Ten Years Later, Tuggle Reminisces Special Play
Sep 20, 2022 | Football, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Saturday will mark 10 years and two days since the play that changed everything.
Ten years have passed and Justin Tuggle is on the phone rewatching the play on YouTube while describing the intricacies of how it all shook out. He's relived the play — the moment — too many times to count over the past decade, yet the voice of the 32-year-old still bears excitement, as if watching it unfold for the first time, and man, the former Kansas State linebacker is getting into it, detailing how he helped change the game that night against No. 6 Oklahoma on September 22, 2012, and how sudden silence that filled Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma, signaled a grand moment for the Wildcats.
"It's like watching a movie when you know what happens," he says. "I know it's me in the highlight, but I still can't believe it played out like that. The defense worked so hard for that moment."
The moment arrived with 12 minutes, 29 seconds remaining in the second quarter of a game whose outcome hushed 85,276 inside a stadium where the Sooners historically lost as seldom as thunderstorms hit San Diego. They had tasted defeat three times in 81 home games under Bob Stoops, who entered 14-0 against Top 25 opponents in Norman. K-State had never beaten a team ranked so high on the road. In fact, K-State hadn't won in Norman since 1997.
Tuggle remembers it all, how he lined up at left defensive end in the third-down rush package and how he darted and swerved and knocked Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones to the ground. And he remembers thinking this: Something big was about to happen.
"That was the moment right there," he says.
On the fateful third-and-13 play from the Oklahoma 13-yard line, Jones surveyed the defense and called out his checks at the line of scrimmage before taking the shotgun snap. A split-second later, the 6-foot-3, 247-pound Tuggle took a long loop around right tackle Darryl William – who has played eight years in the NFL – and the bodies crested a few feet behind Jones, forcing Jones, who was looking for an open receiver, to flush to his right to evade the backside pressure. Williams, unaware of his quarterback's location, lost Tuggle on a spin to the right. That opened a wide window. Tuggle licked his chops with a clear shot at Jones' backside.
However, Jones had another problem: Senior linebacker Jarell Childs was storming right at him. Tuggle grabbed Jones from behind, sacking him as the ball dropped from Jones' hands at the 2. In one fluid motion, Childs scooped up the ball and rolled on the crimson carpet.
"I knew I knocked the ball out, but at first, you get so caught up in the moment," Tuggle says. "I was happy for the sack, but then I saw Jarell pick up the ball and score, and it changed everything."
K-State took a 7-3 lead. The eighth-largest gathering ever to watch a game in the stadium where the Sooners' were seemingly invincible gasped, and several thousand purple-clad fans in the stadium, roared in excitement as they basked in the fortuitous twist of gridiron fate.
"You felt the life of the stadium leave," Tuggle says. "From that point on, our team had a boost, our defense had a boost, and we just rode the wave from that point on. We rode that wave throughout the season."
It was one play, yes, but it was more than one play. It was so much more. It was a declaration, an announcement that this night would be different from the rest. You could feel it in the nighttime air, how something special was about to happen, how in this storied rivalry between old Big 8 Conference foes, something had changed, at least on this day, and the ghosts of previous defeats vanished into the sky, and Bill Snyder would beat Bob Stoops for a marquee win, the Wildcats would beat the Sooners, the college football world would stand back and take notice, and the Little Apple would buzz with anticipation over where the Wildcats could go in 2012.
Sure, the Sooners came back to lead 13-10 in the third quarter. The Sooners always seemed to come back. But the Wildcats still maintained their momentum, and they capitalized off three Oklahoma turnovers, and Collin Klein engineered a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown drives that prompted that now-classic photo of Snyder wearing a grin and walking off the field in victory.
No. 15 K-State 24, No. 6 Oklahoma 19.
"We were underdogs to Oklahoma and nobody gave us a chance to win," Tuggle says. "Everyone in our locker room knew we came on a mission and knew what we were going to accomplish that day. We knew we had an opportunity coming into Oklahoma. We knew the rankings and felt that we should be ranked a little bit higher. We knew if we won the game the rankings would come.
"We came into town and handled business."
Tuggle's play helped to shape his future. The Houston Texans signed him as a free agent in 2013. He played for the Texans from 2013 to 2015 and spent the 2016 season with the Cleveland Browns. He collected 71 total tackles, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and one interception in his NFL career. He has played in the Canadian Football League for six seasons.
"Not only was the play major for the game," Tuggle says, "but it was a major play for my life. That play put me on the national scene. It put me on the radar so people took me seriously as a linebacker. They saw I could play. When I was in the NFL, people told me, 'I saw your sack against Oklahoma.'
"It's tough to forget moments like that play because it changed my life. It gave me an opportunity to continue to play and opened more doors and more doors. It's important to take advantage of every moment you get in whatever you do in life."
K-State eventually rose to No. 1 in the Bowl Championship Series standings for the first time in history and ultimately fell just short of a potential berth in the BCS National Championship Game. However, the Wildcats captured the 2012 Big 12 Conference title, sharing it with the Sooners — the team they beat on a magical night in Norman.
And it all started with a significant play.
"It's been 10 years now and it's so amazing to look back at all the work that it took to get to that season," Tuggle says. "We worked so hard. We were a top tier team that wasn't getting any respect. To be the best you have to beat the best and Oklahoma was top dog in the Big 12 Conference. I remember the energy on the field. I'll never forget that. I felt like, 'OK, here we go.'
"It's amazing how one moment changed so much."
Saturday will mark 10 years and two days since the play that changed everything.
Ten years have passed and Justin Tuggle is on the phone rewatching the play on YouTube while describing the intricacies of how it all shook out. He's relived the play — the moment — too many times to count over the past decade, yet the voice of the 32-year-old still bears excitement, as if watching it unfold for the first time, and man, the former Kansas State linebacker is getting into it, detailing how he helped change the game that night against No. 6 Oklahoma on September 22, 2012, and how sudden silence that filled Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma, signaled a grand moment for the Wildcats.
"It's like watching a movie when you know what happens," he says. "I know it's me in the highlight, but I still can't believe it played out like that. The defense worked so hard for that moment."
The moment arrived with 12 minutes, 29 seconds remaining in the second quarter of a game whose outcome hushed 85,276 inside a stadium where the Sooners historically lost as seldom as thunderstorms hit San Diego. They had tasted defeat three times in 81 home games under Bob Stoops, who entered 14-0 against Top 25 opponents in Norman. K-State had never beaten a team ranked so high on the road. In fact, K-State hadn't won in Norman since 1997.
Tuggle remembers it all, how he lined up at left defensive end in the third-down rush package and how he darted and swerved and knocked Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones to the ground. And he remembers thinking this: Something big was about to happen.
"That was the moment right there," he says.
On the fateful third-and-13 play from the Oklahoma 13-yard line, Jones surveyed the defense and called out his checks at the line of scrimmage before taking the shotgun snap. A split-second later, the 6-foot-3, 247-pound Tuggle took a long loop around right tackle Darryl William – who has played eight years in the NFL – and the bodies crested a few feet behind Jones, forcing Jones, who was looking for an open receiver, to flush to his right to evade the backside pressure. Williams, unaware of his quarterback's location, lost Tuggle on a spin to the right. That opened a wide window. Tuggle licked his chops with a clear shot at Jones' backside.
However, Jones had another problem: Senior linebacker Jarell Childs was storming right at him. Tuggle grabbed Jones from behind, sacking him as the ball dropped from Jones' hands at the 2. In one fluid motion, Childs scooped up the ball and rolled on the crimson carpet.
"I knew I knocked the ball out, but at first, you get so caught up in the moment," Tuggle says. "I was happy for the sack, but then I saw Jarell pick up the ball and score, and it changed everything."
K-State took a 7-3 lead. The eighth-largest gathering ever to watch a game in the stadium where the Sooners' were seemingly invincible gasped, and several thousand purple-clad fans in the stadium, roared in excitement as they basked in the fortuitous twist of gridiron fate.
"You felt the life of the stadium leave," Tuggle says. "From that point on, our team had a boost, our defense had a boost, and we just rode the wave from that point on. We rode that wave throughout the season."
It was one play, yes, but it was more than one play. It was so much more. It was a declaration, an announcement that this night would be different from the rest. You could feel it in the nighttime air, how something special was about to happen, how in this storied rivalry between old Big 8 Conference foes, something had changed, at least on this day, and the ghosts of previous defeats vanished into the sky, and Bill Snyder would beat Bob Stoops for a marquee win, the Wildcats would beat the Sooners, the college football world would stand back and take notice, and the Little Apple would buzz with anticipation over where the Wildcats could go in 2012.
Sure, the Sooners came back to lead 13-10 in the third quarter. The Sooners always seemed to come back. But the Wildcats still maintained their momentum, and they capitalized off three Oklahoma turnovers, and Collin Klein engineered a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown drives that prompted that now-classic photo of Snyder wearing a grin and walking off the field in victory.
No. 15 K-State 24, No. 6 Oklahoma 19.
"We were underdogs to Oklahoma and nobody gave us a chance to win," Tuggle says. "Everyone in our locker room knew we came on a mission and knew what we were going to accomplish that day. We knew we had an opportunity coming into Oklahoma. We knew the rankings and felt that we should be ranked a little bit higher. We knew if we won the game the rankings would come.
"We came into town and handled business."
Tuggle's play helped to shape his future. The Houston Texans signed him as a free agent in 2013. He played for the Texans from 2013 to 2015 and spent the 2016 season with the Cleveland Browns. He collected 71 total tackles, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and one interception in his NFL career. He has played in the Canadian Football League for six seasons.
"Not only was the play major for the game," Tuggle says, "but it was a major play for my life. That play put me on the national scene. It put me on the radar so people took me seriously as a linebacker. They saw I could play. When I was in the NFL, people told me, 'I saw your sack against Oklahoma.'
"It's tough to forget moments like that play because it changed my life. It gave me an opportunity to continue to play and opened more doors and more doors. It's important to take advantage of every moment you get in whatever you do in life."
K-State eventually rose to No. 1 in the Bowl Championship Series standings for the first time in history and ultimately fell just short of a potential berth in the BCS National Championship Game. However, the Wildcats captured the 2012 Big 12 Conference title, sharing it with the Sooners — the team they beat on a magical night in Norman.
And it all started with a significant play.
"It's been 10 years now and it's so amazing to look back at all the work that it took to get to that season," Tuggle says. "We worked so hard. We were a top tier team that wasn't getting any respect. To be the best you have to beat the best and Oklahoma was top dog in the Big 12 Conference. I remember the energy on the field. I'll never forget that. I felt like, 'OK, here we go.'
"It's amazing how one moment changed so much."
K-State Rowing | Media Day
Tuesday, February 24
K-State Rowing | Weights Practice
Tuesday, February 24
K-State Tennis | Weekend Recap vs Old Dominion & Minnesota
Tuesday, February 24
K-State Track and Field | Sights & Sounds Steve Miller Invitational
Monday, February 23
