The 1967 Liberty Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game played on December 16, 1967, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. The ninth edition of the Liberty Bowl, it featured the NC State Wolfpack of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Georgia Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
| 1967 Liberty Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 9th Liberty Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 16, 1967 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1967 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Memphis Memorial Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Memphis, Tennessee | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | QB Jim Donnan (NC State) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Charles Bowen (SEC; split crew: SEC, ACC) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 35,045 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ABC | ||||||||||||||||||||
Background
editThe Wolfpack finished 2nd in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Bulldogs finished 5th in the Southeastern Conference. This was NC State's first bowl since 1963, which was also in the Liberty Bowl. This was Georgia's first ever Liberty Bowl.
Game summary
editA 65 yard drive by the Wolfpack culminated with a Jim Donnan touchdown pass to Harry Martel to make it 7-0 in the 2nd. Georgia responded with a 68 yard drive with Ronnie Jenkins scoring on a touchdown plunge to tie it before halftime. In the second half, the game was decided in the final minutes. NC State drove 73 yards and scored on a Tony Barchuk touchdown run to make it 14-7. Later on, the Bulldogs went on a 98 yard drive, trying to tie the score late in the game. However, QB Kent Lawrence was stopped one yard short of the goal line, as the Wolfpack held on to win the game. Donnan went 16-of-24 for 121 yards and a touchdown in an MVP effort.[1]
Jim Donnan later went on to coach the Georgia Bulldogs.
Aftermath
editGeorgia returned to the Liberty Bowl 20 years later in 1987. The Wolfpack returned in 1973.
Statistics
edit| Statistics | NC State | Georgia |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 14 | 14 |
| Rushing yards | 79 | 140 |
| Passing yards | 128 | 136 |
| Total yards | 207 | 276 |
| Interception Thrown | 1 | 0 |
| Return Yardage | 42 | 124 |
| Fumbles/Lost | 1–1 | 0–0 |
| Punts–average | 7–35.5 | 6–28.8 |
| Yards penalized | 45 | 67 |
References
edit- ^ "Bowl History - N.C. State rallies past Georgia in 1967 Liberty Bowl" (PDF). grfx.cstv.com. p. 78. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 11, 2018.