He wasn't much of a passer, but you did pick his worst year. Here are his career stats.
Passing[th]Season[/th] [th]Cmp[/th] [th]Att[/th] [th]Yards[/th] [th]TD[/th] [th]Int[/th] [th]Long[/th] [th]Cmp%[/th] [th]Effcy[/th] [th]200Y[/th] [th]300Y[/th] [th]400Y[/th] [th]500Y[/th]
|
1973 | SO | 38 | 91 | 934 | 9 | 6 | | 41.8 | 147.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1974 | JR | 26 | 63 | 601 | 11 | 4 | | 41.3 | 166.3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1975 | SR | 22 | 61 | 501 | 1 | 7 | | 36.1 | 87.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Totals | 86 | 215 | 2,036 | 21 | 17 | 0 | 40.0 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rushing[th]Season[/th] [th]Att[/th] [th]Yards[/th] [th]TD[/th] [th]Long[/th] [th]Y/A[/th] [th]100Y[/th] [th]200Y[/th]
|
1973 | SO | 179 | 887 | 18 | 47 | 5.0 | 6 | 0 |
1974 | JR | 165 | 659 | 9 | | 4.0 | 3 | 0 |
1975 | SR | 190 | 578 | 7 | | 3.0 | 2 | 0 |
Totals | 534 | 2,124 | 34 | 47 | 4.0 | 11 | 0 |
So his best season in all categories was 1973, his sophomore year.
Some long-time observers of the Sooners think that the very young 1973 team, 10-0-1 with a tie at defending NC USC in the 2nd game, was the best of the '73-75 bunch. They were on probation, and ineligible for the then-UPI rankings, but that tie might have cost them the AP championship. Maybe not, though, as Notre Dame finished 11-0 and finished #1 in both polls. The Nebraska game over Thanksgiving weekend wasn't the last, but it was the best--27-0 with Nebraska (who finished AP #7) never starting a play in Sooner territory. OU's DC Larry Lacewell said after that one that he would take his defense and go fight Russia. It was the last televised Sooner game until the 1975 (season) Orange Bowl vs. Michigan.
The '74 team might have been a bit better, though. At the time, some national pundits were calling it the best team that no one would ever see, as there was no TV coverage and no potential for a bowl game. It went 11-0, and Joe Washington had his best year. They finished AP #1, while 11-0 Alabama finished #1 in the UPI.
The '75 team, which finished #1 in both polls, was the least good of the three by a good margin. Ball security was severely lacking. Some of the younger guys on the team thought that winning was just automatic, and the work ethic was not as good as the two previous years. Lost 23-3 at home to Kansas (admittedly, one of Kansas' better teams). Almost lost at Mizzou a week later, but Joe Washington saved the day with a
75-yard TD run and 2-point conversion in the waning moments. The Sooners lucked into playing for the national championship with losses earlier on New Year's Day.