The 1983 Cotton Bowl Classic was the 47th edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas, on Saturday, January 1. Part of the 1982–83 bowl game season, it matched the fourth-ranked SMU Mustangs of the Southwest Conference (SWC) and the #6 Pittsburgh Panthers, an independent. A slight underdog, SMU rallied in the fourth quarter to win, 7–3. The game featured SMU running back Eric Dickerson and Pittsburgh quarterback Dan Marino; both were first round picks in the 1983 NFL Draft and are members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.