Wikipedia

1961 Ole Miss Rebels football team

The 1961 Ole Miss Rebels football team was an American football team that represented the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1961 college football season. In their 15th year under head coach Johnny Vaught, the Rebels complied a 9–2 record (5–1 in conference games), finished third in the SEC, shut out five opponents, and outscored all opponents by a total of 326 to 40. The Rebels finished the season ranked No. 5 in both the AP writers poll and UPI coaches poll and lost to No. 3 Texas, 12–7, in the 1962 Cotton Bowl. Having won national championships in 1959 and 1960, Ole Miss was favored in every game throughout the 1961 season.

1961 Ole Miss Rebels football
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 5
APNo. 5
Record9–2 (5–1 SEC)
Head coach
Home stadiumHemingway Stadium
Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium
Seasons
← 1960
1962 →
1961 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Alabama + 7 – 0 – 0 11 – 0 – 0
No. 4 LSU + 6 – 0 – 0 10 – 1 – 0
No. 5 Ole Miss 5 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 0
No. 13 Georgia Tech 4 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Tennessee 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Florida 3 – 3 – 0 4 – 5 – 1
Auburn 3 – 4 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Kentucky 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Georgia 2 – 5 – 0 3 – 7 – 0
Mississippi State 1 – 5 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Tulane 1 – 5 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
Vanderbilt 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The team scored an average of 29.6 points and gained an average of 487.1 yards of total offense per game. On defense, they held opponents to 3.6 points and 161.4 yards per game. Fullback Billy Ray Adams led the team in rushing (575 yards) and was a first-team pick on the 1961 All-America college football team. Quarterback Doug Elmore led the team in total offense (1,086 yards) and was seleted as a first-team All-American by the Central Press.

The team played its home games at Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi.

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 23Arkansas*No. 9
W 16–046,000[1]
September 30at KentuckyNo. 2
W 20–633,000[2]
October 7Florida State*No. 2
W 33–012,000[3]
October 14vs. Houston*No. 1
W 47–715,610[4]
October 21TulaneNo. 2
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Jackson, MS (rivalry)
W 41–040,000[5]
October 28at VanderbiltNo. 2
W 47–025,000[6]
November 4at No. 6 LSUNo. 2
L 7–1068,000[7]
November 11Chattanooga*No. 7
  • Hemingway Stadium
  • Oxford, MS
W 54–010,000[8]
November 18vs. TennesseeNo. 6
W 24–1032,428[9]
December 2at Mississippi StateNo. 5
W 37–734,500[10]
January 1vs. No. 3 Texas*No. 5
L 7–1275,000[11]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[12][13]

Statistics

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Quarterback Doug Elmore

The Rebels averaged 262.8 rushing yards and 224.3 passing yards per game. On defense, they gave up an average of only 89.3 rushing yards and 72.1 passing yards per game.[14]

The Rebels had three quarterbacks who had quarterback ratings over 147:

  • Glynn Griffing completed 46 of 91 passes (50.5%) for 785 yards with 10 touchdown passes, two interceptions and a 154.9 quarterback rating.
  • Doug Elmore completed 50 of 84 passes (59.5%) for 741 yards with six touchdowns, four interceptions, and a 147.7 quarterback rating. Elmore also tallied 345 rushing yards for a team-high total of 1,086 yard of total offense.
  • Perry Lee Dunn completed 13 of 27 passes (48.1%) for 301 yards with three touchdowns, two interceptions, and a 163.6 quarterback rating.

[14]

The Rebels also had ten backs who tallied at least 99 rushing yards. They were led by Billy Ray Adams (575 yards, 91 carries, 6.3 yards per carry), Doug Elmore (345 yards, 77 carries, 4.5 yards per carry), Buck Randall (200 yards, 48 carries, 4.2 yards per carry), Art Doty (182 yards, 35 carries, 5.2 yards per carry), and Perry Lee Dunn (175 yards, 39 carries, 4.5 yards per carry).[14]

The team also had ten players with at least 100 receiving yards. The group was led by Catfish Smith (14 receptions, 254 yards), Billy Ray Adams (11 receptions 198 yards), Wesley Sullivan (nine receptions, 163 yards), Willis Dabbs (seven receptions, 155 yards), and A.J. Holloway (14 receptions, 148 yards).[14]

Billy Ray Adams led the team in scoring with 54 points on nine touchdowns.[14]

Awards and honors

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Fullback Billy Ray Adams

Four Ole Miss players were recognized on the 1961 All-America college football team:

[15]

Six players were honored on the 1961 All-SEC football team: fullback Billy Ray Adams (AP-1 [halfback], UPI-1 [halfback]); tackle Jim Dunaway (AP-1, UPI-1); end Ralph Smith (AP-2, UPI-2); quarterback Doug Elmore (AP-2, UPI-2); guard Bookie Bolin (UPI-2); and guard Billy Ray Jones (AP-3, UPI-3).[16][17][18]

Personnel

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Players

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  • Billy Ray Adams, fullback, 210 pounds
  • Bookie Bolin, guard, 222 pounds
  • Jerry Brown, tackle, 226 pounds
  • Woody Dabbs, end, 200 pounds
  • Art Doty, halfback, 185 pounds
  • Jim Dunaway, tackle, 250 pounds
  • Doug Elmore, quarterback, 187 pounds
  • Glynn Griffing, quarterback
  • Louis Guy, halfback, 181 pounds
  • Whaley Hall, tackle
  • Billy Ray Jones, guard, 212 pounds
  • Walt Kinnebrew, halfback
  • Fred Lentjes, center, senior, 212 pounds
  • Sam Owen, guard
  • Richard Ross, center
  • Ralph Smith, end, 200 pounds

Coaches and administrators

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Johnny Vaught

References

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  1. ^ "Ole Miss rolls over touted Porkers, 16–0". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. September 24, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Ole Miss shoots down eager Wildcats, 20–6". The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. October 1, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Ole Miss scalps Seminoles, 33–0". The Clarion-Ledger. October 8, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Slow-starting Rebels smash Houston, 47–7". The Commercial Appeal. October 15, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Rebs mangle Tulane Greenies 41–0 for 5th straight victory". The Clarion-Ledger. October 22, 1961. Retrieved September 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Ole Miss smashes past Vandy, 47–0". The Huntsville Times. October 29, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "LSU does it again! Ole Miss goes down". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. November 5, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Ole Miss Rebs maul Chattanooga by 54–0". The Clarion-Ledger. November 12, 1961. Retrieved September 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Powerful Ole Miss belts Vols, 24–10". The Jackson Sun. 1961 [November 1912]. Retrieved April 13, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Rebs close out in power show". The Birmingham News. December 3, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Longhorn interceptions help kill Rebels, 12–7". The Clarion-Ledger. January 2, 1962. Retrieved April 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "1961 Ole Miss Rebels Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
  13. ^ DeLassus, David. "Mississippi Yearly Results: 1960–1964". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
  14. ^ a b c d e "1961 Ole Miss Rebels Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  15. ^ 1962 Ole Miss (University of Mississippi yearbook), p. 146.
  16. ^ "Trammell, Neighbors, Fracchia Picked From Bama To All-SEC". The Evening Independent. December 5, 1961.
  17. ^ "AP's All-SEC". The Monroe News-Star. December 5, 1961. p. 8. Retrieved June 8, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.  
  18. ^ "UPI All-Southeastern". The Delta Democrat-Times. November 29, 1961. p. 12. Retrieved June 8, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.  
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