Texas vs. Tennessee
Monday, January 1, 1951, Cotton Bowl Share
No. 9 Tennessee beat No. 5 Texas 20–14. It was their first meeting; after it, Tennessee led the series 1–0.
FinalAttendance 75,500Referee: Ray McCulloch (SWC; split crew: SWC, SEC)
MVPs Andy Kozar (Tennessee); Hank Lauricella (Tennessee); Horace Sherrod (Tennessee); Bud McFadin (Texas)Wikipedia
In the newspapers

Evening star, District of Columbia, January 2, 1951, page 10
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DALLAS, Tex, Jan. 2.-Tennessee smashed from behind to spoil Blair Cherry’s hopes of retiring as University of Texas football coach with Cotton Bowl champion. Playing the rock ‘em, sock ‘em type of football that has become their trademark, the Vols yesterday whipped over two touchdowns in the last period to lick the Longhorns, 20–14. Played to standstill in the first half and behind. 14–7, at the half. Tennessee’s bruising Andy Kozar smashed over for one touchdown shortly after the final period started and then climaXed a dramatte, desperate drive by the Vols that carried 43 yards, scoring the winning touchdown with 3 min utes to play from the 1-yard line. 1--WE just got beat” Cherry said afterward in the dressing room. In the aftermath of the 18th an nual Cotton Bowl he offered no excuses. $4,000 See Game. The best team we ran up against all season.” he said. A packed house of a few more than $4,000 fans sat through mist and rain and watched Tennessee shoot ahead less than eight min utes after the first period began. A brilliant, twisting 75-yard run by Eank Lauricella set the stage for the Vols score. Then, with the ball on the five-yard line, Hal Payne tried running three times. He netted only yard. On fourth devil. he pitched to John Gruble in the end zone and Pat Shires kicked the first of his two extra points. The Steers picked up the first of two second period touchdowns when Jim Lansford broke through to block Lauricella’s S punt and Don Cunningham recovered on the eight yard line. In four plays By ron Townsend Scored-from the flve-yard line and Ben Tompkins’ first of two extra points tied the score. Minutes later, Texas shot ahead, this time on. Tompkins’ 34-yard pass to Glib Dawson. Statistically the first half belonged to Texas, but when the final figuring was over the Vols

The Daily Alaska empire, January 2, 1951, page 6 (results column)
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ROUNDUP OF BOWL GAMES over today to let the Oklahoma Sooners plop their weary frames down on old upset bench. In an astounding round of New Years Day bowl reverses, three fa- vored teams bit the dust in bitter defeat-Oklahoma, California and Texas. The most astounding result came from the Sugar Bowl at New Or leans where the fighting Kentucky Wildcats clawed powerful Okla homa, 13 to ‘. This was the mighty Sooner outfit voted the nations No. l college team of 1850. Oklahoma was favored by six ard one-half points, but Bab Parilli and his Ken lucky mates couldn’t see it that way. Kentucky rated No. ‘ in the final AP poll. California Clouted Underdog Michigan rallied in the fourth period of the Rose Bowl at Pasadena to clout California. 14–6. Ever-tough Tennessee also punched across a pair of fourth-period touch downs to sink favored Texas in the Cotton Bowl at Dallas, 20–14. Cali fornia was favored by three points, Texas by seven. Two of the favored clubs among the five top games did the ex- pected, however. Clemson. one point choice over Miami, barely made the grade with 15-l4 verdict in the Orange Bowl at Miami. Wyo- ming’s Skyline conference cham pions, seven point favorite, blasted Washington and Lee, 20–7, in the Gator Bowl at Jacksonville, Fla. w. and L. had won the South ern conference title. Attendance Good A total of 435,323 witnessed II bowl games. Kentucky made it the end of the line for Oklahoma’s imposing string of 31 victories in a row modern college record. Oklahoma thus waited until the final curtain dropped on the 1850 season to join Notre Dame and Army, two other gridiron titans who saw great football records top pie during the fall Purdue socked the Irish, Oct. T, 28 to IA. This broke a record of 39 Notre Dame games without defeat. Ties with Army and Southern California were the only blotches on the mark. Army’s Record Navy ended Army’s record of 28 games without defeat, 14–2, month ago today. The Army string in- cluded two ties with Penn and Navy. Tackle Walt Yowarsky joined Parilli as the hero of the Kentucky victory when he recovered a first period tumble by Oklahoma’s Claude Arnold on the Sooner 23. Parilh passed on the next play for a touchdown to Wilbur Jamerson and the Wildcats were on their way before a sellout crowd of 82,000 Kentucky went ahead 13–0 in the second period when Parilli passed 51 yards to end Al Bruno on Okla homa’s one-foot line. Jamerson bucked across for this touchdown Oklahoma got back into the game in the final period. The Sooners traveled 80 yards, most of it on the running of Leon Heath and Billy Vessels. Arnold passed IT yards to halfback Merrill Green for the touchdown. Michigan Rallies Michigan, never scored on in two previous Rose Bowl frays, faced defeat until the final 10 minutes when California’s defenses collapsed before the days biggest throng- 98,939-at Pasadena. The Big Ten champions. with Chuck Ortmann in the drivers seat smashed 80 yards in their winning march Don Quick, who scored both Michigan touchdowns. crunched over the goal line on fourth down from the two-foot line Then Harry Allis booted the big conversion and Michigan went out in front. Jim Marines, who passed 39 yards to Bob Cummings in the second period for California’s score, gamb- led on fourth down after Michigan scored. His pass was broken up on the California 13. and three plays later Quick scored from the seven. Only three minutes remained when tiny Hank Lauricella of Ten nessee sparked the Vols winning touchdown over Texas before 75.349 at Dallas. Lauricella, who set up Tennessee’s first score with T5-yard gallop in the opening period. passed 26 yards to Bert Rechichar to set up the winning score. Andy Kozar, who counted Tennessee’s second touchdown earlier in the fourth period, romped 12 yards for the clincher. Other Games In other games, Miami of Ohio downed Arizona State of Tempe,
Public-domain newspapers from the Library of Congress’s Chronicling America, found through the American Stories dataset (Dell and Harvard, CC BY 4.0). The text is the machine reading of the page, mistakes and all.
Before kickoff
Our ratings going in
Our ratings (scores only)
Texas 56% to win. Tennessee pulled the upset.
The series
Every Texas–Tennessee gameTexas leads 3–1 in four meetings, counting the three since this game.
| 2026 | Texas 20, Tennessee 17 | |
| 1968 | Texas 36, Tennessee 13 | Cotton Bowl |
| 1952 | Texas 16, Tennessee 0 | Cotton Bowl |
| 1950 | Tennessee 20, Texas 14 | Cotton Bowl |
Around this game
Texas
- Next gamevs. KentuckySept. 22, 1951
- SeasonTexas in 1950
- ProgramTexas history and records
Tennessee
- Next gamevs. Mississippi StateSept. 29, 1951
- SeasonTennessee in 1950
- ProgramTennessee history and records

