University Daily Kansan
KU's early errors open door for Aggies
By ROBRAINS
Sports Editor
COLLEGE STATION, Tex. - Saturday started late and ended early for the Kansas
Jayhawk of mechanical problems, the Jayhawk's charter flight did not arrive here until midnight; about three hours behind the aircraft and coaches did not fit before it landed 11:30.
neither the players nor the coaches were blaming the late arrival for the Jayhawks' early mistake that, in line with what it did appear to affect performances in the early going.
BOTH TEAMS looked sluggish in the early stages of Saturday's game, played before 51,454 sweat-soaked fans at Kyle Field.
The crowd was the largest in A & M history for a non-conference game.
history for a not-too-old
Part of the slingshot and sloppy play in the game should be attributed to the over-90 degree heat and a humidity reading of more than 70 per cent. One thermometer on the playing field registered 128 degrees late in the first half.
"We just weren't coming off the ball," starting guard John Mascarello of the Jahyhaws said after a game he game with him, but it just seemed like it was the first half to get going.
to usk it the tights.
It was in the first half that the Jayhawks committed to costly errors that led them from A & M's first two touchdowns, both on runs by massive backfill Backge Woodward. It was a margin that the Jayhawks would not be able to erase.
JUBILANTY SUBSTITUTE QUARTERBACK Brian Beltke, forced into action on the fourth play of the game after starter Mark Vicendez went down with a pulled hamstring and had trouble starting and lost two games. The Aguires recovered deep in Kansas territory.
The first fumble came when Bethel missed connections on a pitchout and Aggie strong safety Kenneth Taylor knocked out Jake Burton in game 14. Wooded took it on the in next play.
One play later, Bethe again lost the ball on the hand and the Aggies recovered at the KU 20. Five plays later, Woodard was in the end zone, carrying KU defensive end Jerry Jones.
Woodard, whose weight in the A & M press
Woodard, who weighs 260, reportedly tipped the
bases at 250 Ft.
scales in junior pickup up 150 yards on 26 carries before leaving the game midway through the final period with a bruised neck muscle.
m
BEFORE WOODARD LEFT, however,
he scored another touchdown on a 51-yard run,
carrying KU's Caleb Baw on his back the last five yards. He now ranks as the third leading runner in A & M history and all statistical purposes he decided the game's outcome.
Especially with Woodard, the Jayhawks defenders often seemed to have a firm hold and then had their grip broken or were dragged along behind.
It was the power of Woodard up the middle and the quick slants and darts of
sophomore halfback Curtis Dickey on the outside that broke the Jayhawks' backs during the middle portions of the game.
during the innings pick up 348 yards rushing on 60 attempts, compared with 127 yards on 61 attempts for KU.
DICKEY, WHO gained a career-high 138 yards on 14 carries, got 48 of them on one touchdown run on the Aggies' first possession of the second half.
possibly. On Dickey's run there were several missed tackles, and that was disappointing." Moore said after viewing films of the game yesterday." We had some missed
with Woodard as well, but I haven't seen a film of him yet where people didn't miss tackles when he was running.
tackles when he was hit by a ball.
"You can't spot a team like A & M 28 points and expect to come back and win the ball game."
Moore, obviously disappointed by the loss at a school where he was an assistant coach for six years, and though it would have good and bad for him, there is a few big plays that let the Aggies get on top.
"We FELT we had to gamble a little bit on defense in order to stop them." Moore said, explaining the two plays in which the said.
"They had speed on the courriers and the big guy coming up the middle."
Jayhawks got burned when they had nine men on the front line.
Strong safety Tom Fitch and John Leva, a lead coach, agreed with Moore's advice.
"The big play hurt us," Fitch, the only experienced player KU started in the deep secondary, said. "But that's not unusual for a vault team."
LEVRA SAID, "The biggest thing that we
were able to taint was that they played
with the game."
line. We practiced it, but we just couldn't handle it."
For the Jayhawks, it was simply a case of too little to late. Bethe finally got the offense going midway through the third period, but it took an odd play to break the
Norris Banks, who started at fullback but was playing halfback at that point in the game, took a pitch from Bethek and lofted a perfect pass to freshman split end Davenport. The next time that he A&O, 20, lost one shoe and outraced two Aggie defenders to the goal line.
Staff Photo by GEORGE MILLENER
Gotcha
Although the KU defensive line had gaping holes on some occasions Saturday afternoon, tackle Franklin King was not about to let Texas A & M quarterback David Walker get away on this play. Walker, a director, directed the Aggies to three second-
quarter touchdowns and held on for a 28-14 victory. King, expected to anchor the Jahawks' defensive line this year, recorded nine unassisted tackles and two assists in the season-opening game for both teams.
Golub's spot far from secure
By GARY BEDORE
Snorts Writer
KANSAS CITY, Mo.-Chris Golb played only on the "suicide squad" during Saturday night k. Kansas City Chiefs gamble on its final NFL cut.
to Solve the problem. Gilb, who played free safety for the University of Kansas the last three seasons, made two tackles during kick-
offs in the Chiefs 37-20 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
After the game, Kansas City coach Paul Wiggin assessed Golub's chances of making the team.
"We'll have to evaluate him now," Wiggin said. "He's one of the guys who are coming down to the wire. He does a lot of things well, but we won't know until Monday."
Golub said his mind would not be at rest until their cuts, when the Chiefs must reduce their roster from 46 to 43 players.
"IT'S ALWAYS ON my mind, but I really shouldn't worry about it," he said. "In a way it hinders you, but it makes you work harder.
"At KU, I knew I would play and it might have made me not work as hard."
Chiefs suicide squad that defends against kick-off returns. The Kansas City native was picked in the eighth round of the draft by the Chiefs and is fighting for a spot on the squad, which must trim five players from its roster today.
Former KU free safety Chris Golub trips up St. Louis running back Terry Metcalf in action Saturday night at Arrowhead Stadium. The tackle was one of two for Golub as a member of the
Fingertip
GOLIB HAS SOME extra incentive to be a member of the Chiefs because he has lived in the Kansas City area all his life.
"At KU you can get away with having one weak spot, we said." "Here you have to be strong everywhere. Up here, you have to know what they're called-professionals."
He said making an NFL team was totally different from playing college football.
Since joining the Chefs, Golub has not forgotten his loyalty to the Jawhayks. Immediately after sitting at his locker, he asked for the KU-Texas A & M score, and said he would like to have played for KU this season and helped out in the secondary.
"Playing in your home town is the goal of any player," Golub said.
UK came right back on its next possession and put together a 72-yard, seven-play drive to narrow the margin to two touchdowns. Sophomore Mike Higgins, UK's leading rusher of the day with 51 yards in 12 carries, got the touchdown as he drove a third-and-one pass from Bethe to Max Ediger that moved the ball from the Kansas 48 to the A.M.B.
At Kansas, Golub had to undergo knee surgery his junior year, but returned his senior year to lead the KU secondary in tackles with 87.
"I've talked to Dinkel (Tom, KU defensive end) and some other friends and we talk about a few areas, and their body type, he KaU has some good freshmen," he said.
THE JAYHAWK touchdowns came after some haltfire adjustments that saw the offense line on up a majority of plays in a slot-I formation instead of the wishbone, trying to bring the Aggies out of a six- and eight-man front.
"I HAD TO START from scratch," he said. "Dean (Dear Neesmith, KU) athletic trainer) and the coaches helped me. The part was forced myself to work."
tackles with 8.
He said coming back from the injury was a slow process.
But not with a healthy knee, Golub is battling for a on the special teams, which are not particularly conducive to keeping knees strong.
"We made some adjustments to try and spread them out," Moore said. We tried to
keepin', just what they say, it's suicide,
Golub said. "Iran into somebody tonight
and my head was ringing when I left the
field."
But Golub hopes it was not the last time he steps on the turf at Arrowhead Stadium.
"When it gets down to the end,it scary,it's scary."
take advantage of all the people they had on the line and throw the ball more.
After watching the films you could see time and time again where we had chances to win the football game. We just didn't take advantage of them.
and we were in several spots where had we been able to produce games that had been in a league ball game.
STATISTICS Services
Boating
Lamuson ... 0    0    14    0    —    14
... 0    21    7    —    18
**Kenya**
A & M W 4 run (Frankly kick)
A & M W 8 run (Frankly kick)
A & M Woodrow 16 run (Frankly kick)
A & M Woodrow 3 run (Frankly kick)
A & M Dickey 48 run (Frankly kick)
A & M Dickey 5 run (Frankly kick)
RU, Higgins 48 run (Hochebick kick)
RU, Higgins 5 run (Hochebick kick)
TEAM STATISTICS
KANSAS
Plant downs
18 19
Rubber- Varyard
51-127
Pasturing yardage
11 17
Passing yardage
37
Passage yardage
18-8-2
Patent patent
19-37
Total refuse yardage
16-8-2
Fabricated
7-41
Fumigation
7-41
Lumber-fuel
7-79
Yardage-yards
7-79
A & M
18 19
Rubber- Varyard
51-127
Pasturing yardage
11 17
Passing yardage
37
Passage yardage
18-8-2
Patent patent
19-37
Total refuse yardage
16-8-2
Fabricated
7-41
Fumigation
7-41
Lumber-fuel
7-79
Yardage-yards
7-79
I
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Kansas: Nigel 12-31 15-43 Rushing 6-43 18-40
M: Woodard 12-31 15-43 Dickey 16-43 Walker 14-24
Kennan: Bekele 1-7-3 10-12, Banks 1-1-8 10 yards.
A & M: Walker 9-14 22 yards.
A & M: D. Smith 1-13; Mikeska 1-9 Funting
**Kansas:** Olson 30-7; Banks 17-7; Vosser 3-0; Edgert 1-41.
**Kylea 1-18.**
**Texas:** Reed 23-11; Fischer 16-5;
Punting
Kansas: Hubach 7-41.
Kansas: Hubach 7-41.
A & M: Apoleby 6-46.5.
Sports Editor
Bethke experiences tough opening game
COLLEGE STATION, Tex. - Brian Bethke was looking forward to getting his first major college football experience at Michigan's chcawks opening game against Texas A&M.
But he did not expect to get it as quickly as he did.
"The first half was pretty terrible for me," the soft-spoken junior said after the game. "I made some mistakes that shouldn't have been made."
Bethek, who lost a battle with Mark Vicenecde for the starting quarterback position early in fall practice, became the KU quarterback only four plays into the 1977 season when Vicenecde went out with a pulled hamstring muscle.
should have been taken.
Bethkine was referring to two second-quarter fumbles that set up A & M's first two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions.
BETTKE, SEEING his first action as a Jayhawk after transferring from Nevada-Las Vegas and Mount San Antonio Junior College in Walnut, Calif., completed seven of 17 passing attempts for 101 yards, most coming in the third quarter when the Jayhaws put both of their touchdowns on the scoreboard.
"I think if you take out one of the interceptions and the fumbles it could have been a different ball game." Bethek said in Kansas locker room after the 28-14 defeat.
the scoreboard,
"I thought the offense moved the ball well.
I just couldn't get it to the receivers," Bethke said.
indeed, there were several times in the game when the Jayhawks just missed connections on plays that could have kept important drives alive.
But by far the most frustrating aspect of the game for Bethke had to be the 10 times she was sacked behind the line of scrimmage up losing 17 yards on 30 attempts.
hushing attempts.
ALTHOUGH BETHKE, a 5-foot. 10-inch.
185-pounder, probably would have seen
him in the attack. He was noticeably
hurried by the victory to Victor.
"It was a freak accident," Viccede said about the injury. "It happened on the second play of the game. I thought it was just a mistake." It went one more play and I couldn't laugh.
And Bethine may be in line to start Saturday in Los Angeles, his home town, against the UCLA Bruins. Vicendese limped off the field after the third play of the game and still had a noticeable limp at the end of the game.
THE KU QUARTERBACK lay on the ground for a few extra moments after the play, but rose on his own and went back to the huddle.
Vicencede was circling left end on the second play of the game when he was thrown for a three-yard loss. An A & M gainful guilty of a face mask violation on the play.
He sent fullback Norris Banks off left guard for two yards on the next play, but then could go no further.
the couch
hurt to come back this week,
Vicencede said. "I've never been hurt
before, and I don't like it. I wish I was in
there. I hate being hurt."
three hints. Bucchieri, bus coach Bud Moore, with KU fighter coach last saw how a season can be changed totally by an injury to a starting quarterback, probably will be cautious about using Vicenteed against the Bruins. He is listed as doubtful for the game.
You can never tell how bad a pull like that is, but if you have to practice it on days anyway.
Bethe almost did not complete his first game as a KU quarterback. During the second quarter, he was hit head-on by an opposing team's defense and emerged shakily from the pile-up.
"Bethke was a little wooxy," Moore said. "I considered taking him out of the game but it thought it would help him more to stay in there."
Power
the biggest thorn in the Jayhawks' defense Saturday was junior fullback George Woodard, a massive 280-pounder. Woodard, who gained 150 yards on 26 carries, scored all three A & M touchdowns in the second quarter to give them the lead they never relinquished. Woodard left the game midway through the final period with an injury later diagnosed as a bruised neck muscle.