Last Gopher Football Team to go Undefeated at Home.

1967 TEAM FINISHED WITH A RECORD OF 8-2 AND WERE RANKED 14TH IN THE NATION, ALLOWING JUST 10.6 PTS PER GAME.

COACH WARMATH & MIKE McGEE

The 1967 University of Minnesota Football Season would be a memorable season indeed. It would provide Gopher fans ‘ups and downs’, thrills and memories, glory and heartache all in one 10 game season.

The Gophers would open at home Saturday Sept. 23 vs. the ‘Runnin Utes’ from Utah. Senior Larry Carlson, from Wisconsin, would start at quarterback and get the Gophers on the board first. With a short passing game and tosses to tight end Charlie Sanders and flanker Hubie Bryant – Carlson would hit Bryant with an 11-yard TD pass to put the Gophers on top 7-0. Utah would answer later with a control running game and knot the score with a 3 yard TD run, missing the all important extra point, making it 7-6.
The forced fumble by defensive end Bob Stein and recovery by Gopher defensive back Denny Hale, would be a key play in preserving the Gopher lead. Phil Hagen relieved Carlson at QB and drove the Gophers to another score. Key throws to sanders and split end Chip Litten [Fargo, ND] topped off by a TD pass to Litten gave the Gophers enough to hold off the Utes 13-12.

In the second week the Gophers traveled to Lincoln, Nebraska. Amongst a ‘sea of red’ clad Cornhusker faithful, some 75,000, the Maroon & Gold battled the Big 8 Nebraskans for 4 quarters. Again senior Curtis Wilson was at running back as he was in game one. However this week Murray would call upon Sophomore Ray Stephens, younger brother of gopher All-American Sandy Stephens, to guide the offense. Ray threw the ball very well, especially the deep sideline out to Litten and Sanders. Stephens drove the Gophers to the Cornhusker 16 yard line, where they were held and attempted field goal went wide, 0-0. Nebraska drove late in the 3rd and with 4:30 remaining scored on a nice TD run. Later the Gopher defense held Nebraska after another long drive- John Darkenwald recovered a cornhusker fumble on the Minnesota 8 yard line. And that’s where the game soon after ended, a defensive struggle – Nebraska 7 Minnesota 0.
The Gophers would return home in week 3 and host the Southern Methodist Mustangs, led by speedster running back Jerry Levias. The Gopher defense rose to the call again and almost immediately set the tone. Early in the 1st, All-American Bob Stein broke up an early SMU play – tackling the Mustang ball carrier in the end zone for a safety and an early 2-0 lead. Not long thereafter the Gopher defense led by veterans Ed Duren & McKinley Boston would stuff the SMU offense again. With Boston forcing a SMU fumble, the Gophers seemed to take over on both sides of the ball. Phil Hagen was at the helm this week and with big catches by Sanders and a grinding running game, led by Jim Carter- the Gophers would get on the board again as carter capped off the drive with a 1 yard TD run making it 9-0. SMU would get on the board with a field goal 9-3, but a forced fumble and key recovery on punt coverage by Dick Enderle gave the Maroon & Gold the ball on the SMU 25 yard line. Hagen ran a keeper for 25 yards and Carter soon followed with another 1 yard TD run making it 16-3. The game scoring was capped off later when Hagen hit Chip Litten on a 35-yard TD pass. Litten’s catch was spectacular! Final score Minnesota 23 – SMU 3.
The Big Ten Opener would come in week 4 on the road at Champaign, Illinois vs the Fighting Illini. The Gophers would do everything they could to sabotage the Illini’s Homecoming Celebration. [See Minnesota Daily article] Phil Hagen was at QB and despite better performance vs SMU the Gopher offense sputtered again, relying on their stellar defense to hold their opponent to under 10 points. Carter & Kemp led the Gopher running attack and finally got on the board with Carter crashing in from 2 yards out, giving the Gophers a 7-0 lead. A big pass interception by Mike Condo followed by a great pass to Mike Curtis and another to Jim Carter kept the Minnesota drive alive. Illinois had earlier made it 7-7, so the drive was crucial. Illinois held and Sophomore Jeff Nygren, filling in for Bob Stein, was called to attempt his first College field goal. From 23 yards out, the snap was good, the place was made and Nygren’s kick split the uprights, giving the Gophers a 10-7 lead. Later defensive end Del Jessen would recover the ensuing kick off on the Illini 25 yard line and with runs & passes to carter, the Gophers ran out the clock and left Champaign with a slim 10-7 victory.

October 21st- the Gophers returned home vs Michigan State and broke out their Maroon Jerseys and another QB. Curtis Wilson who had opened the season at halfback was called up to be the Gopher signal caller. And answer the cal- he certainly did! With a 40-yard pass to Bryant, then another 13 yarder, then a 17 yarder to sanders and runs by Wilson and Carter – followed by a diving reception by Litten had the Gophers in high gear. It was all topped off with a TD pass to Litten making it 7-0. A later fumble recovery by Hubie Bryant on punt coverage gave the Gophers a real lift. Wilson then hit Mike Curtis for 18 yards, then one to Bryant for 11 yards more, and then with just 3 seconds remaining in the half, Wilson hit Litten in the end zone for a 14-0 Gopher half time lead! Where was the ‘3 yards and a cloud of dust’? Well Kemp and carter headed up anearly ball control ground game in the second half. The drive was highlighted by a deflected pass from Wilson to Sanders – which was alertly grabbed by Carte before it could hit the turf. [Not the artificial kind, the real green stuff] That play was followed up by another spectacular play as Wilson hit Bryant on a 33 yard TD completion, Gophers’ 21 - Spartans 0. Minnesota finished it with an exclamation point as Denny Hale intercepted a MSU pass and ran it back 43 yards into Spartan territory, Final Gophers 21- Michigan State 0.

Bring on the Wolverines and the Little Brown Jug! All things said- it appeared that all things were ready for a great battle between the Maroon & Gold and the Maze & Blue.
But early in the 1st, Wilson was intercepted and the Wolverines defender returned it 36 yards – followed up by a quick TD – Michigan 6-0. Then the Gophers were held again and the Wolverines drove again – capped off by a 5-yard Ron Johnson TD run. Another missed extra point and Michigam was up 12-0. A late 2nd quarter field goal made it 15-0, And all did not look good in ‘Gopherville’. But the 2nd half marked the return of the newly found Gopher offense. Wilson & Co., held scoreless in the 1st half, opened up a can of tricks- first a halfback pass from Wintermute to Wilson for 17 yards- then more runs- a few passes, then capped by a ‘keeper’ from Wilson into the end zone. Gophers on the board 15-6 the defense held again. Then with Carter running hard up the middle, the Gophers started another drive, and then from no where, a 45 yard TD pass from Wilson to Mike Curtis. It was a beauty! 15-13. The defense was at it’s best and held again. Now carter & Kemp pounded inside the tackles. Murray mixed in a keeper here and there, more runs by Carter & Kemp and a wonderful game winning drive was capped off by a 3 yard keeper by Wilson. The Gopher offense and defense both overwhelmed the Wolverines the entire 2nd half. Final score Minnesota 20 – Michigan 15.

Now undefeated in the Big Ten, all eyes looked to Iowa. The November 4th game would be in Iowa City vs the Hawkeyes, proven rivals to the ’60 & ’61 Rose Bowl teams. Wilson would start at QB and after the 1st quarter ended 0-0, McKinley Boston would force a Hawkeye fumble and Wilson would hit Sanders with several key passes and then hit Charlie for a 17yard TD catch. Gophers led 7-0. Kemp & ‘Mo’ Forte headed up the ground game, Forte from Hannibal, Missouri, was playing in front of several family members and did them all proud. Wilson gave way to Hagen in the 2nd half and hit key passes, like a 26 yarder to Sanders; meanwhile Kemp & Forte blasted the Hawkeye middle. Fink, Enderle, Brown, Lundeen, Jones and Williams opened hole after hole in the Iowa defensive front. A Gopher drive was capped off by a Stein Field goal, making it 10-0. The defense continued to hold, something the Gopher faithful had come to expect. The ground game literally ground out yard after yard. Ball control – great defense and timely passing by Hagen and runs inside the tackles by Forte kept the ball from the Hawkeyes and enabled the defense rest as the clock rolled on. Final score Minnesota 10 – Iowa 0.

So it was now on to Purdue and the No. 3 ranked Boilermakers. Headed by QB Mike Phipps and Running back LeRoy Keyes – Purdue, like the Gophers were undefeated in Big Ten play. It was Nov. 11, 1967. November 11th – the day of the immortal Armistice Day Blizzard in 1940. “The Day All Hell Broke Loose” [As the now famous book of the great blizzard tells] well, this day there was no blizzard. But it did rain in West Lafayette. In fact it had rained for 2 days. It had rained all day Friday and through the night and continued throughout the game on Saturday. – Would the muddy field conditions and rain soaked filed slow the potent- flashy Boilermaker offense, led by All-American back LeRoy Keyes? Would it favor the staunch and stingy Gopher defense and hard running in your face Gopher ground attack? Well early on the ‘track’ appeared okay and Nose guard Ed Duren forced a Boilermaker fumble and Kamzelski recovered for the maroon & Gold. Purdue would hold and the Gophers had to accept a 31-yard Stein field goal, giving the Goph’s an early 3-0 lead. Purdue would answer back, going up 7-3. Then back came the Gophers as Wilson handed off to Bryant on a reverse and Hubie scampered 57 yards for the go ahead TD Minn 10 – Purdue 7. But after that it was all Purdue. As the articles from the Tribune note: The Gophers were caught by surprise as the Boilermakers came out in the second half with what they called their ‘4 receiver Texas offense’. The Gophers man-to-man defense was at a disadvantage on the muddy field. The defensive line was left to rush the QB on their own, a job that got more difficult as the field deteriorated and became slower and slower. The ‘4 receiver offense’ slowly and methodically cut the Gopher defense to pieces and when the fog and mist had lifted it was Purdue 41 – Minnesota 12! Keyes had scored 3 TD’s – setting a Big Ten record with 14 Td’s in one season. It not only rained all night and all day, but it certainly ‘rained on the Gopher’s parade’. It certainly dampened all spirits for the Visitors and their fans.

The next big question was- would the Gophers bounce back and recover? Could they be ready for week 9? The undefeated, No. 5 ranked Indiana Hoosiers would invade Memorial Stadium. A Gopher win over the Hoosiers would give the Maroon & Gold a shot at the Rose Bowl afterall. Purdue had gone to Pasadena the prior year and due to the Big Ten rule – no team could go 2 years in a row. So, knock off the Hoosiers, give them their first loss, beat the Badgers in week 10 and watch as Purdue finishes out undefeated as they played Indiana for their final games.

Well the Gophers took care of business in week 9. Wilson led the offense magnificently scoring 4 TD’s. The defense excelled as well, holding the Great ‘Cardiac Kids’ – the ‘Super Sophs’ to 7 points. You can read much more in the Star & Tribune Sports ‘Peach’ articles enclosed below. [A special thanks to Wayne King for supplying these great articles and memories]

Now week 10 – the stage was set. Take car of the Badgers, beat them at home and wait for the Purdue/ Indiana score. Well- again it was Duren who would force and recover an early fumble on the badger 29yard line. Wilson would hit Sanders, then runs by Carter & Wintermute put the Gophers on the verge og scoring.

Then something strange happened. Not strange – strange, but rather unfortunate. Carter had come out of the game briefly with a slight ‘ding’. The Gophers were on the goal line and they needed a big back in there. Well for whatever reason it was not Forte or Kemp or Wintermute that would get the call- No, for whatever reason Dick Peterson was called into the game. Dick was a big running back who had not seen action the entire ’67 season. He had been held out with injuries the entire time. He had not been in any game until this time and other than a few ‘touches’ in practice on Northrop Field; he had not seen game action since the ’66 season. But in he went when called. He was promptly handed the ball from Wilson and went in for the score, giving the Gophers the early 7-0 lead. As exciting as it was, it meant much more to Peterson. Because Dick [who did play more downs throughout this game] entered the game, he would not be allowed to ‘red-shirt’ as he had been told was going to be the case. By playing that play, his career was over. Talk about ‘giving one for the team’! He wonders why to this day.

After holding the Badgers, the Gophers drove again. A 16 yard pass to Bryant,, followed by runs from Wintermute and Wilson went in from the 1 with a ‘sneek’. Gophers led 14-0. Wisconsin got on the board making it 14-6, but the Gophers answered. After a Jenke interception and a 25-yard return, Wilson hit Sanders, then Wintermute carried for several gains, and then Wilson added a 12-yard run. Again the drive was at the badger 1 and like before, Wilson would ‘sneek’ in for another score 21-6.

It was about this time that the announcement came over the memorial Stadium P.A. Longtime Gopher P.A. announcer; Julie Perlt was to give a score – no not Slippery Rock or any other one like he had done every Saturday afternoon for so many years. It was the SCORE. The Purdue / Indiana Score. The one the entire stadium was waiting for. The one we all wanted to hear. Or at least thought we wanted to. Julie announced “final score – Indiana 19 – Purdue 14”. Surely he had it wrong! It had to be Purdue 19 – Indiana 14. Not Indiana 19…! No, he was right. We had heard right.
Terry Cole, Indiana fullback had gone 65 yards on a draw play to put the hoosiers out front. The Boilermakers, ranked No. 3 in the nation, drove the length of the field and were at the goal line to go ahead. Then IT happened! Perry Williams, who had run this play a hundred times, in fact just 2 weeks before against the Gophers – got the call for a ‘dive play’. It would put the Boilermakers in the end zone and the Gophers in the Rose Bowl. Phipps took the snap, turned and handed the ball to Williams and the rest is History- he fumbled, the Hoosiers and Indiana recovered it, not Minnesota was going to Pasadena to represent the Big Ten against No. 1 Southern Cal and O.J. Simpson! Indiana! The team the Gophers had throttled just two weeks prior! Unpack the bags – so be it. No more Roses for the Gophers, in fact no bowl game for Minnesota or Purdue. The Big Ten sent just one team in ‘those days’ to bowl games and Indiana would be that one team, So much for political correctness. After all they had never gone before. And in fact have not gone to another Rose Bowl since!

P.S. USC won 14-3 over Indiana on Jan. 1, 1968, O.J. Simpson scored both Trojan TD’s.