Tales from the Oklahoma Sooner Sideline

by Barry Switzer

  The Jacksons quickly warmed to Switzer, and he made himself comfortable by slipping off his shoes while he sat back and talked about life.

  “My mother looked at Coach Switzer and said, ‘Now that’s the first time a white man has ever taken his shoes off in my house,’” laughed Jackson. “It was very interesting because he sold the type of man he was. He sold his heart to my mother. She had really wanted me to go to Arkansas, but she told me if I decided to go anywhere else, Oklahoma is where she wanted me to go.”

  When Jackson made his visit to Norman, he said it was the players who really sold him on the program. He described the team and the campus as having a family atmosphere.

  “That’s what separates Oklahoma from a lot of other schools. The guys here get along and watch out for one another,” added Jackson.

  Jackson eventually based his decision on the fact that OU was recruiting a passing quarterback from Henryetta, Oklahoma, by the name of Troy Aikman. The Sooners had been passing more during the early 1980s and Jackson figured that trend might continue.

  Aikman’s OU career ended in 1985 due to a broken leg, and Jackson wound up catching a total of 62 passes for his entire career. That was still good enough to earn him All-America honors twice.

  Head-On Collision

  What happens when a pair of 280-pound linemen running at full speed crash into each other? Headaches, that’s what. Anthony Phillips and Mark Hudson can attest to that.

  The two-time All-Americans experienced just such a crash during a third-quarter play in the 1985 Nebraska game. Leading 14-0 and driving inside the Cornhusker 20, Oklahoma called a sweep play that called for a pulling guard to clear the way with a lead block. The only problem was, Phillips and Hudson each believed they were the one supposed to pull.

  “It was a violent collision,” said Merv Johnson, OU offensive line coach at the time. “Both pulled and ran face up into each other. They play-busted and almost cost us the drive, but worse, it almost knocked both of those guys out. I’m not going to say which one was wrong, but it was a pretty ugly scene for a moment.”

  Play was stopped while the two mammoth linemen slowly got to their feet and tried to ready themselves for the next snap. Finally, OU was forced to call a timeout.

  “They were cussing each other out and staggering around. It wasn’t funny, but under different circumstances it could have been,” smiled Johnson. “Once they shook the cobwebs out, they went back in and we eventually scored to put the game away.”

  Good Advice

  When Keith Jackson was being recruited by Oklahoma, running back Spencer Tillman served as his host for the weekend. The two became fast friends and would eventually play three seasons together for the Sooners.

  Jackson, who became known for his flare for dramatics, confronted Tillman about a certain play he had been involved in against Nebraska the previous season.

  “I told him I saw him in that Nebraska game when you jumped over those defenders to get into the end zone. I said, ‘You could have stopped and gone around them just as easily,’” offered Jackson. “And he told me great players make great plays at great times. That stuck with me for the rest of my career.”

  A Player’s Coach

  No one will argue that Barry Switzer wasn’t, at times, viewed as a cocky SOB who knew how to push people’s buttons and get into an opposing coach’s head. He said what was on his mind and occasionally did things that landed him in hot water.

  That’s his way.

  But on the flip side, Switzer could not have been more popular with his players. He cared for his athletes and treated them like family. He believed in second chances. In turn, they did not hesitate to go to war with him every Saturday.

  “I tell people any day and every day that Barry Switzer is a person I will idolize for the rest of my life,” said running back Earl Johnson. “In my mind, there is nothing you can say bad about Coach Switzer. He was a player’s coach—[the players] were his primary concern and he made sure we knew that.”

  A Higher Power

  During his playing days at Oklahoma, Lucious Selmon could rely heavily on his physical skills to help him succeed in almost any situation. Privately, he was a spiritual man. But on the field, he controlled his own destiny along with his teammates.

  Destiny was no longer directly in his hands after he became an assistant coach on Barry Switzer’s staff. And that took a little getting used to for the former All-American nose guard.

  During the 1986 OU-Nebraska game in Lincoln, as the Sooners rallied behind an unforgettable performance from tight end Keith Jackson, fellow assistant coach Bobby Proctor noticed Selmon kneeling at the opposite end of the bench from where the action was taking place.

  In the moments after Jackson had stunned the crowd with a beautiful catch that helped seal a 20-17 OU victory, Proctor asked Selmon what he was doing all bent over and avoiding the watching.

  “Praying,” Selmon said.

  Maybe “Sooner Magic” was simply a matter of divine intervention?

  Not a Big Baseball Fan?

  During a practice session prior to the 1989 Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Oklahoma had just finished up drills when OU sports information director Mike Treps approached Barry Switzer. Treps pointed to the sideline and told the Sooner coach that Tim Raines would like to meet him.

  Switzers response: “Who the heck is Tim Raines?”

  Treps explained that Raines played for the Montreal Expos and was considered one of the best players in the National League at the time. Hearing that, Switzer walked over to Raines, smiled and warmly stated, “Tim, it’s really great to meet you. I think you’re a great player.”

  Fresh Squeezed

  Nine times during Barry Switzer’s 16 seasons as head coach, Oklahoma went to the Orange Bowl as Big Eight champs. Sooner fans became regulars at South Beach in Miami, and their team usually gave them something to celebrate, winning six times.

  As OU’s trips to the Sunshine State became regular, so did the fans’ propensity to throw oranges onto Owen Field as a sign of their support. Although OU officials outlawed the flying fruit, that didn’t stop overly enthusiastic fans from sharing their best Nolan Ryan impersonation.

  “When we were in the hunt, which was pretty much always, every time we scored a touchdown you knew what was coming from the stands,” said All-America tight end Keith Jackson. “You made sure you kept your helmet on when the oranges started flying. An orange that is thrown from several rows up could really hurt.”

  The Sooners were playing Nebraska in the regular-season finale in 1987, with the winner set to claim the conference title and earn a trip to Miami. The showdown was billed as the “Game of the Century II,” after the Huskers had replaced the Sooners as the top-ranked team in the country earlier that week.

  There were plenty of pockets stuffed with oranges, but Nebraska made sure the flight patterns were clear during the opening half by taking a 7-0 lead into the locker room. That, however, would change over the final 30 minutes as Anthony Stafford and Patrick Collins gave the Sooners the lead with a pair of touchdown runs.

  “I remember the first time we scored, everyone was excited and here come the oranges flying. Everybody on the sideline was saying, ‘Put your helmets on, put your helmets on,’” said Jackson.

  Coach Charlie North watched several citrus projectiles zip overhead, and he turned around to tell the fans to stop throwing oranges. Well, a few minutes later Collins snapped off a 65-yard scoring run, and the place went wild with oranges flying in every direction.

  “Someone threw an orange and it traveled a long way before hitting Coach North in the head. At the time, you wanted to make sure he was OK, but once you knew that, it was hilarious,” laughed Jackson. “After that, he didn’t worry about telling people not to throw oranges. He took cover like everyone else.”

  With or Without Troy

  If 1984 was disappointing to Sooner fans, then 1985 held all the hope of a potential championship season. OU returned plenty of tale
nt on both sides of the ball, including the nucleus of one of the best defenses in the country and all the makings of a powerful offensive attack.

  Brian Bosworth, Keith Jackson, Kevin Murphy, Tony Casillas, Rickey Dixon, Darrell Reed and Danté Jones were just a few of the marquee names that highlighted a star-studded Sooner lineup. The one ingredient in question was quarterback.

  Troy Aikman, a 6-foot-4 sophomore, hoped to provide any and all answers with his big arm and talented supporting cast. But Aikman’s career as a starting quarterback lasted only four games. He suffered a broken leg in a 27-14 loss to Miami and would never play again for the Sooners.

  “I don’t want to say it was a blessing that Troy got hurt, but I’m not sure we could have done the things we did the rest of that season with him at quarterback,” said Bosworth, OU’s outspoken All-America linebacker. “I think the talent we had on offense certainly flourished more under Jamelle [Holieway]. He was better-suited for that offense.”

  Troy Aikman. Photo courtesy of the University of Oklahoma

  What OU did that season, with a 17-year-old freshman under center, was nothing short of amazing. Barry Switzer’s squad reeled off eight straight wins after the loss to Miami, including a 25-10 national title-clinching victory over Penn State in the Orange Bowl.

  “Coach Switzer had a lot of confidence in Jamelle, and Jamelle had a lot of confidence and wisdom beyond his age,” offered All-America tight end Keith Jackson. “He understood football. He ran the wishbone at Bannon High School, and when he stepped out on the field that season, he was just like a senior. Jamelle came from that neighborhood where he had that attitude ‘Nobody’s tougher than I am.’

  “He was a special player and that was a special team.”

  Dominating Defense

  Still smarting from the sting of a 15-15 tie in Dallas the previous season (a game replays showed they were robbed of), Oklahoma had just a bit of red-ass going when it stepped onto the Cotton Bowl turf to meet Texas in 1985.

  The second-ranked Sooners were anxious to take their angst out on the Longhorns, but they would have to do it without the services of injured All-America nose guard Tony Casillas. That turned out to be no problem for the Brian Bosworth and Kevin Murphy-led defense, which held Texas to four first downs and 70 total yards.

  “It was one of the most dominating performances I’d seen, especially to do it without one of your best players. That says a lot,” said OU coach Barry Switzer. “The score really didn’t reflect how badly we kicked their butts that day.”

  OU actually trailed 7-0 after Texas returned a first-quarter fumble for a score. But thanks to their defense, the Sooners rallied past the frustrated Horns and finally took the lead on anoption pitch from Troy Aikman to Patrick Collins that covered 45 yards in the fourth quarter.

  “The way the 1984 game finished planted the seed for the next season,” said Bosworth, a two-time Butkus Award winner. “I had so much hatred in my gut for Texas, I just wanted to go out and kick them. From the very first whistle to the very end, I didn’t want to do anything other than make every single play a domination of the Texas Longhorns.”

  Mission accomplished.

  Double the Magic

  While Barry Switzer always pointed out that “Sooner Magic” came into existence during the OU-Nebraska series, it was not reserved only for the Huskers. During the 1980 season, the Sooners used it on Nebraska and then saved a little for Orange Bowl foe Florida State.

  The result was a pair of last-minute victories over Tom Osborne and Bobby Bowden.

  Nebraska fans were gearing up for celebration with just over three minutes left when freshman Buster Rhymes broke loose on a 43-yard option run that set up more late-game heroics. A 13-yard pass from J. C. Watts to Bobby Grayson set up a one-yard touchdown run by Rhymes, thus producing a 21-17 OU victory.

  The Sooners beat Oklahoma State 63-17 the following week and then pulled out the magic again on January 1, 1981, against the Seminoles.

  “It wasn’t something you could predict. It just happened, and when it did, it was special,” said Switzer, describing the phenomena known as “Sooner Magic.”

  Oklahoma had beaten Florida State 24-7 in the Orange Bowl a year earlier, but the Seminoles grabbed a 17-10 lead in the rematch thanks to an OU fumble they recovered for a touchdown.

  OU vs. Nebraska. Photo courtesy of the University of Oklahoma

  Watts was at his best in the final three minutes as he marched the Sooners, using a surprisingly effective passing game, inside the FSU 20. A 42-yard strike to Steve Rhodes set up the drama, and Watts went back to Rhodes for an 11-yard TD with just 1:27 remaining. The Sooners capped the comeback when Watts, the game’s MVP, found Forrest Valora in the end zone for the deciding two-point conversion.

  Intimidation or Entertainment

  Brian Bosworth, aka “The Boz,” was notorious for his on-the-field conversations with opposing players. No one talked more smack than Bosworth and no one backed it up better, either.

  The best moment of every game, according to defensive back Sonny Brown, was when Bosworth recorded his first tackle. That’s when he really opened up the vocabulary and let the remarks fly.

  “I’d run all the way across the field just to listen to him talk crap on the guy he hit,” laughed Brown. “It was hilarious. You could just see the running back’s eyes getting bigger and the fear creeping in.

  “Brian used it more for the intimidation factor, but for the rest of us, it was more about entertainment.”

  Collins and Stafford

  So many great running backs have graced the backfields of so many fine Oklahoma teams, it’s easy to forget some of the guys who maybe didn’t have the marquee name or flashy credentials. Barry Switzer can recite an entire roster of players whom he deems every bit as critical to the Sooners’ overall success as some of the All-Americans.

  Two of those “underrated” heroes were Patrick Collins and Anthony Stafford, who formed a formidable tag team in Switzer’s backfield for three seasons. Although neither player’s name appears among the Sooners’ all-time rushing leaders, their contributions helped OU compile an incredible 33-3 record from 1985-87.

  “Those guys were really good players because they were intelligent, they never made mistakes and they were great blockers. Plus, they really executed well in our option game,” said Switzer. “It was neat to have Patrick and Anthony together for three years like that, because I never had to worry about them. They were so unselfish, they didn’t care about how many times they carried or how many yards they made.

  “They just wanted to win. I’d take a hundred more just like them.”

  Bad Timing

  Oklahoma seemingly always had an abundance of talent during Barry Switzer’s 16 seasons as head coach. The depth chart often resembled a Who’s Who of high school standouts, many of whom were caught up in the numbers game and never got to realize their potential at the Division I level.

  One player who had all of the talent in the world was Eric Mitchel. One of the most sought-after prep quarterbacks in the country in 1984, Mitchel joined the Sooners basically at the same time as Troy Aikman and Jamelle Holieway. He was a product of bad timing.

  Mitchel battled valiantly for the starting job each of his four years at Oklahoma, coming up just short each time. When he did see the field he demonstrated flashes of brilliance, producing five 100-yard rushing games in a backup role.

  The most amazing stat from Mitchel’s career came from his performances against Big Eight rival Kansas State. In three games against the Wildcats, Mitchel carried the ball 25 times for 436 yards. That’s 17.4 yards per carry.

  In the 1987 contest, Mitchel went for 149 yards on seven touches. The following season, he carried six times for 161 yards.

  Unfortunately, he could never quite nudge Holieway out of the starting QB spot. Still, many people believe the Sooners would have been in very capable hands if the roles were reversed.

  The Boz Is Born

  Growing up an
Oklahoma football fan in the heart of Texas forged Brian Bosworth into a young man who felt destined for something special. He lived for Saturdays and listening to or watching the Sooners work their magic, and he knew that some day he would be a part of it.

  Those visions, if you will, came to pass when the lightly recruited Bosworth signed with Barry Switzer’s program. From the moment he walked on that campus, his confident style made him stand out. And he expeditiously used his speed, strength and instincts to become a budding superstar.

  But something was missing. Bosworth needed a means of channeling all of his talent, emotions and complexity into his game. The 1984 OU-Texas game presented him with that outlet. His name was the Boz.

  Brian Bosworth. Photo courtesy of the University of Oklahoma

  “I had looked forward to that first OU-Texas game from the time I was six years old. Being from Oklahoma and having to move to Texas, I was really the only kid I knew who rooted for OU in Texas,” said Bosworth. “That first game was really the birth of my alter ego, the ability for me to go in and find an area inside myself of pure intensity. That enabled me to elevate my game to another level—which really is the definition of the OU-Texas game.”

  During his three seasons (1984-86) at Oklahoma, Bosworth matured into one of the greatest linebackers in college football history. He also created a character that was both loved and loathed. And too often the lines became blurred between the football player and the character.

  Bosworth was a model student who earned Academic AllAmerica honors. He worked diligently on his business degree and made friends at the drop of a hat. The Boz was bold, brash and borderline arrogant. He was known for fashionable hairstyles, colorful comments and outrageous exploits.

  “Boz was a gifted college football player. He had great speed and an attitude that made him special,” said teammate Keith Jackson. “A lot of people only saw the haircut and the antics and looked at him as if he was some kind of commando out there. But he really was a leader and a very smart football player.