The 1959 Georgia Bulldogs football team represented the University of Georgia as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1959 college football season. Led by 21st-year head coach Wally Butts, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 10–1 with a mark of 7–0 in conference play, and finished as SEC champion.[1]
| 1959 Georgia Bulldogs football | |
|---|---|
SEC champion Orange Bowl champion | |
Orange Bowl, W 14–0 vs. Missouri | |
| Conference | Southeastern Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 5 |
| AP | No. 5 |
| Record | 10–1 (7–0 SEC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | Sanford Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 Georgia $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 LSU | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 Ole Miss # | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 Alabama | 4 | – | 1 | – | 2 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Auburn | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vanderbilt | 3 | – | 2 | – | 2 | 5 | – | 3 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia Tech | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tennessee | 3 | – | 4 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 19 Florida | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kentucky | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tulane | 0 | – | 5 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mississippi State | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Bulldogs won nine games in the regular season and lost only once, an early-season non-conference loss to South Carolina. Georgia's perfect conference record of 7–0, combined with conference losses by pre-season favorites LSU and Ole Miss, was enough to give the Bulldogs the Southeastern Conference championship. They also earned a trip to the Orange Bowl, where they defeated Missouri 14–0.
The highlight of the regular season was a come-from-behind win over Auburn to clinch the championship. Trailing the Tigers 13–7 with less than 40 seconds left in the game, The Bulldogs scored on a fourth-down fourteen-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Fran Tarkenton to End Bill Herron. Kicker Durward Pennington converted the extra point and Georgia won the game by a score of 14–13.
Schedule
edit| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 19 | Alabama | W 17–3 | 40,000 | [2] | |||
| September 26 | Vanderbilt | No. 17 |
| W 21–6 | 31,000 | [3] | |
| October 3 | at No. 16 South Carolina* | No. 13 | L 14–30 | 27,000 | [4] | ||
| October 10 | Hardin–Simmons* |
| W 35–6 | 25,000 | [5] | ||
| October 17 | vs. Mississippi State | W 15–0 | 25,000 | [6] | |||
| October 24 | at Kentucky | W 14–7 | 25,000 | [7] | |||
| October 31 | Florida State* | No. 14 |
| W 42–0 | 30,000 | [8] | |
| November 7 | vs. Florida | No. 11 | W 21–10 | 40,000 | [9] | ||
| November 14 | No. 8 Auburn | No. 12 |
| W 14–13 | 50,000 | [10] | |
| November 28 | at Georgia Tech | No. 6 |
| W 21–14 | 44,000 | [11] | |
| January 1, 1960 | vs. No. 18 Missouri* | No. 5 | CBS | W 14–0 | 75,280 | [12] | |
| |||||||
Roster
edit- QB Fran Tarkenton, Jr.
- G Pat Dye Jr.
- HB Fred Brown Jr.
- HB/P Bobby Walden Jr.-
- K Durward Pennington Soph.
- FB Bill Godfrey Soph.
- E Jimmy Vickers
- E Aaron Box
- E Bill Herron
- QB Charley Britt Sr.
- C 'Dude' Thompson Sr.
- Fred Farah Sr.
- G Billy Roland
- HB Don Soberdash Sr. (Team Captain)
References
edit- ^ "1959 Georgia Bulldogs Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 8, 2023.
- ^ "Georgia slams Alabama, 17–3". The Macon Telegraph & News. September 20, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia rambles over Vanderbilt Commodores, 21–6". The Selma Times-Journal. September 27, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "South Carolina surprises Georgia". The Spokesman-Review. October 4, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia gets victory over HSU, 35–6". San Angelo Standard-Times. October 11, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia wins, 15–0". The Atlanta Journal. October 18, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia downs Kentucky 14–7". The Paducah Sun. October 25, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia's power game too much for FSU, 42–0". Pensacola News Journal. November 1, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia whips Florida, 21–10". Fort Lauderdale News. November 8, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia upsets Auburn, 14–13". The Honolulu Advertiser. November 15, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Georgia tumbles Tech, takes Orange Bowl bid". Chattanooga Sunday Times. November 29, 1959. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Missouri moves ball better, but Georgia passes to victory". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. January 2, 1960. Retrieved October 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "1959 Football Schedule". GeorgiaDogs.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
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