Question about 1988 UNT vs UT?

[All About UNT]

So in watching these highlights for the 30th time... it really sounds like we had arguably the best P5 away game fan attendance in this game.  You fans that were there... were there really that many UNT fans in the stands?

 

[GTWT]

It sure seemed like it.  You saw lots of green walking around the tailgates & our section was full & loud.  

[greenjoe]

The visitor section then stopped about the goal line.  The last time we played Texas, my seat was well beyond the back line of the end zone.  No replay cameras back then but it got very quiet when the play was shown again.  My wife and I stayed at the team hotel and we happened to ride the elevator with Corkey Nelson.  He told us that NT would win.  Very close.

[UNT 90 Grad]

I was a student at UNT in 1988.  I remember that there was a definite buzz around campus heading up to that game. There was lots of activity around getting transportation to the Austin (car pooling and what not).

[Mo Green]

The first offensive play for it their fb fumbled the ball the refs said he was already down after we recovered. He was standing around looking for the ball.

On the sports Monday in San Antonio where the big ends were from (battle brothers?) showed the td & and another long 3rd down pass against uts sideline that was clearly out of bounds, so the broadcaster said "nothing like home cooking" in the broadcast!

[Eagleisland]

I was there with two North Texas alums and a UT alum. The paper estimated at least 10,000 Mean Green fans in attendance. Later on, my UT friend who was an Austin attorney and well connected with the big donors told me that one of them asked the referee about the last bogus T.D. that "gave" UT the game. He told my friend, Jim,  that the referee grinned at him and told him that the UT player was in the end zone by "this much".....making a hook-em sign. Even the Austin media admitted that we were robbed.

[akriesman]

I feel sick all over again watching that video.    That drive back from Austin was the longest ever.     

Like everyone else, my brother and I did not expect a win.   We drove down to Austin just hoping for a good effort from our guys, then to proudly wear our green on 6th street after even after losing.     Instead, we jumped in our car and headed straight back to Denton..    There was no way we could have stayed in Austin after getting robbed like that (2 TD's), because we would have gotten into a fight for sure.    Our anger was off the charts after that game.  To this day, that was the most biased, officiated football game I have ever seen.

[Cooke County Kid]

I was there, my boss was the Attorney General of Texas he had seats on the fifty yard line upper deck about five rows up.  My dad and I, a 1950 graduate of UT went to the game.  It was most exciting and there were tons of UNT fans at the game and yes we were robbed that was not a UT touchdown.  I lived in Austin at the time and even the local sportscasters kind of shook their heads.  There will be no doubt this year when we beat the Hogs and go 3-0.  Go Mean Green!!

[Cowtown]

I was there, and may have been among those that took the field after for assorted measures of disrespect. I went down with about 70  dudes, huge caravan. We had a big crowd and were loud as hell. I had a headache for days from all the yelling.

Hell of a game. FFR can go into more details about the screw job, but one thing I seem to remember was the terrible offset in penalties. I think UT only had one flag thrown and it was for holding.

To this day it was one of the best and worst games I have ever been to. 

[HoustonEagle]

Well it is July.  Guess it's time to drag the UT game back out.  

[drex]

OK, so let's move on to the 1968 North Texas vs. #6 Arkansas in Little Rock.  Good crowd from NT with another screw job.  Ron Shanklin, who later went on to play for the Steelers, caught the winning touchdown pass late in the game and the refs ruled him out of bounds.  He was not out of bounds and he was a skilled receiver who knew exacly where to put his foot down in the end zone.  You see, the little guys are never supposed to win unless it's the Big Dance in basketball.

[southsideguy]

who was the qb then, he had nice touch on his throws.  The refs should have been wearing burnt orange in that game.

[Eagleisland]

1 hour ago, drex said:

OK, so let's move on to the 1968 North Texas vs. #6 Arkansas in Little Rock.  Good crowd from NT with another screw job.  Ron Shanklin, who later went on to play for the Steelers, caught the winning touchdown pass late in the game and the refs ruled him out of bounds.  He was not out of bounds and he was a skilled receiver who knew exacly where to put his foot down in the end zone.  You see, the little guys are never supposed to win unless it's the Big Dance in basketball.

Was there also. A sinking feeling at the end of the game and a long drive back to Dallas was what we brought home.

[drex]

Scott Davis was the qb for the UT game and Steve Ramsey was the qb for the Arkansas game.

[FirefightnRick]

20 hours ago, Cowtown said:

I was there, and may have been among those that took the field after for assorted measures of disrespect. I went down with about 70  dudes, huge caravan. We had a big crowd and were loud as hell. I had a headache for days from all the yelling.

Hell of a game. FFR can go into more details about the screw job, but one thing I seem to remember was the terrible offset in penalties. I think UT only had one flag thrown and it was for holding.

To this day it was one of the best and worst games I have ever been to. 

I was on the 3rd row, at about the 5 yard line and my roommate was on the team.

It's still sickening to think about, and shocking even today to realize the extreme level that officiating crew stooped to help texas get back into that game and win it.

Throughout the game the officials ignored countless times that texas held, jumped off sides, lined up off sides and had late hits including one obvious hit out of bounds on Marcus Camper, like 2 to 3 yards out of bounds.  

There were two horrible "catch for touchdown" calls that would easily be overturned by replay in today's game,....one being for the win.  But in my opinion THE most obvious call that revealed the bias was the fumble Mo Green mentioned in which we recovered but the call  was ruled "runner down by contact" awarding the ball back to texas.

We were rolling and  up 7-0 early 2nd quarter as texas had no answer for our multischeme offense.  Before the fumble we had just kicked off and texas was running their 3rd to 5th play from their own end of the field.  Had we retained possession of that fumble we had a great chance to go up 14-0,  then 21-0 early and I believe that texas team would have folded at that point.  The texas fullback got through to the linebackers on a dive play but got stood up on a hard hit and is NO DOUBT...bent forward and standing on his feet when the ball suddenly popped out and hit the ground.  NT's Shawn Wash immediately dropped down to the ground and covered it up,.....then gets up and starts running to our sideline holding the ball over his head as our team on the field and sideline started jumping up and down in celebration.  But one of the refs comes over and stands where Shawn recovered the ball and points to the ground calling what everyone thought was "ball recovered and down right here",....but he starts pointing towards texas' end of the field and calls "runner down by contact, Texas ball".  It was one of if not the most egregious calls you'll ever see on tape by an official and completely bailed texas out of the deep hole they were about to be in.  

Possibly the saddest part of that game was that everyone forgets the two goal line stands our defense made against them with future NFL runningback Eric Metcalf in texas' back field.  That's why The Stand against Rice..at home....isn't on the top of my all time memorable plays list because it's not nearly as impressive as what our guys did that night in Austin.

 

Rick

Edited July 24, 2018 by FirefightnRick

[Coach Andy Mac]

North Texas was the smaller team for sure but their team speed was impressive.  Fry knew how to recruit speed.

[drex]

Corky Nelson recruits, not Hayden Fry recruits by 1988.

[FirefightnRick]

 

The first of two non-catches that was ruled a touchdown, helping texas get back into the game.   The receiver never possessed the ball,  but that doesn't stop the official from quickly raising his hands to signal touchdown even as the ball flies away incomplete..  

 A hit obviously out of bounds on Marcus Camper with the sideline judge looking right at it and ignoring Marcus getting knocked into the texas bench area, NO CALL!

 

Rick   

Edited July 23, 2018 by FirefightnRick

[SilverEagle]

1 hour ago, southsideguy said:

who was the qb then, he had nice touch on his throws.  The refs should have been wearing burnt orange in that game.

You have a good eye for QB's. As drex said that was Scott Davis, running the flying wishbone. Why he didn't get a chance in the pros is beyond me. He could throw the ball as well as any QB that ever played at NT, including Ramsey,  Case(one of my favorites) , Maher, Hall, Thompson......and even our current QB.  

[greenjoe]

Scott Davis, my personal favorite NT QB unless Mason Fine unseats him, did get a look by Pittsburg.  But as a running back ! 

[GrandGreen]

What I enjoyed most was the barrage of garbage thrown at us after the game by the Texas students.  

[FirefightnRick]

3 hours ago, GrandGreen said:

What I enjoyed most was the barrage of garbage thrown at us after the game by the Texas students.  

Well...we chunked our share of it ourselves onto the track and sidelines after the final TD was called.  I saw a shoe, an entire boat of nachos and even someone's keys go flying.  People were pissing mad after that call. Someone even knocked over a large speaker stand the tU cheerleaders were using to shout out at their fans.  

Two tU cops came over and pointed at a couple of guys sitting behind me and telling them to "COME HERE RIGHT NOW OR WE'LL COME GET YOU!"....to which an older gentleman sitting on the front row right in front of them replied..."I don't think you want to come up here after that call?"...and they agreed.

 

It was bad and very emotional.  I hope I never witness any team getting screwed like that ever again.

 

Rick

Edited July 23, 2018 by FirefightnRick

[NTFan11]

Damn.

[greenminer]

I wonder what the longhorn locker room was like after the game? Players celebrating and bragging, or keeping their mouths shut because they knew what happened?

[gruu]

I think they called it the "Wish and Shoot" offense. Our D line was very quick and fast too.

The fumble and two "TD's"

Game highlights