Burley Bowl

The Burley Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game played from 1945 through 1956.[1] It was held each year on Thanksgiving Day in Johnson City, Tennessee, at the city's Memorial Stadium, which was demolished in July 2010.[2] The game was part of an annual two-day tobacco festival,[3] with the name of the bowl coming from Burley tobacco. Like some other postseason match-ups of the era, such as the Grape Bowl, Glass Bowl, and Optimist Bowl, results are listed in NCAA records, but the games were not considered NCAA-sanctioned bowls.[1]

The inaugural game was held on November 29, 1945.[4] That day was the last (and fifth) Thursday of November, which was observed as Thanksgiving in Tennessee that year, despite President Truman proclaiming the holiday to be the fourth Thursday of the month.[5]

Game results

Program cover for 1947 game

Season	Date	Winner		Loser		Att. (est.)[1]
1945	November 29, 1945	High Point 7, Milligan 7				3,500
1946	November 28, 1946	Southeastern Louisiana	21	Milligan	13	7,500
1947	November 27, 1947	West Chester	20	Carson–Newman	6	10,000
1948	November 25, 1948	West Chester	7	Appalachian State	2	12,000
1949	November 24, 1949	Emory and Henry	32	Hanover	0	12,000
1950	November 23, 1950	Emory and Henry	26	Appalachian State	6	12,000
1951	November 22, 1951	Charleston (WV)	27	Lebanon Valley	20	9,000
1952	November 27, 1952	East Tennessee State	34	Emory and Henry	16
1953	November 26, 1953	East Tennessee State	48	Emory and Henry	12
1954	November 25, 1954	Appalachian State	28	East Tennessee State	13
1955	November 24, 1955	East Tennessee State	7	Appalachian State	0
1956	November 22, 1956	Memphis State	32	East Tennessee State	12

Game records

Team scoring records	Performance	Year
Most points scored (one team)	48, East Tennessee State	1953
Most points scored (both teams)	60, East Tennessee State vs. Emory and Henry	1953
Most points scored (losing team)	20, Lebanon Valley	1951
Fewest points scored (winning team)	7, West Chester 7, East Tennessee State	1948 1955
Fewest points scored (both teams)	7, East Tennessee State vs. Appalachian State	1955
Fewest points allowed	0, Emory and Henry 0, East Tennessee State	1949 1955
Largest margin of victory	36, East Tennessee State	1953

Most appearances

Only teams with more than one appearance are listed.

Rank	Team	Appearances	Record
1	East Tennessee State	5	3–2
T2	Emory & Henry	4	2–2
T2	Appalachian State	4	1–3
T4	West Chester	2	2–0
T4	Milligan	2	0–1–1

Notes

NCAA records list the date of the first Burley Bowl as "1-1-1946",[1] which is inconsistent with contemporary newspaper reports.[3][4]

References

"BOWL/ALL STAR GAME RECORDS" (PDF). NCAA. 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
"Lost Landmark-Memorial Stadium, Johnson City (TN)". Historic Highway Guides. December 31, 2010. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
"Johnson City Plans Burley Bowl Game". Kingsport Times. Kingsport, Tennessee. November 4, 1945. Retrieved March 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
"Buffaloes, High Point Struggle To 7-7 Tie In Burley Bowl Tilt". Kingsport Times. Kingsport, Tennessee. November 30, 1945. Retrieved March 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
"Truman Sets Nov. 22 As Thanksgiving". Kingsport Times. Kingsport, Tennessee. AP. November 13, 1945. Retrieved March 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.