Boardwalk Bowl
Boardwalk Bowl (defunct) | |
---|---|
NCAA College Division regional final (1968–1972) NCAA Division II quarterfinal (1973) | |
Stadium | Atlantic City Convention Center |
Location | Atlantic City, New Jersey |
Operated | 1961–1973 |
The Boardwalk Bowl was a post-season college football game held at the former Atlantic City Convention Center (now Boardwalk Hall) in Atlantic City, New Jersey, from 1961 to 1973.[1][2]
History
Inaugurated in 1961, the game featured an annual matchup between Pennsylvania Military College (now Widener University) and the United States Merchant Marine Academy, known as the "Little Army–Navy Game" until 1967.[3] The playing surface in the earlier years consisted of natural grass sod that was grown outside and then moved indoors for the game.
In 1968, it succeeded the Tangerine Bowl as one of the four regional finals in the College Division (which became Division II and Division III in 1973).[4] The other three regionals were the Pecan (later Pioneer), Grantland Rice, and Camellia bowls. In 1973, under a new playoff system, the Boardwalk Bowl became a Division II national quarterfinal, while the other three quarterfinals were nameless and played at campus sites. The semifinals were the Pioneer and Grantland Rice bowls, and the Camellia was the championship game. After 1973, the Boardwalk Bowl was discontinued as the NCAA eventually moved the Division II semifinals to unnamed games at campus venues, similar to earlier rounds.
The Boardwalk Bowl, along with the Liberty Bowl (played in the Convention Center in December 1964), showed the feasibility of playing football indoors and led the promoters of football games to look seriously at developing indoor facilities primarily for this purpose.
Game results
Date | Winner | Loser | Game | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
December 2, 1961 | Pennsylvania Military | 35 | Merchant Marine | 14 | Little Army–Navy Game |
December 1, 1962 | Merchant Marine | 9 | Pennsylvania Military | 0 | |
November 30, 1963 | Merchant Marine | 27 | Pennsylvania Military | 13 | |
November 28, 1964 | Merchant Marine | 20 | Pennsylvania Military | 16 | |
November 27, 1965 | Merchant Marine | 22 | Pennsylvania Military | 12 | |
November 26, 1966 | Merchant Marine | 46 | Pennsylvania Military | 7 | |
November 25, 1967 | Merchant Marine | 39 | Pennsylvania Military | 6 | |
December 14, 1968 | Delaware | 31 | IUP | 24 | NCAA College Division Regional Final |
December 13, 1969 | Delaware | 31 | North Carolina Central | 13 | |
December 12, 1970 | Delaware | 38 | Morgan State | 23 | |
December 11, 1971 | Delaware | 72 | C.W. Post | 22 | |
December 9, 1972 | UMass | 35 | UC Davis | 14 | |
December 1, 1973 | Grambling | 17 | Delaware | 8 | NCAA Division II Quarterfinal |
See also
References
- ^ Mazda, Jason (December 31, 2014). "50 years ago, indoor college football debuted in Atlantic City". The Press of Atlantic City. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
- ^ Depp, Carson (September 15, 2020). "Top five football seasons in UMass history". The Massachusetts Daily Collegian. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
- ^ Horner, Louis (2016). Who Will Water the Flowers?. Dog Ear Publishing p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4575-4505-4.
- ^ Fulton, Bob (December 14, 2018). "IUP nearly pulled off major upset in '68 Boardwalk Bowl". Indiana Gazette. Retrieved September 17, 2020.