1961 Rose Bowl
Encyclopedia
The 1961 Rose Bowl game, played on Monday, January 2, 1961, was the 47th Rose Bowl game
Rose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...

. The #6 Washington Huskies
Washington Huskies football
College football has a long history at the University of Washington. The Washington Huskies have won 15 Pacific-10 Conference championships, seven Rose Bowl titles, and three national championships. Washington's all-time record of 653-398-50 ranks 20th by all-time winning percentage and 21st by...

 defeated the top-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers, 17–7. Washington quarterback Bob Schloredt
Bob Schloredt
Robert Schloredt was a college football quarterback for the Washington Huskies. He was awarded the 1959 W.J. Voit Memorial Trophy as the outstanding football player on the Pacific Coast. He is the first, of only four players , to be twice named the Most Valuable Player of the Rose Bowl...

 was named the Player Of The Game. The game was played on Monday, January 2 since New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...

 1961 fell on a Sunday.
This was the first season of the new agreement with the AAWU to send their champion; its predecessor, the Pacific Coast Conference
Pacific Coast Conference
The Pacific Coast Conference was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pacific-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, the older league had a completely different charter and was disbanded in 1959 due to a major crisis...

 (PCC), had dissolved after the 1958 season
1958 college football season
The 1958 college football season was the first to feature the two point conversion. On January 13, 1958, the 11-man NCAA Rules Committee unanimously approved a resolution to allow teams to choose between kicking an extra point after a touchdown, or running or passing from the 3 yard line for 2...

. The Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 was no longer in a formal agreement with the Rose Bowl following the demise of the PCC: Big Ten champion Minnesota received and accepted an "at-large" invitation.

The Great Rose Bowl Hoax
Great Rose Bowl Hoax
The Great Rose Bowl Hoax was a prank at the 1961 Rose Bowl, an annual American college football bowl game. That year, the Washington Huskies were pitted against the Minnesota Golden Gophers...

 occurred during halftime. As seen by an estimated 30 million television viewers, students from nearby Caltech
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...

 altered the plans for the Washington card stunts, which spelled "CALTECH" instead of "HUSKIES" and showed the Caltech Beaver mascot instead of the Washington Husky.

Teams

The Pacific Coast Conference
Pacific Coast Conference
The Pacific Coast Conference was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pacific-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, the older league had a completely different charter and was disbanded in 1959 due to a major crisis...

 (PCC), from which the west coast Rose Bowl representative was historically taken, had dissolved in early 1959 following a pay-for-play scandal. A new conference, the AAWU, known as the Big Five, formed in 1959
1959 college football season
The 1959 college football season saw Syracuse University crowned as the national champion by both the AP and the UPI wire services. Mississippi , which had outscored its opponents 350-21, finished #2 in both polls, and its only loss during the regular season had been to LSU, which ultimately...

 with the four California schools (Cal
California Golden Bears
The California Golden Bears is the nickname used for 29 varsity athletic programs and various club teams of the University of California, Berkeley...

, Stanford
Stanford Cardinal
The Stanford Cardinal is the nickname of the athletic teams at Stanford University.-Nickname and mascot history:Following its win over Cal in the first-ever Big Game in 1892, the color cardinal was picked as the primary color of Stanford's athletic teams...

, USC
USC Trojans
The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy...

, and UCLA
UCLA Bruins
The UCLA Bruins are the sports teams for University of California, Los Angeles . The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pacific-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation . For football, they are in the Football Bowl Subdivision of Division I...

) and Washington
Washington Huskies
Washington Huskies is the nickname of the University of Washington's athletic teams. The school is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference. The athletic program is made up of 9 men's sports and 10 women's sports Washington Huskies is the nickname of the University of Washington's athletic teams. The...

 in Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...

. For scheduling, Oregon
Oregon Ducks
The Oregon Ducks refers to the sports teams of the University of Oregon, located in Eugene, Oregon. The Oregon Ducks are part of the Pacific-12 Conference in the Division 1 of the NCAA. With seventeen varsity teams, the Oregon Ducks are best known for their football team and Track and Field...

, Oregon State
Oregon State Beavers
The Oregon State Beavers is a name shared by all sports teams at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon. The Beavers are part of the Pacific-12 Conference . Oregon State's mascot is Benny the Beaver...

, and Washington State
Washington State Cougars
The Washington State Cougars are the athletic teams at Washington State University; the term applies to any of the school's varsity teams. Washington State University is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference, which participates in the NCAA Division I...

 dropped UCLA and USC, with the exception being Oregon State at USC. The other AAWU teams kept their former PCC members on the schedule, except for Idaho
Idaho Vandals
The Idaho Vandals are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Idaho. They participate in NCAA Division I - FBS in the Western Athletic Conference ....

. The PCC agreement with the Rose bowl had been dissolved for the 1959 season, but the winner among all former members of the PCC was invited, so Washington played in the 1960 Rose Bowl
1960 Rose Bowl
The 1960 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 1960 at the end of the 1959 college football season. It was the 46th Rose Bowl Game. This was the first Rose Bowl appearance by the Huskies since the 1944 Rose Bowl and the first appearance by the Badgers since the 1953 Rose...

, and upset favored Wisconsin
1959 Wisconsin Badgers football team
The 1959 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin in the 1959 college football season, and in the 1960 Rose Bowl as the champions of the Big Ten Conference.-Schedule and results:...

, 44–8. For the 1960 season
1960 college football season
The 1960 college football season marked the last time that the University of Minnesota was a national champion on the gridiron. Murray Warmath's Minnesota Gophers were not in the Top 20 in preseason polling, but received the AP Trophy at the end of the regular season...

, the AAWU contracted a new agreement with the Rose Bowl. The Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 agreement also was dissolved, but the Big Ten had authorized its members to accept Rose Bowl invitations at their discretion.

1960 Washington Huskies

The 1960 Huskies defeated the College of the Pacific 55–6 and former PCC member Idaho
Idaho Vandals
The Idaho Vandals are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Idaho. They participate in NCAA Division I - FBS in the Western Athletic Conference ....

 23–0 to open the season. UW lost 15–14 to Navy
1960 Navy Midshipmen football team
The 1960 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy in the 1960 college football season. The offense scored 262 points while the defense allowed 103 points. Led by head coach Wayne Hardin, the Midshipmen finished the season with nine wins and an appearance in the...

 at Husky Stadium
Husky Stadium
Husky Stadium is an outdoor athletic stadium on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the home of the Washington Huskies...

, ending a seven game winning streak. The Midshipmen finished the regular season at 8–1, but lost to Missouri
1960 Missouri Tigers football team
The 1960 Missouri Tigers football team represented the University of Missouri in the 1960 college football season and were the 1960 Orange Bowl Champions. This season included one of the most famous Missouri Kansas matchups in history.-Schedule:...

 in the 1961 Orange Bowl
Orange Bowl
The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935 and celebrated its 75th playing on January 1, 2009...

. The Huskies won at Stanford and beat UCLA
UCLA Bruins Football
The UCLA Bruins football program represents the University of California, Los Angeles in college football as members of the Pacific-12 Conference at the NCAA Division I FBS level. The Bruins have enjoyed several periods of success in their history, having been ranked in the top ten of the AP Poll...

 10–8. The Huskies continued on with a PCC schedule, playing Oregon State
1960 Oregon State Beavers football team
The 1960 Oregon State Beavers football team represented Oregon State College in the 1960 college football season. The Beavers ended this season with six wins, three losses, and a tie. The Gotham Bowl was scheduled to premiere at Yankee Stadium in 1960 with Holy Cross as the host team. However,...

 in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

 and Oregon
Oregon Ducks football
The Oregon Ducks football program is the intercollegiate American football team for the University of Oregon located in the U.S. state of Oregon. The team competes at the NCAA Division I level in the Football Bowl Subdivision and is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference. Known as the Ducks, the...

 at home, winning both games by a single point. An early November game at the L.A. Coliseum
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is a large outdoor sports stadium in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, at Exposition Park, that is home to the Pacific-12 Conference's University of Southern California Trojans football team...

 with USC was the deciding factor in the Rose Bowl race, with the Huskies blanking the Trojans 34–0. The Huskies beat the Cal Bears
California Golden Bears football
The California Golden Bears football team is the college football team of the University of California. The team plays its home games at California Memorial Stadium, however the team played at San Francisco's AT&T Park in 2011 while Memorial Stadium was being renovated, the team will return to...

 27–7 in Seattle
Husky Stadium
Husky Stadium is an outdoor athletic stadium on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the home of the Washington Huskies...

 to win the first AAWU championship outright. The final game of the regular season was the Apple Cup
Apple Cup
The Apple Cup is the trophy awarded to the winner of an American college football rivalry game played annually by the teams of the two largest universities in the U.S. state of Washington: the University of Washington Huskies and the Washington State University Cougars...

, where the Huskies narrowly escaped with an 8–7 win in Spokane
Joe Albi Stadium
Joe Albi Stadium is an outdoor athletic stadium in Spokane, Washington. Primarily used for football, it is located in the northwest part of the city, just east of the Spokane River. It opened in 1950 as "Memorial Stadium," with a natural grass field, cinder running track, and a seating capacity of...

 over cross-state rival Washington State
Washington State Cougars football
The Washington State Cougars football team is the intercollegiate football team of Washington State University. The team is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference...

 to finish the regular season at 9–1 and undefeated in conference play. Ranked #6 by the AP writers poll
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...

, the defending Rose Bowl champions were unranked by the UPI coaches poll.

1960 Minnesota Golden Gophers

The 1960 Gophers came to the Rose Bowl as the #1 team in the nation. The Gophers were led by Sandy Stephens
Sandy Stephens
Sanford Emory Stephens II was an African-American football player and civic leader. Stephens was born and raised in the Pittsburgh area city of Uniontown, Pennsylvania and is best known for his career as a college football quarterback at the University of Minnesota...

, the first African-American All-American starting quarterback at the school (but not in the history of the Rose Bowl, which would have been the 1922 Rose Bowl
1922 Rose Bowl
The 1922 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 2, 1922, between Washington & Jefferson College and the University of California, Berkeley...

). The Gophers had an early 26–14 win at #12 Nebraska
Nebraska Cornhuskers football
The Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. Nebraska is one of only six football programs in NCAA Division I-A...

. They shut out both Indiana
Indiana Hoosiers football
The Indiana Hoosiers football program represents Indiana University Bloomington in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and in the Big Ten Conference.-Bowl games:...

 and Northwestern
Northwestern Wildcats football
The Northwestern Wildcats football team, representing Northwestern University, is a NCAA Division I team and member of the Big Ten Conference, with evidence of organization in 1876...

, then also blanked Michigan
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...

 10–0 at Ann Arbor
Michigan Stadium
Michigan Stadium, nicknamed "The Big House," is the football stadium for the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan Stadium was built in 1927 at a cost of $950,000 and had an original capacity of 72,000. Before playing football at the stadium, the Wolverines played on Ferry Field...

 to win the Little Brown Jug
Little Brown Jug (football)
The Little Brown Jug is an earthenware jug that serves as a trophy awarded to the winner of the American college football rivalry game played annually by the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team of the university of Minnesota and the Michigan Wolverines football team of the University of Michigan...

. A win over non-conference Kansas State
1960 Kansas State Wildcats football team
The 1960 Kansas State Wildcats football team represented Kansas State University in the college football season of 1960. The team's head football coach was Doug Weaver. It was Weaver's first season at the helm of the Wildcats. The Wildcats played their home games in Memorial Stadium. The...

 put Minnesota at #3. The next game at #1 Iowa was one of the most notable games in the Floyd of Rosedale
Floyd of Rosedale
Floyd of Rosedale is the name of a bronze pig trophy that is awarded to the winner of the annual college football game between the Universities of Iowa and Minnesota...

 rivalry. Minnesota won 27–10 (and the pig) and were ranked #1, but then lost to Purdue
Purdue Boilermakers football
The Purdue Boilermakers football team is the intercollegiate football program of the Purdue University Boilermakers. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I Bowl Subdivision, and the team competes in the Big Ten Conference. The Boilermakers have an all-time record of...

 the next week. A 26–14 win over Wisconsin
Wisconsin Badgers football
The Wisconsin Badgers are a college football program that represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth-oldest stadium in college football...

 on NCAA television put them back at #1 to finish the season. The Gophers were tied with Iowa in the Big Ten standings, each with a loss. The final AP poll of November 29 was one of the closest ever: Minnesota with 17.5 first-place votes, Mississippi
1960 Ole Miss Rebels football team
The 1960 Ole Miss Rebels football team represented the University of Mississippi during the 1960 college football season. The Rebels were named national champions by the Football Writers Association of America.-Season:...

 16, and Iowa 12.5.

Game summary

The weather in Pasadena on January 2 was clear and sunny. Washington wore their home purple jerseys (actually deep blue), gold pants and gold helmets. Minnesota wore white away jerseys with maroon
Maroon (color)
Maroon is a dark red color.-Etymology:Maroon is derived from French marron .The first recorded use of maroon as a color name in English was in 1789.-Maroon :...

 and gold shoulder stripes and white helmets. The ceremonial pregame coin toss to determine first possession employed a souvenir gold dollar minted for Alaska's statehood in 1959.

The Huskies dominated the first half, scoring all 17 points. Minnesota lead in all the final statistics, but the most telling one was its passing game: Gopher quarterback Sandy Stephens
Sandy Stephens
Sanford Emory Stephens II was an African-American football player and civic leader. Stephens was born and raised in the Pittsburgh area city of Uniontown, Pennsylvania and is best known for his career as a college football quarterback at the University of Minnesota...

 completed only 2 of 10 passes for 21 yards and was intercepted three times. MVP Bob Schloredt
Bob Schloredt
Robert Schloredt was a college football quarterback for the Washington Huskies. He was awarded the 1959 W.J. Voit Memorial Trophy as the outstanding football player on the Pacific Coast. He is the first, of only four players , to be twice named the Most Valuable Player of the Rose Bowl...

 completed only 2 of 4 passes for 16 yards (no interceptions), but was the game's leading rusher with 68 yards on five carries. The most enduring story of the game was the Caltech card stunt at halftime.

Halftime

The Minnesota marching band performed first, followed by UW band, when the card stunts began. The Washington card section was on the east side of the Rose Bowl stadium, facing the press box and television cameras. The NBC national television broadcast was trained on the band and card stunts. The 14th card stunt design displayed "CALTECH" instead of "HUSKIES" in big block letters on a white background. The announcers and the stadium fell silent for several moments before breaking into laughter.

Second quarter

  • Wash. — Wooten, 4-yard pass from Schloredt (Fleming kick), 13:35, Wash. 10–0
  • Wash. — Schloredt
    Bob Schloredt
    Robert Schloredt was a college football quarterback for the Washington Huskies. He was awarded the 1959 W.J. Voit Memorial Trophy as the outstanding football player on the Pacific Coast. He is the first, of only four players , to be twice named the Most Valuable Player of the Rose Bowl...

    , 1-yard run (Fleming kick), 4:14, Wash. 17–0

Aftermath

Minnesota was still the AP
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...

 and UPI national champion, as those final polls were released in late November and did not consider the bowl
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...

 results.
Iowa
1960 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The 1960 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa in the 1960 college football season. The Hawkeyes were co-Big Ten champions along with the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers. The Golden Gophers were selected to represent the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl.-Schedule:-Team...

, Ole Miss
1960 Ole Miss Rebels football team
The 1960 Ole Miss Rebels football team represented the University of Mississippi during the 1960 college football season. The Rebels were named national champions by the Football Writers Association of America.-Season:...

, and Washington
Washington Huskies football
College football has a long history at the University of Washington. The Washington Huskies have won 15 Pacific-10 Conference championships, seven Rose Bowl titles, and three national championships. Washington's all-time record of 653-398-50 ranks 20th by all-time winning percentage and 21st by...

 all have been recognized as national champions for the 1960 season
1960 college football season
The 1960 college football season marked the last time that the University of Minnesota was a national champion on the gridiron. Murray Warmath's Minnesota Gophers were not in the Top 20 in preseason polling, but received the AP Trophy at the end of the regular season...

 by various organizations.

Bob Schloret was named Player of the Game for the second time, becoming the first player in Rose Bowl history to repeat as Player of the Game. He was previously named a co-Player of the Game in the 1960 Rose Bowl
1960 Rose Bowl
The 1960 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 1960 at the end of the 1959 college football season. It was the 46th Rose Bowl Game. This was the first Rose Bowl appearance by the Huskies since the 1944 Rose Bowl and the first appearance by the Badgers since the 1953 Rose...

. Three other players have subsequently repeated as Rose Bowl Players of the Game: Charles White
Charles White (American football)
Charles White is a former professional American football running back. He had a distinguished college career and later played in the National Football League for the Cleveland Browns and the Los Angeles Rams.-College football:...

 (USC), Ron Dayne
Ron Dayne
Ron Dayne is a former American football running back who is currently a free agent. He holds the NCAA record for career rushing yards, and he won the 1999 Heisman Trophy.-Early life:...

 (Wisconsin
Wisconsin Badgers football
The Wisconsin Badgers are a college football program that represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth-oldest stadium in college football...

), and Vince Young
Vince Young
Vincent Paul Young, Jr. , nicknamed "VY", is an American football quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League . He spent the first five seasons of his career with the Tennessee Titans. Young was the third overall draft pick in the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college...

 (Texas
Texas Longhorns football
The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate football team representing The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas. The team currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big 12 Conference which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National...

).

External links

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