The Week

After Quarterback Bert Jones saved the day as time ran out against Mississippi, LSU Coach Charlie McClendon was offering a new perspective on the word "pressure. "When you're standing back there and the horn is already blowing, that's pressure," said Charlie. That seemed to be a fair appraisal of the 10-yard pass that beat the Rebels 17-16. Losing 16-10 with three minutes remaining, Jones took the team to that dramatic moment in a drive that began at the LSU 20. The Bengals sustained the march by converting fourth-down plays and, aided by a pass-interference call, gained another first down at the Ole Miss 10 with four seconds left. After the next pass fell incomplete, it all came down to one play with one second to go.

"I told Bert, 'This is it. Get in there!' " said McClendon, "and you know what he did? He winked at me. He was perfectly calm and perfectly confident."

And the pass was perfectly complete to Brad Davis, who lined up with two other receivers on the left side. The completion was so close to the flag and there were so many players in the area nobody was sure Davis actually made it into the end zone before falling out of bounds, but the referee signaled yes. That, plus the extra point with 0:00 on the clock, sent the record Tiger Stadium crowd of 70,502 into a frenzy from which it won't soon recover.

Mississippi seemed to have the game in hand after driving to a touchdown early in the third quarter. But the situation began to turn around when Steve Lavinghouse missed a 27-yard field-goal attempt midway through the fourth quarter. A few minutes later the LSU defense stopped Ole Miss on three downs for the second time all night and that was all Jones needed.

There was grumbling among the Bulldogs following Georgia's 14-0 loss to Tennessee, only the second time Coach Vince Dooley has been blanked in his nine-year career. Quarterback James Ray thought he should have played more when it became apparent Georgia would have to pass to win. Instead, Dooley stuck with Andy Johnson, who threw two interceptions that wiped out the only serious Bulldog threats. Even though Tennessee scored both of its touchdowns on second-quarter passes by Con-dredge Holloway, Coach Bill Battle reserved his highest praise for the offensive line. "It was their finest effort since I've been here," he said. "We lined up and blew them out." Tailback Haskel Stanback, who gained 96 of the team's 262 rushing yards, said, "Everything worked just like the playbook shows. It was just straight-ahead football."

Auburn survived a determined second-half Florida bid after its ball-control attack ran 50 plays to only 19 for the Gators in a 26-7 first half. To ensure the 26-20 win the Tigers needed a pass interception and a fumble recovery dangerously deep in their own territory in the final three minutes. "There is an old axiom in football," mused Florida Coach Doug Dickey later. "You try to avoid losing and then you try to win. We did enough to win but we didn't avoid losing. We gave up too many points before we got enough." In other games involving Southeastern Conference teams, Alabama crunched Mississippi State 58-14 and Kentucky fell to independent Tulane 18-7.

North Carolina enhanced its chances for a third straight bowl game by running its unbeaten Atlantic Coast Conference string to a record 13 games. The Tar Heels, who have lost only to Ohio State, had little trouble in defeating Clemson 26-10. " North Carolina found something good three or four years ago and they have been sticking with it," said Tiger Coach Hootie Ingram. "That's the sign of a good strong football team." Fullback Tim Kirkpatrick gained 111 yards in 11 carries as the Tar Heels ground out 392 overall. "Our offensive line may have had its finest day," said Coach Bill Dooley. North Carolina State also continued its high-powered ways, romping over Virginia 35-14. Stan Fritts' two touchdowns ran his point total to a school-record 92.

Duke upset Georgia Tech 20-14 for its fourth straight win since sophomore Quarterback Mark Johnson recovered from a shoulder separation. Johnson scored twice and ran and passed for 189 yards. Tailback Steve Jones was again a workhorse, carrying 38 times for 149 yards. Georgia Tech was unable to move on the ground and interceptions shut down the air game when the Yellow Jackets made it close after being stymied for nearly three quarters. South Carolina started slowly but went on to blast hapless Wake Forest 35-3. The victory may have eased some of the pressure mounted by the Get Rid of Dietzel (GROD) movement. "The job isn't open," said Paul.

Gary Huff had another spectacular day, but with his chief running support out, and with little help from the injury-riddled defense, Florida State lost to Houston 31-27. Huff completed 27 of 51 passes for 409 yards and would have produced more had at least six of his passes not been dropped. The Cougars, rebounding from losses to Miami and Mississippi State, got 345 yards from their ground game. VMI ended its 18-game losing streak—the nation's longest—by trouncing Furman 31-7. Oh, the embarrassment.