By Ole Miss Athletics
Allen Leldon Green, 84, who made one of the most memorable kicks in Ole Miss football
history, died on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, at Manhattan Nursing and Rehab Center in Jackson,
Mississippi.
On Oct. 22, 1960, Green connected on a field goal as time expired in what appeared to have
lifted Ole Miss to a 10-7 win over Arkansas in a game played in Little Rock. However, the field
goal was nullified after referee Tommy Bell, later an NFL official, whistled the play dead
just before the snap, because, as Bell said, the crowd noise prevented some players from hearing
the signals.
After the official’s timeout, Bell put three seconds back on the clock and Green’s second attempt
was ruled good by Bell. Arkansas fans did not agree and thought the kick missed to the left. Ole
Miss fans were sure it was good, and quarterback Jake Gibbs, who was the holder for both
attempts, also said the kick had cleared inside the goalposts. Bell was quoted as saying, “If it
hadn’t been good, I wouldn’t have called it good.”
With the call being good, the victory continued Ole Miss on its path to an undefeated 10-0-1
season and a national championship as awarded by the Football Writers Association of America –
the Grantland Rice Award. The kick and the outcome on October 22 in Little Rock have been
recalled and discussed ever since that night in War Memorial Stadium.
Green was a letterman for the Rebels from 1958-60 on teams that participated in two Sugar
Bowls and a Gator Bowl and compiled a record of 29-3-1. During Green’s final season, he was
good on 19-of-22 extra point kicks and 4-of-6 field goals for 31 points. Green also played center
on the Rebels’ offensive line during his career.
Green was born on Feb. 15, 1938 in Hanceville, Alabama, to the late Onis Leldon Green and
Stella Day Green. He is survived by his wife, Leanna Green; 3 children, Cooper Alan Green
(Michelle), Elizabeth Nicole Frederickson (Steven) and Kimberly Kelly Anderson (Scott); 8
grandchildren, Anna Green, Allison Green, Cooper James Green, Alex Frederickson, Austin
Frederickson, Jessica Anderson, Kelly Anderson, Sadie Anderson and his sister, Connie Green-
Byrne.
Memorials may be made to University of Mississippi Athletics at 201 Coliseum Dr., University, MS 38677, or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at 262 DannyThomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
