Ken Houston reflects on Monday Night Football Walt Garrison play, 45 Years Later.

Tag: Dallas Cowboys
Posted on in Podcasts

Ken Houston reflects on Monday Night Football Walt Garrison play, 45 Years Later.

In October of 1973, the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins faced off in D.C. on Monday Night Football. George Allen stood in his third season as Redskins head coach. Cowboys legend Lee Roy Jordan told The Game before the Money that Allen ramped up the Cowboys/Redskins rivalry into the state of fury it became. The Monday Night Football affair came down to the last play – the Cowboys had the ball on the four yard line with four seconds left, needing a touchdown to tie. Washington’s Ken Houston, a future first-ballot Hall of Famer, made one of the signature plays of his career. He stopped Dallas running back Walt Garrison at the goal line as time expired, after Garrison snatched a pass from quarterback Craig Morton. Houston, who had just been obtained from the Houston Oilers for five players, became hugely popular in Washington overnight. Washington’s 14-7 win put them in a first-place tie with the Cowboys. Houston told The […]

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Posted on in Podcasts

Podcast — Dallas Cowboys Legend Chad Hennings

You can listen in the player below, and also listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts and iTunes, Google Play, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and Stitcher. Dallas Cowboys legend Chad Hennings joined me as the first guest on The Game before the Money Podcast. Listen as the 3x Super Bowl champ remembers reporting to a team with future Hall of Famers like Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Larry Allen, and Charles Haley. Hear him tell stories about his fighter jet experience in the Gulf War. Step into the locker room with him to understand the adversity the Cowboys overcame to win 3 Super Bowls in 4 years.   Brought to you by NBAutographs.com NOTE: YOU CAN PURCHASE CHAD’S BOOKS AND LEARN MORE ABOUT HIM AT: ChadHennings.com

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Posted on in Classic Games, Uncategorized

Classic Games — The Ice Bowl (original broadcast)

BART STARR PAINTING BY ROBERT HURST. PRINT WITH AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF THE BOOK IS AVAILABLE IN OUR SHOP FOR $50. The 1967 NFL Championship, often called the Ice Bowl, was played on December 31, 1967. Tomorrow’s NFC Divisional Playoff between the Cowboys and Packers will be the first time these two legendary franchises have met at Lambeau Field in the playoffs since that iconic day. To celebrate, we’re posting the original Cowboys radio broadcast of the epic final drive. Be sure to listen to the post-game interviews of Dan Reeves, Lee Roy Jordan, and Mel Renfro in the Cowboy locker room.  Priceless.   The Ice Bowl is covered in depth in The Game Before the Money: Voices of the Men Who Built the NFL, as interviews with Bart Starr, Carroll Dale, and Bob Skoronski of the Packers liberally detail their memories of the game, along with insight to what Coach Lombardi discussed in the locker room and on the […]

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Posted on in Historical Analysis, This Might Surprise You

THIS MIGHT SURPRISE YOU: WHAT WAS THE WORLD LIKE LAST TIME YOUR TEAM WON A TITLE?

This is the first in a four-part series. Knowing how much I love history, my wife bought me a birthday card listing facts about the year I was born. I started wondering what was happening the last time teams won a championship. Let’s find out, and I hope you have as much fun reading this as I had researching. We’ll start with the NFC East and NFC North Divisions. Some of the most decorated trophy rooms in football reside here, their championships might seem longer ago than one might think. As Bruce Springsteen says, “Glory Days – They’ll pass you by.”   NFC EAST DALLAS COWBOYS – Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, and Company dominated, winning 3 out of 4 Super Bowls. For their last title, the Cowboys topped Carnell Lake (remember him?) and the rest of the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl 30.  That January of 1996. Bill Clinton’s first term in office. Hootie and the Blowfish had the number one […]

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Posted on in Appreciations, Stories

An Appreciation: Tom Landry

Phil Simms named his Top 5 Coaching Innovators during last week’s CBS Thursday Night Football broadcast. Being a Wisconsin native, I happily concurred with Vince Lombardi finishing number one. While I understand the difficulty of compiling such lists, the glaring omission of Tom Landry surprised me. To right that wrong in my little corner of the blogging universe, I humbly spotlight Coach Landry’s valuable contributions to the game. THE ROAD TO COACHING Landry attended the University of Texas. He played fullback and defensive back for the Longhorns. Like so many others playing college ball in the 1940s, World War II interrupted his NCAA career. He flew over two dozen difficult combat missions before returning home. Landry later stated that surviving the war built his confidence. He broke into professional football with the New York Yankees of the All-American Football Conference, playing one season with the team before the league folded. The New York Giants picked up Landry, employing him mostly […]

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Posted on in Classic Games

Classic NFL Games — The Hail Mary Game — Second Half

I earlier covered the first half of the 1975 NFC Divisional Playoff, a.k.a. the “Hail Mary Game.” This post covers the second half. I’ll write in present tense to give a sense of the game unfolding.  THIRD QUARTER Both defenses dominated the first half, ending 7-0 in Minnesota’s favor. The second half starts with Fran Tarkenton hitting running back Ed Marinaro for 40 yards, to the Dallas 35. This, however, isn’t Fran’s best game. He overthrows an open John Gilliam as the drive stalls. Fred Cox misses a 45-yard field goal by the size of the Gulf of Mexico — short, and very wide right. The Vikings topped every defensive category in 1975, holding 4 opponents to under 200 yards. Lucky bounces can crack such a defense. The Cowboys get one as Doug Sutherland hits Roger Staubach mid-throw. Carl Eller tips the pass, but the Cowboys make the catch at midfield. A late hit from Wally Hilgenberg adds 15 yards. […]

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Posted on in Classic Games

Classic NFL Games — The Hail Mary Game — First Half

Tom Landry had a knack for finding himself in some of the most memorable games in NFL history. The Ice Bowl. Super Bowls 10 and 13. He even was an assistant with the Giants in “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” the 1958 NFL Championship. The most controversial, however, was the 1975 NFC Divisional Playoff. The reigning NFC champion Minnesota Vikings hosted wildcard contender Dallas in a game made famous by a 50-yard touchdown that Viking fans still protest. But the game was more than just one play. It was an exceptionally entertaining contest from start to finish. I will break up my review of this game in two posts, one for each half. The writing will be in present tense to provide a sense of how the game unfolded. FIRST QUARTER The Cowboys find success running the ball on the opening drive. The drive, however, stalls at midfield and the Vikings start at their own 20 after a touchback. The […]

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Posted on in This Might Surprise You

This Might Surprise You: Steve Largent

Several players held the NFL’s all-time reception mark after 1970. Don Maynard, Charley Taylor, Charlie Joiner and Art Monk are among the names who claimed the title before Jerry Rice. Steve Largent is another receiver who held that distinction. OLD SCHOOL THINKING Largent played his entire career with the Seattle Seahawks. He told Seahawks.com he appreciated his accomplishments on the gridiron, “But the thing I’m most proud of from my career in Seattle was that I played my entire career in Seattle….It gave me a special connection with the city and the people and the team that you just don’t find very often with professional athletes today.” IT ALMOST NEVER HAPPENED Largent made his way to the Seahawks by happenstance. The Houston Oilers drafted Largent in the fourth round of the 1976 NFL Draft. He didn’t impress the Oilers, and found himself on a bus headed home to Oklahoma after four preseason games. He thought his football career was over. Jerry Rhome, a […]

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