| Game Name: | Cure Bowl |
| Subheader: | 9th Cure Bowl |
| Title Sponsor: | Avocados from Mexico |
| Date Game Played: | December 16 |
| Year Game Played: | 2023 |
| Football Season: | 2023 |
| Stadium: | FBC Mortgage Stadium |
| City: | Orlando, Florida |
| Visitor School: | Miami University |
| Visitor Name Short: | Miami |
| Visitor Nickname: | RedHawks |
| Visitor Record: | 11–2 |
| Visitor Conference: | MAC |
| Visitor Coach: | Chuck Martin |
| Visitor 1Q: | 3 |
| Visitor 2Q: | 0 |
| Visitor 3Q: | 6 |
| Visitor 4Q: | 0 |
| Home School: | Appalachian State University |
| Home Name Short: | Appalachian State |
| Home Nickname: | Mountaineers |
| Home Record: | 8–5 |
| Home Conference: | Sun Belt |
| Home Coach: | Shawn Clark |
| Home 1Q: | 3 |
| Home 2Q: | 3 |
| Home 3Q: | 7 |
| Home 4Q: | 0 |
| Mvp: | Anderson Castle (RB, Appalachian State)[1] |
| Odds: | Appalachian State by 5.5[2] |
| Referee: | Rory Bernard (CUSA)[3] |
| Attendance: | 11,121 |
| Us Network: | ABC |
| Us Announcers: | Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Robert Griffin III (analyst), and Kris Budden (sideline) |
| Intl Network: | ESPN Brazil |
| Intl Announcers: | Conrado Giulietti (play-by-play) and Weinny Eirado (analyst) |
The 2023 Cure Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 16, 2023, at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The ninth annual Cure Bowl, the game featured the Appalachian State Mountaineers of the Sun Belt Conference and the Miami RedHawks of the Mid-American Conference. The game began at approximately 3:30 p.m. EST and was aired on ABC.[4] [5] The Cure Bowl was one of the 2023–24 bowl games concluding the 2023 FBS football season. The game was sponsored by the Avocados from Mexico marketing organization, and was officially known as the Avocados from Mexico Cure Bowl.
Consistent on conference tie-ins, the game featured the Appalachian State Mountaineers of the Sun Belt Conference and the Miami RedHawks of the Mid-American Conference.
This was the first time Appalachian State and Miami played each other, as well as the first time either played in the Cure Bowl.[6]
See main article: 2023 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team.
The Mountaineers started the season 2–2, losing in two overtimes to a ranked North Carolina squad as well as to Wyoming on a last-second interception thrown by Joey Aguilar. After Week 7, the Mountaineers sat at just 3–4 and faced the prospect of missing a bowl game for the second straight season. However, App State managed to rally and win their final five regular season games, including an overtime win over then-undefeated James Madison with College GameDay in attendance. Thanks to James Madison's postseason ineligibility due to NCAA transfer rules for programs moving from FCS to FBS, the Mountaineers earned a berth in the Sun Belt Championship, where they lost to Troy, 49–23. The Mountaineers entered the bowl with a record of 8–5.
See main article: 2023 Miami RedHawks football team.
After opening the season with a 38–3 loss at the hands of Miami (FL), the RedHawks rattled off six straight wins, including a 31–24 overtime victory over Cincinnati as a two-touchdown underdog. Their win streak was ended at home against Toledo, where they lost, 21–17. The RedHawks won their next four games to close out the regular season, and clinched the MAC East division title with a 23–10 win over Buffalo. This set up a rematch with Toledo in the MAC Championship, where backup quarterback Aveon Smith led the RedHawks to a victory, 23–14, securing the 2023 MAC conference title for Miami. The RedHawks entered the bowl with a record of 11–2.