The 1976 Cotton Bowl Classic was a post-season

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...

between the co-

Southwest Conference The Southwest Conference (SWC) was an NCAA Division I college athletic conference in the United States that existed from 1914 to 1996. Composed primarily of schools from Texas, at various times the conference included schools from Oklahoma an ...

champion

Arkansas Razorbacks The Arkansas Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the intercollegiate athletics teams representing the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville. The University of Arkansas student body voted to change the name of the school mascot (ori ...

"Major Conference Champions.
1975 SWC Champions.
Infoplease.com. Retrieved on April 11, 2010. and the

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...

. Arkansas defeated Georgia, 31–10 in front of 77,500 spectators."Arkansas 31, Georgia 10-Past Classics.
History.
The official site of the 2011 Cotton Bowl Classic. Retrieved on April 11, 2010

Setting

Arkansas

Arkansas finished the regular season 9–2, came into the game on a five-game winning streak. The Hogs were part of a three-way tie for the

Championship with

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

. The Hogs lost to Texas, 18–24, but gave #2 Texas A&M its first loss in the regular season finale. The 31-6 upset of the Aggies in

War Memorial Stadium War Memorial Stadium may refer to: * Ada War Memorial Stadium, in Ada, Ohio, also known as ''War Memorial Stadium'' * War Memorial Stadium (Arkansas), Little Rock, Arkansas * War Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas) (former official name 1924–1947), ...

is one of the most memorable games in Razorback football history.

Georgia

Georgia was 9–2 entering the game, tied for second in the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

Game summary

The Bulldogs took an early 10–3 lead. Arkansas wouldn't score a touchdown until Georgia's QB

Ray Goff Ray Goff (born July 10, 1955) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Georgia from 1989 to 1995, compiling a record of 46–34–1. Playing career Goff attended the University of Georgia, ...

tried a 'shoestring' play. He bent as if to tie his shoe and flipped the ball to Gene Washington, a legal play as long as in one motion, but Razorback

Hal McAfee Harold Thomas McAfee (November 20, 1953 – November 22, 2008) was an American football coach. He served as head coach at Tarleton State University from 1988 to 1992. McAfee compiled a 36–18 overall record, including an 11–1 season in 1990, t ...

scooped up the ball at the 13 yard line.Jones, Mike. "Porkers 'string up' Georgia, 31-10."

The Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...

. 1/2/1976
Article.
Retrieved on April 11, 2010.

Ike Forte Donald Roy "Ike" Forte (born March 8, 1954) is a former American football running back in the National Football League for the New England Patriots, the Washington Redskins, and the New York Giants. He played college football at the Universit ...

scored for the Hogs, knotting the game at 10. The two teams were scoreless in the third period, with Arkansas missing three field goals, before the Hogs exploded for 21 unanswered to close the game.

References

{{Georgia Bulldogs bowl game navbox

Cotton Bowl Classic The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...

Cotton Bowl Classic Arkansas Razorbacks football bowl games Georgia Bulldogs football bowl games January 1976 sports events in the United States Cotton Bowl 1970s in Dallas