THE WEEK
SOUTHWEST
1. HOUSTON (5-0)
2. SMU (3-1)
3. TEXAS (2-2)
Where were all the HOOK 'EM HORNS signs? Why were all those Texans leaving the stadium in the second half? Wasn't there a game going on? Technically, there was, and against Oklahoma, too, but many Texas rooters sensed from the opening moments that this would not be one of their fun afternoons. And so it was that hordes of them left before the game ended. Early in the week Longhorn fans agreed when Coach Darrell Royal said, "You don't win this game with trickery or slick ball handling. This is a game that is battled in the trenches. It is meat on meat and flesh on flesh."
Unlike so many storied Longhorn-Sooner shoot-outs, however, this was a runaway, with the 52-13 score in favor of Oklahoma telling only part of the tale. It was the worst-ever loss for Royal, the most points a Texas team has given up since 1908 and, above all, as Texas Quarterback Marty Akins put it, "a nightmare." Perhaps worst of all was the realization that the Sooners had won with a young team; all seven of their touchdowns were scored by freshmen and sophomores.
Among those who heaped anguish upon the Texans were sophomores Joe Washington, a halfback who ran for 117 yards in only 12 tries, and Steve Davis, a quarterback and licensed Baptist minister. Texas was geared to halt Oklahoma's ground game, the most potent in the country. But Washington opened the carnage by throwing a 40-yard TD strike to Tinker Owens, his first pass as a collegian. Worse yet, Davis, who had completed only nine passes in three games, hit on five of six for 185 yards and two TDs.
Two coaches—Ara Parseghian of Notre Dame and Bill Yeoman of Houston—were miffed despite being winners. After defeating Rice 28-0, Parseghian said, "We hadn't had anybody hurt all fall. We hadn't played on a synthetic surface, either. We did tonight and got two people injured." Lost with knee injuries were Defensive Tackle Steve Niehaus and Guard Tom Bolger. Notre Dame fumbled four times but atoned for that by amassing 536 yards and limiting Rice to 142. Houston lost the ball six times while beating Virginia Tech 54-27, but what bothered Yeoman most was the leaky Astrodome roof, which is undergoing a SI million repair. The wet field plagued the Cougars, who nevertheless gained 471 yards and got a 95-yard kickoff-return TD by Larry Jefferson.
Arkansas and Texas Tech hung on to earn Southwest Conference wins. The Razorbacks downed Baylor 13-7 behind the sparkling running of Dickey Morton and despite Neal Jeffrey's passing. Jeffrey threw 36 passes and hit with 23 of them for 342 yards, connecting with Charles Dancer eight times for 150 yards. Baylor gained 507 yards, but two interceptions by Rollen Smith thwarted scoring opportunities. Defensive End Tommy Cones of Tech picked off an A&M throw in the fourth period and ran it back 45 yards to set up the final score in a 28-16 victory for the Red Raiders. Also helping out were Joe Barnes, who tossed three touchdown passes, and Tackle Ecomet Burley, who stole a pass, made eight unassisted tackles, scooped up a fumble and broke up a pass.
EAST
1. PENN STATE (5-0)
2. BOSTON COLLEGE (3-2)
3. DELAWARE (6-0)
In his last three years as coach at Boston U., Larry Naviaux lost to Delaware by a combined margin of 154-31. In the off-season he sought out Blue Hen Coach Tubby Raymond for some wing-T lessons. Raymond obliged, as well he should, especially since Boston U. was not on this year's Delaware schedule. But then Naviaux switched to Connecticut and last week he challenged Delaware with his wing-T and with Eric Torkelson, who was averaging 118 yards a game rushing. It was all for naught as Torkelson was held to 31 yards and Naviaux was given a 35-7 lesson. Among those who taught him were Theo Gregory, who streaked for 142 yards, and Jerry Castafero, who stole two passes, ran one back 38 yards for a touchdown, forced a fumble with one tackle and saved a TD with an open-field grab.
"They've got more horses than Calumet Farm and they're deeper than the Pacific Ocean," said one observer after Penn State had crunched Army 54-3. Tailback John Cappelletti broke loose for 151 yards as the Nittany Lions rolled for 607 in all and yielded just 131, with its rushing defense, the stingiest in the nation, giving up 53 yards in 42 plays.
Resurgent Pitt, with Tony Dorsett scampering for three touchdowns and 150 yards despite wearing a back brace, put down West Virginia 35-7. Mountaineer Quarterback Ade Dillon suffered a shoulder separation and Danny Buggs was limited to 84 yards on six receptions and to three yards on four punt returns. Still, the Mountaineers matched the Panthers in first downs with 21 and outgained them 330 yards to 325.
It was Employees' Day at Harvard, and Stan Dipento, a building-maintenance man, got a standing ovation for the way he twirled a baton and led the band at halftime. Crimson players received ample applause, too, for manhandling Columbia 57-0. Harvard's defense, first in the country with an average of 131 yards total offense given up in its first two outings, yielded only 38. Cornell, Penn and Brown overcame early deficits to earn other Ivy League victories. Mark Allen was on target with 18 of 33 passes for 253 yards as Cornell, down 6-2, finished off Princeton 37-6. Dartmouth led Penn 13-0 before being worn down by the Quaker defense and the running of Adolph Bellizeare, who gained 120 yards in a 22-16 victory. Brown came from even further back, trailing Yale 17-0 before regrouping for a 34-25 win.
With Jim Jennings bolting for three touchdowns and 113 yards and with Ron Shycko adding 105 yards, Rutgers stopped Lafayette 35-6. Navy defeated Syracuse 23-14. In Yankee Conference tussles, New Hampshire blanked Maine 13-0 and Massachusetts beat Boston U. 20-6.
MIDWEST
1. OHIO STATE (4-0)
2. MICHIGAN (5-0)
3. OKLAHOMA (3-0-1)
"They're so physical I can't believe it," said Wisconsin Coach John Jardine after losing 24-0 to Ohio State. His Badgers, who had been rushing for more than 300 yards a game, got just 104 against the Buckeyes, who cut off Wisconsin's favorite cut-back maneuvers. Leading the Ohio State offense was Archie Griffin with 169 yards.
Another Big Ten shutout was turned in by Michigan, its third in succession. This time the Wolverines zeroed Michigan State 31-0. Noting the rain, Michigan Coach Bo Schembechler inserted Gil Chapman in the backfieid "because he runs well in wet weather." Sure enough, Chapman did, sloshing for 117 yards. He got off a 53-yard touchdown dash and Dave Brown scored on a matching 53-yarder with a punt return.
In other Big Ten matchups, Northwestern defeated Iowa 31-15, Illinois nudged Purdue 15-13 and Minnesota squelched Indiana 24-3 as John King galloped for 179 yards.
Colorado came through with an impressive 38-17 win over Air Force with the help of two players who earlier in the week were not sure they would be starting. Quarterback Clyde Crutchmer, who had a badly bruised elbow, built up a 24-3 lead by hitting on six of seven passes and running for 50 yards. And Dave Logan, who did not learn until shortly before game time that he would be the Buffalo punt returner, ran back one kick 52 yards for a score. The Colorado secondary curtailed the Falcon air game by swiping five passes, three of them by Safety Rich Bland.
Toledo had Quarterback Gene Swick, No. 1 in the land in total offense with 273.5 yards a game. But Western Michigan had Paul Jorgensen and just enough defense for a 24-22 Mid-American Conference win. Swick's passes were good for 306 yards and two touchdowns as he connected on 24 of 38 tries. But the Bronco defense clogged up the Rocket running attack and nailed Swick for minus 11 yards in 17 carries. Jorgensen, meanwhile, ran for 89 yards and hit his receivers on 10 of 16 passes for 170 yards.
Kent State and Miami of Ohio moved toward their Nov. 10 MAC showdown by coming up winners. The Golden Flashes stopped Bowling Green 21-7 as Defensive Tackle Tommie Poole intercepted a pass to set up the final touchdown moments after his brother Larry had blown a potential score by fumbling into the end zone for a touchback. And Miami, which had upset Purdue and South Carolina, had to labor to get past Ohio U. 10-6. Missing from the Redskin lineup were injured Bob Hitchens, the team's leading runner, and Middle Guard Brad Cousino, the MAC defensive player of the week twice in a row, who was benched for disciplinary reasons. Sophomore Randy Walker, taking over for Hitchens, ran for 160 yards, and the defense held the Bobcats to 67 yards on the ground.
SOUTH
1. ALABAMA (5-0)
2. LSU (5-0)
3. TENNESSEE (5-0)
Nothing turns on Tennessee Quarterback Condredge Holloway like imminent disaster. When he was trapped behind the line by Georgia Tech he simply cavorted back and forth, up and down, for what seemed an interminable length of time before spotting a receiver and hitting him with a touchdown pass. Minutes later Holloway appeared to have been stopped by several tacklers, but each time he wriggled free and when he was done he had run 20 yards for another TD as the Volunteers held off Tech 20-14.
"We made enough mistakes to lose three games," moaned Alabama's Bear Bryant. His Crimson Tide also did enough things right to ease past Florida 35-14 in a Southeastern Conference match. In other SEC games, LSU topped Auburn 20-6 and Georgia stymied Mississippi 20-0. In the battle of Tigers, LSU prevailed because its defense gave up a mere 90 yards while its offense piled up 357. As for the Georgia Bulldogs, they did not allow Ole Miss a pass completion until the last five minutes, and they got a 51-yard field goal from Allan Leavitt.
Maryland's Steve Mike-Mayer, who earlier this season kicked a 54-yard field goal, missed from 42 yards out with 13 seconds left against North Carolina State. A high center snap precipitated the miss and enabled the Wolfpack to salvage a 24-22 Atlantic Coast Conference victory in which they had led 17-0. In another ACC game Clemson wiped out a 13-0 Virginia advantage and won 32-27. And North Carolina, despite Kentucky's Sonny Collins scooting for 128 yards, overcame the Wildcats 16-10.
Mississippi State trounced Florida State 37-12, Vanderbilt downed William & Mary 20-7 and South Carolina beat Wake Forest 28-12. And the 25th Tobacco Bowl was hazardous to the health of Southern Mississippi, which lost to Richmond 42-20.
WEST
1. USC (4-0-1)
2. ARIZONA STATE (5-0)
3. UCLA (4-1)
In a game that might have frustrated Brigham Young himself, the Cougars lost to Iowa State 26-24. BYU outgained the Cyclones 511 yards to 318 but in the closing seconds had a touchdown nullified by a penalty and missed a 30-yard field-goal attempt. If nothing else, the Cougars found a quarterback. Gary Sheide, starting his first college game, completed 29 of 41 passes for 439 yards and three TDs. Doing much of the work for the Cyclones were freshman Buddy Hardeman, who came off the bench to complete nine of 18 passes and rush for 88 yards, and Tom Goedjen, who kicked four field goals in as many attempts.
In its two previous games California had romped for 105 points and more than 1,200 yards, its most explosive performances since the Wonder Team of 1920. But last Saturday the Golden Bears turned out to be wonders of a different sort, losing 41-10 to Oregon, which had lost its first four contests. Helping the Ducks win this Pacific Eight battle was Don Reynolds, a 5'8" tailback who gamboled for 178 yards and three TDs.
On its first play from scrimmage, UCLA sent Kermit Johnson over right guard for 51 yards and then the Bruins went on to decimate Stanford's supposedly rugged defense in a 59-13 onslaught. In all, UCLA rushed for a school record of 621 yards, with Johnson accounting for 168 yards in 11 carries and James McAlister for 117 more.
Another, fast starter was Washington, which recovered an Oregon State fumble on the opening kickoff and quickly took a 7-0 lead. But the Huskies sank swiftly in the West as they were forced into nine turnovers en route to a 31-7 loss to the Beavers.
"I don't think we'll be able to score a lot of points this year," said USC Coach John McKay before taking on Washington State. His Trojans then went out and scored 46, fortunately for McKay, since the Cougars picked up 35 of their own. Trojan Quarterback Pat Haden found his receivers with 15 of 24 passes for 245 yards and four touchdowns. And Lynn Swann latched on to 10 passes for 148 yards.
Arizona remained unbeaten, winning its fifth straight by bouncing New Mexico 22-14 after trailing 14-10 at the half.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
THE BACK: Tailback Dickey Morton scored both Arkansas TDs in a 13-7 win over Baylor, going all the way on runs of 68 and 81 yards and rushing for a total of 271, the second highest total in Southwest Conference history.
THE LINEMAN: In Missouri's 13-12 upset of Nebraska, Middle Guard Herris Butler blocked an 18-yard field-goal attempt, recovered a fumble that led to a Tiger score and sacked the quarterback on a vital fourth-and-four play.