In their fourteenth season under head coach Johnny Vaught, the Rebels compiled a 10–0–1 record and won their fourth Southeastern Conference (SEC) championship.
The final AP poll of November 29 was one of the closest ever: Minnesota with 17½ first-place votes, Mississippi 16, and Iowa 12½.
Students made “AP” and “UPI” dummies, hung them from the Union Building, and burned them while chanting, “We’re No.
Quarterback Jake Gibbs was voted the game's MVP by scoring two rushing touchdowns.
After the New Year's Day bowl games, the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) voted Mississippi as national champions and awarded them the Grantland Rice Trophy.