1965 Liberty Bowl

The 1965 Liberty Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game between the Auburn Tigers and the Ole Miss Rebels.

Background

The Rebels had finished 4th in the Southeastern Conference, a rise from last year's 7th-place finish. This was the Rebels' 9th straight bowl appearance. As for the Tigers, they finished 2nd after tying Tennessee in the beginning of the season and losing to Alabama in the Iron Bowl. This was the first Liberty Bowl played at Memphis, Tennessee, after four years of it being played in Philadelphia and one year of it being played at Atlantic City. It has been played at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium ever since.

Game summary

Jimmy Keyes gave the Rebels a 3-0 lead on his 42 yard field goal in the second quarter. With 6:58, Tom Bryan rushed for a touchdown from 44 yards out to make it 7-3 Auburn. Doug Cunningham caught a six yard touchdown pass from Jody Graves to make it 10-7 Rebels in the third quarter. Keyes made it 13-7 on his 30 yard field goal in the following quarter. Auburn had one last chance, reaching the Ole Miss 9. With 33 seconds later, Alex Bowden was sacked on 4th down, clinching the victory for the Reels. In a losing effort, Tom Bryan rushed for 111 yards on 19 carries. ^[1]

Aftermath

Ole Miss reached three more bowl games before the end of the decade. Auburn did not return to a bowl game again until 1968. They later faced Ole Miss in a bowl game in 1971.

Statistics

References