The San Diego State men’s football team will face Army on Dec. 23 at the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl in Fortworth, Texas, the selection committee announced Sunday.
The Aztecs are coming off a 10-2 season and missing an opportunity to play in for their third straight Mountain West Championship when they lost to Fresno State in October.
SDSU coach Rocky Long had hoped to play in the Foster Farm Bowl because it meant that his team would have more time to prep for its record eighth bowl appearances. That changed when Wisconsin lost to Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship on Saturday, dropping everyone below the Badgers in the Big Ten down a bowl notch and giving Purdue the Foster Farm Bowl.
“This promises to be an exciting matchup between two talented, well-coached team,” Armed Forces Bowl executive director Brant Ringler said.
The Aztecs (10-2, 6-2 Mountain West) are hoping to continue its bowl win streak. SDSU has won two bowls back-to-back, the Hawaii Bowl in 2015 and the Las Vegas Bowl in 2016. This will be the Aztecs first appearance in the Armed Forces Bowl since its inception in 2003.
The Black Knights (8-3) are appearing in their first back-to-back bowl for the second time in the program’s history. Army accepted this bowl bid back in late October. Army will still have to face Navy in the annual Army-Navy match on Dec. 9 in Philadelphia before prepping for its bowl appearance.
Last year, the Knights upset the Midshipmen for the first time since 2001 and Navy is looking for redemption. If Army wins the game, it will take home the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy for the first time since 1996. (Both Navy and Army defeated Air Force earlier in the season.)
The Armed Forces Bowl kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Dec. 23 at TCU’s Amon G. Carter Stadium in Forthworth, Texas. The game will be televised on ESPN.
