University of Richmond Athletics
House Divided: Buster and Karen's Story
Two students met in Virginia Beach the summer after their freshman year of college. The boy was transferring to the University of Richmond; the girl was going into her sophomore year at William & Mary. They started dating and spent the next three plus years traveling up and down I-64. After four years of dating, they were married and have now been married for 46 years.
The boy was Buster O’Brien . . . the starting quarterback for the Spiders and a future UR Athletics Hall of Famer. The girl was Karen Oetjen . . . a William & Mary Tri Delt sorority sister.
Although the rivalry between the Spiders and the Tribe was strong, Buster got to know many of the William & Mary football players during his visits to Williamsburg.
Buster was playing for Head Coach Frank Jones and his position coach was Jim Tait. Karen used to buy Brasso for Coach Jones. Their deal was she would polish the trophy if Richmond won and he would polish it if William & Mary won. It was an exciting time at both schools with the friendly - but hard fought - game the Saturday before Thanksgiving. It was especially exciting when the Spiders went on to win the Tangerine Bowl in December of 1968.
After a stint in professional football, Buster enrolled in law school at William & Mary and was a graduate assistant with the football team. Other interesting ties include:
- Buster’s receiver, Walker Gillette, is married to Becky who graduated from W&M in 1969.
- Buster & Karen’s oldest son, Happy, was an assistant with the William & Mary football team in 2000.
- Buster & Karen’s daughter, Erin, graduated from the University of Richmond in 2002 and worked in the athletic department all four years.
The football team that Buster played with at UR built such a comradery that to this day Buster and Karen speak with or see many of the players weekly and monthly.
Truly a HOUSE DIVIDED!
