| 1966 Orange Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 32nd Orange Bowl National Championship Game | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | January 1, 1966 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1965 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Orange Bowl | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Miami, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Steve Sloan (Alabama QB) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Alabama by 3 points[1][2] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Morris Harrison (SEC; split crew: SEC, Big Eight) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 72,214 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | NBC | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Curt Gowdy, Paul Christman | ||||||||||||||||||||
The 1966 Orange Bowl was the 32nd edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, on Saturday, January 1. The final game of the 1965–66 bowl season, it matched the third-ranked and undefeated Nebraska Cornhuskers of the Big Eight Conference and the #4 Alabama Crimson Tide of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).[1][3]
This was the second year that the Orange Bowl was played at night on New Year's Day, after the other college football bowl games. Due to losses by both #1 Michigan State in the Rose Bowl and #2 Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl earlier in the day, the game had turned into a de facto national championship game, as the AP would be taking a final post-bowl vote for the first time ever. Slightly favored,[1][2] Alabama won, 39–28.[4][5]
- ^ a b c "Light 'Bama team Orange Bowl pick". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. January 1, 1966. p. 9.
- ^ a b "'Bama choice over Tide (Huskers) in Orange Bowl". Toledo Blade. (Ohio). Associated Press. January 1, 1966. p. 11.
- ^ Land, Charles (January 1, 1966). "Tide, Nebraska tangle tonight". Tuscaloosa News. (Alabama). p. 6.
- ^ "39-28 win for 'Bama in Miami". Youngstown Vindicator. (Ohio). Associated Press. January 2, 1966. p. D1.
- ^ Land, Charles (January 2, 1966). "Stakes were high, so was Tide". Tuscaloosa News. (Alabama). p. 11.