Metrosports presents OU vs. OSU 01-27-81

[NickZepp]

I can't imagine not having some sort of scoreboard bug now for say baseball. Imagine turning to a baseball game mid inning before those existed and you may not know how many runners on base unless you see one on 2nd base, what the count is, how many outs there are. You had to hope the broadcast would do that at some point and they didn't always do that. Basketball they usually showed the score and time left after a score although not always. Football usually had scores before breaks and sometimes at the end of a quarter/half/game they would have the time on there.

 

[jmizzy4ou]

HOF broadcaster Ray Scott on the call with Gary Thompson. I presume that was a Big 8 Wednesday night syndicated game with a simulcast on ESPN.

I had forgotten Wayman played his freshman year with Bo Overton, Chucky Barnett, and Big Time Jones. That team lost to Indiana in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

That was OSU's best team in the decades between Henry Iba and Eddie Sutton. Mostly local (OKC metro) players.

OKC had some very good HS players during that era.

 

[jmizzy4ou]

I had almost all those same thoughts. Uwe Blob for IU*. Matt Clark, Leroy Combs, Bill Self, Lorenza Andrews.....pretty good poke team.

Barnett was my first favorite Sooner hoops player.

I can guarantee my dad was there.

Early 80's Big 8 players woulda been tough with 3 point line.....David Little, Self, Jon Sunvold.

* Looking it up (another hooray for Soonerstats. com).....we also lose to IU and Knight in 98, OT, despite a great game by Corey Brewer.

Barnett was my first favorite Sooner as well. I use sit with my dad and listen to their games on the radio.... Tisdale quickly became my favorite player once he arrived. Those teams were fun to watch...

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

OKC had some very good HS players during that era.

That OSU team that night started Leroy Combs and Matt Clark (both from Star-Spencer), Lorenza Andrews (Millwood), and Bill Self (Edmond).

OU recruited Choo Kennedy from Northwest Classen for the following season.

 

[NickZepp]

The next year(or I guess 2 years later) they would play in the NCAA Tournament against Louisiana Tech who had a future HOF power forward in Karl Malone. Great basketball game. Yes I edited some ads in for nostalgia. If you notice I used 2 versions of this game to put it together.

 

[jmizzy4ou]

That OSU team that night started Leroy Combs and Matt Clark (both from Star-Spencer), Lorenza Andrews (Millwood), and Bill Self (Edmond).

OU recruited Choo Kennedy from Northwest Classen for the following season.

I knew Leroy and Choo pretty well. I moved back and forth from Ponca City to OKC for most of my childhood. I used to play pick-up games at all the OKC rec centers back then and at the parks. Choo was always around. Those OKC schools had epic battles in the 80s—so many good players. Even schools like Capital Hill and Northeast produced some small school college players. I played at Capital Hill from my freshman year to my JR year, then I finished at Ponca City.... many of the best athletes in Spencer and OKC fell victim to the streets. The late 80s is when the West Coast gangs became prevalent in OKC, and a lot of athletes chose the streets, unfortunately....

 

[skyvue]

That Bedlam game was fun to watch. I will say we're lucky Combs fouled out. Little had a great game (but for the late missed free throw). I remembered all the Sooner players (by name at least) except Pannell. I don't recall him at all, but he looked to be a solid player.

As for the telecast, it was interesting how much more of what was said on-court by players and officials one could hear.

 

[jmizzy4ou]

That Bedlam game was fun to watch. I will say we're lucky Combs fouled out. Little had a great game (but for the late missed free throw). I remembered all the Sooner players (by name at least) except Pannell. I don't recall him at all, but he looked to be a solid player.

As for the telecast, it was interesting how much more of what was said on-court by players and officials one could hear.

I remember Jan Pannell. His nickname was Chubs I believe.

 

[opsooner]

All of these things are true.

Bill Self was a pretty good player. Lightly recruited out of Edmond HS (Edmond Memorial...they had only one HS at the time). Paul Hansen was a local hero, having coached with and replaced Abe Lemons at OCU. He went on to OSU and recruited this OKC all-star team that came together in this season.

OU had just won the NIT the year before. Guys like Chucky Barnett and David Little were recruited by Dave Bliss. This was the year before Billy put even better talent around Wayman. Even then, though, we were running teams out of Lloyd Noble. I had forgotten this game was close until the end.

In 1983, the three-point line was optional for conferences and not used in the NCAA tournament. The Big 8 did not have one. (The ACC used one in conference play that came within the top of the key). Therefore, it was very much a jungle in the paint.

Billy's red jacket was indeed ugly. Also in this era, John Brooks and Al Eschbach wore tuxedos to call the games on radio. They had a sponsor that furnished the tuxes.

The scorebug did not come about until the 90's, when Fox invented it for their new NFL broadcasts.

This video is a great blast from the past. Thanks!

If I remember correctly David Little transferred to OU from Texas Tech. I think it was in 1983 when he hit the game winner in Stillwater.

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

If I remember correctly David Little transferred to OU from Texas Tech. I think it was in 1983 when he hit the game winner in Stillwater.

Yes, he did transfer from Texas Tech. I don't remember if Billy recruited him, or Bliss. Perhaps Billy did.

 

[sanguinetti]

The next year(or I guess 2 years later) they would play in the NCAA Tournament against Louisiana Tech who had a future HOF power forward in Karl Malone. Great basketball game. Yes I edited some ads in for nostalgia. If you notice I used 2 versions of this game to put it together.

Didn't Tisdale and Malone square off before in another close game in the All-College?

Looked it up, was year before....84-72 Sooners. But, yeah, All College. And, yeah, that NCAA game was a good one.

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

Didn't Tisdale and Malone square off before in another close game in the All-College?

Looked it up, was year before....84-72 Sooners. But, yeah, All College. And, yeah, that NCAA game was a good one.

I'm still sick about the Elite 8 loss two days later to Memphis State.

That was the year Villanova upset Georgetown in the finals.

 

[sanguinetti]

I can't imagine not having some sort of scoreboard bug now for say baseball. Imagine turning to a baseball game mid inning before those existed and you may not know how many runners on base unless you see one on 2nd base, what the count is, how many outs there are. You had to hope the broadcast would do that at some point and they didn't always do that. Basketball they usually showed the score and time left after a score although not always. Football usually had scores before breaks and sometimes at the end of a quarter/half/game they would have the time on there.

Sure. But on the one hand, the broadcast trusted you to be a fan who knew how to follow the count, outs and remember who was on base. Situational baseball.....not just wait for home runs. Now on the other hand, in OU football on the radio.....sometimes Bob Barry Sr would def keep the down and distance a secret. Which could be very frustrating.

I'm still sick about the Elite 8 loss two days later to Memphis State.

That was the year Villanova upset Georgetown in the finals.

I almost posted about that. But, i decided to save it. La Tech was the Sweet 16.

I remember the loss to Memphis State, Dana Kirk, Keith Lee, Andre Turner.....my HS friends and I watched that loss and like for an hour couldn't talk. What that Sooner team making the final 4, with the crap Billy got at the time from the old timey hoops media, would have been so beautiful.

Still, love all those guys.

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

I almost posted about that. But, i decided to save it. La Tech was the Sweet 16.

I remember the loss to Memphis State, Dana Kirk, Keith Lee, Andre Turner.....my HS friends and I watched that loss and like for an hour couldn't talk. What that Sooner team making the final 4, with the crap Billy got at the time from the old timey hoops media, would have been so beautiful.

Still, love all those guys.

That year was peak Big East, with three of the Final Four teams and all of the East Coast hype that went with it.

The Villanova upset of Georgetown was legendary.

As I think about it, though, with a win over Memphis State, we would have played Villanova in the semifinals.

Can't believe that was 40 years ago.

 

[WaymanFan]

That Bedlam game was fun to watch. I will say we're lucky Combs fouled out. Little had a great game (but for the late missed free throw). I remembered all the Sooner players (by name at least) except Pannell. I don't recall him at all, but he looked to be a solid player.

As for the telecast, it was interesting how much more of what was said on-court by players and officials one could hear.

Pannell was the backup PG to Bo Overton on the 1983 team (from JUCO), but was the starter in 1984. He wasn't much of a shooter or scorer, but he didn't need to be. He just needed to find Wayman, TMac, Choo or David Johnson. He was solid as a ball distributor. The plan was for Mark Wade to take over the following year, but he transferred out. Billy's biggest mistake in recruiting may have been not having a true PG for Wayman's junior season. He tried Linwood Davis, TMac and incoming JUCO Anthony Bowie, but all of them were better off the ball.

As for David Little, he was Billy's first big-time transfer player. I wasn't sure if he came directly from TTech or via JUCO...but I do know he and Chucky Barnett were the leaders of the 1982 team that went to the NIT Final Four...and were the second and third best players the following year when Wayman arrived.

In 1985, YES, Wayman played against The Mailman twice with Wayman winning both of them. Malone was one of the three LTech players who tried to block that classic Wayman fading jumper in double-OT that is still bouncing off the rim () before finally dropping. The loss to Memphis in the Elite Eight was painful. I'll never forget screaming from my living room: "That's a carry! That's a carry!" directed at Andre Turner. It was a badly missed call in the waning seconds. Apparently, Tim McCallister agreed with me as he threw a cup of water on the official's face after the game. If you don't believe me, just look at the box score of the first-round 1986 Tournament game against Northeastern...you won't see his name in the box score because he was suspended for that water display.

 

[AnotherSoonerInTX]

The loss to Memphis in the Elite Eight was painful. I'll never forget screaming from my living room: "That's a carry! That's a carry!" directed at Andre Turner. It was a badly missed call in the waning seconds.

I yelled the same thing. It was indeed a carry. I'll never forget it.

Memphis State had to vacate that Final Four appearance, as well.