#97 - 9/29/67 - Lyons to Odle, 53-yard TD catch and run - BYU - 44, W. Michigan - 19
After tying a school record with 8 wins in 1966, Cougar fans were curious about how their Cougars would perform in 1967. After all, their star quarterback, Virgil Carter, had graduated and been drafted into the NFL. Who would their new quarterback be? And how could anyone truly replace Carter? At least senior All-WAC wide receiver Phil Odle was back to help the new quarterback learn the ropes. In the first game of the season, the Cougars tried out 3 quarterbacks. Each did well, and the Cougars won 44-14 over New Mexico. So, as the Cougars (1-0) approached their second game, there was ongoing speculation as to which QB would take the reins against Western Michigan (1-1).
Western Michigan got the scoring started on their initial drive, marching 63 yards and booting a 34-yard field goal. The Cougars responded with a 47-yard drive, capped by a 22-yard FG by Dennis Patera. At the end of one quarter, the score remained tied at 3-3; but as the quarter drew to a close, the Cougars were on the prowl.
Early in the second quarter, QB Marc Lyons tossed an 8-yard TD reception to Phil Odle, following a 57-yard drive, to give the Cougars the lead. A short time later, the Cougars quickly moved to midfield. On the third play of the drive, Lyons connected with Perry Rodriguez for a 53-yard TD pass. However, the extra point attempt failed. As the clock ticked down towards halftime, the Cougars capitalized on good field position, the Bronco 47, to launch one more attack. Five plays later, they were at the Bronco 8. This time, it was QB Terry Sanford who threw an 8-yard TD pass to Odle. With only a minute remaining, the Broncos kicked their offense into high gear, moving 60 yards to the Cougar 14. The Cougar D, which had forced five straight punts, came through again, intercepting the Bronco pass after time had expired. The Cougars entered the locker room leading 23-3.
The Cougars’ first drive of the second half ended in an interception. The offense struggled to move the ball on their next two drives too. Luckily the Cougar D continued to dominate. They gift-wrapped the next Cougar touchdown by recovering a Bronco fumble at the Bronco 8. It took three plays, but Willy Hawkins barreled into the end zone from 3 yards out to tally seven more points. The Broncos were threatening to score on their next drive, but the Cougars intercepted the ball at their own 1-yard line to end the threat. Unfortunately, with so little room to work with, the Cougars downed in their own end zone for a safety. After three quarters, the score was now 30-5.
The Broncos finally scored their first touchdown early in the fourth. Paul Schneider took the handoff, and ran it into the end zone for an 8-yard TD rush; followed by a two-point conversion. On the ensuing drive, the Cougars took five plays to move back to midfield, setting up the most memorable play of the game. *Quarterback Marc Lyons, who was back in the game, took 3 steps back and fired a short pass to Phil Odle, who was running a slant pattern from the right side. Odle, who had two defenders guarding him, caught the ball at the Bronco 47, and immediately broke free of an attempted tackle. Three more defenders converged on Odle at about the 37, but he shot through them, avoiding another tackle. Odle then outran the Bronco who remained in hot pursuit and eluded an attempted mugging as he approached the goal line. Instead, Odle raced into the end zone for a 53-yard TD reception (#94). Not giving up, the Broncos responded with a big play of their own - a 55-yard TD reception from Jim Boreland to Sam Antonazzo; but the 2-point conversion attempt failed. After a quick succession of turnovers by both teams, BYU had the ball at the Bronco 38. Terry Sanford, getting another look at QB, then finished the scoring with a 25-yard TD pass to John Paterson, giving the Cougars a 44-19 win.
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| WR Phil Odle Courtesy of BYU Photo |
The Cougars finished the season with a respectable 6-4 record. Odle, the senior co-captain, finished his three-year BYU career ranked # 2 in NCAA history in career receptions (183) and # 3 in career receiving yards (2,548). He set new BYU career receiving records in nearly every category including receptions, yards and touchdowns (25). Odle also broke nearly every receiving record in WAC history, was named first-team All-WAC three-consecutive years, was named to the Dell Sports All-American First Team, received the Dale Rex Memorial Award, and was invited to play in every postseason collegiate game: the East-West Shrine Game, Hula Bowl and Coach’s All-American Game.
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