2002 New Orleans Bowl Explained

Year Game Played:2002
Title Sponsor:Wyndham
Game Name:New Orleans Bowl
Football Season:2002
Visitor Name Short:Cincinnati
Visitor Nickname:Bearcats
Visitor School:University of Cincinnati
Home Name Short:North Texas
Home Nickname:Mean Green
Home School:University of North Texas
Visitor Record:7-6
Visitor Conference:C-USA
Home Record:7-5
Home Conference:Sun Belt
Visitor Coach:Rick Minter
Home Coach:Darrell Dickey
Visitor 1Q:7
Visitor 2Q:0
Visitor 3Q:6
Visitor 4Q:6
Home 1Q:3
Home 2Q:14
Home 3Q:7
Home 4Q:0
Date Game Played:December 17
Stadium:Louisiana Superdome
City:New Orleans, Louisiana
Mvp:North Texas RB Kevin Galbreath
Odds:Cincinnati by 7.5
Referee:Jim Knight (ACC)
Attendance:19,024[1]
Payout:750,000 per team[2]
Us Network:ESPN2[3]

The 2002 Wyndham New Orleans Bowl featured the Cincinnati Bearcats and the North Texas Mean Green. 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 a 30-yard field goal, before the end of the first quarter to make the score 7–3. In the second quarter, running back Patrick Cobbs scored on a 27-yard touchdown run, to give North Texas a 10–7 lead. Cornerback Jeremy Pearl intercepted a Cincinnati pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown, to increase the lead to 17–7.

In the third quarter, Kevin Galbreath scored on a 35-yard touchdown run to increase the lead to 24–7. Johnathan Ruffin connected on two third-quarter field goals to cut the deficit to 24–13. Franklin Calicott returned a fumble 43 yards for a touchdown with five minutes left to cut the lead to 24–19. That was the final score of the game.

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://neworleansbowl.com/2007/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=36 NewOrleansBowl.com - History
  2. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/college/2002/bowls/bowl_sked/
  3. http://football.about.com/library/weekly/bl_2002bowlsched.htm 2002-03 College Bowl Results