Colorado University Athletics
Buff Bowl No. 5 - 1938 Cotton
Dec. 19, 2002
DALLAS, Texas - In Colorado's first bowl appearance ever, the Buffaloes fell short to Rice 28-14, in the second annual Cotton Bowl. Other than the Rose Bowl, which began in 1902, bowls were relatively new in college football, as the Orange and Sugar came on the scene in 1935 and then the Cotton in 1937, with those four games considered the cream of the crop for the next 50 years.
The Buffs, champions of the Rocky Mountain Conference with an 8-0 overall record, were heavy underdogs ("4 to 1" according to newspaper articles at the time) to the Southwest Conference champion Owls, who entered the game with a 5-3-2 mark, but 5-1-1 down the stretch of the season.
It was a one-man show for both teams, as All-Americans Byron "Whizzer" White (Colorado) and Ernie Lain (Rice) dominated for their respective squads. White was involved in both Colorado scores and Lain in all four Owl touchdowns.
CU sprinted to a 14-0 advantage in the first quarter, when White threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Joe Antonio for the first TD, and then returned an interception 47 yards for a score five minutes later. Rice battled back and scored 21 second-quarter points to take a 21-14 lead at the half. Lain threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score.
The Owls, also called the "Feathered Flock" at the time, added
the game's final score in the middle of the third quarter when
Frank Steen caught an 11-yard pass from Lain. One of the major
differences in the game came down to offensive style, as the
passing game was much further along in the southwest and it showed
in the statistics, as Rice had 158 yards passing as compared to
just eight for Colorado.
Still, accounts at the time in the newspapers in both Colorado and
Texas praised the CU effort, and Buff coach Bunnie Oakes blamed the
outcome on CU's quick start. He told the team and reporters that
things might have turned out differently had CU not gone up 14-0
and then relaxed, figuring it was easy to score. But Rice's only
two turnovers had set up both Colorado scores, and the Owls didn't
punt until their first series of the second half.
Lain and White were both named the outstanding players of the game.
| Colorado |
14
|