1981 Sugar Bowl

August 2023 May 2026 1981 Sugar Bowl 47th Sugar Bowl Louisiana Superdome - Unbranded - 26 July 2021.jpg The Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, hosted the Sugar Bowl. 1980 Georgia Bulldogs University of Georgia Notre Dame Fighting Irish University of Notre Dame 11–0 SEC 9–1–1 Independent Vince Dooley Dan Devine 1 1 7 8 10 7 0 0 3 0 7 0 January 1 Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana Herschel Walker (Georgia RB) Notre Dame by 1 pointhttps://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0-sNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=8G0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6146%2C116204 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The latest line January 1, 1981 25 Clint Fuller (SWC) ABC List of announcers of major college bowl games Keith Jackson and Frank Broyles The 1981 Sugar Bowl was the 47th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Thursday, January 1. Part of the 1980–81 bowl game season, it matched the undefeated and top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference, and the seventh-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish. A slight underdog, Georgia won, 17–10.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=1OsNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=8G0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6289%2C240448 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Musick Phil Georgia stakes claim to No. 1 January 2, 1981 13https://www.si.com/vault/1981/01/12/825278/the-ball-bounces-georgias-way-taking-advantage-of-every-gift-notre-dame-offered--and-there-were-plenty--the-bulldogs-seized-an-early-lead-and-then-held-on-to-win-17-10-in-the-sugar-bowl-remain-undefeated-and-nail-down-the-nation Sports Illustrated Looney Douglas S. The ball bounces Georgia's way January 12, 1981 18https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6jBPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lwIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6763%2C4633786 Toledo Blade Ohio 'How 'bout them Dawgs?' wire services January 2, 1981 19https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ABBWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TuIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6127%2C410545 Eugene Register-Guard Oregon wire services Georgia's convince Dawgs are No. 1 1D Teams 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season Georgia 1980 Georgia Bulldogs football team Notre Dame 1980 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team Game summary The game kicked off shortly after 1 p.m. CST, televised by ABC, at the same time as the Cotton Bowl on CBS.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Rk9OAAAAIBAJ&sjid=z-4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5228%2C164041 Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Sports menu: television January 1, 1981 29 In the first quarter, Notre Dame scored first on a 50-yard Harry Oliver field goal. Another Notre Dame scoring opportunity in the first quarter was foiled when Bulldog freshman Terry Hoage blocked a field goal. Hoage had been a last-minute addition to the roster by head coach Vince Dooley for his kick blocking ability. Due to good field position Georgia's Rex Robinson would eventually boot a 46-yard field goal of his own to tie the game at three. On the ensuing kickoff, a communication gaffe between the Irish's deep return players resulted in neither one fielding the kick which bounced at the one-yard line and was recovered by Georgia's Bob Kelly. Two plays later, Bulldog running back Herschel Walker scored on a one-yard touchdown run as Georgia led 10–3. In the second quarter, Walker scored on a three-yard run making the score 17–3 at halftime. The only score in the second half came in the third quarter; Notre Dame scored on a one-yard run to close the margin to 17–10. Georgia's defense held on to that lead, giving Georgia the victory and the 1980 national championship. True freshman Walker rushed for 150 yards and was named Sugar Bowl MVP. Bulldog defensive back Scott Woerner made several key plays throughout the day including a late game interception that sealed the win. Georgia was first in both final polls. Scoring First quarter Notre Dame – Harry Oliver 50-yard field goal Georgia – Rex Robinson 46-yard field goal Georgia – Herschel Walker 1-yard run (Robinson kick) Second quarter Georgia – Walker 2-yard run (Robinson kick) Third quarter Notre Dame – Phil Carter 1-yard run (Oliver kick) Fourth quarter No scoring Statistics {| class=wikitable style="text-align:center" ! Statistics !! 3Georgia3 !! Notre Dame |- |First downs ||10||17 |- |Rushing yards||52–120||50–190 |- |Passing yards||7||138 |- |Passing ||1–13–0 ||12–28–3 |- |Total offense ||65–127||78–328 |- |Punts–average ||11–38.5||5–42.0 |- |Fumbles–lost ||0–0||1–1 |- |Turnovers||0||4 |- |Penalties–yards ||6–32||8–69 |} Source: Note This Sugar Bowl marked the debut of Georgia's costumed mascot Hairy Dawg. Georgia native President Jimmy Carter was in attendance, three weeks before leaving office. References Sugar Bowl Category:Sugar Bowl Category:Georgia Bulldogs football bowl games Category:Notre Dame Fighting Irish football bowl games Sugar Bowl Sugar Bowl