Military Bowl

The Military Bowl is a post-season National Collegiate Athletic Association-sanctioned Division I college football bowl game that has been played annually each December in the Washington metropolitan area since 2008. The game was originally held at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C. before moving to Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland, in 2013. The 2014 through 2019 games featured teams from the American Athletic Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference.

During initial planning stages, the game was known as the Congressional Bowl, but was first played in 2008 as the EagleBank Bowl sponsored by Washington-area financial institution EagleBank. The game became the Military Bowl when Northrop Grumman was the title sponsor from 2010 to 2019. In 2020, the game was sponsored by Perspecta Inc. and officially known as the Military Bowl presented by Perspecta. In 2021, the game was sponsored by Peraton and known as the Military Bowl presented by Peraton. In 2023, a new agreement made the game the Military Bowl presented by GoBowling.com, and in 2024 the game became known as the Go Bowling Military Bowl. GoBowling.com is the website operated by the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America to promote bowling as a sport. On May 19, 2026, Freedom Mortgage was named as the new sponsor of the game.

Origins The idea for the EagleBank Bowl originated with the Washington, D.C. Bowl Committee, a group founded by Marie Rudolph and Sean Metcalf in December 2006 with the intended purpose of bringing a bowl game to the Washington, D.C. area as a boon to the region's economy.Proposed D.C. Bowl Would Feature Service Academies The Washington Post. November 29, 2007. Accessed April 30, 2008. The D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission and the Washington, D.C. Convention and Tourism Corporation announced their support of the proposed event in 2007.

History The bowl game was one of two approved by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for the 2008 college football bowl season, the other being the St. Petersburg Bowl. The NCAA's Postseason Football Licensing Subcommittee approved the bowl on April 30, 2008, allowing the committee that had proposed the game to host it after the 2008 college football season.NCAA committee approves 34 football bowl games The Associated Press, ESPN.com. April 30, 2008. Accessed April 30, 2008. The inaugural game had its kickoff scheduled for 11 AM EST on December 20, 2008, making it the first bowl game of the 2008–09 bowl season.

In 2010, organizers announced that the NCAA had granted a four-year extension of the game's bowl certification, taking it through the 2013–14 bowl season; additionally, the game received sponsorship from Northrop Grumman and was renamed. In 2010, the game generated in excess of $18 million for the Washington, D.C. area. Also, over $100,000 was donated to the USO.

On December 20, 2020, several bowls were cancelled due to a lack of available teams. The Military Bowl – which again was to have featured teams from the American Athletic Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference – was also unable to secure teams, and on December 21, 2020, organizers announced that the 2020 bowl would not be played.

On December 26, 2021, the 2021 edition of the bowl was canceled due to COVID issues within the Boston College team; it had been set to face East Carolina on December 27.

Conference tie-ins Prior to the game's approval by the NCAA, Navy and the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) signed agreements to participate in the game if it was approved.Mids could play in new D.C. bowl game in 2008 The Navy Times, December 12, 2007. Accessed April 30, 2008.Johnson on DC Bowl: We'll play Navy Scout.com. March 31, 2008. Accessed April 30, 2008. Under the agreement, the ACC would provide its ninth-best team for the bowl if the league had nine bowl eligible teams.Group awaits decision on bowl Tim Lemke, The Washington Times. April 18, 2008. Accessed April 30, 2008. In December 2008, the initial game featured Navy against Wake Forest representing the ACC.

Along with its ACC tie-in, the bowl signed an agreement with Army to play in the 2009 edition of the game, however Army did not finish its season bowl eligible. Additionally, the ACC did not have enough eligible teams and Conference USA (C-USA) could not provide a team, so organizers chose Mid-American Conference (MAC) team Temple to fill one spot and Pac-10 Conference team UCLA to fill the other spot.

For the 2010 through 2013 games, the bowl reached agreement for an ACC team to face a C-USA team (2010), Navy (2011), Army (2012), and a Big 12 team (2013). If Navy or Army were not bowl eligible, a Big 12 team would be selected in 2011, and a C-USA team in 2012. In 2012, Army was not bowl eligible and the ACC could not supply a team,/http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/12/military_bowl_reports_college.html so a MAC vs. Western Athletic Conference (WAC) matchup was organized.

Starting with the 2014 game, organizers entered a six-year agreement for the game to feature an ACC vs. American Athletic Conference (The American) matchup. In July 2019, the bowl announced that the ACC vs. AAC arrangement would continue through the 2025–26 football season.

SeasonContracted tie-insDate playedActual participants 2008 ACC Navy December 20, 2008 ACC Navy 2009 Army December 29, 2009 MAC Pac-10 2010 C-USA December 29, 2010 ACC C-USA 2011 Navy alt. Big 12 December 28, 2011 MAC Mountain West 2012 Army alt. C-USA December 27, 2012 MAC WAC 2013 Big 12 December 27, 2013 ACC C-USA2014 The American December 27, 2014 ACC The American2015 December 28, 2015 ACC The American2016 December 27, 2016 ACC The American2017December 28, 2017ACCThe American2018December 31, 2018ACCThe American2019December 27, 2019ACCThe American2022December 28, 2022ACCThe American Bold conference denotes winner of games played.

Game results Rankings are based on the AP Poll prior to the game. No.DateBowl nameWinning teamLosing teamAttendance1 December 20, 2008 EagleBank Bowl Wake Forest 29 Navy 19 28,7772 December 29, 2009 EagleBank Bowl UCLA 30 Temple 21 23,0723 December 29, 2010 Military Bowl Maryland 51 East Carolina 20 38,0624 December 28, 2011 Military Bowl Toledo 42 Air Force 41 25,0425 December 27, 2012 Military Bowl #24 San Jose State 29 Bowling Green 20 17,8356 December 27, 2013 Military Bowl Marshall 31 Maryland 20 30,1637 December 27, 2014 Military Bowl Virginia Tech 33 Cincinnati 17 34,2778 December 28, 2015 Military Bowl #21 Navy 44 Pittsburgh 28 36,3529 December 27, 2016 Military Bowl Wake Forest 34 #23 Temple 26 26,65610 December 28, 2017 Military Bowl Navy 49 Virginia 7 35,92111 December 31, 2018 Military Bowl Cincinnati 35 Virginia Tech 31 32,83212 December 27, 2019 Military Bowl North Carolina 55 Temple 13 24,242 December 28, 2020 Canceled due to lack of available teams December 27, 2021 Canceled due to COVID-19 issues 13 December 28, 2022 Military Bowl Duke 30 UCF 13 17,97414 December 27, 2023 Military Bowl Virginia Tech 41 #23 Tulane 20 35,84915 December 28, 2024 Military Bowl East Carolina 26 NC State 21 23,98116 December 27, 2025 Military Bowl East Carolina 23 Pittsburgh 17 17,016 Source: First five editions played at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C. Subsequent games played at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland

MVPs

DateMVPSchoolPositionDecember 20, 2008 Riley Skinner Wake Forest QBDecember 29, 2009 Akeem Ayers UCLA LBDecember 29, 2010 Da'Rel Scott Maryland RBDecember 28, 2011 Bernard Reedy Toledo WRDecember 27, 2012 David Fales San Jose State QBDecember 27, 2013 Rakeem Cato Marshall QBDecember 27, 2014 J. C. Coleman Virginia Tech RBDecember 28, 2015 Keenan Reynolds Navy QBDecember 27, 2016 Thomas Brown Wake Forest LBDecember 28, 2017 Zach Abey Navy QBDecember 31, 2018 Mike Warren Cincinnati RBDecember 27, 2019 Sam Howell North Carolina QBDecember 28, 2022 Riley Leonard Duke QBDecember 27, 2023 Kyron Drones Virginia Tech QBDecember 28, 2024 Rahjai Harris East Carolina RBDecember 27, 2025 Anthony Smith East Carolina WR Source:

Most appearances

Updated through the December 2025 edition (16 games, 32 total appearances).

Teams with multiple appearances RankTeamAppearancesRecord1 Navy 3 2–1 Virginia Tech 3 2–1 East Carolina 3 2–1 Temple 3 0–35 Wake Forest 2 2–0 Cincinnati 2 1–1 Maryland 2 1–1 Pittsburgh 2 0–2

Teams with a single appearance Won (6): Duke, Marshall, North Carolina, San Jose State, Toledo, UCLA

Lost (6): Air Force, Bowling Green, NC State, Tulane, UCF, Virginia

Appearances by conference Updated through the December 2025 edition (16 games, 32 total appearances).

ConferenceRecordAppearances by seasonGamesWLWin %WonLost ACC 13 2008, 2010, 2014, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2024, 2025 American 10 2015, 2017, 2018, 2024, 2025 2014, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023 MAC 3 2011 2009, 2012 CUSA 2 2013 2010 Pac-10 1 2009 WAC 1 2012 Independents 1 2008 Mountain West 1 2011

The WAC no longer sponsors FBS football. Independent appearances: Navy (2008)

Game records TeamRecord, Team vs. OpponentYearMost points scored (one team) 55, North Carolina vs. Temple 2019Most points scored (losing team) 41, Air Force vs. Toledo 2011Most points scored (both teams) 83, Toledo vs. Air Force 2011Fewest points allowed 7, Navy vs. Virginia 2017Largest margin of victory 42, shared by:Navy vs. VirginiaNorth Carolina vs. Temple 20172019Total yards 590, Navy vs. Pittsburgh 2015Rushing yards 452, Navy vs. Virginia 2017Passing yards 396, Temple vs. Wake Forest 2016First downs 33, North Carolina vs. Temple 2019Fewest yards allowed 175, Navy vs. Virginia 2017Fewest rushing yards allowed –20, Wake Forest vs. Temple 2016Fewest passing yards allowed 0, Virginia vs. Navy 2017IndividualRecord, Player, Team vs. OpponentYearAll-purpose yards Touchdowns (all-purpose) 5, Zach Abey, Navy vs. Virginia 2017Rushing yards 220, Rahjai Harris, East Carolina vs. NC State 2024Rushing touchdowns 5, Zach Abey, Navy vs. Virginia 2017 Passing yards 396, Phillip Walker, Temple vs. Wake Forest 2016Passing touchdowns 3, shared by:Terrance Owens, Toledo vs. Air ForceRakeem Cato, Marshall vs. Maryland 20112013Receiving yards 156, Anthony Smith, East Carolina vs. Pittsburgh 2025Receiving touchdowns 3, Bernard Reedy, Toledo vs. Air Force 2011 Tackles 19, Matt Galambos, Pittsburgh vs. Navy 2015Sacks 2 shared by: Josh Banks, Wake Forest vs. TempleCam Dillon, Duke vs. UCFKendrick Dujour, ECU vs. PittsburghRasheem Biles, Pittsburgh vs. ECU 2016 202220252025Interceptions 2, Brendon Clements, Navy vs. Pittsburgh 2015 Long PlaysRecord, Player, Team vs. OpponentYearTouchdown run 91, Da'Rel Scott, Maryland vs. East Carolina 2010Touchdown pass 72, Chaston Ditta to Anthony Smith, ECU vs. Pittsburgh 2025Kickoff return 100, Quadree Henderson, Pittsburgh vs. Navy 2015Punt return 47, Terrence Austin, UCLA vs. Temple 2009 Interception return 37, Jermaine Robinson, Toledo vs. Air Force 2011 Fumble return 50, Rashawn King, Navy vs. Wake Forest 2008Punt 61, Will Karoll, Tulane vs. Virginia Tech 2023Field goal 49 shared by: Joey Slye, Virginia Tech vs. CincinnatiValentino Ambrosio, Tulane vs. Virginia Tech 20142023 Source:

Media coverage The bowl has been televised by ESPN since its inception.

See also Sports in Washington, D.C.

Notes

References

External links