The 1961 Sugar Bowl featured the second-ranked

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford. The first was the football team, which began play in 1893. Originally known as th ...

and the unranked

Rice Owls Rice University athletic teams are known as the Rice Owls. The name comes from the owls in Rice's crest. Rice participates in NCAA Division I athletics. A member of Conference USA, Rice sponsors teams in seven men's and seven women's NCAA sanct ...

. After winning the game, the Rebels were named national champion by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), although

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

was the pick of AP and Coaches' Polls. In the first quarter, Rebels quarterback

Jake Gibbs Jerry Dean "Jake" Gibbs (born November 7, 1938) is a former Major League Baseball player who played for the New York Yankees as a platoon catcher from 1962 to 1971. Although Gibbs was the regular starting catcher for New York in 1967 and 1968, h ...

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.

References

Sugar Bowl Sugar Bowl Ole Miss Rebels football bowl games Rice Owls football bowl games Sugar Bowl Sugar Bowl {{Collegefootball-bowl-stub