Fred Akers passes away at age 82

[bullet 1631]

9 hours ago, orangecat92 said:

I was at last  game for Fred.  Aggies beat us 16-3 I think.  I remember how great a job Fred did for big games early in season.  If he could have somehow took just a tiny bit of that magic and put it in postseason, he could have had a chance at 3 big ones.  That 1981 team was an incredible 10-1-1, and with just a tiny bit of offensive imagination could have been 11-1..finished 2 in nation.  It is so strange to us now, but he really did put all of the best athletes on D.  Both Auburn games were incredible games, and playing Penn State in New jersey and whipping them really did some great things for us pr wise.  

Seriously do not think we lost a game in Sept. under Fred until maybe 85. 

Fun fact....in 1983, best defense ever imo, our D was out scoring our offense in game against TCU, through 3 quarters.  

I believe it was 2 interceptions returned for TDs. 

Jerry gray, 1985 best interception ever in college, imo.  Bomb thrown by Auburn...jerry flies like he’s floating on his back in pool, sticks one hand in air, catches ball and gently falls to grass turf.  

And of course the 84 game against auburn in Austin....guys remember bo was the fastest man in football, and how far did jerry have to run to get him? I want to guess 30  plus yards.  Took tremendous determination to get him.  

RIP Fred.

 

I think we had 17! players from that 83 defense get drafted (not all the same year).

 

[troph 25254]

23 minutes ago, bullet said:

And he knew how to use Earl when even the great DKR didn't.  Switched from the bone to the I and took an unlikely team to #1 all the way until the Cotton Bowl.

good point.

 

he's only 1 play from being as successful as Mack Brown.  He's arguable 2-3 plays from being second only to DKR (modern era).  He's absolutely our third best coach in the modern era.

[bullet 1631]

8 minutes ago, Valmy77 said:

The fans care, aren't they supposed to? The last three years of Akers tenure were also dismal, years with results fairly typical for the John Mackovic or David McWilliams eras. Sometimes it is just time for a coach to move on. Was there any signs he was going to turn it around? None. Zero. His program was in serious trouble.

I don't get this. In Texas Baseball nobody gives me shit for wanting coaches to take our team to the College World Series. Nothing toxic or morally depraved about that. But if you dare insist that we should find somebody who can get us to a conference championship in football well suddenly you are this terrible person. 

A bunch of people on this site root for Texas to lose.  That's why the quotes on "fans."  And spreading the fire the coach rumors kills recruiting, setting us back for years.  They were talking about it on Fox (or was it ESPN) during the games this weekend.  Even Earl called out DKR for not shutting down his friends who were telling recruits not to come to Texas in order to undermine Fred.  Darrell, though his friends, did far more to undermine this program in those first few years after he left than anything Mack could have ever done.  And Mack did a good job of bringing DKR back on our team instead of against it.  I was never a fan of putting Darrell's name on the stadium because of what he did during Fred's tenure simply because Darrell didn't get to choose his successor and Fred didn't grovel enough to him (Fred mistakenly listed to Allan Shivers who told him to ignore DKR who was a figurehead AD).  I'm old enough to remember Darrell's great years.  But I also remember the not so great years after he first retired.

Fred had a really tough job with the cheating and "fans" against him and did pretty well in spite of it.

[Texas73 422]

19 hours ago, Jive Turkey said:

reminds me of one of my favorite posters from the Austin 360 and early Hornfans days.  Turn the Page, Fred.

Akers should have won a national title or 2.

RIP

Our expectations are too high. 

 

 

As a '73 graduate we have won 4 in my lifetime and should have at least 2 more, the '83 season and the '09 season. I call Bullshit on anyone saying the University of Texas has too high of expectations regarding football. RIP Coach Akers.

[bullet 1631]

Mossy Cade DB, Ed Williams LB, Fred Acorn DB, Craig Curry DB, Eric Holle DE, Jitter Fields, DB, Jeff Leiding LB, John Haines DT, Roy Woodward DT, Mark Lang LB--10 defensive players taken in 1984.  Also Rick McIvor QB, Doug Dawson OG, David Jones C, Adam Scheiber OG, Bobby Micho TE, Kirk McJunkin OT and Mike Ruether C--7 offensive players in 84.

Jerry Gray DB, Tony Degrate DT, June James LB--3 more defensive players taken in 85.  Plus Terry Orr RB from offense.

Ty Allert LB and Chris Dulliban LB taken in 86-2 more.  Plus Gene Chilton C, John Stuart OT, John Teltschik P, Bryan Chester OG from offense.

Steven Braggs DB and Eric Jeffries DB were taken in 87. Also Evert Gay WR, William Harris TE, Jeff Ward, Laron Brown WR.

17 players from that defense (10 in first 5 rounds) along with 14 offensive players and 2 kickers.

[Nueces River Rat 5800]

Fred Akers loved Texas.   Under his leadership, we were always in the conversation and were not laughed at or ignored  like we are today..  The thing that got hung around his neck is we couldn't win the bowl games which is the opposite of Tom Herman who totally screws up a couple of winnable regular season games and then we look like a totally different team in the bowls.

[Hate 20264]

Our expectations are too high. 
 
 
As a '73 graduate we have won 4 in my lifetime and should have at least 2 more, the '83 season and the '09 season. I call Bullshit on anyone saying the University of Texas has too high of expectations regarding football. RIP Coach Akers.

This is correct. Is Texas and elite program? Nope. Should they be every single year because of the resources available and the talent available in state? Absogoddamlutely!

[n64ra 1150]

19 hours ago, troph said:

He never was as bad as folks made him out to be.  Almost 2 NCs and a heisman. RIP coach. 

Plus two conference championships. We'd give a lot for another decade like that ...

 

RIP Coach

Edited December 8, 2020 by n64ra

[horn4life 3840]

I was looking back as come of the other games I remember fuzzily (I have never been to a game without a flask) that Fred made me happy with.  And please do not let this thread evolve into a personal advocation for current coaching change.  Let's fucking for one God damn time honor the man. 

He was overall a class act, and gave me some damn fine memories, even if they are hazy.  (I had to look up the details)  Sophomore year the opener for the 1980 season was vs Arkansas, another big damn game with Texas at Memorial Stadium. As I looked back at 1980, it reminded me of what Akers faced, ranked #10 in opener vs Ark #6 , comes out on top. Moves to #2 on five wins including OU, then loses the CHEATING SMU, a very good Baylor Team.  Baylors legitimate rise I think was perhaps the final straw pay for A&M's move to a semi-pro model.  I would be a shitty Longhorns if I did not point out that A&M is of course the team that immortalized their willingness to cheat with "The 12th Man." They cheated and A&M beat Akers as well.  So a team that went from #2, and fell out of the rankings going 7-5.  (insert your Fire Fred chant here) Yet in 1981 he gives me a fantastic year, going 11-1 and ending the season ranked #2.  Arkansas... was the one L, I still hate them.

Anyhow a good coach who gave me a lot of fine memories, and who did it with class.

 

[Txslnghrns 1359]

Definitely hits close to home. Received these from Mark Petcovik and Coach Akers when I was 8 years old. The photo on the right was signed by the man himself. I have read many stories about how gracious Coach was with his time. And although I didn’t get to meet him personally, the fact that he took even a few seconds to sign a picture meant the world to an 8 year old kid. RIP Coach.

[horn4life 3840]

I was looking back as come of the other games I remember fuzzily (I have never been to a game without a flask) that Fred made me happy with.  And please do not let this thread evolve into a personal advocation for current coaching change.  Let's fucking for one God damn time honor the man. 

He was overall a class act, and gave me some damn fine memories, even if they are hazy.  (I had to look up the details)  Sophomore year the opener for the 1980 season was vs Arkansas, another big damn game with Texas at Memorial Stadium. As I looked back at 1980, it reminded me of what Akers faced, ranked #10 in opener vs Ark #6 , comes out on top. Moves to #2 on five wins including OU, then loses the CHEATING SMU, a very good Baylor Team.  Baylors legitimate rise I think was perhaps the final straw pay for A&M's move to a semi-pro model.  I would be a shitty Longhorns if I did not point out that A&M is of course the team that immortalized their willingness to cheat with "The 12th Man." They cheated and A&M beat Akers as well.  So a team that went from #2, and fell out of the rankings going 7-5.  (insert your Fire Fred chant here) Yet in 1981 he gives me a fantastic year, going 11-1 and ending the season ranked #2.  Arkansas... was the one L, I still hate them.

The next season December 1982 Ark was #6 and we were #12, we kicked their ever loving ass in the revenge rematch 33-7.  I still remember being horse as hell from yelling "poor Hoggiesssss!"

Anyhow a good coach who gave me a lot of fine memories, and who did it with class.

 

[Wally Pryor 5413]

1 hour ago, bullet said:

Mossy Cade DB, Ed Williams LB, Fred Acorn DB, Craig Curry DB, Eric Holle DE, Jitter Fields, DB, Jeff Leiding LB, John Haines DT, Roy Woodward DT, Mark Lang LB--10 defensive players taken in 1984.  Also Rick McIvor QB, Doug Dawson OG, David Jones C, Adam Scheiber OG, Bobby Micho TE, Kirk McJunkin OT and Mike Ruether C--7 offensive players in 84.

Jerry Gray DB, Tony Degrate DT, June James LB--3 more defensive players taken in 85.  Plus Terry Orr RB from offense.

Ty Allert LB and Chris Dulliban LB taken in 86-2 more.  Plus Gene Chilton C, John Stuart OT, John Teltschik P, Bryan Chester OG from offense.

Steven Braggs DB and Eric Jeffries DB were taken in 87. Also Evert Gay WR, William Harris TE, Jeff Ward, Laron Brown WR.

17 players from that defense (10 in first 5 rounds) along with 14 offensive players and 2 kickers.

You got back and watch these teams play defense, and how vicious they hit, and how they gang-tangled in unrelenting fashion and how nasty there were, it's crazy.

Night and day to what you see today. 

[Wally Pryor 5413]

Especially nice considering it was College Station. 

 

[satyanash 15659]

(Bobby Burton) Tuesday: A Life at Texas

Quote

86-31-2. That’s the final record of Coach Fred Akers at the University of Texas in his 10 seasons at the helm. But to many he was so much more than his record. I spoke to Les Koenning Jr. yesterday about Coach Akers’ passing. Les was a receiver and multi-year starter for Akers and the Horns and a team captain of the 1979 team. Les said that he and many of his former teammates received text messages yesterday informing them of Coach Akers’ passing.

Akers was largely well liked by his players, a second father figure to some. He had some interesting concepts as a coach, not just on the field where he believed in the I-formation, but also off of it, where he was an enormous advocate of mental strength and the power of positive thinking, instituting that into the normal routines of Texas players long before anyone had heard of Tony Robbins.

Akers took the reins from the legendary Darrell Royal in 1977. I went to Akers’ first game against Texas A&M, as the No. 1 Horns and Earl Campbell made a stout Aggie team look second-best in College Station and cemented his eventual selection as Heisman Trophy winner. That victory also propelled the Horns to the Cotton Bowl to play Notre Dame with the national championship on the line. The Horns lost in decisive fashion, 38-10, in a game that was never really close. But it was quite the debut for the first-year Texas coach.

In his first half-dozen years at Texas, Akers fielded such amazing defenses that it’s hard to single out just one. They were routinely devastating, overwhelming and absolutely stifling. Opponents advancing the ball past the 50-yard line against Texas sometimes took an act of Congress it seemed. But as more teams in the old Southwest Conference started to cheat, not just SMU which eventually got the death penalty with the Governor involved in a pay-for-play scandal, but also TCU and Texas A&M, Akers’ teams inevitably slipped.

The talent wasn’t what it once was. An embarrassing 55-14 loss to Iowa in the 1984 Freedom Bowl, a year in which Texas had been ranked No. 1 in the country, started the calls for Akers to be replaced. It took two more years before Akers was let go. Recruiting had slipped and the in-game coaching, particularly on offense, seemed to not have kept up with the times as more advanced passing concepts proliferated.

Akers went on to coach at Purdue, a proud school, but one that is traditionally in the middle of the pack in the Big 10. Akers was eventually let go by the Boilermakers after four years of mediocre results. After coaching, Akers retired to the Austin area, where he passed away yesterday at the age of 82.

**

One more thing according to Les: back in those days, the team captains were voted on by their teammates, not awarded by coaches or given necessarily to the best players. It was a rightfully earned badge of honor bestowed solely by teammates. That’s food for thought for all of us as Texas football looks to an uncertain future.

 

[tbone_ 14477]

reminds me of one of my favorite posters from the Austin 360 and early Hornfans days.  Turn the Page, Fred.
Akers should have won a national title or 2.
RIP

Favorite hornfans handle.

Also was a great bumper sticker IIRC.

RIP good sir.

[williemackgarza 1828]

Hookem coach akers.
RIP

[Lat22 4100]

My best friend’s dad was across the hall from Coach Akers in the memory care facility this summer. He was also in end stage dementia. My friend tells me that his dad would have been so excited to know they were “neighbors”. The conversations they could have had, etc. Now they’re both gone. F cancer, but also F dementia/Alzheimer’s. 

[83Horn 1666]

6 hours ago, horn4life said:

I was looking back as come of the other games I remember fuzzily (I have never been to a game without a flask) that Fred made me happy with.  And please do not let this thread evolve into a personal advocation for current coaching change.  Let's fucking for one God damn time honor the man. 

He was overall a class act, and gave me some damn fine memories, even if they are hazy.  (I had to look up the details)  Sophomore year the opener for the 1980 season was vs Arkansas, another big damn game with Texas at Memorial Stadium. As I looked back at 1980, it reminded me of what Akers faced, ranked #10 in opener vs Ark #6 , comes out on top. Moves to #2 on five wins including OU, then loses the CHEATING SMU, a very good Baylor Team.  Baylors legitimate rise I think was perhaps the final straw pay for A&M's move to a semi-pro model.  I would be a shitty Longhorns if I did not point out that A&M is of course the team that immortalized their willingness to cheat with "The 12th Man." They cheated and A&M beat Akers as well.  So a team that went from #2, and fell out of the rankings going 7-5.  (insert your Fire Fred chant here) Yet in 1981 he gives me a fantastic year, going 11-1 and ending the season ranked #2.  Arkansas... was the one L, I still hate them.

The next season December 1982 Ark was #6 and we were #12, we kicked their ever loving ass in the revenge rematch 33-7.  I still remember being horse as hell from yelling "poor Hoggiesssss!"

Anyhow a good coach who gave me a lot of fine memories, and who did it with class.

 

You and I were on campus during the same time, and I'm sure we attended many of the same games.  I was going to highlight these same games in remembering coach Akers.  The 1980 Arkansas game had been moved by ABC-TV to Sept. 1, a Monday night, because they wanted the first televised college game of the new decade to be the Texas-Arkansas game.  The atmosphere was awesome, the stadium was rocking, and it was an epic ass-kicking of the piggies, highlighted by Jeff Leiding going full Superman and destroying an Arkie kickoff returner.

One thing to mention about the 1979 OU game; this was the game where Billy Sims' bid for a second Heisman died.  Texas D, led my Steve "Bam Bam" McMichael was in OU's backfield all day.  I was sitting behind an older OU couple who turned to each other about mid-way through the third quarter and said, "I've never seen OU dominated like this".  The score did not indicate that domination, but it was a dominant performance.

Should also mention the 1981 Miami game.  Miami had not yet become "The U", but they were on the rise, and had a QB named Jim Kelly.  A great game, I most remember for a pass from Rick McIvor from UT's own end zone, about 65 yards on the fly to Herkie Walls, who juggles the pass, pins the ball against his face mask, before falling down, but he made the catch, and Texas went on the score a TD on the drive, winning the game 14-7.  Defense made many, many stops, as they always seemed to do when we needed it most.  I never worried when the opposing team would get a first and goal, because I knew there was a better than even chance that they would not score, or would be held to a FG.  Our defense during this era was just dominating, year after year.

Should also point out that the 1981 team finished 10-1-1.  Had to come from 14-0 down to pull out a 14-14 tie against Houston.  I often wonder what would have happened if we won that game.  If my memory serves me correctly, we were ranked in the top 5 above Clemson going into that game, but dropped with the tie.  Clemson finished the season undefeated and won the National Championship, but if we had beaten UH, what are the chances we would have remained above them in the rankings?

Coach Akers' teams, especially during his first 6-7 years, don't get the recognition they deserve.  Coach definitely did the University proud.  Hook 'Em, coach, and RIP.

Edited December 9, 2020 by 83Horn

[LTtxfan 50038]

Siap...

 

Edited December 9, 2020 by LTtxfan

[PTINS 3530]

RIP, Fred.

A good man, and a good man to represent UT.  Allways carried himself well.

Many fond memories.

1977, Fred’s first year and my senior year, and Earl’s. 1st win over OU in 7 years; Texas lost 2 quarterbacks in the first half. The sea of people on the Drag that night.

When asked about playing OU, “... they better have their headgear strapped on tight.”

Heartbreak at the Cotton Bowl after drinking too much Orange Kool-Aid.

“Air Fred” w/ Rick McIvor.

 

[torre 1298]

https://www.barkingcarnival.com/2020/12/7/22160352/fred-akers-passes-away

 

Stephen Ross, BC, posted a great vid of  a celebration for Coach Akers last year before the LSU game.   Interviews with many former players.   Must see.

Don't miss Robert Brewer at 6:53 or Doug Shankle at 8:25.

(anyone know how to embed vimeo vids, would be great.  may need a vimeo acct ?)

 

Edited December 9, 2020 by torre

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

13 hours ago, Hagbard Celine said:

here's the NYT report on how it went down....

+++

https://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/14/sports/texas-ties-oklahoma-15-15.html

A version of this article appears in print on Oct. 14, 1984, Section 5, Page 1 of the National edition with the headline: TEXAS TIES OKLAHOMA, 15-15

The 32-yard field goal by Jeff Ward of Texas, with zeroes on the clock at the end of a rainy, zany, slippery, mistake-filled afternoon, left the numbers tied on the scoreboard at 15.

But when it was time to leave the Cotton Bowl and head to the Texas State Fair, the emotions on the field, where Texas Longhorns leaped and Oklahoma Sooners sat sadly, and in the stands, where a celebration began on one side and obscenites were screamed from the other, bore little resemblance to the final score.

History will show that the 79th Texas-Oklahoma game ended in the fourth tie of the series, but emotional memories will say that Texas won, 15-15.

''It feels like a loss to me,'' said Keith Stanberry, the Sooner senior defensive back whose apparent interception on the next-to-last play of the game was ruled an incomplete pass that gave Texas the chance to tie.

''This is a lot better than losing,'' said a Texas senior, Rob Moerschell, who controlled a high snap on the last play and made the placement for Ward's game-saving kick.

The top-ranked Longhorns (3-0-1), who had led by 10-0 at the half, benefited from two penalties and the disputed incompletion that went against the Sooners (4-0-1), who had been ranked as high as No. 2 in one of the most recent news-agency polls. With the help of an Oklahoma decision to take an intentional safety with 2 minutes 10 seconds to play rather than punt from its own end zone, Texas was able to avoid the fourth defeat of a No. 1- ranked team this season.

Until the final moments, that defeat had seemed certain. The Sooner defense had stopped the Longhorns for four straight plays after facing a first-and-goal situation from its 2-yard line, giving Oklahoma the ball with 3:51 to play. But the Sooners moved just 5 yards, and the intentional safety, a high snap over the head of the punter Mike Winchester, cut the Oklahoma lead to 15-12. The free kick that followed gave the Longhorns the ball at the Texas 44 with 2:04 to play.

''I think it was the call, no doubt about it,'' said Barry Switzer, the Oklahoma coach. ''I'd rather kick from the 20 than punt from the back of the end zone with a rush coming at us.''

''I was pleased that he did it,'' Akers said.

What happened next can only fuel the debates that have grown since the series began in 1900. A first-down pass for 3 yards to Jerome Johnson, Switzer claimed, should have been ruled a fumble. A pass-interference call against the Sooners gave Texas a first down after Todd Dodge's third- down pass for Brent Duhon had fallen incomplete. An offside penalty against the Sooners on third-and-10 from the Oklahoma 41 gave the Longhorns the ball at the 36, with just 5 yards needed for the first down.

A 15-yard pass to the tight end William Harris and an 11-yard pass to Bryant moved the Longhorns to the Sooner 10 with 19 seconds to play. An illegal-motion penalty moved Texas back to the 15.

Then, on Dodge's last pass, the senior Bill Boy Bryant was double- teamed in the right side of the end zone by Stanberry and Andre Johnson, a freshman. The ball appeared to carom into the grasp of Stanberry with five seconds to play.

''It was an interception,'' Stanberry said. ''I went up to one official, and I asked him. He said I didn't catch the ball. Another official said, 'You caught the ball, but your feet weren't inbounds.' ''

Just a few moments before, the Sooners had seemed sure of a victory after they had taken advantage of several Texas mistakes and set aside their deceptive option offense to keep the ball between the tackles.

Winchester, the sophomore Sooner punter, set up the only Texas touchdown, a 25-yard pass from Dodge to Bryant, when he could not handle a snap in the first quarter. But Winchester began Oklahoma's third- quarter comeback with a 48-yard punt that was downed at the Texas 2-yard-line. Terry Orr, the Longhorn senior fullback, fumbled two plays later at the 6. When Stanberry recovered the ball, the game had taken its turn.

Steve Sewell, a senior running back who did not carry the ball in the first half, went straight ahead from the 5 for the score that brought the Sooners within 10-7. Foul on the Kickoff

A dead-ball foul on the kickoff sent Texas back to its 10-yard line. On fourth-and-12 from the 18, Terry Steelhammer, the Texas snapper for punts, sent the ball high over John Teltschik's head and out of the end zone for an Oklahoma safety that cut the Texas lead to 10-9.

Following the free kick, the Sooners converted three third-down situations and drove 71 yards for the score that put them ahead. Sewell, who had made two catches on third-down plays to keep the drive going, bounced off a tackler and went to the left for a 12-yard touchdown that gave Oklahoma a 15-10 lead.

But when the Sooners attempted a 2-point conversion, a looping pass for Sewell was tipped away by Steven Braggs, a sophomore defensive back, and the Longhorns were still within 5 points near the end of the third period.

With less than five minutes to go in the game, Texas had its chance to go back ahead when it drove to the Oklahoma 2-yard line. Orr gained a yard on first down but was stopped on the next two plays. Nelson took a pitchout to the right on fourth down, but Stanberry and Andre Johnson were there. Nelson slipped, and Texas was stopped for what seemed to be the last time.

That is, until the absolutely last time, the moment that will inflame future conversations at future state fairs.

''If we were the No. 1 football team,'' said Danny Bradley, the Oklahoma quarterback, ''we wouldn't have gone for the tie.''

''Generally you don't like a tie,'' said Fred Akers, the Texas coach. ''But this is not generally.''

 

You found an article written by someone who didn’t believe his lying eyes. No mention of the obvious knee down by the punter, and no mention of the no call of the PI. After tgat punt, our RB (Nelson?) was caught before he got to the EZ when he would have walked in with a shorter field. On the last pass into the EZ, it was obvious PI, at least the way PI used to be called. I don’t know anything about that Johnson fumble of which Switzer spoke, but I’m blind to those kind of things. 
 

But, thanks. 

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

10 hours ago, bullet said:

If only they had called the most flagrant holding of the decade on Georgia's TD play...

Of course, then Nebraska probably wouldn't have been sleep walking through the first half against Miami and we would still not have been #1.

Gotdam right. Mark Lang somehow fell backward on a cut block. That only happens when it’s a cut tackle. And the QB was Lang’s man on that option. 

Edited December 9, 2020 by ImissWallyPryor

[Kyle 207]

I fell in love with Texas football while Akers roamed the sidelines ... we've been paying the toll for running him off ... 

RIP Coach. G-d bless.

[Wally Pryor 5413]

11 hours ago, torre said:

https://www.barkingcarnival.com/2020/12/7/22160352/fred-akers-passes-away

 

Stephen Ross, BC, posted a great vid of  a celebration for Coach Akers last year before the LSU game.   Interviews with many former players.   Must see.

Don't miss Robert Brewer at 6:53 or Doug Shankle at 8:25.

(anyone know how to embed vimeo vids, would be great.  may need a vimeo acct ?)

 

Thanks for posting.  Great stuff.   Especially love the singing of the Eyes at the end.

Edited December 9, 2020 by Wally Pryor

[Tex Long 4677]

Always like ol' Fred. He was not a bad coach, not at all.

In tribute to him, I suggest that the title of this thread be changed to "Tom Herman killed Fred Akers". 

[LTtxfan 50038]

Siap....

 

Edited December 9, 2020 by LTtxfan

[MrPhlegm 3413]

rip coach

[Davis Lane 6014]

On 12/8/2020 at 12:56 AM, satyanash said:

 

I still have not forgiven Jeff Ward for his performance in the '84 Cotton Bowl vs. Georgia.

Unfortunately, it seems his two missed field goals are constantly overshadowed by the muffed punt.

RIP, Coach.

Edited December 10, 2020 by Davis Lane

[Wally Pryor 5413]

Akers, however, didn’t try to emulate his predecessor’s charm. In ten seasons at Texas, Akers appears never to have uttered a memorable or controversial quote. His former defensive coordinator, Phil Bennett, told the Austin American-Statesman that Akers “was absolutely one of the finest and most balanced human beings I’ve ever been around, besides being a Hall of Fame coach.” Once, when Southern Methodist University coach Ron Meyer lost his place during a speech and quipped, “Excuse me a Fred Akers moment,” we reporters ran to Akers for reaction and got nothing. Well, we got one thing: Texas 30, SMU 6. 

 

Texas Monthly:

https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-culture/fred-akers-texas-longhorns-football-death/

 

[wildturkey8 24]

It slipped toward the end but it seemed as if Texas lived in the top 10 for most of Fred's reign in Austin. 

[dcar00 14998]

On 12/10/2020 at 3:42 PM, Davis Lane said:

I still have not forgiven Jeff Ward for his performance in the '84 Cotton Bowl vs. Georgia.

Unfortunately, it seems his two missed field goals are constantly overshadowed by the muffed punt.

RIP, Coach.

yep, Jeff Ward owes Craig Curry a shit ton of beers.

[Hagbard Celine 11296]

On 12/8/2020 at 11:00 PM, ImissWallyPryor said:

You found an article written by someone who didn’t believe his lying eyes. No mention of the obvious knee down by the punter, and no mention of the no call of the PI. After tgat punt, our RB (Nelson?) was caught before he got to the EZ when he would have walked in with a shorter field. On the last pass into the EZ, it was obvious PI, at least the way PI used to be called. I don’t know anything about that Johnson fumble of which Switzer spoke, but I’m blind to those kind of things. 
 

But, thanks. 

welp, just shoot me then.  i tried.  the knee down is clear in the replays.  i missed that it wasn't in the article.

you are correct on the last pass, i totally bassacwards misremembered the pick only happened because of the non-called PI, not that we got a gift PI call.  the criminal bitches about the inbounds feet down but ignores the non-call.

i think you are right, it balanced out against the non-whistle bounced snap knee down punt.

but my original point stands, as a league game with b12 refs we lose 15-12.

[Hagbard Celine 11296]

21 minutes ago, wildturkey8 said:

It slipped toward the end but it seemed as if Texas lived in the top 10 for most of Fred's reign in Austin. 

and that's why a metric fuck ton of us in our 50s and 60s went to the 40.

[bullet 1631]

On 12/8/2020 at 2:37 PM, Nueces River Rat said:

Fred Akers loved Texas.   Under his leadership, we were always in the conversation and were not laughed at or ignored  like we are today..  The thing that got hung around his neck is we couldn't win the bowl games which is the opposite of Tom Herman who totally screws up a couple of winnable regular season games and then we look like a totally different team in the bowls.

In t

 

On 12/8/2020 at 10:02 PM, PTINS said:

RIP, Fred.

A good man, and a good man to represent UT.  Allways carried himself well.

Many fond memories.

1977, Fred’s first year and my senior year, and Earl’s. 1st win over OU in 7 years; Texas lost 2 quarterbacks in the first half. The sea of people on the Drag that night.

When asked about playing OU, “... they better have their headgear strapped on tight.”

Heartbreak at the Cotton Bowl after drinking too much Orange Kool-Aid.

“Air Fred” w/ Rick McIvor.

 

Remember the impromptu parades on the drag for 3 or 4 weeks until the city shut it down?  Weren't rated too high at the start but kept moving up.  That was a fun season.  Year after 5-5-1.

[Deej 77895]

Rest in peace, Coach.

Can't believe this thread is only four pages.

[Duane Moore 5773]

On 12/8/2020 at 7:57 AM, DixonSteele said:

I also attended Fred's weekly luncheons at the Texas Union when I was a student from 79-83. My friend and I would get there early so we could sit right across the table form Coach Akers. He was truly a nice humble person who always politely answered all of our stupid questions. RIP

Love that someone else remembered these. It’s hard to believe these days, but back then instead of a Monday press conference the head football coach at the University of Texas would come to a lunch at the Student Union that was open to the public. Students could attend, it was like going to an Optimists Club Meeting. The coach would talk about the game and the team, and people could ask them questions. A different age. 
 

Would recommend the On Second Thought podcast this week. Bohls and Golden interview Lawrence Sampleton, Tony Degrate, and Robert Brewer about Coach Akers. 

[Hagbard Celine 11296]

On 12/8/2020 at 4:05 PM, satyanash said:

(Bobby Burton) Tuesday: A Life at Texas

But as more teams in the old Southwest Conference started to cheat, not just SMU which eventually got the death penalty with the Governor involved in a pay-for-play scandal, but also TCU and Texas A&M, Akers’ teams inevitably slipped.

If roach were dirty during fred's era, first i've heard of it.  tcu's record during Fred's tenure:

 

77  2-9

78  2-9

79  2-8-1

80  1-10

81  2-7-2

82  3-8

83  1-8-2

84  8-4

85  3-8

86  3-8

 

 

royal had problems with roach in the first half of his tenure going 6-5 before solving the roach problem and winning every year from 68 through 76 including some astronomical ass whompings in both austin and funkytown.

 

fred did not have a roach problem:

 

w 77  +30  44-14

w 78  +41  41-0

w 79  +25  35-10

w 80  +25  51-26

w 81  +16  31-15

w 82  +17  38-21

w 83  +6    20-14

w 84  +21  44-23

w 85  +20  20-0

w 86  +29  45-16

[Duane Moore 5773]

14 minutes ago, Hagbard Celine said:

If roach were dirty during fred's era, first i've heard of it.  tcu's record during Fred's tenure:

 

77  2-9

78  2-9

79  2-8-1

80  1-10

81  2-7-2

82  3-8

83  1-8-2

84  8-4

85  3-8

86  3-8

 

 

royal had problems with roach in the first half of his tenure going 6-5 before solving the roach problem and winning every year from 68 through 76 including some astronomical ass whompings in both austin and funkytown.

 

fred did not have a roach problem:

 

w 77  +30  44-14

w 78  +41  41-0

w 79  +25  35-10

w 80  +25  51-26

w 81  +16  31-15

w 82  +17  38-21

w 83  +6    20-14

w 84  +21  44-23

w 85  +20  20-0

w 86  +29  45-16

Jim Wacker and Kenneth Davis got them to 8-4 in 1984 and they promptly got busted for it and went on probation. 

[Hagbard Celine 11296]

12 minutes ago, Duane Moore said:

Jim Wacker and Kenneth Davis got them to 8-4 in 1984 and they promptly got busted for it and went on probation. 

didn't know/remember that.  fred still beat their ass by 3 tds.

[Duane Moore 5773]

28 minutes ago, Hagbard Celine said:

didn't know/remember that.  fred still beat their ass by 3 tds.

Yeah, even in the mediocrity of the McWilliams era, TCU was never a serious threat. I think he’s losing his edge, but it really is impressive what Patterson has done there given their history since about 1940. 

[Hagbard Celine 11296]

sweathog patterson is feasting on bevo and that needs to be put a stop to

[satyanash 15659]

 

[Hagbard Celine 11296]

great article. ward owes curry a stick of beaman's.

[orangecat92 306]

I remember where I was on Jan. 1, 1984, working what amounted to a double shift at Wilson’s next to Highland Mall.  Walked over to the electronics dept to see only one play of the Cotton Bowl, a FG attempt by Ward in the first half that appeared to go directly over the upright.  Blame Ward, swirling winds, etc. 

As a pretty serious fan, it seemed like Fred was never quite comfortable with his QB. Moerschell the runner, Mcivor the pro arm.  Blame Edwin Simmons’ DNA, because I did watch all of the RRS, and he was better than Marcus Dupree.  Simmons reminded me of Dickerson, tall, long strides.  If Edwin is healthy enough to start in the Cotton Bowl it would have most likely been  a 2 TD game.  But most of all, blame the unknown defensive coach who should have said “ 100 % Peter, if they punt the ball”.  

I dont think anybody on the Texas sideline thought Georgia would even think about punting the ball.

 

 

 

[CTC2 2871]

I remember him speaking at my high school's football banquet when he was recruiting Todd Dodge and Brent Duhon.  I was in junior high.  He wore an all white suit and I remember thinking he was the coolest coach there probably was.  

Loved his show where he was sitting in the lazy boy describing the past weeks game.  For a time the show was called "Akers of Cotton".

Was a freshman when he got fired.  After that saw him at Matt's El Rancho sitting at a table next to me and my friends.  I was kind of drunk but I walked over and shook his hand.  He picked up our bill before he left.  

[tbone_ 14477]

My freshman year was his last year too. Wasn’t a great team iirc. Boy did it get worse from there though.

[El Squared 1856]

On 12/7/2020 at 5:55 PM, Gut Wagon said:

His first year was my senior year at UT, and that was a magical season all the way to the Cotton Bowl. Too bad we came up one game short, but it really was an unlikely run to the MNC game. And as noted, he had some other successes here. Always thought Fred was a good guy, and I liked that his teams tended to be tough-nosed. RIP, good sir.

His first year ,1977, was my freshman year at UT.

DKR had just retired and I think that season was 5-5-1.

Nobody thought we would do shit. Earl was back however and that changed everything.

Even though we had 2 QBs knocked out in the sooner game, we won with the 3rd stringer, and crushed the rest of the season. 

Russell Erxleben was the kicker and kicked a 67 yd field goal vs Rice. Brad Shearer won the Outland trophy that season. It was blast until getting smashed by domer in the cold cold Cotton Bowl (Joe Montana? IIRC).

Anyway, lots of winning. His last season was 8-3 (too lazy to look up).

Very good times. RIP..

 

[DalTxHornFan 3130]

24 minutes ago, El Squared said:

His first year ,1977, was my freshman year at UT.

DKR had just retired and I think that season was 5-5-1.

Nobody thought we would do shit. Earl was back however and that changed everything.

Even though we had 2 QBs knocked out in the sooner game, we won with the 3rd stringer, and crushed the rest of the season. 

Russell Erxleben was the kicker and kicked a 67 yd field goal vs Rice. Brad Shearer won the Outland trophy that season. It was blast until getting smashed by domer in the cold cold Cotton Bowl (Joe Montana? IIRC).

Anyway, lots of winning. His last season was 8-3 (too lazy to look up).

Very good times. RIP..

 

Ditto for me.  Best Texas/OU game ever.  The post-game parties on the Drag were also great that year.  Thanks, Coach. 

[El Squared 1856]

1 minute ago, DalTxHornFan said:

Ditto for me.  Best Texas/OU game ever.  The post-game parties on the Drag were also great that year.  Thanks, Coach. 

I was on the Drag shortly after the OU  game was over and people we going apeshit, running up to girls in cars kissing complete strangers, horns honking, Chinese fire drills , etc...it was all spontaneous and crazy. Lots of people got laid that night and lots of people threw up.