The Las Vegas Bowl is an NCAA Division I FBS annual post-season college football bowl game held in the Las Vegas area. First played in 1992, the bowl was originally held at the 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada before moving to the 65,000-seat Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada in 2021. The bowl is owned and operated by ESPN Events.
James Chadwick Pennington is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. He played college football at Marshall University, where he won the Sammy Baugh Trophy, and was selected by the New York Jets in the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft. Pennington spent his first eight seasons with the Jets and was a member of the Miami Dolphins in his last three.
Byron Antron Leftwich is an American football coach and former quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. He played college football at Marshall University, where he twice received MAC Most Valuable Player honors, and was selected seventh overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2003 NFL Draft. Leftwich held a starting role with the Jaguars during his first four seasons and spent the remainder of his career as a backup for the Atlanta Falcons, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With the Steelers, he was member of the team that won Super Bowl XLIII.
The 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season, play of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I-A level, began in late summer 1997 and culminated with the major bowl games in early January 1998. The national championship was split for the third time in the 1990s. The Michigan Wolverines finished the season atop the AP Poll after completing a 12–0 campaign with a Big Ten Conference championship and a victory in the Rose Bowl over Washington State. The Nebraska Cornhuskers garnered the top ranking in the Coaches' Poll with a 13–0 record, a Big 12 Conference championship, and a win over Tennessee in the Orange Bowl. Michigan's Charles Woodson, who played primarily at cornerback, but also saw time on offense as a wide receiver and on special teams as a punt returner, won the Heisman Trophy, becoming the first primarily defensive player to win the award. The 1997 season was the third and final season in which the major bowl games were organized under the Bowl Alliance system. The Bowl Championship Series was instituted the following year.
The Western Michigan Broncos football program represents Western Michigan University in the Football Bowl Subdivision of Division I and the Mid-American Conference (MAC). Western Michigan has competed in football since 1906, when they played three games in their inaugural season. In 1927, WMU joined four other schools to form the Michigan Collegiate Conference. Western Michigan then moved to its present conference in 1948. Prior to 1939, Western Michigan's athletic teams were known as the Hilltoppers.
The Northern Illinois Huskies football team are a college football program representing Northern Illinois University (NIU) in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of college football. NIU football plays its home games at Huskie Stadium on the campus of the Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.
The Toledo Rockets football team is a college football program in Division I FBS, representing the University of Toledo. The Rockets compete in the Mid-American Conference. Toledo began playing football in 1917, although it did not field teams in 1931, and 1943–1945. Since the inception of the AP Poll in 1936 Toledo has finished in the Top 25 four times. Its highest finish came in 1970 when it ranked No. 12 after finishing 12–0–0. The University of Toledo has a 11–9 record in bowl games. The Rockets were the 2017 MAC champions. The team's head coach is Jason Candle.
Doug Chapman is a retired American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) who was drafted in the third round of the 2000 NFL draft, 88th overall, by the Minnesota Vikings where he played from 2000 to 2003 and with the San Diego Chargers in 2004. He is currently serving as the director of player development and senior analyst at Marshall.
The 1997 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented the Marshall University as a member of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by second-year head coach Bob Pruett, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 10–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, winning the MAC's East Division title. Marshall beat Toledo in MAC Championship Game to win the conference championship and then lost to Ole Miss in the Motor City Bowl.
The 2001 Motor City Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game part of 2001–02 NCAA football bowl games in which the Toledo Rockets of the MAC defeated the Cincinnati Bearcats of the Conference USA 23–16. It was played on December 29, 2001, at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan. This was the last Bowl game that was played in the Pontiac Silverdome.
The 1999 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University in the 1999 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Thundering Herd played their home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia, and competed in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The team was coached by fourth-year head coach Bob Pruett. Marshall became the second non-automatic qualifying team in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) era to finish the year ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll.
The Marshall Thundering Herd football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports program of Marshall University. The team represents the university as a member of the Sun Belt Conference East Division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, playing at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level.
The 2002 Motor City Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game between the Boston College Eagles and the Toledo Rockets on December 26, 2002, at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. Boston College scored touchdowns on its first six possessions and routed Toledo 51–25. It was the sixth time the Motor City Bowl had been played and the final game of the 2002 NCAA Division I FBS football season for both teams.
Anthony Robert Petersen is an American college football coach and former quarterback. He most recently was the offensive coordinator at the University of Illinois. Petersen played college football at Marshall, where he broke school records and won Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year award as a senior in 1987.
The 1997 UCLA Bruins football team represented the University of California, Los Angeles in the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. They played their home games at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California and were coached by Bob Toledo. It was Toledo's second season as the UCLA head coach. The Bruins finished 10–2 overall, and were Pacific-10 Conference co-champions with a 7–1 record. The Bruins were invited to play in the Cotton Bowl Classic against Texas A&M on January 1, 1998. Though the Bruins were down 16–7 at the half, Cade McNown, the offensive MVP of the game, led the team to a 29–23 victory. The team was ranked #5 in the final AP Poll and #5 in the final Coaches' Poll.
The 1999 Motor City Bowl was a National Collegiate Athletic Association bowl game in which the #11 Marshall Thundering Herd of the MAC defeated the BYU Cougars of the Mountain West Conference 21–3. It was played on December 27, 1999, at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan.
The 1998 MAC Championship Game was the second conference championship game of the Mid-American Conference, and was played on December 4, 1998, at Marshall Stadium, now known as Joan C. Edwards Stadium, in Huntington, West Virginia. The game featured a rematch of the 1997 game, between the East Division's Marshall Thundering Herd, and the West Division's Toledo Rockets. Marshall was heavily favored to win the game. Marshall defeated Toledo to claim their second consecutive conference title by a score of 23–17. During the game, Marshall starting quarterback Chad Pennington was hurt, and was replaced by Byron Leftwich.
The 1997 Motor City Bowl was the inaugural edition of the new college football bowl game, and was played at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan on December 26, 1997. The game featured the Marshall Thundering Herd of the MAC and the Ole Miss Rebels of the Southeastern Conference.
The 1998 Motor City Bowl matched the Marshall Thundering Herd and the Louisville Cardinals.
