2003 Independence Bowl

August 2023 March 2026 Independence Bowl December 31 2003 2003 Independence Stadium Shreveport, Louisiana University of Missouri Missouri Tigers 8–4 Big 12 Gary Pinkel 7 0 7 0 University of Arkansas Arkansas Razorbacks 8–4 SEC Houston Nutt 3 18 3 3 Cedric CobbsCaleb Miller Walt Davenport (Sun Belt) 49,625 2,504,112 ESPN Sean McDonough, Mike Golic, Rod Gilmore and Rob Stone The 2003 Independence Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game between the Missouri Tigers and the Arkansas Razorbacks on December 31, 2003, at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana. Missouri was making their first bowl appearance since 1998. This was Missouri's first bowl game under Head Coach Gary Pinkel. Arkansas, on the other hand, made their sixth straight bowl appearance, but had lost the last three. Arkansas defeated Missouri 27–14, winning their first bowl game since the 2000 Cotton Bowl. It was Arkansas' first victory in the Independence Bowl. Missouri fell to (8–5) on the season, while Arkansas improved to (9–4). This was the Hogs' second bowl victory under head coach Houston Nutt. It would be the Hogs last bowl victory until 2009 when they won the Liberty Bowl. The Tigers opened the game with a 7–3 lead after the first quarter, but Arkansas rallied back, scoring 18 unanswered points to take a 21–7 lead into halftime. Mizzou cut the Hogs lead to 21–14 with a third quarter touchdown. But Arkansas answered with two field goals, one in the third and one in the fourth, to seal the victory for the Razorbacks. The Hogs outdueled the Tigers in every facet of the game, to include a blocked punt against Missouri in the second half. Arkansas running back Cedric Cobbs was named the game's Offensive MVP, rushing for 141 yards and a touchdown. The game's Defensive MVP was Razorback linebacker Caleb Miller, who finished the game with 14 tackles and an interception.Razorbacks run for 300 yards ESPN.com December 31, 2003 2012-01-15 https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=233650008 https://web.archive.org/web/20171102045542/http://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=233650008 dead November 2, 2017 See also Battle Line Rivalry References Independence Bowl Category:Independence Bowl Category:Missouri Tigers football bowl games Category:Arkansas Razorbacks football bowl games Category:December 2003 sports events in the United States Category:2003 in sports in Louisiana