| 1956 Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 29, 1956 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1956 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Gator Bowl Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Jacksonville, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | QB Wade Mitchell(Georgia Tech) QB Corny Salvaterra (Pittsburgh) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | John Coles (EAIFO; split crew: EAIFO,SEC) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 37,683 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The1956 Gator Bowl was an Americancollege footballbowl game played on December 29, 1956, atGator Bowl Stadium inJacksonville, Florida. The game pitted theGeorgia Tech Yellow Jackets and thePittsburgh Panthers.
Georgia Tech began the season ranked #4, and they started the season with six straight victories, rising to #2 heading into a faceoff with #3 Tennessee, but they lost 6-0. Victoires over Alabama, #13 Florida and Georgia gave them nine victories and an invite to a bowl game for the sixth straight year.
The Panthers began the season ranked #10, along with victories over West Virginia and #7 Syracuse. However, they fell to California 14-0. After victories over Duke and Oregon that made them ranked at #11, they lost to #8 Minnesota, which made them fall to #20. They went 3-0-1 in their final four games, beating Notre Dame, Army, and #6 Miami, while tying Penn State. This was their second straight bowl game.
Corny Salvaterra went 3-of-10 for 67 yards, with 16 rushes for 36 yards for Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh had more rushing yards (246 to 162), more passing yards (67 to 45), first downs (16 to 10), but also more turnovers (4 to 1) than Georgia Tech.[1]
The attendance for the game was 37,683.[2]
Georgia Tech did not return to a bowl game until 1960, which was also in the Gator Bowl.
As for Pittsburgh, they did not return to a bowl game again until1973, or return to the Gator Bowl until1977.
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