Muscovites Get Taste of Football: American Style

It was hailed as the first U.S.-style football contest played in the Soviet Union and the two all-star high school teams from Oklahoma had the time of their lives showing the Soviets what football is all about.

The announcer tried to lecture the Soviet spectators on the fine points.

“Remember, the idea of the game is to try to move forward,” he said.

“The main thing is not to fall. The thing is to stay on your feet as long as possible.”

The thousands of Soviets who paid four rubles each (about $7) to get into Moscow’s Dynamo stadium for the exhibition Wednesday looked like they had a good time--though the basics did sort of elude them for a while.

“I thought the crowd was kind of confused,” said offensive tackle Chance Walentiny, 18, a senior from Bixby, Okla., near game’s end. “But I think they liked it.”

It was the Boomers against the Stars, and quarterback Matt Cook had a day to remember, passing for three touchdowns and running for a fourth to lead the Boomers to a 28-6 victory.

American Coach Dan Crookham reported that one Muscovite approached him before the game with a question.

“He asked how many people he could expect to be killed in tonight’s contest,” Crookham said, smiling.