1968: The Year of Champions (Part 3)
The Troy State College Red Wave was surging, breaking into the top ten after beating three straight opponents 124-0 and claiming their second straight conference title.
The team to beat lived in Pike County, but Troy’s streak was about to come crashing down.
Week 9, Nov. 9 – UT-Martin, 12-3 L
A flat game and a surprising injury caused the Red Wave to stumble in Week 9. The Troy squad found themselves overwhelmed for the first time all season and fell to a UT-Martin team that would only muster a 3-5-1 record that season.
Quarterback Sim Byrd had probably the worst day of his career in Troy, throwing 8-for-21 for 74 yards… and 6 interceptions. He suffered an injury in the first quarter, but the extent of the injury was not clear.
Al Head stepped up in relief, but threw two interceptions of his own before Byrd came back in the third quarter. Head would add 55 yards passing to Troy’s total of 129. The rushing game was significantly worse, gaining a single yard that day.
To further the woes for the Red Wave, they lost a fumble, were penalized for 85 yards, and punted 9 different times. The only solace was Randy Hicks’ 34-yard field goal in the second quarter.
That kick tied the game, but it proved to be the only time Troy would score. UTM added another field goal and a touchdown, driving the margin of victory to 12-3.
The upset was without a doubt the highlight of UTM’s season.
Surprisingly, Troy rose to #10 in the Dunkel Index and to #13 in the AP Poll, despite the loss. The Red Wave dropped to #16 in the UPI, but more importantly, they fell to #6 in the NAIA poll.
This put the Red Wave just outside the four-team NAIA playoffs, with just one game left to impress voters.
Week 10, Nov.16 – Concord College, 76-0 W, Homecoming
Homecoming has always been a special game for Troy and this one was no different. The Red Wave welcomed in the Concord College Mountain Lions of West Virginia, and it was a game to remember. The game remains not only Troy’s most lopsided Homecoming win, but the largest margin of victory in school history.
Byrd held a masterclass in quarterbacking. He went 24 of 49 passing with 364 yards and 6 touchdowns through the air. He even went 10-for-10 passing to start the game. Byrd added a seventh touchdown on the ground with a 5-yard scamper into the end zone.
Receiver Danny Grant caught 12 balls for 147 yards and 4 touchdowns. Bobby Enslen brought in 10 catches of his own for 122 yards and 2 touchdowns. Al Head threw 3 out of 5 passes for 70 yards and caught a touchdown of his own from Byrd for 25 yards.
Ronnie Shelley made a day of it on special teams. He had two punt return touchdowns (56 and 54), as well as an 81-yard kickoff return, though he didn’t get the touchdown. Game records show kicker Randy Hicks went 10-for-11 in extra points.
The decisive win catapulted Troy in the polls again. The Red Wave rose to #8 in the Dunkel Index, #9 in the UPI poll, and #15 in the AP poll.
Most importantly, Troy surged back to #4 in the NAIA poll, securing them a place in the four-team playoff. The Red Wave would be matched up with the #3 seed Willamette in the semifinals.
The other semi-final would see top-ranked Texas A&I facing off against the #5 Northern State of South Dakota. The committee chose Northern State over the #2 team Indiana State, from Pennsylvania.
NAIA Semi-Final, Nov. 28 – Willamette, 63-10 W
The first playoff game in Troy history was certainly one for the ages. The Red Wave’s high-powered offense seemed to get finely tuned with the Concord game and came out firing on all cylinders.
Sim Byrd and company would make sure that the NAIA National Championship would have to come with a win over the Red Wave.
The title, in fact, would have to come through Montgomery, as both the semifinals and final were played in Cramton Bowl. Troy definitely made themselves at home in the Capital City, though based on the final score, it didn’t extend full Southern hospitality to its opponents from Oregon.
Red Wave quarterback Sim Byrd led the way for Troy with a 14-for-20 passing performance, tallying 210 yards and 6 touchdowns. This set a record for most touchdowns thrown that would stand alone until 1993. It has since been tied 4 other times, but never surpassed.
The Red Wave led 42-3 at the half. Byrd was so effective in the Red Wave offense that Atkins benched him just three minutes into the 3rd quarter. Backup Al Head added two more touchdowns in almost two quarters of work.
The Willamette field goal by Gib Gilmore actually set a record for the longest in the NAIA Playoffs at 40 yards.
Bobby Enslen caught 5 passes for 122 yards and 4 touchdowns (66, 13, 7, and 19). This set a NAIA Playoff record, beating the previous mark of just 1 touchdown catch. Enslen’s mark would remain until tied in 1973. It has since been tied 5 other times.
Fellow Red Wave wideout Doug Taylor also broke the original record by snagging 3 touchdowns (13, 15, and 13) during his 7-catch, 92-yard performance. Fullback Sammy Hayes had a 14-yard touchdown catch of his own. Cecil Barber carried the ball 19 times for 117 yards.
Randy Hicks was perfect, kicking in 9 extra points. Ronnie Shelley got the defense on the board with a 69-yard interception return for a touchdown. On defense, Jim Gillespie was all over the place making 11 unassisted tackles.
With the exception of the Concord game, this was the most complete game the Red Wave would play all season. They had 22 first downs, 105 yards rushing, and 278 yards passing.
Along with the records previously mentioned, a total of 15 NAIA records were broken and four were tied, including the most points scored in a playoff game. This broke the St. John’s 1963 record of 54.
The Red Wave took the win and rose in the polls. They got to #11 in the AP Small College Poll and #7 in the UPI Small College Poll. There is no record of a Dunkel Index rating for small colleges after the semifinals.
However, on December 5, nine days before Troy took on Texas A&I in the NAIA Champion Bowl, the Dunkel Index released their final poll for all of college football—major and minor schools mixed together.
Troy would finish as the 70th best team in all of college football according to the Dunkel Index. For reference, Neal Brown’s 2016-18 teams finished at 63, 64, and 56 respectively.
NAIA Champion Bowl, Dec. 14 – Texas A&I (Texas A&M-Kingsville) – 43-35 W
Exactly one year to the date that Troy State College became Troy State University, the Red Wave marched into the Cramton Bowl in search of the school’s first national championship, just shy of its 60th season.
Sim Byrd continued his stellar season under center, going 25-of-44 for 324 yards passing and 5 touchdowns (54, 15, 6, 4, and 3). Cecil Barber got two touchdowns, a 53-yard rushing touchdown and a 4-yard catch.
Vince Green got in on the action with his own 15-yard touchdown. Consistent target Doug Taylor caught two touchdowns for 6 and 3 yards each. Bobby Enslen had the longest touchdown of the day with the 54-yard grab.
Ronnie Shelley set a Champion Bowl record with 3 interceptions. Randy Hicks continued his steady kicking work with a 5 for 6 day on extra points.
Tied 21 at the half, the game went Troy’s way in the third quarter. Troy’s offense only scored 14 points, but the two they didn’t score proved fatal for the Javelinas.
On the opening kickoff of the second half, Javelina return man Gene Walkoviak caught the ball at the one. Dwight Harrison, the other returner, hit him and knocked him backwards into the end zone, resulting in a safety.
Before the A&I offense got a chance to rally, the Red Wave added their two touchdowns, extending the Troy lead to 37-21.
The 1968 NAIA Champion Bowl saw a massive 19 records fall and another tied during the game. Sim Byrd broke six of the records by himself: Most plays (50), most net yards total (328), most passes attempted (44), most passes completed (25), most net yards passing (324) and most touchdown passes thrown (5).
Ronnie Shelley set a record with his three interceptions in the championship game. Randy Hicks set two for the most extra points kicked in the Champion Bowl with 5 and the most kicked consecutively. Both Troy’s Doug Taylor and Texas A&I’s Dwight Harrison tied the record for most touchdown catches with two each.
Troy had the most yards passing (368), most passes attempted (46), most passes completed (27) and most points in one half (28). Texas A&I’s 35 points were the most ever put up by the losing side. Both teams combined for the most points in one half (42), most points in one quarter (35), and the most points ever scored in the game (78), all up to that time.
Red Wave Head Coach Billy Atkins won the NAIA District (All-Alabama and Mississippi) Coach of the Year. The players got in on the All District action as well.
The All-District Offense featured Bobby Enslen, Alvin Dees, Paul Brinsfield, Sim Byrd and Danny Grant. Don Hatcher, Glynn Thompson, Jim Gillespie, and Ronnie Shelley made up Troy’s selections to the All-District Defense.
In the Alabama Collegiate Coference, 16 Red Wavemen were selected for All-ACC honors: Sim Byrd, Bobby Enslen, Doug Taylor, Danny Grant, George Hiers, Alvin Dees, Paul Brinsfield, Cecil Barber, Don Hatcher, Glynn Thompson, Jim Gillespie, Larry Groce, Ronnie Shelley, Frank Elmore, David Cooper, Hugh Cole.
The 1968 Troy State Red Wave squad has a special place in Troy history. It was the first truly complete team the program had. It set the championship standard that Troy has continued to live up to in the years since. Troy’s success in NAIA foreshadowed its eventual success in Division II, FCS, and FBS.
The 1968 team will forever be the pioneers of Trojan success and are the original Trojan Legends of the gridiron.
For more pictures from the Troy University archives, check out this GALLERY.