Lindsay, in 1970, was returning many starters from the 1969 Leopard football team which finished with four wins, six losses and one tie. The question was: Even with the Leopards returning many starters from the 1969 club, how could Lindsay expect a better 1970 season - since they experienced a less than stellar record in 1969? The Leopards would soon 'answer the bell', and in a big way.
The Lindsay Leopards began the 1970 season by shutting out Purcell, 34-0; Yukon, 30-0; and Crooked Oak, 47-0, before facing Marlow (an old rival) in the fourth game of the year.
On September 26, 1970, a few days after Lindsay beat Crooked Oak, an article in The Oklahoman reported:
Lindsay Fells Crooked Oak
Lindsay's Mike Terry carried the ball four times for 128 yards and three touchdowns to trigger the Leopards to a 47-0 trouncing of Crooked Oak Friday night. Terry darted 56 and 47 yards to touchdowns in the opening quarter and eight yards to a second-quarter tally. Bud McGuire ran 13 yards to another first-period touchdown and Billy Welsh scored on a four-yard run in the second stanza as the Leopards slashed to a 34-0 advantage at halftime.
Johnny Branch ran 31 and seven yards to touchdowns in the third period for the final reading and Lindsay's alternate unit played the entire fourth quarter. Crooked Oak could get no closer than the Lindsay 40.
I was an eighth grade student during the 1970 Leopard season at Lindsay Junior High, and three things were very clear after that third game:
1) The Leopards had a very fast and elusive tailback, Mike Terry, which was different than the big and strong, but not necessarily speedy tailbacks from previous years. This added a dimension to the Leopards which they had not previously enjoyed.
2) As evidenced from the article above, Joe Tunnel had also begun to spread out the ball-carrying chores, with several runners shouldering the load. This dimension was also different from seasons past in which one tailback may carry 25 to 35 times in a game.
3) The Leopards evidently had a smothering defense, as they had shut-out their first three opponents by a combined score of 111-0.
The 1970 Lindsay Leopards were to play Marlow for the fourth game. The coaching staff for Lindsay now included Head Coach Joe Tunnel, and assistants S.J. Foster, H.O. Estes (from the 1955 and 1958 championship teams), Charley Heatly (famed Leopardette basketball coach which had won the 1968 state title) and R.V. Hayden, who would also win the 1973 Class 2A baseball championship. (It was unclear what the assistants' first name initials stood for, so students and players were free to guess.)
Lindsay Junior High students did not see many of the High School students very often, if ever, since the Junior High hallway ran east and west on the south side of the the School, while the High School hallway ran parallel on the north side. Junior High students were forbidden from entering the High School hallway unless having a class close by. The rare glimpse of one of my Leopard heroes or one of the High School Leopardettes was something I remembered.
Before playing Marlow in the season's fourth game, Tony Henson (my cousin and Leopard underclassman) told me that Coach Foster had told the team that Marlow would probably end their shut-out streak at three. It was a motivational technique often employed by coaches. Lindsay wound up beating Marlow, 35-0, for their fourth consecutive shut-out. The Leopards then beat Dunjee (which consolidated with Star Spencer a few years later), 57-6; Comanche, 49-12; El Reno, 28-6; Western Heights, 43-6; Pauls Valley, 43-14, and Wynnewood, 56-0, to finish the regular season with 10 wins and no losses. They had compiled 422 points (six touchdowns per game) while holding the opposition to only 44 during the entire regular season, and were to play Wewoka in the state Class 2A Quarterfinals. I had attended every "home" game that year and several "away" games. My closest encounter with Coach Joe Tunnel during my eighth grade year, was when I was walking down the north-south hallway during lunch hour. To pass time after eating lunch we (junior high students) could walk circles down the hall from south to north, exiting on the north end (where we may see a High School Leopard or Leopardette), turn left and walk back to the south end of the school to complete the endless circle, until the bell rang, signaling the start of fourth period. Coach Tunnel was on hall duty one day, and as I passed him with one of my friends (not a girl, LOL) - he said "Hey! I see that you caught a touchdown pass last night!" I didn't even know that Coach Tunnel knew who I was. I was an eighth grader who started on the Junior High (Cubs) team, sometimes, but it sure made me feel good knowing that the Leopard Head Coach had noticed. To me, Joe Tunnel was the Tom Landry (Dallas Cowboys coach) of High School football.
On November 16, 1970, after the regular football season ended, Lynn Garnand, The Oklahoman sports writer wrote:
Lindsay Ends In No. 1 Spot
As they have done all season long, Lindsay and Helena styand No. 1 in 2A and C, respectively, in The Daily Oklahoman's final high school football rankings of those classes. Both were pre-season favorites in their classes and both have swept aside all opposition with ease in strolling to unbeaten records during the regular season...
Lindsay, which will face eighth-ranked Wewoka in the quarterfinal playoffs this week, has scored more points than any team in the state with the exception of Helena, which has to be considered in another category because it competes in eight-man ball.
The Leopards have scored at least four touchdowns in every game, their closest "call" being a 28-6 decision over El Reno...
The week after playing Wewoka, The Daily Oklahoman sports headline read:
Lindsay Rolls Over Wewoka
WEWOKA -- Top-ranked Lindsay looked like it here Friday night, walloping Wewoka, 26-6, in the opening round of the state Class 2A high school football playoffs. You might say the home-standing Tigers were Terry-fied.
Senior halfback Mike Terry, running straight at the smaller Wewoka line, scored two touchdowns and rambled for 129 yards in 24 carries, easily tops in the contest. Terry, who weighs only 176, also set up the Leopards first two touchdowns with lengthy punt returns. He tallied the first touchdown himself.
Lindsay's defense had its terrifying points too. Led by Mark Loman, Scott Rose, Mike Flesher and Bud McGuire, the defenders kept Wewoka bottled up most of the night...
The Leopards, who ran their unbeaten streak to 11, made few mistakes, and stayed almost exclusively on the ground in handing Wewoka its fourth setback in 10 games. Both teams started cautiously before Lindsay found the right combination twice in the second quarter to lead, 13-0, at intermission. Terry raced 40 yards with a Wewoka punt near the end of the first quarter, setting Lindsay up in business on the Tiger 10. Terry scored three plays later from the three and McGuire's kick was perfect for a 7-0 Lindsay lead 11:56 before halftime.
The halfback speedster was at it again late in the quarter, running 17 yards with a Wewoka punt to the Tiger 34. The Leopards scored in seven plays, halfback Rose loping across from the 14.
Smith's touchdown gallup following a Lindsay fumble on its own 32 gave the partisan (Tiger) crowd of 3,400 a glimmer of hope at 13-6, with 7:15 left in the third period. But the Leopards, calling on a 29-yard pass play from quarterback Tony Cruse to Terry, marched 64 yards in 11 plays to take a 19-6 lead as the quarter ended. McGuire slanted four yards off left tackle for the touchdown and a two-point conversion attempt through the air failed.
Rose picked off a Wewoka pass and returned 22 yards to the Tiger 15 to set up the final Lindsay touchdown. The Leopards scored in four plays, Terry running up the middle from the three.
The state Class 2A semifinals pitted the Lindsay Leopards against the Watonga Eagles. On November 28, 1970, two days after the semi-final game, Gary Willis of The Daily Oklahoman reported:
Lindsay Controls Watonga
Lindsay -- Now unbeaten in 12 games, Lindsay's Leopards played ball control and took advantage of Watonga's keying on Mike Terry for a 22-6 Class 2A semifinal victory Friday night. Watonga's Eagles held Terry to 89 yards on 30 carries, but the strategy backfired as two other Leopards gained 80-plus yards each.
Lindsay ran 20 more plays from scrimmage than the Eagles did and the possessions played a major role in the victory that sends Lindsay into the state finals for their sixth shot at the title.
The first quarter was the big one for the Leopards. The Lindsay defense held Watonga to nine plays from scrimmage for no first downs while the Leopard offense scored once on Terry's five-yard dive at the end of a 13-play, 63-yard drive. Bud McGuire kicked the extra point with 6:21 left in the opening period. It was Lindsay's first possession of the game.
McGuire rushed for 45 yards on nine carries and the third member of the backfield, Johnny Branch, gained 88 yards on 10 carries. But Scott Rose, a junior halfback, added 83 yards in only five carries. Rose set up the final Lindsay touchdown on the first play of the third quarter.
It didn't look like Lindsay needed that third touchdown since quarterback Tony Cruse scored toward the end of the first half on a one-yard sneak. Cruse's touchdown came at the end of another 13-play drive, this one going 76 yards and ending with 1:19 left in the second stanza. But Rose seemed determined to get Lindsay into a comfortable position. After the opening kickoff for the second half, he dashed 57 yards and put the Leopards in business on the Eagle seven. It took McGuire seven yards on a power play to stop the clock at 11:08 and close out Lindsay's scoring.
Terry did just about everything in the game except rush for his customary 100 yards, but he caught the only pass that was completed, intercepted one pass and punted for position three times.He also fumbled on his own 25 and Bill Haley scooped up the ball and dashed into the end zone.
From that time on, Watonga worried some Lindsay lookers-on, but the Eagle threats were held off by a stingy Leopard defense.
It is about this time that my dad, who played for the Oklahoma A&M Aggies after graduating from Marlow, told me that Mike Terry is one of the best running backs he had ever seen. He had watched (not really, because he was now blind) Mike Terry play all season long, and it was his opinion that "Iron Mike" Terry was among the best. I believe that Mike Terry was given the nickname by the Golden Voice of the Golden Trend, Jerry Hinkle, who was the announcer for Leopard football home games.
Since this is my article, I'll share some more personal observations of the 1970 Lindsay Leopards.
One thing I did notice about the 1970 Lindsay Leopards is that most of them had beautiful girlfriends.
While I did not see the players with their girlfriends very often, I did know that players such as Mark Loman, Mike Terry, Billy Welsh and many others, could always "get along with the beautiful girls". But in the opinion of an eighth grader at Lindsay Junior High - all of the Lindsay High School girls were beautiful.
Lindsay beating Watonga in the state Class 2A semi-finals landed the Leopards in the championship game in Edmond at Central State University. I was very excited during the week leading up to the game, because my dad and mom were going to take Dana, Johnny and me to the game. I had attended all home games previous to the championship game, so this was the first game away from home that I would see. In my opinion, the 1970 Leopards rivaled the 1967 Clinton Red Tornadoes in talent. As a matter of fact, the 1967 Clinton Red Tornadoes, who was named the best high school football team in America, averaged 38.5 points per game while allowing 9.7 points per game during the regular season - while the 1970 Lindsay Leopards averaged 42.2 points per game offensively and allowed only 4.4.
Most, if not all, Lindsay Leopard fans know what happened on that cold December evening in 1970, and do not want to re-live it, but for those who do not know - The Daily Oklahoman reported on December 5, 1970:
Nowata Grabs First Crown
EDMOND -- Lindsay's season-long top ranking and its perfect 12-0 record went up in smoke Friday night, and when the smoke cleared Nowata had claimed its first state championship in the Class 2A finals. The Leopards built up a 12-0 lead in the first quarter with the help of two Nowata fumbles but the Ironmen fought back for a 14-12 victory which went right down to the end of the wire.
It was another great comeback for a Nowata team which started the season 0-2-1, but then streaked to 10 in a row and turned their No. 9 ranking into the 2A crown.
Mike Terry scored both Lindsay touchdowns, ending a 13 play 50-yard surge and a three-play, 30-yard foray on touchdowns of three and 20 yards. Bud McGuire, who at one time during the regular season kicked 33 consecutive extra points, missed on both occasions and in the first half on two medium range field goal tries.
It was Nowata's turn in the second half with 230-pound senior defensive tackle Justin Pugh recovering a fumble on Lindsay's 34. Five plays later the Ironmen had a first and goal at Lindsay's nine yard line. Tom Dennis burst through the line for three yards and Scott Rose tossed Rick Reid for a three yard loss. But Dee Paige hit Bruce Campbell in the end zone for Nowata's first tally. And the Ironmen, despite being on the low end of the statistical board, were right back in the thick of things when Ivan Walker booted the extra point.
That brought Nowata's defense to life with Pugh, Ken Griffin, and Campbell allowing Lindsay just two yards on its next possession and Mike Terry was able to get off only a 19-yard punt into a strong southerly wind. Paige hit Campbell again for nine yards to Lindsay's 42 and Dennis picked up four before Terry Henry tossed Walker for a two-yard loss. But Paige, a south-paw senior, spotted Rick Reid racing toward the end zone and completed a 40-yard toss.Walkers second boot made it 14-12 with 4:46 left in the third period.
Lindsay was to get in Nowata territory three more times, punting from the 43, losing a fumble at the 26 and missing a first down by one yard at the six with 1:23 remaining. That last march started on the 50 and after eight plays the Leopards had a first and 10 on Nowata's 14.
Terry, who bulled his way for 127 yards on 36 carries, picked up two and then three and, with 1:44 remaining, Lindsay called a time out. After time resumed Terry carried over right tackle for three more, setting up a fourth and two on the six, and another time out was called. Terry again hit the same spot but this time only got one yard and with 1:23 left Nowata had the football... and the rest is now history.
It was the most painful loss I had encountered in high school football, and still is to this day. It brought back memories of the December 31, 1967, "Ice Bowl" (the temperature was 11 degrees below zero) NFL Championship Game in which my beloved Dallas Cowboys lost to the Green Bay Packers, 21-17, on the game's last play. I actually crawled under my bed so no one would see me, and wept. While I did not cry after the Leopards were defeated by Nowata in 1970, I was still in somewhat of a shock as time expired. Lindsay had more first downs, 15 to 9, and more yards rushing, 204 to 96 for Nowata, but you know what they say about statistics. As a matter of fact, S.J. Foster, an assistant coach at the time, would say a few years later after Lindsay had defeated a rival in a similar fashion - "I'd rather be lucky than good." When Coach Foster made that statement in 1974 following a win over Purcell, I did not know he was probably referring to the 1970 Leopards, but I really don't know. Coach Foster was very prophetic.
While some arm-chair quarterbacks are good at second-guessing the play calling, I would have called it the same way as Coach Tunnel, as one should "dance with the one that brought you". My dad, however, said that if the Leopards had a good play-action pass - Quarterback Tony Cruse faking the blast to Terry, and hitting Billy Gibson streaking down the middle, they might have broken the defensive battle. Who really knows though.
Since I was personally familiar with some of the 1970 Leopards (I was not friends with any of them, except for maybe Billy Gibson, who would take me for occasional rides around the school in his car, getting me out of circling the school on foot. I felt like I was truly a "leopard", as my eighth grade friends watched from the front steps.) I thought I would share some things about where they are now. In my observations of the 1970 Leopards and even the Leopard teams prior to 1970, it was certainly true that "You gotta be a football hero to get along with the beautiful girls." In my mind, there has never been an exception to the rule.
I believe the 1970 Leopards may have been one of the top teams ever fielded by Lindsay, if not the No. 1 Leopard team of all time. We may only seed it fifth, however, because there are four state championship squads that will be seeded one through four in our 16-team playoff at the end of this series. The fifth seed will be playing a still undermined 12th seed in the first round. Since I believe the 1970 team was among the best, and since I personally know or knew of many players from that '70 squad, I thought it would be a good idea for our readers to know what many are doing today. While some weren't mentioned in the articles quoted above, what follows is a listing of some of these players, where they are today and what they did following high school:
Billy Gibson, wide receiver, was one of my closest high school friends from that 1970 Leopard football team. He signed with Panhandle State University to play football in 1971, and later worked in the oil and gas industry. Billy passed away in 2013 at the age of 60.
Larry Edzards, quarterback, graduated from the University of Oklahoma and entered the banking business after college.
Terry Henry, a great defensive end on the 1970 team, still lives in the Lindsay area.
Johnny Branch, fullback, signed with Northern Junior College in 1971 to play baseball. He excelled in three-sports while in high school including basketball. After finishing college at Central State University in Edmond, Johnny coached basketball for a few years (including Blanchard, where I now work). He then became a businessman in Lindsay, where he later served as mayor.
Danny Simonton, guard, married the former Eileen Barker and worked in the oilfields of north Texas for several years until retiring. Danny and Eileen (a Leopardette) own the Silver Orchid in Lindsay where they still live.
Bud McGuire, halfback, signed to play football at East Central University in Ada. He is now retired and living in Sulphur, Louisiana. I remember Bud's girlfriend while at Lindsay High School was the former Karen Cunningham, another Leopardette.
Danny Cunningham, offensive and defensive lineman, was listed on the 1970 Oklahoma Journal All-State team, and married Karen Troxell, a Leopardette beauty in my eighth-grade opinion.
Gary Cooper, center and defensive lineman, signed with Oklahoma State University in 1971 to play football, before finishing college at East Central University. Gary was one of those giant Leopard linemen to go on and play at the next level. He later retired from Fleming Foods and currently lives in Texas.
Mark Loman, standing 6'7" and weighing about 230, was another giant Leopard who excelled in both football and basketball. He was listed on the Oklahoma Journal All-State football team and on the Daily Oklahoman All-State basketball team. He married the former Tonya Hopkins (a Leopardette basketball All-Stater), and retired from the oil industry in the early 2000's. Sadly, Mark passed away in March, 2019, at the age of 66.
Mike Flesher, another Leopard football giant tackle, was listed on the South All-State team by the Daily Oklahoman and Tulsa World. He signed with the University of Arkansas to play football in 1971. Mike suffered a career-ending injury in a scrimmage that year and worked at Michelin Manufacturing in Ardmore until retiring.
Billy Welsh, running back, became a very talented musician after high school, as he belonged to several bands with many friends. Billy was voted "Best Looking" by his high school class mates during his senior year along with Kathy Cornforth. Billy tragically died in an auto accident in May, 2014, when returning from work at Chickasha. He was only 61.
Mike Terry, tailback, was listed in both the Daily Oklahoman and Tulsa World All-State teams in 1971 and signed to play football for OSU. Mike later signed as a free agent to play for the Denver Broncos of the NFL. He married the former Mitzi Baker, a Leopardette basketball All-Stater, and coached high school football for 36 years until retiring a few years ago. Mike was inducted into the Oklahoma Coaches Hall of Fame in 2011.
Another little known fact about Mike Terry is that he is the first cousin to Roy Bash, Iowa quarterback during the early 1970's. An article in The New York Times on November 22, 1970 detailed: Roy Bash, a quarterback who riddled the Illini secondary for 159 yards, scored two touchdowns on 1-yard plunges. He passed 5 yards to Kerry Reardon for a third. Bash, who completed 11 of 13 passes, also set up his touchdown pass to Reardon in the second quarter with a 64-yard pass play that carried Iowa from its 30 to the Illinois 6-yard line...
It's no small wonder that Mike Terry had so much talent, as it ran in the family. I was an eighth grader in 1970 and wanted to be like "Iron Mike" Terry when I got to high school. I was only dreaming, however, because not many could be the kind of football player Mike Terry was.
The juniors from the 1970 Leopards:
Kyle Lackey,linebacker, made the 1971 South All-State team and signed to play football at OSU in 1972, as he was only a junior on that 1970 team. He married the former L'Ann Tate and finished his football career at Northeastern Oklahoma State University. Kyle worked in the oil industry and even officiated high school football games for many years (and still does, I believe). He and L'Ann currently live at Lake Arbuckle. I heard a story about Kyle Lackey while he was at OSU and I was a junior at LHS - It seems that Kyle, while on the freshmen team for the Cowboys in 1972, was holding a blocking dummy at defensive end for the OSU offensive starters. The Cowboy offense was practicing the option play, in which the quarterback would sprint down the line with the ball, and option the defensive end by either pitching the ball to a trailing running back, or keeping the ball. The defensive end's job was to always hit the quarterback, whether he pitched it or not. Kyle Lackey, with the blocking dummy, was supposed to only feign a hit with the dummy, so the starting quarterback, played by Brent Blackman (I believe) would not be injured. After several times of running and rerunning the play, Kyle Lackey began to be a little frustrated at seeing the quarterback just run free, without being truly hit. As the Cowboy offense began to run the play for the fourth or fifth time, Kyle suddenly tossed the blocking dummy out of harms way - and planted Brent Blackman in the turf. He did this so that the quarterback had plenty of time to see the dummy being tossed aside and perhaps pitch the ball instead of keeping it. In the opinion of many onlookers, the quarterback got what he deserved.
Kyle Lackey was maybe the most intense Leopard ever, as a linebacker, so it's no wonder the coaching staff referred to Kyle as "Mad Dog" Lackey.
Doug Baker, defensive end, attended college at Central State University in Edmond, majoring in business. He married the former Billie Lynch, another Leopardette beauty, and continue to live in Edmond.
Tony Cruse, quarterback, signed to play football at Central State University and later entered medical school and became an orthopedic surgeon. Tony was inducted into the Oklahoma Coaches Hall of Fame for his contributions to high school sports in Oklahoma.
Brent Clements, offensive and defensive line, signed with Southern Methodist University to play football in 1972, and finished at East Central University in Ada, majoring in education administration. He married the former Donna Edwards of Lindsay, another Leopardette. Brent later became a school administrator and retired after many years.
Scott Rose, tailback, attended Central State University (now UCO) and now works at McBride Bone and Joint Medical Center in OKC. Scott was one more in a long line of great Lindsay tailbacks, both before and after Mike Terry.
Randy Noe, quarterback, graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1976, and continued to live in the Norman area for many years. Randy's claim to fame for the 1970 football Leopards was, in fact, during the Leopard basketball season - At the end of the pre-game warm ups, the basketball team would line up in a football formation with Randy Noe playing quarterback. Randy would take the snap from center, and hit Mark Loman (the split end) with a pass above the rim. Mark would simply drop the basketball in, not dunking, as it was against the rules to dunk the basketball back then. Randy died in his sleep on January 21, 2012, at the age of 58.
While these are not the only 1970 Leopard Legends from that team, these are the ones I know about. If anyone can provide more information on any of the juniors and seniors not listed, please pm me with your comments.
Monday, May 4, 2020
Friday, April 17, 2020
Leopard Legends of the Fall, 16 team playoff bracket
Before we begin our analysis of Leopard Legends 1970 (as it's extremely long), we thought it would be a good idea to explain what we intend to do with these analyses of Lindsay Leopard football teams. We will construct a 16 team playoff bracket for Leopard teams from 1955 through 1980. The Lindsay football teams will be seeded one through 16, as the top four seeds will be the championship teams from 1955, 1958, 1962 or 1963. The next four seeds will be the Leopard teams which were ranked No. 1 in the state at the end of the regular season, or made the state finals. The remaining eight teams will be seeded according to their final season record and according to the strength of schedule. For instance, a team which finished the regular season, 9-1, but did not make the playoffs due to being defeated by a district opponent, would be seeded in the top sixteen somewhere. It would naturally be seeded higher than another team which finished the regular season with an identical record (9-1), if it had a higher "strength of schedule" rating. The "strength of schedule" rating would be determined by the final season record of the team which handed the Leopards the "one loss". The author of these blog articles will seed the Lindsay Leopard teams, but Lindsay readers will be able to determine the winners of each game by voting each virtual game, anonymously of course.
For instance, the first game considered by Leopard fans and readers (even if not a Leopard fan), will be the top seed vs. the 16 seed. The second game considered will be the second seed vs. the 15 seed, and so on. Eight first round games will be played virtually, so please consider all previous articles detailing the strengths of each team, before voting. Four second round games will be considered virtually, two third round games and one final game for the Lindsay Leopard championship. This will be fun for all former Leopards, especially if you've read all previous posts. You may even consider facts not provided in the articles, in voting for the winner of each game. This will truly be the readers' opinion of which Leopard team was the greatest ever, so please "vote" when you have the opportunity.
For instance, the first game considered by Leopard fans and readers (even if not a Leopard fan), will be the top seed vs. the 16 seed. The second game considered will be the second seed vs. the 15 seed, and so on. Eight first round games will be played virtually, so please consider all previous articles detailing the strengths of each team, before voting. Four second round games will be considered virtually, two third round games and one final game for the Lindsay Leopard championship. This will be fun for all former Leopards, especially if you've read all previous posts. You may even consider facts not provided in the articles, in voting for the winner of each game. This will truly be the readers' opinion of which Leopard team was the greatest ever, so please "vote" when you have the opportunity.
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Leopard Legends of the Fall 1969
The first game of the 1969 season saw Purcell end Lindsay's dominance over the Dragons by beating the Leopards 19-0. This loss was followed by Ada winning over Lindsay, 28-6, followed with a 62-7 victory over Crooked Oak. In the fourth game of the season, Marlow beat Lindsay, 22-21, but the fifth game saw Lindsay bounce back with a 24-0 victory over Anadarko. Yukon, still in Class A, beat Lindsay, 18-13; Lindsay beat Sulphur, 49-14; El Reno squeaked by the Leopards, 8-0; Lindsay beat Pauls Valley yet again, 21-7, and Wynnewood beat the Leopards, 13-6, to end the regular season with four wins and six losses.
The Leopards made the state playoffs, however, by beating district foes Crooked Oak and Pauls Valley (three District A-3 teams), and was to face the Yukon Millers in the state Class A Quarterfinals. Remember, Lindsay had already been beaten by Yukon, 18-13, in the sixth game of the year, but the Millers were in a different district when they first met.
On November 23, 1969, one day after playing the Yukon Millers in the Quarterfinals, The Oklahoman reported:
Yukon Ties Lindsay, Gains Semis
Millers Score On Final Play
LINDSAY -- In one of the wildest finishes ever seen on a prep football field in many a moon, Yukon scored on the final play to tie Lindsay, 14-14, Friday night and advance to the semifinals of the Class A state playoffs. The teams finished with three penetrations each, but Yukon had a 16-12 edge in first downs to remain alive for the championship.
Lindsay had apparently scored the winning touchdown with 3:07 left when Mike Terry bolted in from two yards out and Doug Scribner kicked his second conversion to give the Leopards a 14-7 lead that looked awfully big to Yukon fans. But the Millers weren't through yet. After Donnie Givens returned the ensuing kickoff to the Yukon 35, the Millers took to the air, with quarterback Jim McGuire firing to Tim Wagner for 16, 13 and 12 yards, and to Givens for another 13 and a first down on the Leopard 11.
Givens smashed twice for seven and three yards and a first down on the one with 18 seconds left. With no time outs remaining, Yukon lined up quickly for its last ditch effort. Givens and McGuire failed to dent the savage Lindsay defense, but as the buzzer sounded the end of the game, Givens ricocheted around right end for the touchdown. Jim Canaday split the upright for the second time to keep the count at 14-14.
It was a bruising defensive battle from the opening kickoff with neither team giving ground. For Yukon, Danny Warwick, Kevin New, Bill Pool and Givens were a constant detriment to Leopard ball carriers.
Lindsay's defense with Steve Allen, Gary Cooper, Mike Flesher and Mark Loman leading the way, kept the Millers from putting together long marches with the exception of a long scoring drive late in the third period and the last one.
Lindsay drove 53 yards in seven plays late in the second quarter with Terry going in from the two for the only score in the first half. Yukon tried a field goal with 20 seconds left in the first half with a first-and-ten from the 11, but Terry broke through to block it...
The '69 Leopards finished the season with four wins, six losses and one tie, but many of its starters were underclassmen, so would probably improve their record for the 1970 season.
Next up - Leopard Legends of the Fall 1970...
The Leopards made the state playoffs, however, by beating district foes Crooked Oak and Pauls Valley (three District A-3 teams), and was to face the Yukon Millers in the state Class A Quarterfinals. Remember, Lindsay had already been beaten by Yukon, 18-13, in the sixth game of the year, but the Millers were in a different district when they first met.
On November 23, 1969, one day after playing the Yukon Millers in the Quarterfinals, The Oklahoman reported:
Yukon Ties Lindsay, Gains Semis
Millers Score On Final Play
LINDSAY -- In one of the wildest finishes ever seen on a prep football field in many a moon, Yukon scored on the final play to tie Lindsay, 14-14, Friday night and advance to the semifinals of the Class A state playoffs. The teams finished with three penetrations each, but Yukon had a 16-12 edge in first downs to remain alive for the championship.
Lindsay had apparently scored the winning touchdown with 3:07 left when Mike Terry bolted in from two yards out and Doug Scribner kicked his second conversion to give the Leopards a 14-7 lead that looked awfully big to Yukon fans. But the Millers weren't through yet. After Donnie Givens returned the ensuing kickoff to the Yukon 35, the Millers took to the air, with quarterback Jim McGuire firing to Tim Wagner for 16, 13 and 12 yards, and to Givens for another 13 and a first down on the Leopard 11.
Givens smashed twice for seven and three yards and a first down on the one with 18 seconds left. With no time outs remaining, Yukon lined up quickly for its last ditch effort. Givens and McGuire failed to dent the savage Lindsay defense, but as the buzzer sounded the end of the game, Givens ricocheted around right end for the touchdown. Jim Canaday split the upright for the second time to keep the count at 14-14.
It was a bruising defensive battle from the opening kickoff with neither team giving ground. For Yukon, Danny Warwick, Kevin New, Bill Pool and Givens were a constant detriment to Leopard ball carriers.
Lindsay's defense with Steve Allen, Gary Cooper, Mike Flesher and Mark Loman leading the way, kept the Millers from putting together long marches with the exception of a long scoring drive late in the third period and the last one.
Lindsay drove 53 yards in seven plays late in the second quarter with Terry going in from the two for the only score in the first half. Yukon tried a field goal with 20 seconds left in the first half with a first-and-ten from the 11, but Terry broke through to block it...
The '69 Leopards finished the season with four wins, six losses and one tie, but many of its starters were underclassmen, so would probably improve their record for the 1970 season.
Next up - Leopard Legends of the Fall 1970...
Friday, April 10, 2020
Leopard Legends of Fall 1968
The 1967 Lindsay season ended with a loss to Clinton, 35-7, and may have been the only time in its storied history the Leopards played who was arguably the best high school football team in the nation. The 1968 season (Joe Tunnel's second year) began the way many other Leopard seasons had begun - by blanking Purcell, 14-0. Lindsay faced powerful Ada in the second game of the year and Lynn Garnand of The Oklahoman on September 17, 1968, reported:
Lindsay Entertains Ada in No. 1 Battle
... the No. 1 game of the week will involve a power struggle between two top rivals when Ada invades Lindsay Friday night.
Ada moved to the top of the Class AA rankings with a come-from-behind 8-7 victory over Boomer Conference powerhouse Norman. Lindsay opened its season with a typically steady 14-0 triumph over Purcell, which earned the Leopards a No. 5 slot on the Class A chart.
Ada wound up beating Lindsay, 14-0. The Leopards then played District A-3 opponent Crooked Oak for the 3rd game and The Oklahoman reported on September 29:
Dodd Paces 42-6 rout: Lindsay Fells Oak
With a blocked punt in the first two minutes setting the tempo Friday night, a football machine called the Lindsay Leopards steamrolled over the Crooked Oak Rufnex, 42-6. Roger Ford launched the Leopard attack by blocking a punt at the Crooked Oak 18 and the 160-pound end rambled into the end zone before some of the fans had taken their seats.
For the rest of the half it was big Steve Dodd doing most of the damage to the Rufnex defense by punching across for three touchdowns. The Leopards led 28-0 at halftime.
Dodd, a 195-pound fullback, crashed through huge holes in the line to rack up most of the yardage for the Lindsay team, while a stingy Leopard defense stopped the Rufnex cold for three quarters. The Leopard quarterback, Haynes Smith, fed the ball to Dodd, Randy Eldridge and Bud McGuire during the team's marches down the field.
Tackle Danny Thornton and guard Jeff Newby were a pair of defensive standouts for the Leopards...
This was Lindsay's second win of the season, after a loss to Ada, 14-0, last week and a victory over Purcell two weeks ago.
Lindsay handled Marlow, 19-0; Anadarko, 35-0; Yukon, 29-0 and Sulphur, 24-13, before playing El Reno in the eighth game of the year. The Oklahoman reported on November 2, 1968:
2-Point Play Lifts El Reno Past Lindsay
LINDSAY --- El Reno gambled on a two-point pass play on the conversion and made it Friday night to post an 8-7 victory over Lindsay in a tight defensive game. The clubs played a scoreless first half with the hosts taking a 7-0 lead in the third period after a short El Reno punt put the Leopards in business only 47 yards from the goal.
With Steve Dodd carrying six straight times, Lindsay broke into the scoring column on a one yard plunge. Roger Ford's kick made it 7-0.
El Reno took over on downs late in the third quarter and drove the remaining 54 yards in eight plays (to score). Quarterback Charles Peterson found Stan Graves open for the two-point conversion and the victory.
The Leopards drove to El Reno's 13 with four minutes remaining before being held and were on the Indians' 25 as time expired.
Lindsay beat Pauls Valley, 14-12, in the season's ninth game and The Oklahoman reported on November 9, 1968:
Lindsay Keeps District Title
LINDSAY -- The Lindsay Leopards are 3-A champions for the second straight year - but only by the narrowest of margins. Pauls Valley shoved across a touchdown with barely over four minutes remaining Friday night but failed on the conversion pass, allowing Lindsay to escape with a 14-12 triumph.
The conversion pass was completed, but the receiver was out of the end zone. Steve Dodd was the night's top performer, picking up 151 yards on 36 carries for the Leopards.
For the season's last regular season game, Lindsay beat Wynnewood, 29-0, and went on to defeat Yukon, 21-0, in the state Class A Quarterfinals. In the state Class A semi-finals, Lindsay was to play a familiar foe -- the Clinton Red Tornadoes, at Lindsay. I remember seeing the Red Tornadoes take the field for pre-game warm-ups in their familiar white uniforms trimmed in yellow and maroon. Clinton had many players back from that 1967 mythical national championship team, including James Williams, a fullback who would later go on to play for O.S.U. I seem to remember Williams wore the number 24 on his game jersey, but maybe not, since my memory is getting foggier with age. Not returning from the '67 team was Roy Bell, now a freshman at the University of Oklahoma, so I figured our Leopards may stand a chance of winning this game.
On December 8, 1968, one day after the game - Henry Hawkins, Staff Writer for The Oklahoman reported:
CLINTON ROLLS TO FINALS
LINDSAY -- Doing most of its traveling by land, Clinton extended its winning streak -- the state's longest -- to 25 games and moved into the finals of the Class A state playoffs with a 24-0 victory over Lindsay Friday night.
James Williams, who stepped off 287 yards in 36 rushes, scored the first two Clinton touchdowns from eight and six yards out, and quarterback Larry Colberty got the third on a 14-yard jaunt. Colbert ran for the extra points after the first two scores and tossed a pass to Eugene Jefferson for the third conversion.
Lindsay, which finished the regular season ranked second in Class A, closed out the year with a 9-3 record, while top-ranked and defending champion Clinton won its 12th game of the season...
Dodd was Lindsay's leading rusher, gaining 60 yards on 27 carries before being shaken up 3:25 before the end. He also turned in an outstanding game defensively and punted eight times for 257 yards, an average of 32...
So, my heart was broken again by the Clinton Red Tornadoes -- they were just too strong. I was in sixth grade at Lindsay Elementary and had just completed my second pee-wee football season. One of my team-mates and best friend that year was Roger Dodd, Steve Dodd's younger brother. I was very proud to have a friend with a big brother, Leopard star. I thought it was probably the closest I would ever get to a true "football hero".
Roger passed away suddenly in his home in Lindsay on October 16, 2016. It was one of the saddest days in my life...
Next article: Leopard Legends of 1969
Lindsay Entertains Ada in No. 1 Battle
... the No. 1 game of the week will involve a power struggle between two top rivals when Ada invades Lindsay Friday night.
Ada moved to the top of the Class AA rankings with a come-from-behind 8-7 victory over Boomer Conference powerhouse Norman. Lindsay opened its season with a typically steady 14-0 triumph over Purcell, which earned the Leopards a No. 5 slot on the Class A chart.
Ada wound up beating Lindsay, 14-0. The Leopards then played District A-3 opponent Crooked Oak for the 3rd game and The Oklahoman reported on September 29:
Dodd Paces 42-6 rout: Lindsay Fells Oak
With a blocked punt in the first two minutes setting the tempo Friday night, a football machine called the Lindsay Leopards steamrolled over the Crooked Oak Rufnex, 42-6. Roger Ford launched the Leopard attack by blocking a punt at the Crooked Oak 18 and the 160-pound end rambled into the end zone before some of the fans had taken their seats.
For the rest of the half it was big Steve Dodd doing most of the damage to the Rufnex defense by punching across for three touchdowns. The Leopards led 28-0 at halftime.
Dodd, a 195-pound fullback, crashed through huge holes in the line to rack up most of the yardage for the Lindsay team, while a stingy Leopard defense stopped the Rufnex cold for three quarters. The Leopard quarterback, Haynes Smith, fed the ball to Dodd, Randy Eldridge and Bud McGuire during the team's marches down the field.
Tackle Danny Thornton and guard Jeff Newby were a pair of defensive standouts for the Leopards...
This was Lindsay's second win of the season, after a loss to Ada, 14-0, last week and a victory over Purcell two weeks ago.
Lindsay handled Marlow, 19-0; Anadarko, 35-0; Yukon, 29-0 and Sulphur, 24-13, before playing El Reno in the eighth game of the year. The Oklahoman reported on November 2, 1968:
2-Point Play Lifts El Reno Past Lindsay
LINDSAY --- El Reno gambled on a two-point pass play on the conversion and made it Friday night to post an 8-7 victory over Lindsay in a tight defensive game. The clubs played a scoreless first half with the hosts taking a 7-0 lead in the third period after a short El Reno punt put the Leopards in business only 47 yards from the goal.
With Steve Dodd carrying six straight times, Lindsay broke into the scoring column on a one yard plunge. Roger Ford's kick made it 7-0.
El Reno took over on downs late in the third quarter and drove the remaining 54 yards in eight plays (to score). Quarterback Charles Peterson found Stan Graves open for the two-point conversion and the victory.
The Leopards drove to El Reno's 13 with four minutes remaining before being held and were on the Indians' 25 as time expired.
Lindsay beat Pauls Valley, 14-12, in the season's ninth game and The Oklahoman reported on November 9, 1968:
Lindsay Keeps District Title
LINDSAY -- The Lindsay Leopards are 3-A champions for the second straight year - but only by the narrowest of margins. Pauls Valley shoved across a touchdown with barely over four minutes remaining Friday night but failed on the conversion pass, allowing Lindsay to escape with a 14-12 triumph.
The conversion pass was completed, but the receiver was out of the end zone. Steve Dodd was the night's top performer, picking up 151 yards on 36 carries for the Leopards.
For the season's last regular season game, Lindsay beat Wynnewood, 29-0, and went on to defeat Yukon, 21-0, in the state Class A Quarterfinals. In the state Class A semi-finals, Lindsay was to play a familiar foe -- the Clinton Red Tornadoes, at Lindsay. I remember seeing the Red Tornadoes take the field for pre-game warm-ups in their familiar white uniforms trimmed in yellow and maroon. Clinton had many players back from that 1967 mythical national championship team, including James Williams, a fullback who would later go on to play for O.S.U. I seem to remember Williams wore the number 24 on his game jersey, but maybe not, since my memory is getting foggier with age. Not returning from the '67 team was Roy Bell, now a freshman at the University of Oklahoma, so I figured our Leopards may stand a chance of winning this game.
On December 8, 1968, one day after the game - Henry Hawkins, Staff Writer for The Oklahoman reported:
CLINTON ROLLS TO FINALS
LINDSAY -- Doing most of its traveling by land, Clinton extended its winning streak -- the state's longest -- to 25 games and moved into the finals of the Class A state playoffs with a 24-0 victory over Lindsay Friday night.
James Williams, who stepped off 287 yards in 36 rushes, scored the first two Clinton touchdowns from eight and six yards out, and quarterback Larry Colberty got the third on a 14-yard jaunt. Colbert ran for the extra points after the first two scores and tossed a pass to Eugene Jefferson for the third conversion.
Lindsay, which finished the regular season ranked second in Class A, closed out the year with a 9-3 record, while top-ranked and defending champion Clinton won its 12th game of the season...
Dodd was Lindsay's leading rusher, gaining 60 yards on 27 carries before being shaken up 3:25 before the end. He also turned in an outstanding game defensively and punted eight times for 257 yards, an average of 32...
So, my heart was broken again by the Clinton Red Tornadoes -- they were just too strong. I was in sixth grade at Lindsay Elementary and had just completed my second pee-wee football season. One of my team-mates and best friend that year was Roger Dodd, Steve Dodd's younger brother. I was very proud to have a friend with a big brother, Leopard star. I thought it was probably the closest I would ever get to a true "football hero".
Roger passed away suddenly in his home in Lindsay on October 16, 2016. It was one of the saddest days in my life...
Next article: Leopard Legends of 1969
Saturday, March 28, 2020
Leopard Legends of the Fall 1966 and 1967
The 1966 version of Lindsay Leopard football started the same as all other Leopard seasons, as they shut-out Purcell 27-0 in the first game of the year. This was followed by a close loss to perennial Class 2A champion Ada, 7-0. It is unknown to the author what happened to the Leopards following the Ada loss - a key injury? but Lindsay then lost to Crooked Oak 34-0. Following the Ruf-Nex loss, the Leopards handled arch-rival Marlow 21-6, but then lost to Anadarko 18-7 and Yukon 21-0. Lindsay then tied Sulphur, lost to Carl Albert 8-7, lost to rival Pauls Valley 18-17 and lost to Wynnewood 20-14, before ending the season with a rare two wins and eight losses. It was Coach Dave Clark's second and final season as the Leopard's head coach, and the era of Joe Tunnel was about to begin.
Coach Joe Tunnel's inaugural 1967 season started with a 42-6 thrashing of Purcell. Ada beat Lindsay 12-3, but the attitude of the Leopards had seemed to evolve back to the fifties and early sixties - an attitude of expected dominance and unwavering tenacity. It is the first Leopard season I can remember attending several games.
Lindsay then beat Crooked Oak 19-7, Marlow 25-6, Anadarko 45-8, Yukon 28-14, Sulphur 42-6 and Carl Albert 14-0. An article from The Oklahoman on October 28,1967 read:
Lindsay Clips Carl Albert, 14-0
Fourth-ranked Lindsay dumped Carl Albert, 14-0, Friday night in a district 3-A high school football game before a sparse turnout at Rose Field. The Leopards, although far from overpowering, were never in danger as they chalked up win number 7 in eight outings. Lindsay, 2-0 in conference play, has lost only to Ada, a Class AA power.
If there was a single man who made the difference in this one it was Lindsay fullback Lindell Shoemake, a hard-running 200-pounder who ground out 127 yards in 15 carries and scored the first touchdown. Lindsay tallied in each of the first two quarters and the two teams spent the second half keeping each other bottled up, the only real threats coming on fumble recoveries and pass interceptions.
The Leopards broke the scoring ice with 2:58 left in the opening quarter when Shoemake barreled over right tackle for 84 yards and the touchdown...
Halfback Bo Boydston set up the second touchdown midway through the second quarter with a 41 yard punt return, then scored it himself on a one-yard plunge. Halfback Gene Wilton kicked the conversion in each case.
I have memories of the PV game in particular: I was a fifth grader at Lindsay Elementary and had just finished the pee-wee football season. My parents took me to the game at Pauls Valley - the ninth game. One of my football heroes, Bo Boydston, played for the Leopards and had helped coach our pee-wee team in 1967. The Panthers were very good, ranked number two in the state, behind only Clinton, and our Leopards' last district opponent. Our Leopards were ranked third and The Oklahoman had the game listed as the state's top high school football game that week. The winner would go on to the Class A playoffs, and the loser would stay home. Not many thought the Leopards could upset the highly regarded Pauls Valley Panthers, but when Bo Boydston broke a long run in the first quarter to score - Leopard fans knew the tradition was back. A short article in The Oklahoman by Lynn Garnand on November 6, 1967 summarized the victory:
With Clinton still pacing Class A, Lindsay wrested second-place from Pauls Valley by handing the Panthers their first loss of the year, 20-6. Broken Bow and Spiro moved up behind the Leopards, with the Valley dropping to fifth.
Lindsay went on to beat Wynnewood 29-0, and then faced Yukon in the state Class A quarterfinals, who they dispatched 31-20. The stage was now set for Number 1 Clinton vs. Number 2 Lindsay in the state Class A semifinals... at Clinton.
I was a fifth grader at Lindsay Elementary in the Fall of 1967, and was fortunate enough to see what I considered Oklahoma's high school "Game of the Century" in person. My uncle, Odos Henson, lived in Clinton so my parents took us (Dana, Johnny and me) to the Game.
One should remember at this point that Clinton was home to the Bell brothers - Melvin, Carlos and Roy, who all went on and played at the collegiate level and even in the NFL. Halfback Roy Bell, the states leading rusher, was described as trying to tackle a "runaway locomotive" by opposing defenders. The Clinton Red Tornadoes were even ranked No. 1 in the nation by some accounts. I very rarely link readers to newspaper articles, but I think it is warranted for the Clinton Red Tornadoes.
The Game began with Clinton kicking off to Lindsay. Steve Dodd, only a junior, returned the opening kick-off 34 yards to the Clinton 48, and Lindsay promptly marched to the first touchdown - and led, 7-0. I turned to my uncle and said: "This game may be really easy for Lindsay". His reply was: "Just wait, the Red Tornadoes haven't even begun to fight." How 'right' my uncle turned out to be!
An article in The Oklahoman on December 2, 1967, following the Game read:
Lindsay Dealt 35-7 Thumping By Tornadoes
CLINTON -- Muscular Clinton shrugged off an early Lindsay touchdown and stampeded to a 35-7 victory Friday night before a crowd of 4,500 to earn its third straight trip to the state Class A finals.
Lindsay marched to a touchdown from the opening kickoff, which almost broke all the way. Steve Dodd was dragged down from behind on the Clinton 48 after a 34 yard return. The Leopards scored in 10 plays with Lindell Shoemake going the final yard.
Gene Wilton kicked the seventh point, but the Clinton crowd wasn't worried yet because their Red Tornadoes, who have averaged 39.8 points a game, had not touched the football.
Sure enough, when the Red Tornadoes got the ball they knew what to do with it. Clinton scored on three of its first four possessions, and by intermission was breezing along with a 23-7 advantage...
The battle matched the state's top two ranked Class A clubs, and Clinton clearly showed it was actually No. 1 by rolling up 375 yards compared to 147 by the No. 2 Leopards.
Roy Bell, the state's scoring leader... accumulated 167 yards in 20 carries...
Lindsay closes out its first year under Joe Tunnel with a 10-2 record. Tunnel took Rush Springs to the state Class C title last year.
In 2000, Joe Tunnel retired from coaching - and a banquet was held in his honor at the Simmons Center in Duncan, Oklahoma. Many former Lindsay players, Rush Springs players, coach colleagues, opposing coach friends, media friends and others attended the banquet in honor of Joe Tunnel. Rene Huckaba, a long-time friend of Coach Tunnel and head football coach at Yukon for thirty years, told the following story about the Clinton game in 1967: Paraphrased -
In 1967, the Veitnam War was at its height with the U.S. being extensively involved. Many young Americans were concerned about being drafted to fight overseas after turning 18. At that time, there was also a fear that Russia would get involved on the North Vietnam side, and attack the U.S.A. or at least our young men would have to fight the Russians in Vietnam.
Immediately following the loss to Clinton, Joe Tunnel entered the Lindsay locker room - where all the Leopards were sitting despondent and dejected. They were waiting for Coach Tunnel to give his "shoulda played better" speech, or "just got outplayed" speech. Instead, Joe Tunnel just made one statement to the team - Just remember, if we ever go to war with Russia.. those guys are on our side.
The 1967 Clinton Red Tornadoes was proclaimed by one national publication as the best high school football team in the country. Roy Bell, who went on to play at the University of Oklahoma and in the Canadian Football League, rushed for more than 6,000 yards in his career at Clinton and twice led the state in scoring and rushing. Thirteen players on that '67 team played college football somewhere. As a matter of fact four members of that 1967 Clinton team - Terry Shaffer, James Williams, Larry Colbert and Eugene Jefferson, teamed up with Danny Thornton and Jay Cruse from Lindsay, to play on the O.S.U. freshmen squad in 1969.
The 1967 Lindsay Leopards were very good, and probably would have won the state title - if it weren't for having to play the best high school football team in America at the time.
Next article: The 1968 Lindsay Leopards
Coach Joe Tunnel's inaugural 1967 season started with a 42-6 thrashing of Purcell. Ada beat Lindsay 12-3, but the attitude of the Leopards had seemed to evolve back to the fifties and early sixties - an attitude of expected dominance and unwavering tenacity. It is the first Leopard season I can remember attending several games.
Lindsay then beat Crooked Oak 19-7, Marlow 25-6, Anadarko 45-8, Yukon 28-14, Sulphur 42-6 and Carl Albert 14-0. An article from The Oklahoman on October 28,1967 read:
Lindsay Clips Carl Albert, 14-0
Fourth-ranked Lindsay dumped Carl Albert, 14-0, Friday night in a district 3-A high school football game before a sparse turnout at Rose Field. The Leopards, although far from overpowering, were never in danger as they chalked up win number 7 in eight outings. Lindsay, 2-0 in conference play, has lost only to Ada, a Class AA power.
If there was a single man who made the difference in this one it was Lindsay fullback Lindell Shoemake, a hard-running 200-pounder who ground out 127 yards in 15 carries and scored the first touchdown. Lindsay tallied in each of the first two quarters and the two teams spent the second half keeping each other bottled up, the only real threats coming on fumble recoveries and pass interceptions.
The Leopards broke the scoring ice with 2:58 left in the opening quarter when Shoemake barreled over right tackle for 84 yards and the touchdown...
Halfback Bo Boydston set up the second touchdown midway through the second quarter with a 41 yard punt return, then scored it himself on a one-yard plunge. Halfback Gene Wilton kicked the conversion in each case.
I have memories of the PV game in particular: I was a fifth grader at Lindsay Elementary and had just finished the pee-wee football season. My parents took me to the game at Pauls Valley - the ninth game. One of my football heroes, Bo Boydston, played for the Leopards and had helped coach our pee-wee team in 1967. The Panthers were very good, ranked number two in the state, behind only Clinton, and our Leopards' last district opponent. Our Leopards were ranked third and The Oklahoman had the game listed as the state's top high school football game that week. The winner would go on to the Class A playoffs, and the loser would stay home. Not many thought the Leopards could upset the highly regarded Pauls Valley Panthers, but when Bo Boydston broke a long run in the first quarter to score - Leopard fans knew the tradition was back. A short article in The Oklahoman by Lynn Garnand on November 6, 1967 summarized the victory:
With Clinton still pacing Class A, Lindsay wrested second-place from Pauls Valley by handing the Panthers their first loss of the year, 20-6. Broken Bow and Spiro moved up behind the Leopards, with the Valley dropping to fifth.
Lindsay went on to beat Wynnewood 29-0, and then faced Yukon in the state Class A quarterfinals, who they dispatched 31-20. The stage was now set for Number 1 Clinton vs. Number 2 Lindsay in the state Class A semifinals... at Clinton.
I was a fifth grader at Lindsay Elementary in the Fall of 1967, and was fortunate enough to see what I considered Oklahoma's high school "Game of the Century" in person. My uncle, Odos Henson, lived in Clinton so my parents took us (Dana, Johnny and me) to the Game.
One should remember at this point that Clinton was home to the Bell brothers - Melvin, Carlos and Roy, who all went on and played at the collegiate level and even in the NFL. Halfback Roy Bell, the states leading rusher, was described as trying to tackle a "runaway locomotive" by opposing defenders. The Clinton Red Tornadoes were even ranked No. 1 in the nation by some accounts. I very rarely link readers to newspaper articles, but I think it is warranted for the Clinton Red Tornadoes.
The Game began with Clinton kicking off to Lindsay. Steve Dodd, only a junior, returned the opening kick-off 34 yards to the Clinton 48, and Lindsay promptly marched to the first touchdown - and led, 7-0. I turned to my uncle and said: "This game may be really easy for Lindsay". His reply was: "Just wait, the Red Tornadoes haven't even begun to fight." How 'right' my uncle turned out to be!
An article in The Oklahoman on December 2, 1967, following the Game read:
Lindsay Dealt 35-7 Thumping By Tornadoes
CLINTON -- Muscular Clinton shrugged off an early Lindsay touchdown and stampeded to a 35-7 victory Friday night before a crowd of 4,500 to earn its third straight trip to the state Class A finals.
Lindsay marched to a touchdown from the opening kickoff, which almost broke all the way. Steve Dodd was dragged down from behind on the Clinton 48 after a 34 yard return. The Leopards scored in 10 plays with Lindell Shoemake going the final yard.
Gene Wilton kicked the seventh point, but the Clinton crowd wasn't worried yet because their Red Tornadoes, who have averaged 39.8 points a game, had not touched the football.
Sure enough, when the Red Tornadoes got the ball they knew what to do with it. Clinton scored on three of its first four possessions, and by intermission was breezing along with a 23-7 advantage...
The battle matched the state's top two ranked Class A clubs, and Clinton clearly showed it was actually No. 1 by rolling up 375 yards compared to 147 by the No. 2 Leopards.
Roy Bell, the state's scoring leader... accumulated 167 yards in 20 carries...
Lindsay closes out its first year under Joe Tunnel with a 10-2 record. Tunnel took Rush Springs to the state Class C title last year.
In 2000, Joe Tunnel retired from coaching - and a banquet was held in his honor at the Simmons Center in Duncan, Oklahoma. Many former Lindsay players, Rush Springs players, coach colleagues, opposing coach friends, media friends and others attended the banquet in honor of Joe Tunnel. Rene Huckaba, a long-time friend of Coach Tunnel and head football coach at Yukon for thirty years, told the following story about the Clinton game in 1967: Paraphrased -
In 1967, the Veitnam War was at its height with the U.S. being extensively involved. Many young Americans were concerned about being drafted to fight overseas after turning 18. At that time, there was also a fear that Russia would get involved on the North Vietnam side, and attack the U.S.A. or at least our young men would have to fight the Russians in Vietnam.
Immediately following the loss to Clinton, Joe Tunnel entered the Lindsay locker room - where all the Leopards were sitting despondent and dejected. They were waiting for Coach Tunnel to give his "shoulda played better" speech, or "just got outplayed" speech. Instead, Joe Tunnel just made one statement to the team - Just remember, if we ever go to war with Russia.. those guys are on our side.
The 1967 Clinton Red Tornadoes was proclaimed by one national publication as the best high school football team in the country. Roy Bell, who went on to play at the University of Oklahoma and in the Canadian Football League, rushed for more than 6,000 yards in his career at Clinton and twice led the state in scoring and rushing. Thirteen players on that '67 team played college football somewhere. As a matter of fact four members of that 1967 Clinton team - Terry Shaffer, James Williams, Larry Colbert and Eugene Jefferson, teamed up with Danny Thornton and Jay Cruse from Lindsay, to play on the O.S.U. freshmen squad in 1969.
The 1967 Lindsay Leopards were very good, and probably would have won the state title - if it weren't for having to play the best high school football team in America at the time.
Next article: The 1968 Lindsay Leopards
Saturday, March 14, 2020
Leopard Legends of the Fall 1965
Social scientists say that we, as humans, don't have memories of events before about two years of age. While some people can remember events at about the age of one year and younger, others can only recall events and things beginning at about the age of six or seven. I think I fall into this latter category, as I begin to have memories of Leopard football teams and players beginning in about 1965. For this reason, the next few articles will contain some personal observations, along with the newspaper articles and observations related to media accounts.
I first became interested in football while I was in the second or third grade because of my dad - Johnny Beckham. Most Lindsay folk knew him by his middle name, 'Dale', because he started going by his middle name while on the rodeo circuit. Johnny Beckham was a high school football star at Marlow from 1946 to 1948 and received a scholarship to what is now Oklahoma State University (OSU) to play ball for the Oklahoma A&M Aggies. He shared a story with me about Billy Dale Vessels (Heisman Trophy winner at OU in 1952):
It seems that Billy Vessels was intending to play for the Oklahoma A&M Aggies in 1949 instead of OU. When my dad enrolled at A&M in the summer of '49 he was originally assigned a roommate by the name of Billy Vessels from Cleveland, Oklahoma. Johnny and Billy were getting to know each other and visiting in the room when someone knocked on the door. It was a couple of OU coaches who asked Johnny if he would leave the room for a half hour, so they could visit privately with Billy. When Johnny returned later - Billy was packing his bags and headed to Norman. The next time my dad saw Billy on the OU campus, he was driving a big yellow Buick - and the rest is history.
Johnny went on after his Aggie days and played for the Marines - based in San Diego, California. In 1952, my dad was a Lieutenant and member of the military police as a defensive back on the football team. My aunt (Johnny's older sister) told me that Johnny never went to Korea... because "he could play football".
My interest in football came about by about the second grade, because of the stories my dad told me - and I started attending Leopard games during the mid to late 1960's.
The '64 Leopards had lost the Class A championship game to Holdenville 14-0, but could have won, were it not for losing Ken Fleming to a broken leg in the first quarter. An interesting side note to the '64 Leopards is that they beat their arch rival Marlow Outlaws, 29-7, in the fourth game of the regular season. Marlow went on to run the slate and win the Class B championship over Bixby, 25-12. You may read more about the '64 Leopards in the last article/post...
The 1965 Lindsay Leopards started the season in usual fashion by knocking off Purcell 34-0, Ardmore Douglass 13-0 and Crooked Oak 13-7, before finally losing to Marlow 13-7. They finished the '65 regular season by beating Anadarko 14-6, Yukon 14-7, Sulphur 26-6, Carl Albert 14-0 and Pauls Valley 3-0, before losing the last regular season game to Wynnewood 14-0.
One note of interest is that Wynnewood finished the '65 season 14-0 and Class B State Champions. The Leopards played the Savages closer than any other team that season losing 14-0, so the Leopards had played back to back state champions in '64 and '65 - winning one and losing one.
The Leopards finished the regular season with 8 wins and 2 losses, but made the playoffs since they had won all district games. They then lost to Choctaw 26-14 in the state quarterfinals. Head coach Dave Clark, having taken over for Bill Froman, fared pretty well in his first year with the Leopards. His 8-3 record was only judged average, however, by Leopard standards.
An article in The Oklahoman on September 23,1965, read:
'Bare-Thold' Kicker Is Pride of Lindsay
Lindsay - Down in Lindsay, where a full house for a Friday night football game is nothing uncommon, a problem of where to seat larger crowds than ever is beginning to cause concern for school officials. Crowds usually follow a winner, and Lindsay's Leopards can certainly qualify in this department, having lost only three of their last 53 games. Winning, however, is not the big reason for increased Friday night gatherings in this case.
Shouldering - or perhaps footing - the blame for the current crowd problem is a barefooted youngster from Germany named John Berthold (pronounced Bare-thold). Berthold, a tousled headed kid who's as ornery as any tow-head who ever baited a safety pin, is the barefooted, soccer-type place kicker responsible for conversions and field goals in Leopardland.
The only football player in the state who can promote an ovation simply by unlacing his shoes... John came to Lindsay last year as a sophomore transfer from Tulsa. He saw his first football game after moving here, and scored three points in it...
As an elementary school student in 1965, I had seen John Berthold kick in games - but my friends and I referred to him as 'Bare - Toe'. An 'AP' report in The Oklahoman, July 26, 1972:
Berthold Dealt To New Orleans
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) -- Soccer-style placekicker John Berthold Monday became the sixth Dallas Cowboy player to be traded to the New Orleans Saints since last football season. The German native who played football in Oklahoma at Lindsay High School and East Central joins ex-cowboys Jim Ford, Margene Atkins, Doug Moers, Joe Williams and Tom Stencic with the Saints. Dallas will receive a future draft pick for the 5-7, 155-pound Berthold...
John Berthold was only one of several Leopards who wore an NFL uniform during the '50's, '60's and '70's. It's no wonder many young Lindsay boys wanted to grow up to be a 'Leopard'. Another 'Oklahoman' article on October 9, 1965 - Lindsay Darts Past Anadarko:
ANADARKO -- Lindsay marched 62 yards to score with the opening kickoff and eventually defeated Anadarko, 14-6, Friday night. The touchdown came on a 27-yard pass from Gary Goodwin to Bill Cowan. Lindsay also scored on a sustained drive in the second period, 62 yards in eight plays. Ken Fleming got it on a two-yard dash.
It was the sturdy work of Fleming, who gained 147 yards, that set up both Lindsay scores. He carried for 27 yards in the first drive and was called on in six of the eight plays in the latter, one of them a 46-yard scamper...
From The Oklahoman, November 11, 1965:
Prep Parade by Ray Soldan
Lindsay credits the versatility of four-year letterman Gary Goodwin with pulling it through in the district 3-A showdown game with Pauls Valley last weekend. The 185-pound Goodwin played eight downs at quarterback in Lindsay's first eight games, spending most of his time at halfback and safety. With the Leopards' No. 1 signal caller Sammy Howard ailing, Goodwin quarterbacked every play in a 3-0 victory over Pauls Valley. Goodwin personally carried 22 times and picked up 70 yards. Seven of Lindsay's 15 first downs were achieved on crucial keeper plays by Goodwin.
In setting up the winning field goal by John Berthold, Goodwin guided the Leopards 62 yards following the second half kickoff to the Pauls Valley seven. Goodwin gained 47 of the yards and the drive consumed almost 10 minutes. With only 2:13 left in the third period Berthold toed through his third field goal of the year from 25 yards out...
The 1965 Leopards had ended with a respectable eight wins and only three losses and had an enviable 19-2 record for all playoff games since 1955. The 1966 Leopards were soon to come.
I first became interested in football while I was in the second or third grade because of my dad - Johnny Beckham. Most Lindsay folk knew him by his middle name, 'Dale', because he started going by his middle name while on the rodeo circuit. Johnny Beckham was a high school football star at Marlow from 1946 to 1948 and received a scholarship to what is now Oklahoma State University (OSU) to play ball for the Oklahoma A&M Aggies. He shared a story with me about Billy Dale Vessels (Heisman Trophy winner at OU in 1952):
It seems that Billy Vessels was intending to play for the Oklahoma A&M Aggies in 1949 instead of OU. When my dad enrolled at A&M in the summer of '49 he was originally assigned a roommate by the name of Billy Vessels from Cleveland, Oklahoma. Johnny and Billy were getting to know each other and visiting in the room when someone knocked on the door. It was a couple of OU coaches who asked Johnny if he would leave the room for a half hour, so they could visit privately with Billy. When Johnny returned later - Billy was packing his bags and headed to Norman. The next time my dad saw Billy on the OU campus, he was driving a big yellow Buick - and the rest is history.
Johnny went on after his Aggie days and played for the Marines - based in San Diego, California. In 1952, my dad was a Lieutenant and member of the military police as a defensive back on the football team. My aunt (Johnny's older sister) told me that Johnny never went to Korea... because "he could play football".
My interest in football came about by about the second grade, because of the stories my dad told me - and I started attending Leopard games during the mid to late 1960's.
The '64 Leopards had lost the Class A championship game to Holdenville 14-0, but could have won, were it not for losing Ken Fleming to a broken leg in the first quarter. An interesting side note to the '64 Leopards is that they beat their arch rival Marlow Outlaws, 29-7, in the fourth game of the regular season. Marlow went on to run the slate and win the Class B championship over Bixby, 25-12. You may read more about the '64 Leopards in the last article/post...
The 1965 Lindsay Leopards started the season in usual fashion by knocking off Purcell 34-0, Ardmore Douglass 13-0 and Crooked Oak 13-7, before finally losing to Marlow 13-7. They finished the '65 regular season by beating Anadarko 14-6, Yukon 14-7, Sulphur 26-6, Carl Albert 14-0 and Pauls Valley 3-0, before losing the last regular season game to Wynnewood 14-0.
One note of interest is that Wynnewood finished the '65 season 14-0 and Class B State Champions. The Leopards played the Savages closer than any other team that season losing 14-0, so the Leopards had played back to back state champions in '64 and '65 - winning one and losing one.
The Leopards finished the regular season with 8 wins and 2 losses, but made the playoffs since they had won all district games. They then lost to Choctaw 26-14 in the state quarterfinals. Head coach Dave Clark, having taken over for Bill Froman, fared pretty well in his first year with the Leopards. His 8-3 record was only judged average, however, by Leopard standards.
An article in The Oklahoman on September 23,1965, read:
'Bare-Thold' Kicker Is Pride of Lindsay
Lindsay - Down in Lindsay, where a full house for a Friday night football game is nothing uncommon, a problem of where to seat larger crowds than ever is beginning to cause concern for school officials. Crowds usually follow a winner, and Lindsay's Leopards can certainly qualify in this department, having lost only three of their last 53 games. Winning, however, is not the big reason for increased Friday night gatherings in this case.
Shouldering - or perhaps footing - the blame for the current crowd problem is a barefooted youngster from Germany named John Berthold (pronounced Bare-thold). Berthold, a tousled headed kid who's as ornery as any tow-head who ever baited a safety pin, is the barefooted, soccer-type place kicker responsible for conversions and field goals in Leopardland.
The only football player in the state who can promote an ovation simply by unlacing his shoes... John came to Lindsay last year as a sophomore transfer from Tulsa. He saw his first football game after moving here, and scored three points in it...
As an elementary school student in 1965, I had seen John Berthold kick in games - but my friends and I referred to him as 'Bare - Toe'. An 'AP' report in The Oklahoman, July 26, 1972:
Berthold Dealt To New Orleans
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) -- Soccer-style placekicker John Berthold Monday became the sixth Dallas Cowboy player to be traded to the New Orleans Saints since last football season. The German native who played football in Oklahoma at Lindsay High School and East Central joins ex-cowboys Jim Ford, Margene Atkins, Doug Moers, Joe Williams and Tom Stencic with the Saints. Dallas will receive a future draft pick for the 5-7, 155-pound Berthold...
John Berthold was only one of several Leopards who wore an NFL uniform during the '50's, '60's and '70's. It's no wonder many young Lindsay boys wanted to grow up to be a 'Leopard'. Another 'Oklahoman' article on October 9, 1965 - Lindsay Darts Past Anadarko:
ANADARKO -- Lindsay marched 62 yards to score with the opening kickoff and eventually defeated Anadarko, 14-6, Friday night. The touchdown came on a 27-yard pass from Gary Goodwin to Bill Cowan. Lindsay also scored on a sustained drive in the second period, 62 yards in eight plays. Ken Fleming got it on a two-yard dash.
It was the sturdy work of Fleming, who gained 147 yards, that set up both Lindsay scores. He carried for 27 yards in the first drive and was called on in six of the eight plays in the latter, one of them a 46-yard scamper...
From The Oklahoman, November 11, 1965:
Prep Parade by Ray Soldan
Lindsay credits the versatility of four-year letterman Gary Goodwin with pulling it through in the district 3-A showdown game with Pauls Valley last weekend. The 185-pound Goodwin played eight downs at quarterback in Lindsay's first eight games, spending most of his time at halfback and safety. With the Leopards' No. 1 signal caller Sammy Howard ailing, Goodwin quarterbacked every play in a 3-0 victory over Pauls Valley. Goodwin personally carried 22 times and picked up 70 yards. Seven of Lindsay's 15 first downs were achieved on crucial keeper plays by Goodwin.
In setting up the winning field goal by John Berthold, Goodwin guided the Leopards 62 yards following the second half kickoff to the Pauls Valley seven. Goodwin gained 47 of the yards and the drive consumed almost 10 minutes. With only 2:13 left in the third period Berthold toed through his third field goal of the year from 25 yards out...
The 1965 Leopards had ended with a respectable eight wins and only three losses and had an enviable 19-2 record for all playoff games since 1955. The 1966 Leopards were soon to come.
Thursday, March 5, 2020
Leopard Legends of the Fall 1964
The Lindsay Leopards of 1964 started the season the usual way by blanking Purcell 27-0, Ardmore Douglass 40-0 and beating Crooked Oak 21-7, Marlow 29-7, Anadarko 28-13 and Yukon 21-0. The Leopards had now gone 34 games without losing, but all streaks must end at some point. The next game with Sulphur proved to be the streak-ender, as the Leopards lost to the Bulldogs 16-14. The 'injury bug' had affected the Leopards during the 1964 season, and was soon to play an even more prominent role before the season ended.
The eighth game saw the Leopards beat Carl Albert 21-0, Pauls Valley 10-6 and Wynnewood 7-6, for a 9-1 regular season record. Our Leopards then beat Perry 13 -12 in the state Quarterfinals, and were to face the Clinton Red Tornadoes in the state Semi-Finals.
The Lindsay Leopards had moved from Class B in 1963 to Class A for the 1964 season, so faced some teams they had not played before. Clinton was definitely a force to be reckoned with, as the Leopards would soon find out. Ray Soldan, staff writer for the Oklahoman, recounted on December 5, 1964:
Lindsay -- Two key pass interceptions helped Lindsay salvage a 12-12 tie with Clinton Friday night and the Leopards advanced to the state Class A football finals with a 4-2 edge in penetrations. (Remember the Leopard 1955 state champions which tied Newkirk 20-20 in the state Class B Semi-Finals, but won the penetration battle 3-2.)
The first interception came midway in the third quarter with the score deadlocked 6-6 and Clinton driving relentlessly. On a second and one play from the Lindsay 29, a pass by ju8nior quarterback John McMillan was picked off by rival signal caller Gary Goodwin on the Lindsay 15. Goodwin gave it a 46-yard return to the Clinton 39.
From that spot, the Leopards drove to the go-ahead touchdown in seven plays. Fullback Mike King rambled 30 yards to the one, but a motion penalty on the next down made the Lindsay task a little tough. On fourth down, King, needing a yard, appeared to be stopped with tacklers hitting him both high and low. King gave a final lurch and fell into the end zone for the 12-6 lead.
Lindsay tried to gain more of a cushion with nine minutes remaining when bare-footed kicking specialist John Berthold attempted a field goal from the Clinton 19. It was blocked by Bobby Price and Clinton took over on the 17.
The Red Tornadoes marched the 83 yards in 10 plays with McMillan hitting 6-7 end Melvin Bell with passes of 49 and 11 yards, the final one for the touchdown.
The scoring play occurred on fourth down and Bell was knocked to the ground at the line of scrimmage, but he recovered and hustled into the end zone to take a floater type pitch well above the outstretched arms of defenders.
Clinton elected to pass for the conversion which would have snapped the tie with 5:40 left. Bell, who caught five passes for 112 yards, was wide open in the corner of the end zone but the pass sailed well over his head.
Clinton promptly held Lindsay on downs and got the ball back with 3:33 remaining. After an incomplete pass, Lindsay's Danny Noles came up with the second crucial interception and the Leopards needed only to run out the clock to keep alive their record of having never lost a state playoff game.
The Oklahoman reported on December 9,1964, after the Clinton game - The Class A showdown between Lindsay and Holdenville will be played in Ada at 7:30 p.m.
Lindsay has skinned past Perry, 13-12, and Clinton on penetrations after a 12-12 tie to keep alive its record of having never lost a playoff game. The Leopards have won 16 and tied two while winning state Class B championships in 1955, 1958, 1962 and 1963 and reaching the present Class A finals...
As noted in the above article, Melvin Bell was a stand-out at Clinton during the '64 season. He had two younger brothers - Carlos and Roy, who would also star on the grid-iron for Clinton in later years. The trio of Bell brothers were among the greatest families ever to play high school football in Oklahoma during the 1960's. They were rivaled only by the Selman brothers - Lucious, Lee Roy and Dewey from Eufala, and the Estes brothers from Lindsay - Gene, Hodie, and Wayne of the 1950's.
So, the Lindsay Leopards played the Holdenville Wolverines for the Class A state title on December 11, 1964, in Ada. Wally Wallis, staff writer for The Oklahoman, recalled the game on Sunday, December 13:
ADA -- Holdenville defeated Lindsay, 14-0, before a crowd of 4,000 Friday night to win the state Class A high school football championship for the first time. Lindsay, winner of state championships in four previous appearances suffered its first loss in 19 playoff games.
Holdenville used a magnificent defense to throttle Lindsay's famed running attack. The Leopards never got closer than 33 yards to pay dirt and that came on their first possession...
Lindsay halfback Ken Fleming injured a leg so badly he was hospitalized. He was hurt on Lindsay's first possession, eight plays deep into the contest. Only a pair of pass interceptions by the Leopards during the first 13 minutes of the game and some magnificent punting by 138-pound Sammy Howard kept the Leopards in contention. Howard punted the Wolverines back to their own eight, three, 11, 15 and 14-yard lines on his first five kicks and wound up the game averaging 38 yards for a half-dozen boots.
Lindsay halfback Joe Sharp picked off a Stripling pass on the third play of the game to give the Leopards the ball on the Holdenville 49. In four plays the Leopards drove to a first down on the 33, but a 15-yard holding penalty stopped the drive and Howard opened his punting spectaculars with a kick which pinned the Wolverines back on the eight...
Holdenville's best advance of the first period was its own 36 and things got no better at the outset of the second period when tackle Danny Noles intercepted a deflected Stripling pass and got back to the Lindsay 46...
The Leopards had no excuses for losing the state title game, but long-time assistant coach Charlie Heatly said later that losing Ken Fleming to injury prevented Lindsay from winning their fifth state championship. Fleming was named to the south All-State squad in 1965, and went on to have a stellar college football career at Southern Methodist University.
An article in The Oklahoman dated December 26, 1968 - SMU Glad Fleming Strayed:
Oklahoma's only contribution to the SMU starting unit -- sophomore tight end Ken Fleming of Lindsay -- is a substantial one. The 6-1 198-pound Fleming, who red-shirted a year ago, is second only to All-American Jerry Levias in catching passes. And SMU lives, or dies, by the pass...
The Leopards' 10 seasons starting in 1955 and ending in 1964 ended with 98 wins and 17 losses, five state title appearances and four state championships. Leopard head coaches and their records for the first part of legends of the fall were Bill Vandiver (1946-1947) 4 wins-14 losses, Carl Dunaway (1948-1949) 11 wins-7 losses, Cleotis Beavers (1950) 4 wins-5 losses, Tom Turvey (1951-1956) 45 wins-15 losses, Lawton Carey (1957) 8 wins-2 losses, Vern Robertson (1958) 14 wins-0 losses and Bill Froman (1959-1964) 54 wins-14 losses.
This was dominance by any definition of the word, but many fans and high school sports experts believed the reign of the Leopard was beginning to end. It was only half-time for the legends of the fall though, and the second half was about to begin.
The eighth game saw the Leopards beat Carl Albert 21-0, Pauls Valley 10-6 and Wynnewood 7-6, for a 9-1 regular season record. Our Leopards then beat Perry 13 -12 in the state Quarterfinals, and were to face the Clinton Red Tornadoes in the state Semi-Finals.
The Lindsay Leopards had moved from Class B in 1963 to Class A for the 1964 season, so faced some teams they had not played before. Clinton was definitely a force to be reckoned with, as the Leopards would soon find out. Ray Soldan, staff writer for the Oklahoman, recounted on December 5, 1964:
Lindsay -- Two key pass interceptions helped Lindsay salvage a 12-12 tie with Clinton Friday night and the Leopards advanced to the state Class A football finals with a 4-2 edge in penetrations. (Remember the Leopard 1955 state champions which tied Newkirk 20-20 in the state Class B Semi-Finals, but won the penetration battle 3-2.)
The first interception came midway in the third quarter with the score deadlocked 6-6 and Clinton driving relentlessly. On a second and one play from the Lindsay 29, a pass by ju8nior quarterback John McMillan was picked off by rival signal caller Gary Goodwin on the Lindsay 15. Goodwin gave it a 46-yard return to the Clinton 39.
From that spot, the Leopards drove to the go-ahead touchdown in seven plays. Fullback Mike King rambled 30 yards to the one, but a motion penalty on the next down made the Lindsay task a little tough. On fourth down, King, needing a yard, appeared to be stopped with tacklers hitting him both high and low. King gave a final lurch and fell into the end zone for the 12-6 lead.
Lindsay tried to gain more of a cushion with nine minutes remaining when bare-footed kicking specialist John Berthold attempted a field goal from the Clinton 19. It was blocked by Bobby Price and Clinton took over on the 17.
The Red Tornadoes marched the 83 yards in 10 plays with McMillan hitting 6-7 end Melvin Bell with passes of 49 and 11 yards, the final one for the touchdown.
The scoring play occurred on fourth down and Bell was knocked to the ground at the line of scrimmage, but he recovered and hustled into the end zone to take a floater type pitch well above the outstretched arms of defenders.
Clinton elected to pass for the conversion which would have snapped the tie with 5:40 left. Bell, who caught five passes for 112 yards, was wide open in the corner of the end zone but the pass sailed well over his head.
Clinton promptly held Lindsay on downs and got the ball back with 3:33 remaining. After an incomplete pass, Lindsay's Danny Noles came up with the second crucial interception and the Leopards needed only to run out the clock to keep alive their record of having never lost a state playoff game.
The Oklahoman reported on December 9,1964, after the Clinton game - The Class A showdown between Lindsay and Holdenville will be played in Ada at 7:30 p.m.
Lindsay has skinned past Perry, 13-12, and Clinton on penetrations after a 12-12 tie to keep alive its record of having never lost a playoff game. The Leopards have won 16 and tied two while winning state Class B championships in 1955, 1958, 1962 and 1963 and reaching the present Class A finals...
As noted in the above article, Melvin Bell was a stand-out at Clinton during the '64 season. He had two younger brothers - Carlos and Roy, who would also star on the grid-iron for Clinton in later years. The trio of Bell brothers were among the greatest families ever to play high school football in Oklahoma during the 1960's. They were rivaled only by the Selman brothers - Lucious, Lee Roy and Dewey from Eufala, and the Estes brothers from Lindsay - Gene, Hodie, and Wayne of the 1950's.
So, the Lindsay Leopards played the Holdenville Wolverines for the Class A state title on December 11, 1964, in Ada. Wally Wallis, staff writer for The Oklahoman, recalled the game on Sunday, December 13:
ADA -- Holdenville defeated Lindsay, 14-0, before a crowd of 4,000 Friday night to win the state Class A high school football championship for the first time. Lindsay, winner of state championships in four previous appearances suffered its first loss in 19 playoff games.
Holdenville used a magnificent defense to throttle Lindsay's famed running attack. The Leopards never got closer than 33 yards to pay dirt and that came on their first possession...
Lindsay halfback Ken Fleming injured a leg so badly he was hospitalized. He was hurt on Lindsay's first possession, eight plays deep into the contest. Only a pair of pass interceptions by the Leopards during the first 13 minutes of the game and some magnificent punting by 138-pound Sammy Howard kept the Leopards in contention. Howard punted the Wolverines back to their own eight, three, 11, 15 and 14-yard lines on his first five kicks and wound up the game averaging 38 yards for a half-dozen boots.
Lindsay halfback Joe Sharp picked off a Stripling pass on the third play of the game to give the Leopards the ball on the Holdenville 49. In four plays the Leopards drove to a first down on the 33, but a 15-yard holding penalty stopped the drive and Howard opened his punting spectaculars with a kick which pinned the Wolverines back on the eight...
Holdenville's best advance of the first period was its own 36 and things got no better at the outset of the second period when tackle Danny Noles intercepted a deflected Stripling pass and got back to the Lindsay 46...
The Leopards had no excuses for losing the state title game, but long-time assistant coach Charlie Heatly said later that losing Ken Fleming to injury prevented Lindsay from winning their fifth state championship. Fleming was named to the south All-State squad in 1965, and went on to have a stellar college football career at Southern Methodist University.
An article in The Oklahoman dated December 26, 1968 - SMU Glad Fleming Strayed:
Oklahoma's only contribution to the SMU starting unit -- sophomore tight end Ken Fleming of Lindsay -- is a substantial one. The 6-1 198-pound Fleming, who red-shirted a year ago, is second only to All-American Jerry Levias in catching passes. And SMU lives, or dies, by the pass...
The Leopards' 10 seasons starting in 1955 and ending in 1964 ended with 98 wins and 17 losses, five state title appearances and four state championships. Leopard head coaches and their records for the first part of legends of the fall were Bill Vandiver (1946-1947) 4 wins-14 losses, Carl Dunaway (1948-1949) 11 wins-7 losses, Cleotis Beavers (1950) 4 wins-5 losses, Tom Turvey (1951-1956) 45 wins-15 losses, Lawton Carey (1957) 8 wins-2 losses, Vern Robertson (1958) 14 wins-0 losses and Bill Froman (1959-1964) 54 wins-14 losses.
This was dominance by any definition of the word, but many fans and high school sports experts believed the reign of the Leopard was beginning to end. It was only half-time for the legends of the fall though, and the second half was about to begin.
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