Clarion-Ledger from Jackson, Mississippi • Page 33

98 SUN BOWL The Qarion-LedgerJacfcon Daily News December 28, 1980 ATTENDANCE: 34,723 rr Va 1 if ii i i mi i ii i niriiiimiiummn iiniinirniri ii imii in iw nnn i iiifiiin imiimiiiiiiimi mi iiiiiiiitiiini nnii i.n.i nmfinrffn i f.iiiimrii.mwtMiitiir-ilii iinin rnt i rrimitii rnrffn it iiln in. i nr. a i ri i ti i 1 1 ml biaft pnuio by fjtivid t-ranK State's Glen Collins and Jerry Gillikin stop Jeff Quinn cold in his tracks. Nebraska wasn't stopped for long, however. ft For Nebraska Sun on TV Sun Boid was a routine win Sun TV coverage better than game Continued From Page 1C cruited four years ago.

"We didn't really have to go very far for most of our scores." i i -s A i. Franklin, a tank-like slugged out 67 yards in 17 carries to lead -Nebraska's rushers. The Huskers' three 'Df heralded I-backs Jarvis Redwine, Rog er Craig and Craig Johnson were limit. ed to a combined 65 yards on 21 tries. "With their 4-3 defense, they made it very hard for us to get outside," Osborne said.

"We went up the middle most of the time on power plays and traps." Vw- State tackle Earnie Barnes reinjured his leg in the first quarter and was replaced for the remainder of the game by Vi a freshman Ricky George. Nebraska All- Aminr, 1 i l.ll.'.S! 11 I 1 i i if 4r 2-5, tz, -1 if iif tV ever, said that didn't make much of a difference. "I couldn't tell much difference be-' tween the two," Schleusener said. "Both are very good players." By CRAIG WINSTON Clarion-Ledger Sports Writer POOR CBS. Instead of starting its new Sun Bowl contract off with fireworks, Saturday's 46th edition of the game fizzled into the ultimate in video boredom.

It wasn't the fault of CBS and its announcers Pat Summerall, Tom Brookshier and Frank Glieber but of the run-oriented offenses of Mississippi State and Nebraska, and the Bulldogs' fumbling, bumbling, losing 31-17 effort. CBS easily could have botched the game and left El Paso as heroes. The Sun and CBS have a love affair going. Friday, there was a tribute for Summerail and Brookshier, and during Saturday's game the two almost blubbered while espousing their love for the bowl and El Paso. Brookshier even talked about the game and its atmosphere as excellent for "recycling your personality." But the network did a fine job, although parts of State's first fourth-quarter touchdown drive and John Bond's subsequent 1-yard TD run were obliterated by technical difficulties.

Brookshier, who teams with Summerall as CBS' No. 1 NFL broadcast team, was superb. Early in the game, he explained State's wingbone to the unacquainted and why the 'Dogs' closely bunched offensive linemen made it difficult for Nebraska to stunt. Meanwhile, Glieber wasn't a role-model sideline commentator. Prior to kickoff, he unabashedly questioned Nebraska coach Tom Osborne on why star I-back Jarvis Red-wine wasn't starting.

And, later, he correctly predicted one of the wrinkles Nebraska would show would be an option pass by wing-back Anthony Steels. Summerall's play-by-play stood up well, too. Both he and Brookshier didn't allow State's decision to receive the opening kick-off and Bond's poor first-half passing go without notice. Another plus of CBS' coverage was its instant replays, especially the isolations of Husker Dave Rimington. The amazingly quick center always seemed to be blocking 5 yards past the line, while his teammates were still trying to get out of their stances.

Endless pans of the stadium, cheerleaders and bands at halftime are a time-honored bowl necessity, but if someone important meets the camera's eye, recognition is in order. That wasn't the case when viewers glimpsed Gov. William Winter in the stands. Probably the highlight of the broadcast was a spirited halftime debate on the upcoming NFL playoffs. Moderated by Brent Musburger, former coaches George Allen, Hank Stram and John Madden gave their predictions for the weekend games.

The only real "goof" made by the broadcast team was after country comedian Jerry Clower offered greetings from Yazoo City. The two wondered whether the town was on the Mississippi coast or not. 1 Both Schleusener and Franklin were impressed with the Bulldogs' defense, which limited the 507-yard-per-game Cornhusker attack to 318 yards total of-. ol fense. i u'A "They get after you real good," Frank- lin said.

"They really hit hard. I don't think tl our offense played that well but it had a lot 0-to do with them. It was our defense and their mistakes that won this game." And, in so doing, the Cornhuskers beat a team that Osborne said "has as much raw A ir' talent as any team we've played, includ- ing Oklahoma and Florida State." Staff photo by Mike Wann Mardye McDole fumbles a punt early in Saturday's Sun Bowl, signalling a long afternoon for Mississippi State. State lost four fumbles, helping Nebraska post a 31-17 victory. Slatf photo by Mike Warm the Bulldogs.

Fourth Quarter Third Quarter Bulldog fumble puts the offense in a coma Bulldogs trick play: a mistake too many game? Who knows? Maybe. By JOHN McGRATH Daily News Sports Writer ByORLEYKOOD Daily News Sports Editor PASO, Texas Of all of the fum PASO, Texas For a moment, things didn't look so bad. Mississippi State opened the final period of the bles Mississippi State lost during Saturday's 31-17 loss to Nebraska in the Bond took the snap from center and hand-1 ed off to Parenton, who made like he was go-. ing to run with the ball, then pitched out to r-'-'t-Wonsley. Only one problem: The pitch was ankle-high.

Woasley couldn't get it. Paren- i ton couldn't get it. Jimmy Williams, who would recover three fumbles in Nebraska's Jl-17 victory, got it. Mr State's last realistic chance of catching the Cornhuskers passed into the realm of what-might-ha ve-been. A couple of series later, with Nebraska up Nebraska was all too happy to recover the loose ball at the MSU 25, and hammered into the end zone in just five easy steps two minutes later.

Result? Rather than drive for a score which possibly could have put State within striking distance at 17-10, the Bulldogs found themselves on the dim end of a 24-3 mismatch. What made the fumble all the more aggravating is that it tarnished the best single period of play the Bulldogs produced Saturday. The offense, held to just 63 total yards in the first half, slipped into gear after the intermission. Heretofore strangers to Nebraska territory, the Bulldogs not only crossed midfield on their first possession of the second half but ventured all the way to the Cornhusker 30. But on first down, Bond was stopped for a yard on a keeper before throwing two incomplete passes.

So Dana Moore, whose punts were a lone source of satisfaction for the 7,000 MSU fans in attendance, was summoned for a 47-yard field goal. The ball carried with plenty of room to spare, giving State a long-awaited taste of the scoreboard. No wonder, then, that Bond's fumble on MSU's next offensive series was so debilitating. "But that's just the way things seemed to go," said King. "We never got things together the way we should have." Said Bond: "We were due for a day like this.

We had five really outstanding games in a row before this. 31-10 on a 52-yard pass from Jeff Quinn to wingback Tim McCrady, State's kick returner, Glen Young, brought back a kickoff 62 yards to Nebraska's 38-yard line. Time was racing away from the Bulldogs, By the time they scored their second touchdown on an 1 1-yard pass from Bond to Mi bn. Sv. 0 iJ oNr, f'l-jV Sun Bowl here, none was as painful or perplexing than the snap MSU quarterback John Bond botched in the third quarter.

Not only did the missed connection dictate the third quarter's tempo, but it permanently put the Bulldogs' comeback chances into a coma. Here's the play: The Bulldogs are down, 17-3, but own the football inside their 30. The defense, which had played creditably despite yielding 17 points so far, has just forced the Cornhuskers to punt, and the momentum is slyly hinting at the Bulldogs. On first down, fullback Donald Ray King slashes through for 2 yards. On the next play, Bond options around right end for 5, setting up an obviously crucial third and 3 at the MSU 33.

State head coach Emory Bellard decided it was time to implement the reverse to wingback Mardye McDole a play that produced several long gains this season. "We were going to fake it to the fullback and hand it off on the reverse to Mardye," said Bellard, who never got the opportunity to see the strategy work. Bond, it seems, lined up improperly behind center Kent Hull. "I think that's what might have happened," said Bond. "I might have put my hands just a little bit to the left.

I don't know. "It was all my fault, because Kent gave me a good snap. It was just one of those things." Sun Bowl by finishing off a 76-yard drive on John Bond's 1-yard quarterback keeper. Nebraska led 24-10. State's defense, the victim of the offense's day-long affair with the faux pas, slammed the door shut on the Cornhuskers.

Three plays and a punt, and the Bulldogs had the ball back on their 39-yard line. Ten minutes and two seconds left and State's got the ball and hope. Do you believe in miracles? The trick play, MSU head coach Emory Bellard said later, was a Sun Bowl special, put in just for Nebraska just for that critical time when the Bulldogs needed a little something extra. It was a crutch to lean on in the clutch. Tim Parenton, the second of Bollard's two freshman quarterbacks, was sent in at wing-back.

Earlier in the game, on the long touchdown drive, he had set up the trick play by carrying the ball off a handof on a sweep to the right. It was the camouflage. This time Parenton was to take the hand-off from Bond, then pitch out to freshman running back George Wonsley. Jimmy Williams, one of Nebraska's two great defensive ends, would be sucked in like a bird into a jet engine. For once the Bulldogs would break a run around the corner.

The momentum, the ball, the play. The il it ft If 7 1 f- i.vv si V'i- A t. V. chael Haddix the seconds were merely ticking off a sentence passed earlier because of a series of Mississippi State errors. The Bulldogs, in effect, were beyond redemption after one or perhaps more mistake too many.

"I thought we were coming back," MSI' wingback Mardye McDole sighed wistfully in the locker room, "but we kept on making those silly mistakes." And Nebraska kept on taking advantaee. 1 ''O Staff photo by David Frank "We've looked sharp in practice," Bellard 1 said. "But we just made too many mis- tM takes" rates after scoring in the fourth quarter. 31.