2010 Independence Bowl Explained

Game Name:Independence Bowl
Subheader:35th Independence Bowl
Title Sponsor:AdvoCare V100
Date Game Played:December 27
Year Game Played:2010
Football Season:2010
Stadium:Independence Stadium
City:Shreveport, Louisiana
Visitor School:United States Air Force Academy
Visitor Name Short:Air Force
Visitor Nickname:Falcons
Visitor Record:8–4
Visitor Conference:Mountain West
Visitor Coach:Troy Calhoun
Visitor 1Q:3
Visitor 2Q:3
Visitor 3Q:0
Visitor 4Q:8
Home School:Georgia Institute of Technology
Home Name Short:Georgia Tech
Home Nickname:Yellow Jackets
Home Record:6–6
Home Conference:ACC
Home Coach:Paul Johnson
Home 1Q:7
Home 2Q:0
Home 3Q:0
Home 4Q:0
Mvp:RB Jared Tew, Air Force
DT Rick Ricketts, Air Force
Odds:Air Force by 2.5[1]
Referee:Tony Backert (Sun Belt)
Attendance:39,362
Payout:1,100,000 per team
Us Network:ESPN2
Us Announcers:Mark Jones, Bob Davie, and Eamon McAnaney
Ratings:TBD

The 2010 AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl was the thirty-fifth edition of the college football bowl game and was played at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana. The game started at 5:00 PM US EST on Monday, December 27, 2010. The game was telecast on ESPN2 and featured the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) versus Air Force from the Mountain West Conference (MWC), the nation's top two rushing teams.

Teams

Air Force Falcons

See also: 2010 Air Force Falcons football team.

Air Force officially accepted an invitation to the bowl on December 1, 2010. The Falcons finished the regular season with an 8–4 record. The appearance in the Independence Bowl was the 4th straight year that Air Force appeared in a bowl game. The Falcons played in the Armed Forces Bowl for the preceding 3 seasons. Air Force played in its third Independence Bowl in school history. They entered the game with a 2–0 record in the bowl with a 9–3 victory over Ole Miss in 1983 and a 23–7 win over Virginia Tech in 1984. Air Force enters the game as the second ranked team in rushing offense with 317.9 yards per game, 437.4 yards in total offense.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

See also: 2010 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team. Georgia Tech came into the Independence Bowl with a 6–6 record. The game marked the Jackets' 14th-straight bowl appearance, which was the fourth longest active streak in FBS. However, they came into the game with a five-game bowl losing streak. Georgia Tech led the country with 327 rushing yards per game. The previous season the Yellow Jackets won the ACC and played in the Orange Bowl where they were defeated by Iowa 24–14. This was the first time that Georgia Tech played in the Independence Bowl. The Yellow Jackets had 414.5 yards per game in total offense during the season.

Game Summary

Scoring

Scoring PlayScore
1st Quarter
AFA - Zack Bell 42 yard kick, 6:32AFA 3–0
GT - Anthony Allen 5 yard run (Scott Blair kick), 0:41GT 7–3
2nd Quarter
AFA - Zack Bell 41 yard kick, 0:00GT 7–6
3rd Quarter
No scoringGT 7–6
4th Quarter
AFA - Jared Tew 3 yard run (Two-point conversion), 13:24AFA 14–7

Statistics

Statistics Air Force Georgia Tech
First Downs 17 18
Total offense, plays-yards 72-28771-320
Rushes-yards (net)49-170 57-279
Passes, Comp-Att-Yds 11-23-1175-14-41
Fumbles-Interceptions0-03-1
Time of Possession30:40 29:20

Game Notes

The two teams have played each other three previous times, in successive years (1977–79) with Georgia Tech winning all three matchups. The two teams have never faced each other in a bowl game.

Notes and References

  1. The Tuscaloosa News, December 27, 2010