By a vote of its players in mid-November, second-ranked Penn State (10–0) opted to return to the Orange Bowl,[5][6] and faced #6 Missouri (9–1).

Penn State had several black players and wished to avoid Dallas due to segregation issues.

Notre Dame scored the first ten points; a Scott Hempel made a short field goal in the first quarter and Joe Theismann threw a 54-yard touchdown pass to Tom Gatewood early in the second.

After the Irish kickoff, Texas went on a 74-yard drive that culminated with a one-yard Jim Bertelsen touchdown run that made the score 10–7 at halftime.

Longhorn Ted Koy culminated a 77-yard drive with his touchdown run with ten minutes remaining to give Texas a 14–10 advantage.