The 1998 Independence Bowl was a

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 ...

postseason

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

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

Texas Tech Red Raiders The Texas Tech Red Raiders and Lady Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University, located in Lubbock, Texas. The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders, while the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raide ...

Background

The Rebels had plummeted to fourth in the SEC West after losing their last three games, including one to

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univers ...

in the

Egg Bowl The Egg Bowl (traditionally named the “Battle for the Golden Egg”) is the name given to the Mississippi State–Ole Miss football rivalry. It is an American college football rivalry game played annually between Southeastern Conference memb ...

. Tuberville left the team prior to the bowl game for

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

, leaving the coaching duties to David Cutcliffe, hired on December 2. Meanwhile, the Red Raiders were third in the Big 12 South Division after losing four of their last five games. This was the first Independence Bowl for both teams since

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, which Mississippi won, 20-17. This was the first Independence Bowl featuring a

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its fo ...

team, and the first to be sponsored by Sanford, a leading manufacturer and marketer of writing instruments.

Game summary

First quarter

*Texas Tech: Dorris 22 pass from Peters (Birkholz kick) – 7–0 Texas Tech *Ole Miss: Lucas 33 pass from Miller (McGee kick) – 7–7 tie

Second quarter

*Ole Miss: McAllister 32 pass from Miller (McGee kick) – 14–7 Ole Miss *Texas Tech: Birkholz 49 field goal – 14–10 Ole Miss

Fourth quarter

*Ole Miss: Peterson 26 pass from Miller (McGee kick) – 21–10 Ole Miss *Ole Miss: McAllister 4 run (McGee kick) – 28–10 Ole Miss *Ole Miss: McAllister 43 kickoff return (McGee kick) – 35–10 Ole Miss *Texas Tech: McCullar fumble recovery for a touchdown (Winn pass) – 35–18 Ole Miss

Aftermath

The Rebels returned to the Independence Bowl the following year. The Red Raiders haven't returned to the Independence Bowl since this game. In an adjacent development, Tuberville would end up coaching Texas Tech from 2010−12.

Statistics

References

Independence Bowl

Independence Bowl The Independence Bowl is a post-season National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-sanctioned Division I college football bowl game that is played annually each December at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Independence Bowl ...

Texas Tech Red Raiders football bowl games Ole Miss Rebels football bowl games December 1998 sports events in the United States 1998 in sports in Louisiana {{Collegefootball-bowl-stub