1982 Cotton Bowl Classic

1982 Cotton Bowl Classic
Texas Longhorns Alabama Crimson Tide (9–1–1) (9–1–1) 14 12 Head coach:  Fred Akers Head coach:  Bear Bryant AP 6 AP 3
1 2 3 4 Total Texas 0 0 0 14 14 Alabama 0 7 0 5 12
Date	January 1, 1982
Season	1981
Stadium	Cotton Bowl
Location	Dallas, Texas
MVP	Robert Brewer, QB, Texas Robbie Jones, LB, Alabama
Attendance	73,243
United States TV coverage
Network	CBS
Announcers	Lindsey Nelson and Roger Staubach

The 1982 Cotton Bowl Classic was a post-season college football game played on January 1, 1982. It pitted the #6 Texas Longhorns against the #3 Alabama Crimson Tide. Both teams entered the matchup with identical 9–1–1 records.

Background

Alabama was co-champion of the Southeastern Conference who had been ranked #2 after their first game, but a loss to Georgia Tech and a tie four weeks later knocked them out of contention, though they won the SEC title due to them having a perfect SEC record along with Georgia. Their win over Auburn the previous game gave Bryant his 315th win. The Longhorns were ranked #1 before playing Arkansas in their fifth game of the season, but they lost to the Razorbacks, and a tie to Houston three weeks later knocked them out of serious championship contention.

Game summary

Entering the fourth quarter trailing by 10, the Longhorns scored their first points with a quarterback draw by Robert Brewer on a 3rd-and-long with 10:38 remaining. On Texas' next possession, Terry Orr scored from eight yards out to cap an 11-play, 80-yard drive to put the Longhorns up 14-10 with 2:05 remaining. Alabama's Joey Jones returned the ensuing kickoff to the Texas 38-yard line, and Alabama quarterback Walter Lewis took over with 1:54 left. On the very next play, UT's William Graham picked off a Lewis pass at the one. The Longhorns took a safety to insure better field position and make the final margin 14–12.

Further reading

• Cotton Bowl 1982