seventh time in a bowl game. It was only the fifth time in college football history that there had been two #1 vs #2 games in the same football season. Pre-game buildup The game was described by many commentators as a battle between "Good versus Evil." With Penn State considered the "good" and Miami considered the "evil." On the flight to the game the entire Miami Hurricane team changed into military-style fatigues to play into the "warfare" element of the contest. The game had been referred to as the "Duel in the Desert." Reggie Taylor of the Cincinnati Bearcats, who had played both teams said, "It's harder to run against Penn State. They're so disciplined you can't exploit their weaknesses as much." Defensive tackle Bob Leshnak said, "Miami's center [Gregg Rakoczy] is the best I've faced. Our line moves a lot, and it gave Penn State problems." Cincinnati coach Dave Currey said, "The only place Miami has a big edge is quarterback. If Penn State can control the ball, it has less chance of beating itself. In a game like this, you've first got to not beat yourself." Telecast Instead of reassigning its primary football broadcast team of Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen from its Rose Bowl telecast, NBC allowed Charlie Jones to be the play-by-play voice for his eighth consecutive Fiesta Bowl even after the contest became the national championship game. The color commentators with Jones were Bob Griese and Jimmy Cefalo, the latter completing his first full year as a game analyst with the network. NBC also added a 15-minute pregame show co-hosted by Bob Costas and Ahmad Rashad. A live interview with President Ronald Reagan aired at halftime. NBC was generally lauded for stressing the magnitude of the event while keeping the broadcast simple. Jim Sarni of the South Florida SunSentinel wrote that Jones "kept the telecast flowing with his controlled style" and "did not get carried away by the delirious finish," Griese "supplied the key insight" and "was able to express himself again" after working an entire football season alongside a loquacious Marv Albert and Cefalo "got better as the telecast went on" despite being "overexcited." Game summary Penn State wore their blue home jerseys, while Miami wore their white road jerseys. Miami outgained Penn State on the field, 445 yards to 162, with 22 first downs compared to the Nittany Lions' eight. However, the Hurricanes