List of Alabama Crimson Tide bowl games

Several American football players in red and white uniforms in action at the mid-field area of the stadium with a large logo visible on the field. Players are visible on both sidelines with the edge of the spectator stands also visible.
50-yard line action during the 2010 BCS National Championship Game

The Alabama Crimson Tide football team competes as part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), representing the University of Alabama in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Since the establishment of the team in 1892, Alabama has appeared in 62 bowl games.[1][2] Included in these games are 33 combined appearances in the traditional "big four" bowl games (the Rose, Sugar, Cotton, and Orange) and 6 Bowl Championship Series (BCS) game appearances, including three victories in the BCS National Championship Game.[2][3][4]

Alabama's first bowl game was in 1926, when Wallace Wade led them to the first of three Rose Bowls during his tenure and defeated Washington 20–19.[2] Taking over for Wade following the 1930 season, between 1931 and 1946 Frank Thomas led Alabama to six bowl appearances including three Rose, and one trip each to the Cotton, Orange and Sugar Bowls.[5] After Thomas, Harold Drew led Alabama to the Sugar, Orange and Cotton Bowls between 1947 and 1954.[6] After a five-year bowl absence, Alabama made the first of 24 consecutive bowl appearances under Paul "Bear" Bryant in the 1959 Liberty Bowl.[7] From 1959 to 1982, Bryant led the Crimson Tide to eight Sugar, five Orange, four Cotton, four Liberty, two Bluebonnet and one Gator Bowls.[7]

After Bryant retired, Ray Perkins extended Alabama's consecutive bowl game streak to 25 years with a victory in the 1983 Sun Bowl.[8] However, the streak ended when the 1984 team finished the season with a record of five wins and six losses and failed to qualify for a bowl for the first time in 26 years.[9] The bowl absence lasted only one season as Perkins led the Crimson Tide to wins in both the Aloha and Sun Bowls before he resigned as head coach following the 1986 season.[10] Bill Curry continued the bowl tradition and led the Crimson Tide to Hall of Fame, Sun and Sugar Bowl appearances in his three seasons as head coach.[11] After Curry, Gene Stallings took Alabama to the Fiesta, Blockbuster, Gator, Citrus and Outback Bowls.[12] Stallings also led the Crimson Tide to victory in the first Bowl Coalition national championship game with a 34–13 victory over Miami in the Sugar Bowl.[13][14] In August 1995, as part of the penalty imposed by the NCAA for rules violations, Alabama was ruled ineligible to participate in the 1995 bowl season.[15]

Following the retirement of Stallings, Mike DuBose was hired as head coach.[16] After failing to qualify for a bowl game in 1997, DuBose led the Crimson Tide to the inaugural Music City Bowl and Alabama's first BCS bowl berth in the Orange Bowl.[3][17] After again failing to qualify for a bowl in 2000, DuBose was fired and Dennis Franchione was hired as head coach.[18] In his first season, Franchione led Alabama to the Independence Bowl.[17] In February 2002, the NCAA found Alabama violated multiple rules, and as part of its penalty a two-year bowl ban was imposed to include both the 2002 and 2003 seasons.[19] Eligible again to compete in bowl games, Mike Shula led Alabama to the Music City Bowl and a victory in the Cotton Bowl.[17] However in 2009, Alabama was again found to have violated NCAA rules between 2005 and 2007 and as part of their penalty, the 2006 Cotton Bowl Classic victory was officially vacated.[20] In the week following the 2006 loss to Auburn, Shula was fired and Joe Kines served as interim head coach for the Independence Bowl loss.[17][21]

In January 2007, Nick Saban was hired as head coach, and has led the Crimson Tide to bowl appearances in each of his five seasons at Alabama.[22] After defeating Colorado in the Independence Bowl, Saban led Alabama to their second BCS bowl against Utah in the Sugar Bowl.[3][22] In 2009, Saban led the Crimson Tide to the BCS National Championship Game, and defeated Texas 37–21 to clinch the program's first national title of the BCS era.[3][22] A year after Alabama defeated Michigan State in the 2011 Capital One Bowl, the Crimson Tide defeated LSU in the BCS National Championship Game to clinch the program's second national title of the BCS era.[23][24] The following season, the Crimson Tide won their second consecutive BCS National Championship Game by a final score of 42–14 over Notre Dame.[25] In their latest bowl appearance, Alabama lost to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl.[26] A loss in that game brought Alabama's overall bowl record to 35 wins, 24 losses and 3 ties, placing the Crimson Tide in first place among all FBS schools for both bowl appearances and victories.[1]

Key

General
dagger Bowl game record attendance
double-dagger Former bowl game record attendance
* Denotes national championship game
§ Denotes College Football Playoff game
Results
W Win
L Loss
T Tie

Bowl games

List of bowl games showing bowl played in, score, date, season, opponent, stadium, location, attendance and head coach[A 1]
# Bowl[2] Score[A 2] Date Season[A 3] Opponent[A 4] Stadium Location Attendance[27] Head coach
1 Rose Bowl W 20–19 January 1, 1926 1925 Washington Huskies Rose Bowl Pasadena 50,000 Wade, WallaceWallace Wade
2 Rose Bowl T 7–7 January 1, 1927 1926 Stanford Rose Bowl Pasadena 57,417double-dagger Wade, WallaceWallace Wade
3 Rose Bowl W 24–0 January 1, 1931 1930 Washington State Cougars Rose Bowl Pasadena 60,000 Wade, WallaceWallace Wade
4 Rose Bowl W 29–13 January 1, 1935 1934 Stanford Indians Rose Bowl Pasadena 84,474double-dagger Frank ThomasFrank Thomas
5 Rose Bowl L 13–0 January 1, 1938 1937 California Golden Bears Rose Bowl Pasadena 90,000double-dagger Frank ThomasFrank Thomas
6 Cotton Bowl Classic W 29–21 January 1, 1942 1941 Texas A&M Aggies Cotton Bowl Dallas 38,000 Frank ThomasFrank Thomas
7 Orange Bowl W 37–21 January 1, 1943 1942 Boston College Eagles Orange Bowl Miami 25,166 Frank ThomasFrank Thomas
8 Sugar Bowl L 29–26 January 1, 1945 1944 Duke Blue Devils Tulane Stadium New Orleans 72,000 Frank ThomasFrank Thomas
9 Rose Bowl W 34–14 January 1, 1946 1945 USC Trojans Rose Bowl Pasadena 93,000 Frank ThomasFrank Thomas
10 Sugar Bowl L 27–7 January 1, 1948 1947 Texas Longhorns Tulane Stadium New Orleans 72,000 Drew, HaroldHarold Drew
11 Orange Bowl W 61–6 January 1, 1953 1952 Syracuse Orangemen Orange Bowl Miami 66,280double-dagger Drew, HaroldHarold Drew
12 Cotton Bowl Classic L 28–6 January 1, 1954 1953 Rice Owls Cotton Bowl Dallas 75,504double-dagger Drew, HaroldHarold Drew
13 Liberty Bowl L 7–0 December 19, 1959 1959 Penn State Nittany Lions Philadelphia Municipal Stadium Philadelphia 36,211double-dagger Bryant, BearBear Bryant
14 Bluebonnet Bowl T 3–3 December 17, 1960 1960 Texas Longhorns Rice Stadium Houston 68,000dagger Bryant, BearBear Bryant
15 Sugar Bowl W 10–3 January 1, 1962 1961 Arkansas Razorbacks Tulane Stadium New Orleans 82,910double-dagger Bryant, BearBear Bryant
16 Orange Bowl W 17–0 January 1, 1963 1962 Oklahoma Sooners Orange Bowl Miami 72,880 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
17 Sugar Bowl W 12–7 January 1, 1964 1963 Ole Miss Rebels Tulane Stadium New Orleans 80,785 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
18 Orange Bowl L 21–17 January 1, 1965 1964 Texas Longhorns Orange Bowl Miami 72,647 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
19 Orange Bowl W 39–28 January 1, 1966 1965 Nebraska Cornhuskers Orange Bowl Miami 72,214 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
20 Sugar Bowl W 34–7 January 2, 1967 1966 Nebraska Cornhuskers Tulane Stadium New Orleans 82,000 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
21 Cotton Bowl Classic L 20–16 January 1, 1968 1967 Texas A&M Aggies Cotton Bowl Dallas 75,504 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
22 Gator Bowl L 35–10 December 28, 1968 1968 Missouri Tigers Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville 68,011 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
23 Liberty Bowl L 47–33 December 13, 1969 1969 Colorado Buffaloes Memphis Memorial Stadium[A 5] Memphis 50,042double-dagger Bryant, BearBear Bryant
24 Bluebonnet Bowl T 24–24 December 31, 1970 1970 Oklahoma Sooners Houston Astrodome Houston 53,829 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
25 Orange Bowl L 38–6 January 1, 1972 1971 Nebraska Cornhuskers Orange Bowl Miami 78,151 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
26 Cotton Bowl Classic L 17–13 January 1, 1973 1972 Texas Longhorns Cotton Bowl Dallas 72,000 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
27 Sugar Bowl L 24–23 December 31, 1973 1973 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Tulane Stadium New Orleans 85,161dagger Bryant, BearBear Bryant
28 Orange Bowl L 13–11 January 1, 1975 1974 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Orange Bowl Miami 71,801 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
29 Sugar Bowl W 13–6 December 31, 1975 1975 Penn State Nittany Lions Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 75,212 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
30 Liberty Bowl W 36–6 December 20, 1976 1976 UCLA Bruins Memphis Memorial Stadium[A 5] Memphis 52,736double-dagger Bryant, BearBear Bryant
31 Sugar Bowl W 35–6 January 2, 1978 1977 Ohio State Buckeyes Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 76,811 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
32 Sugar Bowl W 14–7 January 1, 1979 1978 Penn State Nittany Lions Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 76,824 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
33 Sugar Bowl W 24–9 January 1, 1980 1979 Arkansas Razorbacks Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 77,486 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
34 Cotton Bowl Classic W 30–2 January 1, 1981 1980 Baylor Bears Cotton Bowl Dallas 74,281 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
35 Cotton Bowl Classic L 14–12 January 1, 1982 1981 Texas Longhorns Cotton Bowl Dallas 73,243 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
36 Liberty Bowl W 21–15 December 29, 1982 1982 Illinois Fighting Illini Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis 54,123 Bryant, BearBear Bryant
37 Sun Bowl W 28–7 December 24, 1983 1983 SMU Mustangs Sun Bowl Stadium El Paso 41,412double-dagger Ray PerkinsRay Perkins
38 Aloha Bowl W 24–3 December 28, 1985 1985 USC Trojans Aloha Stadium Honolulu 35,183 Ray PerkinsRay Perkins
39 Sun Bowl W 28–6 December 25, 1986 1986 Washington Huskies Sun Bowl Stadium El Paso 48,722 Ray PerkinsRay Perkins
40 Hall of Fame Bowl[A 6] L 28–24 January 2, 1988 1987 Michigan Wolverines Tampa Stadium Tampa 60,156double-dagger Curry, BillBill Curry
41 Sun Bowl W 29–28 December 24, 1988 1988 Army Black Knights Sun Bowl Stadium El Paso 48,719 Curry, BillBill Curry
42 Sugar Bowl L 33–25 January 1, 1990 1989 Miami Hurricanes Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 77,452 Curry, BillBill Curry
43 Fiesta Bowl L 34–7 January 1, 1991 1990 Louisville Cardinals Sun Devil Stadium Tempe 69,098 Stallings, GeneGene Stallings
44 Blockbuster Bowl[A 7] W 30–25 December 28, 1991 1991 Colorado Buffaloes Joe Robbie Stadium Miami Gardens 52,644 Stallings, GeneGene Stallings
45 Sugar Bowl* W 34–13 January 1, 1993 1992 Miami Hurricanes Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 76,789 Stallings, GeneGene Stallings
46 Gator Bowl W 24–10 December 31, 1993 1993 North Carolina Tar Heels Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville 67,205 Stallings, GeneGene Stallings
47 Citrus Bowl[A 8] W 24–17 January 2, 1995 1994 Ohio State Buckeyes Citrus Bowl Orlando 71,195 Stallings, GeneGene Stallings
48 Outback Bowl[A 6] W 17–14 January 1, 1997 1996 Michigan Wolverines Tampa Stadium Tampa 53,161 Stallings, GeneGene Stallings
49 Music City Bowl L 38–7 December 28, 1998 1998 Virginia Tech Hokies Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville 41,248double-dagger DuBose, MikeMike DuBose
50 Orange Bowl L 35–34 January 1, 2000 1999 Michigan Wolverines Pro Player Stadium[A 9] Miami Gardens 70,461 DuBose, MikeMike DuBose
51 Independence Bowl W 14–13 December 27, 2001 2001 Iowa State Cyclones Independence Stadium Shreveport 45,627 Franchione, DennisDennis Franchione
52 Music City Bowl L 20–16 December 31, 2004 2004 Minnesota Golden Gophers The Coliseum Nashville 66,089double-dagger Shula, MikeMike Shula
53 Cotton Bowl Classic[A 10] W 13–10 January 1, 2006 2005 Texas Tech Red Raiders Cotton Bowl Dallas 74,222 Shula, MikeMike Shula
54 Independence Bowl L 34–31 December 28, 2006 2006 Oklahoma State Cowboys Independence Stadium Shreveport 45,054 Kines, JoeJoe Kines[A 11]
55 Independence Bowl W 30–24 December 30, 2007 2007 Colorado Buffaloes Independence Stadium Shreveport 47,043 Saban, NickNick Saban
56 Sugar Bowl L 31–17 January 2, 2009 2008 Utah Utes Louisiana Superdome New Orleans 71,872 Saban, NickNick Saban
57 BCS National Championship Game* W 37–21 January 7, 2010 2009 Texas Longhorns Rose Bowl Pasadena 94,906dagger Saban, NickNick Saban
58 Capital One Bowl[A 8] W 49–7 January 1, 2011 2010 Michigan State Spartans Citrus Bowl Orlando 61,519 Saban, NickNick Saban
59 BCS National Championship Game* W 21–0 January 9, 2012 2011 LSU Tigers Mercedes-Benz Superdome[A 12] New Orleans 78,237 Saban, NickNick Saban
60 BCS National Championship Game* W 42–14 January 7, 2013 2012 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Sun Life Stadium[A 9] Miami Gardens 80,120 Saban, NickNick Saban
61 Sugar Bowl L 45–31 January 2, 2014 2013 Oklahoma Sooners Mercedes-Benz Superdome[A 12] New Orleans 70,473 Saban, NickNick Saban
62 Sugar Bowl§ L 42–35 January 1, 2015 2014 Ohio State Buckeyes Mercedes-Benz Superdome[A 12] New Orleans 74,682 Saban, NickNick Saban

Notes

  1. ↑ Statistics correct as of 2012–13 NCAA football bowl games.
  2. ↑ Results are sortable first by whether the result was an Alabama win, loss or tie and then second by the margin of victory.
  3. ↑ Links to the season article for the Alabama team that competed in the bowl for that year.
  4. ↑ Links to the season article for the opponent that Alabama competed against in the bowl for that year when available or to their general page when unavailable.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Originally called Memphis Memorial Stadium, in 1976 it was renamed Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.[28]
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Outback Bowl was previously known as the Hall of Fame Bowl (1986–1995).[29]
  7. ↑ The Champs Sports Bowl was at the time known as the Blockbuster Bowl (1990–1993).
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 The Capital One Bowl has been known as: the Tangerine Bowl (1947–1982), Florida Citrus Bowl (1983–1993), CompUSA Florida Citrus Bowl (1994–1999), OurHouse.com Florida Citrus Bowl (2000), Capital One Florida Citrus Bowl (2001–2002), Capital One Bowl (since 2003).[29]
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Originally called Joe Robbie Stadium, in 1996 it was renamed Pro Player Stadium after naming rights were sold, and it retained the Pro Player moniker through the 2005 season. Today it is known as Sun Life Stadium.[30][31]
  10. ↑ In March 2009, the NCAA ruled that Alabama must vacate its 2006 Cotton Bowl Classic victory due to sanctions stemming from textbook-related infractions discovered during the 2007 season. After an unsuccessful appeal to the NCAA Division I Infractions Appeals Committee, the 2006 Cotton Bowl Classic victory was officially vacated. As the penalty to vacate the victory did not result in a loss (or forfeiture) of the contest or award a victory to the opponent, Texas Tech still counts the game as a loss in its overall records.[20]
  11. ↑ Mike Shula coached the entire 2006 regular season with Joe Kines serving as the interim head coach for the bowl game.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 On October 3, 2011, it was announced that Mercedes-Benz purchased naming rights to the Superdome effective October 23, 2011. From 1976 through 2011 the facility was called the Louisiana Superdome.[32]

References

General
Specific
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Bowl/All-Star Game Records, p. 14
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Bowl Bound, p. 182
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Bowl/All-Star Game Records, p. 31
  4. ↑ Dunnavant, Keith (2004). The Fifty-Year Seduction: How Television Manipulated College Football, from the Birth of the Modern NCAA to the Creation of the BCS. Macmillan. pp. 93–99. ISBN 978-0-312-32345-5. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
  5. ↑ Bowl Bound, pp. 189–190
  6. ↑ Bowl Bound, p. 191
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Bowl Bound, pp. 192–199
  8. ↑ Bowl Bound, p. 200
  9. ↑ Mitchell, Billy (November 11, 1984). "Reality of a losing record stuns the Tide". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 1B. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  10. ↑ Wheat, Jack (December 31, 1986). "Perkins takes Tampa Bay coaching job". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 1. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  11. ↑ Bowl Bound, p. 201
  12. ↑ Bowl Bound, pp. 202–203
  13. ↑ Hurt, Cecil (December 7, 1992). "Voters don't let the Tide down". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 1B. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  14. ↑ Hurt, Cecil (January 2, 1993). "National Champions! Bama finds life is sweet back at top". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 1. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  15. ↑ Hurt, Cecil (August 3, 1995). "Sayers will fight 'excessive' penalties". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 1.
  16. ↑ "Aide gets Alabama post". The New York Times. December 10, 1996. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 Bowl Bound, pp. 204–205
  18. ↑ Hurt, Cecil (December 2, 2000). "Fran's the new man at Alabama". The Tuscaloosa News. p. 1. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  19. ↑ "Alabama is penalized with 2-year bowl ban". The New York Times. February 2, 2002. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Hurt, Cecil (March 23, 2010). "UA officials disappointed in appeal outcome". The Tuscaloosa News. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  21. ↑ "Alabama fires Shula, names Kines interim coach". ESPN.com. ESPN.com news services. November 28, 2006. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Bowl Bound, p. 206
  23. ↑ Solomon, Jon (January 2, 2011). "Alabama's defense dismantles Michigan State". The Birmingham News. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  24. ↑ "Alabama's D embarrasses LSU as five FGs, late TD seal national title". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 9, 2012. Retrieved February 22, 2012.
  25. ↑ "Alabama routs Notre Dame, wins 3rd BCS title in past 4 years". ESPN.com. ESPN.com news services. January 7, 2013. Retrieved January 8, 2013.
  26. ↑ "Cardale Jones, in 2nd career start, leads Ohio State in upset of Alabama". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 1, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  27. ↑ Bowl/All-Star Game Records, pp. 32–38
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Brown, Gary; Mike Morrison; Michael Morrison (2008). ESPN Sports Almanac 2008. ESPN. p. 187. ISBN 1-933060-38-7.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 Bowl/All-Star Game Records, pp. 10–11
  30. ↑ "Joe Robbie gets a name change". TimesDaily (Florence, Alabama). August 26, 1996. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  31. ↑ Lefton, Terry (January 18, 2010). "Dolphins sell stadium naming rights to Sun Life". South Florida Business Journal (bizjournals.com). Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  32. ↑ Woodyard, Chris (October 4, 2011). "Mercedes-Benz buys naming rights to New Orleans' Superdome". USA Today (usatoday.com). Retrieved December 11, 2011.