1969 Sugar Bowl

The 1969 Sugar Bowl was the 35th edition of the college football bowl game, played at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Wednesday, January 1. It featured the fourth-ranked Georgia Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and the #9 Arkansas Razorbacks of the Southwest Conference (SWC).^[1][2]

1969 Sugar Bowl
35th edition
Arkansas Razorbacks Georgia Bulldogs (9–1) (8–0–2) SWC SEC 16 2 Head coach:  Frank Broyles Head coach:  Vince Dooley AP Coaches 9 9 AP Coaches 4 4
1 2 3 4 Total Arkansas 0 10 0 6 16 Georgia 0 2 0 0 2
Date	January 1, 1969
Season	1968
Stadium	Tulane Stadium
Location	New Orleans, Louisiana
MVP	Chuck Dicus (Arkansas SE)
Favorite	Georgia by 7 points[1][2]
Referee	James Artley (SEC; split crew: SEC, SWC)
United States TV coverage
Network	NBC
Announcers	Charlie Jones, George Ratterman
Sugar Bowl  < 1968  1970 >

Underdog Arkansas won 16–2,^[3][4] and split end Chuck Dicus was named the outstanding player after catching twelve passes.^[5]

Teams

Arkansas

Main article: 1968 Arkansas Razorbacks football team

Guard Jim Barnes was a consensus All-American for the Razorbacks in 1968. Bill Burnett's 16 touchdowns scored tied him for eighth-most points scored nationally. The Hogs lost only once, to the #17 Texas Longhorns, 39–29. The Razorbacks and Longhorns thusly shared the Southwest Conference crown for 1968, but Texas received the bid to the Cotton Bowl based upon the head-to-head victory.

Georgia

Main article: Georgia Bulldogs football under Vince Dooley § 1968 Season

Vince Dooley's Georgia Bulldogs went 8–0–2 and won the SEC, only tying Tennessee and Houston. The Bulldogs' ferocious defense was anchored by consensus All-American end Bill Stanfill.

Game summary

Georgia's number-one ranked defense matched up against the ninth-ranked offense of Arkansas on New Year's Day in New Orleans. The first game of a major bowl tripleheader (Rose, Orange) on NBC, it kicked off at 1 pm CST.^[1][2]

The first quarter was scoreless; in the second, Arkansas quarterback Bill Montgomery threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Chuck Dicus, but Georgia got a safety to pull within 7–2. Arkansas kicker Bob White made a 34-yard field goal and the Razorbacks led 10–2 at halftime. After a scoreless third quarter, White kicked field goals of 24 and 31 yards in the fourth quarter to seal the Arkansas win at 16–2.

The game had twenty punts (ten each) and eleven turnovers (eight by Georgia).

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP ARK UGA 2 65 ARK Chuck Dicus 27-yard touchdown reception from Bill Montgomery, Bob White kick good 7 0 2 UGA Bill Burnett tackled in end zone for a safety by David McKnight 7 2 2 71 ARK 34-yard field goal by Bob White 10 2 4 55 ARK 24-yard field goal by Bob White 13 2 4 15 ARK 31-yard field goal by Bob White 16 2 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 16 2

Statistics

Statistics	Arkansas	Georgia
First downs	13	13
Rushing	41–40	47–75
Passing	17–39–1	11–31–3
Passing yards	185	117
Total offense	80–225	78–192
Punts–avg.	10–33.6	10–38.5
Fumbles–lost	4–2	5–5
Turnovers	3	8
Penalties–yards	4–31	4–25

Source:^[3][4]

Aftermath

After twelve years, this was the last Sugar Bowl on NBC; it returned to ABC in January 1970.

Arkansas returned to the Sugar Bowl the following year; Georgia's next major bowl was seven years later in the Cotton Bowl, also against Arkansas, and returned to the Sugar Bowl the following year.

The teams next met in the 1991 Independence Bowl, with Georgia winning 24-15. It was Arkansas' last football game before joining the SEC; the teams met for the first time as conference foes during the 1992 season.

References

1. "It's fun for Georgia". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. December 31, 1968. p. 8.
2. "Razorbacks hope 3rd time is charm in Sugar battle". Victoria Advocate. (Texas). Associated Press. January 1, 1969. p. 1, section 2.
3. "Razorback defense stops 'Dogs, 16-2". Victoria Advocate. (Texas). Associated Press. January 2, 1969. p. 1, section 2.
4. "Arkansas defense sparkles in win over Georgia squad". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. January 2, 1969. p. 16.
5. "1964 National Championship" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 28, 2012. Retrieved June 11, 2012.