On This Date in Sports September 2, 1979
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
Otis Anderson has a debut for the ages, rushing for 193 yards for the St. Louis Cardinals with a touchdown. However, it is not enough as the Cardinals are defeated by the Dallas Cowboys 22-21 at Busch Stadium. For the Cowboys who won the game on a field goal by Rafael Septien with 1:16 left, it is their 15th straight win in the season opener.
For the St. Louis Cardinals Bud Wilkinson, the goal was a return to respectability after posting a 6-10 record in 1979. The Dallas Cowboys meanwhile led by Tom Landry, were coming off two straight Super Bowl appearances and hoping to get the Lombardi Trophy back after a disappointing loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XIII.
The St. Louis Cardinals after their 6-10 season used the eighth overall pick to select running back Otis “O.J.” Anderson from the University of Miami. With 50,855 fans on hand at Busch Stadium, the Cardinals opened the season against the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys were coming off a 35-31 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XIII, after winning Super Bowl XII. Coming into the game the Cowboys had not lost a season opener since 1964. Vegas lines had the Cowboys listed a four-favorite.
The Cardinals who stated 0-8 in 1978 looked to show fans they were improved by feeding their rookie from Miami the ball as often as possible. However, it was Dallas that took control of the game first as Rafael Septien opened the scoring with a field goal in the first quarter. The Cowboys would extend the lead to 10-0 in the second, as Robert Newhouse had a four-yard touchdown run. The Cardinals would get on track thanks to a 33-yard run by Otis Anderson, that helped spark a scoring drive which was capped by a two-yard pass from Jim Hart to Al Chandler. Leading 10-7 at the half, the Cowboys extended the lead to 13-7 on a chip shot by Septien to begin the third quarter. However, on their next drive a costly fumble helped set the Cardinals up for a go-ahead score as Pat Tilley reeled in an 18-yard pass from Hart to give St. Louis a 14-13 lead. The Cowboys used trickery to regain the lead in the fourth quarter as Ron Springs on a halfback option completed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Tony Hill. The Cowboys failed to make the extra point and led 19-14. the Cardinals responded with more O.J. Anderson, as the super rookie broke open a 76-yard run, for his first career NFL touchdown. Anderson would finish the game 193 yards on 21 carries, falling one short of equaling the record for most yards by a rookie in his first game set by Alan Ameche with the Baltimore Colts in 1955. Down by two the Cowboys turned to their legendary quarterback Roger Staubach to stage another fourth-quarter comeback he would take them down the field and set Rafael Septien for a 28-yard field goal with 1:16 left. The Cardinals were unable to answer, as the Cowboys playing without their star running back Tony Dorsett, extended their opening game winning streak to 15 games with a 22-21 win as Mike Wood missed a 60-yard field goal attempt on the final play.
The Cowboys would go on to post an 11-5 record in 1979 and were upset by the Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Playoff Round. It would be the final season for Hall of Famer Roger Staubach, who retired after sustaining two concussions. The Cardinals meanwhile would go on to finish 5-11, as Bud Wilkinson was fired late in the year. Wilkinson a Hall of Fame coach while at Oklahoma, dabbled in politics and had worked as an announcer for ABC College Football had come back to the sideline for the Cardinals in 1978 but struggled to adjust to the NFL game. Otis Anderson would be the lone bright spot for St. Louis, winning Rookie of the Year with 1,605 yards rushing and ten touchdowns.