Memphis Football Bowl History
Memphis has earned berths to 17 bowl games, including 10-consecutive bowl games from 2014-23, the longest active streak in the American Athletic Conference and best among all Group of Five programs.
Memphis' first bowl appearance came in 1956 when the Tigers defeated East Tennessee State 32-12 in the Burley Bowl in Johnson City, Tenn. The Tigers have also played in the Pasadena Bowl (1971), New Orleans Bowl (2003, 2007), GMAC Bowl (2004), Motor City Bowl (2005), St. Petersburg Bowl (2008), Miami Beach Bowl (2014), Birmingham Bowl (2015, 2018), Bowl Raton Bowl (2016), AutoZone Liberty Bowl (2017, 2023), Goodyear Cotton Bowl (2019), Montgomery Bowl (2020), EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl (2021) and SERVPRO First Responder Bowl (2022).
Memphis is 8-8 all-time in bowl games, with one cancelation. The Tigers were named champions of the 2021 EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl after Hawai'i was unable to participate.
Below is a complete list of Memphis bowl appearances with links to recaps for each game:
1956 Burley Bowl
Memphis State College 32, East Tennessee State 12
Johnson City, Tenn. (Memorial Stadium)
November 22, 1956
1971 Pasadena Bowl
Memphis State 28, San Jose State 9
2003 New Orleans Bowl
Memphis 27, North Texas 17
New Orleans, La. (Mercedes-Benz Superdome)
December 16, 2003
2004 GMAC Bowl
Bowling Green 52, Memphis 35
Mobile, Ala. (Ladd Peebles Stadium)
December 22, 2004
2005 Motor City Bowl
Memphis 38, Akron 31
Detroit, Mich. (Ford Field)
December 26, 2005
2007 New Orleans Bowl
Florida Atlantic 44, Memphis 27
New Orleans, La. (Mercedes-Benz Superdome)
December 21, 2007
2008 St. Petersburg Bowl
USF 41, Memphis 14
St. Petersburg, Fla. (Tropicana Field)
December 20, 2008
2014 Miami Beach Bowl
Memphis 55, BYU 48 (2ot)
Miami, Fla. (Marlins Park)
December 22, 2014
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2015 Birmingham Bowl
Auburn 31, Memphis 10
Birmingham, Ala. (Legion Field)
December 30, 2015
2016Â Boca Raton Bowl
Western Kentucky 51, Memphis 31
Boca Raton, Fla. (FAU Stadium)
December 20, 2016
2017 Liberty Bowl
Iowa State 21, Memphis 20
Memphis, Tenn. (Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium)
December 30, 2017
2018 Birmingham Bowl
Wake Forest 37, Memphis 34
Birmingham, Ala. (Legion Field)
December 22, 2018
2019Â Goodyear Cotton Bowl
Penn State 53, Memphis 39
Arlington, Texas (AT&T Stadium)
December 28, 2019
2020 Montgomery Bowl
Memphis 25, Florida Atlantic 10
Montgomery, Ala. (Cramton Bowl)
December 23, 2020
2021 EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl
Canceled due to Hawai'i being unable to participate
Honolulu, Hawai'i (T.C. Ching Athletics Complex)
December 24, 2021
2022 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
Memphis 38, Utah State 10
Dallas, Texas (Gerald J. Ford Stadium)
December 27, 2022
2023 AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Memphis 36, Iowa State 26
Memphis, Tenn. (Simmons Bank Liberty Bowl)
December 29, 2023
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Memphis' first bowl appearance came in 1956 when the Tigers defeated East Tennessee State 32-12 in the Burley Bowl in Johnson City, Tenn. The Tigers have also played in the Pasadena Bowl (1971), New Orleans Bowl (2003, 2007), GMAC Bowl (2004), Motor City Bowl (2005), St. Petersburg Bowl (2008), Miami Beach Bowl (2014), Birmingham Bowl (2015, 2018), Bowl Raton Bowl (2016), AutoZone Liberty Bowl (2017, 2023), Goodyear Cotton Bowl (2019), Montgomery Bowl (2020), EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl (2021) and SERVPRO First Responder Bowl (2022).
Memphis is 8-8 all-time in bowl games, with one cancelation. The Tigers were named champions of the 2021 EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl after Hawai'i was unable to participate.
Below is a complete list of Memphis bowl appearances with links to recaps for each game:
1956 Burley Bowl
Memphis State College 32, East Tennessee State 12
Johnson City, Tenn. (Memorial Stadium)
November 22, 1956
1971 Pasadena Bowl
Memphis State 28, San Jose State 9
Pasadena, Calif. (Rose Bowl)
December 18, 19712003 New Orleans Bowl
Memphis 27, North Texas 17
New Orleans, La. (Mercedes-Benz Superdome)
December 16, 2003
2004 GMAC Bowl
Bowling Green 52, Memphis 35
Mobile, Ala. (Ladd Peebles Stadium)
December 22, 2004
2005 Motor City Bowl
Memphis 38, Akron 31
Detroit, Mich. (Ford Field)
December 26, 2005
2007 New Orleans Bowl
Florida Atlantic 44, Memphis 27
New Orleans, La. (Mercedes-Benz Superdome)
December 21, 2007
2008 St. Petersburg Bowl
USF 41, Memphis 14
St. Petersburg, Fla. (Tropicana Field)
December 20, 2008
2014 Miami Beach Bowl
Memphis 55, BYU 48 (2ot)
Miami, Fla. (Marlins Park)
December 22, 2014
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2015 Birmingham Bowl
Auburn 31, Memphis 10
Birmingham, Ala. (Legion Field)
December 30, 2015
2016Â Boca Raton Bowl
Western Kentucky 51, Memphis 31
Boca Raton, Fla. (FAU Stadium)
December 20, 2016
2017 Liberty Bowl
Iowa State 21, Memphis 20
Memphis, Tenn. (Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium)
December 30, 2017
2018 Birmingham Bowl
Wake Forest 37, Memphis 34
Birmingham, Ala. (Legion Field)
December 22, 2018
2019Â Goodyear Cotton Bowl
Penn State 53, Memphis 39
Arlington, Texas (AT&T Stadium)
December 28, 2019
2020 Montgomery Bowl
Memphis 25, Florida Atlantic 10
Montgomery, Ala. (Cramton Bowl)
December 23, 2020
2021 EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl
Canceled due to Hawai'i being unable to participate
Honolulu, Hawai'i (T.C. Ching Athletics Complex)
December 24, 2021
2022 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
Memphis 38, Utah State 10
Dallas, Texas (Gerald J. Ford Stadium)
December 27, 2022
2023 AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Memphis 36, Iowa State 26
Memphis, Tenn. (Simmons Bank Liberty Bowl)
December 29, 2023
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