The LA Bowl is an annual NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football bowl game played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, first played in December 2021. The bowl has tie-ins with the Mountain West and Pac-12 conferences. The Pac-12 or its "legacy schools" (the 10 schools departing the conference in 2024 for the Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC) will continue to fulfill the Pac-12 tie-in obligation through the 2025 season.[1]
| LA Bowl | |
|---|---|
| Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk | |
 | |
| Stadium | SoFi Stadium |
| Location | Inglewood, California, U.S. |
| Operated | 2021–present |
| Conference tie-ins | |
| Sponsors | |
| |
| Former names | |
| |
| 2023 matchup | |
| Boise State vs. UCLA (UCLA 35–22) | |
| 2024 matchup | |
| California vs. UNLV (UNLV 24–13) | |
History
editThe Mountain West Conference and Pac-12 Conference announced tie-ins for the new bowl in July 2019, under a five-year agreement.[2] The game was officially unveiled in February 2020. It matches up the Mountain West champion (or the next-highest pick available if the conference champion is selected for the New Year's Six) against the fifth pick from the Pac-12. Previously, the Mountain West champion had received an automatic bid to the Las Vegas Bowl.[3] The game is owned and operated by the owners of SoFi Stadium,[4] StadCo LA, LLC.[5]
Three weeks before the scheduled bowl game debut on December 30, 2020, the game was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]
On June 16, 2021, the game was renamed the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl as part of a naming rights agreement with comedian and late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. Announcing the renaming on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Kimmel remarked that it was the first bowl game to be named for a living person.[7] The investment bank Stifel was later added as a presenting sponsor.[4]
On October 21, 2023, the bowl announced that it had signed a new multi-year sponsorship deal with former NFL star Rob Gronkowski.[8] On December 1, 2023, it added a naming rights partnership with Starco Brands, renaming the bowl the Starco Brands LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk.[9] In 2024, the sponsorship was moved to Starco's Art of Sport brand, renaming the game the Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk.[10]
Game results
editAll rankings are taken from the AP poll prior to the game being played.
| Date | Winning Team | Losing Team | Attendance | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 18, 2021 | Utah State | 24 | Oregon State | 13 | 29,896 | notes |
| December 17, 2022 | Fresno State | 29 | Washington State | 6 | 32,405 | notes |
| December 16, 2023 | UCLA | 35 | Boise State | 22 | 32,780 | notes |
| December 18, 2024 | No. 24 UNLV | 24 | California | 13 | 24,420 | notes |
MVPs
edit| Year | Offensive MVP | Defensive MVP | Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Pos. | Player | Team | Pos. | ||
| 2021 | Deven Thompkins | Utah State | WR | Nick Heninger | Utah State | DE | [11] |
| 2022 | Jordan Mims | Fresno State | RB | Devo Bridges | Fresno State | DE | [12] |
| 2023 | Ethan Garbers | UCLA | QB | Darius Muasau | UCLA | LB | [13] |
| 2024 | Jacob De Jesus | UNLV | WR | Jackson Woodard | UNLV | LB | [14][15] |
Appearances by team
editUpdated through the December 2024 edition (4 games, 8 total appearances).
- Teams with a single appearance
Won (4): Fresno State, UCLA, UNLV, Utah State
Lost (4): Boise State, California, Oregon State, Washington State
Appearances by conference
editUpdated through the December 2024 edition (4 games, 8 total appearances).
| Conference | Record | Appearances by season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | W | L | Win pct. | Won | Lost | |
| Mountain West | 4 | 3 | 1 | .750 | 2021, 2022, 2024 | 2023 |
| Pac-12 | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2023 | 2021, 2022 |
| ACC | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2024 | |
Game records
edit| Team | Performance vs. Opponent | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Most points scored | 35, UCLA vs. Boise State | 2023 |
| Fewest points allowed | 6, Fresno State vs. Washington State | 2022 |
| Margin of victory | 23, Fresno State vs. Washington State | 2022 |
| First downs | 27, Fresno State vs. Washington State | 2022 |
| Rushing yards | 280, UCLA vs. Boise State | 2023 |
| Passing yards | 280, Fresno State vs. Washington State | 2022 |
| Most points scored (losing team) | 22, Boise State vs. UCLA | 2023 |
| Most points scored (both teams) | 57, UCLA vs. Boise State | 2023 |
| Fewest yards allowed | 182, Fresno State vs. Washington State | 2022 |
| Fewest rushing yards allowed | 45, Fresno State vs. Washington State | 2022 |
| Fewest passing yards allowed | 117, Boise State vs. UCLA | 2023 |
| Individual | Player, Team | Year |
| Points scored | 12, multiple (most recently): TJ Harden (UCLA) Ethan Garbers (UCLA) George Holani (Boise State) |
2023 |
| Passing touchdowns | 2, shared by: Jake Haener (Fresno State) Ethan Garbers (UCLA) Hajj-Malik Williams (UNLV) |
2022 2023 2024 |
| Rushing yards | 209, Jordan Mims (Fresno State) | 2022 |
| Passing yards | 280, Jake Haener (Fresno State) | 2022 |
| Receiving yards | 142, J. Michael Sturdivant (UCLA) | 2023 |
| Rushing touchdowns | 2, shared by: Jordan Mims (Fresno State) George Holani (Boise State) TJ Harden (UCLA) |
2022 2023 2023 |
| Receiving touchdowns | 1, multiple (most recently): Jacob De Jesus (UNLV) Kayden McGee (UNLV) |
2024 |
| Tackles | 13, Marsel McDuffie (UNLV) | 2024 |
| Sacks | 3, Nick Heninger (Utah State) | 2021 |
| Interceptions | 1, shared by: Hunter Reynolds (Utah State) Akili Arnold (Oregon State) Kitan Oladapo (Oregon State) LJ Early (Fresno State) Alex Johnson (UCLA) |
2021 2021 2021 2022 2023 |
| Long Plays | Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent | Year |
| Touchdown run | 66 yds., George Holani (Boise State) | 2023 |
| Touchdown pass | 62 yds., Cooper Legas to Deven Thompkins (Utah State) | 2021 |
| Kickoff return | 79 yds., Kadarius Calloway (Cal) | 2024 |
| Punt return | 38 yds., Jacob De Jesus (UNLV) | 2024 |
| Interception return | 11 yds., Alex Johnson (UCLA) | 2023 |
| Fumble return | 0 yds., Jett Elad (UNLV) | 2024 |
| Punt | 57 yds., Marshall Nichols (UNLV) | 2024 |
| Field goal | 48 yds., Caden Chittenden (UNLV) | 2024 |
Media coverage
editThe bowl has been televised by ABC from its inception to 2021. It will air on ESPN in the 2024 edition.
References
edit- ^ McMurphy, Brett (July 9, 2024). "Departing Pac-12 Schools to Play in Pac-12 Affiliated Bowl Games, Brett Yormark Says". actionnetwork.com. Retrieved July 10, 2024.
- ^ Crepea, James (July 25, 2019). "Pac-12 adds Los Angeles Bowl to postseason lineup starting in 2020". oregonlive. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ "SoFi Stadium will be home to new college bowl game this season". Los Angeles Times. February 27, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
- ^ a b "Stifel and Jimmy Kimmel team up as big names on college bowl game". St. Louis Business Journal. November 2, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
- ^ "How much will Rams, Chargers season tickets cost in Inglewood's new stadium?". Orange County Register. March 7, 2018. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ "Inaugural LA Bowl Postponed Until 2021 Due To Coronavirus". Associated Press. December 7, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
- ^ Tapp, Tom (June 17, 2021). "Jimmy Kimmel Gets College Football Bowl Game Named After Him: The 'Jimmy Kimmel L.A. Bowl' At SoFi Stadium". Deadline. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
- ^ Reedy, Joe (October 21, 2023). "Move over Jimmy Kimmel, it's now the LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk". Associated Press News. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ "LA BOWL HOSTED BY GRONK PARTNERS WITH STARCO BRANDS FOR NAMING RIGHTS TO BOWL GAME, NOW STARCO BRANDS LA BOWL HOSTED BY GRONK". Retrieved December 1, 2023.
- ^ "Art of Sport To Be Title Sponsor of 2024 LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk". Bowl Season. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
- ^ Henline, Mitch (December 18, 2021). "Aggies finish championship season with LA Bowl victory over Oregon State". Cache Valley Daily. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ Stoeckle, Savannah (December 17, 2022). "'Dogs make history with 29-6 win in Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl". Fresno State Athletics. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
- ^ "Dominant Second Half Carries UCLA to 35-22 Victory Over Boise State in LA Bowl". mynewsla.com. December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
- ^ @LABowlGame (December 18, 2024). "Our 2024 Offensive MVP" (Tweet). Retrieved December 19, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ @LABowlGame (December 18, 2024). "Our 2024 Defensive MVP" (Tweet). Retrieved December 19, 2024 – via Twitter.