1977 Oklahoma Sooners football team
American college football season
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The 1977 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the 1977 NCAA Division I football season. Oklahoma was a member of the Big Eight Conference and played its home games in Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, where it has played its home games since 1923.[1] The team posted a 10–2 overall record and a 7–0 conference record to earn the Conference title under head coach Barry Switzer who took the helm in 1973.[2][3] This was Switzer's fifth conference title and third undefeated conference record in five seasons.[2]
| 1977 Oklahoma Sooners football | |
|---|---|
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Big 8 champion | |
Orange Bowl, L 6–31 vs. Arkansas | |
| Conference | Big Eight Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 6 |
| AP | No. 7 |
| Record | 10–2 (7–0 Big 8) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Galen Hall (5th season) |
| Offensive scheme | Wishbone |
| Defensive coordinator | Larry Lacewell (8th season) |
| Base defense | 5–2 |
| Captains | |
| Home stadium | Oklahoma Memorial Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 7 Oklahoma $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa State | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 Nebraska | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Colorado | 3 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Missouri | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas | 2 | – | 4 | – | 1 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oklahoma State | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas State | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The team was led by All-Americans George Cumby,[4] Daryl Hunt,[5] Reggie Kinlaw,[6] and Zac Henderson[7] Cumby was named Big Eight Defensive Player of the Year.[4] After winning the conference title outright, it earned a trip to the Orange Bowl where it lost to the Arkansas Razorbacks.[3] During the season, it faced five ranked opponents (In order, No. 4 Ohio State, No. 5 Texas, No. 16 Iowa State, No. 11 Nebraska, and No. 6 Arkansas). Four of its opponents ended the season ranked. It endured its only regular season defeat in the Red River Shootout against Texas.[3] The Sooners started the season with a four consecutive wins before losing to Texas and then won the next six before their unsuccessful bowl game.[3]
Elvis Peacock led the team in rushing with 812 yards, Dean Blevins led the team in passing with 385 yards, Steve Rhodes led the team in receiving with 272 yards, Uwe von Schamann led the team in scoring with 89 points, Hunt led the team in tackles with 159 tackles and Henderson posted 7 interceptions.[8]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 10 | Vanderbilt* | No. 1 | W 25–23 | 71,184 | [9] | ||
| September 17 | Utah* | No. 5 |
| W 62–24 | 71,184 | [10] | |
| September 24 | at No. 4 Ohio State* | No. 3 | ABC | W 29–28 | 88,119 | [11] | |
| October 1 | Kansas | No. 1 |
| W 24–9 | 71,184 | [12] | |
| October 8 | vs. No. 5 Texas* | No. 2 | L 6–13 | 72,032 | [13] | ||
| October 15 | at Missouri | No. 7 | W 21–17 | 63,774 | [14] | ||
| October 22 | No. 16 Iowa State | No. 6 |
| W 35–16 | 71,184 | [15] | |
| October 29 | at Kansas State | No. 4 | W 42–7 | 25,600 | [16] | ||
| November 5 | at Oklahoma State | No. 3 | W 61–28 | 50,088 | [17] | ||
| November 12 | Colorado | No. 3 |
| ABC | W 52–14 | 71,184 | [18] |
| November 25 | No. 11 Nebraska | No. 3 |
| ABC | W 38–7 | 71,184 | [19] |
| January 1, 1978 | vs. No. 6 Arkansas* | No. 2 | NBC | L 6–31 | 60,987 | [20] | |
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Rankings
| Week | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
| AP | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| Coaches Poll | Not released | 6 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
Game summaries
Vanderbilt
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanderbilt | 5 | 10 | 0 | 8 | 23 |
| • Oklahoma | 0 | 11 | 0 | 14 | 25 |
- Date: September 10
- Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
- Game attendance: 71,184
Utah
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah | 0 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| • Oklahoma | 31 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 62 |
- Date: September 17
- Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
- Game attendance: 71,184
At Ohio State
#3 Oklahoma Sooners (2–0) at #4 Ohio State Buckeyes (2–0)
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | 17 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 29 |
| Ohio State | 0 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
- Date: September 29
- Game time: 1:55 p.m.
- Game weather: Overcast, 78 °F (26 °C)
- Game attendance: 88,119
- Referee: Gene Calhoun (Big Ten)
- TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson and Ara Parseghian
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
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"The Kick" - Uwe von Schamann pretended to conduct the crowd as they chanted prior to his field goal attempt
Kansas
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 9 |
| • Oklahoma | 0 | 7 | 17 | 0 | 24 |
- Date: October 1
- Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
- Game attendance: 71,184
Texas
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| • Texas | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
- Date: October 8
- Location: Cotton Bowl
- Game attendance: 72,032
Missouri
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Oklahoma | 0 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 |
| Missouri | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
- Date: October 15
- Location: Faurot Field
- Game attendance: 63,774
| Q2 | MU | Bess 16 yard interception return (Brockhaus kick) | MU 7–0 | |
| Q2 | MU | Brockhaus 36 yard field goal | MU 10–0 | |
| Q2 | OU | Hicks 14 yard pass from Lott (von Schamann kick) | MU 10–7 | |
| Q3 | OU | Peacock 35 yard run (von Schamann kick) | OU 14–10 | |
| Q3 | OU | Lott 1 yard run (von Schamann kick) | OU 21–10 | |
| Q4 | MU | Winslow 2 yard pass from Woods (Brockhaus kick) | OU 21–17 | |
Iowa State
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa St | 9 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 16 |
| • Oklahoma | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
- Date: October 22
- Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
- Game attendance: 71,184
Kansas State
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Oklahoma | 14 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
| Kansas St | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
- Date: October 29
- Location: KSU Stadium
- Game attendance: 25,600
Oklahoma State
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Oklahoma | 10 | 11 | 24 | 16 | 61 |
| Oklahoma St | 14 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
- Date: November 5
- Location: Lewis Field
- Game attendance: 50,088
| 1 | OKST | Miller 2 yard run (Ankerson kick) | Okla St 7–0 | |
| 1 | OKLA | Peacock 48 yard pass from Lott (von Schamann kick) | Tie 7–7 | |
| 1 | OKST | Miller 71 yard run (Ankerson kick) | Okla St 14–7 | |
| 1 | OKLA | von Schamann 58 yard field goal | Okla St 14–10 | |
| 2 | OKLA | von Schamann 22 yard field goal | Okla St 14–13 | |
| 2 | OKLA | Overstreet 1 yard run (Lott run) | Oklahoma 21–14 | |
| 3 | OKST | Bailey 1 yard run (Ankerson kick) | Tie 21–21 | |
| 3 | OKST | Miller 3 yard run (Ankerson kick) | Okla St 28–21 | |
| 3 | OKLA | Lott 80 yard run (von Schamann kick) | Tie 28–28 | |
| 3 | OKLA | Overstreet 43 yard run (von Schamann kick) | Oklahoma 35–28 | |
| 3 | OKLA | Hicks 10 yard pass from Blevins (von Schamann kick) | Oklahoma 42–28 | |
| 3 | OKLA | von Schamann 19 yard field goal | Oklahoma 45–28 | |
| 4 | OKLA | Peacock 57 yard run (von Schamann kick) | Oklahoma 52–28 | |
| 4 | OKLA | Nixon 3 yard run (von Schamann kick) | Oklahoma 59–28 | |
| 4 | OKLA | Safety, Scott tackled in end zone | Oklahoma 61–28 | |
Colorado
Colorado at #3 Oklahoma
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| • Oklahoma | 14 | 21 | 10 | 7 | 52 |
- Date: November 12
- Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
- Game attendance: 71,184
- TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson and Frank Broyles
| 1 | OU | Elvis Peacock 3-yard run (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 7-0 | |
| 1 | OU | Billy Sims 1-yard run (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 14-0 | |
| 2 | OU | Billy Sims 2-yard run (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 21-0 | |
| 2 | OU | Thomas Lott 6-yard run (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 28-0 | |
| 2 | OU | Steve Rhodes 28-yard pass from Thomas Lott (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 35-0 | |
| 2 | COL | James Mayberry 3-yard run (Pete Dadiotis kick) | OU 35-7 | |
| 3 | OU | Uwe von Schamann 36-yard field goal | OU 38-7 | |
| 3 | OU | Billy Sims 16-yard run (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 45-7 | |
| 4 | OU | Jeff Williams 15-yard run (Uwe von Schamann kick) | OU 52-7 | |
| 4 | COL | Bob Humble 1-yard run (Pete Dadiotis kick) | OU 52-14 | |
Nebraska
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| • Oklahoma | 0 | 21 | 3 | 14 | 38 |
- Date: November 25
- Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
- Referee: Dan Foley (Big 8)
- TV announcers (ABC): Bill Flemming and Rick Forzano
Orange Bowl
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Arkansas | 14 | 0 | 10 | 7 | 31 |
| Oklahoma | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
- Date: January 2, 1978
- Location: Orange Bowl, Miami
- Game attendance: 60,987
- Referee: R. Pete Williams
- TV announcers (NBC): Jim Simpson and Merlin Olsen
| 1 | ARK | Sales 1-yard run (Little kick) | Arkansas 7–0 | |
| 1 | ARK | Calcagni 1-yard run (Little kick) | Arkansas 14–0 | |
| 3 | ARK | Little 32-yard FG | Arkansas 17-0 | |
| 3 | ARK | Sales 4-yard run (Little kick) | Arkansas 24-0 | |
| 4 | OKLA | Hicks 8-yard pass from Blevins (PAT failed) | Arkansas 24–6 | |
| 4 | ARK | White 20-yard run (Little kick) | Arkansas 31–6 | |
Personnel
| 1977 Oklahoma Sooners football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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Awards and honors
- All-American: George Cumby,[4] Daryl Hunt,[5] Reggie Kinlaw,[6] and Zac Henderson[7]
- Big 8 Defensive Player of the Year: Cumby[4]
NFL draft
The following players were drafted into the National Football League following the season.[26]
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Elvis Peacock | Running back | Los Angeles Rams |
| 3 | 84 | Dave Hudgens | Tackle | Dallas Cowboys |
| 7 | 178 | Karl Baldischwiler | Tackle | Miami Dolphins |
| 11 | 289 | Richard Murray | Defensive tackle | Detroit Lions |