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Fourth-down pass
sealed NU's fate


STEVE SIPPLE
Lincoln Journal Star


ST. LOUIS -- On a monumental
day in Texas football history, there
were so many things for Longhorn
Coach John Mackovic to appreciate.


One stood out in his mind.


"I appreciate the offense getting
the ball to fourth down and inches so
we could finally make that call
we've been dying to make," Mackov-
ic said. "The rest is history."


History indeed. It just might go
down in Big 12 Conference history as
"The Call." It was gutsy, it was time-
ly, it was surprising, and most im-
portantly, it worked.


Texas, clinging to a 30-27 lead
against heavily favored Nebraska
Saturday in the Big 12 Conference
championship, faced fourth down-
and-inches on its 28-yard line with 2
minutes, 38 seconds remaining in the
game. Instead of punting, Mackovic
elected to go for the first down.


Texas quarterback James Brown
took the snap, and to the surprise of
most everyone in the Trans World
Dome, rolled to his left. Still more
surprisingly, he threw a short pass
to wide-open tight end Derek Lewis,
who got behind the run-minded de-
fense and sprinted to Nebraska's
11-yard line before Jamel Williams
dragged him down.


The next play, Texas running back
Priest Holmes sealed the Long-
horns' 37-27 upset with his touch-
down run.


Texas' key fourth-down play is
called "roll left." Mackovic told his
quarterbacks Friday it would be
used in third-and-short and fourth-
and-short situations.


"If it would have been a yard to go,
I think I would have punted," Mack-
ovic said. "But it was so close, and I
thought anybody should be able to
gain two inches if you're playing for
a championship."


Mackovic said Brown had the op-
tion to run the ball or throw it. Lewis
said tight end Pat Fitzgerald is actu-
ally the first passing option on the
play.


Mackovic said his instructions to
Brown were simple.


"The only thing I told James was,
'Come to run,' which meant he bet-
ter not get tackled behind the line,"
Mackovic said. "Little did I know
Derek Lewis would break behind ev-
erybody.


"When I saw James' arm cocked
(to throw), I thought "Oh no,'" Mack-
ovic added. "But he knows what he's
doing. That's the great thing about
James -- he's a great playmaker for
us."


Mackovic said he was confident
the play would work after watching
the way Nebraska plays defense in
short-yardage situations. He said the
Huskers tend to stack the line and
send everyone to stop the run.


"It was the play of the game -- no
doubt," Lewis said. "When I caught
the ball, I was like, "Whoa, I'm wide
open.' Our coaches are great -- you
have to give them credit."

Originally published on or about: 12-08-1996

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