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Two Storied College Football Programs to Meet for First Time Ever in Phoenix on Dec. 28
December 06, 2021 11:39 AM | Football, Blog
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Two college football programs with more than 250 years' worth of history will be meeting for the first time ever when West Virginia faces Minnesota in the 2021 Guaranteed Rate Bowl at Chase Field in downtown Phoenix on Tuesday, Dec. 28.
The Mountaineers, with 761 victories, and the Golden Gophers, with 717 wins, have been playing college football games since the early 1890s. Yet their only gridiron link is Dr. Clarence Spears, who led West Virginia to records of 5-4-1, 10-0-1, 7-1-1 and 8-1 during a four-year period from 1921 to 1924 before moving on to coach Minnesota in 1925. It was said at the time that Spears' desire to practice at the Mayo Clinic played a role in his decision to take the Minnesota job.
Spears' tenure in Minneapolis never quite matched what he accomplished in Morgantown, although he did win a share of a Big Ten title in 1927 before moving on to Oregon in 1930. Those were two of seven different coaching jobs Spears held from 1917 until 1944 before giving up the game to concentrate full-time on his medical practice.
This will be West Virginia's 18th bowl appearance in the last 20 years and the second during Neal Brown's three-year tenure with the Mountaineers.
WVU rallied to defeat Army 24-21 in last year's Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee, to snap a three-game bowl losing streak.
Brown has won all four bowl games he's coached, including three at Troy (two Dollar General Bowls and the New Orleans Bowl).
This will be West Virginia's fifth trip to Arizona to play a bowl game.
The Mountaineers have played twice in the Fiesta Bowl and will be making their third appearance in this game, which was known as the Insight.com Bowl in 1998 and the Cactus Bowl in 2016.
"What better place to be in the month of December than Phoenix, Arizona?" Brown said. "We're looking forward to spending a few days in the desert. The Fiesta Bowl organization is known throughout college football as a (putting on a) premier event, and I know our staff, athletic administration and our players are fired up about being there."
It will be West Virginia's 38th overall bowl appearance dating back to 1922 when Spears led WVU to a 21-13 victory over Gonzaga in the East-West Bowl in San Diego, and the Mountaineers have won 17 of them.
West Virginia's biggest bowl wins were against Georgia in the 2006 Sugar, against Oklahoma in the 2008 Fiesta and against Clemson in the 2012 Orange Bowl.
Minnesota will be playing its 22nd bowl game and its third under current coach P.J. Fleck, who is 2-0 in bowl games at Minnesota and 3-2 overall. The Golden Gophers have defeated Georgia Tech 34-10 in the 2018 Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit and Auburn 31-24 in the 2020 Outback Bowl in Tampa during Fleck's tenure.
His other three bowl appearances came when he coached Western Michigan, including a 2017 Cotton Bowl loss to Wisconsin.
Minnesota has won nine bowl games in its history and snapped a seven-game bowl skid in 2015 when it defeated Central Michigan 21-14 in the Quick Lane Bowl.
Minnesota's biggest bowl victory was a 21-3 triumph over UCLA in the 1962 Rose Bowl.
The Golden Gophers made three straight trips to the Insight.com Bowl in 2006, 2008 and 2009, losing to Virginia, Texas Tech and Kansas.
"We're very honored to be in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl out there in Phoenix," Fleck said. "I know it's the first year being the title sponsor, and we couldn't be happier. I couldn't be prouder of our team for earning the right to come out to Phoenix and the Arizona area and we're very excited.
"The hospitality is second to none. I know our alumni, our team, our families, our staff and our fans will have an absolute blast in the Phoenix area and the state of Arizona. We're excited to be there in 70-degrees plus. Count us in any time we're coming from Minnesota during the winter. We might even show up this week and start training now," he added.
The Guaranteed Rate Bowl will be the only bowl game matchup this year pitting the Big Ten against the Big 12.
It's one of five bowl games that day, the others being the Birmingham, First Responder, Liberty and Holiday bowls.
Tickets are currently on sale to the general public through WVUGAME.com.
The game will kick off at 10:15 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on ESPN.
The Mountaineers, with 761 victories, and the Golden Gophers, with 717 wins, have been playing college football games since the early 1890s. Yet their only gridiron link is Dr. Clarence Spears, who led West Virginia to records of 5-4-1, 10-0-1, 7-1-1 and 8-1 during a four-year period from 1921 to 1924 before moving on to coach Minnesota in 1925. It was said at the time that Spears' desire to practice at the Mayo Clinic played a role in his decision to take the Minnesota job.Spears' tenure in Minneapolis never quite matched what he accomplished in Morgantown, although he did win a share of a Big Ten title in 1927 before moving on to Oregon in 1930. Those were two of seven different coaching jobs Spears held from 1917 until 1944 before giving up the game to concentrate full-time on his medical practice.
This will be West Virginia's 18th bowl appearance in the last 20 years and the second during Neal Brown's three-year tenure with the Mountaineers.
WVU rallied to defeat Army 24-21 in last year's Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee, to snap a three-game bowl losing streak.
Brown has won all four bowl games he's coached, including three at Troy (two Dollar General Bowls and the New Orleans Bowl).
This will be West Virginia's fifth trip to Arizona to play a bowl game.
The Mountaineers have played twice in the Fiesta Bowl and will be making their third appearance in this game, which was known as the Insight.com Bowl in 1998 and the Cactus Bowl in 2016.
"What better place to be in the month of December than Phoenix, Arizona?" Brown said. "We're looking forward to spending a few days in the desert. The Fiesta Bowl organization is known throughout college football as a (putting on a) premier event, and I know our staff, athletic administration and our players are fired up about being there."
It will be West Virginia's 38th overall bowl appearance dating back to 1922 when Spears led WVU to a 21-13 victory over Gonzaga in the East-West Bowl in San Diego, and the Mountaineers have won 17 of them.
West Virginia's biggest bowl wins were against Georgia in the 2006 Sugar, against Oklahoma in the 2008 Fiesta and against Clemson in the 2012 Orange Bowl.
Minnesota will be playing its 22nd bowl game and its third under current coach P.J. Fleck, who is 2-0 in bowl games at Minnesota and 3-2 overall. The Golden Gophers have defeated Georgia Tech 34-10 in the 2018 Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit and Auburn 31-24 in the 2020 Outback Bowl in Tampa during Fleck's tenure.
His other three bowl appearances came when he coached Western Michigan, including a 2017 Cotton Bowl loss to Wisconsin.
Minnesota has won nine bowl games in its history and snapped a seven-game bowl skid in 2015 when it defeated Central Michigan 21-14 in the Quick Lane Bowl.
Minnesota's biggest bowl victory was a 21-3 triumph over UCLA in the 1962 Rose Bowl.
The Golden Gophers made three straight trips to the Insight.com Bowl in 2006, 2008 and 2009, losing to Virginia, Texas Tech and Kansas.
"We're very honored to be in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl out there in Phoenix," Fleck said. "I know it's the first year being the title sponsor, and we couldn't be happier. I couldn't be prouder of our team for earning the right to come out to Phoenix and the Arizona area and we're very excited.
"The hospitality is second to none. I know our alumni, our team, our families, our staff and our fans will have an absolute blast in the Phoenix area and the state of Arizona. We're excited to be there in 70-degrees plus. Count us in any time we're coming from Minnesota during the winter. We might even show up this week and start training now," he added.
The Guaranteed Rate Bowl will be the only bowl game matchup this year pitting the Big Ten against the Big 12.
It's one of five bowl games that day, the others being the Birmingham, First Responder, Liberty and Holiday bowls.
Tickets are currently on sale to the general public through WVUGAME.com.
The game will kick off at 10:15 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on ESPN.
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