Jump to content

1963 Team - 1st Longhorn National Champions!


msucolt45

Recommended Posts

The second-best game that season was at College Station, Thanksgiving Day, less than a week after JFK was murdered.

Chilly 50s, gray skies, rain off and on, wet fans, wet field, and aggy had us knocked off the #1 pedestal, dead to rights. We scored first, with a shoeless Tony Crosby FG, but hadn't scored again, while aggy put up 13. We finally scored early in the 4th, but as the clock ticked away, we still trailed by four points. We were so desperate at the end that we were actually throwing forward passes. aggy intercepted us. Sealed the deal, all they had to  do was take a knee and run out the clock. But no, they had to run it back. We closed in on the guy with the ball. All he had to do was take a knee and run out the clock. But no, he had to lateral to one of his aggy teammates. aggy only had eleven men on the field, no twelfth man, so the lateral went haywire, we leaped on the soggy, bouncing ball. First and ten. We stuffed it down their throat, scored on a Duke Carlisle sneak with about a minute left, and the rest is history.

The best game was kicking the living shit out of #2 Navy and their Heisman winning QB in the Cotton Bowl. You might have heard of Roger Staubach? But that's another story.

  • Hook 'Em 6
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It started in tragedy. Pre-season two a days in 1962, and a player died from the heat. Texas, like every other team (and the US Army), practiced water denial to build toughness. Royal was so broken up, he swore he wouldn’t deny water again, even though everything he had been taught told him that his team would be weaker for it. 
 
In 1963, Texas didn’t have its characteristic “off” game. They started the season strong and stayed strong throughout. Imagine that!

Edited by statsman
  • Hook 'Em 1
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dad always said that the year prior, in the Cotton Bowl vs LSU, was the trigger to change. Even though the score was close, LSU out “physically” played the Horns from beginning to end. He said that following off-season Spring and Fall camp prepared them more than ever before. Rooster Andrews literally turned up the heat and worked their butts off inside the West side locker room/weight room.

Hook’em!!!

  • Hook 'Em 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It started in tragedy. Pre-season two a days in 1962, and a player died from the heat. Texas, like every other team (and the US Army), practiced water denial to build toughness. Royal was so broken up, he swore he wouldn’t deny water again, even though everything he had been taught told him that his team would be weaker for it. 
 
In 1963, Texas didn’t have its characteristic “off” game. They started the season strong and stayed strong throughout. Imagine that!

Not to be a “sheltered child”, but my Dad didn’t agree with the fictional book “Meat on the Hoof” about UT Football, just like my Uncle didn’t like the movie “Platoon”. He was a helicopter pilot and did three tours and he said all the movie showed was “them” getting drunk and high during their off-time. Definitely Hollywood!

Hook’em!!!
  • Hook 'Em 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

my frosh/soph jester crew included olen underwood's son so i visited their home in conroe one time

underwood was one of juniors that played a lot in '63

drafted by the ginas in '65 he went to the oilers in '66, spent 5 years and then finished in '71 with 1 year in denver

there were 2 photos on the wall, 1 each in action for the oilers and broncos

he didn't have a lot of nfl memorabilia in his house, and only 1 football that i saw; i didn't ask about it

still alive and a judge in conroe age 81

i wonder how many are going to be there?

 

  • Hook 'Em 1
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes - he wears that and his “T-Ring” to all UT events. He usually just wears his T-Ring, as it’s enscribed from Coach Royal on the inside. Back when he started the “T Ring” Coach Royal paid for it himself, then UT took over for college athletes that graduated.

Hook’em!!!

  • Hook 'Em 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve told this story before, probably on the previous site, but my Dad was like “Rudy” a decade before there was a “Rudy”,

Part of his “partial” scholarship was to work in the Athletic Dining Hall during the evenings.
Can you imagine busting your ass off, then hurrying up to shower so you can “platter serve” dinner with guys you just practiced with. Then help clean up the kitchen afterwards. All in order to do the same the next day.

Hook’em!!!

That was his Freshman year.

Hook’em!!!

  • Hook 'Em 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

is that his decision or your intention?

No - he’s always said that his T- Ring will go with him, as he earned it and was given to him by DKR Himself . Coach Royal was actually recruiting in the Houston area and he attended my parents wedding in 1967. Deer Park was his first job coaching, where he met my mother.

Hook’em!!!
  • Hook 'Em 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Reggie Grob.  He has a high school stadium named after him I believe.  Three players collapsed at practice.  Two recovered, but Grob died of kidney failure a couple of weeks after being admited to the hospital.

My Dad was there, as they used to cross the creek bed to get to practice. All I can say that it was a hydration issue, as all my Dad was a “scout team” player his first couple of years.

He actually had over 50 stitches to his face/body from practice, yes they had face masks and we’re talking about practice!

Hook’em!!!
  • Hook 'Em 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

57 minutes ago, msucolt45 said:

Back then all players had a 2nd position on the other side of the ball. Tommy Nobis was actually an offensive guard his Sophmore year and my Dad said he hated having to go up against him in practice, yes we’re talking practice!

Hook’em!!!

We heard at the time prior to practices at the field across the west side of Waller Creek that Nobis would “warm up” by running into one of the oak trees with his shoulder pads.

My SIL tutored him for his English class one semester - a photo from that class appeared in the newspaper (or Sports Illustrated, don’t recall which) when they did a feature story about him. RIP

SIL went on to be something of a longtime (44 years) legendary AP English teacher at Round Rock High School.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, msucolt45 said:


Not to be a “sheltered child”, but my Dad didn’t agree with the fictional book “Meat on the Hoof” about UT Football, just like my Uncle didn’t like the movie “Platoon”. He was a helicopter pilot and did three tours and he said all the movie showed was “them” getting drunk and high during their off-time. Definitely Hollywood!

Hook’em!!!

What do you mean by ‘fictional’?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 hours ago, Tex Long said:

The second-best game that season was at College Station, Thanksgiving Day, less than a week after JFK was murdered.

Chilly 50s, gray skies, rain off and on, wet fans, wet field, and aggy had us knocked off the #1 pedestal, dead to rights. We scored first, with a shoeless Tony Crosby FG, but hadn't scored again, while aggy put up 13. We finally scored early in the 4th, but as the clock ticked away, we still trailed by four points. We were so desperate at the end that we were actually throwing forward passes. aggy intercepted us. Sealed the deal, all they had to  do was take a knee and run out the clock. But no, they had to run it back. We closed in on the guy with the ball. All he had to do was take a knee and run out the clock. But no, he had to lateral to one of his aggy teammates. aggy only had eleven men on the field, no twelfth man, so the lateral went haywire, we leaped on the soggy, bouncing ball. First and ten. We stuffed it down their throat, scored on a Duke Carlisle sneak with about a minute left, and the rest is history.

The best game was kicking the living shit out of #2 Navy and their Heisman winning QB in the Cotton Bowl. You might have heard of Roger Staubach? But that's another story.

The aggy idiot (is that redundant?) who tried the ill-fated lateral was John Brotherton of Mineola. Played against him. Bad dude. Lots of muscle. Most of it between his ears. Obviously. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Royale with cheese said:

The second-best game that season was at College Station, Thanksgiving Day, less than a week after JFK was murdered.

I've got to put that 7-0 Baylor game at Memorial Stadium right there with the aggy game.  

That was one of the most exciting games I have ever seen.  

Trull and Elkins went up and down the field all day but couldn't score and then the Carlisle interception to end it.

Good stuff. 

Edited by Laga4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 hours ago, msucolt45 said:

I was told that the author had “loosely based” access and was highly opinionated. I digress and never read it.

It’s kind of like being a Cowboys fan and not agreeing with the movie “North Dallas 40”.

Hook’em!!!

You have been grossly misinformed; Meat On The Hoof was a work of non-fiction written by a scholarship athlete who played under Royal, and was a member of the team over whom this thread was started. That’s not ‘loosely based’, he wrote what he saw and expressed his opinions about it. It infuriated a lot of people who thought DKR and Frank Medina could do no wrong, but he was there and we weren’t.

North Dallas Forty was never billed as anything other than fictional, even though the author based much of it on his actual experience as a Cowboys receiver. Neither of this were written by someone with ‘loosely based’ access…

Link to comment
Share on other sites

At the time, most seemed to discount it as written by a disgruntled player. As you can imagine, it didn’t sell well in Austin. 
It did stir a minor controversy in the Austin newspaper.
He probably wasn’t the only one, but Royal didn’t quite go all “Junction Boys” on his teams, from what I heard second hand.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



×
×
  • Create New...