1976: Jets Hire Lou Holtz as Head Coach

On February 10, 1976, the New York Jets announced that they had decided to dip into the college ranks to fill their head coaching vacancy. Lou Holtz, most recently the coach at North Carolina State, was named to the post.

The hiring was in line with a recent trend in the NFL toward taking on successful college coaches. UCLA’s Dick Vermeil had just been hired by the Eagles and John McKay of USC was chosen to be the first head coach of the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The 39-year-old Holtz was not well known nationally, but had built a reputation as a college head coach who could turn struggling programs around. The Jets, who had not produced a winning season since 1969, hoped that the amateur magician could work the same magic at the pro level. Holtz received a five-year contract.

Frail and looking more like a college professor than a football coach, Holtz had put together a 33-12-3 record, including four bowl appearances in as many seasons at NC State. It had been a losing program prior to his arrival, and he had achieved similar success at William & Mary before that.

“I have great confidence in myself,” Holtz said at his introductory press conference. “I believe in God, Lou Holtz and the New York Jets in that order. Coaching is coaching no matter what level you're at. You need a good staff and you need athletes and you need people who want to win. That's what I intend to have here.”

While Holtz was known as an offensive-minded coach in college, he made clear that defense would be his first priority in New York.

The Jets went 3-11 in 1975, with the lowest-ranked defense in the NFL. Head Coach Charley Winner, the designated successor to Weeb Ewbank following his retirement after the ’73 season, was fired nine games into his second year on the job. Offensive coordinator Ken Shipp took over in the interim to finish out the dismal season.

One of the initial concerns that the new coach had to deal with was veteran QB Joe Namath, who had openly suggested a trade rather than continue to take a battering with the woeful Jets. While Holtz indicated that he still wanted the 11-year veteran on the team, he also said “If Joe wants to play for us again and help us, fine. If he doesn’t, we’ll find someone else.” With their first pick in the ’76 draft, they took QB Richard Todd, who, like Namath, came out of Head Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant’s program at Alabama.

Beyond that, the offensive line was aging and the running game hindered by the loss of FB John Riggins, who had played out his option and signed as a free agent with the Redskins. Walt Michaels, an assistant under Ewbank in better days, was brought back as defensive coordinator to sort out the unit that had performed so abysmally in 1975.

Things did not go well for Holtz or the Jets in 1976. The coach tried to inject a college spirit into the team, and it fell flat. He wrote a fight song for the players that became a source of ridicule and had them line up by height along the sideline for the national anthem prior to each game. In short, he simply was not prepared for the pro game at that point in his career (and admitted as much years later).

The team, very much in turmoil, was still bad, too. There were 14 rookies on the roster, including Todd. While RB Clark Gaines, a first-year player who made the club as a free agent, was a pleasant surprise, many of the others proved not to be keepers. Gaines led the team in both rushing (724 yards) and pass receiving (41 catches).

The battered Namath threw for just 1090 yards with four touchdowns and 16 interceptions in his final season with the Jets. Todd started six games and the team won two of them. While he caught only 31 passes for 391 yards, TE Rich Caster was still highly regarded, and WR David Knight contributed 20 receptions for 403 yards (20.2 avg.).

The defense continued to be dreadful, ranking 26th in the league – only the expansion Buccaneers and Seahawks ranked lower. They intercepted 11 passes and registered a mere 16 sacks for the season. Still, FS Burgess Owens and SS Phil Wise played well, and LB Greg Buttle earned all-rookie honors and offered hope for the future.

The team’s final record was again 3-11, although Holtz didn’t last to the end. He accepted an offer to return to college coaching at Arkansas and left the Jets with one game remaining. As he stated upon announcing his decision, “God did not put Lou Holtz on this earth to coach in the pros.” Director of Player Personnel Mike Holovak (formerly head coach of the Patriots) served as interim coach for the season finale, a 42-3 shellacking at the hands of the Cincinnati Bengals.

Holtz stayed at Arkansas for seven years before moving on briefly to the University of Minnesota and then Notre Dame. After stepping down as head coach of the Fighting Irish, he moved to the broadcast booth for two seasons and returned to college coaching once more at South Carolina, retiring for good in 2004.

Overall, Holtz compiled a 249-132-7 record as a college coach, going 12-8-2 in bowl games spread across six different programs, and won a national championship with Notre Dame in 1988. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, but his brief failure in the NFL likely soured any likelihood of being pursued by a pro team (although the Vikings reportedly showed some interest at the time he left Notre Dame in 1996).

As for the Jets, Walt Michaels was promoted to head coach in 1977 and, after a third straight 3-11 campaign, they began to show improvement. Helped along by some good drafts, New York eventually reached the playoffs in 1981 and ’82.

1977: Raiders Dominate Vikings in Super Bowl XI

Super Bowl XI on January 9, 1977 featured two teams that had a history of contending but coming up short in the postseason. The Oakland Raiders had been to the Super Bowl once before, as champions of the AFL following the 1967 season, and had made it to the playoffs in seven of the eight years following without winning a title. The Minnesota Vikings had also been in the postseason in seven of the previous eight campaigns, but had made it to the Super Bowl on three occasions - once having won the NFL title in 1969 and twice after the merger as representatives of the NFC. However, they had come up empty each time.

Oakland, coached by John Madden, easily won the AFC West for the fifth straight year with an NFL-best 13-1 record. QB Ken “The Snake” Stabler (pictured above) had an outstanding season, leading the league in passing (103.4 rating), touchdown passes (27), completion percentage (66.7), and yards per attempt (9.4). Deep-threat WR Cliff Branch caught 46 passes and ranked second in the league in yards (1111) and first in TD receptions (12). 33-year-old WR Fred Biletnikoff contributed 43 catches, while All-Pro TE Dave Casper led the team with 53 receptions, 10 of which were for scores. FB Mark van Eeghen ran for 1012 yards. Defensively, the team successfully converted to a 3-4 alignment and had a key acquisition in DE John Matuszak to go along with veteran linebackers Phil Villapiano and Ted Hendricks, CB Willie Brown, and safeties Jack Tatum and George Atkinson.

The Vikings were coached for the tenth season by Bud Grant and compiled an 11-2-1 tally to top the NFC Central. 36-year-old QB Fran Tarkenton put together a typically strong showing, throwing for an NFC-leading 2961 yards and 17 touchdowns while posting the league’s lowest interception percentage (1.9). He was helped by the performance of two new wide receivers, veteran Ahmad Rashad and rookie Sammy White. RB Chuck Foreman ran for 1155 yards and pulled in 55 passes for 567 more. The aging defense was still effective and contained such stalwarts as ends Carl Eller and Jim Marshall, DT Alan Page, MLB Jeff Siemon, and FS Paul Krause.

The Raiders defeated the Patriots in the Divisional round and Pittsburgh for the AFC title while Minnesota handily beat the Redskins and Rams, respectively, for the NFC Championship.

There were 100,421 fans present at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Oakland’s opening drive covered 55 yards to the Minnesota 11, but the Raiders came up empty when Errol Mann’s 29-yard field goal attempt hit the left upright and was no good.

With about five minutes left in the first period, Minnesota LB Fred McNeill blocked a punt by Ray Guy (the first time in Guy’s pro career that he had a kick blocked) and recovered the ball at the Oakland three yard line. Following a one-yard run by Foreman, RB Brent McClanahan fumbled when hit by LB Phil Villapiano and NT Dave Rowe; LB Willie Hall recovered for the Raiders.


The Vikings defense seemed to have Oakland contained, but on third-and-seven at the six yard line HB Clarence Davis (pictured at left) took off around left end on a 35-yard run. Stabler threw to HB Carl Garrett for 11 yards and then to Casper for 25. The possession culminated in a 24-yard field goal by Mann early in the second quarter. From a situation in which it appeared Minnesota would score the game’s first points, the advantage instead shifted to the Raiders.

The Vikings had to punt on their next possession, and Oakland took over at its 36. After a couple of short passes and runs by van Eeghen and Davis, Stabler threw to Casper for 19 yards. Garrett ran for 13 yards and Biletnikoff caught a pass at the one. Stabler then threw to a wide-open Casper in the end zone for a touchdown. Oakland was ahead by 10-0.

With seven minutes left in the half, the Vikings got the ball back but once more had to punt and DB Neil Colzie returned it 25 yards to the Minnesota 35. Two running plays gained 17 yards and then Stabler passed to Biletnikoff for 17, again to the one yard line. The Raiders kept it on the ground this time as RB Pete Banaszak plunged over right tackle for a touchdown. Mann missed the extra point attempt that nicked the right upright, but the score was 16-0 at halftime.

Oakland had clearly dominated, controlling the ball for 21 minutes during the first half and outgaining the Vikings by 288 yards to 86 while leading in first downs by 16 to 4. By contrast, Tarkenton completed just 5 of 12 passes for 59 yards.

Ten minutes into the third quarter, Mann kicked a 40-yard field goal to extend the Oakland lead to 19-0. It appeared that the Minnesota offense would remain stymied, especially when they had to punt following the next possession. However, Oakland’s Hendricks roughed punter Neil Clabo and the Vikings kept the ball. Reinvigorated, Minnesota finally began to move as Tarkenton completed passes of 15 yards to TE Stu Voigt, 21 yards to Rashad, 10 to Foreman, and eight to Sammy White for a touchdown. The Vikings were finally on the board with 47 seconds left in the third quarter.

On the next Minnesota possession, Tarkenton threw while being pressured by Hendricks and was intercepted by Willie Hall, who returned it 16 yards to the Oakland 46. Three plays later, Stabler threw to Biletnikoff, who caught the pass at the Minnesota 35 and took it all the way down to the two yard line for a 48-yard gain. On the next play, Banaszak ran for the two-yard TD. For all intents and purposes, at 26-7 midway through the fourth quarter, the game was over.

A desperation pass by Tarkenton was intercepted by CB Willie Brown, who returned it 75 yards for a touchdown and 32-7 lead (the erratic Mann missed another PAT). That was all for Tarkenton, who was replaced by Bob Lee. Lee led the Vikings on a meaningless 86-yard drive that ended with his 13-yard touchdown pass to Voigt and provided the final score of 32-14.

The Raiders rolled up 429 yards, setting a then-Super Bowl record, to 353 for Minnesota. They also outrushed the Vikings by a whopping 266 yards to 71, which was as much a tribute to OT Art Shell and G Gene Upshaw as it was to the running backs. Minnesota turned the ball over three times, to none suffered by the Raiders.


Clarence Davis rushed for 137 yards on 16 carries and Mark van Eeghen added 73 more yards on 18 attempts. Ken Stabler had a solid performance, completing 12 of 19 passes for 180 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. Fred Biletnikoff (pictured at right) caught 4 passes for 79 yards and was voted the game’s MVP while Dave Casper was right behind with 4 receptions for 70 yards and a TD.

As for the Vikings, Fran Tarkenton was successful on just 17 of 35 passes for 205 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. In relief, Bob Lee completed 7 of 9 for 81 yards and a TD. Sammy White caught 5 passes for 77 yards with a score. Chuck Foreman had 5 receptions for 62 yards and led the club in rushing with 44 yards on 17 attempts.

“I had my own personal drive out there because of that stuff about us not winning the big ones,” said Oakland’s John Madden. “This was a pretty big one, wasn't it?”

“We have the best offensive line in the league,” said Ken Stabler. “When you have All-Pros like Upshaw and Shell, you use them. When you have the horses, you ride them.”

“They totally dominated us,” said a disappointed Fran Tarkenton. “They played extremely well, and we played badly. That was it.”

It was a fourth loss for the Vikings in the Super Bowl – and last under Bud Grant. They made it to the postseason four more times under the Hall of Fame coach, but didn’t advance beyond the conference title game. As for the Raiders, they just missed returning to the Super Bowl following the ’77 season with a loss to the division-rival Broncos in the AFC Championship game – they would next make it to the playoffs, and win another championship, in 1980 with Tom Flores at the helm.

1976: Steelers Win Last College All-Star Game

Beginning in 1934, the Chicago College All-Star game served as the preseason kickoff to each NFL season. Conceived by Arch Ward of The Chicago Tribune (who also developed major league baseball’s annual All-Star Game), it matched the previous season’s NFL champion against a squad composed of top college players, many of whom were about to enter the pro ranks (in 1935, the runner-up Chicago Bears represented the NFL; following the pre-merger seasons of 1968 and ’69, AFL champions that won the Super Bowl participated). The game was sponsored by The Tribune on behalf of Chicago Charities and played at Soldier Field, with the exception of two contests during World War II that were held at Northwestern University.

Initially, the games were competitive (the first ended in a scoreless tie), but typically the NFL squad won and as time went on the contests were often mismatches. Pro coaches complained about college prospects reporting late to training camp because of participation in the all-star contest, and of the additional exposure to injury. As salaries grew larger in the 1960s and ‘70s, the players themselves were averse to the prospect of potentially being sidelined. When NFL veterans struck during the 1974 preseason, the game was cancelled.

What would prove to be the last College All-Star game was held on July 23, 1976. The Pittsburgh Steelers, winners of the Super Bowl following the ’75 season, represented the NFL against an all-star squad that included such future pro stars as Oklahoma’s Selmon brothers (DE Lee Roy and DT Dewey), RB Joe Washington, G Jackie Slater, WR Duriel Harris, QB Richard Todd, and two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin (pictured running at bottom). The team was coached by Notre Dame’s Ara Parseghian.

There were 52,895 fans on hand at Soldier Field for the Friday night contest. A heavy downpour had occurred about 40 minutes prior to the game, but it had passed before the opening kickoff. There was little scoring in the first half as Pittsburgh’s “Steel Curtain” defense shut down the All-Stars, holding them to a net total of 54 yards. Roy Gerela kicked a 29-yard field goal in the first quarter and kicked two more, of 32 and 23 yards, in the second period to give the Steelers a 9-0 lead at the half.

Pittsburgh pulled away early in the third quarter. First, the Steelers gained an easy two points when All-Star center Ray Pinney’s snap sailed over the head of punter Rick Engles and through the end zone for a safety. RB Jack Deloplaine returned the ensuing free kick 32 yards to the All-Star 26 yard line, and three plays later RB Franco Harris ran 21 yards for a touchdown and 18-0 Pittsburgh lead.

Shortly thereafter, the Steelers regained possession after the All-Stars punted and QB Terry Bradshaw connected with RB Tommy Reamon on a 25-yard pass play to the two yard line. Reamon bulled over for the score, and while the extra point attempt was missed, the Steelers held a 24-0 lead that would end up being the final score.

The All-Stars got an apparent break when Pittsburgh reserve QB Terry Hanratty, under a strong rush, threw a desperation pass that was intercepted by safety Shafer Suggs. Suggs returned the pickoff 16 yards to the Steelers’ 39 yard line. A penalty moved the ball to the 34, but by this point a torrential rain had struck and the officials called time with 1:22 remaining in the third quarter.

The players left the flooded field, but many of the young fans in the crowd ran onto it and ripped down the goal posts. Unable to restore order and after consultation with NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, the officials called off the remainder of the contest.

It was a miserable conclusion to a series that had provided 42 games over a span of 43 years. Chicago Tribune Charities chose to discontinue the game in 1977, and the annual summer all-star event was no more. As was to be expected, the NFL teams won 31 times, the All-Stars 9, and there were two ties. At its height, it was popular with the fans, and attendance had reached as high as 105,840 in 1947. It had served a purpose when the NFL was struggling for recognition and the college game was more popular – a situation that had changed considerably by the 1970s.

1986: Lee Roy Selmon Announces Retirement

It was not a surprise on April 23, 1986 when star DE Lee Roy Selmon announced his retirement. He had not appeared in a game since the Pro Bowl following the ’84 season where he suffered a herniated disk in his back. Selmon was forced to sit out all of 1985, hoping that surgery would not be necessary and that he would be able to return to action. But once he received word that even with surgery there was no certainty of playing again, he made the decision to retire. At the press conference, he said “I’m just thankful I was able to play ten years.”

It had actually been just nine years encompassing 121 regular season games, but a great nine years. Selmon’s retirement marked a significant milestone in Buccaneers history. He was the first player ever drafted by Tampa Bay with the initial overall pick as an expansion team in 1976 (the other new team that year, the Seattle Seahawks, lost a coin toss to the Bucs and chose second). His college credentials at Oklahoma were outstanding, where he had won both the Outland and Lombardi trophies for his play on the line. Head Coach John McKay was looking to emphasize defense in the new team’s first draft, and going with the best defensive player available made sense. In the second round, Tampa Bay picked Selmon’s older brother (by 11 months), Dewey, a defensive tackle (he was moved to linebacker in his second pro season); the two had played together in high school and college, and would now have the opportunity to do so again in the NFL.

The Buccaneers got off to a rough start, even for an expansion team, losing all 14 games in ’76 and the first 26 altogether before finally winning the last two contests of the 1977 season. The defense was the league’s worst in ’76, not helped by Selmon missing half of the campaign due to a knee injury.

The team began to improve in 1977, and Selmon was a key contributor. When they won their first game, at New Orleans, Selmon had three sacks (not yet an official statistic) and 12 tackles. The big breakthrough came in 1979, however, as Tampa Bay went 10-6 and advanced all the way to the NFC Championship game.

The overall performance of the defense was significant to the club’s success in ’79, and not surprisingly, Selmon led the way. Playing at right defensive end in a 3-4 alignment, he recorded 11 sacks (unofficially). He also had 117 tackles and forced three fumbles (with two recoveries, one for a touchdown). For his efforts, Selmon was a consensus first team All-Pro selection, went to the Pro Bowl for the first of six consecutive years, and was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press.

Brother Dewey was part of an outstanding group of linebackers that included Richard Wood at the other inside spot and David Lewis and Cecil Johnson on the outside. The secondary was the most effective in the league and consisted of cornerbacks Jeris White and Mike Washington and safeties Mark Cotney and Cedric Brown. The other two starting defensive linemen, nose tackle Randy Crowder and left end Wally Chambers, rounded out the solid unit that ranked first overall in the NFL – they gave up the fewest points (237), total yards (3949), and passing yards (2076).

The Buccaneers failed to sustain the success of 1979 – they sank back to 5-10-1 in ’80 and made it to the postseason just twice more during Selmon’s career.

The 6’3”, 250-pounder was often double- and triple-teamed by opposing offenses, yet his speed, strength, and agility made him an impact player in any event. In 1980, with offenses concentrated on stopping him, Selmon was credited with 72 quarterback “hurries” to go along with nine sacks. In all, he was credited with 78.5 sacks and 380 “hurries” over the course of his career.

Selmon received first or second team All-Pro recognition in five of his nine seasons, and was an All-NFC choice (first or second team) after seven of them. It was hardly surprising that the Buccaneers retired his number 63; he also became the first inductee into the team’s Ring of Honor at Raymond James Stadium in 2009. Selmon was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995.

Brother Dewey also played well for Tampa Bay (he was named team MVP in 1978) until a thigh injury suffered in training camp knocked him out for the 1981 season; he was traded to San Diego, where he played one year in ’82 prior to retiring.

Pleasant and soft-spoken off the field, Selmon was a terror on it. As Coach McKay put it at the time of Selmon’s selection to the Hall of Fame, “He was almost unblockable. I can’t imagine anyone being better. He was the heart of our team. At a time when we were pretty fair, he was what made us pretty fair.” Doug Williams, the club’s quarterback during much of Selmon’s career, added, “If he had been in a four-man front, they would have banned Lee Roy from the game.”

Maybe the most telling tribute came from an opposing offensive tackle, Ted Albrecht of the Bears, who once told an assistant coach at halftime of a game against the Bucs, “There are four things in the world I don’t want to do under any circumstance. Number one, I don’t want to milk a cobra. Number two, I don’t want to be buried at sea. Number three, I don’t want to get hit in the head with a hockey puck. And number four, I don’t want to play the second half against Lee Roy Selmon.”

1976: Dick Vermeil Hired as Head Coach by Philadelphia Eagles

Since winning the NFL Championship in 1960 under Head Coach Buck Shaw, who promptly retired, the Philadelphia Eagles had gone through a long period of successive coaching failures. Through the 1975 season the Eagles had five coaches, who combined for a won-lost record of 74-127-9 with just two winning years along the way. The last of those, Mike McCormack, went 16-25-1 from 1973 to ’75 and was let go.

Owner Leonard Tose had hired three of those coaches since taking over the team in 1969, and interviewed several candidates for the latest vacancy, including those with pro head coaching experience such as Hank Stram and Allie Sherman, as well as Norm Van Brocklin, the quarterback of the 1960 championship team who had gone on to coach the Vikings and Falcons. On February 8, 1976 he signed 39-year-old Dick Vermeil, who had drawn national attention after coaching UCLA to an upset of top-ranked Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

Vermeil had been an assistant coach at the pro level, having served as the first designated special teams coach in NFL history under George Allen with the Los Angeles Rams. He had led UCLA to an overall record of 15-5-3 over two seasons. Initially reluctant to accept the job, he was taking on the task of trying to turn around an organization that had been mired in losing and had mortgaged its future, primarily in deals for QB Roman Gabriel before the 1973 season and LB Bill Bergey in ’74. They did not have a draft choice until the fourth round in ’76 and the fifth round in ’77, and would not choose again in either the first or second round until 1979.

Vermeil was signed to a five-year contract and took the first season to evaluate the talent on hand. Gabriel was still with the team, but clearly on the downside of his career at age 36 and primarily utilized as a backup to the mediocre Mike Boryla. There was quality at tight end, where Charle Young was considered one of the league’s best (and was prone to being outspoken about that fact) and wide receiver, with 6’8” Harold Carmichael providing a big, if sometimes inconsistent, target.

Rookie FB Mike Hogan played well prior to an injury that ended his season after eight games, while veteran HB Tom Sullivan suffered through an injury-plagued campaign. The offensive line needed work, but had some promising players in tackles Jerry Sisemore and Stan Walters.

With a lack of quality defensive linemen and a better group of linebackers led by the All-Pro Bergey, Vermeil chose to use a 3-4 alignment. Strong safety Randy Logan was a rising star in the defensive backfield.

The biggest change Vermeil brought to the club from the beginning was intensity and a solid work ethic. He personified it by working long hours and often spending the night on a cot in his office at Veterans Stadium. It took time for the results to show, but when they did, the change was dramatic.

“I always had a sense that we were moving in the right direction,” Bergey said later. “Even in the early years when the wins were few and far between, we could see the intensity of the play picking up. Dick’s personality rubbed off on us.”

The wins were most definitely few and far between initially. The club duplicated the 1975 record of 4-10 in ’76, and was 5-9 in 1977. Young, who had become involved in a contract dispute, was traded to the Rams after the first year for QB Ron Jaworski (pictured with Vermeil below); “The Polish Rifle” took over the starting job and improved along with the team. Carmichael showed a greater maturity and became an even better receiver and team leader. At the end of the 1977 season, rookie Wilbert Montgomery emerged as a quality running back. Moreover, six of the nine losses were by six points or less, pointing to the increasing competitiveness of the team.

The hard work was rewarded in 1978, as the Eagles went 9-7 and earned a wild card playoff spot while Montgomery set a new team single-season rushing record with 1220 yards. The record improved to 11-5 and another wild card berth in ’79, and in 1980 Philadelphia won the NFC Championship with a 12-4 tally, although they faltered badly in the Super Bowl. Some fans and commentators blamed Vermeil for allowing the team to become too tight going into the Super Bowl, and the loss seemed to be a negative turning point for both the coach and team.

While the club got off to a 6-0 start in 1981, it faltered in the second half and just made it into the postseason as a wild card entry with a 10-6 tally; they lost to the Giants in the first round. It was the first time that the team had failed to improve on the previous year’s showing since Vermeil had arrived.

The Eagles went 3-6 in the strike-shortened 1982 season, and Vermeil resigned, citing burnout. The emotional Vermeil’s intensity had ultimately proved to be his undoing in Philadelphia. He left with an overall record of 57-51.

Vermeil moved to the broadcast booth and did not return to coaching until he signed on with the Rams fifteen years later in 1997 (after flirting with the idea of coming back to the Eagles in 1995). But from 1976 through ’80, he turned a perennially losing team into a contender and was twice selected as NFC Coach of the Year by the Pro Football Writers of America for his efforts.