30-0: The Dad’s Day Massacre in Austin

In Houston’s first year in the Southwest Conference, the Cougars beat Texas 30-0 at Memorial Stadium in Austin. Known as the Dad’s Day Massacre, the blowout ended the Longhorns’ 42-game home winning streak and is still their last time to be shut out in Austin.

Texas finished with just 24 yards rushing and 121 total yards. Vincent Greenwood, Guy Brown, Ross Echols, Melvin Jones, Robert Oglesby, and Wilson Whitley formed an iron wall that blew up UT’s wishbone.

“We felt we could beat them this badly,” Wilson Whitley said. “Their winning streak didn’t scare us. We wanted to be the ones to break it.”

The Austin media could not believe such a great player did not choose UT. Pressed about it further, Whitley patiently explained his reasoning.

“I never even considered coming to Texas. I made a wise decision to go to Houston, and I’ve waited to show these people at Texas that I’m as good as any defensive tackle in this league,” Whitley said. “My only year to get to play in the Southwest Conference, and I’m glad to be part of a great team like we have.”

Wilson Whitley gets after Texas QB Ted Constanzo

 
The crowd of 77,809 (the largest crowd at Memorial Stadium at the time) never saw UT enter the red zone. The Mad Dog Defense forced four fumbles and intercepted two UT passes. Johnny ‘Lam’ Jones, who had won a gold medal in the ’76 Summer Olympics before entering UT as a freshman, ran for 22 yards on 14 carries.

“Houston whipped up on everybody that year. They came in and terrorized the conference,” Jones remembered. “Wilson Whitley won the Lombardi Trophy that year, but it wasn’t just him. Their whole team was really good. They were tough.”

The 30-0 loss remains UT’s last shutout at home (over 265 games). Until a 24-0 loss at Iowa State in 2015, it was UT’s most recent shutout anywhere.

“We were never in the game, and we lost to a much better team,” Texas coach Darrell Royal said.

original quickie stats from November 6, 1976

Photo Gallery: Houston 30, Texas 0


 


 

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