1992 Liberty Bowl Explained

Game Name:Liberty Bowl
Subheader:34th Liberty Bowl
Date Game Played:December 31
Year Game Played:1992
Football Season:1992
Visitor Name Short:Air Force
Visitor Nickname:Falcons
Visitor Record:7–4
Visitor 1Q:0
Visitor 2Q:0
Visitor 3Q:0
Visitor 4Q:0
Home Name Short:Ole Miss
Home Nickname:Rebels
Home Record:8–3
Home 1Q:7
Home 2Q:3
Home 3Q:0
Home 4Q:3
Mvp:Cassius Ware (LB, Ole Miss)
Home Rank Coaches:19
Home Rank Ap:20
Home Rank Bowlcoalition:19
Us Network:ESPN
Type:bg
Attendance:32,107

The 1992 Liberty Bowl was a college football postseason bowl game played on December 31, 1992, in Memphis, Tennessee. The 34th edition of the Liberty Bowl featured the Air Force Falcons and the Ole Miss Rebels.

Background

Air Force tied for fourth place in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) while Ole Miss finished in second place in the West Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). This was Air Force's fourth consecutive Liberty Bowl (due to the policy of the winner of Commander in Chief's Trophy having a bid into the game), and Ole Miss' first bowl game since 1991. This was the third time the two teams faced each other in a 10-year span.

Game summary

Dou Innocent gave the Rebels a 7–0 lead with 2:42 left in the first quarter. He finished the day with 65 yards on 17 carries. Brian Lee kicked two field goals from 24 and 29 yards out to make the final score 13–0 as Air Force was held to 185 yards of total offense. Russ Shows went 9-of-19 for 163 yards. Cassius Ware had 10 tackles and 2 sacks, in an MVP effort.[1]

Statistics

Statistics Air Force Ole Miss
First downs 14 13
Rushing yards104 168
Passing yards 81 163
Total yards 185 331
Passing C-A-I 10–17–2 9–19–0
Punts–average 7–33.0 5–20.2
Fumbles–lost 2–1 2–1
Penalties–yards 6–53 7–57

Aftermath

Neither team has returned to the Liberty Bowl since this game.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ole Miss Bowl History . https://web.archive.org/web/20160121220628/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ole/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2015-16/misc_non_event/OM_Bowl_History.pdf . 2016-01-21.