1961 Sugar Bowl

The 1961 Sugar Bowl featured the second-ranked Ole Miss Rebels and the unranked Rice Owls.^{[citation needed]} Ole Miss won, 14–6.^[1] After winning the game, the Rebels were named national champion by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), although Minnesota was the pick of AP and Coaches' Polls.

1961 Sugar Bowl
27th Sugar Bowl
Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, hosted the Sugar Bowl.
Ole Miss Rebels Rice Owls (9–0–1) (7–3) SEC SWC 14 6 Head coach:  Johnny Vaught Head coach:  Jess Neely AP Coaches 2 3
1 2 3 4 Total Ole Miss 7 0 0 7 14 Rice 0 0 6 0 6
Date	January 2, 1961
Season	1960
Stadium	Tulane Stadium
Location	New Orleans, Louisiana
Referee	E.D. Cavette (SEC; split crew: SEC, SWC)
Attendance	82,851
United States TV coverage
Network	NBC
Sugar Bowl  < 1960  1962 >

In the first quarter, Rebels quarterback Jake Gibbs scored on an 8-yard touchdown run. In the third quarter, Rice scored on a 2-yard run by Blume, but the extra point missed and Rice was still trailing, 7–6. In the fourth quarter, Ole Miss put the game away with a 3-yard touchdown run from Gibbs as Ole Miss won, 14–6. Rice won the statistical battle, but their quarterback threw 4 interceptions, and the team made some key mistakes.

Jake Gibbs was named the game's MVP.