Capital One Bowl
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Founded in 1947, the Capital One Bowl is played in Orlando, Florida. From 1947-1982, the game was known as the Tangerine Bowl. On New Year’s Day in 1947, Catawba defeated Maryville 31-0 to win the inaugural Tangerine Bowl in front of 9,000 fans. During the first twenty years of its existence, the Tangerine Bowl featured the champion of the Ohio Valley Conference.
Beginning in 1968, the game featured the champion of the Mid-American Conference versus an opponent from the Southern Conference. The bowl game’s tie-in with the MAC ended in 1975. The only time the game was not played in Orlando occurred in 1973. The game was moved to Florida Field in Gainesville due to delays in construction of the stadium in Orlando. The game pitted Miami (Ohio) against the Florida Gators. Despite playing on their home field, the Gators lost the game 16-7.
From 1983-2001, the game was known as the Florida Citrus Bowl. The game had grown in stature and usually featured schools from the major conferences. From 1987-1991, the game featured the champion of the Atlantic Coast Conference. In 1991, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 45-21. Georgia Tech finished the season 11-0-1 and won a share of the national championship.
Since 1993, the bowl game has featured teams from the Southeastern and Big Ten Conferences. The Citrus Bowl attendance record was set in 1998 when 72,940 fans watched Florida defeat Penn State 21-6.
In 2002, the bowl game took the name of its current sponsor Capital One. The game is played immediately prior to the Rose Bowl game on ABC on New Year’s Day. In last year’s matchup, Wisconsin defeated Arkansas 17-14. The Capital One Bowl currently has the highest payout of any of the non-BCS bowls, with each school raking in $4.25 million.
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