Tom Brady led 46 fourth-quarter comebacks and 58 game-winning drives during a 23-year NFL career with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The 2000 Orange Bowl offered hints that would be possible – not that we thought that Brady's legendary NFL career would be possible at the time.
On Jan. 1, 2000, Brady led Michigan to a pair of 14-point comebacks in a 35-34 overtime-thriller against No. 5 Alabama – a game that will be revisited when the Wolverines and Crimson Tide meet in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Rose Bowl on Monday.
This is one of the roots that made all those NFL comebacks and game-winning drives possible:
Tom Brady led Michigan to 2000 Orange Bowl victory
No. 8 Michigan finished 9-2 in 1999. No. 5 Alabama was 10-2 and won the SEC championship under coach Mike Dubose.
The Wolverines had just one first down in the first 28 minutes of game time.
Alabama led Michigan 14-0 after a pair of TD runs by Shaun Alexander, but Brady answered with a pair of TD passes to David Terrell to tie the score at 14 in the third quarter. Alabama took another two-touchdown lead, but Brady again rallied the Wolverines.
He threw a 20-yard TD pass to Terrell, and Anthony Thomas – who lost a fumble at the Alabama 1-yard line earlier in the game – scored the game-tying TD to set up overtime.
In overtime, Brady promptly hit tight end Shawn Thompson for a 25-yard TD on the first play of overtime.
Tom Brady throws his final collegiate pass, the overtime winning touchdown to Shawn Thompson in the 2000 Orange Bowl#GoBlue #TB12 pic.twitter.com/jtiDYSXbae
— Old Time Football 🏈 (@Ol_TimeFootball) January 17, 2023
Andrew Zow hit Antonio Carter for a 21-yard TD in response, but Ryan Plugner missed the ensuing extra point, which gave the Wolverines a dramatic 35-34 victory.
"It was a great football game," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said afterward. "It was a shame somebody had to lose. As much as I enjoy winning, I hate to see it end the way it did, with a missed extra point."
Brady finished 34 of 46 for 369 yards and four TDs for the Wolverines.
What was Tom Brady's record at Michigan?
Brady had a 20-5 record as Michigan's starter. That included losses in his first two career starts against Notre Dame and Syracuse.
Brady played at Michigan from 1995-99 and was a member of the 1997 national championship team. Brady battled with Drew Henson for the starting job through the 1998 and 1999 seasons – a timeshare that intensified when Brady was a senior.
That came to a hilt in the 1999 matchup against Michigan State – which was coached by Nick Saban. Henson replaced Brady in the second quarter, but Brady led three second-half TD drives to rally the Wolverines in a 34-31 loss to the Spartans. Michigan also lost to Illinois that season.
Brady took over the starting job full time late in the season. Brady led a comeback victory against Penn State the week before the Ohio State matchup, where the Wolverines broke a 17-17 tie with a 10–play, 77-yard drive. Brady was 5 of 6 on that drive and hit Marquise Walker with the game-winning touchdown. That gave Michigan a berth in the Orange Bowl.
Brady finished his college career with 4,773 passing yards, 30 TDs and 17 interceptions. He was a sixth-round pick by the New England Patriots in the 2000 NFL Draft before a career that included seven Super Bowl victories.
