2013–14 NCAA football bowl games

The 2013–14 NCAA football bowl games were a series of college football bowl games. They concluded the 2013 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and included 35 team-competitive games and three all-star games (down from four as the Texas vs the Nation game was cancelled for this season). The games began on Saturday December 21, 2013 and, aside from the all-star games, ended with the 2014 BCS National Championship at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena that was played on January 6, 2014.

Schedule

The 2013–14 bowl season served as the last for the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) format. Starting in 2014–15 a new system, the College Football Playoff, will be used.

The 2013–2014 bowl game schedule, with 70 teams to compete in 35 bowls, was announced in May 2013.[1] All bowl game participants were selected by December 8, 2013.

Note: All times are EST (UTC−5). Rankings from final BCS poll.

Non-BCS games

Date Game Site Television Radio Teams Affiliations Results
Dec. 21 Gildan New Mexico Bowl University Stadium
University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM
2:00 pm
ESPN ESPN Radio Colorado State Rams (7–6)
Washington State Cougars (6–6)
MW
Pac-12
Colorado State 48
Washington State 45
Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl Sam Boyd Stadium
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Whitney, NV
3:30 pm
ABC Sports USA Radio Network #25 USC Trojans (9–3)
#20 Fresno State Bulldogs (11–1)
Pac-12
MW
USC 45
Fresno State 20
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Bronco Stadium
Boise, ID
5:30 pm
ESPN ESPN Radio San Diego State Aztecs (7–5)
Buffalo Bulls (8–4)
MW
MAC
San Diego State 49
Buffalo 24
R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl Mercedes-Benz Superdome
New Orleans, LA
9:00 pm
Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns (8–4)
Tulane Green Wave (7–5)
Sun Belt
C-USA
Louisiana–Lafayette 24
Tulane 21
Dec. 23 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl St. Petersburg Tropicana Field
St. Petersburg, FL
2:00 pm
East Carolina Pirates (9–3)
Ohio Bobcats (7–5)
C-USA
MAC[lower-alpha 1]
East Carolina 37
Ohio 20
Dec. 24 Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl Aloha Stadium
Honolulu, HI
8:00 pm
Oregon State Beavers (6–6)
Boise State Broncos (8–4)
Pac-12[lower-alpha 2]
MW
Oregon State 38
Boise State 23
Dec. 26 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl Ford Field
Detroit, MI
6:00 pm
TBC Radio Pittsburgh Panthers (6–6)
Bowling Green Falcons (10–3)
ACC[lower-alpha 3]
MAC
Pittsburgh 30
Bowling Green 27
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl Qualcomm Stadium
San Diego, CA
9:30 pm
ESPN Radio Utah State Aggies (8–5)
#23 NIU Huskies (12–1)
MW
MAC[lower-alpha 4]
Utah State 21
NIU 14
Dec. 27 Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
United States Naval Academy
Annapolis, MD
2:30 pm
Touchdown Radio Marshall Thundering Herd (9–4)
Maryland Terrapins (7–5)
C-USA
ACC
Marshall 31
Maryland 20
Texas Bowl Reliant Stadium
Houston, TX
6:00 pm
ESPN Radio Syracuse Orange (6–6)
Minnesota Golden Gophers (8–4)
ACC
Big Ten
Syracuse 21
Minnesota 17
Fight Hunger Bowl AT&T Park
San Francisco, CA
9:30 pm
Washington Huskies (8–4)
BYU Cougars (8–4)
Pac-12
Independent
Washington 31
BYU 16
Dec. 28 New Era Pinstripe Bowl Yankee Stadium
Bronx, NY
Noon
Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8–4)
Rutgers Scarlet Knights (6–6)[2]
Independent[lower-alpha 5]
American
Notre Dame 29
Rutgers 16
Belk Bowl Bank of America Stadium
Charlotte, NC
3:20 pm
North Carolina Tar Heels (6–6)
Cincinnati Bearcats (9–3)
ACC
American
North Carolina 39
Cincinnati 17
Russell Athletic Bowl Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium
Orlando, FL
6:45 pm
#18 Louisville Cardinals (11–1)
Miami Hurricanes (9–3)
American
ACC
Louisville 36
Miami 9
Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl Sun Devil Stadium
Arizona State University
Tempe, AZ
10:15 pm
Kansas State Wildcats (7–5)
Michigan Wolverines (7–5)
Big 12
Big Ten
Kansas State 31
Michigan 14
Dec. 30 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl Amon G. Carter Stadium
Texas Christian University
Fort Worth, TX
11:45 am
Navy Midshipmen (8–4)
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (8–4)
Independent
C-USA
Navy 24
Middle Tennessee 6
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl LP Field
Nashville, TN
3:15 pm
Nevada Sports Network Ole Miss Rebels (7–5)
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (7–5)
SEC
ACC
Ole Miss 25
Georgia Tech 17
Valero Alamo Bowl Alamodome
San Antonio, TX
6:45 pm
ESPN Radio #10 Oregon Ducks (10–2)
Texas Longhorns (8–4)
Pac-12
Big 12
Oregon 30
Texas 7
National University Holiday Bowl Qualcomm Stadium
San Diego, CA
10:15 pm
Texas Tech Red Raiders (7–5)
#14 Arizona State Sun Devils (10–3)
Big 12
Pac-12
Texas Tech 37
Arizona State 23
Dec. 31 AdvoCare V100 Bowl Independence Stadium
Shreveport, LA
12:30 pm
Sports USA Radio Network Arizona Wildcats (7–5)
Boston College Eagles (7–5)
Pac-12[lower-alpha 6]
ACC
Arizona 42
Boston College 19
Hyundai Sun Bowl Sun Bowl Stadium
University of Texas El Paso
El Paso, TX
2:00 pm
CBS Nevada Sports Network #17 UCLA Bruins (9–3)
Virginia Tech Hokies (8–4)
Pac-12
ACC
UCLA 42
Virginia Tech 12
AutoZone Liberty Bowl Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium
Memphis, TN
4:00 pm
ESPN ESPN Radio Mississippi State Bulldogs (6–6)
Rice Owls (10–3)
SEC
C-USA
Mississippi State 44
Rice 7
Chick-fil-A Bowl Georgia Dome
Atlanta, GA
8:00 pm
#21 Texas A&M Aggies (8–4)
#24 Duke Blue Devils (10–3)
SEC
ACC
Texas A&M 52
Duke 48
Jan. 1 TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl EverBank Field
Jacksonville, FL
Noon
ESPN2 Touchdown Radio Nebraska Cornhuskers (8–4)
#22 Georgia Bulldogs (8–4)
Big Ten
SEC
Nebraska 24
Georgia 19
Heart of Dallas Bowl[lower-alpha 7] Cotton Bowl
Dallas, TX
Noon
ESPNU RedVoice LLC North Texas Mean Green (8–4)
UNLV Rebels (6–6)
C-USA
MW
North Texas 36
UNLV 14
Capital One Bowl Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium
Orlando, FL
1:00 pm
ABC ESPN Radio #9 South Carolina Gamecocks (10–2)
#19 Wisconsin Badgers (8–4)
SEC
Big Ten
South Carolina 34
Wisconsin 24
Outback Bowl Raymond James Stadium
Tampa, FL
1:00 pm
ESPN #16 LSU Tigers (9–3)
Iowa Hawkeyes (8–4)
SEC
Big Ten
LSU 21
Iowa 14
Jan. 3 AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic AT&T Stadium
Arlington, TX
7:30 pm
FOX #8 Missouri Tigers (11–2)
#13 Oklahoma State Cowboys (10–2)
SEC
Big 12
Missouri 41
Oklahoma State 31
Jan. 4 BBVA Compass Bowl Legion Field
Birmingham, AL
1:00 pm
ESPN Vanderbilt Commodores (8–4)
Houston Cougars (8–4)
SEC
American
Vanderbilt 41
Houston 24
Jan. 5 GoDaddy Bowl Ladd Peebles Stadium
Mobile, AL
9:00 pm
Nevada Sports Network Arkansas State Red Wolves (7–5)
Ball State Cardinals (10–2)
Sun Belt
MAC
Arkansas State 23
Ball State 20

BCS Games

[3]

Date Game Site Television Radio Teams Affiliations Results
Jan. 1 Rose Bowl presented by Vizio Rose Bowl
Pasadena, CA
5:00 pm
ESPN ESPN Radio #4 Michigan State Spartans[4] (12–1)
#5 Stanford Cardinal[4] (11–2)
Big Ten
Pac-12
Michigan State 24
Stanford 20
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl University of Phoenix Stadium
Glendale, AZ
8:30 pm
#15 UCF Knights[5] (11–1)
#6 Baylor Bears[5] (11–1)
American
Big 12
UCF 52
Baylor 42
Jan. 2 Allstate Sugar Bowl Mercedes-Benz Superdome
New Orleans, LA
8:30 pm
#11 Oklahoma Sooners[6] (10–2)
#3 Alabama Crimson Tide[6] (11–1)
Big 12
SEC
Oklahoma 45
Alabama 31
Jan. 3 Discover Orange Bowl Sun Life Stadium
Miami Gardens, FL
8:30 pm
#12 Clemson Tigers[7] (10–2)
#7 Ohio State Buckeyes[7] (12–1)
ACC
Big Ten
Clemson 40
Ohio State 35
Jan. 6 Vizio BCS National Championship Game Rose Bowl
Pasadena, CA
8:30 pm
#1 Florida State Seminoles[8] (13–0)
#2 Auburn Tigers[8] (12–1)
ACC
SEC
Florida State 34
Auburn 31

Post BCS all-star games

Date Game Site Television Participants Results
Jan. 18 East-West Shrine Game Tropicana Field
St. Petersburg, FL
4:00 pm
NFL Network East Team vs.
West Team
East Team 23
West Team 13
NFLPA Collegiate Bowl StubHub Center
Carson, CA
6:00 pm
ESPN2 American Team vs.
National Team
National Team 31
American Team 17
Jan. 25 Senior Bowl Ladd Peebles Stadium
Mobile, AL
4:00pm
NFL Network North Team vs.
South Team
South Team 20
North Team 10

Bowl Challenge Cup standings

Conference Total games Wins Losses Pct.
Sun Belt 2 2 0 1.000
SEC 10 7 3 .700
Independents 3 2 1 .667
Pac-12 9 6 3 .667
Big 12 6 3 3 .500
C-USA 6 3 3 .500
MW 6 3 3 .500
ACC 11 5 6 .455
American 5 2 3 .400
Big Ten 7 2 5 .286
MAC 5 0 5 .000

Selection of the teams

Michigan State defeated Stanford in the Rose Bowl Game

To play in a bowl game, a college football team must qualify to do so according to the NCAA rules of bowl eligibility.

As in the 2010, 2011, and 2012 seasons, initial bowl eligibility would go to teams with no lower than a non-losing record (6–6) for the season. On August 2, 2012, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors approved a significant change to the process to determine bowl eligible teams, going so far as to potentially allow 5–7 teams to go to a bowl, in case there were not enough regular bowl-eligible teams to fill every game.

The easing of the bowl eligibility rules resulted in a record number of teams, 79 versus the 71 or 72 of the past few seasons, being deemed eligible for selection to a 2013–14 bowl game. The easing of rules to include teams with losing records and teams from the lower Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), will carry extra importance starting in the 2014–15 bowl season, when the number of bowl games will increase to 39—requiring 78 eligible teams.

If a bowl has one or more conferences/teams unable to meet their contractual commitments and there are no available bowl-eligible teams, the open spots can be filled – by the particular bowl's sponsoring agencies – as follows:[9]

  1. Teams finishing with an above .500 record, that is, 7–5. In case of two teams with identical record, the team with a .500 or above in conference play, AND winning percentage in a) FIRST non-conference Road games against i) BCS conference opponents, ii) Division I non BCS conference opponents, b) SECOND non-conference Neutral-site games against iii) BCS conference opponents, iv) Division I non BCS conference opponents, c) THIRD non-conference Home games against v) BCS conference opponents, vi) Division I non BCS conference opponents, and last, games at home against lower division opponents.
  2. Teams finishing 6–6 with one win against a team from the lower Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), regardless of whether that FCS school meets NCAA scholarship requirements. Until now, an FCS win counted only if that opponent met the scholarship requirements—specifically, that school had to award at least 90% of the FCS maximum of 63 scholarship equivalents over a two-year period. In the 2013 season, programs in four FCS conferences cannot meet the 90% requirement (56.7 equivalents)—the Ivy League, which prohibits all athletic scholarships; the Pioneer Football League, which does not currently award football scholarships; the Patriot League, which only began awarding football scholarships in the 2012 season and had a limit of 30 equivalents in the 2013 season; and the Northeast Conference, which limits football scholarships to 40 equivalents.
  3. 6–6 teams with two wins over FCS schools.
  4. 6–7 teams that normally play a 13-team schedule, such as Hawaii's home opponents. Although Hawaii normally plays a 13-game schedule, it is only playing 12 games this season.
  5. FCS teams who are in the final year of the two-year FBS transition process, if they have at least a 6–6 record.
  6. Finally, 5–7 teams that have a top-5 Academic Progress Rate (APR) score. This was later adjusted to allow other 5–7 teams to be selected thereafter—in order of their APR.[10]

Under a rule change approved by the NCAA Legislative Council on May 3, 2013, teams that enter a conference championship game with a 6–6 record, with no more than one win over an FCS school, are bowl-eligible regardless of the result of the championship game, without the team having to seek an NCAA waiver.[11]

Bowl Championship Series

Ten teams were selected for the Bowl Championship Series:

Conference Champions

At-large selections

BCS top 25 teams

Rank Team Conference and standing Bowl game
1 Florida State Seminoles ACC champions National Championship Game
2 Auburn Tigers SEC champions National Championship Game
3 Alabama Crimson Tide SEC Western Division co-champions Sugar Bowl
4 Michigan State Spartans Big Ten champions Rose Bowl
5 Stanford Cardinal Pac-12 champions Rose Bowl
6 Baylor Bears Big 12 champions Fiesta Bowl
7 Ohio State Buckeyes Big Ten Leaders Division champions Orange Bowl
8 Missouri Tigers SEC Eastern Division champions Cotton Bowl Classic
9 South Carolina Gamecocks SEC Eastern Division second place Capital One Bowl
10 Oregon Ducks Pac-12 North Division co-champions Alamo Bowl
11 Oklahoma Sooners Big 12 second place (tie) Sugar Bowl
12 Clemson Tigers ACC Atlantic Division second place Orange Bowl
13 Oklahoma State Cowboys Big 12 second place (tie) Cotton Bowl Classic
14 Arizona State Sun Devils Pac-12 South Division champions Holiday Bowl
15 UCF Knights American champions Fiesta Bowl
16 LSU Tigers SEC Western Division third place Outback Bowl
17 UCLA Bruins Pac-12 South Division second place (tie) Sun Bowl
18 Louisville Cardinals American second place Russell Athletic Bowl
19 Wisconsin Badgers Big Ten Leaders Division second place Capital One Bowl
20 Fresno State Bulldogs MWC champions Las Vegas Bowl
21 Texas A&M Aggies SEC Western Division fourth place Chick-fil-A Bowl
22 Georgia Bulldogs SEC Eastern Division third place Gator Bowl
23 NIU Huskies MAC West Division champions Poinsettia Bowl
24 Duke Blue Devils ACC Coastal Division Champions Chick-fil-A Bowl
25 USC Trojans Pac-12 South Division second place (tie) Las Vegas Bowl

Teams that became bowl eligible

Number of bowl berths available: 70
Number of teams bowl eligible: 79

The easing of the bowl eligibility rules, to include teams with non-losing (6–6) or even losing records, resulted in a record number of teams – 79 versus the 71 or 72 of the past few seasons – being deemed eligible for selection to a 2013–14 bowl game.

Nine eligible teams did not receive a bowl invitation, including two with winning records: Western Kentucky (8–4), Toledo (7–5), Central Michigan (6–6), Florida Atlantic (6–6), Louisiana-Monroe (6–6), San Jose State (6–6), South Alabama (6–6), Texas State (6–6), Troy (6–6)

    Teams that did not become bowl eligible

    Number of teams bowl ineligible: 46

    Upcoming changes for 2014–15

    Starting in 2014–15 a new system, the College Football Playoff, will be used to determine the national champion.

    The new format will have a committee of 13 people select and seed the top 12 teams.[12] These teams will be paired in six of the ten oldest bowl games—the Rose, Sugar, Orange, Cotton, Peach and Fiesta bowls. The new format will be marketed as the "New Year's Six",[13] with three bowls played daily, typically on consecutive days around New Year's Day.

    Within this New Year's Six format, the top four seeded teams will be paired in two national semi-finals, followed by a national championship game played on the first Monday that is six or more days after the semifinals, at a neutral site.[14] The two semi-finals will rotate each year, first at the Rose and Sugar bowls, then the Orange and Fiesta bowls, then the Cotton and Peach bowls.

    In addition, the number of bowls will expand to 39 games in 2014–15, with four new games – the Camellia Bowl, scheduled for the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama pitting the Sun Belt against the MAC; the Bahamas Bowl to be played in Nassau between the MAC and the American Athletic Conference; the Miami Beach Bowl to be played in Marlins Park with an AAC team as host; and the Boca Raton Bowl, to be played at FAU Stadium, with a third MAC team taking on a team from Conference USA. The increase to 76 teams (38 bowls + national championship played by semi-final bowl winners) in bowl play required the easing of bowl eligibility rules, allowing teams with losing records or teams in the lower FCS to be deemed eligible for invitation to a bowl game.

    Notes

    1. The American Athletic Conference would have its sixth team to this game, but only five teams were bowl-eligible.
    2. Conference USA was to have sent a team, but because of a lack of bowl eligible teams, the Pac-12 sent a team instead.
    3. The Big Ten Conference would have had its eighth selection go to this bowl, but it had only 7 eligible teams. Therefore, the ACC sent a team instead.
    4. Army would have been eligible, but had a losing record.
    5. The Big 12 Conference was supposed to send its seventh selection to the Pinstripe Bowl. However since only six Big 12 teams were eligible this year, its place will be taken by an at-large team.
    6. With two SEC in the BCS, the Pac-12 replaces them.
    7. Neither the Big Ten nor Big 12 were able to fulfill their required bowl slots for this game.

    References

    1. "2013–14 Bowl Schedule", ESPN, May 22, 2013. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
    2. Pinstripe Bowl set: Rutgers to play Notre Dame in Yankee Stadium
    3. McMurphy, Brett. "Twitter Account of ESPN's Brett McMurphy". Retrieved December 8, 2013.
    4. 4.0 4.1 Wilner, Jon (January 7, 2013). "Stanford Cardinal headed back to Rose Bowl". San Jose Mercury-News.
    5. 5.0 5.1 Fuhrmeister, Chris (December 8, 2013). "2014 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Baylor vs. UCF: TV time, team profiles and more". SBNation (Vox Media, Inc.).
    6. 6.0 6.1 "2014 Sugar Bowl, Alabama vs. Oklahoma: TV time, team profiles and more". SBNation (Philly.com). December 8, 2013.
    7. 7.0 7.1 "2014 Orange Bowl, Ohio State vs. Clemson: TV time, team profiles and more". SBNation (Philly.com). December 8, 2013.
    8. 8.0 8.1 "College football: Florida State to face Auburn in BCS National Championship game". San Jose Mercury-News. Associated Press. December 7, 2013.
    9. Johnson, Greg. "DI Board approves process to fill football bowls in case of shortfall". Retrieved August 2, 2012.
    10. Palm, Jerry. "Possible fallout from Canes' self-imposed bowl ban".
    11. "Midnight Madness to start earlier". ESPN.com. May 3, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
    12. Whitley, David (February 8, 2013). "College football playoff selection committee members will need witness protection". Aol.sportingnews.com. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
    13. Staff reports (July 22, 2013). "Sources: 'New Year's Six' likely the working title for College Football Playoff's six bowl game". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
    14. Heather Dinch (June 27, 2012). "Playoff plan to run through 2025". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 10, 2013.