1966 Grantland Rice Bowl

Last updated
1966 Grantland Rice Bowl
1234Total
Tennessee State7137734
Muskingum00707
DateDecember 10, 1966
Season 1966
Stadium Horace Jones Field
Location Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Attendance6,500 [1]
Grantland Rice Bowl
 < 1965   1967 > 

The 1966 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1966 season, between the Tennessee State Tigers and the Muskingum Fighting Muskies. [2] Tennessee State quarterback Eldridge Dickey was named the game's most valuable player. [3]

Contents

Notable participants

Multiple players from Tennessee State were selected in the 1967 NFL/AFL Draftrunning back Bill Tucker, defensive back Alvin Coleman, return specialist Noland Smith, defensive back Leon Moore, running back Eugens Bowens, and defensive back Howard Finley. Additional Tennessee State players were selected in the 1968 NFL/AFL Draftdefensive end Claude Humphrey, quarterback Eldridge Dickey, wide receiver John Robinson, wide receiver Leo Johnson, and guard Tommy Davis. Humphrey was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014. Running back Cid Edwards was not drafted, but later played in the NFL. Muskingum running back Rick Harbold was inducted to his university's hall of fame in 1985. [4]

Both head coaches have been inducted to the College Football Hall of FameJohn Merritt of Tennessee State in 1994, and Ed Sherman of Muskingum in 1996.

Scoring summary

Scoring summary
QuarterTime Drive TeamScoring informationScore
Plays Yards TOP Tenn. St.Musk.
1Tenn. St.Nolan Smith 46-yard touchdown reception from Eldridge Dickey, Roy Meneese kick good70
224Tenn. St.Eldridge Dickey 1-yard touchdown run, Roy Meneese kick good140
218Tenn. St.Eldridge Dickey 1-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass failed200
3844Musk.Rick Harbold 2-yard touchdown run, Albury kick good207
3Tenn. St.John Robinson 79-yard touchdown reception from Eldridge DickeyDagger-14-plain.png, Roy Meneese kick good277
4769Tenn. St.John Robinson 14-yard touchdown reception from Eldridge Dickey, Roy Meneese kick good347
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.347

[1] [5] Dagger-14-plain.pngPlay set a TSU record for longest touchdown reception.

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The Grantland Rice Bowl was an annual college football bowl game from 1964 through 1977, in the NCAA's College Division, for smaller universities and colleges, and later Division II. The game was named for Grantland Rice, an early 20th century American sportswriter known for his elegant prose, and was originally played in his hometown of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Eldridge Reno Dickey was an American football player. After playing for Tennessee State University from 1965 to 1968, he was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the first round of the 1968 NFL/AFL Draft. Dickey became the first African-American quarterback selected in the first round by an American Football League (AFL) or National Football League (NFL) team. Despite a strong performance during training camp, Dickey was moved to wide receiver for the start of the season. He never played at quarterback in an AFL or NFL game.

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The 1969 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1969 season, between the East Tennessee State Buccaneers and the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. This was the first time that the Grantland Rice Bowl was played in Baton Rouge, Louisiana – prior games had been played in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

The 1968 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1968 season, between the Akron Zips and the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. This was the last time that the Grantland Rice Bowl was played in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

The 1967 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1967 season, between the Eastern Kentucky Colonels and the Ball State Cardinals. Eastern Kentucky quarterback Jim Guice was named the game's most outstanding player.

The 1965 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1965 season, between the Ball State Cardinals and the Tennessee A&I Tigers. Ball State quarterback Frank Houk was named the game's most outstanding player.

The 1964 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1964 season, between the Muskingum Fighting Muskies and the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders. This was the inaugural playing of the bowl.

The 1970 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1970 season, between the Tennessee State Tigers and the Southwestern Louisiana Bulldogs.

The 1971 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1971 season, between the Tennessee State Tigers and the McNeese State Cowboys.

The 1972 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1972 season, between the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles. Louisiana Tech quarterback Denny Duron was named outstanding offensive player, while his teammate linebacker Joe McNeely was named outstanding defensive player.

The 1973 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA Division II game following the 1973 season, between the Grambling Tigers and the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. This was the first year that the game served as a national semifinal for Division II – in prior years it had been the Mideast regional championship for the College Division. This was the last time that the game was played at BREC Memorial Stadium.

The 1974 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA Division II game following the 1974 season, between the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens and the UNLV Rebels. This was the first time that the game was played at Tiger Stadium on the campus of LSU. Delaware running back Vern Roberts was named the game's outstanding offensive player, while his teammate defensive back Mike Ebersol was named the game's outstanding defensive player.

The 1976 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA Division II game following the 1976 season, between the Montana State Bobcats and the North Dakota State Bison. This was the first time that the game was hosted by one of the participants – in prior years the game had been played at a fixed location; first Murfreesboro, Tennessee and later Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The 1977 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA Division II game following the 1977 season, between the North Dakota State Bison and the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. The game was played in Anniston, Alabama at Memorial Stadium as the Gamecocks' normal venue – Paul Snow Stadium – was being renovated. Jacksonville State defensive tackle Jesse Baker was named most valuable defensive player, and his teammate quarterback Bobby Ray Green was named most valuable offensive player. This was the last playing of the Grantland Rice Bowl, as the NCAA discontinued use of bowl names for the Division II semifinals after 1977.

The 1966 Tangerine Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1966 season, between the West Chester Golden Rams and the Morgan State Bears. Morgan State linebacker Willie Lanier was named the game's most valuable player.

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The 1966 Tennessee A&I Tigers football team was an American football team that represented Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State College as a member of the Midwest Athletic Association (MAA) during the 1966 NCAA College Division football season. In their fourth season under head coach John Merritt, the Tigers compiled a perfect 10–0 record, won the MAA championship, shut out five of ten opponents, defeated Muskingum in the 1966 Grantland Rice Bowl, and outscored all opponents by a total of 410 to 51. The Tigers compiled a 24-game unbeaten streak that encompassed the 1965 and 1966 seasons.

The 1965 Tennessee A&I Tigers football team represented Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State College as a member of the Midwest Athletic Association (MAA) during the 1965 NCAA College Division football season. In their third season under head coach John Merritt, the Tigers compiled a 9–0–1 record, won the MAA championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 333 to 108. The team was also recognized as the 1965 black college national champion and was ranked No. 5 in the final 1965 NCAA College Division football rankings issued by the Associated Press and No. 12 in the final poll issued by the United Press International.

References

  1. 1 2 "Tennessee State Rolls 34-7 In Grantland Rice Bowl". The Courier-Journal . Louisville, Kentucky. UPI. December 11, 1966. Retrieved January 27, 2017 via newspapers.com.
  2. Fennell, Jerry (December 9, 1966). "Muskingum Is Underdog in Rice Bowl". Muncie Evening Press. Muncie, Indiana . Retrieved February 10, 2017 via newspapers.com.
  3. "Day of Glory, Mud in Rice Bowl Mud". The Nashville Tennessean . Nashville, Tennessee. December 11, 1966. Retrieved February 10, 2017 via newspapers.com.
  4. "Rick Harbold". fightingmuskies.com. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
  5. Powell, Tom (December 11, 1966). "A&I Rolls 34-7". The Nashville Tennessean . Nashville, Tennessee . Retrieved February 10, 2017 via newspapers.com.