2023 ReliaQuest Bowl
| 2023 ReliaQuest Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| 37th ReliaQuest Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | January 2, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Raymond James Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Tampa, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Justin Robinson (WR, Mississippi State)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Miss. State by 3.5 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Adam Savoie (ACC)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 35,797 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Payout | US$6,666,667[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst), and Tiffany Blackmon (sideline) (ESPN2) | ||||||||||||||||||
The 2023 ReliaQuest Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 2, 2023, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The 37th annual ReliaQuest Bowl (previously known as the Outback Bowl from 1996 through 2022), the game featured the Mississippi State Bulldogs from the Southeastern Conference and the Illinois Fighting Illini from the Big Ten Conference. The game began at 12:03 p.m. EST[4] and was aired on ESPN2.[5] It was one of the 2022–23 bowl games concluding the 2022 FBS football season. Cybersecurity company ReliaQuest was the game's title sponsor.
Teams[edit]
Consistent with conference tie-ins, the game featured teams from the Big Ten Conference and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The bowl also has a tie-in with the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) when the ACC's opponent in the Orange Bowl is a Big Ten team, in which case an ACC team is selected for the ReliaQuest Bowl.
This was the third meeting between the two teams; in their two prior matchups, Illinois won in 1923 and Mississippi State won in 1980.[6]
Mississippi State Bulldogs[edit]
Mississippi State compiled an 8–4 record during the regular season, finishing with a 24–22 win over rival Ole Miss in the Egg Bowl. In five games against ranked opponents, the Bulldogs defeated Texas A&M and Ole Miss while losing to Kentucky, Alabama, and Georgia. The team was coached during the regular season by Mike Leach. Following Leach's death on December 12, Zach Arnett was elevated to head coach, including for the team's bowl game.
Illinois Fighting Illini[edit]
Illinois finished the regular season with an 8–4 record, losing three of their final four games. Their only contest against a ranked FBS opponent was a loss to Michigan.
Game summary[edit]
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| No. 22 Mississippi State | 0 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 19 |
| Illinois | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
at Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, Florida
- Date: Monday, January 2, 2023
- Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 76 °F (24 °C) • Wind: 6 mph (9.7 km/h) west
- Game attendance: 35,797
- TV announcers (ESPN2): Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst), and Tiffany Blackmon (sideline)
- Box score
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The final play of the game, a desperation lateral pass play by Illinois, resulted in Mississippi State intercepting a lateral for the game-clinching touchdown. This play was compared to a similar play between the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders during the NFL's regular season that year and was noted to benefit bettors who had picked Mississippi State to cover the spread.[7]
Statistics[edit]
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† Tommy DeVito's receiving yardage occurred on the final play of the game, following an initial pass from DeVito to Casey Washington. After several laterals, DeVito fumbled the ball, which was returned by Mississippi State for a touchdown. Statbroadcast credits DeVito with -47 receiving yards, while ESPN credits DeVito with 13 receiving yards.
See also[edit]
- 2022 Gasparilla Bowl, contested at the same venue on December 23
References[edit]
- ^ "ReliaQuest Bowl MVP Justin Robinson". reliaquestbowl.com. ASAP Sports. January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ Austro, Ben (December 4, 2022). "2022–23 bowl officiating assignments". footballzebras.com. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
- ^ "2022 Bowl Schedule". College Football Poll. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "2023 ReliaQuest Bowl Final Stats" (PDF). Statbroadcast. January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ "2022 College Football Bowl Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ^ "Winsipedia - Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Illinois Fighting Illini football series history games list". Winsipedia.com. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
- ^ "Mississippi State miraculously covered the spread against Illinois on a Raiders-esque lateral return to end the game". For The Win. USA Today. January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
Remember the New England Patriots' embarrassing lateral failure against the Las Vegas Raiders a few weeks ago? Yeah, Illinois did the same thing.