| Game Name: | Cotton Bowl Classic |
| Subheader: | 8th Cotton Bowl Classic |
| Date Game Played: | January 1 |
| Year Game Played: | 1944 |
| Football Season: | 1943 |
| Stadium: | Cotton Bowl |
| City: | Dallas, Texas |
| Visitor School: | Randolph Field |
| Visitor Name Short: | Randolph Field |
| Visitor Nickname: | Ramblers |
| Visitor Record: | 9–1 |
| Visitor Coach: | Frank Tritico |
| Visitor Conference: | Independent |
| Visitor 1Q: | 7 |
| Visitor 2Q: | 0 |
| Visitor 3Q: | 0 |
| Visitor 4Q: | 0 |
| Home School: | University of Texas |
| Home Name Short: | Texas |
| Home Nickname: | Longhorns |
| Home Record: | 7–1 |
| Home Rank Ap: | 14 |
| Home Coach: | Dana X. Bible |
| Home Conference: | SWC |
| Home 1Q: | 0 |
| Home 2Q: | 7 |
| Home 3Q: | 0 |
| Home 4Q: | 0 |
| Mvp: | Martin Ruby, T, Randolph Field Glenn Dobbs, QB, Randolph Field Joe Parker, E, Texas |
| Attendance: | 15,000 |
The 1944 Cotton Bowl Classic was a postseason college football bowl game between the fourteenth ranked Texas Longhorns and the Randolph Field Ramblers, a military institution squad from San Antonio, TX.[1]
Randolph boasted many former college football stars, most notably Tulsa's Glenn Dobbs, who had 1,867 all purpose yards for the year with 1,431 passing and 421 yards rushing. He was also their punter, with a 40.2 average per kick.
Martin Ruby became the first and only player to play on two different Cotton Bowl teams, having played in the 1942 Cotton Bowl Classic. He was named outstanding player in both games.
The game was played in a cold, steady rain described by Bible as the worst he had ever seen. Tex Aulds[2] scored for Randolph on a touchdown catch from Glenn Dobbs. But Texas rallied back with a George McCall touchdown catch from Ralph Ellsworth to tie the game. The game stayed that way due to defense that allowed 260 yards combined from both teams.[3]
| Statistics | Texas | Randolph |
|---|---|---|
| First Downs | 3 | 7 |
| Yards Rushing | 73 | 99 |
| Yards Passing | 37 | 51 |
| Total Yards | 110 | 150 |
| Punts-Average | 8-33.1 | 10-39.9 |
| Fumbles Lost | 1 | 1 |
| Penalties-Yards | 0-0 | 4-20 |
32,000 tickets were sold for the game but only 15,000 spectators came to the game because of the weather.[4]