The New Orleans Bowl is a post-season college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 bowl game

Bowl game

In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...

 certified by the NCAA

National Collegiate Athletic Association

The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

 that has been played annually at the Louisiana Superdome

Louisiana Superdome

The Mercedes-Benz Superdome, previously known as the Louisiana Superdome and colloquially known as the Superdome, is a sports and exhibition arena located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA...

 in New Orleans, Louisiana

Louisiana

Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

 since 2001. The game was sponsored by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Wyndham Hotels and Resorts is a group of chains of hotels and resorts located mainly in the United States and Canada, but also in Mexico and the Caribbean.-History:...

 from 2002 to 2004 and was officially called the Wyndham New Orleans Bowl. R+L Carriers

R+L Carriers

R+L Carriers is a freight shipping company, based in the United States. Over the course of 40 years, R+L Carriers, Inc. has grown from one truck to a fleet of 21,000 tractors and trailers. R+L Carriers serves a total of 50 states plus Canada, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Dominican...

 replaced Wyndham as the sponsor in 2006, and thus it became officially known as the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl.

The game pits a team from Conference USA

Conference USA

Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...

 against the champions of the Sun Belt Conference

Sun Belt Conference

The Sun Belt Conference is a college athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , the higher of two levels of Division I football competition . The Sun Belt has member institutions...

, and as of 2010 is one of two guaranteed bids that the Sun Belt Conference will receive (the GMAC Bowl

GMAC Bowl

The GoDaddy.com Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played annually at Ladd Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama since 1999. It currently matches teams from the Sun Belt Conference and the Mid-American Conference, and...

 is the other and it is unclear, with the post-January 1 date that bowl has, whether or not the Sun Belt's automatic bid will move there).

In 2001, the Sun Belt signed a temporary contract to play against the 5th ranked team from the Mountain West Conference

Mountain West Conference

The Mountain West Conference , popularly known as the Mountain West, is the youngest of the college athletic conferences affiliated with the NCAA’s Division I FBS . The MWC officially began operations in July 1999...

. That year

2001 New Orleans Bowl

The 2001 New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . It was the inaugural playing of the game. North Texas became the first team in NCAA history to make a bowl game, after starting the season 0-5...

, the came to New Orleans, and defeated , 45–20. Starting in 2002, the Sun Belt signed a multi-year contract with Conference USA, and the two conferences began their bowl rivalry that December

2002 New Orleans Bowl

The 2002 Wyndham New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . It was North Texas' second consecutive New Orleans Bowl appearance.Quarterback Gino Guidugli got Cincinnati on the board first with a 6-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tye Keith, to give Cincinnati a 7-0 lead. Nick Bazaldua connected on...

, when played then-Conference USA member (and won).

Due to damage by Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...

 to the Superdome, where the game is usually played, the 2005 game was played on December 20 in Lafayette, Louisiana

Lafayette, Louisiana

Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...

 at Cajun Field

Cajun Field

Cajun Field is a stadium located in the city of Lafayette, Louisiana. Nicknamed The Swamp, it is the home field of the Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns...

 on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette

University of Louisiana at Lafayette

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette, or UL Lafayette, is a coeducational, public research university located in Lafayette, Louisiana, in the heart of Acadiana...

, and was dubbed the New Orleans Bowl at Lafayette. The game returned to the Superdome on December 22, 2006, with a new corporate sponsor in freight company R+L Carriers, renaming the game the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. The game featured , co-champions of the Sun Belt Conference facing , making their first bowl game visit in 45 years, their last appearance being the . Troy defeated Rice, 41–17.

The 2007 matchup

2007 New Orleans Bowl

The 2007 R+L CarriersNew Orleans Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game. Part of the 2007-08 NCAA football bowl games season, it was played on December 21, 2007 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans....

 featured the playing against the Florida Atlantic Owls

2007 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

The 2007 Florida Atlantic University Owls football team represented Florida Atlantic University in the 2007 college football season. The team was coached by Howard Schnellenberger and played their home games at Lockhart Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, FL...

 who appeared in their first bowl game, and won.

Game results

Date	| Winning Team		| Losing Team		Notes
December 18, 2001		45		20	notes 2001 New Orleans Bowl The 2001 New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . It was the inaugural playing of the game. North Texas became the first team in NCAA history to make a bowl game, after starting the season 0-5...
December 17, 2002		24		19	notes 2002 New Orleans Bowl The 2002 Wyndham New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . It was North Texas' second consecutive New Orleans Bowl appearance.Quarterback Gino Guidugli got Cincinnati on the board first with a 6-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tye Keith, to give Cincinnati a 7-0 lead. Nick Bazaldua connected on...
December 16, 2003		27		17	notes 2003 New Orleans Bowl The 2003 Wyndham New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . It was North Texas's third consecutive New Orleans Bowl appearance.Kicker Nick Bazaldua got North Texas on the board first with a 47 yard field goal to give the team an early 3-0 lead. Memphis quarterback Danny Wimprine scored on a 7 yard...
December 14, 2004		31		10	notes 2004 New Orleans Bowl The 2004 Wyndham New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . It was North Texas's fourth consecutive New Orleans Bowl appearance.Southern Miss quarterback Dustin Almond got Southern Miss on the board first with a 37-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Otho Graves, to give the Eagles an early 7-0 lead...
December 20, 2005		31		19	notes 2005 New Orleans Bowl The 2005 New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . Due to the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina, the game was played at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana instead of at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans....
December 22, 2006		41		17	notes 2006 New Orleans Bowl The 2006 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl featured the and the . Rice was making its first bowl appearance since 1961.Troy quarterback Omar Haugabook started the scoring with a 2-yard touchdown run to give Troy an early 7-0 lead. Less than a minute later, Haugabook hooked up with Gary Banks for a...
December 21, 2007	Florida Atlantic 2007 Florida Atlantic Owls football team The 2007 Florida Atlantic University Owls football team represented Florida Atlantic University in the 2007 college football season. The team was coached by Howard Schnellenberger and played their home games at Lockhart Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, FL...	44		27	notes 2007 New Orleans Bowl The 2007 R+L CarriersNew Orleans Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game. Part of the 2007-08 NCAA football bowl games season, it was played on December 21, 2007 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans....
December 21, 2008		30	Troy 2008 Troy Trojans football team The 2008 Troy Trojans football team represented Troy University in the college football season of 2008–2009. The Trojans played their home games at Movie Gallery Stadium in Troy, Alabama and competed in the Sun Belt Conference. The Trojans successfully defended their Sun Belt Championship, winning...	27 (OT)	notes 2008 New Orleans Bowl The 2008 R+L CarriersNew Orleans Bowl was the eighth edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Southern Miss Golden Eagles defeated the Troy Trojans, 30-27 in a dramatic overtime game...
December 20, 2009	Middle Tennessee 2008 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team The 2008 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team represented Middle Tennessee State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football during the 2008 season. Middle Tennessee competed as a member of the Sun Belt Conference. The team...	42	Southern Miss 2009 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team The 2009 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team represented The University of Southern Mississippi in the college football season of 2009–2010. The team's head coach was Larry Fedora, who was in his second year at Southern Miss. They played their home games at M.M...	32	notes 2009 New Orleans Bowl The 2009 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl was the ninth edition of the bowl. The game was played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana on Sunday, December 20, 2009. The game was televised live on ESPN...
December 18, 2010	Troy 2010 Troy Trojans football team The 2010 Troy Trojans football team represented Troy University in the college football season of 2010–2011. They played their home games at Movie Gallery Stadium in Troy, Alabama and competed in the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by 20th year head coach Larry Blakeney...	48	Ohio 2010 Ohio Bobcats football team The 2010 Ohio Bobcats football team represented Ohio University during the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bobcats, led by sixth-year head coach Frank Solich, competed in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference and played their home games at Peden Stadium...	21	notes 2010 New Orleans Bowl The 2010 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl was the tenth edition of the bowl. The game was played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana on Saturday, December 18, 2010 at 9 p.m. ET. The contest was televised live on ESPN...

MVPs

Date	MVP	School	Position
December 18, 2001	Justin Gallimore	Colorado State	DB
December 17, 2002	Kevin Galbreath	North Texas	RB
December 16, 2003	Danny Wimprine Danny Wimprine Daniel Wimprine is an American football quarterback who is currently a Free Agent of the Arena Football League.-Early life:...	Memphis	QB
December 14, 2004	Michael Boley Michael Boley Michael Boley is an American football linebacker for the New York Giants of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Southern Miss.-Early years:Boley played high school football for Elkmont High...	Southern Miss	LB
December 20, 2005	Shawn Nelson Shawn Nelson (American football) Shawn Nelson is an American football tight end who is currently a free agent. Nelson was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at Southern Mississippi....	Southern Miss	TE
December 22, 2006	Omar Haugabook	Troy	QB
December 21, 2007	Rusty Smith Rusty Smith (American football) -Tennessee Titans:Smith was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He was the first ever player from FAU to be drafted.He was signed to a four-year contract on June 17, 2010....	Florida Atlantic	QB
December 21, 2008	Austin Davis Austin Davis Austin Davis is the starting quarterback for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles college football team. A walk-on to the program, Davis redshirted the 2007 season and became the starter a year later...	Southern Miss	QB
December 20, 2009	Dwight Dasher	Middle Tennessee	QB
December 18, 2010	Corey Robinson Corey Robinson Corey Lee Robinson is a college football quarterback for the Troy Trojans. He set a national high school record with 91 thouchdown passes in a single season. As a freshman at Troy, he threw for 3,726 yards to rank among the top 10 among all Division I FBS players.-Early years:Robinson attended...	Troy	QB

Most appearances

Rank	Team	Appearances	Record
T1	Southern Miss Southern Miss Golden Eagles football The Southern Miss Golden Eagles football program represents the University of Southern Mississippi in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. The Eagles are members of Conference USA and player their home games at M. M. Roberts Stadium in Hattiesburg, Mississippi...	4	3–1
T1	North Texas North Texas Mean Green football The North Texas Mean Green football team represents the University of North Texas in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I-FBS college football and competes as a member of the Sun Belt Conference. The Mean Green have attained several conference championships, including four...	4	1–3
3	Troy Troy Trojans football The Troy Trojans football program represents Troy University, Alabama, in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly known as Division I-A, of which it has been a member since 2001...	3	2–1
4	Memphis Memphis Tigers football The Memphis Tigers football team represents the University of Memphis in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Tigers compete in Conference USA...	2	1–1
T5	Colorado State Colorado State Rams football The Colorado State Rams football program, established in 1893, represents Colorado State University and is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Mountain West Conference under head coach Steve Fairchild...	1	1–0
T5	Florida Atlantic Florida Atlantic Owls football The Florida Atlantic Owls football team represents Florida Atlantic University, a mid-major NCAA Division I-A college football team, that competes in the Sun Belt Conference.-Overview and history:...	1	1–0
T5	Middle Tennessee Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team represents Middle Tennessee State University in NCAA Division I FBS football competition. The Blue Raiders, a member of the Sun Belt Conference, play their home games at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.Rick Stockstill has...	1	1–0
T5	Arkansas State Arkansas State Red Wolves football The Arkansas State Red Wolves football team represents Arkansas State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football competition. The team was originally founded in 1911, and, since 2001, Arkansas State has competed as a member of the...	1	0–1
T5	Cincinnati Cincinnati Bearcats football The Cincinnati Bearcats football program represents the University of Cincinnati in a college football. They compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level as members of the Big East Conference. The Bearcat football program is one of the nation's oldest, having fielded a team as...	1	0–1
T5	Ohio Ohio Bobcats football The Ohio Bobcats football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports program of Ohio University. The team represents the university as a member of the Mid-American Conference of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, playing at the Division 1 Bowl Subdivision level...	1	0–1
T5	Rice Rice Owls football The Rice Owls football team represents Rice University in NCAA Division I college football. The Owls have competed in Conference USA's Western Division since 2005. Rice Stadium, built in 1950, hosts the Owls' home football games.-Venue:...	1	0–1

Results by conference

Conference	Record
Sun Belt Sun Belt Conference The Sun Belt Conference is a college athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , the higher of two levels of Division I football competition . The Sun Belt has member institutions...	5-5
Conference USA Conference USA Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...	4-4
Mountain West Mountain West Conference The Mountain West Conference , popularly known as the Mountain West, is the youngest of the college athletic conferences affiliated with the NCAA’s Division I FBS . The MWC officially began operations in July 1999...	1-0
Mid-American Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twelve full member schools are in Ohio and Michigan, with single members...	0-1

Attendance

Year	Attendance	Teams
2001	27,004	Colorado State vs. North Texas North Texas North Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area forming the central-northeastern section of the U.S. state of Texas. North Texas is generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, and north of Waco...
2002	19,024	North Texas North Texas North Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area forming the central-northeastern section of the U.S. state of Texas. North Texas is generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, and north of Waco...  vs. Cincinnati
2003	25,184	Memphis Memphis Tigers football The Memphis Tigers football team represents the University of Memphis in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Tigers compete in Conference USA...  vs. North Texas North Texas North Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area forming the central-northeastern section of the U.S. state of Texas. North Texas is generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, and north of Waco...
2004	27,253	Southern Miss vs. North Texas North Texas North Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area forming the central-northeastern section of the U.S. state of Texas. North Texas is generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, and north of Waco...
2005	18,338	Southern Miss vs. Arkansas State
2006	26,423	Rice Rice Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...  vs. Troy Troy Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
2007	25,146	Florida Atlantic vs. Memphis Memphis Tigers football The Memphis Tigers football team represents the University of Memphis in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Tigers compete in Conference USA...
2008	30,197	Troy Troy Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...  vs. Southern Miss
2009	30,228	Middle Tennessee Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team represents Middle Tennessee State University in NCAA Division I FBS football competition. The Blue Raiders, a member of the Sun Belt Conference, play their home games at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.Rick Stockstill has...  vs. Southern Miss
2010	29,159	Ohio vs. Troy Troy University Troy University is a public university that is located in Troy, Alabama, United States. It was originally founded in 1887 as Troy Normal School. Its main campus enrollment is 7,194 students. The total enrollment of all Troy University campuses is 29,689...