IRVING, Texas – The American Athletic Conference has announced the pairings and destinations for its six bowl-eligible teams for college football’s 2023 Bowl Season.
SMU (11-2), which was ranked No. 24 in the final College Football Playoff rankings of the season after winning its first American Athletic Conference title Saturday, will face Boston College (6-6) in the Wasabi Fenway Bowl at historic Fenway Park in Boston.
SMU, which was the only FBS team to defeat a CFP-ranked opponent on the road in a conference championship game, will make its 21st bowl appearance. It will be the second time that SMU has been selected for the Fenway Bowl (the 2021 game was canceled) and the second meeting between the Mustangs and Eagles. SMU was a 31-29 winner against Boston College in the 1986 season..
Tulane (11-2) will make its 16th bowl appearance as the Green Wave plays in Bowl Season for the fifth time in six years when the Green Wave faces Virginia Tech (6-6) in the Military Bowl presented by GoBowling.com Dec. 28 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland. It will be Tulane’s first Military Bowl appearance and the 10th meeting between the Green Wave and Hokies in a series that traces its roots to 1956.
Memphis (9-3) will find familiar surroundings for its bowl destination as the Tigers meet Iowa State in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. The game will be a rematch of the 2017 Liberty Bowl, when the Tigers were edged by the Cyclones 21-20 in front of more than 57,000 fans. It will be the Tigers’ 14th bowl appearance.
UTSA (8-4) will kick off The American’s Bowl Season when the Roadrunners battle Marshall (6-6) in the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. UTSA will make its fifth bowl appearance in program history as the Roadrunners look for their first bowl victory. It will be the Roadrunner’ second appearance in the Frisco Bowl.
South Florida (6-6) returns to Bowl Season for the first time in five years as the Bulls battle former Big East Conference rival Syracuse (6-6) in the RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Florida. The Bulls are 8-2 all-time against the Orange and will face Syracuse in the postseason for the first time. South Florida will make its 11th appearance in a bowl game and its first since 2018.
Rice (6-6) will make its 14th bowl appearance and will play in Bowl Season for the second consecutive year when the Owls face Texas State (7-5) in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl Dec. 26 at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas. It will be the fifth meeting between the Owls and Bobcats and Rice’s first appearance in the First Responder Bowl.
AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE TEAMS IN BOWL SEASON
Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl | Dec. 19
Toyota Stadium | Frisco, Texas
Marshall (6-6) vs. UTSA (8-4), 9 p.m. ET
Television: ESPN
Series: Marshall leads, 2-1
Last Meeting: Nov. 17, 2018 (Marshall, 23-0)
RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl | Dec. 21
FAU Stadium | Boca Raton, Florida
Syracuse (6-6) vs. South Florida (6-6), 11 a.m. ET
Television: ESPN
Series: South Florida leads, 8-2
Last Meeting: Sept. 17, 2016 (South Florida, 45-20)
SERVPRO First Responder Bowl | Dec. 26
Gerald J. Ford Stadium | Dallas, Texas
Texas State (7-5) vs. Rice (6-6), 5:30 p.m.
Television: ESPN
Series: Tied, 2-2
Last Meeting: Sept. 26, 1987 (Rice, 38-28)
Military Bowl presented by GoBowling.com | Dec. 27
Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium | Annapolis, Md.
Virginia Tech (6-6) vs. Tulane (11-2), 2 p.m.
Television: ESPN
Series: Virginia Tech leads, 5-4
Last Meeting: Oct. 28, 1989 (Virginia Tech, 30-13)
Wasabi Fenway Bowl | Dec. 28
Fenway Park | Boston, Mass.
Boston College (6-6) vs. SMU (11-2), 11 a.m. ET
Television: ESPN
Series: SMU leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Oct. 4, 1986 (SMU, 31-29)
AutoZone Liberty Bowl | Dec. 29
Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium | Memphis, Tennessee
Iowa State (7-5) vs. Memphis (9-3), 3:30 p.m. ET
Television: ESPN
Series: Iowa State leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Dec. 30, 2017 (Iowa State, 21-20)
