Orange Bowl
1966
Alabama 39
Nebraska 28
Miami,
Florida (January 1, 1966) -The third ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers and the
fourth ranked Alabama Crimson Tide both entered their Orange Bowl
matchup with longshot aspirations at the National Championship. Things
looked up by game time as number one ranked Michigan State was upset by
UCLA in the Rose Bowl and number two ranked Arkansas fell victim to LSU
in the Cotton Bowl. The scene was set for the winner of the Orange Bowl
to claim the national crown.
The Orange Bowl featured two explosive offensive teams with different
approaches to their attack. Bear Bryant's Crimson Tide Tide used the
accurate throwing arm of quarterback Steve Sloan to rebound from an
early season loss to Georgia and a tie with Tennessee, while Bob
Devaney's Cornhuskers hit the ground running averaging 290 rushing yards
per game and 32.1 points per game.
Alabama took the first lead five and a half minutes into the game. Sloan
guided the Tide on a 61 yard drive to score on a 21 yard pass play to
Ray Perkins. Perkins grabbed the scoring pass at the 15 and wiggled away
from a pair of defenders to skip into the end zone (video).
The Huskers rallied back early in the second to tie the score. The first
Husker tally came on a 33 yard pass from quarterback Bob Churchich to
end Tony Jeter. Alabama coach Bear Bryant gave quarterback Steve Sloan
the green light to throw on any down who then opened up an offensive
onslaught to bury the Huskers by
halftime.
Alabama scored two touchdowns and a field goal in the second period to
post a 24-7 lead by halftime. The first score followed a 39 yard Sloan
to Perkins pass that took the ball down to the NU 13. Leslie Kelley took
the ball over from 4 yards out for the touchdown. The second score
followed a 93 yard Tide drive, capped by an 11 yard pass from Sloan to
Perkins. A David Ray field goal later in the period sent the teams to
the locker rooms with the Tide sporting a 17 point lead.
Nebraska pulled back into the game early in the third period on a 49
yard touchdown pass from Churchich to Ben Gregory, but the PAT was
missed. The Tide lengthened their lead with a 1 yard touchdown run by
Steve Bowman and a two point conversion to make the score 32-13 after
three periods.
Nebraska wasn't ready to give up in the fourth period. Churchich scored
his first TD of the day on a 1 yard plunge. Alabama kept the comeback in
check later in the period by turning in another Bowman touchdown run,
this time from three yards out. Nebraska added a late 14 yard touchdown
pass from Churchich to Tony Jeter but it wouldn't be enough as the
Crimson Tide claimed the National Championship with a 39-28 Orange Bowl
win.
Sloan’s 20 for 28 passing performance broke the Orange Bowl pass
completion record, set just one year prior by fellow Tide quarterback
Joe Namath. Sloan's 296 yards in the air also set a new Orange Bowl
standard. Perkins finished his day with 9 completions for 159 yards.
Nebraska was held to 232 yards rushing, almost 60 yards below their
average, and were victimized by four fumbles and an intercepted pass.
The Huskers finished the season 10-1 and ranked number five in the
nation by the Associated Press.
Bear got a national title
Attendance- 72,214
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
AU- Perkins 21 pass from Sloan (Ray kick)
Second Quarter
NU- Jeter 33 pass from Churchich (Wachholtz kick)
AU- Kelley 4 run (Ray kick)
AU- Perkins 11 pass from Sloan (Ray kick)
AU- FG Ray 18
Third Quarter
NU- Gregory 49 pass from Churchich (pass failed)
AU- Bowman 1 run (Perkins pass from Sloan)
Fourth Quarter
NU- Churchich 1 run (Wachholtz kick)
AU- Bowman 3 run (Ray kick)
NU- Jeter 14 pass from Churchich (Gregory pass from Churchich)
