Pat Quinn - NewsPress
July 13, 2008 12:01 am
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Oklahoma State lost a bit of the smile on its face when one of its favorite sons passed away last week.
Nobody would have recognized former Cowboy quarterback Robert Cutburth, who through thick and thin was the model of harmony with the heart of a lion when it came to being a competitor.
Cutburth was a product of Tulsa Webster High and graduated from the school after a standout career in football, wrestling (heavyweight) and baseball.
The crowning event of his senior year (1967) was being tabbed as an All-State schoolboy quarterback before joining the football family at O-State.
He played football at OSU for four years, and though the Cowboys didn’t have all of the material necessary to equally combat the talent-heavy teams in the Big Eight conference, Cutburth had a big hand in helping the Pokes to some memorable moments.
The Cowboys went 17-24-1 during Cutburth’s tenure but unflinchingly, he never failed to give it his all for his school and varsity teammates.
There is a saying in athletics, “When you’ve given it your all, you’re a winner.” That brief statement described the amiable, but fierce when necessary, Cutburth.
He helped the Cowboys sack nationally ranked Arkansas, 7-6, in ’67 but maybe his most notable success on the field came against the University of Houston the following year in Rice Stadium.
The Houston Cougars were averaging an unbelievable 562 yards total offense per game. Despite the fact the Cougars doubled the total offense yardage against OSU, Cutburth and the Cowboys hung on to upset UH, 21-17.
But, the fields of football weren’t where Cutburth proved his strength as a man, husband and father.
His bright smile, a soothing sense of humor and his greatest characteristic, love of family and his fellow man, made Cutburth stand tall in the saddle of life.
His terminal challenge was a fatal illness he fought without complaint for decades before succumbing.
Former OSU sports publicist, Otis Wile, once wrote, “Never a day goes by that someone from that long line of orange clad men doesn’t do something to make old A&M mighty proud.”
Cutburth was easily identified in this phalanx of Cowboys we’ll all remember.
Untruthful incident
I’ve long held that contemporary talk radio is quite suspect when it comes to voicing the truth.
The incident of the Texas radio station commentators who relayed an article by a message board poster about of pair of OU quarterbacks being arrested for distributing cocaine just deepens my distrust for this form of media.
There are many in the amateur and professional sports arenas that consider action of this nature legally improper because it does make the two young athletes appear guilty in the “court of public opinion.”
In fact, one of the abused player’s father threatened to prosecute the incident and angrily added, “I’ve got deep enough pockets to do it.”
So, forgive me if I side with the OU quarterback’s father and say, “Go get ‘em, dad!” and I just hope your pockets are deep enough to afford the high-priced lawyers who know how to successfully pursue these charges.
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