1972 Cotton Bowl Classic
The 1972 Cotton Bowl Classic matched the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Texas Longhorns.
Background
The Longhorns were the Southwest Conference champions and at one point was ranked #3 in the polls before two straight losses (to #9 Oklahoma and #15 Arkansas) dropped them out of contention. This was their 4th straight Cotton Bowl Classic. The Nittany Lions were at one point ranked #5 before losing the last game of the season to #13 Tennessee. This was their first Cotton Bowl Classic until 1948.
Game summary
The two teams traded field goals with Texas leading 6-3 at halftime. The Nittany Lions would score 27 straight points in the second half. Lydell Mitchell and John Hufnagel had touchdown runs while Hufnagel threw a touchdown pass to Scott Skarzynski. Alberto Vitiello had three field goals for the Nittany Lions while Steve Valek had two field goals for the Longhorns. [1]
Aftermath
The Longhorns went to the three more Cotton Bowls before the decade ended. Penn State would return to the Cotton Bowl three years later.
Statistics
| Statistics | PSU | Texas |
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| First Downs | 18 | 15 |
| Yards Rushing | 239 | 159 |
| Yards Passing | 137 | 83 |
| Total Yards | 376 | 242 |
| Punts-Average | 5-36.0 | 5-33.0 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 1-0 | 5-3 |
| Interceptions | 1 | 0 |
| Penalties-Yards | 2-30 | 1-5 |
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References
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- Tie-In
- College Football Playoff At-Large or Group of Five Bid
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Pound sign (#) denotes national championship game.
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