NFL game summary for 09/03/1978:
Rookie Ozzie Newsome, Cleveland's number one draft choice, ran 33 yards in the second quarter for a touchdown on an end-around play to break a 7-7 tie and Brian Sipe hit Reggie Rucker with a 69-yard touchdown pass with 6:03 remaining to clinch the win for the Browns. Greg Pruitt, who rushed for 106 yards, gave the Browns a 7-0 first-period lead on a two-yard touchdown run. O. J. Simpson gained 78 yards rushing in his first regular season appearance with the 49ers.
Line: Browns by 4½
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 San Francisco 49ers (0-1-0) | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
 Cleveland Browns (1-0-0) | 7 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 24 |
( 0- 7) CLE Greg Pruitt 2 yard rush (Don Cockroft kick) ( 7- 7) SF Ken MacAfee 7 yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Ray Wersching kick) ( 7-14) CLE Ozzie Newsome 33 yard rush (Don Cockroft kick) ( 7-21) CLE Reggie Rucker 69 yard pass from Brian Sipe (Don Cockroft kick) ( 7-24) CLE Don Cockroft 23 yard field goal
SF CLE
First Downs: 18 18
Rushes-yards: 40-131 41-213
Yards/rush: 3.3 5.2
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 16-32-174-3 12-26-190-0
Sacked-yards: 1-10 1-10
Net pass yards: 164 180
Net yards/pass: 5.0 6.7
Total net yards: 295 393
Total plays: 73 (54% run) 68 (60% run)
Yards/play: 4.0 5.8
Fumbles-lost: 4-3 6-3
Turnovers: 6 3
Penalties-yards: 8-55 8-62
Attendance: 68,973
Passing:
SF: Steve DeBerg, 16 of 32 for 174 yards and 1 TD (3 int) CLE: Brian Sipe, 12 of 25 for 190 yards and 1 TD; Greg Pruitt, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
Rushing:
SF: O.J. Simpson, 22 for 78 yards; Greg Boykin, 15 for 52 yards; Steve DeBerg, 2 for 0 yards; Dave Williams, 1 for 1 yard CLE: Greg Pruitt, 22 for 106 yards and 1 TD; Cleo Miller, 10 for 31 yards; Brian Sipe, 4 for 32 yards; Mike Pruitt, 2 for 6 yards; Tom Sullivan, 2 for 5 yards; Ozzie Newsome, 1 for 33 yards and 1 TD
Receiving:
SF: Terry LeCount, 5 for 63 yards; Freddie Solomon, 3 for 54 yards; Ken MacAfee, 3 for 22 yards and 1 TD; O.J. Simpson, 3 for 20 yards; Greg Boykin, 2 for 15 yards CLE: Reggie Rucker, 3 for 113 yards and 1 TD; Greg Pruitt, 3 for 25 yards; Cleo Miller, 3 for 15 yards; Dave Logan, 1 for 24 yards; Mike Pruitt, 1 for 7 yards; Ozzie Newsome, 1 for 6 yards
Kick returns:
SF: Terry LeCount, 3 for 50 yards; Elliott Walker, 2 for 25 yards CLE: Larry Collins, 1 for 35 yards; Tom Sullivan, 1 for 18 yards
Punt returns:
SF: Freddie Solomon, 2 for 3 yards CLE: Ozzie Newsome, 1 for 8 yards
Interceptions:
CLE: Oliver Davis, 2 for 3 yards; Thom Darden, 1 for 42 yards
Punting:
SF: Mike Connell, 6 for 196 yards CLE: Johnny Evans, 5 for 175 yards
Field Goals:
CLE: Don Cockroft, 1/3
SF: Steve DeBerg, 16 of 32 for 174 yards and 1 TD (3 int) CLE: Brian Sipe, 12 of 25 for 190 yards and 1 TD; Greg Pruitt, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
Rushing:
SF: O.J. Simpson, 22 for 78 yards; Greg Boykin, 15 for 52 yards; Steve DeBerg, 2 for 0 yards; Dave Williams, 1 for 1 yard CLE: Greg Pruitt, 22 for 106 yards and 1 TD; Cleo Miller, 10 for 31 yards; Brian Sipe, 4 for 32 yards; Mike Pruitt, 2 for 6 yards; Tom Sullivan, 2 for 5 yards; Ozzie Newsome, 1 for 33 yards and 1 TD
Receiving:
SF: Terry LeCount, 5 for 63 yards; Freddie Solomon, 3 for 54 yards; Ken MacAfee, 3 for 22 yards and 1 TD; O.J. Simpson, 3 for 20 yards; Greg Boykin, 2 for 15 yards CLE: Reggie Rucker, 3 for 113 yards and 1 TD; Greg Pruitt, 3 for 25 yards; Cleo Miller, 3 for 15 yards; Dave Logan, 1 for 24 yards; Mike Pruitt, 1 for 7 yards; Ozzie Newsome, 1 for 6 yards
Kick returns:
SF: Terry LeCount, 3 for 50 yards; Elliott Walker, 2 for 25 yards CLE: Larry Collins, 1 for 35 yards; Tom Sullivan, 1 for 18 yards
Punt returns:
SF: Freddie Solomon, 2 for 3 yards CLE: Ozzie Newsome, 1 for 8 yards
Interceptions:
CLE: Oliver Davis, 2 for 3 yards; Thom Darden, 1 for 42 yards
Punting:
SF: Mike Connell, 6 for 196 yards CLE: Johnny Evans, 5 for 175 yards
Field Goals:
CLE: Don Cockroft, 1/3