Medal of Honor Bowl

The Medal of Honor Bowl was an American college football all-star game played in Charleston, South Carolina, in January 2014 and 2015.[1] The bowl was not sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Primary beneficiaries of the game were the Medal of Honor Museum on the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown and, initially, the Wounded Warrior Project.[2][3]

Medal of Honor Bowl (defunct)
StadiumJohnson Hagood Stadium
LocationCharleston, South Carolina
Operated2014–2015
Former names
Legends Bowl (proposed)

Background

In 2004, Tommy McQueeney, a former Citadel Board of Visitors member, led an ownership group interested in starting a Charleston-based college bowl game, the "Palmetto Bowl", but was blocked by an NCAA ban on playing postseason games at pre-determined locations in South Carolina due to the Confederate battle flag being flown at a civil war monument on the State House grounds.[4]

History

The Charleston-based bowl attempt was revived as a proposed "Legends Bowl" to begin in 2014 at The Citadel's Johnson Hagood Stadium featuring teams from the Sun Belt and Mid-American conferences, with NBCSN as its broadcasting partner.[4]

The Medal of Honor Bowl was announced by organizers in October 2013,[5] as a college football all-star game in place of the proposed Legends Bowl. The game would not require the NCAA bowl committee's approval, by inviting players who have exhausted their college eligibility.[2] The first game was scheduled for January 11, 2014, at Johnson Hagood Stadium with the expectation of drawing players from SEC and ACC conferences. Organizers reached a five-year agreement with The Citadel for use of its stadium.[6]

The American and National teams for 2014 were chosen from a pool of 300 players by the bowl's executive director, who looked for players with profiles expected to fill NFL draft needs in the fourth to seventh rounds.[6] Pro Player Insiders ranked college football all-star games in September 2014, placing this game fourth.[7] At that time, 64 players from the bowl had been drafted, signed, or had a tryout with an NFL team; there were 7 players on active rosters, 16 players on practice squads, and 2 players on injured reserve.[7] In October 2014, the bowl announced that NBCSN would broadcast the next game on January 10, 2015, starting at 2:30 PM.[8]

Another South Carolina-based game, the College All-Star Bowl, had started in 2013, and was played twice in Greenville.[9] With the similarity in purpose of the College All-Star Bowl and the Medal of Honor Bowl, in July 2014 it was announced that the College All-Star Bowl would cease operations, and that game's founder would join the Medal of Honor Bowl as director of player development.[9][10] Later that month, Sam Wyche, a College All-Star Bowl board member, was announced as a member of the Medal of Honor Bowl's national board of directors.[11]

On August 27, 2015, after the NCAA lifted its ban on playing postseason games at pre-determined locations in South Carolina (following the State House's July 2015 removal of the Confederate battle flag), bowl organizers announced their intent to apply for NCAA sanctioning as a traditional postseason bowl game featuring FBS college teams, with a tentative game date of December 18, 2016.[12] However, in April 2016, the NCAA announced a moratorium on new bowl games.[13]

Medal of Honor Bowl organizers tentatively set a date of January 7, 2017, for playing the game under its prior all-star format.[14] In September 2016, organizers announced that the bowl would be suspended, due to Johnson Hagood Stadium having "myriad issues related to structural integrity and lead paint mitigation."[14] The announcement included cancellation of the game tentatively planned for January 7, 2017, and a new tentative date of January 13, 2018.[14] As of May 2017, significant renovation work was underway at Johnson Hagood Stadium.[15] As of early January 2018, there have been no press releases or recent updates to the official website;[16] the bowl appears to be on indefinite hold.

Game results
Date American National Attendance Ref.
CoachScoreCoachScore
January 11, 2014Ralph Friedgen20Chan Gailey35,135[17][18]
January 10, 2015Willie Jeffries14Chan Gailey2612,578[19][20]
January 7, 2017
cancelled
[14]
January 13, 2018
proposed, but not played
[14]

2014: American 20, National 3
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP National American
1 9:03 7 60 4:13 American Danny O'Brien 1-yard touchdown run, Michael Pallardy kick failed 0 6
2 14:04 10 42 5:11 National 40-yard field goal by Drew Basil 3 6
2 8:09 8 50 4:42 American D.J. Adams 19-yard touchdown run, Michael Pallardy kick good 3 13
4 13:49 9 51 5:00 American D.J. Adams 1-yard touchdown run, Michael Pallardy kick good 3 20
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 3 20

 [18]

2015: National 26, American 14
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP National American
1 8:46 American Synjyn Days 5-yard touchdown run, Ty Long kick good 0 7
1 National 27-yard field goal by Will Conant 3 7
2 14:46 American Interception returned 87 yards for touchdown by Quinn Backus, Ty Long kick good 3 14
2 National 21-yard field goal by Will Conant 6 14
3 National 33-yard field goal by Will Conant 9 14
3 5:02 National Damiere Byrd 11-yard touchdown reception from Ryan Williams, Will Conant kick good 16 14
3 1:28 National 36-yard field goal by Will Conant 19 14
4 8:35 National Interception returned 52 yards for touchdown by Brison Williams, Will Conant kick good 26 14
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 26 14

 [19][21][22][23][24]

MVPs
Date American National Ref.
PlayerPos.CollegePlayerPos.College
January 11, 2014Solomon PattonWRFloridaDeon FurrLBFort Valley State[25][26]
January 10, 2015Quinn BackusLBCoastal CarolinaRyan WilliamsQBMiami (FL)[27][21]

References
  1. "Medal of Honor Bowl on hold". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. September 15, 2016. Retrieved May 20, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  2. Hartsell, Jeff (October 1, 2013). "Game not subject to flag flap". The Post and Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  3. "Game Beneficiaries". mohbowl.com. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  4. Hartsell, Jeff (August 9, 2013). "New bowl game, same obstacles". The Post and Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  5. Solomon, Andy (October 5, 2013). "Citadel to Host Medal of Honor Bowl Game". Citadel Athletics. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  6. Iacobelli, Pete (January 8, 2014). "All-ACC Whitlock aiming to raise draft chances". AP. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  7. Mahler, Melissa; Draft Insider (September 5, 2014). "Is the College Football ALL-STAR Game Pecking Order Shifting?". Pro Player Insiders. Archived from the original on October 28, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  8. "Medal of Honor Bowl to be Televised Nationally on NBCSN". mohbowl.com (Press release). October 29, 2014. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  9. Robinson, Mandrallius (July 9, 2014). "College All-Star Bowl won't be back". The Greenville News. Greenville, South Carolina. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  10. "SC down to 1 college all-star game". USA Today. AP. July 10, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  11. "Ex-NFL coach Wyche joins Medal of Honor Bowl board". The Washington Times. AP. July 21, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  12. Hartsell, Jeff (August 26, 2015). "Medal of Honor Bowl now a 'traditional' bowl game". The Post and Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
  13. McMurphy, Brett (April 11, 2016). "NCAA approves three-year halt to new bowl games". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  14. "Medal of Honor Bowl Suspends 2017 Game". Citadel Athletics. September 14, 2016. Retrieved May 21, 2017 – via WCBD.
  15. Hartsell, Jeff (May 6, 2017). "Demolition of east side of Citadel's Johnson Hagood Stadium has begun". The Post and Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  16. "Medal of Honor Bowl". mohbowl.com. February 7, 2017. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  17. Sapakoff, Gene (January 11, 2014). "Sapakoff: Grading helmets, QBs, rosters and the Medal of Honor Bowl debut". The Post and Courier. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  18. "Scoring Summary (Final)" (PDF). mohbowl.com. January 11, 2014. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  19. Iacobelli, Pete (January 11, 2015). "Miami QB Williams returns in Medal of Honor Bowl; National wins 26-14". The Times and Democrat. Orangeburg, South Carolina. AP. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
  20. Duke, Michaele (January 13, 2015). "Charlie Brown coaches in Medal of Honor Bowl". The News. Kingstree, South Carolina. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
  21. "Second Half Surge Lifts National Team Past American, 26-14, in 2nd Annual Medal of Honor Bowl". mohbowl.com (Press release). January 12, 2015. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  22. "Drummond in Medal of Honor". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. January 11, 2015. Retrieved May 22, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  23. "David Frazier - Medal of Honor Bowl Highlights". Kyle Kron. January 13, 2015. Retrieved May 22, 2017 – via YouTube.
  24. "Dodd Sports Network: Medal of Honor Bowl 2015". Dodd Sports Network. January 11, 2015. Retrieved May 22, 2017 – via YouTube.
  25. Hartsell, Jeff (January 12, 2014). "All-Star game off to good start". The Greenville News. Greenville, South Carolina. Retrieved May 21, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  26. "American Team Defeats National in Medal of Honor Bowl". mohbowl.com (Press release). January 13, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  27. Iacobelli, Pete (January 11, 2015). "Miami QB Williams returns in Medal of Honor Bowl". Daily Record. Morristown, New Jersey. Retrieved May 21, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
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