BOWL SEASON OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2022
NEVER GETS OLD Bowl Season Continues to be a Thrill for Everyone Involved By KEVIN McNAMARA
D
on’t tell Bill Clark that the impact of Bowl Season is somehow waning.
The impact of the game in Shreveport on the Blazer program can’t be overstated. So much so that Clark
Clark is the head coach at Alabama-
and his assistant coaches found themselves laughing
Birmingham. Only an
about what has been a
eyelash ago, UAB didn’t
Hollywood tale unfolding
even play football. Yet
ever since the program
after a reversal of fortune
came back on-line in 2017
that followed a two-year
and managed to win at
hiatus and then a badly-
least nine games in three
needed commitment to
of the last four seasons.
invest in the program,
“We were talking
Clark’s Blazers emerged
about who's going to
as one of the best stories
play me in the movie,
of all in a Bowl Season
you know?” Clark said.
that was chockful of feelgood moments. “It’s one of the biggest (wins ever),” Clark said after UAB had defeated its highest ranked opponent in program
“ They believed in our staff, they believed in Birmingham,
“It's going to be a movie because we came from nothing, I mean, we lost
they believe in UAB.”
every player. We didn't
– BILL CLARK
we built it all and those
Alabama-Birmingham Head Coach
have facilities. You know guys believed in us. They
history in a 31-28 shootout victory over No. 13 BYU in
believed in our staff, they believed in Birmingham,
the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl.
they believe in UAB. It is special. It really is.” BOWL SEASON | January 2022
1
The impact of UAB’s success during Bowl Season is far from an outlier. That opportunity for a program-changing victory, a career-closing win, the
certainly a huge play in the Gophers’ 18-6 win over West Virginia. How about the impact of Central Florida’s 29-17
emergence of next year’s new stars or just a great
win over Florida in the Union Home Mortgage
team experience in a new locale is integral to
Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa? The victory marked
college football.
UCF’s first-ever over the Gators, Florida State or
How about the Duke’s Mayo Bowl? Just a matchup of two good teams, right? Wrong. This was a battle of
Miami. Do you think Gus Malzahn might bring that up on the recruiting trail? And how about the memories Oklahoma State fans will stash away from this year’s PlayStation
the Carolinas with South
Fiesta Bowl? After falling behind 28-7 and looking
Carolina running to a 38-21
lost under a wave of Irish emotion, the Cowboys
win over North Carolina. Then,
settled down and ripped off 30 unanswered points
afterwards, Gamecock coach
on the way to a thrilling 37-35 win.
Shane Beamer happily welcomed 4.5 gallons of Duke’s Mayo poured on his head for charity. The Mayo Bath became the talk of the country
As usual, fans around the country were watching. The TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl ratings jumped 51 percent from the last time the game was played in
for a few days, as did other Bowl Season moments
2019. The Transperfect Music City Bowl (5.6 million
that unfolded well before Georgia and Alabama
viewers), the Cheez-It Bowl (4.9 million) and Valero
competed for the CFP National Championship.
Alamo Bowl (4.7 million) posted huge TV numbers on
Did you see the excitement level on the
a Wednesday and Thursday night. The New Year’s Day
Minnesota sideline when Daniel Faalele — all 6-foot-9,
bowls captivated the country, with the ultra-exciting
380-pounds of him — ran in a touchdown from the
shootout in the Rose Bowl Game Presented by
2-yard line at the Guaranteed Rate Bowl? It was
Capital One Venture X attracting 16.6 million viewers.
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BOWL SEASON | February 2021
From Dec. 27 to Jan. 1, nine of the 20 most-
Montgomery spoke of the team’s season-ending
watched television programs were bowl games,
four-game winning streak and how that energy will
according to The
provide the bounce his
Athletic.
players need into winter
So, again, how
conditioning and spring
healthy and important
ball with an eye towards
is Bowl Season? If you
even bigger conquests
can earn a taste of the
in 2022.
action, it can save a
“Hopefully it’s going to
season and provide
carry us into next year and
lasting impact.
get us off to a better start
“Every bit of this matters,” Tulsa coach Philip Montgomery exclaimed while being engulfed by his players after a win in the Myrtle Beach Bowl Presented by TaxAct. “We just
and be able to propel
“We just finished up our season on a big win and we are now Myrtle Beach Bowl Presented by TaxAct champions and
finished up our season
that means something.”
on a big win and we are
– PHILLIP MONTGOMERY
now Myrtle Beach Bowl
Tulsa Head Coach
us. We have big goals and big dreams ahead of us,” Montgomery said. “We want to be in that picture all the time. We want to win an (American Athletic) conference championship. We’ve been there and seen it and now we have to go
Presented by TaxAct champions and that means
back and win it. That will give us another chance to
something.”
be in another big bowl game like this.” BOWL SEASON | January 2022
3
Q&A with Bowl Season Executive Director Nick Carparelli
N
ick Carparelli enjoys the greatness of college football’s Bowl Season unlike few others. This year Carparelli attended several bowl games across the country. While congratulating the Georgia Bulldogs on their first National Championship in 41 years, Carparelli also came away with some interesting observations from his trip around Bowl Season. How did this year’s Bowl Season look, and feel,
champions of the SWAC and the MEAC, two HBCU
in person?
institutions with great history in South Carolina State
CARPARELLI: “I was fortunate enough to attend
and Jackson State. The energy in Mercedes-Benz
eight games in person and they were all tremendous
Stadium in Atlanta caught me by surprise. It was a
experiences. If you lived in a vacuum and didn’t
big party, and that spoke to the value of the bowl
know what was happening in the world around you,
experience. You have two FCS institutions whose
it looked and felt like a bowl game from three years
conferences have elected not to participate in the
ago. The fans, the energy in the stadiums and the
national playoffs but chose instead to come together
passion in the stands was a lot of fun to see.”
to celebrate their history and the sport of college football. There were 48,000 people in that stadium
There were so many memorable moments and
and they thoroughly enjoyed themselves and that
scenes through Bowl Season. What are a couple
bowl game experience.
that stood out to you?
The other game that stands out is the Union
CARPARELLI: “The first bowl game I attended was
Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl. Two Florida schools
the Cricket Celebration Bowl that matched the
that are bigger rivals off the field than on the field
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BOWL SEASON | February 2021
because they rarely play one another. Central Florida
great guests and given the popularity of the podcast
vs. Florida, a sellout two days before Christmas at
we have tremendous interest from some corporate
Raymond James Stadium. The passion and energy in
partners to help support this storytelling effort
the building was tremendous. Central Florida pulled
moving forward.”
out a 29-17 win with a big third quarter and I
Another point of
think the Knights will
growth was the
be celebrating until the
introduction of Bowl
2022 kickoff next fall.”
Season Radio. Eighteen games were featured
Bowl Season enjoyed
on the inaugural slate
certain growth in
this season. What were
your second year as
your impressions?
executive director. One
CARPARELLI: “We had
big addition was the
a very successful first
first season of the Bowl
season of Bowl Season
Season Stories podcast.
Radio with 18 games
Were you happy with
broadcast nationally on
how the podcast
SiriusXM satellite radio.
launched and grew?
We were able to brand
And where would you
Bowl Season throughout
like to take it?
these broadcasts and
CARPARELLI: “The Bowl
offer our corporate
Season Stories podcast
partners additional
was a great addition for
exposure. Our partners
Bowl Season and a lot
at First Team Ventures
of fun. We recorded 21
did a tremendous
episodes, having high
job showcasing live
hopes entering into
game action on radio
the project and the
throughout Bowl
results clearly exceeded our expectations. We had many great guests, including some legends of the sport, media personalities and bowl game executive directors, that all told their college
“We recorded 21 episodes, having high hopes entering into the project and the results clearly exceeded our expectations.”
football bowl stories with great passion. Everyone
Gameday Live? CARPARELLI: “For the first time on BowlSeason. com our Gameday Live page allowed fans games in progress. To
has a treasured bowl We very quickly surpassed our goals and finished
How about Bowl Season
to click and access all
– NICK CARPARELLI Bowl Season Executive Director
experience, or a Bowl Season Story.
Season”
be one click away from the television feed, a radio broadcast, as well as live statistics provided a seamless fan-friendly experience.
in the top five percent of all podcasts based on
We think that this one-stop location for all live Bowl
downloads and listenership. When we start up again
Season information will become increasingly popular
in the fall we’re excited about building on the roster of
amongst fans each year.” BOWL SEASON | February 2021
5
Nick Carparelli was on hand at the Capital One Orange Bowl to present the late Dan McNamara’s Bowl Season Leadership Hall of Fame plaque to Orange Bowl President & Chair Jack Seiler, former CEOs Steve Hatchell and Keith Tribble, and current CEO Eric Poms.
There were some significant posts from student-
anything to play in just one more college football
athletes, coaches and teams on social media
game with their teammates. I don’t know of anyone
expressing their appreciation for their bowl trip
who has looked back and said ‘I wish I played in one
experience. Despite
less game.’
some players opting out, what is the overall
What are Bowl
feedback you continue
Season’s goals for 2022
to get from teams
and beyond?
about Bowl Season?
CARPARELLI: “We
CARPARELLI: “The Bowl
made great strides in
Season experience is
what was effectively
so meaningful to so
our first full Bowl
many players, coaches
Season this year. We’re
and fans that the vast
really excited about
majority of studentathletes certainly opt IN to playing these games. They’ll own memories
continuing the initiatives Bowl Season is meaningful to thousands of student-athletes, coaches, staff, spirit squads and marching bands.
they’ll cherish forever,
that we started as well as introducing some new ones in 2022. Our corporate partner
really. I personally feel for the players who choose to
program shows great signs of growth and the
opt out of bowl games. I’m very certain that years
promise of a full, pandemic-free college football
down the road they’re going to look back at that
season and Bowl Season remains eminently attractive
decision and say with conviction that they’d give
for everyone in the sport.”
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BOWL SEASON | February 2021
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!
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BOWLSEASON.COM
2 02 1 -2 2
Note s
Bowl Season Viewersh ip Stro ng • The 31 non-NY6 bowl games across ESPN networks averaged 2.6M viewers, up 12% from last year’s 18 bowl games.
2.6 M
VIEWERS • Of the 27 bowls with year-to-year comparison to 2019, 10 had their best audience since at least 2017, and seven of the games had their
best since at least 2015.
• The average bowl game on ESPN drew 900K more viewers than the average regular season game on the network (2.6Mvs. 1.7M). Compared to other sports, the average bowl also brought in more than 1M viewers than regular season NBA or MLB Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN. • The top non-NY6 bowl game on ESPN this year (the Transperfect Music City Bowl) drew more viewers (5.594M) than any regular season CFB game on cable (LSU at Alabama). • A lot of fans watched Bowl Season’s opening weekend (Dec. 17-20, 2021), with 1.8M avg. viewers over the first nine games, an increase of 31% over 2019’s opening weekend. Eight games registered 1M+ viewers on ABC/ESPN. The Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl on ABC was the high mark with 3.2M viewers.
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BOWL SEASON | January 2022
BOWL SEASON 2021-22 Notes
Levi
WILLIAMS
Lev i-Taterin g in Bo ise The Wyoming Cowboys rushed for 401 yards in their 52-38 win on Dec. 21 over Kent State in the Fam ous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise. The Pokes wer e led by sophomore quarterback Levi Williams, who earned game MVP honors with a 200-yard rushing performance — fifth most in bowl history by a QB. Williams also rushed for four touchdowns while add ing 127 passing yards. His night was capped by an 80-y ard TD early in the fourth quarter.
BOWL SEASON | January 2022
9
d Bowl Season Gameday Bowl Season introduce g the best way for any Live this year — creatin ow all the bowl games. college football fan to foll eason.com, Gameday A landing page at BowlS to access live coverage Live gave fans a chance ed game. The page includ of each and every bowl for ts sta me and real-ti live tv broadcasts, radio Bowl Season. t hou oug thr e every gam
CJ
STROUD Jaxon
SMITHNJIGBA
Rose Bowl Records Shattered Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud & Jaxon Smith-Njigba exploded in the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Capital One Venture X, a 48-45 victory over Utah. Stroud’s 573 passing yards and six touchdowns set a Rose Bowl record, while also becoming the first Ohio State quarterback to ever throw for 500 yards. Stroud finished three passing yards short of the most passing yards in any bowl game. Smith-Njigba set a record for the most catches and receiving yards for any FBS game with 347 yards on 15 receptions.
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BOWL SEASON | January 2022
BOWL SEASON 2021-22 Notes
Sportradar is the trusted partner to more than 65 leagues and federations across the globe, including Bowl Season. Sportradar helps ensure the highest quality data at the fastest speeds, helping track stats in real time so that fans can learn of numbers like what was seen in Nashville:
1
The 2021 Transperfect Music City Bowl saw the offenses of Tennessee and Purdue combine for 1,293 total yards on 185 plays, which is the second-most combined yards in Bowl Season history. Purdue QB Aidan O’Connell threw for 534 yards and five TDs while Tennessee’s RB Jabari Small led the way on the ground with 180 yards. Small’s backfield mate QB Hendon Hooker tossed five TDs with 378 yards. Five Boilermaker RBs combined for 93 yards on the ground, led by Zander Horvath’s 58 on 17 carries.
Zappe, Boom, POW!
Baily
ZAPPE
Western Kentucky quarterback Bailey Zappe passed for 422 yards and six touchdowns in the RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl on Dec. 18, leading the Hilltoppers to a 59-38 win over Appalachian State. His performance capped off a stellar season, as Zappe set two FBS single-season records with 5,967 yards and 62 touchdowns. The six touchdowns in the game were one short of the Bowl Season record.
BOWL SEASON | January 2022
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Roll Tide Alabama punched its ticket to the CFP National Championship with a 27-6 win over Cincinnati in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Dec. 31. Brian Robinson Jr. recorded a career-high 204 yards rushing in the game, setting an Alabama bowl record in the process. The 204 yards were also the second-most ever in a Playoff Semifinal. Tossing for three scores, Bryce Young set the school record for the most passing touchdowns in a season at 46. Young also broke the single season passing yards record for Bama in the game, finishing with 4,872.
Bowl Season and First Team Ventures joined together to form Bowl Season Radio this year, which provided exclusive live national radio/audio play-by-play coverage for 18 college bowl games. Bowl Season Radio aired on terrestrial radio stations throughout the country, as well as SiriusXM satellite radio. In addition, the games streamed live on Tune-In, Audacy and The Varsity Network apps.
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BOWL SEASON | January 2022
BOWL SEASON 2021-22 Notes
Best performances in this year’s Bowl Season
21
Sean’s Gone…
Sean Taylor, Western Michigan’s sophomore running back and return specialist, racked up 128 return yards in the Broncos’ 52-24 Quick Lane Bowl victory over Nevada, including a 100-yard TD to tie Andre Debose of Florida (Gator Bowl, 2012) for the all-time Bowl Season return yard average record at 64.0 yards per return. Taylor also recorded 146 yards rushing on 14 carries.
WATC H VID EO
BOWL SEASON | January 2022
13
Big Game Bob is Back (for one game)
Bob Stoops, who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fa me on Dec. 7, returned to OU's sideline as interim head coach for the Valer o Alamo Bowl on De c. 29. It marked Stoops ' first collegiate game since beating Auburn in the 2016 Sugar Bowl . It was his 19th bowl gam e as a head coach (he now owns a 10-9 mark).
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BOWL SEASON | January 2022
Golden Hurricane in Myrtle Beach! Tulsa’s quarterback Davis Brin passed for 285 yards and two touchdowns in the Myrtle Beach Bowl on Dec. 20, leading the Golden Hurricanes to a 30-17 win over Old Dominion. His performance earned Brin the game MVP, as he set a Myrtle Beach Bowl record in yards with 285.
Davis
BRIN
BOWL SEASON 2021-22 Notes
2021-22 BOWL SEASON TOP PERFORMERS PASSING 1 C.J.
2 Aidan
STROUD
O’CONNELL
573 yard
534
Ohio State
Purdue
3 Jack
COAN
Notre Dame
4
5
Bailey
Hendon
ZAPPE
HOOKER
WKU
Tennessee
yard s
509 yard s
422 yard s
378 yard s
2
3
4
5
RUSHING 1 Brian
Levi
Tyler
DeWayne
ROBINSON JR.
WILLIAMS
ALLGEIER
McBRIDE
204 yard s
200 yard s
2
Alabama
Wyoming
BYU
Kevin
HARRIS
192 yard s
UAB
183 yard s
South Carolina
3
4
5
Jesse
Brandon
SDSU
Air Force
182 yard s
RECEIVING 1 Jaxon
Broc
Jerreth
SMITH-NJIGBA
THOMPSON
STERNS
MATTHEWS
347 yard s
217 yard s
184 yard s
172 yard s
Ohio State
Purdue
WKU
LEWIS
172 yard s
BOWL SEASON | January 2022
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