1943 Orange Bowl , part of the 1942 bowl game season , took place on January 1 , 1943 , at the Orange Bowl in Miami , Florida . The competing teams were the Alabama Crimson Tide , representing the Southeastern Conference ( SEC ) and the Boston College Eagles , competing as a football independent . Alabama won the game 37 – 21 . The 1942 Alabama squad finished the regular season 8 – 3 with losses coming to the Georgia Bulldogs , Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Georgia Navy Pre-Flight ( an all-star team of military personnel ) . The Monday following the 35 – 19 defeat against Georgia Navy Pre-Flight , Alabama accepted a bid to play in the Orange Bowl on New Years Day . The appearance marked the first for Alabama in the Orange Bowl , and their seventh overall
football independent
NCAA Division I FBS independent schools
1943 Orange Bowl