1946 Gator Bowl

American college football game December 2025 August 2023 Gator Bowl The First Gator Bowl January 1 1946 1945 South Carolina Gamecocks 2–3–3 John D. McMillan SoCon 0 7 0 7 Back Nick Sacrinty (Wake Forest) 19 NR Wake Forest Demon Deacons 4–3–1 Peahead Walker SoCon 6 0 6 14 bg yes Fairfield Stadium Jacksonville, Florida Gerry Gerard (Southern) 7,362 The 1946 Gator Bowl was the inaugural edition of the annual Gator Bowl, and it featured the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the South Carolina Gamecocks, both from the Southern Conference. It was a rematch of the teams' regular-season matchup that had ended in a tie. Background This was the first bowl game for both team. The two had played earlier in the season (November 22) in Charlotte, ending in a tie, 13–13. Wake Forest had finished 4-3-1 after an 0-3 start, while South Carolina was invited to play despite a losing record of 2–3–3. Game summary Nick Sacrinty scored for Wake Forest on a touchdown run to give them a 6–0 lead in the first quarter. South Carolina responded with a Bobby Giles touchdown run for a 7–6 halftime lead. However, Wake Forest would score three straight running touchdowns after halftime, with two Dick Brinkley touchdowns and a Bob Smathers touchdown to gain a 26–7 lead. South Carolina would have a touchdown late on an interception return, but Wake Forest held on to win, with 378 of their 396 total yards coming via rushing.1st Gator Bowl Brittany Norris http://www.taxslayerbowl.com/wp-content/uploads/boxscores/1stBoxScores.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20150111080426/http://www.taxslayerbowl.com/wp-content/uploads/boxscores/1stBoxScores.pdf 2015-01-11 dead 2015-01-11 Aftermath Wake Forest did not play in another Gator Bowl until their win against Rutgers in the 2021 game, and would have to wait until the 1992 Independence Bowl for their next bowl win. South Carolina would not win a bowl game until the 1995 Carquest Bowl (January), on their ninth bowl appearance. Statistics Statistics Wake Forest South Carolina First downs 24 7 Yards rushing 378 88 Yards passing 18 69 Total yards 396 157Fumbles-Lost 3-1 3-1Interceptions 2 1Penalties-Yards 8-70 1-5 See also List of college football post-season games that were rematches of regular season games References Gator Bowl Category:Gator Bowl Category:South Carolina Gamecocks football bowl games Category:Wake Forest Demon Deacons football bowl games Category:January 1946 sports events in the United States Gator Bowl Category:20th century in Jacksonville, Florida