Middle Tennessee has been set to take on Arkansas State in the Camellia Bowl.
The game will be held in Montgomery, Alabama at 7 p.m. on Saturday, December 16.
Javonte Moffat leads Middle Tennessee with 95 tackles. Quarterback Justice Hansen has broken Ryan Aplin's school single-season passing record for Arkansas State with 3,630 yards. He has also thrown a Sun Belt-record 34 touchdown passes.
.@MT_FB vs Arkansas State in the @CamelliaBowl on Dec. 16 at 7 PM! This is the first time in program history the #BlueRaiders have going to three-consecutive bowl games! pic.twitter.com/zpP5AYdynU
— MT Athletics (@MTAthletics) December 3, 2017
Middle Tennessee went 3-1 after quarterback Brent Stockstill, the school's career passing leader, returned after missing six games with an injury. The team became bowl eligible with a closing 41-10 win over Old Dominion.
Arkansas State’s Ja'Von Rolland-Jones has been needing one more sack to break the career FBS record of 44 held by Terrell Suggs and Jonathan Peterson. The team ended the regular season with a 32-25 loss to Troy on a touchdown with 17 seconds left with a share of the Sun Belt title on the line.
Middle Tennessee became bowl eligible for the sixth straight year. The team’s history was 3-7 all-time in bowl appearances with four straight losses.
This marked Arkansas State’s seventh consecutive bowl berth and eighth overall, going 3-4.
Also of note, Western Kentucky University will be taking on Georgia State in the Cure Bowl. That game has been scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, December 16 in Orlando, Florida.
☀🎳 We're in! 🎳☀
Tops vs. @GeorgiaStateFB in the @CureBowl in sunny Orlando!
📝: https://t.co/ohCyZL30Tzpic.twitter.com/RXA3Gccy1H
— WKU Football (@WKUFootball) December 3, 2017
Also announced today, Kentucky will take on Northwestern right here in Nashville in the Music City Bowl set for 3:30 p.m. on Friday, December 29.
This is the Music City Bowl's 20th year. Founders met at Top Golf Sunday to celebrate the matchup. The event comes during a busy week, with a Predators game the day after and New Years Eve on Sunday.
"It's really unbelievable," said Dan Crockett, president of Franklin American Mortgage Company. "I remember the first game in 1997, Virginia and Alabama Tech. It was sleeting, so I remember thinking then, not only as a business person but a football fan as well, I'm not sure this is going to work. But every year things seem to get better."
Fans of both teams also responded favorably to the matchup.
"It's great news. In Kentucky, we're just so happy to be in a bowl game. We'll take it. We'll be happy about it," said John Harris. Harris said he was at the last Music City Bowl Kentucky played in 2009.
"We're always excited to see the Wildcats play," said Melissa Lind, whose son went to Northwestern. "Just excited they're coming here to the Music City Bowl, so we'll definitely put our purple on and try to go to the Music City Bowl."
