1976 Fiesta Bowl

The 1976 Fiesta Bowl was the sixth edition of the college football bowl game, played at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona on Saturday, December 25. Part of the 1976–77 bowl game season, it matched the eighth-ranked Oklahoma Sooners of the Big Eight Conference and the unranked Wyoming Cowboys of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Heavily-favored Oklahoma won in a rout, 41–7.[2][3][4]

1976 Fiesta Bowl
6th edition
Oklahoma Sooners Wyoming Cowboys
(8–2–1) (8–3)
Big Eight Western Athletic
41 7
Head coach: 
Barry Switzer		 Head coach: 
Fred Akers
APCoaches
89
APCoaches
NRNR
1234 Total
Oklahoma 146714 41
Wyoming 0007 7
DateDecember 25, 1976
Season1976
StadiumSun Devil Stadium
LocationTempe, Arizona
MVPThomas Lott (Oklahoma QB)
Terry Peters  (Oklahoma CB)
FavoriteOklahoma by 21 points[1]
Attendance48,714
United States TV coverage
NetworkCBS

This was the first of four consecutive Fiesta Bowls played on Christmas Day.

Teams
Main article: 1976 NCAA Division I football season

This was the first Fiesta Bowl appearance for each. Both teams' offenses ran out of the wishbone formation.[1][5][6]

Oklahoma
Main article: 1976 Oklahoma Sooners football team

Oklahoma was co-champion of the Big Eight Conference for the fifth straight year. They tied Texas and lost to the other co-champions, Oklahoma State and Colorado: CU went to the Orange Bowl and OSU played in the Tangerine Bowl.

Wyoming
Main article: 1976 Wyoming Cowboys football team

Wyoming was co-champion of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and was making their first bowl appearance in nine years, since the 1968 Sugar Bowl. It was the Cowboys' first winning season since 1969.

Game summary

This was the only game of the day, and kicked off shortly after 1 p.m. MST on CBS.[1]

Elvis Peacock started the beating with a touchdown run early in the game and Horace Ivory added in his touchdown run to make it 14–0 after the first quarter. Two Uwe von Schamann field goals made it 20–0 at halftime.

Oklahoma scored three more times in the second half on Peacock, George Cumby, and Woodie Shephard touchdowns. Narrowly avoiding a shutout, Cowboy fullback Robbie Wright scored in the final half-minute to cap a 92-yard drive and make the final score 41–7. This was the biggest margin of victory in the Fiesta Bowl until 1996.[7]

Sooner quarterback Thomas Lott was the offensive MVP and cornerback Terry Peters took the defensive honor.

Scoring

First quarter

Second quarter

  • Oklahoma – von Schamann 32-yard field goal
  • Oklahoma – von Schamann 50-yard field goal

Third quarter

  • Oklahoma – Peacock 15-yard run (von Schamann kick)

Fourth quarter

  • Oklahoma – George Cumby 4-yard run (von Schamann kick)
  • Oklahoma – Woodie Shephard 8-yard run (von Schamann kick)
  • Wyoming – Robbie Wright 1-yard run (Dan Christopulos kick)

Statistics
StatisticsOklahomaWyoming
First Downs2414
Yards Rushing76–41542–153
Yards Passing2351
Passing3–5–06–19–5
Return Yards190
Total Offense81–43861–204
Punts–Average0–05–25.2
Fumbles–Lost6–35–1
Turnovers36
Penalties–Yards2–204–30
Source:[2][3]

Aftermath

Oklahoma climbed to fifth in the final AP poll. The Sooners returned to the Fiesta Bowl six years later; through 2020, this is Wyoming's only appearance.

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References
  1. "Oklahoma heavy favorite". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 25, 1976. p. 20.
  2. "Sooners give Wyoming a wishbone lesson". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. p. 3C.
  3. "Sooners – in a breeze". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 26, 1976. p. D2.
  4. "Oklahoma crushes Wyoming in Fiesta". Sunday Star-News. (Wilmington, North Carolina). UPI. December 26, 1976. p. 3C.
  5. "Injuries could be key". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. December 24, 1976. p. 11.
  6. "Wishbone attack to get workout from Fiesta clubs". Kingman Daily Miner. (Arizona). December 24, 1976. p. 10.
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 2, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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