1983 Independence Bowl

1983 Independence Bowl
1234 Total
Air Force 3330 9
Ole Miss 0300 3
Date December 10, 1983
Season 1983
Stadium Independence Stadium
Location Shreveport, Louisiana
MVP QB Marty Louthan, Air Force
DT Andre Townsend, Ole Miss
Attendance 41,274
United States TV coverage
Network Mizlou
Announcers Howard David
Ken Willard
Steve Grad

The 1983 Independence Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game between the Ole Miss Rebels and the Air Force Falcons.

Background

The Rebels tied for 3rd in the Southeastern Conference, in their first bowl appearance since 1971. The Falcons had finished 2nd in the Western Athletic Conference, but they were makign their 2nd straight bowl game, the first time they had made consecutive bowl games in school history. This was the first Independence Bowl for either team.

Game summary

In a rain drenched game, the Falcons led 6-0 on two field goals by Sean Pavlich from 44 and 39 yards out. Ole Miss halved the lead on 39 yarder from Neil Teevan in the 3rd, but Pavlich's 27 yarder in the same quarter proved to be the last score of the game. Marty Louthan went 6-of-7 for 71 yards, and Buford McGee rushed 22 times for 111 yards for the Falcons. In a losing effort, Mike Brown ran for 91 yards on 12 carries. Kelly Powell threw 11-of-27 for 138 yards, with 2 interceptions. [1]

Aftermath

Hatfield left for Arkansas after the bowl game, though the Falcons continued to prosper under new coach Fisher DeBerry, making four more bowl games in the decade. The Rebels made two more in the decade and two more before Brewer left due to violations in 1993. Air Force returned to the Independence Bowl the following year while Ole Mis returned in 1986.

Statistics

Statistics Air Force Ole Miss
First Downs 18 11
Rushing Yards 277 106
Passing Yards71 138
Interceptions 0 2
Total Yards 348 244
Fumbles-Lost 3-3 1-0
Penalties-Yards 4-19 4-20
Punts-Average 3-30.3 5-43.6

References

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