Bud Davis was relieved of his coaching duties and became CU's Dean Of Men
and later moved up the administrative ladder to the Presidency of Idaho
State University. The new coach was former Oklahoma ball-handling whiz
quarterback Eddie Crowder who prepped under both Bud Wilkinson and "Red"
Blaik as an assistant. He brought in his Split-T offense but had few players
to run it properly and with the effects of probation, suffered through a
debut season of 2-8, matching Davis' mark of '62. Although the record was a
disappointment to the faithful, Crowder's popularity took an immediate
upturn with the termination of the use of the all-yellow uniforms. The
helmets were painted a more traditional gold color and black three-inch thin
"Charger" style numerals were placed on the sides. 1964's 2-8 slate was no
better than that of 1963 although Crowder's recruiting showed promise and
some of his sophs looked good immediately. QB's Hale Irwin and Bernie McCall
took over the squad and RB Estes Banks showed flashes of power. Only All Big
Eight DE Sam Harris stood out on a defense that had improved from the
previous year.
Crowder and his Buffaloes surprised everyone in '65 with a strong 13-0
win over the Sooners and a 6-2-2 finish. The rushing game was given a shot
by soph FB Wilmer Cooks and Banks held the other RB spot. Banks went on to
the Raiders and Bengals in a brief pro career. The main runner was William
Harris who was number three in the conference. Hale Irwin was switched to
full-time DB duty and was an All Big Eight performer and Bernie McCall
became the QB and number two passer in the conference and was also a Big
Eight selection. Sam Harris again stood out as an All Conference DE.
