ALetter to Darrel Royal on His 85th
If you’re interested at all in the history and tradition of Texas football, this is a great read from Burnt Orange Nation. It’s a telling and touching look at what the game used to be and how it was played under Darrel Royal.
From BON:
One of my favorite things about running this website is the many wonderful people it has allowed me to meet. I recently had the opportunity to visit with Bobby Gamblin, who lettered for the Longhorns from 1961-63. Yes, he has a ring.
Mr. Gamblin, pictured below in the ‘63 team photo, was a left guard under Darrell Royal and on July 12th gathered along with 400 other players who played under the legendary coach to celebrate Coach Royal’s 85th birthday. The players were asked to write letters to their former coach, all of which would be gathered and bound into a book, to be presented to Coach Royal as a birthday gift.
From Bobby’s letter to Royal:
“When in doubt, fire out.” You taught us to be disciplined, but to improvise when necessary. Jim Besselman and I took your dictate to improvise very seriously. On kick offs, without his glasses, and at distances beyond about 20 yards, Jim Besselman was basically blind. This presented a challenge when we kicked off and the ball went farther than 20 yards - let’s say to the opposite goal line. Luckily we lined up next to each other on the kickoff formation and we worked out a plan. As we ran down the field, I would relay directions to him to direct him to the ball. “Jim, he is going right. He is up the middle. Watch out for the reverse coming left.” were common instructions. He got credit for a multitude of tackles. I received no recognition for getting him there. As I tell my grandchildren, “Life is sometimes not fair.”
