2018 Peach Bowl (December)

2018 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
2018 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
CFP New Year's Six; 51st Peach Bowl
	Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, hosted the Peach Bowl.
Florida Gators	Michigan Wolverines
(9–3)	(10–2)
SEC	Big Ten
41	15
Head coach: ; Dan Mullen	Head coach: ; Jim Harbaugh
Date	December 29, 2018
Season	2018
Stadium	Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Location	Atlanta, Georgia
MVP	Feleipe Franks (QB, Florida); C. J. Gardner-Johnson (DB, Florida)
Favorite	Michigan by 7.5
Referee	Mike Defee (Big 12)
Attendance	74,006
Payout	US$4 million to each team
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN and ESPN Radio
Announcers	Bob Wischusen (play-by-play); Brock Huard (analyst); Allison Williams (sideline) (ESPN); Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers and Cole Cubelic (ESPN Radio)
Nielsen ratings	5.3
International TV coverage
Network	ESPN Deportes
Announcers	Roger Valdivieso; Alex Pombo
Peach Bowl
← 2018 (Jan.)	2019 →

Last updated January 02, 2026

The 2018 Peach Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 29, 2018. It was the 51st edition of the Peach Bowl, and the second Peach Bowl to be played in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The game was one of the College Football Playoff New Year's Six bowl games, and one of the 2018–19 bowl games concluding the 2018 FBS football season. Sponsored by the Chick-fil-A restaurant franchise, the game was officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.

The game featured the Florida Gators of the Southeastern Conference and the Michigan Wolverines of the Big Ten Conference. Going in to the bowl, Florida was the highest-ranked team that did not appear in the preseason AP top 25 poll. Michigan's defense had given up an average of 263 yards per game, the best in the nation.^[6]

Teams

The game featured the Florida Gators of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and the Michigan Wolverines of the Big Ten Conference in their fifth meeting against each other.^[7] Michigan had won each of its prior games against Florida, most recently in the 2017 Advocare Classic by a score of 33–17.^[8]

Florida Gators

After finishing their regular season with a 9–3 record (5–3 in conference), the Gators were selected to their third Peach Bowl appearance. This was their 44th bowl game appearance.^[9]

Michigan Wolverines

After finishing their regular season with a 10–2 record (8–1 in conference), the Wolverines were selected to their first Peach Bowl appearance. This was their 47th bowl game appearance, tied for 11th-highest total all-time among FBS schools.^[10] Several Michigan players, including RB Karan Higdon, DL Rashan Gary, and LB Devin Bush Jr., sat out the game in order to focus on the 2019 NFL draft.^[11]

Game summary

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	FLA	MICH
1	5:37	10	71	3:52	FLA	21-yard field goal by Evan McPherson	3	0
1	2:03	9	75	3:34	MICH	Donovan Peoples-Jones 9-yard touchdown reception from Shea Patterson, Jake Moody kick good	3	7
2	12:22	10	66	4:41	FLA	26-yard field goal by Evan McPherson	6	7
2	5:56	4	0	1:58	MICH	48-yard field goal by Jake Moody	6	10
2	2:41	8	75	3:15	FLA	Feleipe Franks 20-yard touchdown run, Evan McPherson kick good	13	10
3	8:06	6	44	2:43	FLA	La’Mical Perine 5-yard touchdown reception from Feleipe Franks, Evan McPherson kick good	20	10
3	2:34	8	63	4:07	FLA	Jordan Scarlett 1-yard touchdown run, Evan McPherson kick good	27	10
4	12:16	11	67	5:18	MICH	26-yard field goal by Jake Moody	27	13
4	9:21	6	75	2:55	FLA	La’Mical Perine 53-yard touchdown run, Evan McPherson kick good	34	13
4	4:58				MICH	Punt blocked through the back of the end zone, safety	34	15
4	4:43				FLA	Interception returned 30 yards for touchdown by C. J. Gardner-Johnson, Evan McPherson kick good	41	15
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							41	15

Statistics

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 10 Gators	3	10	14	14	41
No. 7 Wolverines	7	3	0	5	15

Statistics	FLA	MICH
First downs	15	18
Plays–yards	64–427	67–326
Rushes–yards	40–257	30–77
Passing yards	170	249
Passing: comp–att–int	14–24–0	23–37–2
Time of possession	31:19	28:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Florida	Passing	Feleipe Franks	13/23, 173 yds, 1 TD
	Rushing	La'Mical Perine	6 rec, 76 yds, 1 TD
	Receiving	Van Jefferson	4 rec, 64 yds
Michigan	Passing	Shea Patterson	22/36, 236 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Christian Turner	7 car, 32 yds
	Receiving	Nico Collins	5 rec, 80 yds

Note: 74,006 was the officially announced attendance figure;^[3] "turnstile count" subsequently reported as 68,413.^[12]

References

↑ Thompson, Edgar (December 29, 2018). "Gators smash Michigan in Peach Bowl, cap Dan Mullen's elite debut season". Orlando Sentinel . Retrieved December 29, 2018.
↑ Fawkes, Ben (December 3, 2018). "Odds for every 2018-19 CFB bowl game". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
1 2 @CourtneyWESH2 (December 29, 2018). "Official Attendance: 74,006" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2018– via Twitter.
↑ Dosh, Kristi (January 1, 2018). "How College Football Playoff's Payouts Compare With BCS's: A Conference-By-Conference Breakdown". Forbes. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
↑ Volner, Derek (December 30, 2018). "College Football Playoff Semifinals Continue to Deliver Strong Ratings for ESPN; Rank among Top Cable Presentations of the Year". espnmediazone.com. ESPN MediaZone. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
↑ Mather, Victor (December 4, 2018). "From Roses to Cheez-Its, Your Guide to All 40 College Football Bowls". The New York Times. Retrieved December 27, 2018.
↑ "Florida Gators vs. Michigan Wolverines football series history games list". Winsipedia. Retrieved November 27, 2024.
↑ "2017: Michigan vs. Florida". advocareclassicfootball.com. September 2, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
↑ Carter, Scott (December 2, 2018). "Gators Get Peachy Rematch with Michigan". floridagators.com. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
↑ Ablauf, Dave; Shepard, Chad (December 2, 2018). "Michigan Matched Up Against Florida in Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Dec. 29". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
↑ Hayes, David (December 29, 2018). "Michigan Players Skipping Citrus Bowl Game Showing Clear Impact". fanduel.com. Retrieved December 29, 2018.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
↑ Tucker, Tim (February 25, 2019). "Falcons, other events at Mercedes-Benz draw smaller crowds than announced". Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Retrieved February 25, 2019.

External links

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[1] Thompson, Edgar (December 29, 2018). "Gators smash Michigan in Peach Bowl, cap Dan Mullen's elite debut season". Orlando Sentinel . Retrieved December 29, 2018.

[2] Fawkes, Ben (December 3, 2018). "Odds for every 2018-19 CFB bowl game". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.

[attend-3] 1 2 @CourtneyWESH2 (December 29, 2018). "Official Attendance: 74,006" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2018– via Twitter.

[4] Dosh, Kristi (January 1, 2018). "How College Football Playoff's Payouts Compare With BCS's: A Conference-By-Conference Breakdown". Forbes. Retrieved January 1, 2019.

[5] Volner, Derek (December 30, 2018). "College Football Playoff Semifinals Continue to Deliver Strong Ratings for ESPN; Rank among Top Cable Presentations of the Year". espnmediazone.com. ESPN MediaZone. Retrieved January 18, 2019.

[6] Mather, Victor (December 4, 2018). "From Roses to Cheez-Its, Your Guide to All 40 College Football Bowls". The New York Times. Retrieved December 27, 2018.

[y111-7] "Florida Gators vs. Michigan Wolverines football series history games list". Winsipedia. Retrieved November 27, 2024.

[8] "2017: Michigan vs. Florida". advocareclassicfootball.com. September 2, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2018.

[9] Carter, Scott (December 2, 2018). "Gators Get Peachy Rematch with Michigan". floridagators.com. Retrieved December 2, 2018.

[10] Ablauf, Dave; Shepard, Chad (December 2, 2018). "Michigan Matched Up Against Florida in Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Dec. 29". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved December 2, 2018.

[11] Hayes, David (December 29, 2018). "Michigan Players Skipping Citrus Bowl Game Showing Clear Impact". fanduel.com. Retrieved December 29, 2018.^{[ permanent dead link ]}

[12] Tucker, Tim (February 25, 2019). "Falcons, other events at Mercedes-Benz draw smaller crowds than announced". Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Retrieved February 25, 2019.

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v t e 2018–19 NCAA football bowl game season
Celebration (Dec. 15) Cure (Dec. 15) New Mexico (Dec. 15) Las Vegas (Dec. 15) Camellia (Dec. 15) New Orleans (Dec. 15) Boca Raton (Dec. 18) Frisco (Dec. 19) Gasparilla (Dec. 20) Bahamas (Dec. 21) Famous Idaho Potato (Dec. 21) Birmingham (Dec. 22) Armed Forces (Dec. 22) Dollar General (Dec. 22) Hawaii (Dec. 22) First Responder (Dec. 26) Quick Lane (Dec. 26) Cheez-It (Dec. 26) Independence (Dec. 27) Pinstripe (Dec. 27) Texas (Dec. 27) Music City (Dec. 28) Camping World (Dec. 28) Alamo (Dec. 28) Peach (Dec. 29) Belk (Dec. 29) Arizona (Dec. 29) Military (Dec. 31) Sun (Dec. 31) Redbox (Dec. 31) Liberty (Dec. 31) Gator (Dec. 31) Holiday (Dec. 31) Outback (Jan. 1) Citrus (Jan. 1) Fiesta (Jan. 1) Rose (Jan. 1) Sugar (Jan. 1)
College Football Playoff games: Cotton (Dec. 29) Orange (Dec. 29) National Championship Game (Jan. 7)
All-Star Games East–West Shrine Game (Jan. 19) NFLPA Collegiate Bowl (Jan. 19) Senior Bowl (Jan. 26)

v t e Peach Bowl
Known as the Chick-fil-A Bowl from 2006–2013
History & conference tie-ins	History Bobby Dodd Stadium Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Georgia Dome Mercedes-Benz Stadium College Football Playoff New Year's Six
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