The 2020 First Responder Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 26, 2020, with kickoff at 3:30 p.m. EST (2:30 p.m. local CST) on ABC.[4] It was the 11th edition of the First Responder Bowl, and was one of the 2020–21 bowl games concluding the 2020 FBS football season. Sponsored by fire and water cleanup and restoration company Servpro, the game was officially known as the Servpro First Responder Bowl.
| 2020 Servpro First Responder Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| 11th First Responder Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 26, 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Gerald J. Ford Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Dallas, Texas | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Elijah Mitchell (RB, Louisiana)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Louisiana by 14[2] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Riley Johnson (ACC)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 3,512 | ||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ABC | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst) and Quint Kessenich (sideline) | ||||||||||||||||||
| International TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN Deportes | ||||||||||||||||||
Teams edit
Based on conference tie-ins, the First Responder Bowl was expected to feature teams from the American Athletic Conference (AAC), Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), or the Big 12 Conference.[5] The announced contest matches Louisiana of the Sun Belt Conference against UTSA of Conference USA (C-USA). This was the first meeting of the two programs.[6]
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns edit
Louisiana accepted their bid to the First Responder Bowl on December 20, 2020.[7] The Ragin' Cajuns entered the bowl with a record of 9–1 (7–1 in conference play) and ranked 16th in the AP Poll. Their only loss of the season was to Coastal Carolina, who they were due to face in a rematch in the Sun Belt Championship Game, but it was cancelled due to COVID-19 effects within the Coastal Carolina program.[8]
UTSA Roadrunners edit
UTSA accepted their bid to the First Responder Bowl on December 15, 2020.[9] The Roadrunners had originally accepted a bid to play SMU in the Frisco Bowl, but that game was canceled due to COVID-19 problems at SMU.[10] The Roadrunners entered the bowl with a record of 7–4 (5–2 in conference play). They faced one ranked team during the season, losing to BYU in October.
During the week prior to the game, UTSA head coach Jeff Traylor tested positive for COVID-19, and thus did not accompany the team to Dallas. Associate head coach and offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. served as the Roadrunners' coach for the game.[11]
Game summary edit
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 19 Louisiana | 7 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
| UTSA | 0 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 24 |
at Gerald J. Ford Stadium • University Park, Texas
- Date: Saturday, December 26, 2020
- Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST (2:30 p.m. CST)
- Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 70 °F (21 °C) • Wind: S 15 mph
- Referee: Riley Johnson (ACC)
- TV announcers (ABC): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst) and Quint Kessenich (sideline)
- ESPN game summary
| Game information |
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Statistics edit
| Statistics | LA | UTSA |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 23 | 27 |
| Plays–yards | 69–411 | 65–431 |
| Rushes–yards | 46–265 | 44–223 |
| Passing yards | 146 | 208 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 12–23–0 | 13–21–1 |
| Time of possession | 32:37 | 27:23 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana | Passing | Levi Lewis | 12/22, 146 yards, 2 TD |
| Rushing | Elijah Mitchell | 19 carries, 127 yards, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Elijah Mitchell | 2 receptions, 45 yards | |
| UTSA | Passing | Frank Harris | 13/21, 208 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Sincere McCormick | 23 carries, 122 yards | |
| Receiving | Zakhari Franklin | 5 receptions, 115 yards, 1 TD |
Notes edit
- ^ Prior to the game, Traylor tested positive for COVID-19. Associate head coach Barry Lunney Jr. was UTSA's acting head coach for the game.
References edit
- ^ @TDARaginCajuns (December 27, 2020). "MVP of the First Responder Bowl: UL RB Elijah Mitchell (19 carries, 127 yards, 1 TD)" (Tweet). Retrieved December 26, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ "ESPN Game Summary - Louisiana vs. UTSA - December 26, 2020". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
- ^ Austro, Ben (December 23, 2020). "2020-21 bowl officiating assignments". footballzebras.com. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ "College Football Bowl Schedule | 2020". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
- ^ Mercer, John David (March 17, 2020). "2020-2021 College Football Bowl Ties, Affiliations For Each Conference". collegefootballnews.com. USA Today. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- ^ "UTSA Roadrunners vs. Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football series history". winsipedia.com. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
- ^ "2020 Servpro First Responder Bowl to Feature No. 19 Louisiana and UTSA". firstresponderbowl.com (Press release). December 20, 2020. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
- ^ "Sun Belt championship game canceled due to COVID issues". AL.com. December 18, 2020.
- ^ "UTSA accepts invitation to play in SERVPRO First Responder Bowl". kens5.com. December 15, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
- ^ "Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl Canceled; UTSA to Play in SERVPRO First Responder Bowl". thefriscobowl.com (Press release). December 15, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
- ^ Sun Belt Conference (December 26, 2020). "No. 16 Louisiana tops UTSA 31-24 in First Responder Bowl". sunbeltsports.org. Sun Belt Conference. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
External links edit
- Official website
- Game statistics at statbroadcast.com