The Myrtle Beach Bowl is an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football bowl game first played in December 2020 in the Myrtle Beach metropolitan area. Coastal Carolina University hosts the game at its Brooks Stadium in Conway, South Carolina, which has a capacity of 20,000 seats following an expansion project completed prior to the 2019 season.[1] Owned by ESPN Events, the bowl has tie-ins with Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference and the Sun Belt Conference.[2] The affiliation contract with ESPN Events has each conference supplying a team four times in a six-year bowl cycle from 2020 to 2025.[3]
| Myrtle Beach Bowl | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Stadium | Brooks Stadium |
| Location | Conway, South Carolina |
| Operated | 2020–present |
| Conference tie-ins | |
| 2023 matchup | |
| Georgia Southern vs. Ohio (Ohio 41–21) | |
| 2024 matchup | |
| UTSA vs. Coastal Carolina (December 23, 2024) | |
Background
editIn 2013, "Group of Five" conferences were looking to start bowl games for their leagues, as the Power Five conferences "prefer to play each other in bowl games".[4] The NCAA had a restriction on championship games, including bowl games, being held in South Carolina due to display of the Confederate flag on State House grounds, which was lifted in July 2015.[5] Organizers for the Medal of Honor Bowl, an all-star game, announced their intent to apply for NCAA sanctioning as a traditional postseason bowl game featuring FBS college teams, with a tentative game date of December 18, 2016.[6] However, in April 2016, the NCAA announced a three-year moratorium on new bowl games.[7]
History
editIn June 2018, the NCAA indicated that the Grand Strand area was approved for a bowl game.[5] The Myrtle Beach Bowl was subsequently announced on November 13, 2018, by ESPN Events,[8] with tie-ins to three conferences: the Sun Belt Conference, Conference USA (C-USA), and Mid-American Conference (MAC).[9] During 2017–18 bowl season, there had been three teams that were bowl eligible but did not go to a bowl, as all slots were filled: Western Michigan and Buffalo from the MAC, and UTSA from C-USA.[3]
The bowl made its debut as part of the 2020–21 bowl season, matching North Texas of C-USA and Appalachian State of the Sun Belt.[10]
Game results
edit
| Date | Winning Team | Losing Team | Attendance | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 21, 2020 | Appalachian State | 56 | North Texas | 28 | 5,000 | notes |
| December 20, 2021 | Tulsa | 30 | Old Dominion | 17 | 6,557 | notes |
| December 19, 2022 | Marshall | 28 | UConn | 14 | 12,023 | notes |
| December 16, 2023 | Ohio | 41 | Georgia Southern | 21 | 8,059 | notes |
| December 23, 2024 | UTSA vs. Coastal Carolina | notes | ||||
MVPs
edit| Year | Player | College | Position | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Camerun Peoples | Appalachian State | RB | [11] |
| 2021 | Davis Brin | Tulsa | QB | [12] |
| 2022 | Rasheen Ali | Marshall | RB | [13] |
| 2023 | Rickey Hunt Jr. | Ohio | RB | [14] |
| 2024 |
Appearances by team
editUpdated for the December 2024 edition (5 games, 10 total appearances).
| Rank | Team | Appearances | Record | Win pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Appalachian State | 1 | 1–0 | 1.000 |
| T1 | Marshall | 1 | 1–0 | 1.000 |
| T1 | Ohio | 1 | 1–0 | 1.000 |
| T1 | Tulsa | 1 | 1–0 | 1.000 |
| T1 | Coastal Carolina† | 1 | 0–0 | .000 |
| T1 | UTSA† | 1 | 0–0 | .000 |
| T1 | Georgia Southern | 1 | 0–1 | .000 |
| T1 | North Texas | 1 | 0–1 | .000 |
| T1 | Old Dominion | 1 | 0–1 | .000 |
| T1 | UConn | 1 | 0–1 | .000 |
† December 2024 participant
Appearances by conference
editUpdated for the December 2024 edition (5 games, 10 total appearances).
| Conference | Record | Appearances by season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | W | L | Win pct. | Won | Lost | |
| Sun Belt† | 4 | 2 | 1 | .667 | 2020, 2022 | 2023 |
| The American† | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 2021 | |
| C-USA | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 | 2020, 2021 | |
| MAC | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 2023 | |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2022 | |
† December 2024 participant
Independent appearances: UConn (2022)
Media coverage
editThe bowl has been televised by ESPN since its inception.
Game records
editUpdated through the December 2023 game.
| Team | Performance vs. Opponent | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Most points scored | 56, Appalachian State vs. North Texas | 2020 |
| Fewest points allowed | 14, Marshall vs. UConn | 2022 |
| Margin of victory | 28, Appalachian State vs. North Texas | 2020 |
| First downs | 35, Tulsa vs. Old Dominion | 2021 |
| Total yards | 638, Appalachian State vs. North Texas | 2020 |
| Rushing yards | 502, Appalachian State vs. North Texas | 2020 |
| Passing yards | 350, Georgia Southern vs. Ohio | 2023 |
| Most points scored (losing team) | 28, North Texas vs. Appalachian State | 2020 |
| Most points scored (both teams) | 84, Appalachian State vs. North Texas | 2020 |
| Fewest yards allowed | 247, Old Dominion vs. Tulsa | 2021 |
| Fewest rushing yards allowed | 33, Ohio vs. Georgia Southern | 2023 |
| Fewest passing yards allowed | 93, Marshall vs. UConn | 2022 |
| Individual | Player (Team) | Year |
| Points scored | 30, shared by: Camerun Peoples (Appalachian State) Rickey Hunt (Ohio) |
2020 2023 |
| Rushing yards | 319, Camerun Peoples (Appalachian State) | 2020 |
| Passing yards | 350, Davis Brin (Georgia Southern) | 2023 |
| Receiving yards | 131, Austin Ogunmakin (North Texas) | 2020 |
| Touchdowns (all-purpose) | 5, shared by: Camerun Peoples (Appalachian State) Rickey Hunt (Ohio) |
2020 2023 |
| Passing touchdowns | 2, shared by: Jason Bean (North Texas) Davis Brin (Tulsa) Cam Fancher (Marshall) Davis Brin (Georgia Southern) |
2020 2021 2022 2023 |
| Rushing touchdowns | 5, Camerun Peoples (Appalachian State) | 2020 |
| Receiving touchdowns | 2, shared by: Henry Pearson (Appalachian State) Loronzo Thompson (North Texas) |
2020 |
| Receptions | 8, Josh Johnson (Tulsa) | 2021 |
| Tackles | 13, shared by: Kaiden Smith (Appalachian State) Jason Henderson (Old Dominion) R'Tarriun Johnson (Old Dominion) |
2020 2021 2021 |
| Tackles for loss | 3, shared by: Nick Hampton (Appalachian State) Jordan Young (Old Dominion) Bradley Weaver (Ohio) |
2020 2021 2023 |
| Sacks | 2.0, shared by: Vonnie Watkins (Ohio) Bradley Weaver (Ohio) |
2023 2023 |
| Interceptions | 1, shared by multiple people; most recent: Walter Reynolds (Ohio) Adonis Williams Jr. (Ohio) Jeremiah Wood (Ohio) |
2023 2023 2023 |
| Long Plays | Record, Player, Team | Year |
| Touchdown run | 70 yds., Marcus Williams Jr. (Appalachian State) | 2020 |
| Touchdown pass | 65 yds., Davis Brin (Georgia Southern) | 2023 |
| Kickoff return | 100 yds., LaMareon James (Old Dominion) | 2021 |
| Punt return | 15 yds., Keegan Wilburn (Georgia Southern) | 2023 |
| Interception return | 63 yds., Steven Jones (Appalachian State) | 2020 |
| Fumble return | 30 yds., Roman Parodie (Ohio) | 2023 |
| Punt | 52 yds., Bernardo Rodriguez (North Texas) | 2020 |
| Field goal | 35 yds., Zack Long (Tulsa) | 2021 |
References
edit- ^ Blondin, Alan (August 8, 2019). "Expansion of Brooks Stadium is complete. What the new capacity and features mean for CCU". Myrtle Beach Sun News. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "New FBS postseason game, Myrtle Beach Bowl, to start in 2020". AP News. November 13, 2018. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
- ^ a b Nothaft, Patrick (November 13, 2018). "New college football bowl game to feature MAC, Sun Belt and C-USA teams". Kalamazoo Gazette. MLive Media Group. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
- ^ McMurphy, Brett (June 11, 2013). "'Group of Five' look to add bowls". ESPN. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
- ^ a b Asberry, Derrek (November 13, 2018). "Myrtle Beach Bowl to become first college football bowl game played in South Carolina". Post and Courier. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
- ^ Hartsell, Jeff (August 26, 2015). "Medal of Honor Bowl now a 'traditional' bowl game". The Post and Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
- ^ McMurphy, Brett (April 11, 2016). "NCAA approves three-year halt to new bowl games". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- ^ Taylor, John (November 13, 2018). "ESPN-owned Myrtle Beach Bowl to debut in 2020". CollegeFootballTalk. NBC Sports. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
- ^ "ESPN Events Announces Creation of Myrtle Beach Bowl Beginning in 2020". myrtlebeachbowlgame.com. November 13, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
- ^ "Myrtle Beach Bowl Preview: App State vs. North Texas". App State Athletics. 20 December 2020. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
- ^ "App State's Peoples has historic day in Inaugural Myrtle Beach Bowl". WCSC-TV. AP. December 21, 2020. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
- ^ IACOBELLI, PETE (21 December 2021). "Brin, Tulsa take Myrtle Beach Bowl 30-17 over Old Dominion". Chron. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
- ^ @LukeCreasy (December 19, 2022). "Rasheen Ali is the 2022 Myrtle Beach Bowl MVP" (Tweet). Retrieved December 19, 2022 – via Twitter.
- ^ @OhioFootball (December 16, 2023). "MVP RICKEYYYYYY !!" (Tweet). Retrieved December 16, 2023 – via Twitter.