2023 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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79th Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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Date | December 29, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
Season | 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
Stadium | EverBank Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
Location | Jacksonville, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||
MVP | Phil Mafah (RB, Clemson) Barion Brown (WR, Kentucky) [1] | ||||||||||||||||||
Favorite | Clemson by 6.5 [2] | ||||||||||||||||||
Referee | John Love (Pac-12) [3] | ||||||||||||||||||
Attendance | 40,132 | ||||||||||||||||||
United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||
Network | ESPN | ||||||||||||||||||
Announcers | Wes Durham, Tim Hasselbeck, Taylor Tannebaum [4] | ||||||||||||||||||
The 2023 Gator Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 29, 2023, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The 79th annual Gator Bowl featured Clemson from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and Kentucky from the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The game began at approximately 12:00 p.m. EST and was aired on ESPN. [5] [6] The Gator Bowl was one of the 2023–24 bowl games concluding the 2023 FBS football season. The game was sponsored by financial technology company TaxSlayer and was officially known as the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.
Consistent with conference tie-ins, the bowl featured the Clemson Tigers of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Kentucky Wildcats of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
This was the 14th meeting between Clemson and Kentucky; entering the game, the Wildcats led the Tigers in the all-time series, 8–5. This was also the fourth time the teams met in a bowl game; Clemson won two of their three prior bowl meetings, including their most recent postseason meeting, the 2009 Music City Bowl. [7]
On two occasions, Clemson and Kentucky competed in the same conference, playing together as members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (1896–1904 and 1912–1920) and the Southern Conference (1922–1932).
The Tigers entered the game with an 8–4 record (4–4 in the ACC), tied for sixth place in their conference and ranked 22nd in the College Football Playoff rankings.
This was Clemson's 10th Gator Bowl, setting a new mark for most appearances in the game. The Tigers were 4–5 in prior Gator Bowl appearances; they had most recently appeared in (and lost) the January 2009 edition.
The Wildcats entered the game with a 7–5 record (3–5 in the SEC), tied for fourth place in their conference's East Division.
This was Kentucky's third Gator Bowl; the Wildcats previously lost the December 2016 edition and won the January 2021 edition.
Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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No. 22 Clemson | 3 | 7 | 0 | 28 | 38 |
Kentucky | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
at EverBank Stadium • Jacksonville, Florida
Game information |
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First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
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Statistics | CLE | KEN |
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First downs | 24 | 12 |
Plays–yards | 80–367 | 51–398 |
Rushes–yards | 39–103 | 23–92 |
Passing yards | 264 | 306 |
Passing: comp–att–int | 30–41–1 | 16–28–2 |
Time of possession | 34:58 | 25:02 |
Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
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Clemson | Passing | Cade Klubnik | 30/41, 264 yards, 1 INT |
Rushing | Phil Mafah | 11 carries, 71 yards, 4 TDs | |
Receiving | Jake Briningstool | 9 receptions, 91 yards | |
Kentucky | Passing | Devin Leary | 16/28, 306 yds, 2TDs, 2 INTs |
Rushing | Ray Davis | 13 carries, 63 yards, 1 TD | |
Receiving | Barion Brown | 3 receptions, 100 yards, 1 TD |
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game held in Jacksonville, Florida, usually contested on or around New Year's Day. It has been held continuously since 1946, making it the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first televised nationally. The game was originally played at Gator Bowl Stadium through the December 1993 game. The December 1994 game was played at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville after the namesake stadium was demolished to make way for a replacement venue, Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. That venue, now known as EverBank Stadium, has been home to the Gator Bowl since the January 1996 game.
The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC) They play their home games on Steve Spurrier-Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the university's Gainesville campus.
The Kentucky Wildcats football program represents the University of Kentucky in the sport of American football. The Wildcats compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Wildcats play their home games at Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky and are led by head coach Mark Stoops.
The 2013 TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game held on January 1, 2013, at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida in the United States. The 68th edition of the Gator Bowl began at noon EST and aired on ESPN2. It featured the Mississippi State Bulldogs from the Southeastern Conference (SEC) against the Northwestern Wildcats from the Big Ten Conference and was the final game of the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season for both teams. The Bulldogs accepted their bowl bid after an 8–4 regular season, while the Wildcats accepted theirs after a 9–3 finish. It was the first time that the two teams had met. Northwestern won the game by a score of 34 – 20.
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The Florida–Kentucky rivalry is a college sports rivalry between the University of Florida Gators and the University of Kentucky Wildcats. The rivalry between these schools, both founding members of the Southeastern Conference, has existed since before the conference's founding. Both teams are historic basketball rivals, both winning multiple national championships and conference championships over the past 100 years. In recent years, the football rivalry between Kentucky and Florida has escalated due to Kentucky breaking a streak of 31 consecutive years where the Florida Gators had beaten them. Despite the lopsidedness of the football series, Kentucky has won four of the last six games between the two.
The 2019 Orange Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 30, 2019, with kickoff at 8:10 p.m. EST on ESPN. It was the 86th edition of the Orange Bowl, and one of the 2019–20 bowl games concluding the 2019 FBS football season. Sponsored by the Capital One Financial Corporation, the game was officially known as the Capital One Orange Bowl.
The 2020 Gator Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 2, 2020, with kickoff at 7:00 p.m. EST on ESPN. It was the 75th edition of the Gator Bowl, and was one of the 2019–20 bowl games concluding the 2019 FBS football season. Sponsored by financial technology company TaxSlayer, the game was officially known as the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.
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The 2021 Gator Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 2, 2021, with kickoff at noon EST on ESPN. It was the 76th edition of the Gator Bowl, and was one of the 2020–21 bowl games concluding the 2020 FBS football season. Sponsored by financial technology company TaxSlayer, the game was officially known as the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. Kentucky would go on to win the Taxslayer Gator Bowl against North Carolina State 23-21. This was Kentucky's third straight bowl victory following the 2019 Citrus Bowl and the 2019 Belk Bowl. The last time the Kentucky football program won three straight bowl games was 2006 to 2008, winning back-to-back Music City Bowls and Liberty Bowl.
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The 2021 Gator Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 31, 2021, with kickoff at 11:00 a.m. EST and televised on ESPN. It was the 77th edition of the Gator Bowl, and was one of the 2021–22 bowl games concluding the 2021 FBS football season. Sponsored by financial technology company TaxSlayer, the game was officially known as the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.
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