1974 Cowboys to be honored during November reunion weekend

STILLWATER — The annual Cowboy Football Reunion will take place the weekend of Nov. 23, and the 1974 Fiesta Bowl championship team will be honored as the team of special recognition as part of Oklahoma State’s Big 12 match-up with Texas Tech.

This season marks the 50-year anniversary for a 1974 squad that gave OSU its first bowl win and appearance in 16 years with a 16-6 win over No. 17 Brigham Young University. That Cowboy team also finished the year ranked No. 10 in total defense and was among the national leaders in passing defense.

The Cowboys limited their opponents to 1,131 total passing yards, 102.8 passing yards per game, five passing yards per attempt and a pass efficiency defense of 74.25. Including those numbers, the 1974 defense also still ranks among the top 10 in school history in fewest total yards and first downs allowed, as well as turnovers gained, interceptions and fumbles recovered.

In addition to the bowl win over No. 17 BYU, the Cowboys also knocked off top-10 Arkansas on the road with a 26-7 win over the Razorbacks, during which OSU matched a school record by holding Arkansas to minus-3 total passing yards. Other notable wins included a 59-0 win over Wichita State in the season opener that stands today as OSU’s fourth-largest margin of victory of the modern era (since 1945), a 24-13 homecoming win over Kansas and a 31-7 win over Missouri.

OSU finished the year with seven wins despite playing a school record four road games against AP top-10 teams and five total games away from Stillwater against AP-ranked teams.

Led by coach Jim Stanley in his second year in Stillwater, the 1974 Cowboys produced two first team All-Big Eight honorees in defensive lineman Phillip Dokes and punter Cliff Parsley, as well as future first team All-Big 8 selections Terry Miller, Derrel Gofourth, Abby Daigle and Daria Butler. Doaks, Miller, Gofourth and James “Duck” White went on to record All-America honors in their careers, with White becoming the first four-year letter winner of the modern era at OSU.

Dokes also set a school record that stands today with seven fumble recoveries on the year and picked up the outstanding defensive player trophy for his performance in the Fiesta Bowl. Running back Ken Walker was chosen as the top offensive player in the bowl win.

Several others stood out as statistical leaders for the year, including leading passer Charlie Weatherbie, leading rusher George Palmer, leading receiver Gerald Bain, leading tackler Brent Robinson, tackles for loss leader Tony Buck, interceptions leader Bob Shephard and Daigle as leading scorer.

Four different running backs turned in 100-yard games, including Palmer on three occasions, Walker and a pair of freshmen in Skip Taylor and Miller.

Letter winners from the 1974 team who went on to be selected in the National Football League Draft included Butler, Dokes, Gofourth, Miller, Parsley, White, Scott Burk, Larry Harris, Leonard Thompson and Robert Turner.