The Frisco Bowl is an annual National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sanctioned post-season Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football bowl game played in Frisco, Texas, since December 2017. The bowl has a tie-in with the American Conference, and chooses another team at-large. From 2017–2024, the bowl was played at Toyota Stadium in Frisco; starting in 2025, the game was relocated to the nearby Ford Center at The Star.
DXL was the bowl's inaugural sponsor from 2017 to 2018, followed by Tropical Smoothie Cafe from 2019 to 2021, and Scooter's Coffee from 2023 to 2025.
History
On April 21, 2017, it was announced that the Miami Beach Bowl—which had been owned and operated by the American Athletic Conference (The American)—had been sold to ESPN Events and that it would relocate to Frisco, Texas, to be played in Toyota Stadium starting in the 2017 season. On November 8, 2017, it was announced that Destination XL Group, a retailer specializing in big and tall menswear, had signed on as the inaugural title sponsor of the bowl. On December 3, 2017, SMU and Louisiana Tech were announced as the teams for the inaugural playing of the bowl. In 2019, Tropical Smoothie Cafe became the new title sponsor. In 2023, Scooter's Coffee became the new title sponsor.
The 2020 Frisco Bowl was originally set to be contested by the SMU Mustangs, from The American, and the UTSA Roadrunners, from Conference USA. The game was slated to be the first matchup between the two teams. Two days after the matchup was announced, the 2020 edition was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns with the SMU football team.
The 2025 edition of the bowl was relocated to the Ford Center at The Star to accommodate renovations at Toyota Stadium, and the 2026 edition will be played at the Ford Center as well.
Conference tie-ins Initial planning had been to have teams from The American face a Sun Belt opponent in 2017 and 2019, and face a Mid-American Conference (MAC) opponent in 2018. In 2017, the inaugural game featured a matchup between The American and Conference USA (C-USA).
The Frisco Bowl then secured an affiliation with The American through the 2021 season, with opponents to be selected at-large. The 2018 matchup featured teams from the MAC and Mountain West, as The American was unable to provide a team, due to its champion, UCF, receiving a New Year's Six bowl bid. MAC and Mountain West teams again met in 2019, as The American's champion, Memphis, again received a New Year's Six bid.
Game results Rankings per AP Poll prior to the game being played. Date Winning Team Losing Team Attendance Notes December 20, 2017 Louisiana Tech 51 SMU 10 14,419 notes December 19, 2018 Ohio 27 San Diego State 0 11,029 notes December 20, 2019 Kent State 51 Utah State 41 12,120 notes December 19, 2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic December 21, 2021 San Diego State 38 No. 24 UTSA 24 15,801 notes December 17, 2022 Boise State 35 North Texas 32 12,211 notes December 19, 2023 UTSA 35 Marshall 17 11,215 notes December 17, 2024 No. 25 Memphis 42 West Virginia 37 12,022 notes December 23, 2025 Ohio 17 UNLV 10 6,521 notes Source:
MVPs YearOffensive MVPDefensive MVPRef.PlayerCollegePositionPlayerCollegePosition 2017 J'Mar Smith Louisiana Tech QB Amik Robertson Louisiana Tech CB 2018 A. J. Ouellette Ohio RB Evan Croutch Ohio LB 2019 Dustin Crum Kent State QB Qwuantrezz Knight Kent State DB 2021 Jesse Matthews San Diego State WR CJ Baskerville San Diego State S 2022 Taylen Green Boise State QB Ezekial Noa Boise State LB 2023 Joshua Cephus UTSA WR Kam Alexander UTSA CB 2024 Seth Henigan Memphis QB Chandler Martin Memphis LB 2025 Sieh Bangura Ohio RB Adonis Williams Jr. Ohio S
Appearances by team Updated through the December 2025 edition (8 games, 16 total appearances).
Teams with multiple appearances
RankTeamAppearancesRecordWin pct.1 Ohio 2 2–0 San Diego State 2 1–1 UTSA 2 1–1
Teams with a single appearance Won (4): Boise State, Kent State, Louisiana Tech, Memphis
Lost (6): Marshall, North Texas, SMU, UNLV, Utah State, West Virginia
Appearances by conference Updated through the December 2025 edition (8 games, 16 total appearances).
ConferenceRecordAppearances by seasonGamesWLWin pct.WonLost Mountain West 5 2021, 2022 2018, 2019, 2025 MAC 3 2018, 2019, 2025 American 3 2023, 2024 2017 C-USA 3 2017 2021, 2022 Big 12 1 2024 Sun Belt 1 2023
Game records TeamRecord, Team vs. OpponentYearMost points scored (one team) 51, shared by:Louisiana Tech vs. SMUKent State vs. Utah State 20172019Most points scored (losing team) 41, Utah State vs. Kent State 2019Most points scored (both teams) 92, Kent State vs. Utah State 2019Fewest points scored 0, San Diego State vs. Ohio 2018Largest margin of victory 41, Louisiana Tech vs. SMU 2017Total yards 550, Kent State vs. Utah State 2019Rushing yards 318, Boise State vs. North Texas 2022Passing yards 333, San Diego State vs. UTSA 2021First downs 31, San Diego State vs. UTSA 2021Fewest yards allowed 281, Ohio vs. UNLV 2025Fewest rushing yards allowed 97, Ohio vs. UNLV 2025Fewest passing yards allowed 127, Louisiana Tech vs. SMU 2017IndividualRecord, Player, Team vs. OpponentYearTotal offense 436, Dustin Crum (Kent State) 2019All-purpose yards 227, Juwan Washington (San Diego State) 2018Total Touchdowns 4, shared by:J'Mar Smith (Louisiana Tech)Lucas Johnson (San Diego State) 20172021Touchdowns (all-purpose) 2, multiple players Rushing yards 178, Ashton Jeanty (Boise State) 2022Rushing touchdowns 2, shared by:Nathan Rourke (Ohio)Taylen Green (Boise State)Ikaika Ragsdale (North Texas)CJ Donaldson Jr. (West Virginia) 2018202220222024Passing yards 333, Lucas Johnson (San Diego State) 2021Passing touchdowns 3, shared by:J'Mar Smith (Louisiana Tech)Jordan Love (Utah State)Lucas Johnson (San Diego State) 201720192021Receptions 11, shared by:Jesse Matthews (San Diego State)Hudson Clement (West Virginia) 20212024Receiving yards 175, Jesse Matthews (San Diego State) 2021Receiving touchdowns 2, shared by:Teddy Veal (Louisiana Tech)Siaosi Mariner (Utah State)Jesse Matthews (San Diego State)Hudson Clement (West Virginia) 2017201920212024Tackles 14, Troy Lefeged Jr. (Utah State) 2019Sacks 2, Nick Heninger (Utah State) 2019Interceptions 1, multiple players Long PlaysRecord, Player, Team vs. OpponentYearTouchdown run 57 yds., Deven Thompkins (Utah State) 2019Touchdown pass 78 yds., Dustin Crum to Isaiah McKoy (Kent State) 2019Kickoff return 65 yds,, Jaqwis Dancy (Louisiana Tech) 2017Punt return 30 yds., Kylan Nelson (Ohio) 2018Interception return 52 yds., Ezekiel Noa (Boise State) 2022Fumble return 8 yds., Eric Kendzior (Louisiana Tech) 2017 Punt 56 yds., Magnus Haines (Ohio) 2025Field goal 50 yds., Ramon Villela (UNLV) 2025
Media coverage The bowl has been televised by ESPN or ESPN2 since its inception.
References
External links