College football centennial
Defense, running game, offense highlight Texas Tech's football
By Joe Childs Assistant Sports Editor
The date was November 6. What happened was that Rutgers University gathered eleven if its burlest athletes and invited Princeton University to get together eleven of their most so inclined so that the two teams might meet on a grassy plot in New Brunswick and bassel over a ball made of pigskin. Rutgers, the hometown favorite, outshoved and outkicked Princeton to emerge victorious, six goals to four—thus the first intercollegiate football game was played.
That was 100 years ago, and a lot can happen in 100 years, even to college football. At that first game 300 confused spectators looked on; last season over 27 million jammed collegiate stadiums to view their favorite team. In Lubbock, Texas Saturday night 38,000 Texas Tech fans will fill Jones Stadium to watch their burliest eleven clash in the wind, sand and mesuite with their Kansas Jayhawks in the 1969 college football opener.
Discounting all geographical features and tones of sentiment the Red Raider fans should have quite a matchup on their hands. KU, one of the country's top teams last season, is seeking to rebuild an offensive unit that was severely hurt by graduation. The Jayhawk defense is still intact and looks considerably stronger. J. T. King, head coach at Tech, also relies on a stingy defense and a robust running attack to propel his team.
After a 5-3-2 record and a fourth place Southwest conference finish in 1968, King will introduce Tech's first pro-type offense when they operate out of the tandem I. The experience in the scoring is lacking as only four offensive starters return.
Danny Hardaway, a 206-pound sophomore, tailback keys the Red Raider running attack along with 193-pound senior, Jimmy Bennett.
Senior quarterback, Tom Sawyer is rated as a good passer and took the starting job away from last season's signal caller, Joe Matulich. He will have Johnny Odom, a sophomore flier as one of his targets, with another sophomore Ronnie Ross at split end.
The offensive line has the size, but lacks the experience and timing to execute perfectly and keep Pepper Rodgers front four from showing their stuff.
Defensively, the front four of the Raiders should keep the Jayhawk offensive linemen busy. At end 221-pound Richard Campbell is in line for national recognition and a repeat on the All-Conference team. Campbell is aided by Bruce Dowdy (202) at the other end, with Dickey Grigg (218) and Jim Dyer (224) at the tackles. Pete Norwood (215) is the leading candidate to start at the nose guard.
Chief of the linebacking crew, Mark Fincannon, underwent knee surgery Saturday and will not see action in the opener. Larry Molinare, a 205-pound sophomore, will be a solid fill-in for the injured Fincannon.
Rounding out the defense is an experienced backfield which works together well.
Tech's new offense gives them an explosiveness which could
KANSAN Sept. 18 1969
College Bible Study Class
KU and the great collegiate system throughout America today has proven overall excellence. The churches have the opportunity to fill a vacuum Probably the most neglected dimension of life is the spiritual.
We invite you to attend our Christ centered College Bible Study Class. We urge you to come. If you have been inactive in your worship, resume participation either with us or the church of your choice. The well rounded graduate needs a spiritual base in living today. There are additional classes available for university staff members.
First Baptist Church 8th & Kentucky
9. 45 Pre-Class Singing
10:00 Bible Study Class
11. 00 Worship Service
better last years mark of 5-3-2. Defense and rushing are the plusses and the only question remaining is their virtually untested offensive line.
Coach King's squad finished the '68 season strong by beating Texas and going on to win the Cotton Bowl and merit a high national ranking. This year's pro-type offense is being employed as the Red Raiders make their bid for the Southwest conference title. Like KU much remains a question mark, and not having been rated in the country's best, Tech is not considered strong but in college football anything can happen, and that's what 27 million fans go to see.
OFFENSE
OFFENSE
SR—Ronnie Hass, 205. Soph.
LT—Mike Holiday, 193. Sr. **
LG—Jamie Hahn, 232. Sr. *
C—Mark Hazelwood, 224. Jr. *
RG—Walt Yarbrough, 225. Jr. *
RT—Phillip Barney, 224. Soph.
CH—Charles Evans, 232. Sr. **
QB—John Browne, 232. Sr. *
TB—Danny Hardy, 206. Soft.
FL—Johann Odom, 195. Soph.
FB—Jimmy Bennett, 183. Sr. **
LE—Bruce Dwig, 202, Jr. **
LT—Dicky Grigg, 218, Sr.***
MG—Pete Norwood, 215, Sr.**
RJ—Dim Jee, 224, Jr.***
RB—Richard Campbell, 221, Sr.
205, Soph.
RLB—Dennis Lane, 212, Sr.**
LHB—Denton Fox, 212, Sr.**
HBR—Jerry Watson, 190, Jr.*
Injuries key to pro race
NEW YORK (UPI)—Pro football boils down to this in 1969: two knees, three fingers and one arm.
Of all the bumps, bruises, dislocations and fractures in the medical histories of more than 1,000 football pros now on the active list, none is more pertinent to the question of who gets into the Super Bowl than that collection of two knees, three fingers and one arm belonging to five ace quarterbacks.
The knees belong to Super Joe Namath of the New York Jets. Johnny Unitas of the Baltimore Colts has the arm. The fingers are on the passing hands of Len Dawson of the Kansas City Chiefs, Craig Morton of the Dallas Cowboys and Jim Hart of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Sensible horse players promptly pass any race in which their
likeliest horse has a bad leg history. Still, such horses are among the winners every day so we'll take a shot on this forecast that our men can get into the winner's circle, too.
American Football League New York Jets in the East, Kansas City in the West.
National Football League-St. Louis in the Century Division, Dallas in the Capitol, Baltimore in the Coastal, Green Bay in the Central.
Out of that, you might get a repeat between the Jets and the Colts in the Super Bowl at New Orleans next Jan. 11.
Namath's gimpy knees can go out at any time and the hopes of the Jets would go with 'em. His football history is superb but his medical history is poor and you could feel the world tumbling around the Jets against Buffalo
last Sunday when Joe came up limping after a particularly hard tackle.
Dawson, Morton and Hart all have had finger fractures on their passing hands this year. Each is in a different stage of recovery. Unitas, shelved by a bad arm most of last year, apparently has recovered fully but the worries never disappear.
Houston would be the logical successor to the Jets in the Eastern Division but doesn't figure to handle either of the West's best—Kansas City or Oakland—in the AFL's new playoff system set up for this year only.
The AFL's division champs must play the runnersup in the opposite division, winners of those games qualifying for the league title game on Jan. 4 to determine who goes to the Super Bowl.