We never met, as I recall, but for an historian of Razorback football like myself, Mickey Cissell's picture in the obituary section of Wednesday's newspaper caught the eye.
I was 5 years old, on the cusp of first grade, when Cissell became etched in Arkansas annals. His toe, that is, a late field goal beating Texas 24-23 in 1960, Arkansas' first of three wins at Austin in the decade.
Reading "The Razorbacks," by Orville Henry and Jim Bailey, one learns that Cissell's boot went just over the bar as wind swirled in Memorial Stadium. The Texas heat almost kayoed the Razorbacks, the former Arkansas Gazette staffers noted, before Arkansas' passing game, such as it was, got going and Jim MacKenzie, then Frank Broyles' defensive coordinator, made adjustments for a unit led by the Thumper, linebacker Wayne Harris.
That avenged the previous year's 13-12 Texas victory in Little Rock, in which Arkansas sophomore whizbang Lance Alworth fumbled. Though it resulted in a 7-6 New Year's Day loss to Duke, the win at Austin helped send Arkansas to Dallas as host team in the Cotton Bowl, the Hogs' second Southwest Conference title in three seasons under Broyles coming outright.
Arkansas looks ahead to Saturday's home game in Fayetteville against No. 2-ranked Alabama. With the Hogs losing the last 15 meetings in the series, Alabama has become the most sought-after victory on Arkansas' schedule, though that may change with Texas' imminent return as a new Southeastern Conference member.
The Razorbacks come off a 23-21 loss to Texas A&M in which the only turnover, quarterback KJ Jefferson's fumble near the goal line, was returned for a scoop-and-score touchdown minutes before halftime. With a score, Arkansas, which once led 14-0, might have been on easy street, or close to it, at 21-7.
Jefferson's miscue hovered over a second half that A&M scored from the kickoff and held on when a missed field goal stopped Arkansas in the last two minutes. Jefferson, a nearly flawless leader for two years, took some grief from the fan base, as did Cam Little after the first significant miss by the UA kicker that anyone could remember.
Cissell, who lived to age 82, could have consoled Little that a kicker is remembered more for his misses than his makes. Bill McClard banged a 60-yard field goal against SMU one day but on what the Razorback authors judged "the only sophomorish day of his career," Bill missed field goals and extra points in a 27-22 Sugar Bowl loss to Archie Manning and Ole Miss after the '69 season.
Cissell played in a day where points were precious, that Arkansas strove in the kicking game for an equalizer against the other team's often superior troops. That Arkansas won at such a high rate against Texas in the 1960s when Darrell Royal could stockpile players who could not start for UT is a monument to Broyles' coaching. The '60 outcome set in motion circumstances that by 1969 would produce an Arkansas-Texas game for the ages, Texas winning 15-14, again on the strength of a kicker's toe.
Arkansas last beat Alabama in 2006 in overtime, on a Fayetteville afternoon that Crimson Tide kicker Leigh Tiffin frequently came up short in the clutch.
Although maybe not so much on that day (Houston Nutt vs. Mike Shula the coaching matchup), Alabama usually has a talent edge against Arkansas. A Fayetteville sports writer said once that in any given year, 50 Alabama players could campaign elsewhere in the SEC. Add superstar talents like Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Bryce Young and a pre-NFL ready defensive star like Will Anderson Jr., and you get some idea of what Arkansas is up against Saturday.
The margin of error was equally slim for Arkansas in Cissell's time. One reads that Mickey, also a reserve fullback, almost abandoned the team before the 1960 season. To that, Broyles said, "The minute you leave town I'll have a police car after you. You're my only place-kicker."
They'll remember Mickey forever for field goals that beat Texas and Rice (3-0 at Little Rock) in that championship season. Fitting for the Hogs on Saturday would be a win over Alabama that Cam Little plays a key role. Cissell will be there in spirit.