--1969--
December 1
Nixon decides he will attend the Texas-Arkansas game, a contest between the first and second spots in the Associated Press poll of college football, setting up a climatic match between the schools in the last weekend of the regular season. He also decides to present a Presidential plaque naming the winner of the game the number one team in the centennial year of college football. Several hours later, he receives telegrams from John Hammerschmidt, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Arkansas, and John Mooney, president of the Football Writers Association of America and sports editor of The Salt Lake Tribune, inviting him to watch the game in person.
December 2
The White House announces that the President will attend the Texas-Arkansas game, and present a national championship trophy to the winner. Press accounts attribute the decision to the Mooney telegram.
December 5
Gov. Raymond Shafer of Pennsylvania holds a press conference and sends a telegram to the White House protesting Nixon's decision to award the national title to the Texas-Arkansas winner. The Penn State Nittany Lions are also undefeated and have a longer winning streak than either team. Shafer claims it would be better to wait until after the bowl games are played to determine who is the number one team in college football. In response to these protests, White House Press Secretary Ron Ziegler announces that Nixon will present a plaque to Penn State for having the longest winning streak in college football.
December 6
Nixon travels to Arkansas to watch the Texas-Arkansas game. Poor weather causes him to arrive just after kick-off. Arkansas takes a 7-0 lead into half-time. In a television appearance during the intermission, the President predicts that Texas offense is strong enough to score once or twice. The Longhorns score twice in the fourth quarter and win, 15-14. After the game, Nixon goes to the Texas locker room and presents head coach Darrel Royal with a plaque that awards the 1969 national championship to the Longhorns. He also visits the Razorback dressing room and talks with the team before returning to Washington.
After the game, Paterno announces he will not accept Nixon's award. "It would seem a waste of his very valuable time to present a plaque for something we already have undisputed possession of--the nation's longest winning streak," the coach explained. "To accept any other plaque prior to the bowl games games, which will determine the final number one team, would be a disservice to our squad, to Pennsylvania, to the East, which we represent and perhaps, most important, to Missouri, which may be the best football team in the country." (Penn State will play Missouri in the Orange Bowl on January 1).
December 7
The National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame awards the MacArthur Bowl, its national championship trophy, to the Texas Longhorns.
December 8
United Press International awards its national title to the Texas Longhorns.
At a press conference that evening, Nixon jokes that he might have made a mistake in trying to play a role in determining the national championship.
December 9
In a speech at the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame Dinner, Nixon remarks that Penn State deserves a portion of the national title. He also states that Texas deserves to be number one, because the team refused to give up even though Arkansas had a strong lead. At the dinner, Royal promises Nixon that the Longhorns will win the Cotton Bowl, and secure their claim to the national title.
December 10
Penn State receives its third straight Lambert Trophy that goes to the best team in the East matching the previous mark for consecutive awards. "Any team that can tie the record of the Army juggernaut of 1944-45-46 has carved for itself an enduring place in the annals of football greatness," Nixon states in a telegram to Paterno. In accepting the award, Paterno says, "I couldn't feel better about receiving this trophy if it were presented on television by the President of the United States."
--1970--
January 1
The Texas Longhorns defeats Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl, 21-17, ending the season with a perfect record. Penn State defeats Missouri in the Orange Bowl, 10-3, also ending their season with a perfect mark. Nixon calls Royal and congratulates him on the victory.
January 3
The Football Writers Association of America gives Texas its Grantland Rice Award, and with it the Association's national championship title. The Associated Press releases its final poll with Texas ranked first and Penn State Second, giving Texas the Associated Press national title.
