Conference USA will be sending a record nine schools to play in bowl games this holiday season. C-USA Champion Florida Atlantic leads the nine teams, joined in the postseason by West Champion North Texas, FIU, Louisiana Tech, Marshall, Middle Tennessee, Southern Miss, UAB and WKU.
Florida Atlantic enters postseason play on a nine-game winning streak when its represents C-USA in the Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl in Boca Raton, Florida. The Owls will face MAC East Champion Akron in the fourth annual game, which kicks off on Tuesday, Dec. 19 at 7 p.m. EST/6 p.m. CST on ESPN. This will be the third bowl appearance for FAU and the first since the 2008 Motor City Bowl. The Owls are 10-3 on the season, marking a win increase of seven games from last season, the second-largest improvement in the FBS.
North Texas will be making back-to-back bowl appearances for the first time since making four straight trips to the New Orleans Bowl from 2001-04 and the Mean Green will be returning to the Crescent City this year. North Texas will face Sun Belt Conference co-champion Troy in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 1 p.m. EST/12 p.m. CST on ESPN. The 9-4 Mean Green have increased their win total by four games from last season.
FIU will complete its turnaround season under first-year head coach Butch Davis with an appearance in the Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl on Thursday, Dec. 21 (8 p.m. EST/7 pm. CST). This will be the third bowl trip in Panthers history and the first since 2011, when it also played in the St. Petersburg Bowl (then known as the Beef O’ Brady’s Bowl). FIU will face American Athletic Conference member Temple in the game.
Louisiana Tech will be in a bowl for the fourth straight season when it participates in the DXL Frisco Bowl on Wednesday, Dec. 20 at 8 p.m. EST/7 p.m. CST on ESPN). The Bulldogs will face SMU in the Dallas-area game, just the fifth all-time meeting between the schools that are located four hours apart.
After a one-year absence, Marshall will return to postseason play when it faces Colorado State in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 4:30 p.m. EST/3:30 p.m. CST on ESPN. The Thundering Herd are 10-2 all-time in bowl games and this will be their first trip to Albuquerque for the New Mexico Bowl.
Middle Tennessee will participate in the Raycom Camellia Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 16, marking the seventh bowl game of the FBS era for the Blue Raiders. The Blue Raiders will play Arkansas State at 8 p.m. EST/7 p.m. CST from the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama. The game will air nationally on ESPN as Middle Tennessee makes a third straight bowl for the first time in program history.
Southern Miss will make its third consecutive bowl appearance and the 25th in program history when plays in the Walk-On’s Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana on Wednesday, Dec. 27 at 1:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. CST. The Golden Eagles will face Florida State in the game, the 23rd meeting between the teams, as Southern Miss makes its third Independence Bowl appearance all-time and first since 1988.
Capping off its historic 2017 season, UAB will represent Conference USA and play Ohio University in the 2017 Bahamas Bowl on Friday, Dec. 22 at Nassau’s Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m./11:30 a.m. CST and the contest will be televised on ESPN. This will be the second bowl appearance for the Blazers in their program history.
WKU will play in a bowl game for the fourth consecutive season as the Hilltoppers participate in the AutoNation Cure Bowl bowl on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 2:30 p.m. EST/1:30 p.m. CST. WKU will face Georgia State in the third annual game, which is played in Orlando, Florida and televised by CBS Sports Network.
Conference USA has posted five consecutive winning seasons in bowl play and the league is 22-11 (.667) over the past five years in bowl games.
2017-18 C-USA BOWL SCHEDULE
R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Saturday, December 16
North Texas vs. Troy
(ESPN) 12 p.m. CST
AUTO NATION CURE BOWL (Orlando, Florida)
Saturday, December 16
WKU vs. Georgia State
(CBS Sports Network) 1:30 p.m. CST
GILDAN NEW MEXICO BOWL (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
Saturday, December 16
Marshall vs. Colorado State
(ESPN) 3:30 p.m. CST
RAYCOM CAMELLIA BOWL (Montgomery, Alabama)
Saturday, December 16
Middle Tennessee vs. Arkansas State
(ESPN) 7 p.m. CST
CHERIBUNDI TART CHERRY BOCA RATON BOWL (Boca Raton, Florida)
Tuesday, December 19
Florida Atlantic vs. Akron
(ESPN) 6 p.m. CST
DXL FRISCO BOWL (Frisco, Texas)
Wednesday, December 20
Louisiana Tech vs. SMU
(ESPN) 7 p.m. CST
BAD BOY MOWERS GASPARILLA BOWL (St. Petersburg, Florida)
Thursday, December 21
FIU vs. Temple
(ESPN) 7 p.m. CST
BAHAMAS BOWL (Nassau, Bahamas)
Friday, December 22
UAB vs. Ohio
(ESPN) 11:30 a.m. CST
WALK-ON’S INDEPENDENCE BOWL (Shreveport, Louisiana)
Wednesday, December 27
Southern Miss vs. Florida State
(ESPN) 12:30 p.m. CST