Cowboys Are Sold; Landry Out as Coach : Hurricanes’ Johnson Takes Reins in $140-Million Deal

Tom Landry’s 29-year career as the only head coach the Dallas Cowboys have ever had ended Saturday night when an Arkansas oilman bought the team and named the University of Miami’s Jimmy Johnson coach.

Team owner H.R. (Bum) Bright announced that the Cowboys had been sold for an estimated $140 million to Jerry Jones, a longtime friend of Johnson. Bright said Jones, 46, of Little Rock, Ark., “will be the most enthusiastic owner that the Cowboys have ever had.”

Landry, who took over the Cowboys when they were a ragged expansion team in 1960 and led them to the Super Bowl five times, was the major victim of the sale.

He was anything but “Old Stone Face” when two nervous messengers told him he was no longer the Cowboys’ coach, going so far as to wipe away a tear.

“Tommy was emotional,” said club President Tex Schramm, whose voice choked with emotion. “It’s hard to give up a relationship with an organization after 29 years.”

Landry shook hands after the 40-minute meeting near the 18th green of the Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course at the Hills of Lakeway near Austin, where Landry has a villa.

Jones described the meeting as “a very awkward and trying thing. It’s the most inadequate I’ve ever been in my life. If you had graded my conversation, I would have gotten an F.”

In the end, Landry lost out to a man who is 19 years his junior. Only three weeks ago, the 64-year-old Landry said he was willing to coach into the 1990s if the new owners would allow him to.

Landry was never given that chance, and didn’t get an opportunity to redeem the 3-13 disaster of 1988.

“Tom Landry is like Bear Bryant to me,” said Jones, who left open the possibility that Landry could remain a part of the Cowboys’ organization.

“He’s Vince Lombardi to me,” Jones said. “If you love competitors, he’s an angel. . . . Let me tell you this, Jimmy Johnson would be the first to tell you he couldn’t carry Tom’s water bucket.”

Jones said Johnson returned to Miami on Saturday and had not yet made any decisions about his Dallas assistants.

Announcement of the sale, rumored since Thursday, came at a news conference that began at 8:22 p.m., CST, Saturday at the Cowboys’ Valley Ranch headquarters about 25 miles northeast of Dallas.

The news conference was scheduled to have begun at 7 p.m. but was delayed because Jones and Schramm flew in Jones’ private jet to Austin to inform Landry personally that he was being replaced.

Schramm’s voice broke and tears welled in his eyes as he talked of the visit with Landry.

“It was a very difficult meeting, difficult and sad,” said Schramm, who will retain his role with the Cowboys.

“It’s tough when you break a relationship that you have had for 29 years. But I am glad the ownership problem has been cleared up. It’s good for the ballclub.”

Schramm, who was the architect of the Cowboys and actually hired Landry for the original owner, Clint Murchison, survived the new sale. However, responding to a report that one of Schramm’s duties will be to teach Jones’ son, Steven Jones, 24, the ropes of the organization, Jones said:

“You got that wrong. It’s me that’s going to be the apprentice of Tex Schramm.”

Jones said the Cowboys will draft UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman with their No. 1 pick in the NFL draft.

“There’s no player Johnson thinks any more of than Aikman,” Jones said.

Asked what he paid for the team, Jones said, “That’s between Bum and me, but I don’t mind telling you I’m going to need some lead in my back pocket. I’m going to leave Dallas lighter than when I came in.”

While Jones will be the majority partner, there will be five minority owners, including Ed Smith of Houston, who had 27% under Bright’s ownership. The other minority owners include Charles Wily, Sam Wily and Evan Wily.

Shortly before the news conference, Smith confirmed to the Associated Press that Landry was out.

“It’s a sad deal, and Tom Landry and Tex Schramm were the only reasons I got into owning some of the Cowboys’ stock,” Smith said.

“Tom should have gotten out two or three years ago. We shouldn’t have had to tell him to get out. But what are you going to do when you only have 38,000 people showing up at the stadium and you are losing hard cash?” Smith asked.

“Tom just had to go, and we shouldn’t have had to tell him.”

Smith said Jones “will build an excellent team and organization here. I want to tell you, this is one class guy. He went all the way to Austin to tell Landry first hand, and he didn’t have to do that.”

Jones said he shook hands with Bright Thursday morning to close the deal. Schramm said he found out Friday morning about what was happening.

Jones first visited the Cowboy complex last September, he said.

“I walked around with my jaw dropped, all day,” he said.

Johnson flew into Dallas on Jones’ private plane Friday, before the ink dried on the contract between Bright and Jones, who was captain of Arkansas’ unbeaten 1964 team. Among Jones’ teammates on that national championship team were Johnson and current Arkansas Coach Ken Hatfield.

Johnson, who went to Miami in 1984 after five years as head coach at Oklahoma State, had a 52-9 record in five seasons as the Hurricanes’ head coach and took them to the national championship in 1987.

Landry’s record with the Cowboys was 250-162-6.

His Dallas teams won 13 division championships, five NFC titles and two Super Bowl championships. They defeated Miami, 24-3, in Super Bowl VI at New Orleans on Jan. 16, 1972, and beat Denver, 27-10, in Super Bowl XII at New Orleans on Jan. 15, 1978.

He was tied with former Green Bay Packers coach Curly Lambeau for consecutive seasons coaching the same team with 29.

Landry was a defensive coach for the New York Giants when he became head coach of the Cowboys in 1960, their first season. He was an innovator of the 4-3 defense that later became known as the Flex. He brought the Shotgun offense back to life in the 1970s after it had lain dormant in the NFL for almost two decades.

Landry drew criticism toward the end of his career with the Cowboys by insisting upon coaching the defense and also calling the plays on offense. Only recently, Landry fired old friend Ernie Stautner as defensive coordinator because the Cowboys were the second-worst team in the NFL in points allowed in 1988.

While his fate was being decided Saturday, Landry spent the day playing golf.

Landry spent Friday, his last day as a Dallas coach, watching film at Valley Ranch and getting ready for a team mini-camp Monday as he took on the challenge of getting the team back from its disastrous 3-13 season, the second-worst record in his tenure.

“I just didn’t want to leave the Cowboys when they were down,” Landry said. “I at least wanted them to get into a respectable position before anyone else took over.”

But when the end came for Landry, he didn’t get his final wish.

TOM LANDRY’S COACHING RECORD Tom Landry’s coaching record in his 29 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys.

YR W L T PCT. W T 1960 0 11 1 .043 1961 4 9 1 .308 1962 5 8 1 .407 1963 4 10 0 .286 1964 5 8 1 .385 1965 7 7 0 .500 0 1 1966 10 3 1 .777 0 1 1967 9 5 0 .643 1 1 1968 12 2 0 .857 1 1 1969 11 2 1 .852 0 2 1970 10 4 0 .714 2 1 1971 11 3 0 .786 3 0 1972 10 4 0 .714 1 1 1973 10 4 0 .714 1 1 1974 8 6 0 .571 1975 10 4 0 .714 2 1 1976 11 3 0 .786 0 1 1977 12 2 0 .857 3 0 1978 12 4 0 .750 2 1 1979 11 5 0 .687 0 1 1980 12 4 0 .750 2 1 1981 12 4 0 .750 1 1 1982 6 3 0 .666 2 1 1983 12 4 0 .750 0 1 1984 9 7 0 .562 1985 10 6 0 .625 0 1 1986 7 9 0 .437 1987 7 8 0 .467 1988 3 13 0 .188 Total 250 162 6 .607 21 18 All 271 180 6 .601

COACHING HIGHLIGHTS

* His teams won 13 division championships, five NFC titles and two Super Bowl championships. They beat Miami, 24-3, in Super Bowl VI in New Orleans on Jan. 16, 1972 and beat Denver, 27-10, in Super Bowl XII in New Orleans on Jan. 15, 1978.

* Tied with Curly Lambeau (Green Bay) for consecutive seasons coaching the same team (29).

* Set NFL record with 20 consecutive winning seasons (1966-1985).

* Third on NFL’s all-time victory list behind George Halas and Don Shula.