THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, December 4, 1995 TAG: 9512040122
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: IRVING, TEXAS LENGTH: Long : 103 lines
Norv Turner knew his Washington Redskins were 17 1/2-point underdogs to the Dallas Cowboys. He didn't care. Turner stood before his bedraggled team Saturday night determined to deliver the kind of inspirational speech that makes bad teams play beyond their means.
``If there are only 53 men in this state who think we can win this game, they better be sitting in this room,'' Turner opened.
He paused and stared at his team. Some stared back, expressionless.
``Hell, I'm not sure there are 53 guys in here who feel that way,'' he continued, then scrapped the whole emotional plan for more conventional Xs and Os.
At some point Sunday, Turner's Redskins convinced themselves they were at least equal to the team some think will represent the NFC in Super Bowl XXX. Maybe it was when they forced the vaunted Cowboys offense into a couple of turnovers. Or when they sent Terry Allen churning through the Dallas defensive front on his way to 98 yards. Or perhaps it happened as quarterback Heath Shuler made the smart passes thought to be instinctual for first-round draft choices.
Whenever it was - all three played a role - the Redskins earned a 24-17 victory over their archrival in the biggest upset in series history and the first Redskins sweep since 1987.
``Today was my Super Bowl,'' Redskins safety James Washington, a former Cowboy, said.
``The biggest victory of my athletic career - and I played on three state football champions,'' Shuler added.
The game, which gives the Redskins a 4-9 mark and one more win than a year ago, was a victory for communication. Last Monday, safety Stanley Richard blamed his defensive linemen and coordinator Ron Lynn's schemes for the unit's lackluster performance. The statements sent shockwaves through the organization.
Instead of retaliating, Lynn allowed more input from players during practice on what would work against the Cowboys' offense. In simplest terms, it came down to two things. If back Emmitt Smith looked in a groove, the Redskins would play an eight-man front and risk the big passes from Troy Aikman to Michael Irvin. If Smith was being contained, they'd double and shift the defense toward Irvin.
Smith was held to 91 yards and a touchdown. Irvin caught 10 passes for 101 yards and a late score that trimmed a two-touchdown deficit to one, but his longest gain was 20 yards. Aikman was forced to attempt a career-high 48 passes.
And Richard responded with 13 tackles - nine solo - and an interception the Redskins turned into a fourth-quarter touchdown.
``Any time you make comments like I made, all eyes are on you,'' Richard said. ``You have to have a big game or you end up taking a lot of hard stuff.''
Richard stripped Smith of the football on a controversial play that went Washington's way late in the final quarter.
The Cowboys faced a 21-10 deficit and fourth-and-goal from the Washington 3. Smith started up the middle, then broke to right and seemed sure to make the corner.
Richard then knocked the ball away, sending it bouncing towards the end zone. Linebacker Marvcus Patton failed to scoop it up, at which point Smith swooped in and grabbed the ball just as his foot hit the end-zone marker.
His foot landed in-bounds and in the end zone. His knee landed out of bounds. The official ruled it a touchback, Washington gaining the ball at its 20.
``I know I had the ball when I crossed the plane of the goal line,'' Smith said. ``I know I had it. I didn't get the call and the official didn't offer an explanation. ... All I can say is how poorly I played.''
Washington turned that into Eddie Murray's 47-yard field goal and 24-10 lead, with the key play being Shuler's pinpoint 44-yard strike to Leslie Shepherd over Larry Brown.
``That's the key play in the game,'' Turner insisted. ``It allowed us to keep the ball, run clock and get a field goal.''
Even without those three points, the Redskins could have won. They conceded nothing to Dallas, earning a standoff with the Cowboys in time of possession at 29:51.
Guard Tre Johnson returned to the starting lineup and Allen used the 320-pounder to gouge out 98 yards and score two touchdowns.
Shuler played more like the Tennessee All-American he is. He rushed nine times, several of them called plays. He hit 11 of 24 passes for 154 yards and a 10-yard TD to Henry Ellard with 5:01 late in the third quarter that gave Washington the lead for good.
Dallas was dazed. Deion Sanders, in fact, contributed to the Ellard score by lining up on the wrong receiver and watching Ellard scamper alone across the middle.
``I'm very upset,'' Sanders claimed. ``This team has no business beating us.''
Maybe not, but Shuler gained confidence as the game wore on, aided by the third-quarter departure of Dallas sack-specialist Charles Haley with back spasms and linebacker Godfrey Myles with a sprained shoulder.
``The biggest play in football comes when you're kneeling to run out the clock,'' said Shuler, who got that opportunity. ``I looked in the huddle today and everyone was smiling, happy, successful. I won't forget this.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dallas' Emmitt Smith tries to grab his second-half fumble at the
goal line, but was ruled out of bounds and the Redskins took over on
a touchback.
by CNB