# 1941–42 NCAA football bowl games

The 1941–42 NCAA football bowl games were the final games of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 1941 college football season and featured five bowl games, each of which had been held the previous season. All five bowls were played on January 1, 1942. Minnesota was the consensus selection for the national championship, according to recognized selectors.$^{:112}$

## Poll rankings

The below table lists top teams (per the AP poll taken after the completion of the regular season), their win–loss records (prior to bowl games), and the bowls they later played in.
| AP | Team | W–L | Conf. | Bowl |
| 1 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | 8–0 | Big Ten | — † |
| 2 | Duke Blue Devils | 9–0 | Southern | Rose Bowl |
| 3 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | 8–0–1 | Ind. | — |
| 4 | Texas Longhorns | 7–1–1 | SWC | — |
| 5 | Michigan Wolverines | 6–1–1 | Big Ten | — † |
| 6 | Fordham Rams | 7–1 | Ind. | Sugar Bowl |
| 7 | Missouri Tigers | 8–1 | Big Six | Sugar Bowl |
| 8 | Duquesne Dukes | 8–0 | Ind. | — |
| 9 | Texas A&M Aggies | 8–1 | SWC | Cotton Bowl Classic |
| 10 | Navy Midshipmen | 7–1–1 | Ind. | — |
| 11 | Northwestern Wildcats | 5–3 | Big Ten | — † |
| 12 | Oregon State Beavers | 7–2 | PCC | Rose Bowl |
| 13 | Ohio State | 6–1–1 | Big Ten | — † |
| 14 | Georgia Bulldogs | 8–1–1 | SEC | Orange Bowl |
| 15 | Penn Quakers | 7–1 | Ivy League | — |
| 16 | Mississippi State Maroons | 7–1–1 | SEC | — |
| 17 | Ole Miss Rebels | 6–2–1 | SEC | — |
| 18 | Tennessee Volunteers | 8–2 | SEC | — |
| 19 | Washington State Cougars | 6–3 | PCC | — |
| 20 | Alabama Crimson Tide | 8–2 | SEC | Cotton Bowl Classic |
† The Big Ten Conference did not allow its members to participate in bowl games until the 1947 Rose Bowl.

## Bowl schedule

The Rose Bowl Game, traditionally held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, was moved to Durham, North Carolina, due to fears about an attack by the Empire of Japan on the West Coast of the United States following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The federal government prohibited large public gatherings on the West Coast for the duration of World War II; the first significant canceled event was the Rose Bowl Game scheduled for New Year's Day, 1942.
| Date | Game | Site | Teams | Affiliations | Results |
| Jan. 1 | Rose Bowl | Duke Stadium Durham, North Carolina | #12 Oregon State Beavers (7–2) #2 Duke Blue Devils (9–0) | PCC Southern | Oregon State 20 Duke 16 |
| Jan. 1 | Sugar Bowl | Tulane Stadium New Orleans, Louisiana | #6 Fordham Rams (7–1) #7 Missouri Tigers (8–1) | Independent Big Six | Fordham 2 Missouri 0 |
| Jan. 1 | Orange Bowl | Burdine Stadium Miami, Florida | #14 Georgia Bulldogs (8–1–1) TCU Horned Frogs (7–2–1) | SEC SWC | Georgia 40 TCU 26 |
| Jan. 1 | Sun Bowl | Kidd Field El Paso, Texas | Tulsa Golden Hurricane (7–2) Texas Tech Red Raiders (9–1) | Missouri Valley Border | Tulsa 6 Texas Tech 0 |
| Jan. 1 | Cotton Bowl Classic | Cotton Bowl Dallas, Texas | #20 Alabama Crimson Tide (8–2) #9 Texas A&M Aggies (7–1) | SEC SWC | Alabama 29 Texas A&M 21 |
Source:$^{:1184}$

### Conference performance in bowl games

| Conference | Games | Record | Record | Record | Bowls | Bowls |
| Conference | Games | W | L | Pct. | Won | Lost |
| SEC | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | Cotton, Orange | — |
| SWC | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 | — | Cotton, Orange |
| Independents | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Sugar | — |
| Missouri Valley | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Sun | — |
| Pacific Coast | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Rose | — |
| Big Six | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | Sugar |
| Border | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | Sun |
| Southern | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | — | Rose |