Longhorn stampede tramples Sooners

UT defense, Applewhite knock cotton out of OU

10/11/1998

By CHIP BROWN / The Dallas Morning News

Oklahoma fans were out at the State Fair looking for carnival rides, corny dogs, anything to salvage their trip to Dallas.

One thing is sure: They weren't in the Cotton Bowl during the fourth quarter Saturday as Texas finished off a 34-3 victory, the most lopsided UT win over OU in nearly 30 years.

"It felt really good to see half the stadium in orange, and half the stadium mostly white-and-blue empty seats," said UT quarterback Major Applewhite, who might have played himself into a starting job with Baylor looming Oct. 24 and fifth-year senior Richard Walton now back from a broken bone in his right hand.

The game's sympathetic storyline was Texas' Ricky Williams' wearing No. 37 in honor of former SMU great Doak Walker in "The House that Doak Built."

After the game, Williams apologized for the blood and dirt on his jersey and handed it to eight members of Walker's family in the locker room. They thanked him for his tribute, which included 31 carries for 139 yards and two touchdowns - a 78-yard TD run in the third quarter was nullified by a holding penalty. He passed Georgia's Herschel Walker for third place on the NCAA Division I career rushing list.

But the bottom line for the game was the fact that Texas' defense dominated, and the offense put up record-setting numbers with a big-play passing game before a sellout crowd of 75,587 fans.

There might still be some question whether Texas (4-2, 2-1 Big 12) is this good or Oklahoma (2-3, 0-2) is that bad. But the numbers in the record books will show that Texas and Applewhite set a series record for passing yards (293) and a school record for longest TD pass play (97 yards), while the Texas defense had four sacks, came up with four turnovers and held OU to its lowest point total in this series since the Longhorns beat the Sooners, 19-0, in 1965. Oklahoma's 197 yards were the fewest allowed by Texas since giving up 188 yards against SMU in 1985.

"The defense dominated today, and I haven't been able to say that in a long time," Texas senior linebacker Dusty Renfro said. "We've had trouble stopping the run in the past, but I think we're getting rid of that problem."

For Oklahoma, the loss only contributed to coach John Blake's already shaky job security as the Sooners again flip-flopped quarterbacks Brandon Daniels and Patrick Fletcher before finishing the game with Carter graduate Eric Moore, who last took a snap at the end of 1997.

"The line's not playing well. The backs aren't playing well. We just aren't executing," said OU running back De'Mond Parker, who was held to 93 yards on 19 carries after producing 291 yards against Texas last year. "The whole team is playing bad right now, and the whole team needs to pick it up."

The Sooners repeatedly hurt themselves. They squandered great field position on their first drive with a celebration penalty, had a 36-yard TD run by Parker called back for an illegal block and wasted a 79-yard kickoff return to the Texas 15 to open the second half by fumbling on first-and-goal at the Texas 1.

One play reflective of OU's day saw Parker fumble three times on a single run in the first quarter before OU recovered the ball for a 2-yard loss.

Trailing, 17-3, at halftime, OU's Michael Thornton put some life in the Sooners by returning the second-half kickoff to the Texas 15. After two Parker runs and an option keep by Daniels, OU had first-and-goal at the 1.

But Daniels fumbled while trying to tuck the ball away for a sneak, and UT's Casey Hampton recovered at the 2.

After Williams ran for one yard, Applewhite stood calmly in the end zone and hit Wane McGarity wide open at midfield behind Sooner cornerbacks Mike Woods and Corey Ivy for a 97-yard TD pass, the longest in school history, surpassing a 96-yard scoring pass from Todd Dodge to Donovan Pitts against Rice in 1985. Applewhite was 14-of-27 for 293 yards, with two TD passes and one interception.

"I knew we had talent," Williams said. "But the defense needed to get their confidence up. Now, we're rolling, and I think it will continue."

Texas safety Quentin Jammer helped swing the momentum in Texas' favor when he picked off Daniels at the UT 14 and returned it 18 yards to the 32 midway through the first quarter.

The play set up a 68-yard drive in which Williams accounted for a 7-yard pass play and 32 rushing yards, including a 20-yard TD run behind a crushing block by fullback Ricky Brown for a 7-3 lead. A 56-yard pass from Applewhite to Kwame Cavil with 46 seconds left in the first quarter put Texas up, 14-3.