It’s the ball that ended one of college football’s greatest upsets. One fan could have turned it into a small fortune. Instead he’s the toast of the town.
When he scored the game-winning touchdown off the now-famous Statue of Liberty play in last season’s Fiesta Bowl game with Oklahoma, Boise State’s Ian Johnson tried to toss the ball to family members in the stands. He missed.
Since Jan. 1, Jim Hoepf has been proudly displaying the football in his Chandler, Arizona home. Recently, Boise State found out that Hoepf had it and has just worked out a deal to get it back.
The school is glad someone else with dollar signs in their eyes didn’t latch onto it, and now they’re planning a big ‘welcome home’ party.