Armed Forces Bowl Moves To January
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FORT WORTH, Texas – The Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl will be played in Fort Worth, Texas, on Friday, Jan. 2, 2015 officials announced. The 12th edition of the postseason college football bowl game will kick off at 11:00 a.m. (CT) from Amon G. Carter Stadium on the campus of TCU and will be aired by ESPN. This will be the first time in its history that the bowl game has been held in January.
This year’s Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl is slated to feature a team from the American Athletic Conference versus the U.S. Military Academy (Army), pending bowl eligibility. The annual game, played in honor of the armed forces of the United States, is the only collegiate football bowl game that has hosted all three U.S. Military Academy football teams. The U.S. Military Academy (2010), the U.S. Air Force Academy (2007-2009, 2012) and the U.S. Naval Academy (2013) have all previously visited participated in the bowl.
“A Friday kickoff is the perfect end to a holiday week chalked full of college football and ending appropriately in Fort Worth,” said Brant Ringler, Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl executive director. “We are honored to host the return of the U.S. Military Academy (Army) for the second time and are equally enthused to host a worthy opponent from
the new American Athletic Conference.”
This will be the first time the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl will be played after the start of the New Year. In its first 11 years, the event has been held on Dec. 23 (2003-2006), Dec. 29 (2012), Dec. 30 (2010-2011, 2013) and Dec. 31 (2007-2009).
In last year’s game, Navy broke open a close contest with 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to defeat Middle Tennessee State, 24-6 to cap an eventful 9-4 season for the Midshipmen in front of an announced crowd of 39,246 and a national TV audience on ESPN.
The Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl has featured the “armed forces” theme since 2006. Patriotic overtones recognizing all five branches of the service are prevalent throughout the game. Past Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowls have included fan-fest adventure areas showcasing armed forces hardware; flyovers; demonstrations by several of the military’s top skydiving teams; custom homes awarded to wounded warriors; on-field induction ceremonies; armed forces bands and honor guards; the annual Great American Patriot Award presented by Armed Forces Insurance and the Armed Forces Merit Award presented by the Football Writers Association of America.
