1944 Cotton Bowl Classic

1944 Cotton Bowl Classic
8th Cotton Bowl Classic
Randolph Field Ramblers Texas Longhorns (9–1) (7–1) Independent SWC 7 7 Head coach:  Frank Tritico Head coach:  Dana X. Bible AP 14
1 2 3 4 Total Randolph Field 7 0 0 0 7 Texas 0 7 0 0 7
Date	January 1, 1944
Season	1943
Stadium	Cotton Bowl
Location	Dallas, Texas
MVP	Martin Ruby, T, Randolph Field Glenn Dobbs, QB, Randolph Field Joe Parker, E, Texas
Attendance	15,000
Cotton Bowl Classic  < 1943   1945 >

The 1944 Cotton Bowl Classic was a postseason college football bowl game between the fourteenth ranked Texas Longhorns and the Randolph Field Ramblers, a military institution squad from San Antonio, TX. ^[1]

Background

Randolph boasted many former college football stars, most notably Tulsa's Glenn Dobbs, who had 1,867 all purpose yards for the year with 1,431 passing and 421 yards rushing. He was also their punter, with a 40.2 average per kick.

Martin Ruby became the first and only player to play on two different Cotton Bowl teams, having played in the 1942 Cotton Bowl Classic. He was named outstanding player in both games.^{[ citation needed ]}

Game summary

The game was played in a cold, steady rain described by Bible as the worst he had ever seen. Tex Aulds ^[2] scored for Randolph on a touchdown catch from Glenn Dobbs. But Texas rallied back with a George McCall touchdown catch from Ralph Ellsworth to tie the game. The game stayed that way due to defense that allowed 260 yards combined from both teams. ^[3]

Statistics

Statistics	Texas	Randolph
First Downs	3	7
Yards Rushing	73	99
Yards Passing	37	51
Total Yards	110	150
Punts-Average	8-33.1	10-39.9
Fumbles Lost	1	1
Penalties-Yards	0-0	4-20

Attendance

32,000 tickets were sold for the game but only 15,000 spectators came to the game because of the weather. ^[4]

References

1. Allen, Paula. "Military serviceman played three sports for San Antonio's Randolph Ramblers". San Antonio Express News. Hearst Newspapers, LLC. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
2. "Tex Aulds". Baseball in Wartime. April 13, 2008. Archived from the original on January 28, 2017. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
3. "14-25.pmd (PDF)" (PDF). Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
4. "8th Classic, 1944 - 2023-24 - Cotton Bowl Classics History". Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. Retrieved July 30, 2023.