1975 Sugar Bowl
| 1975 Sugar Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 31, 1975 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1975 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Louisiana Superdome | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | New Orleans, Louisiana | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Richard Todd, Alabama QB | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Alabama by 13 points [1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 75,212 | ||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ABC | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Keith Jackson and Bud Wilkinson | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1975 Sugar Bowl, part of the 1975 college football season, took place on December 31, 1975, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. It matched the Alabama Crimson Tide of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and the independent Penn State Nittany Lions. In the first Sugar Bowl played in the recently completed Superdome, Alabama won 13–6. This was the last of four editions played on New Year's Eve; it returned to January 1 in 1977.
Teams
Alabama
Alabama completed the regular season as SEC champions with a 10–1 record. The only defeat was a 20–7 non-conference loss to Missouri in week one. On November 17, bowl officials announced that Alabama would face Penn State in the Sugar Bowl.[2] It marked the seventh appearance for Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, and their 29th bowl game.
The Tide entered the Sugar Bowl as a thirteen-point favorite,[1] but without a win in its last eight bowl games.
Penn State
Penn State completed the regular season with a record of 9–2. Their only defeats were a 17–9 loss to Ohio State in week three and a 15–14 loss to the North Carolina State in week ten. On November 17, bowl officials announced that Penn State would face Alabama in the Sugar Bowl.[2] The invitation for Penn State was controversial as Alabama's Bryant personally selected Penn State as their opponent instead of the Big Eight runner-up, which would be ranked higher than the Nittany Lions. Bryant was miffed that the Orange Bowl, which was committed to hosting the Big Eight champion, had snubbed the Crimson Tide in favor of the Big Ten runner-up (which would be eligible to pay a bowl other than the Rose Bowl for the first time in history). In Bryant's view, this effectively killed Alabama's chances for a national championship.[3] It was the second appearance for Penn State in the Sugar Bowl, and their fourteenth bowl game.
Game summary
After Penn State's Chris Bahr missed a 62-yard field goal, Alabama scored on a 25-yard Danny Ridgeway field goal to take a 3–0 lead.[4] After a scoreless second quarter, Penn State tied the game at 3–3 on a 42-yard Bahr field goal in the third.[4] Bama responded on the following drive with the lone touchdown of the game on a 14-yard Mike Stock run to take a 10–3 lead.[4][5] After cutting the lead to 10–6 on a 37-yard Bahr field goal, the Crimson Tide responded with an extended drive resulting in a 28-yard Ridgeway field goal in bringing the final score to 13–6.[4][5] For his 210 yards passing after completing ten of twelve pass attempts, Alabama quarterback Richard Todd was named the games Most Valuable Player.[4]
It was Alabama's first bowl win since January 1967 and started a string of six straight bowl victories.
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References
- 1 2 "Alabama trio benched for curfew violation". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washinton). Associated Press. December 31, 1975. p. 11.
- 1 2 McKenize, Mike (November 17, 1975). "Alabama vs. Penn State in Sugar". Tuscaloosa News. p. 9. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
- ↑ McKenize, Mike (November 18, 1975). "Bryant defends picking Penn State as foe". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 9. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Axelrod, Phil (January 1, 1976). "Lions bow to Alabama". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 48. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
- 1 2 Wilson, Austin (January 1, 1976). "Sugar Bowl is sweet for Alabama". The Gadsden Times. The Associated Press. p. 17. Retrieved January 19, 2011.