[Husker] 71 NU Stats repost request for Alan S.

[Wilson, Rick]

Here's the thread:

 

On Mon, 18 Dec 2006, Bob Beach wrote:
> From: "Wilson, Rick" <rick.wilson at okstate.edu
<http://romaine.tssi.com/mailman/listinfo/husker> >
> 
>>   The fact of the matter is that Lou Holtz was flat out wrong 
>> in stating NU was an 'option offense' in 1971. The option's 
>> visibility increased in the post-Ferragamo years of Tom Sorley, 
>> Tim Hager and Jeff Quinn.(late 70's).
 
>    But that wasn't the statement.  The statement was that TO's 
> option/power I offense made it's foundation in the 70's.  While it 
> is obvious the option increased over the years it did indeed have 
> its basis in the early 70's.  You do remember Tagge running the 
> option don't you?  NU wasn't an option offense at that time but 
> the basis was there.
 
 
Here's the statement (the second colon should have been a ?):
 
On Sat, 16 Dec 2006, Theodore Heise wrote:
 
> KH: In 1971 did Nebraska throw the ball:
> 
> Holtz: They didn't *have* to throw the football, they ran the option!
 
I don't see anything in this about 71 Nebraska having a foundation 
of the option that came later.  In my reading it implies that the 71 
team was option based and didn't pass much, and I don't that's an 
accurate reflection of that team.  It may not have been precisely 
evenly balanced, but it was a far cry from many of the 
pound-it-out-on-the-ground teams that came later.

 

***************************************Hey, I like this.  For the first
time in my 13 years on the list, someone's trying to get me in a
disagreement. I love it!!

 

I've got 15 minutes before my exams are due, so I'll add to the traffic.


 

Bob asks if I remember Tagge running the option - in the previous follow
up post I mentioned that he ran for 314 yards and in my original post I
asked the question whether he fumbled in the 3rd quarter either running
the option or on a bootleg. So, yes Bob, I vividly recall #14 lumbering
down the line and optioning. Wasn't it also in the NU/OU '71 game where
he made a deft fake pitch and went for a big gain? Or am I mixing
together my mental highlight reel. We were arguing Lou Holtz' ignorance,
not anything about your correct contention on the basis for the
power/option I dating back to the Osborne installed offense of 1969.  

 

I still laugh when before his senior year (1974), Osborne decided that
Dave 'the Dealer" Humm was going to be a better option runner to help
diversify the offense. Well, he gained 121 yards on the ground that
year, and kept getting hip pointers because of his new found rushing
ability!  Interestingly, he still ended his career with negative rushing
yardage. 

 

OK, exams are due. I'm going home. So Bob is correct, Lou Holtz is an
idiot, and I've spent too much time looking up arcane facts instead of
grading. Merry Christmas!

 

Rick L. Wilson, Ph.D.

W. Paul Miller Professor of Business Administration

Professor/Head 

Management Science and Information Systems

William S. Spears School of Business

Oklahoma State University

408 BUS

(405) 744-5084

 

NOTE E-MAIL CHANGE:  rick.wilson at okstate.edu
<mailto:rick.wilson at okstate.edu>