SWC75
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THE BUILD-UP
Although they’ve faded a bit in recent years, we tend to think of Nebraska as being one of the super-powers of college football. In the early years of the game, they were a power, although not the super-power they later became. From 1900-17, they were the 7th winningest major college team, going 123-26-7, (.811).Highlights were a 27 game winning streak from 1901-04 and a 34 game unbeaten string from 1912-16. Their 1915 team, which out-scored their opposition 282-39 including a 20-19 win over Notre Dame, was regarded as National Champion by Richard Billingsley. After some off years, they came back strong in the 20’s. From 1921-40 they were 8th in the country, going 120-38-16, (.736). None of those teams went undefeated but 9 of them got through the regular season with only one loss. They were the only team to beat the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame and they did it twice, 14-6 in 1922 and 14-7 in 1923. They were the team that Clark Shaughnessy’s undefeated Stanford team of 1940,beat in the Rose Bowl using their T formation in a game that was said to prove the quality of that team and that formation. Nebraska was perennial power, a team you could prove yourself against.
Then there was the Devaney-Osborne Era. From 1962-1997, as period of 36 years, the Cornhuskers were a colossus, the winningest team in the country- by quite a margin:
http://football.stassen.com/cgi-bin...=1962&end=1997&rpct=30&min=5&se=on&by=Win+Pct
They won five national championships in that period and contended for many others. That’s the Nebraska we remember, the one that crushed us, 7-63 in 1983 and the one we beat 17-9 in the Dome the next year, on the short list of our very greatest victories. I never quite understood how they became so powerful. Nebraska is the 37th most populous state. Missouri is #18, Wisconsin #20, Minnesota #21, Colorado #22, Iowa #30, Utah #33 and Kansas #34. Why aren’t they as good as Nebraska, a cold, unglamorous place in the fall and winter? Obviously, success is based on more factors than location and population. Great coaching and a fanatically loyal fan base that views their team as a device for putting their state and themselves on the map have a lot to do with it.
But in recent years, the program has slipped. They haven’t been bad, but they haven’t been “Nebraska”, either: They are #14, 152-69-0, (.688) for that period. Will they return to the top? Who knows? Do their disadvantages come to the fore in the modern era of recruiting? Maybe. Will they find it harder to dominate in the Big Ten than they did in the old Big 8? Maybe. Time will tell.
But there was an earlier period when Nebraska was just another team. They weren’t even good. From 1941-61, they went 72-125-4, (.368), the 126th best record in the country over that time, (out of 133), the sort of record you might expect from a the state school of a cold, under-populated state. Syracuse played them three times in that period and won all three easily. It’s doesn’t mean what a modern fan might think, but it still looks good the resume.
Arnie Burdick was reminded of what he called “one of the most colorful intersectional rivalries in college football three decades ago. …The appearance of Nebraska on the Orange slate again brought to mind one of the most humorous locker-room incidents ever to take place in connection with the collegiate gridiron.” Lew Andreas, more famous as coach of the basketball team but who was our head football coach from 1927-29, “decided that the Orange had only one chance to stop Nebraska. That was to get a super performance out of Bill Newman, beefy Hill tackle, who was inclined to be a little too complacent for his own and the team’s good. “We worked on Newman all week. We told him all about spirit, leadership, the honor of the school…I could see that it seemed to be taking effect. Newman was working hard at practice. He seemed to be taking the job seriously. We went out to Nebraska and they had us dressing in a little room at the gym. When you entered this room, you had to stoop under a beam. Just before the teams went onto the field, I thought that it would be a good idea to concentrate a little more on Newman. So I touched most of the bases again. Every once in a while during the pep talk, I‘d glance at Bill and it seemed to be taking hold. So, as a parting shot I said “Alright, Newman, get up and lead this gang.” With that, Newman bounded off the bench, shouted over his shoulder, “Follow Me” and headed for the door. Evidently blinded with desire, he forgot about the beam. Failing to duck, he knocked himself out cold, never playing a minute of the game.”
Syracuse had played Nebraska seven times form 1917-1929, winning three times. Famously, we were the only team to beat them in the years they were the only team to beat Notre Dame’s “Four Horseman”, (1922-23). But Lew Andreas was 0-3 against the Huskers, losing 0-21 and 6-7 at Lincoln in the first two years and 6-13 in Archbold in 1929, the last meeting between the schools before this 1957 game.
Roy Simmons made a speech at a luncheon for the football press reminiscing about the 1922-23 SU victories over Nebraska. “Those games gave me two of the biggest thrills of my career. We beat Nebraska 9-6 here and we beat ‘em out there, 7-0, in the game in which they dedicated their stadium. I remember there wasn’t a blade of grass on their field when we played there, but it wasn’t long before they had a really beautiful gridiron. “Roy was worried that Nebraska’s poor record might lull SU to sleep. Syracuse had never scored more than one touchdown in any game against the Cornhuskers and Roy felt SU would have to “break that record”. He said “They’ve had some tough injuries and then the flu hit them so that their first and second quarterbacks didn’t even make the trip to Pittsburgh and they had to use a player at left half who wasn’t even listed on their depth chart. That’s because their first three halfbacks were hurt or sick. It’s going to be a job getting our boys up for this game but they ought to know that if Nebraska’s players are healthy this week, they’ll be tough.” Imagine having a tough time getting ‘up’ for Nebraska?
The 1956 Huskers had been 4-6-0 under Coach Pete Elliott. That’s not a terrible record but they’d been out-scored 125-206, including 7-34 by Ohio State and 0-54 at the hands of Oklahoma. Elliott then bugged out to California after that one year, obviously considering that to be the better job. His predecessor, Bill Glassford had coached Nebraska to its only three winning seasons in that 1941-61 period and to the 1/1/55 Orange Bowl but it wasn’t enough to save his job. (He got revenge by living to the age of 101- so far. The fact that he left coaching and went into the insurance business may have had something to do with it.) The new Coach was Bill Jennings, whom they’d gotten from Bud Wilkinson’s staff at Oklahoma. He would start off going 1-9 and wind up 15-34-1 after five years. Then they summoned Bob Devaney, a former assistant of Biggie Munn and Duffy Daugherty at Michigan State who went 35-10-1 in those same five years at Wyoming. It was Devaney who made Nebraska into NEBRASKA.
In 1957 that was still far down the road. Jennings welcomed back 19 lettermen, a fair amount in the single platoon era. . But, according to the NCAA guide, “the middle of the line was wiped out by graduation”. They said Nebraska would be heavily dependent on its sophomore class, led by “Jim Hergenreter, Max Martz, Harry Tolley, LeRoy Hentic, backs; Don Olson and Glenn Hepburn. Street and Smith’s reported that “Jennings was reserved in his comments”. They agreed “The main problem will be in the middle of the line, riddled by graduation….Probable starters would be Martin Hilding and Clarence cook, ends, Art Kelin and Don Rhoda, tackles, Don Kampe, Jerry Peterson, guards, Dick McCashland, center, George Harshman, quarterback, Larry Naviaux and Frank Nappi halfbacks and Jerry Brown, fullback. To bolster the quarterback positon, Doug Thomas, previously a half or fullback and Hergenreter, who had played halfback for the frosh, were being tried out there. S&S noted the same list of sophomores, noting that Hepburn was a “Boy’s Town product.” That was a reference to the famous orphanage founded by Father Flanagan and celebrated in the 1938 movie starring Spencer Tracy. It’s located just outside of Omaha.
The SI article had a picture of fullback Jerry Brown, hugging the ball to his chest with both hands and clenching his teeth for all he was worth. The same picture appeared in Tuesday’s Post-Standard. The Herald had it, too, alongside a picture of a much more relaxed looking quarterback Harry Tolly, making a soft toss toward the camera. Brown has on a jersey with two white stripes at the biceps. Tolly has those but also a Baltimore Colts-like stripe at the shoulder, similar to what the Huskers wore in the late 60’s. Roy Simmons said that he “could play on anybody’s team. He weighs about 219 and even though Oklahoma is in the same league, Jerry was unanimous choice for All-Big Seven fullback last year.” (Oklahoma A&M had been in the Missouri Valley conference until 1958 when they both changed their name- to Oklahoma State- and their conference, which was now the Big Eight). He praised Nebraska’s tackles, Don Rhoda and Don Olson, as being “so tough Army and Pitt had to go outside on them….They’re as good as anything we’ve seen this year.” There was a picture of a grimacing Olson in the paper, with the caption “Tough to Get Past”. He was a 6-3, 210 pound shot putter on the track team.
Sports Illustrated said that Jennings was ”equipped with enough player experience to start an all-letterman first unit, (he) still lacks enough depth to face the rugged schedule Nebraska is attempting this season. Among the teams on the schedule are Army, Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Oklahoma, a quartet capable of wrecking the season of practically any team.” It’s fun when you see your school listed as one of the reason an opponent’s schedule is tough. “Top personnel include Jerry Brown, a strong, hard-running fullback, (no, not the future California governor), Larry Naviaux, a sound, all-round halfback; Don Kampe, a 207 pound senior guard and Jerry Wheeler, who moves his 247 pounds quickly at tackle.”
Brown had been Nebraska’s leading rusher in 1956 with 690 yards and 5TDs on 129 carries. Naviaux, a “hard-running 190 pounder), had gained 403 yards in only 73 carries, a 5.5 average. On 9/17, it had been announced that quarterback George Harshman was scholastically ineligible. Halfback Doug Thomas was switched to quarterback but didn’t work out and was moved back to halfback in favor of Tolly. Benny Dillards was “a 159 pound scatback” but “could be out for the rest of the season” . (He was.)
The dismal season had gotten off to a dismal start with a 12-34 home loss to Washington State, a 0-42 mauling at Army, a narrow 14-7 win at Kansas State, (their only victory of the season) and another drubbing by an eastern team, 0-34 at Pittsburgh. Now they were playing another eastern team, Syracuse, although the Lambert Trophy was clearly beyond their reach in more ways than one. Syracuse fans were less in awe of going out to play the once, (and future) mighty Nebraska than they were in comparing their efforts against the Cornhuskers to those of Army and Pittsburgh.
The Post Standard said that, on top of everything, the Huskers had been bitten by the flu bug, which was impacting everybody in 1957:
http://www.flu.gov/pandemic/history/
It was a bad time to have mass gatherings to watch sporting events. But life, and football, went on. A sell-out crowd of 40,000 was expected in Memorial Stadium, (which now seats 87,000). Even Ben Schwartzwalder missed a practice and a news conference, “bedded down with a cold”, which was announced in the evening paper as the flu, which backfield coach Bill Bell also had. But you couldn’t keep Ben away long. He was back in his office the next morning. “Fortunately, the squad (and coaching staff) was inoculated against the Asian flu during the pre-season practice period so that no lengthy illnesses are expected. However, there is a sincere fear among the Hill pigskin group that perhaps a good many members of the Syracuse squad may be next in the flu derby.” Ten players on Les Dye’s freshman team were down with the flu bug as well. Their game with Al Vedder’s Manlius Military School team, (1/4 of their schedule), was cancelled because both squads had lost too many players. Then on Wednesday it was announced that “about a dozen” SU girddser had a cold or the flu. “center Mike Bill, tackle Chuck Strid, reserve fullback Gerry Schwedes, reserve end Gerry Szoniezcki and sub halfback Jim Anderson” all missed practice. And “several unnamed others” were expected to miss the next one. Schwartzwalder and Bell we back at practice but Ted Dailey was out. Then guards Roger Davis and Dick Morris and center Fred Brandstedt were added to the sick list.
In addition, “hard-hitting” reserve center-linebacker Charlie Wink was held out of practice due to an ankle injury, Dan Fogarty, who had starred in the Cornell game, was wearing “a protective pad on his left arm to cover a marge bruise” and ends Fred Mautino and Dick Lasse where practicing without pads.
The Post said that this “placed an emphasis on the alternative team”, meaning the second team that normally spelled the first and now would have to entirely replace some of them. “Coach Ben Schwartzwalder has said several times that this year’s alternatives are superior to the ones of 1956. With Dick Aloise , Gerry Hershey and Ron Luciano, who were starters earlier in the season now on the second squad, they have more balance and experience. The alternatives have shown plenty of defensive skill both against passes and running plays. At times they have rushed passers with more effectiveness than the front line. The ends are two hard hitters in Szoniezcki and Aloise while the tackles are well taken care of with Luciano and sophomore Lou Mautino. With Hershey at guard is sophomore Al Gerlick…Sophomore Charlie Wink holds the #2 center spot and has come up with several good tackles and blocks this season. In the backfield Ferd Kuczala or Chuck Fogarty can handle the signal calling. Schwedes has nailed down the fullback slot behind Ed Coffin. The halfback spots are… pretty well filled by Ernie Jackson, Dave Baker and Anderson.”
But we weren’t hurting as much as Nebraska. A guest column by Dick Beck of the Lincoln Journal, said “”Just before the 1957 football season got underway, Nebraska’s new coach, Bill Jennings said the Cornhuskers would be better than last year- if they didn’t get injuries to key players. Well, not only key players but just about every player has been hurt in the first four weeks of the season….to name a list of the injured would be too much but it suffices to note that on top of the 11 injured last week 6 others fell victim to the flu. At Tuesday’s practice, Jennings had just 28 men ready for work.” The injury list now included Tolly and Olson, as well as halfback Max Martz and right in Mike Lee. On Thursdays the total was brought to 13 players who might miss the game, now including center Jerry Wheeler and end Marvin Hidling. Halfback Doug Thomas would be their quarterback, “When he is at halfback, Roy Stinnell, Clyde Haskins and Charlie Smith will fight it out for the quarterback slot.”
Syracuse was described as “another big and air minded team” for Nebraska to deal with. Coach Jennings said “We must stop the Syracuse offense to stay in the game.” Dick Dunkel made Syracuse a 20 point road favorite. Most listings had it more in the range of two touchdowns as “Sneezing and sniffling Syracuse hopped aboard a spacious DC-7 at Hancock Airport, bound for its longest regular season trip in 29 years, or since it last played the Cornhuskers.” The party of 57 people included 35 players. The DC7 had previously been chartered by the Milwaukee Braves during their World Series win over the Yankees.
Roger Davis and Jim Anderson were among the 35 players. Chuck Strid and Mike Biull were said to be ready to play. The Herald actually described SU as “back at full strength after an early go-round with the flu”. But then halfbacks Dean DeAngleis and Dan Fogarty came down with the “counterattacking” flu. DeAngelis had a fever of 103.5. They were being kept in rooms separate from the rest of the team. Nebraska reported that their strong tackles, Don Olson and Don Kampe, would be ready to play after being injured vs. Pitt. Jennings named Roy Stinnett his quarterback for the game. He was still looking around for someone to play end.
“Despite a record which shows three losses in four starts, Nebraska’s Cornhuskers will approach and may surpass the attendance record at Memorial Stadium here when they square off against unbeaten Syracuse tomorrow. It was another eastern eleven, Penn State, which attractted the record 39,770 turnout here in 1950 and such is the appeal of the Orangemen, defending eastern champions that plans have been made to sell standing room tickets for this contest.” The weather was expected to be “sunny, in the low 50’s”.
Although they’ve faded a bit in recent years, we tend to think of Nebraska as being one of the super-powers of college football. In the early years of the game, they were a power, although not the super-power they later became. From 1900-17, they were the 7th winningest major college team, going 123-26-7, (.811).Highlights were a 27 game winning streak from 1901-04 and a 34 game unbeaten string from 1912-16. Their 1915 team, which out-scored their opposition 282-39 including a 20-19 win over Notre Dame, was regarded as National Champion by Richard Billingsley. After some off years, they came back strong in the 20’s. From 1921-40 they were 8th in the country, going 120-38-16, (.736). None of those teams went undefeated but 9 of them got through the regular season with only one loss. They were the only team to beat the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame and they did it twice, 14-6 in 1922 and 14-7 in 1923. They were the team that Clark Shaughnessy’s undefeated Stanford team of 1940,beat in the Rose Bowl using their T formation in a game that was said to prove the quality of that team and that formation. Nebraska was perennial power, a team you could prove yourself against.
Then there was the Devaney-Osborne Era. From 1962-1997, as period of 36 years, the Cornhuskers were a colossus, the winningest team in the country- by quite a margin:
http://football.stassen.com/cgi-bin...=1962&end=1997&rpct=30&min=5&se=on&by=Win+Pct
They won five national championships in that period and contended for many others. That’s the Nebraska we remember, the one that crushed us, 7-63 in 1983 and the one we beat 17-9 in the Dome the next year, on the short list of our very greatest victories. I never quite understood how they became so powerful. Nebraska is the 37th most populous state. Missouri is #18, Wisconsin #20, Minnesota #21, Colorado #22, Iowa #30, Utah #33 and Kansas #34. Why aren’t they as good as Nebraska, a cold, unglamorous place in the fall and winter? Obviously, success is based on more factors than location and population. Great coaching and a fanatically loyal fan base that views their team as a device for putting their state and themselves on the map have a lot to do with it.
But in recent years, the program has slipped. They haven’t been bad, but they haven’t been “Nebraska”, either: They are #14, 152-69-0, (.688) for that period. Will they return to the top? Who knows? Do their disadvantages come to the fore in the modern era of recruiting? Maybe. Will they find it harder to dominate in the Big Ten than they did in the old Big 8? Maybe. Time will tell.
But there was an earlier period when Nebraska was just another team. They weren’t even good. From 1941-61, they went 72-125-4, (.368), the 126th best record in the country over that time, (out of 133), the sort of record you might expect from a the state school of a cold, under-populated state. Syracuse played them three times in that period and won all three easily. It’s doesn’t mean what a modern fan might think, but it still looks good the resume.
Arnie Burdick was reminded of what he called “one of the most colorful intersectional rivalries in college football three decades ago. …The appearance of Nebraska on the Orange slate again brought to mind one of the most humorous locker-room incidents ever to take place in connection with the collegiate gridiron.” Lew Andreas, more famous as coach of the basketball team but who was our head football coach from 1927-29, “decided that the Orange had only one chance to stop Nebraska. That was to get a super performance out of Bill Newman, beefy Hill tackle, who was inclined to be a little too complacent for his own and the team’s good. “We worked on Newman all week. We told him all about spirit, leadership, the honor of the school…I could see that it seemed to be taking effect. Newman was working hard at practice. He seemed to be taking the job seriously. We went out to Nebraska and they had us dressing in a little room at the gym. When you entered this room, you had to stoop under a beam. Just before the teams went onto the field, I thought that it would be a good idea to concentrate a little more on Newman. So I touched most of the bases again. Every once in a while during the pep talk, I‘d glance at Bill and it seemed to be taking hold. So, as a parting shot I said “Alright, Newman, get up and lead this gang.” With that, Newman bounded off the bench, shouted over his shoulder, “Follow Me” and headed for the door. Evidently blinded with desire, he forgot about the beam. Failing to duck, he knocked himself out cold, never playing a minute of the game.”
Syracuse had played Nebraska seven times form 1917-1929, winning three times. Famously, we were the only team to beat them in the years they were the only team to beat Notre Dame’s “Four Horseman”, (1922-23). But Lew Andreas was 0-3 against the Huskers, losing 0-21 and 6-7 at Lincoln in the first two years and 6-13 in Archbold in 1929, the last meeting between the schools before this 1957 game.
Roy Simmons made a speech at a luncheon for the football press reminiscing about the 1922-23 SU victories over Nebraska. “Those games gave me two of the biggest thrills of my career. We beat Nebraska 9-6 here and we beat ‘em out there, 7-0, in the game in which they dedicated their stadium. I remember there wasn’t a blade of grass on their field when we played there, but it wasn’t long before they had a really beautiful gridiron. “Roy was worried that Nebraska’s poor record might lull SU to sleep. Syracuse had never scored more than one touchdown in any game against the Cornhuskers and Roy felt SU would have to “break that record”. He said “They’ve had some tough injuries and then the flu hit them so that their first and second quarterbacks didn’t even make the trip to Pittsburgh and they had to use a player at left half who wasn’t even listed on their depth chart. That’s because their first three halfbacks were hurt or sick. It’s going to be a job getting our boys up for this game but they ought to know that if Nebraska’s players are healthy this week, they’ll be tough.” Imagine having a tough time getting ‘up’ for Nebraska?
The 1956 Huskers had been 4-6-0 under Coach Pete Elliott. That’s not a terrible record but they’d been out-scored 125-206, including 7-34 by Ohio State and 0-54 at the hands of Oklahoma. Elliott then bugged out to California after that one year, obviously considering that to be the better job. His predecessor, Bill Glassford had coached Nebraska to its only three winning seasons in that 1941-61 period and to the 1/1/55 Orange Bowl but it wasn’t enough to save his job. (He got revenge by living to the age of 101- so far. The fact that he left coaching and went into the insurance business may have had something to do with it.) The new Coach was Bill Jennings, whom they’d gotten from Bud Wilkinson’s staff at Oklahoma. He would start off going 1-9 and wind up 15-34-1 after five years. Then they summoned Bob Devaney, a former assistant of Biggie Munn and Duffy Daugherty at Michigan State who went 35-10-1 in those same five years at Wyoming. It was Devaney who made Nebraska into NEBRASKA.
In 1957 that was still far down the road. Jennings welcomed back 19 lettermen, a fair amount in the single platoon era. . But, according to the NCAA guide, “the middle of the line was wiped out by graduation”. They said Nebraska would be heavily dependent on its sophomore class, led by “Jim Hergenreter, Max Martz, Harry Tolley, LeRoy Hentic, backs; Don Olson and Glenn Hepburn. Street and Smith’s reported that “Jennings was reserved in his comments”. They agreed “The main problem will be in the middle of the line, riddled by graduation….Probable starters would be Martin Hilding and Clarence cook, ends, Art Kelin and Don Rhoda, tackles, Don Kampe, Jerry Peterson, guards, Dick McCashland, center, George Harshman, quarterback, Larry Naviaux and Frank Nappi halfbacks and Jerry Brown, fullback. To bolster the quarterback positon, Doug Thomas, previously a half or fullback and Hergenreter, who had played halfback for the frosh, were being tried out there. S&S noted the same list of sophomores, noting that Hepburn was a “Boy’s Town product.” That was a reference to the famous orphanage founded by Father Flanagan and celebrated in the 1938 movie starring Spencer Tracy. It’s located just outside of Omaha.
The SI article had a picture of fullback Jerry Brown, hugging the ball to his chest with both hands and clenching his teeth for all he was worth. The same picture appeared in Tuesday’s Post-Standard. The Herald had it, too, alongside a picture of a much more relaxed looking quarterback Harry Tolly, making a soft toss toward the camera. Brown has on a jersey with two white stripes at the biceps. Tolly has those but also a Baltimore Colts-like stripe at the shoulder, similar to what the Huskers wore in the late 60’s. Roy Simmons said that he “could play on anybody’s team. He weighs about 219 and even though Oklahoma is in the same league, Jerry was unanimous choice for All-Big Seven fullback last year.” (Oklahoma A&M had been in the Missouri Valley conference until 1958 when they both changed their name- to Oklahoma State- and their conference, which was now the Big Eight). He praised Nebraska’s tackles, Don Rhoda and Don Olson, as being “so tough Army and Pitt had to go outside on them….They’re as good as anything we’ve seen this year.” There was a picture of a grimacing Olson in the paper, with the caption “Tough to Get Past”. He was a 6-3, 210 pound shot putter on the track team.
Sports Illustrated said that Jennings was ”equipped with enough player experience to start an all-letterman first unit, (he) still lacks enough depth to face the rugged schedule Nebraska is attempting this season. Among the teams on the schedule are Army, Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Oklahoma, a quartet capable of wrecking the season of practically any team.” It’s fun when you see your school listed as one of the reason an opponent’s schedule is tough. “Top personnel include Jerry Brown, a strong, hard-running fullback, (no, not the future California governor), Larry Naviaux, a sound, all-round halfback; Don Kampe, a 207 pound senior guard and Jerry Wheeler, who moves his 247 pounds quickly at tackle.”
Brown had been Nebraska’s leading rusher in 1956 with 690 yards and 5TDs on 129 carries. Naviaux, a “hard-running 190 pounder), had gained 403 yards in only 73 carries, a 5.5 average. On 9/17, it had been announced that quarterback George Harshman was scholastically ineligible. Halfback Doug Thomas was switched to quarterback but didn’t work out and was moved back to halfback in favor of Tolly. Benny Dillards was “a 159 pound scatback” but “could be out for the rest of the season” . (He was.)
The dismal season had gotten off to a dismal start with a 12-34 home loss to Washington State, a 0-42 mauling at Army, a narrow 14-7 win at Kansas State, (their only victory of the season) and another drubbing by an eastern team, 0-34 at Pittsburgh. Now they were playing another eastern team, Syracuse, although the Lambert Trophy was clearly beyond their reach in more ways than one. Syracuse fans were less in awe of going out to play the once, (and future) mighty Nebraska than they were in comparing their efforts against the Cornhuskers to those of Army and Pittsburgh.
The Post Standard said that, on top of everything, the Huskers had been bitten by the flu bug, which was impacting everybody in 1957:
http://www.flu.gov/pandemic/history/
It was a bad time to have mass gatherings to watch sporting events. But life, and football, went on. A sell-out crowd of 40,000 was expected in Memorial Stadium, (which now seats 87,000). Even Ben Schwartzwalder missed a practice and a news conference, “bedded down with a cold”, which was announced in the evening paper as the flu, which backfield coach Bill Bell also had. But you couldn’t keep Ben away long. He was back in his office the next morning. “Fortunately, the squad (and coaching staff) was inoculated against the Asian flu during the pre-season practice period so that no lengthy illnesses are expected. However, there is a sincere fear among the Hill pigskin group that perhaps a good many members of the Syracuse squad may be next in the flu derby.” Ten players on Les Dye’s freshman team were down with the flu bug as well. Their game with Al Vedder’s Manlius Military School team, (1/4 of their schedule), was cancelled because both squads had lost too many players. Then on Wednesday it was announced that “about a dozen” SU girddser had a cold or the flu. “center Mike Bill, tackle Chuck Strid, reserve fullback Gerry Schwedes, reserve end Gerry Szoniezcki and sub halfback Jim Anderson” all missed practice. And “several unnamed others” were expected to miss the next one. Schwartzwalder and Bell we back at practice but Ted Dailey was out. Then guards Roger Davis and Dick Morris and center Fred Brandstedt were added to the sick list.
In addition, “hard-hitting” reserve center-linebacker Charlie Wink was held out of practice due to an ankle injury, Dan Fogarty, who had starred in the Cornell game, was wearing “a protective pad on his left arm to cover a marge bruise” and ends Fred Mautino and Dick Lasse where practicing without pads.
The Post said that this “placed an emphasis on the alternative team”, meaning the second team that normally spelled the first and now would have to entirely replace some of them. “Coach Ben Schwartzwalder has said several times that this year’s alternatives are superior to the ones of 1956. With Dick Aloise , Gerry Hershey and Ron Luciano, who were starters earlier in the season now on the second squad, they have more balance and experience. The alternatives have shown plenty of defensive skill both against passes and running plays. At times they have rushed passers with more effectiveness than the front line. The ends are two hard hitters in Szoniezcki and Aloise while the tackles are well taken care of with Luciano and sophomore Lou Mautino. With Hershey at guard is sophomore Al Gerlick…Sophomore Charlie Wink holds the #2 center spot and has come up with several good tackles and blocks this season. In the backfield Ferd Kuczala or Chuck Fogarty can handle the signal calling. Schwedes has nailed down the fullback slot behind Ed Coffin. The halfback spots are… pretty well filled by Ernie Jackson, Dave Baker and Anderson.”
But we weren’t hurting as much as Nebraska. A guest column by Dick Beck of the Lincoln Journal, said “”Just before the 1957 football season got underway, Nebraska’s new coach, Bill Jennings said the Cornhuskers would be better than last year- if they didn’t get injuries to key players. Well, not only key players but just about every player has been hurt in the first four weeks of the season….to name a list of the injured would be too much but it suffices to note that on top of the 11 injured last week 6 others fell victim to the flu. At Tuesday’s practice, Jennings had just 28 men ready for work.” The injury list now included Tolly and Olson, as well as halfback Max Martz and right in Mike Lee. On Thursdays the total was brought to 13 players who might miss the game, now including center Jerry Wheeler and end Marvin Hidling. Halfback Doug Thomas would be their quarterback, “When he is at halfback, Roy Stinnell, Clyde Haskins and Charlie Smith will fight it out for the quarterback slot.”
Syracuse was described as “another big and air minded team” for Nebraska to deal with. Coach Jennings said “We must stop the Syracuse offense to stay in the game.” Dick Dunkel made Syracuse a 20 point road favorite. Most listings had it more in the range of two touchdowns as “Sneezing and sniffling Syracuse hopped aboard a spacious DC-7 at Hancock Airport, bound for its longest regular season trip in 29 years, or since it last played the Cornhuskers.” The party of 57 people included 35 players. The DC7 had previously been chartered by the Milwaukee Braves during their World Series win over the Yankees.
Roger Davis and Jim Anderson were among the 35 players. Chuck Strid and Mike Biull were said to be ready to play. The Herald actually described SU as “back at full strength after an early go-round with the flu”. But then halfbacks Dean DeAngleis and Dan Fogarty came down with the “counterattacking” flu. DeAngelis had a fever of 103.5. They were being kept in rooms separate from the rest of the team. Nebraska reported that their strong tackles, Don Olson and Don Kampe, would be ready to play after being injured vs. Pitt. Jennings named Roy Stinnett his quarterback for the game. He was still looking around for someone to play end.
“Despite a record which shows three losses in four starts, Nebraska’s Cornhuskers will approach and may surpass the attendance record at Memorial Stadium here when they square off against unbeaten Syracuse tomorrow. It was another eastern eleven, Penn State, which attractted the record 39,770 turnout here in 1950 and such is the appeal of the Orangemen, defending eastern champions that plans have been made to sell standing room tickets for this contest.” The weather was expected to be “sunny, in the low 50’s”.
