Texas A and M University - Aggieland Yearbook (College Station, TX)

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1985 SEASON SWC CHAMPS Texas Aggies make their first cotton bowl ap¬ pearance in 18 seasons ot-ton . . . cot-ton . . . cot¬ ton . . . !” began the season’s first yell practice, but little did the Texas Aggies know that their annual hopes would be fulfilled. In spite of the team’s starting loss at the hands of Ala¬ bama or their upset against Baylor, the rough-tough Texas A M football team en¬ cored in Dallas for the 1986 Cotton Bowl. Bonfire had fallen after midnight, fore¬ telling an Aggie victory when the Aggies encountered Texas. This meeting was the showdown to determine who would carry the Southwest Conference title. On Thanksgiving Day, 77,607 eyewitnesses loaded the bleachers and temporary seats of Kyle Field. Forty-two years ago that day, the same teams met to determine the championship. The crowd also celebrated another 42nd event, the birthday of Texas A M Athletic Director Jackie Sherrill. Aggie devotees and standing 12th Man created a sea of white each time the Ma¬ roon scored. The towels just flew up “in gleeful celebration” wrote Dave Campbell in the Waco Tribune Herald, but not at all “in surrender!” Cotton balls flew every¬ where — that is, if they were not dangling from the ears or fingers of many. The Ag¬ gies beat the Longhorns again with a 32 point margin, just to freshen the memory of the 32-point Aggie margin in last year’s scrap with the Orange and White. The defeat sent Texas (and Bevo) away with their tails tucked under to play the Air Force Academy in the Bluebonnet Bowl. Two weeks after the t. u. game, some¬ thing unusual happened on campus. The “Bowl facts” were that 8,000 tickets were available to students at $20 rather than $25 (a Sherrill-requested discount); the best tickets were endzone and 10-yardline seats; and FINALS were the following week. The latter must not have weighed too heavily on the minds of students as Camp Cotton was established in front of G. Rollie White Coliseum two days before tickets sales began. Camp Cotton had almost all the com¬ forts of home for the Twelfth Man. In front of the six ticket windows, campers set up sleeping bags, lawn chairs, tents, Christ¬ mas trees, B-B-Q grills and television sets. Video cassette recorders even played “Ghostbusters,” “The Exterminator,” or better, the A M vs. Texas game. Foot¬ balls, volleyballs and frisbees flew over¬ head during the balmy afternoons; and by night, teddy bears, popcorn and blankets took precedent. When asked about the beer drinking going on, senior electrical engineer major Barry Meyer, replied, “No comment,” while Kevin Sherman, junior landscape artchitecture major, admitted, “Well, the only studying I do is when I study the girls.” And by Tuesday morning, survivors were treated to coffee and donuts, which Jackie Sherrill had arranged to be deliv¬ ered. In “thanks”, one clever group humped it and yelled, “Beat the hell outta the Dallas Times Herald!,” who earlier in the semester made allegations against particular team members. Still, whatever happened then or that night in front of G. Rollie White didn’t matter anymore be¬ cause the Aggies were going to Big D. Nothing could stop them — not even Bo 16 Life

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Division 15

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Jackson! The charts ranked A M 11th and Au¬ burn 15th before the game; A M also had a 9-2 record contrasting Auburn’s 8-3. By the looks, we were on top, yet this Cotton Bowl appearance would be the first for A M in 18 seasons, whereas Auburn had three straight wins in the Bowl. So it was predicted that A M would fold under this big name team, who had Heisman Trophy winner Jackson on their side. The 50th Anniversary Cotton Bowl Classic attracted 73,137 spectators that first day of the year, 1986. Students, alumni and fans took breaks from holiday seasons to be there. Both season confer¬ ence winners were there to decide who had the talent and endurance to win. (A M could do it!) Kevin Murray, sophomore quarterback and runnerup to Jackson in MVP ballot¬ ing, made 292 yards, a record high for the Bowl games, with 283 yards offensively. Anthony Toney and Rodger Vick handled the running game, since it was Sherrill’s design to have fresh fullbacks at all times. In the third quarter, with 13 minutes left on the clock, the Tigers were at A M’s seven yardline, with scoring in sight. A M’s defense pressed on Jackson, who three times tried to get pass the Maroon defense. Then, the Tigers got the fourth down just outside the two, but they failed when they attempted a touchdown. Later in the fourth quarter, the Agg stopped Jackson again on a crucial fourth down effort. There was no getting passed this Aggie team and the 12th Man knew it. With each anticipated score for either side, the stadium shook. Once again, tow¬ els flew up and engulfed more than half the stadium; Ag spirit overwhelmed. The SWC champs were champions again! Peo¬ ple even humped it to a slightly different yell, “Give Jackie a raise, whoop!” The Aggies received national attention for the big win. A M placed fifth in both news agency polls, finishing 10-2 in the season. For Sherill, this win was “the big¬ gest ... of (his) career because ... of the things we had to endure to get here.” And for all thick-blooded Ags around the world, this was a win that distinguished two kinds of people: “Aggies and those who wish they were.” sf By Yollie Lopez Aggie fans were out with their twelfth man towels in full force to help support the Texas A M team against Au¬ burn in the Cotton Bowl.