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Music City Bowl

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Music City Bowl
TransPerfect Music City Bowl
StadiumNissan Stadium
LocationNashville, Tennessee
Previous stadiumsVanderbilt Stadium (1998)
Operated1998–present
Conference tie-insBig Ten, SEC
Previous conference tie-insACC (2006–2019)
Big East (1998–2001)
Big Ten (2002–2005)
PayoutUS$5.7 million (2019)[1]
Sponsors
Former names
  • Music City Bowl (1998, 2000–2001)
  • HomePoint.com Music City Bowl (1999)
  • Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl (2002–2009)
      presented by Bridgestone (2003–2007)
  • Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl (2010–2019)
2023 matchup
Auburn vs. Maryland (Maryland 31–13)
2024 matchup
(December 30, 2024)

The Music City Bowl is a post-season American college football bowl game certified by the NCAA that has been played in Nashville, Tennessee, since 1998. Since 2020, it has been sponsored by TransPerfect and is officially known as the TransPerfect Music City Bowl. Previous title sponsors include American General Life & Accident (1998), HomePoint.com (1999), Gaylord Entertainment (2002–2003), both Gaylord Entertainment and Bridgestone (2004–2009), and Franklin American Mortgage Company (2010–2019). From 2014 through 2019, the bowl had tie-ins with the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten Conference, and Southeastern Conference (SEC); for 2020 through 2025, the bowl has tie-ins with the Big Ten and SEC.

The 2020 edition, slated for December 30 between Missouri and Iowa, was cancelled on December 27 due to COVID-19 issues within Missouri's program.[2]

History

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The first Music City Bowl was played at Vanderbilt Stadium in 1998. Beginning in 1999, the game was moved to the just completed home stadium of the Tennessee Titans, now known as Nissan Stadium. American General Life & Accident (now a subsidiary of AIG) sponsored the inaugural 1998 game, and the now-defunct "homepoint.com" sponsored the 1999 game. There was no sponsor in 2000 or 2001. In 2002, with title sponsorship from Nashville-based Gaylord Hotels, the game became known as the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl. In 2003, Bridgestone became the presenting sponsor of the game, and its full title became the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl presented by Bridgestone. Bridgestone dropped its presenting sponsorship following the 2007 game. Beginning with the 2010 game, Franklin American Mortgage served as title sponsor, with Gaylord continuing as a major sponsor of the event.[3] In December 2019, it was announced that TransPerfect, a New York City-based translation services company, would take over title sponsorship of the bowl for the 2020 through 2025 playings.[4]

Conference tie-ins

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The game initially featured a matchup between representatives of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and the Big East Conference. The Big East was replaced by the Big Ten Conference in 2002. Beginning with the 2006 game, the Big Ten was replaced by the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The ACC also took part in the 2005 game, when Virginia appeared because the SEC did not have enough bowl-eligible teams. For six seasons beginning in 2014, the Music City Bowl shared its tie in with the Gator Bowl (also known as the TaxSlayer Bowl for several playings), to match an SEC team with either an ACC or Big Ten team.[5] In June 2019, the Music City Bowl announced an extension to their agreement with the SEC, and an agreement for the Big Ten to provide teams for the 2020 through 2025 seasons.[6]

Game results

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The 2009 Music City Bowl

The Music City Bowl has a history of upsets. The biggest underdog win was when Kentucky (+10) defeated Clemson 28–20 in 2006. Other big upsets include Minnesota (+7) defeating Arkansas 29–14 in 2002, and Virginia (+6) defeating Minnesota 34–31 in 2005. Boston College was a four-point underdog when they defeated Georgia 20–16 in 2001, West Virginia was a three-point underdog when they beat Ole Miss in 2000, Syracuse was a three-point underdog when they defeated Kentucky in 1999, and Minnesota was a one-point underdog when they beat Alabama in 2004. In 2008, four-point underdog Vanderbilt, making their first bowl appearance since 1982, upset Boston College, 24th in the BCS rankings, 16–14.

All rankings are taken from the AP Poll prior to the game being played.

Date Played Winning Team Losing Team Attendance[7] Notes
December 29, 1998 Virginia Tech 38 Alabama 7 41,248[a] notes
December 29, 1999 Syracuse 20 Kentucky 13 59,221 notes
December 28, 2000 West Virginia 49 Ole Miss 38 47,119 notes
December 28, 2001 Boston College 20 No. 16 Georgia 16 46,125 notes
December 30, 2002 Minnesota 29 No. 25 Arkansas 14 39,183 notes
December 31, 2003 Auburn 28 Wisconsin 14 55,109 notes
December 31, 2004 Minnesota 20 Alabama 16 66,089 notes
December 30, 2005 Virginia 34 Minnesota 31 40,519 notes
December 29, 2006 Kentucky 28 Clemson 20 68,024 notes
December 31, 2007 Kentucky 35 Florida State 28 68,661 notes
December 31, 2008 Vanderbilt 16 Boston College 14 54,250 notes
December 27, 2009 Clemson 21 Kentucky 13 57,280 notes
December 30, 2010 North Carolina 30 Tennessee 27 (2OT) 69,143 notes
December 30, 2011 Mississippi State 23 Wake Forest 17 55,208 notes
December 31, 2012 Vanderbilt 38 NC State 24 55,801 notes
December 30, 2013 Ole Miss 25 Georgia Tech 17 52,125 notes
December 30, 2014 Notre Dame 31 No. 22 LSU 28 60,419 notes
December 30, 2015 Louisville 27 Texas A&M 21 50,478 notes
December 30, 2016 Tennessee 38 No. 24 Nebraska 24 68,496 notes
December 29, 2017 No. 20 Northwestern 24 Kentucky 23 48,675 notes
December 28, 2018 Auburn 63 Purdue 14 59,024 notes
December 30, 2019 Louisville 38 Mississippi State 28 46,850 notes
December 30, 2020 Canceled due to COVID-19 issues[b] [8]
December 30, 2021 Purdue 48 Tennessee 45 (OT) 69,489 notes
December 31, 2022 Iowa 21 Kentucky 0 42,312 notes
December 30, 2023 Maryland 31 Auburn 13 50,088 notes

Source:[9]

Most Valuable Players

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2009 MVP C. J. Spiller
Date played MVP Team Position
December 29, 1998 Corey Moore Virginia Tech DE
December 29, 1999 James Mungro Syracuse RB
December 29, 2000 Brad Lewis West Virginia QB
December 28, 2001 William Green Boston College RB
December 30, 2002 Dan Nystrom Minnesota K
December 31, 2003 Jason Campbell Auburn QB
December 31, 2004 Marion Barber Minnesota RB
December 30, 2005 Marques Hagans Virginia QB
December 29, 2006 Andre' Woodson Kentucky QB
December 31, 2007 Andre' Woodson Kentucky QB
December 31, 2008 Brett Upson Vanderbilt P
December 27, 2009 C. J. Spiller Clemson RB
December 30, 2010 Shaun Draughn North Carolina RB
December 30, 2011 Vick Ballard Mississippi State RB
December 31, 2012 Zac Stacy Vanderbilt RB
December 30, 2013 Bo Wallace Ole Miss QB
December 30, 2014 Malik Zaire Notre Dame QB
December 30, 2015 Lamar Jackson Louisville QB
December 30, 2016 Joshua Dobbs Tennessee QB
December 29, 2017 Justin Jackson Northwestern RB
December 28, 2018 Jarrett Stidham Auburn QB
December 30, 2019 Malik Cunningham Louisville QB
December 30, 2021 Broc Thompson Purdue WR
December 31, 2022 Cooper DeJean Iowa DB
December 30, 2023 Billy Edwards Jr.[10] Maryland QB

Most appearances

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Updated through the December 2023 edition (25 games, 50 total appearances).

Teams with multiple appearances
Rank Team Appearances Record
1 Kentucky 6 2–4
2 Auburn 3 2–1
Minnesota 3 2–1
Tennessee 3 1–2
5 Louisville 2 2–0
Vanderbilt 2 2–0
Boston College 2 1–1
Clemson 2 1–1
Mississippi State 2 1–1
Ole Miss 2 1–1
Purdue 2 1–1
Alabama 2 0–2
Teams with a single appearance

Won (9): Iowa, Maryland, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia
Lost (10): Arkansas, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, LSU, NC State, Nebraska, Texas A&M, Wake Forest, Wisconsin

Appearances by conference

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Updated through the December 2023 edition (25 games, 50 total appearances).

Conference Record Appearances by season
Games W L Win pct. Won Lost
SEC 24 9 15 .375 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2018 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023
ACC 11 5 6 .455 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2019 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013
Big Ten 10 6 4 .600 2002, 2004, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023 2003, 2005, 2016, 2018
Big East 4 4 0 1.000 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001  
Independents 1 1 0 1.000 2014  

Game records

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The most lopsided game was Auburn's 63–14 win over Purdue in the 2018 edition. Auburn's 63 points (56 in the first half alone, a record for a half in any bowl game) is the bowl's high score, while Kentucky's 0 points in 2022 is the low score. The closest game was Vanderbilt's 16–14 win over Boston College in 2008. This also marked the lowest point total in the bowl's history. The 87 point total in the 2000 edition, when West Virginia defeated Ole Miss, 49–38, is a high for the bowl. A new attendance record for the bowl of 69,489 was set by the 2021 game, surpassing the prior record of 69,143 that had been set by the 2010 game.

Team Record, Team vs. Opponent Year
Most points scored (one team) 63, Auburn vs. Purdue 2018
Most points scored (losing team) 45, Tennessee vs. Purdue 2021
Most points scored (both teams) 93, Purdue (48) vs. Tennessee (45) 2021
Fewest points allowed 0, Iowa (21) v. Kentucky (0) 2022
Largest margin of victory 49, Auburn (63) vs. Purdue (14) 2018
Total yards 666, Tennessee vs. Purdue 2021
Rushing yards 333, Northwestern vs. Kentucky 2017
Passing yards 534, Purdue vs. Tennessee 2021
First downs 31, Tennessee vs. Purdue 2021
Fewest yards 185, Kentucky vs. Iowa 2022
Fewest rushing yards 21, Alabama vs. Minnesota 2004
Fewest passing yards 71, Virginia Tech vs. Alabama 1998
Individual Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent Year
All-purpose yards 284, Tobias Palmer (NC State) 2012
Touchdowns (all-purpose) 3, shared by:
Joshua Dobbs (Tennessee)
Darius Slayton (Auburn)
Cedric Tillman (Tennessee)

2016
2018
2021
Rushing yards 226, Lamar Jackson (Louisville) 2015
Rushing touchdowns 3, Joshua Dobbs (Tennessee) 2016
Passing yards 534, Aidan O'Connell (Purdue) 2021
Passing touchdowns 5, shared by:
Brad Lewis (West Virginia)
Jarrett Stidham (Auburn)
Hendon Hooker (Tennessee)
Aidan O'Connell (Purdue)

2000
2018
2021
2021
Receptions 11, shared by:
Josh Reynolds (Texas A&M)
Rondale Moore (Purdue)

2015
2018
Receiving yards 217, Broc Thompson (Purdue) 2021
Receiving touchdowns 3, shared by:
Darius Slayton (Auburn)
Cedric Tillman (Tennessee)

2018
2021
Tackles 20, Jeremy Banks (Tennessee) 2021
Sacks 3.0, Devonte Fields (Louisville) 2015
Interceptions 2, Michael Lehan (Minnesota) 2002
Long Plays Record, Team vs. Opponent Year
Touchdown run 89 yds., Leonard Fournette (LSU) 2014
Touchdown pass 75 yds., shared by:
Anthony Jennings to John Diarse (LSU)
Aidan O'Connell to Broc Thompson (Purdue)

2014
2021
Kickoff return 100 yds., Leonard Fournette (LSU) 2014
Punt return 47 yds., Rafael Little (Kentucky) 2006
Interception return 65 yds., Trey Wilson (Vanderbilt) 2012
Fumble return 31 yds., Khane Pass (Louisville) 2019
Punt 68 yds., Tyler Campbell (Ole Miss) 2013
Field goal 49 yds., Jack Howes (Maryland) 2023
Miscellaneous Record, Team vs. Opponent Year
Bowl Attendance 69,489, Purdue vs. Tennessee 2021

Media coverage

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The bowl has been televised by ESPN since its inception.

Notes

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  1. ^ The 1998 contest was played at Vanderbilt Stadium while Nissan Stadium (then Adelphia Coliseum) was under construction.
  2. ^ The 2020 contest of Iowa vs. Missouri was canceled three days prior to the game.

References

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  1. ^ "2019 Bowl Schedule". collegefootballpoll.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  2. ^ Cobb, David (December 27, 2020). "2020 Music City Bowl canceled as COVID-19 outbreak forces Missouri to pull out of game vs. Iowa". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  3. ^ "Franklin American Mortgage To Title Music City Bowl In 2010".
  4. ^ Organ, Mike (December 18, 2019). "TransPerfect becomes title sponsor of the Music City Bowl". tennessean.com. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
  5. ^ "Selection Process". musiccitybowl.com. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  6. ^ "Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl Announces New 2020-2025 Conference Agreements". musiccitybowl.com (Press release). June 4, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  7. ^ "Bowl Recaps". musiccitybowl.com. 2017. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  8. ^ "2020 TransPerfect Music City Bowl Cancelled". Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  9. ^ "Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl" (PDF). Bowl/All Star Game Records. NCAA. 2020. p. 13. Retrieved January 3, 2021 – via NCAA.org.
  10. ^ @MDSportsblog (December 30, 2023). "Billy Edwards Jr. is the MVP of the Music City Bowl" (Tweet). Retrieved December 30, 2023 – via Twitter.
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