The 2020 Camellia Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 25, 2020, at the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama , with kickoff at 2:30 p.m. EST on ESPN .[ 4] It was the seventh edition of the Camellia Bowl , and was one of the 2020–21 bowl games concluding the 2020 FBS football season . Buffalo defeated Marshall, 17–10, to claim their second bowl victory in school history.[ 5] [ 6]
This was first bowl game played on Christmas Day since the 2003 Hawaii Bowl .[ 7] Christmas Day college football had previously been played at the Cramton Bowl from 1979 to 2001 in the form of the Blue-Gray Football Classic . It was one of two bowl games, along with the inaugural Montgomery Bowl , that were played at the Cramton Bowl following the 2020 college football season.
Teams
The Camellia Bowl was contested by the Buffalo Bulls , from the Mid-American Conference (MAC), and the Marshall Thundering Herd , from Conference USA (C-USA).[ 8] The programs had previously met nine times, with Marshall leading the series, 8–1; their most recent meeting had been a 48–14 win by Marshall in 2004.[ 9] This was the programs' first meeting in a bowl game,[ 9] and the first Camellia Bowl for both teams.
Buffalo
Buffalo of the MAC accepted their bowl bid on December 20, 2020.[ 10] The Bulls entered the bowl with an overall record of 5–1 (5–0 in conference play). They won the MAC East division and competed in the MAC Championship Game , where they lost to Ball State .
Marshall
Marshall from C-USA accepted their bowl bid on December 20, 2020.[ 11] The Thundering Herd entered the bowl with an overall record of 7–2 (4–1 in conference play); they were ranked at number 15 in the AP Poll at the end of November.
Game summary
Game information
First quarter
No scoring plays
Second quarter
(11:43) UB – Kyle Vantrease 1 yard rush, Alex McNulty kick (Drive: 11 plays, 80 yards, 5:31; Buffalo 7–0 )
(5:33) UB – Alex McNulty 25 yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 37 yards, 4:20; Buffalo 10–0 )
(0:42) MRSH – Knowledge McDaniel 2 yard rush, Shane Ciucci kick (Drive: 12 plays, 75 yards, 4:51; Buffalo 10–7 )
Third quarter
(8:48) MRSH – Shane Ciucci 21 yard field goal (Drive: 15 plays, 60 yards, 6:12; Tied 10–10 )
Fourth quarter
(1:09) UB – Kevin Marks 2 yard rush, Alex McNulty kick (Drive: 13 plays, 88 yards, 6:18; Buffalo 17–10 )
Statistics
Statistics
MRSH
UB
First downs
16
21
Plays–yards
59–248
70–295
Rushes–yards
37–134
43–155
Passing yards
114
140
Passing: comp –att –int
13–22–0
16–27–1
Time of possession
24:33
35:27
Team
Category
Player
Statistics
Marshall
Passing
Grant Wells
13/20, 114 yards
Rushing
Sheldon Evans
18 carries, 79 yards
Receiving
Corey Gammage
6 receptions, 88 yards
Buffalo
Passing
Kyle Vantrease
16/27, 140 yards, 1 INT
Rushing
Kevin Marks
35 carries, 138 yards, 1 TD
Receiving
Jovany Ruiz
7 receptions, 61 yards
See also
References
↑ @HustleBelt (December 25, 2020). "Kevin Marks wins Camellia Bowl MVP with 138 rushing yards and the game-winning TD" (Tweet ). Retrieved December 25, 2020 – via Twitter .
↑ Fornelli, Tom (December 25, 2020). "Marshall vs. Buffalo prediction, pick, odds, line, TV channel, live stream, Camellia Bowl kickoff time" . CBS Sports . Retrieved December 25, 2020 .
↑ Austro, Ben (December 23, 2020). "2020-21 bowl officiating assignments" . footballzebras.com . Retrieved December 25, 2020 .
↑ "College Football Bowl Schedule | 2020" . FBSchedules.com . Retrieved October 30, 2020 .
↑ Lenzi, Rachel (December 25, 2020). "Kevin Marks' late touchdown lifts UB football to Camellia Bowl win" . The Buffalo News . Archived from the original on December 26, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020 .
↑ Traylor, Grant (December 25, 2020). "Herd falls, 17-10, to Buffalo in Camellia Bowl" . The Herald-Dispatch . Archived from the original on December 30, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020 .
↑ Paulsen (October 31, 2020). "Bowl season schedule slightly less full" . sportsmediawatch.com . Retrieved December 25, 2020 .
↑ "Division champs Marshall, Buffalo meet in Camellia Bowl" . USA Today . December 20, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020 .
↑ 9.0 9.1 "Marshall Thundering Herd vs. Buffalo Bulls football series games list" . winsipedia.com . Retrieved December 25, 2020 .
↑ "UB football to face Marshall in Camellia Bowl on Christmas Day" . The Buffalo News . December 20, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020 .
↑ "TU Football Accepts Bowl Invite To Armed Forces Bowl" . WCHS-TV . December 20, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020 .
External links
Formerly known as the Camellia Bowl
See also: 2020 Montgomery Bowl , played at the same venue as a one-off replacement bowl during the pandemic.