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When Alabama and Ole Miss meet in Tuscaloosa this Saturday night, the Crimson Tide will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their 1965 national championship and the two teams will play with a commemorative game ball that will be presented by the Orange Bowl.
Alabama’s 39-28 victory over Nebraska on Jan. 1, 1966, marked Bear Bryant’s third of six national titles with the Crimson Tide.
Alabama entered the game ranked No. 4 in the polls with an 8-1-1 record. Nebraska was unbeaten at 10-0 and ranked No. 3.
This was the first season that a vote by the Associated Press after all the bowl games were finished would decide the national champion. And it just so happened that No. 1 Michigan State was upset by UCLA in the Rose Bowl and No. 2 Arkansas fell to LSU in the Cotton Bowl earlier that day, making the Orange Bowl matchup between the Crimson Tide and Cornhuskers the de facto national championship game.
Alabama got off to a quick start in this game as quarterback Steve Sloan connected with Ray Perkins twice for touchdowns in the first half and the Crimson Tide took a 24-7 lead into halftime.
The Cornhuskers made their best attempt at a comeback in the second half behind the arm of their quarterback Bob Churchich, who threw his second and third touchdowns of the game in the second half. But even a touchdown run by Churchich on top of that wasn’t enough to overcome the Crimson Tide, which ground away at Nebraska on the ground and answered each score with one of their own.
The combination of Les Kelley and Steve Bowman in the Crimson Tide’s backfield combined for 203 yards on 47 carries and 3 of Alabama’s 5 touchdowns. They continuously helped the Crimson Tide move the chains, which they did 29 times, setting an Orange Bowl record.
Sloan’s 20 completions and 296 passing yards for the Crimson Tide also set an Orange Bowl record at the time.
Perkins also had a record-setting day by hauling in 9 receptions for 159 yards and 2 touchdowns. His two scores tied an Orange Bowl record for receiving touchdowns.
In total, the Crimson Tide’s offense put up an impressive 518 total yards on the Cornhuskers defense and added to the SEC’s legacy in the process.
An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.
