| Game Name: | Gotham Bowl |
| Date Game Played: | December 9 |
| Year Game Played: | 1961 |
| Football Season: | 1961 |
| Home Name Short: | Baylor |
| Home Nickname: | Bears |
| Home Record: | 5–5 |
| Home 1Q: | 7 |
| Home 2Q: | 3 |
| Home 3Q: | 7 |
| Home 4Q: | 7 |
| Visitor Name Short: | Utah State |
| Visitor Nickname: | Aggies |
| Visitor Record: | 9–0–1 |
| Visitor Rank Ap: | 10 |
| Visitor Rank Coaches: | 10 |
| Visitor 1Q: | 0 |
| Visitor 2Q: | 0 |
| Visitor 3Q: | 3 |
| Visitor 4Q: | 6 |
| Mvp: | RB Ronnie Bull, Baylor |
| First Game Ever Played: | yes |
| Type: | bg |
| Referee: | David H. Buchanan |
| Attendance: | 15,123 |
The 1961 Gotham Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game between the Utah State Aggies and the Baylor Bears.
For the second straight year, the Aggies were champion of the Mountain States Conference. The Bears had finished tied for 6th in the Southwest Conference. Both teams were making bowl games for the 2nd straight year. This became the inaugural Gotham Bowl after attempts to invite schools such as Syracuse and Holy Cross to last year's game failed, leaving the bowl makers to cancel the game and wait for 1961.
Ronnie Bull scored on a 14-yard run to give the Bears a 7–0 lead as the first quarter expired, all set up by an Aggie fumble. Carl Choate added in a field goal later in the 2nd to make it 10–0 with 5:28 remaining in the half, which turned out to be the halftime lead. The Aggies narrowed the lead with a 36-yard field goal with 8:47 in the 3rd, but Don Trull increased the lead on a touchdown sneak with 1:22 remaining in the quarter to make it 17–3. Ted Plumb caught a 38-yard pass from Trull to make it 24–3 with 9:48 to go in the game. Munson made the final score 24–9 on his touchdown run, but by then there was only five minutes remaining as Baylor won their first bowl game since 1956. The Aggies turned the ball over eight times, while Don Trull threw 11-of-16 for 116 yards for the Bears. Bull rushed for 61 yards on 13 carries and caught 4 passes for 25 yards.[1] [2] [3]
The Aggies did not reach another bowl game again until 1993. As for the Bears, they next played in a bowl game two years later, in the Bluebonnet Bowl.
| Statistics | Baylor | Utah State |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 14 | 10 |
| Rushing yards | 113 | 153 |
| Passing yards | 153 | 41 |
| Passing (C–A–I) | 13–26–0 | 3–14–3 |
| Total yards | 266 | 194 |
| Punts–average | 6–31.0 | 5–36.6 |
| Fumbles–lost | 5–2 | 6–5 |
| Penalty–yards | 3–16 | 2–32 |