach Bowl and coach Bowden took a trip to Texas in order to learn more about the Wishbone from legendary coach Darrell Royal.
Plumley said,”He came back and called an offensive meeting, we had 29-days until the bowl game, he said men we’re going to put in the Wishbone Offense, which we had a little trepidation about because it’s prone to turnovers.”
The Mountaineers went on to defeat the South Carolina Gamecocks 14-3.
Plumley says from 1968 to 1969 the team went 22-0 and 12 players from the team were drafted to the pro level.
Plumley told WAJR News that Bowden made to the 25th team reunion and still knew the players by name and their hometowns.
Plumley said,”We just can’t wait to see him again. We all respected coach Bowden and really loved the man when we played for him.”