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Independence Bowl

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Independence Bowl
Camping World Independence Bowl
File:CampingWorldIndependenceBowl.png
StadiumIndependence Stadium
LocationShreveport, Louisiana
Operated1976–present
Conference tie-insSEC vs ACC (2012–2014)
Previous conference tie-insSouthland (1976–1981)
SEC (1995–2009)
Big 12 (1998–2009)
Mountain West (2010–2011)
PayoutUS$1,100,000
Sponsors
Poulan (1990–1997)
Sanford (1998–2000)
Mainstay Suites (2001–2003)
PetroSun (2006–2008)
AdvoCare (2009–2013)
Duck Commander (2014)
Camping World (2015–)
Former names
Independence Bowl (1976–1989)
Poulan Independence (1990)
Poulan/Weed Eater Independence Bowl (1991–1997)
Sanford Independence Bowl (1998–2000)
MainStay Independence Bowl (2001–2003)
Independence Bowl (2004–2005)
PetroSun Independence Bowl (2006–2008)
AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl (2008–2012)
AdvoCare V100 Bowl (2013)
Duck Commander Independence Bowl (2014)
2014 matchup
Miami vs. South Carolina (South Carolina 24–21)
2015 matchup
Tulsa vs. Virginia Tech (Virginia Tech 55–52)

The Independence Bowl is a post-season National Collegiate Athletic Association-sanctioned Division I college football bowl game that is played annually at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Independence Bowl was named because it was inaugurated in 1976, the United States bicentennial year.

Conference tie-ins and matchups

For its first five years, the game pitted the champion of the Southland Conference against an at-large opponent.[1] It then moved to inviting two at-large teams, until 1995 when it began featuring a Southeastern Conference school against an at-large opponent.

From 1998 to 2009 the game normally featured a matchup between teams representing the Big 12 Conference and the SEC. Teams from other conferences were included only if one of those leagues did not have enough bowl-eligible teams to fill its spot, such as in 2004 when Miami (Ohio) played instead of an SEC squad. In 2008 neither the SEC nor the Big 12 had enough bowl-eligible teams to fill their respective spots resulting in a matchup of Louisiana Tech and Northern Illinois.

From 2010–2011, the Independence Bowl held the third selection from the Mountain West Conference and the seventh selection from the Atlantic Coast Conference. It was announced that in 2012, the Mountain West Conference team would be replaced by the tenth selection from the Southeastern Conference.

One of the most memorable games in Independence Bowl History was the 2000 "snow bowl" game between Texas A&M and Mississippi State. The game was originally publicized as a reunion game, since Mississippi State coach Jackie Sherrill had served as A&M's coach for six seasons in the 1980s and led them to three conference titles. However, the weather quickly dominated the storyline as a rare and significant snowstorm hit Shreveport. In the midst of the snow, Mississippi State rallied to an overtime win over A&M. The 2013 game featured the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference.

Title sponsor

In 1990, the contest became one of the earliest college bowl games to use a title sponsor, becoming the Poulan Weed-Eater Independence Bowl. Poulan (then a division of AB Electrolux Home Products, now Husqvarna AB) sponsored the game until 1996. Newell Rubbermaid's Sanford brand of writing products took over sponsorship from 1998 until 2000, while MainStay Investments sponsored from 2001 to 2003. In January 2005, the Deja Vu chain of "gentlemen's clubs" offered to become the title sponsor. The offer was rejected.[citation needed]

The Independence Bowl's three-year search for a title sponsor ended on August 21, 2006 when PetroSun Inc., a Phoenix, Arizona-based company that provides services and products to suppliers of oil and gas, agreed to become the bowl's sponsor. The deal, changing the game's full name to the PetroSun Independence Bowl, was to have run through 2008 with an option for 2009; however the deal was discontinued prior to the 2008 game.

On May 21, 2009, AdvoCare became the fifth title sponsor since the bowl's inception. The bowl was then renamed the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl.[2] AdvoCare makes energy drinks and nutritional supplements sold through multilevel marketing. On February 28, 2013, AdvoCare and the Independence Bowl Foundation announced that the Independence Bowl name would be dropped, and the bowl would be known as the AdvoCare V100 Bowl for the 2013 game.[3] In August 2013, AdvoCare announced it would drop its sponsorship after the 2013 game.[4][5]

In February 2014 Duck Commander (a duck call and hunting apparel manufacturer founded by former Louisiana Tech quarterback Phil Robertson, made prominent by the reality series Duck Dynasty) announced that it would be the title sponsor for the 2014 bowl, which will be known as the Duck Commander Independence Bowl.[6] After a year, Duck Commander declined to renew sponsorship and in July 2015, Camping World was announced as the new title sponsor of the game.[7]

Independence Stadium

Independence Stadium

Independence Stadium is a stadium owned by the city of Shreveport, Louisiana. It used to be known as "State Fair Stadium"; it is the site of the annual Independence Bowl post-season college football game, initially (1976) the Bicentennial Bowl. Before that, it was the home venue of the Shreveport Steamer of the short-lived World Football League (1974–75). It also served as a neutral site for the annual Arkansas–LSU football rivalry from 1925–1936. The stadium is also host to numerous high school football games and soccer matches, since many schools in Shreveport lack an on-campus facility. Independence Stadium also hosted the Louisiana High School Athletic Association state football championship games in 2005 after the Louisiana Superdome suffered heavy damage from Hurricane Katrina. In 1994–95, Independence Stadium was home to the Shreveport Pirates of the Canadian Football League, which was undergoing US expansion at the time. In the late 1990s, the stadium capacity was expanded from approximately 40,000 to 50,832. In 2005, to meet accommodations of the upcoming Independence Bowl in 2006, the stadium went through a renovation to extend the capacity from 52,000 to 59,000. Then in 2008, the City of Shreveport created an entire new section of the stadium. This portion would allow the stadium capacity to be expanded only if need be. This expanse put the total capacity at 63,000.[8] This was part of a grander upgrading plan that improved all aspects of the facility, from concourses to playing surface.

Independence Stadium was considered as a possible playing site for the New Orleans Saints during the 2005 National Football League season due to Hurricane Katrina, but Shreveport eventually lost out to the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, and Louisiana State University's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. However, Independence Stadium eventually was chosen to host the Saints' first preseason home game for the 2006 season while the Louisiana Superdome prepared for its grand re-opening. Field Turf was installed on the stadium's playing surface in 2010. In 2010, a Texas UIL playoff game was played featuring Mesquite Horn HS and the technical host Longview. Longview won, 28–14. In 2011, Independence Stadium hosted the inaugural year of the annual Port City Classic, an NCAA college football competition between Louisiana Tech University of Ruston, Louisiana, and Grambling State University of Grambling, Louisiana. The south end zone of the stadium borders Interstate 20.

Bowl facts

  • There has only been one tie in the History of the Independence Bowl: in 1990 (34–34) between Louisiana Tech and Maryland.
  • 10 of the last 14 Bowl games have been decided by a touchdown or less.
  • Ole Miss (4–1) leads the way with five all-time appearances in Bowl history. Louisiana Tech is second with four appearances (2–1–1).

Game results

Date Winning Team Losing Team Attendance Notes
December 13, 1976 McNeese State 20 Tulsa 16 19,164 notes
December 17, 1977 Louisiana Tech 24 Louisville 14 22,223 notes
December 16, 1978 East Carolina 35 Louisiana Tech 13 31,054 notes
December 15, 1979 Syracuse 31 McNeese State 7 27,234 notes
December 13, 1980 Southern Miss 16 McNeese State 14 42,600 notes
December 12, 1981 Texas A&M 33 Oklahoma State 16 48,600 notes
December 11, 1982 Wisconsin 14 Kansas State 3 46,244 notes
December 10, 1983 Air Force 9 Mississippi 3 41,274 notes
December 15, 1984 Air Force 23 Virginia Tech 7 45,034 notes
December 21, 1985 Minnesota 20 Clemson 13 42,845 notes
December 20, 1986 Mississippi 20 Texas Tech 17 46,369 notes
December 19, 1987 Washington 24 Tulane 12 44,683 notes
December 23, 1988 Southern Miss 38 UTEP 18 20,242 notes
December 16, 1989 Oregon 27 Tulsa 24 44,621 notes
December 15, 1990 Louisiana Tech 34 Maryland 34[9] 48,325 notes
December 29, 1991 Georgia 24 Arkansas 15 46,932 notes
December 31, 1992 Wake Forest 39 Oregon 35 31,337 notes
December 31, 1993 Virginia Tech 45 Indiana 20 33,819 notes
December 28, 1994 Virginia 20 TCU 10 36,192 notes
December 29, 1995 LSU 45 Michigan State 26 48,835 notes
December 31, 1996 Auburn 32 Army 29 41,366 notes
December 28, 1997 LSU 27 Notre Dame 9 50,459 notes
December 31, 1998 Mississippi 35 Texas Tech 18 46,862 notes
December 31, 1999 Mississippi 27 Oklahoma 25 49,873 notes
December 31, 2000 [10] Mississippi State 43 Texas A&M 41 36,974 notes
December 27, 2001 Alabama 14 Iowa State 13 45,627 notes
December 27, 2002 Mississippi 27 Nebraska 23 46,096 notes
December 31, 2003 Arkansas 27 Missouri 14 49,625 notes
December 28, 2004 [11] Iowa State 17 Miami (Ohio) 13 43,076 notes
December 30, 2005 Missouri 38 South Carolina 31 41,332 notes
December 28, 2006 Oklahoma State 34 Alabama 31 45,054 notes
December 30, 2007 Alabama 30 Colorado 24 47,043 notes
December 28, 2008 Louisiana Tech 17 Northern Illinois 10 41,567 notes
December 28, 2009 Georgia 44 Texas A&M 20 49,654 notes
December 27, 2010 Air Force 14 Georgia Tech 7 39,632 notes
December 26, 2011 Missouri 41 North Carolina 24 41,728 notes
December 28, 2012 Ohio 45 Louisiana–Monroe 14 41,853 notes
December 31, 2013 Arizona 42 Boston College 19 36,917 notes
December 27, 2014 South Carolina 24 Miami (FL) 21 38,242 notes
December 26, 2015 Virginia Tech 55 Tulsa 52 31,289 notes

Most Valuable Player Award

Most appearances

Rank Team Appearances Record Win %
1 Ole Miss 5 4–1 .877
2 Louisiana Tech 4 2–1–1 .666
T3 Air Force 3 3–0 1.000
T3 Alabama 3 2–1 .666
T3 Missouri 3 2–1 .666
T3 Virginia Tech 3 2-1 .666
T3 McNeese State 3 1–2 .333
T3 Texas A&M 3 1–2 .333
T3 Tulsa 2 0–2 .000
T10 Georgia 2 2–0 1.000
T10 LSU 2 2–0 1.000
T10 Oregon 2 1–1 .500
T10 Arkansas 2 1–1 .500
T10 Iowa State 2 1–1 .500
T10 South Carolina 2 1-1 .500
T10 Texas Tech 2 0–2 .000
T10 Southern Miss 2 0–2 .000
T18 Mississippi State 1 1-0 1.000
T18 Arizona 1 1-0 1.000
T18 Boston College 1 0–1 .000
T18 Miami (FL) 1 0–1 .000

Wins by conference

Conference Teams Games Wins Losses Ties Pct.
ACC 7 7 2 4 1 .357
Big 8 2 2 0 2 0 .000
Big 12 8 12 4 8 0 .333
Big Ten 4 4 2 2 0 .500
Big East 1 1 1 0 0 1.000
Independent 10 12 4 7 1 .375
MAC 3 3 1 2 0 .333
Pac-12 2 3 2 1 0 .667
SEC 9 17 14 3 0 .824
Southland 2 5 2 3 0 .400
Southwest 4 4 1 3 0 .250
Sun Belt 1 1 0 1 0 .000
WAC 3 4 3 1 0 .750

Game records

Team Performance vs. Opponent Year
Most points scored 55, Virginia Tech vs. Tulsa 2015
Fewest points allowed 9, Air Force vs. Ole Miss 1993
Margin of victory 31, Ohio vs. ULM 2012
First downs 30, Virginia Tech vs. Tulsa 2015
Rushing yards 337, Missouri vs. North Carolina 2011
Passing yards 390, Oklahoma vs. Ole Miss 1999
Total yards 598, Virginia Tech vs. Tulsa 2015
Individual Player, Team Year
Most Rushing Attempts 35, many times (Last: Ja'Mar Toombs, Texas A&M) 2000
Most Net Yards (Rush) 234, Kevin Faulk, LSU 1995
Best Avg. Per Carry (Rush) 9.5, Kevin Faulk, LSU 1995
Most Rushing Yds. by a QB 150, Brad Smith, Missouri 2005
Most Passing Yards 99, Tim Brown, Rutgers 2009

Notes

  1. ^ "About the Southland". Retrieved January 12, 2012.
  2. ^ "Sponsorships". Retrieved December 23, 2015.
  3. ^ [1]
  4. ^ Goins, Adria (August 21, 2013). "Longtime bowl expected to lose Advocare sponsorship". KSLA 12. Retrieved November 6, 2013.
  5. ^ Dee, Chris (August 21, 2013). "Advocare No Longer Title Sponsor For Annual Bowl Game". 1130am (Radio). Retrieved November 6, 2013.
  6. ^ Huston, Chris (February 23, 2014). "Report: Duck Commander is new sponsor for Independence Bowl". NBC Sports. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
  7. ^ "Camping World Announced as Title Sponsor of the Independence Bowl". Retrieved July 16, 2015.
  8. ^ "World Stadiums - Stadiums in the United States :: Louisiana". Retrieved December 23, 2015.
  9. ^ Game ended in a tie.
  10. ^ Overtime
  11. ^ Miami University received a bid because the SEC did not have enough bowl-eligible teams to fill all of its allotted bowl slots in 2004, even before South Carolina chose to decline a bowl bid after a massive brawl between players from that school and archrival Clemson University during their November 20, 2004 game.