Indiana University Athletics
Graham: Reflecting on the Careers of IU Hall of Famers Ernie Jones and Ken Kaczmarek
11/2/2017 7:06:00 PM | Football
By: Andy Graham
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Perry Williams had the football.
Then Perry Williams didn't have the football.
Ken Kaczmarek was the reason why.
More on that later.
Meantime, it is worth noting not too many defensive backs around could keep up with the Jones.
Ernest "Ernie" Jones, a first team All-American wide receiver whose 1987 senior season at Indiana marked the only time the Hoosiers beat Ohio State and Michigan the same year, and Kaczmarek, a first team All-Big Ten linebacker on IU's Rose Bowl team, are the football entrants in this year's IU Athletics Hall of Fame induction class.
The 2017 inductees also include Keith Smart (men's basketball), Danielle Carruthers (women's track and field), Don Padgett II (men's golf) and Isabella Hutchison (women's administrator). This year's class, raising the Hall's total number of inductees to 225, will be honored at Friday evening's annual Hall of Fame dinner and also during Saturday's home football game with Wisconsin.
Kaczmarek and his 1967 teammates will also formally celebrate the 50th anniversary of their glorious season the weekend of Nov. 18 as the Hoosiers host Rutgers for the final home game of the current campaign.
And while Kaczmarek made a ton of tackles that year – his 118 stops ranked second among all Big Ten defenders – none was as consequential than his stymie of Purdue fullback Williams during the waning minutes of the 1967 Old Oaken Bucket game at IU's Memorial Stadium.
Indiana was clinging to a 19-14 lead, but No. 3-ranked Purdue had marched methodically to create a first-and-goal at the Hoosier 3 and seemed to score a decisive touchdown. On the drive's 20th snap, the
Boilermakers gave the ball to the bruising Williams, who saw a hole open up. Very briefly. Because then he saw nothing but a Crimson No. 52 jersey.
It was Kaczmarek, doing what he'd been coached to do.
"Ernie Plank was our defensive coordinator," Kaczmarek recalled this week while in Washington D.C. "And we were aggressive. We played a very aggressive style of defense and did a lot of blitzing. And he emphasized, he always said, 'If a hole opens, especially you linebackers had better fill it, because the ball is probably coming through there.'
"And that's exactly what happened. I saw the hole open and I filled it. Actually hit Perry in the backfield. One of our defensive tackles, Harold Dunn, was also there. I hit Perry with my arm coming up and I was driving him (back), and the ball popped out."
And time seemed to stand still as the ball, carrying with it the fate of IU's season, seemed to float suspended above the fray.
Right guard Bob Russell, watching the play on the sidelines with the rest of the Hoosier offense, mentioned that to Kaczmarek recently.
"Bob told me, 'I can still see it. All of a sudden, the ball pops up in the air, and it seemed like 10 seconds I'm watching this ball in the air.' " Kaczmarek said. "It popped up in the air and had forward momentum and rolled forward as it hit the ground and (Hoosier safety) Mike Baughman jumped on it at the 2."
But the Hoosiers were still not out of danger. The offense didn't take any chances under the shadow of its own goalposts and had to punt the ball away, but John Isenbarger unleashed a 63-yard boot that moved
Purdue well out of scoring range and essentially settled matters.
IU fell in the Rose Bowl to a talent-laden Southern California club, 14-3, and the Hoosiers wouldn't get their first bowl win till Lee Corso's crew came through in the 1979 Holiday Bowl.
And Jones' senior season, after beating both No. 9 Ohio State and No. 20 Michigan, the Hoosiers played for a Rose Bowl bid but fell at No. 13 Michigan State.
Jones, one of the most gifted and accomplished receivers ever to suit up for the Hoosiers, was a catalytic player among a core group that helped ignite a run of five bowl bids in six seasons under coach Bill Mallory.
"Ernie was a real impact player," Mallory said today. "He was as fine a receiver as I ever had to be around and to coach. He was just such a great play-maker. Dave Schnell was our quarterback back then and they had a great rapport.
"When you threw Ernie the ball, you know it was going to be, most times, caught. Particularly when he had to go up for the ball, sometimes there would be one or two defenders there, you knew Ernie was coming down with the ball. He had that toughness, that sense of timing there, and talent that just made him so productive in the receiving role."
IU finished 8-4 (and 6-2 in league play) in 1987, severely testing but ultimately falling to No. 16 Tennessee at the Peach Bowl, 27-22. Jones caught seven passes for 150 yards against the Vols, including a 43-yard TD toss from Schnell.
"We played Tennessee in the Peach Bowl and they couldn't stop Ernie," Mallory said. "I'll tell you, he was unstoppable in our passing game. Unfortunately, toward the end of the fourth quarter, Ernie got hurt and couldn't come back in and play. And I've always said, if we could have finished out with Ernie, we'd have beat Tennessee. We were ahead of them and they came back and got us right at the end.
"One thing that's interesting is that when I went to the American Football Coaches meeting (afterward), Johnny Majors, the head coach then at Tennessee, pulled me aside and said, 'Bill, that Ernie Jones was the best receiver we faced this year and I'll tell you this, he might be as good as I've ever faced in my coaching career.' That was quite a nice compliment from certainly one of the top coaches in the country."
Jones was the Associated Press Big Ten Player of the Year for that 1987 campaign, and his 1,265 receiving yards remains IU's single-season record. His 66 catches, 13 TDs and 1,807 all-purpose yards were all school records at the time.
His 2,361 career receiving yards and 20 TDs still rank third on IU's all-time lists. Jones went on to play five seasons with the NFL's Arizona Cardinals and one with the Los Angeles Rams before concluding his playing career in 1993.
???????Kaczmarek continued in school after graduating in 1968, earning his MBA from IU's School of Business in 1971.
Both the football inductees in this year's Hall class are native Hoosiers, Jones from Elkhart and Kaczmarek from South Bend. Kaczmarek is already in the Indiana Football Hall of Fame, but he relishes joining the IU Hall.
"It's 125 years' worth of athletics history," Kaczmarek said, "and, when you look at all the great athletes IU has had, both male and female and in so many different sports, it's humbling.
"I was kind of shocked when Fred Glass told me. It's an elite group we're joining. With this class, I think there are still only 225 inductees. I'm honored. And overjoyed."
And he's still pretty happy he separated Perry Williams from that football, too.
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Perry Williams had the football.
Then Perry Williams didn't have the football.
Ken Kaczmarek was the reason why.
More on that later.
Meantime, it is worth noting not too many defensive backs around could keep up with the Jones.
Ernest "Ernie" Jones, a first team All-American wide receiver whose 1987 senior season at Indiana marked the only time the Hoosiers beat Ohio State and Michigan the same year, and Kaczmarek, a first team All-Big Ten linebacker on IU's Rose Bowl team, are the football entrants in this year's IU Athletics Hall of Fame induction class.
The 2017 inductees also include Keith Smart (men's basketball), Danielle Carruthers (women's track and field), Don Padgett II (men's golf) and Isabella Hutchison (women's administrator). This year's class, raising the Hall's total number of inductees to 225, will be honored at Friday evening's annual Hall of Fame dinner and also during Saturday's home football game with Wisconsin.
Kaczmarek and his 1967 teammates will also formally celebrate the 50th anniversary of their glorious season the weekend of Nov. 18 as the Hoosiers host Rutgers for the final home game of the current campaign.
And while Kaczmarek made a ton of tackles that year – his 118 stops ranked second among all Big Ten defenders – none was as consequential than his stymie of Purdue fullback Williams during the waning minutes of the 1967 Old Oaken Bucket game at IU's Memorial Stadium.
Indiana was clinging to a 19-14 lead, but No. 3-ranked Purdue had marched methodically to create a first-and-goal at the Hoosier 3 and seemed to score a decisive touchdown. On the drive's 20th snap, the
Boilermakers gave the ball to the bruising Williams, who saw a hole open up. Very briefly. Because then he saw nothing but a Crimson No. 52 jersey.
It was Kaczmarek, doing what he'd been coached to do.
"Ernie Plank was our defensive coordinator," Kaczmarek recalled this week while in Washington D.C. "And we were aggressive. We played a very aggressive style of defense and did a lot of blitzing. And he emphasized, he always said, 'If a hole opens, especially you linebackers had better fill it, because the ball is probably coming through there.'
"And that's exactly what happened. I saw the hole open and I filled it. Actually hit Perry in the backfield. One of our defensive tackles, Harold Dunn, was also there. I hit Perry with my arm coming up and I was driving him (back), and the ball popped out."
And time seemed to stand still as the ball, carrying with it the fate of IU's season, seemed to float suspended above the fray.
Right guard Bob Russell, watching the play on the sidelines with the rest of the Hoosier offense, mentioned that to Kaczmarek recently.
"Bob told me, 'I can still see it. All of a sudden, the ball pops up in the air, and it seemed like 10 seconds I'm watching this ball in the air.' " Kaczmarek said. "It popped up in the air and had forward momentum and rolled forward as it hit the ground and (Hoosier safety) Mike Baughman jumped on it at the 2."
But the Hoosiers were still not out of danger. The offense didn't take any chances under the shadow of its own goalposts and had to punt the ball away, but John Isenbarger unleashed a 63-yard boot that moved
Purdue well out of scoring range and essentially settled matters.
IU fell in the Rose Bowl to a talent-laden Southern California club, 14-3, and the Hoosiers wouldn't get their first bowl win till Lee Corso's crew came through in the 1979 Holiday Bowl.
And Jones' senior season, after beating both No. 9 Ohio State and No. 20 Michigan, the Hoosiers played for a Rose Bowl bid but fell at No. 13 Michigan State.
Jones, one of the most gifted and accomplished receivers ever to suit up for the Hoosiers, was a catalytic player among a core group that helped ignite a run of five bowl bids in six seasons under coach Bill Mallory.
"Ernie was a real impact player," Mallory said today. "He was as fine a receiver as I ever had to be around and to coach. He was just such a great play-maker. Dave Schnell was our quarterback back then and they had a great rapport.
"When you threw Ernie the ball, you know it was going to be, most times, caught. Particularly when he had to go up for the ball, sometimes there would be one or two defenders there, you knew Ernie was coming down with the ball. He had that toughness, that sense of timing there, and talent that just made him so productive in the receiving role."
IU finished 8-4 (and 6-2 in league play) in 1987, severely testing but ultimately falling to No. 16 Tennessee at the Peach Bowl, 27-22. Jones caught seven passes for 150 yards against the Vols, including a 43-yard TD toss from Schnell.
"We played Tennessee in the Peach Bowl and they couldn't stop Ernie," Mallory said. "I'll tell you, he was unstoppable in our passing game. Unfortunately, toward the end of the fourth quarter, Ernie got hurt and couldn't come back in and play. And I've always said, if we could have finished out with Ernie, we'd have beat Tennessee. We were ahead of them and they came back and got us right at the end.
"One thing that's interesting is that when I went to the American Football Coaches meeting (afterward), Johnny Majors, the head coach then at Tennessee, pulled me aside and said, 'Bill, that Ernie Jones was the best receiver we faced this year and I'll tell you this, he might be as good as I've ever faced in my coaching career.' That was quite a nice compliment from certainly one of the top coaches in the country."
Jones was the Associated Press Big Ten Player of the Year for that 1987 campaign, and his 1,265 receiving yards remains IU's single-season record. His 66 catches, 13 TDs and 1,807 all-purpose yards were all school records at the time.
His 2,361 career receiving yards and 20 TDs still rank third on IU's all-time lists. Jones went on to play five seasons with the NFL's Arizona Cardinals and one with the Los Angeles Rams before concluding his playing career in 1993.
???????Kaczmarek continued in school after graduating in 1968, earning his MBA from IU's School of Business in 1971.
Both the football inductees in this year's Hall class are native Hoosiers, Jones from Elkhart and Kaczmarek from South Bend. Kaczmarek is already in the Indiana Football Hall of Fame, but he relishes joining the IU Hall.
"It's 125 years' worth of athletics history," Kaczmarek said, "and, when you look at all the great athletes IU has had, both male and female and in so many different sports, it's humbling.
"I was kind of shocked when Fred Glass told me. It's an elite group we're joining. With this class, I think there are still only 225 inductees. I'm honored. And overjoyed."
And he's still pretty happy he separated Perry Williams from that football, too.
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