Citrus Bowl

This article is about the bowl game. For the stadium formerly named Florida Citrus Bowl, see Camping World Stadium.

For other bowl games with the same corporate sponsorship, see Cheez-It Bowl.

Citrus Bowl
Cheez-It Citrus Bowl
Stadium	Camping World Stadium
Location	Orlando, Florida
Temporary venue	Florida Field, Gainesville, Florida (1973)
Operated	1947–present
Conference tie-ins	Big Ten, SEC
Previous conference tie-ins	MAC (1968–1975) SoCon (1968–1972) ACC (1987–1991)
Payout	US$8,224,578 (2019 season) [1]
Sponsors
Florida Citrus Growers Association (1983–2002) CompUSA (1994–1999) Ourhouse.com (2000) Capital One (2001–2014) Buffalo Wild Wings (2015–2017) Overton's (2018) Vrbo (2019–2022) Cheez-It (2023–present)
Former names
Tangerine Bowl (1947–1982) [a] Florida Citrus Bowl (1983–1993) CompUSA Florida Citrus Bowl (1994–1999) Ourhouse.com Florida Citrus Bowl (2000) Capital One Florida Citrus Bowl (2001–2002) Capital One Bowl (2003–2014) Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl (2015–2017) Citrus Bowl presented by Overton's (2018) Vrbo Citrus Bowl (2019–2021)
2023 matchup
Iowa vs. Tennessee (Tennessee 35–0)
2024 matchup
South Carolina vs. Illinois (December 31, 2024)

The Citrus Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. ^[2] The bowl is operated by Florida Citrus Sports, a non-profit group that also organizes the Pop-Tarts Bowl and Florida Classic.

The game was first played as the Tangerine Bowl in 1947 before being renamed as the Florida Citrus Bowl in 1983. When Capital One was the game's title sponsor between 2001 and 2014, the game was referred to as the Capital One Bowl from 2003 to 2014. Other previous sponsors include CompUSA (1994–1999), Ourhouse.com (2000), Buffalo Wild Wings (2015–2017), Overton's (2018), and Vrbo (2019–2022). On November 15, 2022, Kellogg's (renamed Kellanova after the company spun off its North American cereal business in 2023 as WK Kellogg Co) signed on as title sponsor of the game, placing its Cheez-It brand of snack crackers in the title position. Accordingly, the game is officially named the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. ^[3]

Since the mid-1980s, the Citrus Bowl has drawn many high-ranked teams and is typically played at 1 p.m. EST on New Year's Day and broadcast nationally on ABC. When January 1 is a Sunday, the game has been played on January 2 or December 31, to avoid conflicting with the National Football League (NFL) schedule. As of 2019 ^[update] , it has the largest payout of all bowls other than those that are part of the College Football Playoff (CFP), at $8.55 million per team. ^[4] In nearly every year since 1985, the game has featured two teams ranked in the Top 25.

History

Tangerine Bowl (1947–1982)

The game, which began play in 1947, is one of the oldest of the non-CFP bowls, along with the Gator Bowl and Sun Bowl. By 1952, the game was dubbed the "Little Bowl with the Big Heart", because all the proceeds from the game went to charity. ^[5]

From 1964 through 1967, it was one of the four regional finals in the College Division (which became Division II and Division III in 1973), along with the Pecan, Grantland Rice, and Camellia bowls. In this capacity, the Tangerine Bowl sought to match the two best non-major teams in a 17-state Eastern Region stretching from New England to Florida.

In 1968, the Boardwalk Bowl in Atlantic City took over as the College Division Eastern regional final, and the Tangerine Bowl became a major college bowl game, featuring teams from the University Division (which became Division I in 1973).

The Tangerine Bowl name was used through the December 1982 game. The same name was re-used later, but for a bowl game with a different lineage.

Further information: Tangerine Bowl (2001–2003)

Florida Citrus Bowl (1983–2002)

In March 1983, the name of the game was changed from Tangerine Bowl to Florida Citrus Bowl, via a $1.25 million agreement with the Florida Citrus Commission; the bowl's organizing committee also changed its name from Tangerine Sports Association to Florida Citrus Sports Association. ^[6] A month earlier, organizers had rejected a proposal to rename the game to Grapefruit Bowl. ^[7]

In 1986, it was one of the bowl games considered for the site of the "winner take all" national championship game between Penn State and Miami, before the Fiesta Bowl was eventually chosen.

The January 1991 game had national championship implications for the 1990 season; Georgia Tech won the Florida Citrus Bowl, finished 11–0–1, and was voted the 1990 UPI national champion. That occurrence marks a rare example of a non-New Year's Six bowl game featuring a team later named national champion.

The January 1, 1998, game, which featured nearby Florida beating Penn State, holds the game's attendance record at 72,940.

Capital One Bowl (2003–2014)

Starting with the January 2003 edition, the bowl was renamed as the Capital One Bowl, with title sponsorship by Capital One.

In 2004, the bowl bid to become the fifth BCS game, but was not chosen, primarily due to the stadium's aging condition. In July 2007, the Orange County Commissioners voted in favor of spending $1.1 billion to build the Amway Center for the Orlando Magic, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, and to upgrade the Citrus Bowl stadium.

Following the January 2014 game, Capital One ceased its sponsorship of the bowl, and moved its sponsorship to the Orange Bowl. ^[8]

Citrus Bowl (2015–present)

Buffalo Wild Wings was announced as the new sponsor of the bowl game, which was renamed as Citrus Bowl, for the January 2015 edition. Buffalo Wild Wings had previously been the title sponsor of what had been the Insight Bowl. ^[9] In the offseason of 2017, Buffalo Wild Wings ceased sponsoring the bowl. Following sponsorship by Overton's (2018) and Vrbo (2019–2022), Kellogg's became the title sponsor in November 2022, via its Cheez-It brand. ^[10]

The 2016 season game was played on December 31, the first time in 30 years that the game was not played on January 1 or 2.

Conference tie-ins

From 1968 through 1975, the bowl featured the Mid-American Conference (MAC) champion against an opponent from the Southern Conference (1968–1971), the Southeastern Conference (SEC) (1973–1974), or an at-large opponent (1972, 1975). MAC teams were 6–2 during those games.

As the major football conferences relaxed restrictions on post-season play in the mid-1970s, the bowl went to a matchup between two at-large teams from major conferences, with one school typically (but not always) from the South.

From the 1987 season through the 1991 season, the bowl featured the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) champion against an at-large opponent. ACC teams were 3–2 during those games.

From the 1992 season through the 2015 season, the bowl featured an SEC vs. Big Ten matchup – the SEC won 14 of those games, while the Big Ten won 10.

During the 1990s, the second-place finisher in the SEC typically went to this bowl. Florida coach Steve Spurrier, speaking to the fact that Tennessee occupied that spot three of four years as Florida finished first, famously quipped "You can't spell 'Citrus' without U-T!" ^[11]

Currently, the bowl has tie-ins with the SEC and the Big Ten, holding the first selection after the CFP selection process for both conferences. Since the formation of the CFP, the Citrus Bowl has a chance to occasionally host an ACC team, replacing the Big Ten representative. This will happen the years in which the Orange Bowl is not a CFP semi-final game and selects a Big Ten team to match against their ACC team. This happened following the 2016 season, as the Orange Bowl was not a CFP semi-final and invited Michigan of the Big Ten to face Florida State of the ACC; the Citrus Bowl then invited Louisville of the ACC to face LSU of the SEC. ^[12] The next year, Wisconsin was invited to the Orange Bowl, so the SEC's LSU was pitted against Notre Dame, who received an invite in lieu of an ACC team.

Racial integration

The undefeated 1955 Hillsdale College football team refused an invitation to the January 1956 edition of the bowl when bowl officials insisted that Hillsdale's four African-American players would not be allowed to play in the game. ^{[13] [14]}

Further information: 1956 Tangerine Bowl

The University at Buffalo's first bowl bid was to the December 1958 edition. The Tangerine Bowl Commission hoped that the Orlando High School Athletic Association (OHSAA), which operated the stadium, would waive its rule that prohibited integrated sporting events. When it refused, the team unanimously voted to skip the bowl because its two black players (halfback Willie Evans and end Mike Wilson) would not have been allowed on the field. ^[15] Buffalo did not become bowl-eligible for another 50 years. During the 2008 season, when the Bulls were on the verge of bowl eligibility, the 1958 team was profiled on ESPN's Outside the Lines . ^{[16] [17]} The 2008 team went on to win the Mid-American Conference title, and played in the International Bowl.

Further information: 1958 Tangerine Bowl (December)

Eight years later, OHSAA's rule had been changed, and Morgan State of Baltimore, under head coach Earl Banks, became the first historically black college to play in (and win) a Tangerine Bowl. ^[18]

Further information: 1966 Tangerine Bowl

Gainesville

In early 1973, construction improvements were planned for the then 17,000-seat Tangerine Bowl stadium to expand to over 51,000 seats. In early summer 1973, however, construction was stalled due to legal concerns, and the improvements were delayed. Late in the 1973 season, Tangerine Bowl President Will Gieger and other officials planned to invite the Miami Redskins and the East Carolina Pirates to Orlando for the game. On November 19, 1973, East Carolina withdrew from bowl consideration when no invitation arrived before Thanksgiving break, ^[19] and the bowl was left with one at-large bid. In an unexpected and unprecedented move, game officials decided to invite the Florida Gators, and move the game to Florida Field in Gainesville, the Gators' home stadium. The larger stadium was needed to accommodate the large crowd expected. The move required special permission from the NCAA, and special accommodations were made. ^[20] Both teams were headquartered in Orlando for the week, and spent most of their time there, including practices, and were bused up to Gainesville.

The participants were greeted with an unexpected event, a near-record low temperature of 25 °F (−4 °C). Despite the home-field advantage, in the game nicknamed the "Transplant Bowl", ^[21] Miami, who found the cold much more to its liking, defeated the Gators, 16–7. One of the players on the victorious Redskins squad was future Gators coach Ron Zook.

The one-time moving of the game, and the fears of a permanent relocation, rejuvenated the stalled stadium renovations in Orlando. The game returned to Orlando for 1974, and within a couple of years, the expansion project was complete.

Mascot Challenge

The "Capital One Mascot Challenge" (formerly known as the "Capital One National Mascot of the Year") was a contest where fans voted for their favorite college mascot. The contest began in 2002 with the winner being named during the halftime; the winning school was awarded $20,000 towards their mascot program. With the ending of Capital One's sponsorship of the Citrus Bowl, the challenge was moved in 2014 to the Orange Bowl with Capital One's sponsorship of that game. The 2014 season was also the last time that the contest was held. ^[22]

List of Capital One Mascot Challenge winners
Season	Mascot	University
2002	Monte	University of Montana
2003	Cocky	University of South Carolina
2004	Monte	University of Montana
2005	Herbie Husker	University of Nebraska–Lincoln
2006	Butch T. Cougar	Washington State University
2007	Zippy	University of Akron
2008	Cy the Cardinal	Iowa State University
2009	The Bearcat	University of Cincinnati
2010	Big Blue	Old Dominion University
2011	Wolfie Jr.	University of Nevada, Reno
2012	Raider Red	Texas Tech University
2013	Rocky the Bull	University of South Florida
2014	Aubie	Auburn University

Game results

Rankings are based on the AP poll prior to the game being played. Italics denote a tie game.

No.	Date played	Game name	Winning team		Losing team		Attendance
1	January 1, 1947	Tangerine Bowl	Catawba	31	Maryville	6	9,000
2	January 1, 1948	Tangerine Bowl	Catawba	7	Marshall	0	9,000
3	January 1, 1949	Tangerine Bowl	Murray State 21, Sul Ross State 21				9,000
4	January 2, 1950	Tangerine Bowl	Saint Vincent	7	Emory and Henry	6	9,500
5	January 1, 1951	Tangerine Bowl	Morris Harvey	35	Emory and Henry	14	10,000
6	January 1, 1952	Tangerine Bowl	Stetson	35	Arkansas State	20	12,500
7	January 1, 1953	Tangerine Bowl	East Texas State	33	Tennessee Tech	0	12,340
8	January 1, 1954	Tangerine Bowl	Arkansas State 7, East Texas State 7				12,976
9	January 1, 1955	Tangerine Bowl	Omaha	7	Eastern Kentucky	6	12,759
10	January 2, 1956	Tangerine Bowl	Juniata 6, Missouri Valley 6				10,000
Teams competing from both NCAA College & University divisions
11	January 1, 1957	Tangerine Bowl	West Texas State	20	Mississippi Southern	13	11,000
12	January 1, 1958	Tangerine Bowl	East Texas State	10	Mississippi Southern	9	10,500
13	December 27, 1958	Tangerine Bowl	East Texas State	26	Missouri Valley	7	4,000
14	January 1, 1960	Tangerine Bowl	Middle Tennessee	21	Presbyterian	12	12,500
15	December 30, 1960	Tangerine Bowl	The Citadel	27	Tennessee Tech	0	13,000
16	December 29, 1961	Tangerine Bowl	Lamar Tech	21	Middle Tennessee	14	6,000
17	December 22, 1962	Tangerine Bowl	Houston	49	Miami (OH)	21	7,500
18	December 28, 1963	Tangerine Bowl	Western Kentucky	27	Coast Guard	0	7,500
NCAA College Division (Small College) East Regional Final
19	December 12, 1964	Tangerine Bowl	East Carolina	14	UMass	13	8,000
20	December 11, 1965	Tangerine Bowl	East Carolina	31	Maine	0	8,350
21	December 10, 1966	Tangerine Bowl	Morgan State	14	West Chester	6	7,138
22	December 16, 1967	Tangerine Bowl	Tennessee–Martin	25	West Chester	8	5,500
NCAA University Division (Major College)
23	December 27, 1968	Tangerine Bowl	Richmond	49	#15 Ohio	42	16,114
24	December 26, 1969	Tangerine Bowl	#20 Toledo	56	Davidson	33	16,311
25	December 28, 1970	Tangerine Bowl	#15 Toledo	40	William & Mary	12	15,664
26	December 28, 1971	Tangerine Bowl	#14 Toledo	28	Richmond	3	16,750
27	December 29, 1972	Tangerine Bowl	Tampa	21	Kent State	18	20,062
NCAA Division I
28	December 22, 1973	Tangerine Bowl	#15 Miami (OH)	16	Florida	7	37,234
29	December 21, 1974	Tangerine Bowl	#15 Miami (OH)	21	Georgia	10	20,246
30	December 20, 1975	Tangerine Bowl	#12 Miami (OH)	20	South Carolina	7	20,247
31	December 18, 1976	Tangerine Bowl	#14 Oklahoma State	49	BYU	21	37,812
32	December 23, 1977	Tangerine Bowl	#19 Florida State	40	Texas Tech	17	44,502
NCAA Division I-A
33	December 23, 1978	Tangerine Bowl	NC State	30	Pittsburgh	17	31,356
34	December 22, 1979	Tangerine Bowl	LSU	34	Wake Forest	10	38,666
35	December 20, 1980	Tangerine Bowl	Florida	35	Maryland	20	52,541
36	December 19, 1981	Tangerine Bowl	Missouri	19	#18 Southern Miss	17	50,045
37	December 18, 1982	Tangerine Bowl	#18 Auburn	33	Boston College	26	51,296
38	December 17, 1983	Florida Citrus Bowl	Tennessee	30	#16 Maryland	23	50,500
39	December 22, 1984	Florida Citrus Bowl	Georgia 17, #15 Florida State 17				51,821
40	December 28, 1985	Florida Citrus Bowl	#17 Ohio State	10	#9 BYU	7	50,920
41	January 1, 1987	Florida Citrus Bowl	#10 Auburn	16	USC	7	51,113
42	January 1, 1988	Florida Citrus Bowl	#14 Clemson	35	#20 Penn State	10	53,152
43	January 2, 1989	Florida Citrus Bowl	#9 Clemson	13	#10 Oklahoma	6	53,571
44	January 1, 1990	Florida Citrus Bowl	#11 Illinois	31	#16 Virginia	21	60,016
45	January 1, 1991	Florida Citrus Bowl	#2 Georgia Tech	45	#19 Nebraska	21	72,328
46	January 1, 1992	Florida Citrus Bowl	#14 California	37	#13 Clemson	13	64,192
47	January 1, 1993	Florida Citrus Bowl	#8 Georgia	21	#15 Ohio State	14	65,861
48	January 1, 1994	Florida Citrus Bowl	#13 Penn State	31	#6 Tennessee	13	72,456
49	January 2, 1995	Florida Citrus Bowl	#6 Alabama	24	#13 Ohio State	17	71,195
50	January 1, 1996	Florida Citrus Bowl	#3 Tennessee	20	#4 Ohio State	14	70,797
51	January 1, 1997	Florida Citrus Bowl	#9 Tennessee	48	#11 Northwestern	28	63,467
52	January 1, 1998	Florida Citrus Bowl	#6 Florida	21	#11 Penn State	6	72,940
53	January 1, 1999	Florida Citrus Bowl	#15 Michigan	45	#11 Arkansas	31	67,584
54	January 1, 2000	Florida Citrus Bowl	#9 Michigan State	37	#10 Florida	34	62,011
55	January 1, 2001	Florida Citrus Bowl	#17 Michigan	31	#20 Auburn	28	66,928
56	January 1, 2002	Florida Citrus Bowl	#8 Tennessee	45	#17 Michigan	17	59,653
57	January 1, 2003	Capital One Bowl	#19 Auburn	13	#10 Penn State	9	66,334
58	January 1, 2004	Capital One Bowl	#11 Georgia	34	#12 Purdue	27 (OT)	64,565
59	January 1, 2005	Capital One Bowl	#11 Iowa	30	#12 LSU	25	70,229
60	January 2, 2006	Capital One Bowl	#20 Wisconsin	24	#7 Auburn	10	57,221
NCAA Division I FBS
61	January 1, 2007	Capital One Bowl	#5 Wisconsin	17	#13 Arkansas	14	60,774
62	January 1, 2008	Capital One Bowl	Michigan	41	#12 Florida	35	69,748
63	January 1, 2009	Capital One Bowl	#15 Georgia	24	#18 Michigan State	12	59,681
64	January 1, 2010	Capital One Bowl	#11 Penn State	19	#15 LSU	17	63,025
65	January 1, 2011	Capital One Bowl	#16 Alabama	49	#9 Michigan State	7	61,519
66	January 2, 2012	Capital One Bowl	#9 South Carolina	30	#20 Nebraska	13	61,351
67	January 1, 2013	Capital One Bowl	#6 Georgia	45	#23 Nebraska	31	59,712
68	January 1, 2014	Capital One Bowl	#9 South Carolina	34	#19 Wisconsin	24	56,629
69	January 1, 2015	Citrus Bowl	#16 Missouri	33	#25 Minnesota	17	48,624
70	January 1, 2016	Citrus Bowl	#14 Michigan	41	#19 Florida	7	63,113
71	December 31, 2016	Citrus Bowl	#20 LSU	29	#13 Louisville	9	46,063
72	January 1, 2018	Citrus Bowl	#14 Notre Dame	21	#17 LSU	17	57,726
73	January 1, 2019	Citrus Bowl	#16 Kentucky	27	#13 Penn State	24	59,167
74	January 1, 2020	Citrus Bowl	#9 Alabama	35	#17 Michigan	16	59,746
75	January 1, 2021	Citrus Bowl	#15 Northwestern	35	Auburn	19	13,039
76	January 1, 2022	Citrus Bowl	#25 Kentucky	20	#17 Iowa	17	50,769
77	January 2, 2023	Citrus Bowl	#16 LSU	63	Purdue	7	42,791
78	January 1, 2024	Citrus Bowl	#25 Tennessee	35	#20 Iowa	0	43,861
79	December 31, 2024	Citrus Bowl	#14 South Carolina vs. #21 Illinois

Source: ^[23]

MVPs

Multiple players were recognized in some games – detail, where known, is denoted with B (outstanding back), L (outstanding lineman), O (outstanding offensive player), D (outstanding defensive player), or M (overall MVP) per contemporary newspaper reports.

Game MVP(s) Team Pos. Type Jan. 1949 Dale McDaniel Murray State HB Ted Scown Sul Ross State HB Jan. 1950 Don Henigin St. Vincent FB Chick Davis Emory & Henry QB Jan. 1951 Pete Anania Morris Harvey QB Charles Hubbard Morris Harvey E Jan. 1952 Bill Johnson Stetson QB Jan. 1953 Marvin Brown East Texas State HB Jan. 1954 Bobby Spann Arkansas State QB Jan. 1955 Bill Englehardt Omaha HB Jan. 1956 Barry Drexler Juniata E Jan. 1957 Ron Mills West Texas State HB Jan. 1958 Norman Roberts East Texas State E Dec. 1958 Sam McCord East Texas State QB Jan. 1960 Bob Waters Presbyterian QB Dec. 1960 Jerry Nettles Citadel QB Dec. 1961 Ralph Stone Lamar HB Dec. 1962 Billy Roland Houston QB Dec. 1963 Sharon Miller Western Kentucky QB Dec. 1964 Bill Cline East Carolina TB Dec. 1965 Dave Alexander East Carolina FB Dec. 1966 Willie Lanier Morgan State LB Dec. 1967 Errol Hook Tennessee–Martin QB O Gordon Lambert Tennessee–Martin DE D Dec. 1968 Buster O'Brien Richmond QB B Walker Gillette Richmond SE L Dec. 1969 Chuck Ealey Toledo QB B Dan Crockett Toledo WB L Dec. 1970 Chuck Ealey Toledo QB O Vince Hubler William & Mary LB D Dec. 1971 Chuck Ealey Toledo QB B Mel Long Toledo DT L Dec. 1972 Freddie Solomon Tampa QB B Jack Lambert Kent State LB L Dec. 1973 Chuck Varner Miami (OH) FB B Brad Cousino Miami (OH) MG L Dec. 1974 Sherman Smith Miami (OH) QB B Brad Cousino Miami (OH) MG L John Roudabush Miami (OH) LB Dec. 1975 Rob Carpenter Miami (OH) TB O Jeff Kelly Miami (OH) MG D Dec. 1976 Terry Miller Oklahoma State HB M, O Phillip Dokes Oklahoma State DT D Dec. 1977 Jimmy Jordan Florida State QB M, O Willie Jones Florida State LB D Dec. 1978 Ted Brown North Carolina State RB M Nathan Ritter North Carolina State K O John Stanton North Carolina State MG D Dec. 1979 David Woodley LSU QB M Jerry Murphree LSU RB O Benjy Thibodeaux LSU DT D

Game MVP(s) Team Pos. Type Dec. 1980 Cris Collinsworth Florida WR M Charlie Wysocki Florida RB O David Galloway Florida DT D Dec. 1981 Jeff Gaylord Missouri LB Dec. 1982 Randy Campbell Auburn QB Dec. 1983 Johnnie Jones Tennessee RB Dec. 1984 James Jackson Georgia QB Dec. 1985 Larry Kolic Ohio State LB Jan. 1987 Aundray Bruce Auburn LB Jan. 1988 Rodney Williams Clemson QB Jan. 1989 Terry Allen Clemson RB Jan. 1990 Jeff George Illinois QB Jan. 1991 Shawn Jones Georgia Tech QB Jan. 1992 Mike Pawlawski California QB Jan. 1993 Garrison Hearst Georgia RB Jan. 1994 Bobby Engram Penn State WR Jan. 1995 Sherman Williams Alabama RB Jan. 1996 Jay Graham Tennessee RB Jan. 1997 Peyton Manning Tennessee QB Jan. 1998 Fred Taylor Florida RB Jan. 1999 Anthony Thomas Michigan RB Jan. 2000 Plaxico Burress Michigan State WR Jan. 2001 Anthony Thomas Michigan RB Jan. 2002 Casey Clausen Tennessee QB Jan. 2003 Ronnie Brown Auburn RB Jan. 2004 David Greene Georgia QB Jan. 2005 Drew Tate Iowa QB Jan. 2006 Brian Calhoun Wisconsin RB Jan. 2007 John Stocco Wisconsin QB Jan. 2008 Chad Henne Michigan QB Jan. 2009 Matthew Stafford Georgia QB Jan. 2010 Daryll Clark Penn State QB Jan. 2011 Courtney Upshaw Alabama LB Jan. 2012 Alshon Jeffery South Carolina WR Jan. 2013 Aaron Murray Georgia QB Jan. 2014 Connor Shaw South Carolina QB Jan. 2015 Markus Golden Missouri DE Jan. 2016 Jake Rudock Michigan QB Dec. 2016 Derrius Guice LSU RB Jan. 2018 Miles Boykin Notre Dame WR Jan. 2019 Benny Snell Kentucky RB Jan. 2020 Jerry Jeudy Alabama WR Jan. 2021 Peyton Ramsey Northwestern QB Jan. 2022 Wan'Dale Robinson Kentucky WR Jan. 2023 Malik Nabers [24] LSU WR Jan. 2024 Nico Iamaleava [25] Tennessee QB

Three players have been recognized in multiple games; Chuck Ealey of Toledo (1969, 1970, 1971), Brad Cousino of Miami (OH) (1973, 1974), and Anthony Thomas of Michigan (1999, 2001).

Most appearances

Note: this section reflects games played since 1968, when the bowl started hosting major college teams.

Tennessee has the most wins by a single team with 5. Florida and Penn State have the most losses by a single team with 4.

Updated for the December 2024 edition (57 games, 114 total appearances).

Teams with multiple appearances

Rank Team Appearances Record Win pct. T1 Tennessee 6 5–1 .833 T1 Georgia 6 4–1–1 .750 T1 Michigan 6 4–2 .667 T1 Florida 6 2–4 .333 T1 Penn State 6 2–4 .333 T1 Auburn 6 3–3 .500 T1 LSU 6 3–3 .500 T8 South Carolina† 4 2–1 .667 T8 Ohio State 4 1–3 .250 T10 Alabama 3 3–0 1.000 T10 Miami (OH) 3 3–0 1.000 T10 Toledo 3 3–0 1.000 T10 Clemson 3 2–1 .667 T10 Wisconsin 3 2–1 .667 T10 Iowa 3 1–2 .333 T10 Michigan State 3 1–2 .333 T10 Nebraska 3 0–3 .000

Rank Team Appearances Record Win pct. T18 Missouri 2 2–0 1.000 T18 Kentucky 2 2–0 1.000 T18 Illinois† 2 1–0 1.000 T18 Northwestern 2 1–1 .500 T18 Richmond 2 1–1 .500 T18 Florida State 2 0–1–1 .250 T18 Purdue 2 0–2 .000 T18 Arkansas 2 0–2 .000 T18 BYU 2 0–2 .000 T18 Maryland 2 0–2 .000

† December 2024 participant

Teams with a single appearance

Won (5): California, Georgia Tech, NC State, Notre Dame, Tampa
Lost (15): Boston College, Davidson, Kent State, Louisville, Minnesota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Southern Miss, Texas Tech, USC, Virginia, Wake Forest, William & Mary

Appearances by conference

Note: this table reflects games played since 1968, when the bowl started hosting major college teams.

Updated for the December 2024 edition (57 games, 114 total appearances).

Conference	Record					Appearances by season
	Games	W	L	T	Win pct.	Won	Lost	Tied
SEC †	41	25	14	1	.638	1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986*, 1992*, 1994*, 1995*, 1996*, 1997*, 2001*, 2002*, 2003*, 2008*, 2010*, 2011*, 2012*, 2013*, 2014*, 2016, 2018*, 2019*, 2021*, 2022*, 2023*	1973, 1974, 1993*, 1998*, 1999*, 2000*, 2004*, 2005*, 2006*, 2007*, 2009*, 2015*, 2017*, 2020*	1984
Big Ten †	33	13	19	0	.406	1985, 1989*, 1993*, 1998*, 1999*, 2000*, 2004*, 2005*, 2006*, 2007*, 2009*, 2015*, 2020*	1992*, 1994*, 1995*, 1996*, 1997*, 2001*, 2002*, 2003*, 2008*, 2010*, 2011*, 2012*, 2013*, 2014*, 2018*, 2019*, 2021*, 2022*, 2023*
ACC	10	4	6	0	.400	1978, 1987*, 1988*, 1990*	1979, 1980, 1983, 1989*, 1991*, 2016
Independents	9	3	5	1	.389	1972, 1977, 2017*	1975, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1987*	1984
MAC	8	6	2	0	.750	1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1975	1968, 1972
Big Eight	4	2	2	0	.500	1976, 1981	1988*, 1990*
SoCon	4	1	3	0	.250	1968	1969, 1970, 1971
Pac-10	2	1	1	0	.500	1991*	1986*
WAC	2	0	2	0	.000		1976, 1985
SWC	1	0	1	0	.000		1977

† December 2024 participant

• Games marked with an asterisk (*) were played in January of the following calendar year.
• Records are based on a team's conference affiliation at the time the game was played; for example, Penn State has appeared both as a Big Ten team and as an Independent team.
• Conferences that are defunct or not currently active in FBS are marked in italics.
• Independent appearances: Boston College (1982), Florida State (1977, 1984), Notre Dame (2017*), Penn State (1987*), Pittsburgh (1978), South Carolina (1975), Southern Miss (1981), and Tampa (1972).

Game records

Team	Performance vs. Opponent	Year
Most points scored (one team)	63, LSU vs. Purdue	2023
Most points scored (both teams)	91, Richmond (49) vs. Ohio (42)	1968
Most points scored (losing team)	42, Ohio vs. Richmond	1968
Fewest points scored (winning team)	7, most recently: Omaha (7) vs. Eastern Kentucky (6)	1955
Fewest points scored (both teams)	7, Catawba (7) vs. Marshall (0)	1948
Fewest points allowed	0, most recently: Tennessee (35) vs. Iowa (0)	2024
Largest margin of victory	56, LSU (63) vs. Purdue (7)	2023
Total yards	594, LSU vs. Purdue	2023
Rushing yards	375, Oklahoma State vs. BYU	1976
Passing yards	455, Florida State vs. Texas Tech	1977
First downs	32, Richmond vs. Ohio	1968
Fewest yards allowed
Fewest rushing yards allowed
Fewest passing yards allowed
Individual	Record, Player, Team	Year
All-purpose yards
Touchdowns (overall)
Rushing yards	234, Fred Taylor (Florida)	1998
Rushing touchdowns	4, Terry Miller (Oklahoma State)	1976
Passing yards	447, Buster O'Brien (Richmond)	1968
Passing touchdowns	5, Aaron Murray (Georgia)	2013
Receiving yards	242, Walker Gillette (Richmond)	1968
Receiving touchdowns	3, shared by: Plaxico Burress (Michigan State) Travis Taylor (Florida) Todd Snyder (Ohio)	2000 2000 1968
Tackles	17, shared by: Te'von Coney (Notre Dame) Eric Wilson (Maryland)	2018 1983
Sacks
Interceptions	2, most recently: Skai Moore (South Carolina)	2014
Long Plays	Record, Player, Team	Year
Touchdown run	78 yds., Russell Hansbrough (Missouri)	2015
Touchdown pass	87 yds., Aaron Murray to Chris Conley (Georgia)	2013
Kickoff return	102 yds., Dave Lowert (BYU)	1976
Punt return	78 yds., Renard Harmon (Kent State)	1972
Interception return	99 yds., Quad Wilson (LSU)	2023
Fumble return
Punt	71 yds., shared by: Blake Gillikin (Penn State) Jay Jones (Richmond)	2019 1971
Field goal	57 yds., Quinn Nordin (Michigan)	2020
Miscellaneous	Record, Team vs. Team	Year
Bowl attendance	73,328, Georgia Tech vs. Nebraska	1991

Source: ^{[26] [27]}

Media coverage

The bowl has been broadcast by Mizlou (1976–1983), NBC (1984–1985), and ABC since then, with the exception of ESPN for the 2011 and 2012 editions. ^[28] Broadcast information for earlier editions of the bowl is lacking.

Notes

1. For three games that re-used Tangerine Bowl naming two decades later, see Tangerine Bowl (2001–2003).

References

1. "2019 Bowl Schedule". collegefootballpoll.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
2. "Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl > Home". buffalowildwingscitrusbowl.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-23.
3. "Cheez-It Signs on as Title Sponsor of Citrus Bowl" . Retrieved November 15, 2022.
4. "Bowl Game Payouts are Practically a Small Fortune in College Football". Fan Buzz College and Professional Sports News. 3 December 2019.
5. "Clipped From Orlando Evening Star". Orlando Evening Star. 1947-12-17. p. 15. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
6. Tracy, Dan (March 17, 1983). "$1 million Citrus Bowl approved". Orlando Sentinel . p. C1. Retrieved December 24, 2020– via newspapers.com.
7. Tracy, Dan (February 5, 1983). "TSA nixes Grapefruit Bowl idea". Orlando Sentinel . p. C1. Retrieved December 24, 2020– via newspapers.com.
8. "Capital One to sponsor Orange Bowl". SI.com. Archived from the original on 2017-12-07.
9. Repchak, Matt (21 October 2014). "Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl begins new era for Orlando's New Year's Day game". Florida Citrus Sports. Archived from the original on 21 October 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
10. "CHEEZ-IT® JOINS CITRUS BOWL AS TITLE PARTNER FOR THE NEWLY NAMED CHEEZ-IT® CITRUS BOWL". Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution. November 15, 2022. Archived from the original on November 28, 2022 – via Wayback Machine.
11. Fuhrmeister, Chris (October 18, 2013). "The 14 best Steve Spurrier quotes of now and then". SB Nation . Archived from the original on March 7, 2017. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
12. Whaley, Anson (December 4, 2016). "Sorting out the ACC Bowl slotting mess, Pitt missed good chance to slide into elite bowl game". SB Nation . Archived from the original on March 7, 2017. Retrieved March 6, 2017– via cardiachill.com.
13. "1955 Football Team". hillsdalechargers.com. Archived from the original on October 19, 2014. Retrieved March 3, 2017– via Wayback Machine.
14. Cramer, Dick (December 2, 1955). "Better Kind Of Glory". The Michigan Daily . Ann Arbor, Michigan. p. 4. Archived from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved March 3, 2017– via The Michigan Daily Digital Archives.
15. "Race Bias Makes Lemon Of Tangerine Bowl Bid". New York Age . New York City. December 6, 1958. Archived from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved March 3, 2017– via newspapers.com.
16. Neal, Eric (2008). "All Or Nothing". ESPN . Archived from the original on December 3, 2008. Retrieved November 20, 2008.
17. "1958 Buffalo Football". hobbsbrother4. February 18, 2010. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2017– via YouTube.
18. Schmuck, Peter (December 25, 2015). "1966 Morgan State bowl team that broke barriers to be honored". The Baltimore Sun . Archived from the original on March 2, 2017. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
19. "Pirates Nix Any Bowl Invitations". Times-News . Burlington, North Carolina. AP. November 20, 1973. p. 16. Retrieved February 7, 2023– via newspapers.com.
20. "Tangerine Invites Florida". Times-News . Burlington, North Carolina. AP. November 20, 1973. p. 16. Retrieved February 7, 2023– via newspapers.com.
21. Clark, Bill (December 22, 1973). "Temp Takes Miami Bounce So Put On The Woolies". Orlando Sentinel . Archived from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved March 7, 2017– via newspapers.com.
22. "Auburn Tigers' mascot Aubie wins Capital One Mascot Challenge 2014". WSFA . January 1, 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
23. "VRBO Citrus Bowl" (PDF). Bowl/All Star Game Records. NCAA. 2020. pp. 7–8. Retrieved January 3, 2021– via NCAA.org.
24. "Football Dominates Purdue, 63-7, to Win Cheez-It Citrus Bowl". lsusports.net. January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
25. @tnsports (January 1, 2024). "QB Nico Iamaleava named Citrus Bowl MVP as Tennessee football routs Iowa" (Tweet). Retrieved January 1, 2024– via Twitter.
26. "Game Records". 2021 Citrus Bowl Game Day Program. Florida Citrus Sports. January 1, 2021. pp. 20, 22. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
27. Fappiano, Dan (January 2, 2023). "LSU sets Citrus Bowl record with insane 63-point outburst vs. Purdue". ClutchPoints. Retrieved January 4, 2023– via MSN.com. They set the Citrus Bowl record for most points scored, total yards (594) and margin of victory (56).
28. Kelly, Doug (ed.). "2019–20 Football Bowl Association Media Guide" (PDF). footballbowlassociation.com. pp. 149–150. Retrieved January 3, 2020.

Additional sources

• Orlando Sentinel-Star (November 20, 1973); Various articles- Accessed via microfilm 01-03-2007.

External links

• Official website