sports

QR Code Series: The “Original” Miami Miracle & O.J. McDuffie #81

~ mrfliegelman ~ Leave a comment

— QR Code Series1

Who is O.J. McDuffie #81?

The Miami Dolphins cap you are looking at was signed by O.J. McDuffie in 2007 at a Dolphins’ home game and given to Ryan. Quick Facts (Click this link for more info on O.J. McDuffie):

  • He played for Miami from 1993 to 2000
  • McDuffie became known as Dan Marino’s favorite receiver. His 415 career catches are fourth all-time in Dolphins history.
  • In 1998, McDuffie caught 90 passes, leading the NFL in that category. He was the first Dolphin to achieve this mark (since achieved by Jarvis Landry in 2017).
  • That same year, McDuffie became the first player in NFL history to record at least 90 receptions and 10 punt returns in a season without a fumble. Antonio Brown of Pittsburgh in 2016 is the only player to do it since.
  • With the exception of Mark Clayton and Mark Duper, McDuffie caught more passes thrown by Marino than any other Dolphin receiver.

How Did We Get His Autograph?

There is much to say about the home game where we got his autograph in the last section. We were seated in the end-zone, and O.J. McDuffie was only a few rows and seats away. We saw many people going up to him for autographs and he was signing and taking pictures with everyone. I don’t remember which quarter it was, but eventually Ryan and I went over to him and asked him to sign the Dolphins cap. He was very nice and Ryan was excited to get his autograph.

Why Was This Game The “Original” Miami Miracle?

After 13 games the Dolphins had a perfect record… of LOSING!! They were about to be historical for having the only perfect winning season (hooray ’72 Dolphins… who were all in attendance for a special recogniztion ceremony, oh — the humanity!!!) and were about to be only the fourth team (at that time) of having a perfect winless season. At the end of the half the Dolphins were once again losing. Cue the tears.

But then…

  • Dolphins’ comeback: Miami’s offense, led by quarterback Cleo Lemon, mounted a comeback. Running back Samkon Gado scored on a 7-yard run to cut the lead to 13–10 in the third quarter. A field goal from Jay Feely later tied the game at 13.
  • 4th Quarter drama: The teams traded field goals to force overtime!
  • Overtime drama:  The Ravens got the ball first. Their drive ended when kicker Matt Stover missed a potential game-winning 44-yard field goal.
  • Overtime win: On the Dolphins next possession, Cleo Lemon hit wide receiver Greg Camarillo with a short pass over the middle. Camarillo broke away from the defense and raced 64 yards for the game-winning touchdown, sealing the victory for Miami. 

It is hard to describe the reaction in the stands that day. WE ALL WENT NUTS!! Everyone was screaming, jumping, and hugging each other. People were crying, throwing anything they could find into the air, and pounding on the seats. The crowd, including us, was more emotional than if we had won the Super Bowl. I am not kidding. We had not won a single game, and we had little hope of winning the next two games (and we did not), so this game against the Ravens was our only hope to avoid a winless season. The energy had been built-up to an unimaginable level as the leads kept changing in the second half and we escaped game-ending close calls in the fourth quarter and in overtime.

Here is a short video with the highlights and analyst excitement!

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