The Wildcats had beaten Texas A&M, Miami and North Carolina State while tying Kentucky.
The Wolf Pack had beaten Tulsa, Wichita, Fresno State, and San Jose.
Nevada quarterback Stan Heath and fullback Sherman Howard both fell prey to injury before the first half ended, with Villanova scoring twice in that span, with Nevada fumbling the ball on the goal line at one point in the 2nd quarter.
[1][2] The Wolf Pack did not return to a bowl game for 43 years, until 1992 when they were invited to the Las Vegas Bowl due to winning the Big West Conference in their first season of Division I-A play.
It took four more years for the Wolf Pack to win a bowl game, which ended a 48-year drought.