The Cotton Bowl Classic is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium in Dallas before moving to Cowboys Stadium in nearby Arlington in 2010. Since 2014, the game has been sponsored by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and officially known as the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic; it was previously sponsored by Mobil (1989–1995) and Southwestern Bell Corporation/SBC Communications/AT&T (1997–2014).
John Franklin Broyles was an American college football player and coach, college athletics administrator, and broadcaster. He served as the head football coach for one season at the University of Missouri in 1957 and at the University of Arkansas from 1958 to 1976, compiling a career coaching record of 149–62–6. Broyles was also the athletic director at Arkansas from 1974 to 2007. His mark of 144–58–5 in 19 seasons at the helm of the Arkansas Razorbacks football gives him the most wins and the most coached games of any head coach in program history. With Arkansas, Broyles won seven Southwest Conference titles and his 1964 team was named a national champion by a number of selectors including the Football Writers Association of America.
The Liberty Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in late December or early January since 1959. For its first five years, it was played at Philadelphia Municipal Stadium in Philadelphia before being held at Atlantic City Convention Hall in 1964. Since 1965, the game has been held at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. Because of the scheduling of the bowl game near the end of the calendar year, no game was played during calendar years 2008 or 2015, while two games were played in calendar years 2010 and 2016.
The Duke’s Mayo Bowl is an annual college football bowl game that has been played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, since 2002. The game currently features a matchup between a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and a team from either the Southeastern Conference (SEC) or the Big Ten Conference. It was originally commissioned as the Queen City Bowl, but it has undergone several name changes since.
Bret Arnold Bielema is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a position he has held since the 2021 season. Bielema served as the head football coach at of the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 2006 to 2012, achieving a 68–24 record and taking them to three straight Rose Bowl Games, although they lost each time. He was the head football coach at University of Arkansas from 2013 to 2017, tallying a mark of 29–34. Bielema was an assistant coach in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons, in 2018 and 2019 with the New England Patriots and 2020 with the New York Giants.
The Arkansas Razorbacks football program represents the University of Arkansas in the sport of American football. The Razorbacks compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The program has one national championship awarded by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and Helms Athletic Foundation (HAF) in 1964, and one national championship awarded by the Rothman Foundation for the Analysis of Competitions and Tournaments in 1977. The school does not claim the 1977 title. Arkansas has won thirteen conference championships, includes 58 All-Americans amongst its list of players, and holds an all-time record of 736–531–40. Home games are played at stadiums on or near the two largest campuses of the University of Arkansas System: Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, and War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.
The Virginia Tech Hokies football team represents Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in the sport of American football. The Hokies compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They previously competed in the Big East. Their home games are played at Lane Stadium, located in Blacksburg, Virginia, with a seating capacity of over 65,000 fans. Lane Stadium is considered to be one of the loudest stadiums in the country, being voted number two in ESPN's 2007 "Top 20 Scariest Places to Play". It was also recognized in 2005 by Rivals.com as having the best home-field advantage in the country.
The Arkansas–Texas A&M football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Arkansas Razorbacks and Texas A&M Aggies, which started in 1903. Between 1992 and 2008, the schools did not play each other when Arkansas left the Southwest Conference to join the Southeastern Conference. The rivalry was renewed as a neutral-site out-of-conference contest in 2009; in 2012 it once again became a conference rivalry when Texas A&M also joined the Southeastern Conference. Arkansas leads the series 42–34–3.
The 1966 Cotton Bowl Classic was a post-season college football bowl game of the 1965 season with national championship implications between the Southwest Conference champion Arkansas Razorbacks and the LSU Tigers of the Southeastern Conference. With a scoreless second half at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, LSU defeated Arkansas 14–7 in front of 76,200 spectators on Saturday, January 1, 1966.
Justin James Fuente is a former American football coach and player. He was the head football coach at Virginia Tech from 2016 to 2021. He was the 2016 ACC Coach of the Year. Fuente was the head football coach at the University of Memphis from 2012 to 2015. He was an assistant at Texas Christian University from 2007 to 2011 and previously at Illinois State University from 2001 to 2006. Fuente attended the University of Oklahoma before transferring to Murray State University after his redshirt sophomore season. He played quarterback for both schools. Fuente played a single season with the Oklahoma Wranglers of the Arena Football League.
The 2014 Texas Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 29, 2014, at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. It was one of the 2014–15 bowl games that concluded the 2014 FBS football season. The ninth edition of the Texas Bowl, it featured the Arkansas Razorbacks of the Southeastern Conference and the Texas Longhorns of the Big 12 Conference. The game began at 8:00 p.m. CST (UTC−06:00) and aired on ESPN. Sponsored by dietary supplement company AdvoCare, it was officially known as the AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl. Arkansas defeated Texas, 31–7.
The 2016 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the University of Arkansas in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Razorbacks played their home games at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville and War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. Arkansas played as a member of the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by fourth-year head coach Bret Bielema. They finished the season 7–6, 3–5 in SEC play to finish in a tie for fifth place in the Western Division. They were invited to the Belk Bowl where they lost to Virginia Tech, in a game where the Razorbacks blew a 24-0 lead at halftime.
The 2016 Virginia Tech Hokies football team represented Virginia Tech in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hokies were led by first-year head coach, Justin Fuente and played their home games at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Virginia. Since 2004, Virginia Tech has played in the Atlantic Coast Conference and is currently in its Coastal Division.
Austin Allen is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks and was their starting quarterback from 2016 to 2017. He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2018.
The 2017 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the University of Arkansas in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Razorbacks played their home games at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas, with one home game at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. Arkansas played as a member of the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The team was captained by quarterback Austin Allen, defensive backs Santos Ramirez and Kevin Richardson II, and offensive lineman Frank Ragnow. The Razorbacks were led by fifth-year head coach Bret Bielema. Bielema was fired after the final game of the season.
Jeremy Sprinkle is an American football tight end who is a free agent. He played college football at Arkansas and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Jon Roger Brittenum was an American professional football player who was a quarterback for the San Diego Chargers in the American Football League (AFL) for one season in 1968. He earlier played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks.
The 2019 Belk Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 31, 2019, with kickoff at 12:00 p.m. EST on ESPN. It was the 18th edition of the Belk Bowl, and was one of the 2019–20 bowl games concluding the 2019 FBS football season. The game was sponsored by department store chain Belk.
The 2020–21 NCAA football bowl games were a series of post-season games scheduled to complete the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Team-competitive games began on December 21, 2020, and concluded with the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship played on January 11, 2021. Three all-star games followed, concluding with the 2021 Hula Bowl, played on January 31, 2021.
