Texas Bowl

Last updated
Texas Bowl
Kinder's Texas Bowl
Texas Bowl Logo24.png
Stadium NRG Stadium
Location Houston, Texas
Operated2006–present
Conference tie-ins Big 12, SEC
Previous conference tie-ins
Payout US$6.4 million (2019) [1]
Website kinderstexasbowl.com
Preceded by Houston Bowl
Sponsors
Former names
  • Texas Bowl (2006–2010)
  • Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas (2011–2012)
  • Texas Bowl (2013)
  • AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl (2014–2016)
  • Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl (2017–2019)
  • Mercari Texas Bowl (2020, game canceled)
  • TaxAct Texas Bowl (2021–2023)
2023 matchup
Oklahoma State vs. Texas A&M (Oklahoma State 31–23)
2024 matchup
Baylor vs. LSU (LSU 44–31)

The Texas Bowl is an annual postseason NCAA-sanctioned Division I FBS college football bowl game first held in 2006 in Houston, Texas. Each edition of the bowl has been played at NRG Stadium, previously known as Reliant Stadium. The bowl replaced the defunct Houston Bowl, which was played annually from 2000 to 2005, and before that the Bluebonnet Bowl, the first bowl game in Houston, played from 1959 through 1987.

Contents

History

Replacing the Houston Bowl

Speculation surfaced questioning the long-term survival of the former Houston Bowl. The three-year contract with EV1.net expired on December 31, 2005, leaving the bowl game without a title sponsor. A college football official told the Houston Chronicle that the bowl was in danger of ceasing operations, as a result of the game losing its title sponsor and because the Houston Bowl still owed roughly $600,000 to the Big 12 and Mountain West conferences following the 2005 game. [2] However, the NCAA approved Lone Star Sports & Entertainment, a division of the Houston Texans, who also play in Reliant Stadium, to take over game management. In July 2006, the NFL Network acquired TV rights and naming rights to the bowl. [3]

Texas Bowl introduction

The Texas Bowl name and logo were officially unveiled on August 10, 2006, at a press conference along with conference affiliations for the bowl spots. The Big 12, Big East and Conference USA will be affiliated with the game, as well as Texas Christian University of the Mountain West. The 2006 matchup featured teams from the Big 12 and Big East Conferences. [4]

On December 3, 2006, Rutgers accepted an invitation to play Kansas State in the inaugural Texas Bowl. "We're ecstatic about having Rutgers," Texas Bowl director David Brady said. "This is a top-15 team that was three yards away from a BCS game. We couldn't be happier to have them here." [5]

2010 marked the eleventh consecutive year a bowl game has played in Houston, and the 40th year overall with a bowl game there (the Bluebonnet Bowl lasted 29 years). It was also announced on December 30, 2009, that ESPN Events would take over as part owner and operator of the game, while Lone Star Sports and Entertainment will maintain a stake in the bowl, and would be carried on ESPN.

Sponsors

On April 12, 2011, ESPN announced Meineke Car Care signed a three-year title sponsorship deal beginning in 2011, changing name of the bowl to the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas. [6] On February 12, 2014, it was announced that AdvoCare will be the title sponsor for the bowl game. [7] That sponsorship concluded after the 2016 game. On November 15, 2017, Academy Sports + Outdoors became the new title sponsor of the bowl. [8] [9] That sponsorship concluded after the 2019 game.

On December 14, 2020, Mercari was announced as the new title sponsor of the game. [10] The 2020 game was later canceled due to COVID-19 issues. [11] On November 24, 2021, TaxAct was named as the new title sponsor of both the Texas Bowl and the Camellia Bowl. [12] This arrangement remained in place through the 2023 edition. On December 4, 2024, Kinder's Flavors was named as the new title sponsor. [13]

Conference tie-ins

On May 17, 2007, it was announced Conference USA would have a team in the 2007 Texas Bowl. The Texas Bowl has a rotating commitment with the Big East Conference and Conference USA for 2006–09 while the Big 12 Conference will have a team in all four of those games. In 2007, TCU took the place of the Big 12 team when Kansas and Oklahoma were put into the BCS, and Houston, a "home team," represented C-USA. The conferences would receive $612,500 each as per the rules of the agreements as usually, the Big East (or Big 12) would have received $750,000 for playing and C-USA would have received a $500,000 stipend for their team playing.

Issues

According to Sports Illustrated , in 2008 the bowl required Western Michigan University to purchase 11,000 tickets at full price in order to accept the invitation to play in the bowl. The university was only able to sell 548 tickets at that price, forcing it to accept a $462,535 loss, before travel expenses, to pay for the privilege of playing in the bowl. [14]

The 2020 edition, slated for December 31 between TCU and Arkansas, was cancelled on December 29 due to COVID-19 issues within the TCU program. [11]

Game results

Rankings are based on the AP Poll prior to the game being played.

DateTime (CST)Bowl nameWinning teamLosing teamAttendance
December 28, 20067:00 PM Texas Bowl No. 16 Rutgers 37 Kansas State 1052,210
December 28, 20077:00 PM Texas Bowl TCU 20 Houston 1362,097
December 30, 20087:00 PM Texas Bowl Rice 38 Western Michigan 1458,880
December 31, 20092:30 PM Texas Bowl Navy 35 Missouri 1369,441
December 29, 20105:00 PM Texas Bowl Illinois 38 Baylor 1468,211
December 31, 201111:00 AM Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas Texas A&M 33 Northwestern 2268,395
December 28, 20128:00 PM Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas Texas Tech 34 Minnesota 3150,386
December 27, 20135:00 PM Texas Bowl Syracuse 21 Minnesota 1732,327
December 29, 20148:00 PM Texas Bowl Arkansas 31 Texas 771,115
December 29, 20158:00 PM Texas Bowl No. 22 LSU †56 Texas Tech 2771,307
December 28, 20168:00 PM Texas Bowl Kansas State 33 Texas A&M 2868,412
December 27, 20178:00 PM Texas Bowl Texas 33 Missouri 1667,820
December 27, 20188:00 PM Texas Bowl Baylor 45 Vanderbilt 3851,104
December 27, 20195:45 PM Texas Bowl Texas A&M 24No. 25 Oklahoma State 2168,415
December 31, 20207:00 PMTexas BowlCanceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic [15] [a] —
January 4, 20228:00 PM Texas Bowl Kansas State 42 LSU 2052,207
December 28, 20228:00 PM Texas Bowl Texas Tech 42 Ole Miss 2553,251
December 27, 20238:00 PM Texas Bowl No. 22 Oklahoma State 31 Texas A&M 2355,212
December 31, 20242:30 PM Texas Bowl LSU 44 Baylor 3159,940

Source: [16]
† LSU's win in the 2015 edition was vacated in 2023 by the NCAA for a booster-related violation. [17]

MVPs

2009 MVP Ricky Dobbs Ricky Dobbs at 2009 Texas Bowl crop.jpg
2009 MVP Ricky Dobbs
YearMVPTeamPosition
2006 Ray Rice RutgersRB
2007 Andy Dalton TCUQB
2008 Chase Clement RiceQB
2009 Ricky Dobbs NavyQB
2010 Mikel Leshoure IllinoisRB
2011 Ryan Tannehill Texas A&MQB
2012 Seth Doege Texas TechQB
2013Terrel HuntSyracuseQB
2014 Brandon Allen ArkansasQB
2015 Leonard Fournette LSURB
2016Jesse ErtzKansas StateQB
2017 Michael Dickson TexasP
2018 Charlie Brewer BaylorQB
2019 Kellen Mond Texas A&MQB
Jan. 2022 Skylar Thompson Kansas StateQB
Dec. 2022 Tyler Shough Texas TechQB
2023 Rashod Owens Oklahoma StateWR
2024 Garrett Nussmeier LSUQB

Source: [18] [19] [20] [21]

Most appearances

Head coach Jerry Kill led Minnesota to Texas Bowl appearances in 2012 and 2013. 2013-0427-JerryKill.jpg
Head coach Jerry Kill led Minnesota to Texas Bowl appearances in 2012 and 2013.

Updated through the December 2024 edition (18 games, 36 total appearances).

Teams with multiple appearances
RankTeamAppearancesRecord
1 Texas A&M 42–2
2 Kansas State 32–1
Texas Tech 32–1
Baylor 31–2
LSU 31–1‡
6 Texas 21–1
Oklahoma State 21–1
Minnesota 20–2
Missouri 20–2

‡ LSU's win in the 2015 edition was vacated by the NCAA in 2023.

Teams with a single appearance

Won (7): Arkansas, Illinois, Navy, Rice, Rutgers, Syracuse, TCU
Lost (5): Houston, Northwestern, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, Western Michigan

Appearances by conference

Updated through the December 2024 edition (18 games, 36 total appearances).

ConferenceRecordAppearances by season
GamesWLWin pct.WonLostVacated
Big 12 1587.5332011, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021*, 2022, 20232006, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2024 
SEC 1036.333 ‡2014, 2019, 20242016, 2017, 2018, 2021*, 2022, 20232015
Big Ten 413.25020102011, 2012, 2013 
C-USA 211.50020082007 
ACC 1101.0002013  
Independents 1101.0002009  
Mountain West 1101.0002007  
Big East 1101.0002006  
MAC 101.000 2008 

‡ LSU's vacated victory following the 2015 season is excluded from the SEC's win–loss totals and winning percentage.

Game records

TeamRecord, Team vs. OpponentYear
Most points scored (one team)56, LSU vs. Texas Tech2015
Most points scored (losing team)38, Vanderbilt vs. Baylor2018
Most points scored (both teams)83, shared by:
LSU (56) vs. Texas Tech (27)
Baylor (45) vs. Vanderbilt (38)		 
2015
2018
Fewest points allowed7, Arkansas vs. Texas2014
Largest margin of victory29, LSU vs. Texas Tech2015
Total yards668, Baylor vs. Vanderbilt2018
Rushing yards385, Navy vs. Missouri2009
Passing yards436, Oklahoma State vs. Texas A&M2023
First downs30, Baylor vs. Vanderbilt2018
Fewest yards allowed59, Arkansas vs. Texas2014
Fewest rushing yards allowed2, Arkansas vs. Texas2014
Fewest passing yards allowed57, Arkansas vs. Texas2014
IndividualRecord, Player, Team vs. OpponentYear
All-purpose yards256, Leonard Fournette (LSU)2015
Touchdowns (all-purpose)5, Leonard Fournette (LSU)2015
Rushing yards243, Ke'Shawn Vaughn (Vanderbilt)2018
Rushing touchdowns4, Leonard Fournette (LSU)2015
Passing yards402, Alan Bowman (Oklahoma State)2023
Passing touchdowns4, Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech)2015
Receptions16, Brennan Presley (Oklahoma State)
2023
Receiving yards164, Rashod Owens (Oklahoma State)2023
Receiving touchdowns3, Jakeem Grant (Texas Tech)2015
Tackles17, Micah Awe (Texas Tech)2015
Sacks2.5, shared by:
Justin Braska (Western Michigan)
Kendell Beckwith (LSU)
2008
2015
Interceptions2, Michael Carter (Minnesota)2012
Long PlaysRecord, Player, Team vs. OpponentYear
Touchdown run79 yds., D. J. Chark (LSU)2015
Touchdown pass81 yds., Chris Hilton Jr. pass from Jontre Kirklin (LSU)Jan. 2022
Kickoff return99 yds., Jakeem Grant (Texas Tech)2012
Punt return76 yds., Yamon Figurs (Kansas State)2006
Interception return62 yds., Wyatt Middleton (Navy)2009
Fumble return46 yds., Travon Bellamy (Illinois)2010
Punt65 yds., Chase Turner (Houston)2007
Field goal51 yds., Randy Bond (Texas A&M)2023

Media coverage

The first three editions of the bowl were televised by NFL Network. Since 2009, it has been carried by ESPN.

Notes

  1. ↑ The 2020 game was set to feature TCU vs. Arkansas.

References

  1. ↑ "2019 Bowl Schedule". collegefootballpoll.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  2. ↑ Duarte, Joseph (18 April 2006). "Houston Bowl in jeopardy". Houston Chronicle . Archived from the original on 6 March 2010. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  3. ↑ "NFL Network gets bowl game in Houston". NFL.com. 20 July 2006. Archived from the original on 23 August 2006.
  4. ↑ Chavez, Ana (29 August 2006). "Texas Bowl Board of Directors announced". houstontexans.com (Press release). Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
  5. ↑ Duarte, Joseph (3 December 2006). "Rutgers to play in inaugural Texas Bowl". Houston Chronicle . Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  6. ↑ Rittenberg, Adam (12 April 2011). "Texas Bowl gains new title sponsor". ESPN.com .
  7. ↑ Cook, Kara (11 February 2014). "Advocare, LSSE excited for Texas Bowl partnership". houstontexans.com.
  8. ↑ "ACADEMY SPORTS + OUTDOORS NAMED THE NEW TITLE SPONSOR OF THE TEXAS BOWL". academytexasbowl.com (Press release). November 15, 2017.
  9. ↑ "Texas Bowl Hopes New Title Sponsor Deal With Locally-Based Academy Sports Brings Stability" . Retrieved November 16, 2017.
  10. ↑ "Mercari Named New Title Sponsor of Texas Bowl". ESPN Events. 14 December 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  11. 1 2 Fornelli, Tom; Kercheval, Ben (December 29, 2020). "2020 Texas Bowl canceled as COVID-19 outbreak at TCU forces it to pull out vs. Arkansas". CBS Sports . Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  12. ↑ "TaxAct® Named Title Sponsor of Texas and Camellia Bowl Games as Part of a Multi-Event College Football Agreement with ESPN Events". bowlseason.com. November 24, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  13. ↑ "KINDER'S NAMED NEW TITLE SPONSOR OF THE TEXAS BOWL" . Retrieved December 4, 2024.
  14. ↑ Murphy, Austin; Wetzel, Dan (15 November 2010). "Does It Matter?". Sports Illustrated . p. 47.
  15. ↑ Khan Jr., Sam (December 29, 2020). "Texas Bowl between TCU Horned Frogs, Arkansas Razorbacks canceled". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  16. ↑ "Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl" (PDF). Bowl/All Star Game Records. NCAA. 2020. p. 15. Retrieved January 3, 2021– via NCAA.org.
  17. ↑ Mandel, Stewart. "Vacated LSU wins leave Les Miles out of CFB Hall of Fame consideration". The Athletic. Retrieved 2023-06-22.
  18. ↑ "Bowl MVPs". TaxAct Texas Bowl (game program). Lone Star Sports & Entertainment. 2022. p. 20. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  19. ↑ @RedRaiderSports (December 29, 2022). "Tyler Shough named Texas Bowl MVP" (Tweet). Retrieved December 29, 2022– via Twitter.
  20. ↑ @jacobunruh (December 28, 2023). "Here is Texas Bowl MVP Rashod Owens. #OKState" (Tweet). Retrieved December 28, 2023– via Twitter.
  21. ↑ "Nussmeier throws for 304 yards and 3 TDs as LSU beats Baylor 44-31 in Texas Bowl". apnews.com. AP. December 31, 2024. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
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