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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Monday, October 14, 1968
KU tips Nebraska to stay unbeaten
By BOB KEARNEY Assistant Sports Editor
By Nebraska standards, America means motherhood, apple pie, andNU football—but not necessarily in that order.
The pride of Cornhusker football fans has been popping buttons off bright red blazers ever since Bob Devaney's arrival in 1962. Four Big Eight championships, five invitations to post-season bowls, and a phenomenal 51-9 record: the state went wacky.
There were hard times, to be sure. Alabama's Crimson Tide ruined a perfect season with a 39-28 victory in the 1966 Orange Bowl. 'Bama humiliated Nebraska's vaunted defense, 34-7 in the Sugar Bowl one year later.
Alabama scoffed the Big Red, calling them the "Fatboys of the Corn Belt." But Devaney teams, built on awesome defensive play, remained the giants of the Midlands.
Then along came Pepper Rodgers in 1967. His revamped KU Jayhawks stunned Nebraska, 10-0, to mark the first time a Devaney team had ever been scoreless.
Kansas proved Saturday it was not.
That was a fluke, Nebraskans contended.
And appropriately, KU's 23-13 triumph affronted those hungry and hostile Nebraska defenders. The Jayhawks patiently trudged 73 yards on the winning fourth-quarter march, scoring the go-ahead points on a one-yard sneak by quarterback Bobby Douglass.
Pepper called it a "physical drive," one accented by precise execution and sheer power. Fullbacks John Riggins and Mike Reeves made the key gains, Riggins slashing off right tackle for 11 yards and Reeves belting straight ahead for 14 yards on a draw play.
A 10-yard Douglass pass to Junior Riggins and a 7-yard flip to John Mosier kept Nebraska's defense honest—and frustrated.
More important, the Kansas offensive linemen gave cozy pass protection for Douglass and gaping holes for the running backs. Tackles Larry Brown and Keith Christensen, guards Dave Aikins and Ken Wertzberger, and center Dale Evans uprooted the 'Husker defense.
Nebraska's Dana Stephenson was called for pass interference on Mosier, giving KU a first down at the 1. Douglass then wedged into the endzone with 4:09 remaining. That put the Jayhawks on top, 16-13. And when Nebraska's desperation efforts fizzled at the 26, KU pushed across a clinching tally at 1:11, Douglass scoring on a 10-vard froll-out.
Before the dramatic touchdown drive, however, it was huff n' puff for KU against Nebraska's defense. The Jayhawks did penetrate 52 yards to the NU 10 in the first quarter, the push being highlighted by a 15-yard Douglass aerial to John Jackson.
On 4th-and-1, Douglass attempted to roll around the left
side but was pressured by NU's Ken Geddes. His pass to George McGowan fell incomplete.
Nebraska turned a fumbled punt by KU's Don Donklin into a touchdown late in the half. Speedy Joe Orduna, who accumulated 98 yards on 21 carries, zipped 28 yards on the next play to score with 4:47 remaining.
The 'Huskers almost spread the gap minutes later on a drive to the Kansas 13, capped by a 33-yard pass interference call. But linebacker Emery Hicks blitzed quarterback Ernie Sigler for a 9-yard loss, and a 38-yard field goal attempt by Paul Rogers missed its mark.
Rogers had a 43-yard try blocked early in the third period. KU's Bill Bell then boomed a 50-yard punt that died on the Nebraska 1.
With a 4th-and-4 at the 6,
Sigler retreated to the endzone
for a KU safety. It was fodder
for Lincoln's barbershop coaches
and the boost the Jayhawks
needed.
"I thought they had missed a down," Rodgers later remarked. "I sure didn't think Devaney was that courageous."
Devaney felt a 4-point lead would be as safe as a 6-point margin, and that it cancelled the chance of a Shanklin punt return.
Wise or no, it turned the game's momentum. KU's Hicks smothered a Dick Karis fumble on Nebraska's next possession. From the 19, the Jayhawks banged it across in six plays with Shanklin diving the final yard. Bell's conversion gave KU a 9-6 advantage.
The Cornhuskers were not long in changing the flow. At the outset of the fourth quarter, the 'Huskers blasted 49 yards for the touchdown that gave them a 13-9 spread. Orduna got the call from the KU 1, and the fleet halfback skirted right end to score.
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Sat. Oct. 19th 8 p.m.
Kansas City Music Hall Tickets Available at Mr. Guy's 933 Mass.
KU linebackers Emery Hicks (60) and Pat Hutchens (15) close in and swarm Nebraska quarterback Ernie Sigler for a 9-yard loss. The play put the 'Huskers out of field goal range late in the first half.
(Kansan photo by Jim Wheeler)
But Kansas proved it had the finesse befitting a championship team. Its 73-yard march, exhausting six minutes of playing time, kept its record perfect (4-0) and its national ranking intact.
"I'm not sure that we're Number 1," said Rodgers in the pandemonium of the KU dressing room.
"But we're a good football team."
Jubilant Kansans concur.
And the possibility of a New Year's bowl appearance?
SPECIAL NIGHT BUS
"All the bowl people told us was that if we won all our games, they'd take us," Pepper joked. "The only bowl we're in is the Lawrence Bowl next week against Oklahoma State."
To Campus & Downtown
Ellsworth to Campus and Downtown:
6:30 p.m., 6:50, 7:30,
8:10, 8:50, 9:30, 10:10,
10:50
Noismith and Oliver to Campus
and Downtown: 6:25 p.m.
6:45, 7:25, 8:05, 8:45, 9:25,
10:05, 10:45
G.S.P. to Downtown: 6:42 p.m.
7:02, 7:42, 8:22, 9:02, 9:42,
10:22, 11:22
Union Bldg. to Downtown and G.S.P. 6:40 p.m., 7:00, 7:40, 8:20, 9:00, 9:40, 10:20, 11:00
G.S.P. to Campus and Ells-
worth: 6:15 p.m, 6:35, 7:15,
7:55, 8:35, 9:15, 9:55, 10:35
9th and Mass. to K.U. Dormi-
tories: 6:10 p.m., 6:30, 7:10,
7:50, 8:30, 9:10, 9:50, 10:30
LAWRENCE BUS CO., INC.
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Join us for the second meeting of SKI CLUB esday, October 15
7:30 p.m., Forum Room, Kansas Union The Movie
"Colorado is Continental Ski Country"
will be shown.
The Thanksgiving ski trip to Aspen will be discussed.
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When you need, or just want, a piece of quality furniture, come to Chet Johnson's. And
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remember, at Johnson's, the comfort and beauty are built right in.
724 Mass.
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