1961 Rice Owls football
Bluebonnet Bowl, L 7–33 vs. Kansas
ConferenceSouthwest Conference
Record7–4 (5–2 SWC)
Head coach
Home stadiumRice Stadium
1961 Southwest Conference football standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 3 Texas + 6 –1 –010 –1 –0
No. 9 Arkansas + 6 –1 –08 –3 –0
Rice 5 –2 –07 –4 –0
Texas A&M 3 –4 –04 –5 –1
TCU 2 –4 –13 –5 –2
Baylor 2 –5 –06 –5 –0
Texas Tech 2 –5 –04 –6 –0
SMU 1 –5 –12 –7 –1
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1961 Rice Owls football team represented Rice University during the 1961 NCAA University Division football season.[1] The Owls were led by 22nd-year head coach Jess Neely and played their home games at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas. They competed as members of the Southwest Conference, finishing in third. Rice finished the regular season with a record of 7–3. Their September 30th loss to Georgia Tech was the last time they were ranked in the AP Poll (#7) as Rice began to fade from the national spotlight in the 1960s. The Owls were invited to the 1961 Bluebonnet Bowl, played at their home Rice Stadium, where they were defeated by Kansas. Rice would not make another bowl game again until the 2006 New Orleans Bowl.

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 23No. 5 LSU*
W 16–373,000[2]
September 30at Georgia Tech*No. 7
L 0–2443,501[3]
October 14Florida*
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
W 19–1032,000[4]
October 21SMU
W 10–037,000
October 28at No. 3 Texas
L 7–3462,310[5]
November 4at Texas Tech
W 42–734,000
November 11Arkansas
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
L 0–10
November 18Texas A&M
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
W 21–7
November 25at TCU
W 35–16
December 2Baylor
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
W 26–1430,000
December 16vs. Kansas*
CBSL 7–3352,000
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

References

  1. ↑ "1960 Rice Owls Schedule and Results". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Cox' pass shoe stabs LSU, 16–3". The American-Statesman. September 24, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Yellow Jackets chill Rice, 24–0". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 1, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Owl pass thefts, power runs rip Florida by 19–10". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 14, 1961. Retrieved October 10, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Texas smears Rice, 34–7". The Tyler Courier-Times-Telegraph. October 29, 1961. Retrieved April 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.


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