Jack Crain the "Nocona Nugget"
Actual Jersey number was 99 but the story was too good to not post:
1939
"Fans were exiting in droves as Dana X. Bible was about to drop to a miserable 5-16-1 record three games into his third season as head coach. But little did they know, a kid they called the "Nocona Nugget" was about to change the course of Texas football forever.
Arkansas had completely stifled the Longhorns offense through 59 minutes. In fact, the husky lads from the Ozarks only allowed Texas four first downs the entire game. And coming off a loss to rival Oklahoma, the Longhorns were about to hit their lowest point under coach Bible. Fans were furious their third year coach wasn't bringing results. His $15,000 salary at the time was completely unheard of.
But this Bible had a miraculous character of its own. With under 30 seconds left, down 13-7, fullback R.B. Patrick dumped a pass off to little Jack Crain who twisted and squirmed through several tacklers, was all but stopped several times, but finally broke loose and outran the secondary to score on a 67-yard touchdown.
Thousands of frenzied fans rushed the field to celebrate, but tied 13-13, Texas still needed to kick the PAT. After several minutes, officials finally cleared the field, and believe it or not, the Longhorns kicker that season was none other than Jack Crain. He calmly nailed the extra point to seal a victory in what would come to be known as the "Renaissance Game."
Jack Crain delighted Longhorns fans for years to come. On Bible's 1941 team, who many consider to be Texas' greatest ever, Crain set the UT career scoring record with 180 points, and career touchdown record with 23, each of which stood for decades. The "Nocona Nugget" was even featured in LIFE Magazine. Crain may have been small in stature, but he was clearly the big man on campus."
By Michael Callahan, Houston Chronicle
