One Old Dawg: And now about that Tech game plus a few thoughts about the 1966 Cotton Bowl

As we wait on bowl selections, One Old Dawg has a few words to say about last week’s Georgia-Georgia Tech game. Well, actually, more than a few.  “Yeah, I know. We could have, should have won the Tech game! We whipped them in every category for more than three quarters! We were up thirteen points and had them pinned down second and twelve on their own four-yard line; we had them right where we wanted them!  

“Then the unthinkable happened – they stuffed it right down our throats – six plays and ninety-six yards later they are standing in our end-zone and it’s 27-21. But, we still had the upper hand; we’re ahead by six. We can take the kickoff, eat up the clock, maybe score a touchdown or field goal and it will be over. The unthinkable happened again. They intercepted a pass! Ten plays later, they’re back in our end zone, and Tech has the lead 28-27 with only thirty seconds left. We had seen late game miracles this season, but there was not one for us last Saturday.

“That’s life, that’s football. There’s nothing to do but suck it up and keep moving. Let these failures be the motivation to improve, to become stronger and more determined. As I was writing this blog the words of the Apostle Paul from 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 came to mind: “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” Paul was talking about the persecution they experienced for preaching about Jesus, which is certainly not in any way comparable to having a less than desirable football season. However, the principle emphasized is applicable to everything in life. We must not let today’s hardships or failures hinder our pursuit of success. In fact, with the right perspective, today’s failures and difficulties will help prepare us for tomorrow’s success. The good thing about football is there’s always next year.

“Meanwhile we await the Bowl game invitations. Our winning tradition and strong fan base makes us an attractive choice, so hopefully we will have one more game and the opportunity to end this season on a positive note to help us get through until next fall.”

One Old Dawg now turns his attention to the championship season fifty years ago. “The atmosphere was entirely different. The shouts of Georgia players and fans, ‘We’re number one’ were sincere. We believed we could compete with the best in the land and wanted the opportunity to prove it. But the system was not set up that way. Undefeated number one ranked Notre Dame and number two-ranked Michigan State had tied in their regular season meeting, and neither played in a bowl game. I’m not sure why Michigan didn’t, but it was a long-standing rule at Notre Dame to forgo playing in post-season games, I guess an academic decision. So, they remained one and two in the polls, ignoring number three Alabama, which was undefeated and untied. Georgia, with one loss, was ranked fourth. It was frustrating that the polls were fixed prior to the bowl games but we still wanted to try to better our lot in the minds of football fans by beating a high ranked team. That wasn’t to happen.

“We ended up in the Cotton Bowl playing the Southwest Conference Champion Southern Methodist University with an 8-2 record and ranked in tenth place.

 

"It wasn’t what we had hoped for, but they were the champions of a highly respected conference, and we were going to one of the top four bowl games in the country. Life was good. We packed our bags and saddled up for another bowl trip to the great state of Texas. We had a great time in El Paso at the Sun Bowl two years before and this trip promised even more; not to mention we would be playing on national television. That is not a big deal today but it was in 1966. In my three years on the varsity, this would be only the third televised game. The first was the 1964 Sun Bowl and the second the 1965 Alabama game between the hedges. So, we were pumped, ready to do our best to raise Georgia’s football stature on a national stage. More on the SMU game next time. Let’s go Bowling! Gooo dawgs! Sic ‘em.”

One Old Dawg will be taking a break until bowl time, and then he’ll be back with more of his mostly true Bulldog lore talking about the 1966 Cotton Bowl game as well as the yet to be determined bowl match-up for this year’s Bulldogs.

Until, then, Go Dawgs!

One Old Dawg: Remembering the 1966 Georgia Tech game and going bowling

Three consecutive Georgia wins have put One Old Dawg in fine form.  “Glory, Glory to Ole Georgia! We put a good old-fashioned whipping on those Auburn cats and sent the Ragin Cajuns back to Louisiana dragging another loss behind them. That Auburn win was simply incredible, and we did it without scoring an offensive touchdown. This team had been cranking out 473 yards and thirty-four points per game, 298 of those yards rushing. We held them to 164 yards (127 rushing) and seven points, and then shut them out the last three quarters. I’m not sure where that defense came from, but I sure hope it shows up again this Saturday. We have a three game win streak going―let’s make it four!

 
“As always we wind up the regular season this week against Georgia Tech, which in my circle is affectionately referred to as The North Avenue Trade School. This year, we have them between the hedges. Both teams are 7-4; averaging a little over 380 yards per game on offense, so we are evenly matched. The same as when the Bumble Bees buzzed into town fifty years ago, but the stakes were a bit higher then. We were 8-1 the Jackets 9-0 and we were both ranked in the top ten in the nation. We had already clinched a share of the SEC championship but both teams were looking to increase our national stature.

“The game was special to me because six of my former team-mates from Valdosta High School played for Tech. A win generally insured hometown strutting and bragging rights for the summer. But I had never lost to Tech. We won our freshman game in ’62; I was red-shirted and did not dress out in ’63, and we had beaten them the last two years. I was looking at hometown strutting and bragging rights for a lifetime – did I mention the stakes were high?

“We struck first when Kent Lawrence (Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons) took a Tech punt seventy-one yards for a score. Then the unthinkable happened. Our place Kicker, Bobby Etter (Atlanta Falcons, Memphis Southmen) missed his first extra point, but it wasn’t his fault.
 

The cheerleaders had acquired a little cannon they intended to fire after each score, only someone messed up, and it went off just before Etter kicked and caused him to miss. That was the last we saw of the cannon. Rumor has it the artillery was laid to rest somewhere in the Oconee River.

“Tech responded in the second quarter with a ninety-six-yard scoring drive and took the lead 7-6. The Dawgs quickly came back with a score and two-point conversion and then a field goal to take a 17-7 lead into the half.

“Our defense tightened things up in the second half.”

When searching through saved newspaper clippings we found The Atlanta Constitution’s Jesse Outlar wrote, “Other than Tech’s long march, the Georgia defense asserted itself once again in spectacular fashion. The Bulldogs intercepted three passes, recovered a fumble and limited the Jackets to 35 net rushing yards other than the 96-yard drive.”

One Old Dawg ties it up, “Two of those interceptions resulted in field goals giving Georgia the lead 23-7. Tech’s last score came against our reserves with five seconds left in the game. It was a great end to an almost perfect season. We tied with Alabama for the SEC Championship and were chosen to represent the SEC in the Cotton Bowl against the Southwest Conference Champion, Southern Methodist University.

 

Under the headline "Bulldogs Smash Jackets," the Athens Banner Herald ran this photo of several Georgia players including One Old Dawg, 88,  celebrating after the Georgia Tech game.

 

“As we wind down this season, I think it would be good to recall Philippians 4:12, ‘I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.’

“Many in the Dawg nation are upset, not content, with how the season went this year and for sure, I would have preferred a national championship. But this is a game, with ups and downs, good fortune and bad. With the transition to a new staff and system, I’m not sure it was reasonable to expect much better. I’m proud of our team and staff for fighting back after disappointing losses and salvaging a decent season. We have laid a good foundation for the future, so I’m content. I’m not griping and complaining because things didn’t go the way I wanted. So, let’s get ready to put a whipping on Tech and go bowling – did I hear something about Nashville - I like country music.

“Gooo Dawgs! Sic ‘em!”

Last week, One Old Dawg flew down to Albany with a contingency from the University of Georgia to the funeral of the legendary Bill Stanfill. We extend our sympathy to the Stanfill family as they navigate their grief over the passing of this great man. If you missed Loran Smith’s tribute to Stanfill, please take the time to read it HERE at Online Athens. No one does a better job than Loran Smith honoring and remembering those who have etched their names in the annals of Georgia Football.

 

One Old Dawg will be back next week to talk about the Cotton Bowl game in 1966 and weigh in on the results of the Tech game.

We’ll see you here for still more mostly true Bulldog lore.

 

Praying for one of the greatest and the 1966 University of Georgia - Auburn game

We began this week’s One Old Dawg on a sad note. Bill Stanfill, (All American, Miami Dolphins, Super Bowl Team) , who Vince Dooley called “one of the greatest linemen to ever play the game” and a key player in the 1966 Southeastern Conference Championship is at this moment hospitalized and in very serious condition according to a family member we spoke to earlier today. We invite you to join us in prayer for Bill and his family. We couldn’t help but remember the picture above taken during the 100 Years of Georgia Football Celebration when our son, Aaron, was just a baby.

So, as we look back to the 1966 SEC championship year, we are closing in on the championship SEC title, and the Auburn win was the final significant step toward that accomplishment.

One Old Dawg remembers, “When we stepped on the turf of Jordan-Hare stadium fifty years ago, Georgia was riding high with a 7-1 record, our only loss to non-conference Miami 7-6. Auburn was struggling with a 4-4 record, three of those losses to SEC teams.

“But we were smart enough to know that in this oldest rivalry of the Deep South, records and statistics mean nothing. Vince Dooley, and several other coaches on our staff had played and coached at Auburn. In Dooley’s first two seasons as head coach, we were unable to get the victory over Auburn and getting that first win over his Alma Mater was serious business. This was our last SEC opponent, so Auburn was the only thing standing between an SEC championship and us.

“On the other side a win over Georgia would keep the Tigers from the humiliation of a losing season. Both teams had serious motivation. It was a beautiful sunny day, but it had rained for four days prior, so the field was soggy and slippery. At the half, we looked like we had been mud wrestling.

“They came out roaring and clawing, and before you could say “Go Dawgs” we were down 13-0, and it was still the first quarter! Then an interception gave them the ball on our twenty-six, but our defense held, forcing a field goal attempt. Thankfully, defensive end Gary Adams got a hand on the ball, forcing it wide, or our deficit at half time would have been 16 instead of 13.  We were moving the ball up and down the field but penalties, fumbles and interceptions ended every drive pointless. I don’t remember what was said at half time but something turned things around. 

In the Atlanta Constitution, Furman Bisher described the results of the second half as a “stirring, dramatic, frenetic victory.”

One Old Dawg continues, “Georgia’s defense, which had shutout the Auburn offense in the second quarter, did the same in the third and fourth. Meanwhile the Dawg offense went to work. Brad Johnson made an inspiring twenty-four-yard run in heavy traffic to Auburn’s seven-yard line and on the next play covered the last seven yards for the score. Etter’s (Atlanta Falcons, Memphis Southmen) PAT made it 7-13.”

 Furman Bisher  noted One Old Dawg’s contribution to the game, “After Jerry Varnado broke Tiger hearts, throwing Quarterback Loran Carter for an eleven yard loss, Georgia rushed back again like touchdowns might go out of style at sundown. In five swift plays, they made it in the end zone from their thirty-four-yard line.”

Georgia 14, Auburn 13.

“The Tigers quickly responded with a twenty-nine-yard pass completion but the receiver fumbled at the Georgia forty and Larry Kohn (All SEC) recovered. Georgia then launched a time-consuming sixty-yard drive. Fullback Ronnie Jenkins bullied in for the score from the four-yard line. Etter kicked his third extra point of the game and the score was 21-13 with six minutes left on the clock. The defense held, ending Auburns hopes of upset when Terry Sellers (All SEC,Cleveland Browns) intercepted a final desperation pass at midfield.

 

Pictures from Atlanta Journal Constitution

 

“The Georgia Bulldogs, under the leadership of soon to be legendary coach Vince Dooley, had made a dramatic move from the cellar to the pinnacle of the SEC in just three seasons. As I think about those days, I remember Coach Dooley’s first talk to the team; he told us if we would do three things, we would win our share of the football games: work hard, conduct ourselves in a way that would honor our families, our school and state, and care about one another. We worked on doing those three things for three years and as Proverbs 14:23 says, “In hard work, there is always something gained . . . “ We did in fact win our share of football games. I don’t remember what all was said in the aftermath of that great victory, but I do remember how I felt. Keeping in mind that we were a bunch of nineteen to twenty –two year old young men, most of whom had not yet experienced things like true love, marriage and the birth of children, I think I must have said, ‘It just doesn’t get any better than this!’”

One Old Dawg weighs in on this week’s University of Georgia match-up with Auburn. “This year’s teams have plenty of motivation as in 1966. An SEC title is not at stake for the Dawgs, but it might be for the Tigers. Yes, Auburn has two losses but they are still ranked number nine. These Tigers don’t just roar; they know how to claw and bite. They have won six in a row, five of them SEC teams, two of which beat us. We must be at the top of our game this week.”

If they beat us and then Alabama, they go to the Dome on December 3. For us, getting that sixth win would make us bowl eligible. So, Glory, glory to old Georgia! Sick ‘em Dawgs!

“On a more serious note, a prayer request: Bill Stanfill, our outstanding defensive tackle on the 1966 team (All American, Miami Dolphins, Super Bowl Team) broke his leg this week and then had a heart attack at the hospital. Please keep Bill and his family in your prayers.”
 

Indeed, we will keep Bill Stanfill in our prayers.

One Old Dawg will be taking next week off, but be sure and join us for the Georgia Tech game, and later, to cap off the season, he’ll be sharing his memories of the 1966 team’s Cotton Bowl Championship.

So, there’s still more mostly true Bulldog lore to come!!!

1966 Georgia- North Carolina game, a memorable interception, and a pep talk for 2016 fans

A challenging week to say the least. Bulldog fans everywhere are trying to come to grips with the results of last week’s game and the diminishing prospects of championship hopes.

One Old Dawg gives us a little pep talk, “I know a lot of you want to quit, but that’s not the Georgia way. Let’s switch from complaining, griping, and moping and start hoping and praying. The season is not over; we have four games left to play, and we need to win them all.  In Psalm 30:5, we read, ‘. . . weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.’ Let us keep hoping and praying for that morning of rejoicing.”

As we continue to celebrate the 1966 SEC championship year, we look at the North Carolina game played about this time in the season.

 

 

 

One Old Dawg observes, “It was a seemingly unspectacular non-conference game. North Carolina’s last winning season was 1963, and we had beaten them the two previous years. The 1965 game had been in a crazy fourth quarter shootout which resulted in a score of 47-35. They were 2-2 coming into our game but did have an impressive win over number eight-ranked Michigan; so, they were not a patsy. We had lost to Miami two weeks before but had rebounded with a close win over Kentucky. Now we needed another confidence-building win before we traveled to Jacksonville to face the undefeated Florida Gators the following week. North Carolina would prove to be just what we needed."

 

The recap from the 1966 Georgia Bulldogs yearbook begins like this, "Kent Lawrence, the fastest football player in Georgia history, came out of two weeks' drydock to steal the show as the Bulldogs conquered North Carolina, 28-3, before another overflow assembly of 45,321 in Sanford Stadium." Kent Lawrence (Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons) would score the first touchdown set up by George Patton (All SEC, All American, Atlanta Falcons).

  

One Old Dawg continues, “The game is expecially memorable to me because of one great play by our other defensive end, Larry Kohn. We had been team and position mates for two years, roomed together on away games and had become very good friends. The game was tight midway into the third quarter; we were leading 7-3. Then Larry picked off a Danny Talbot pass and returned it sixty-two yards for a touchdown. We went on to score two touchdowns in the fourth period to win the game 28-3."

 

Photo Athens Banner Herald

 

 

Jerry Varnado, Steve Neuhaus, George Patton, and Larry Kohn at the year's 1966 SEC Championship Celebration

 

“After the game, the Carolina coach said of Larry’s interception and touchdown; ‘It just took the heart out of our fellows.’ And I add, it put heart in our fellows. We had a fine time celebrating Larry’s great play and that confidence building victory we needed to skin those Florida swamp lizards the next week.”

 

Kirby Moore and Ronnie Jenkins accounted for the last two Georgia touchdowns. 

One Old Dawg weighs in with his thoughts on the game this weekend. “This week, we have to play Kentucky at their lair in Lexington. Lately the Cats have been doing a lot of yowling, snarling and scratching. They are 4-2 in the SEC, including the last three in a row, which places them second in the east behind Florida. That means they still have a shot at the East Championship, if they win out. So, they will have their claws sharpened and be ready for a fight. So, hunker down Dawgs, get ready to show these felines a thing or two about canine superiority. Gooo Dawgs, Sic ‘em.”

We found this photo in Mama Varnado's archives. One Old Dawg may be moving a bit slower now, but it was not always so. Here he is airborne in an attempt to stop a punt.

Way to go, One Old Dawg.

Please join us again next week for more mostly true bulldog lore.