| Armed Forces Bowl | |
| Full Name: | Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl |
| Stadium: | Amon G. Carter Stadium |
| Previous Stadiums: | Gerald J. Ford Stadium (2010–2011) |
| Location: | Fort Worth, Texas |
| Previous Locations: | University Park, Texas (2010–2011) |
| Years: | 2003–present |
| Conference Tie-Ins: | Big 12 (2014, 2016, 2018) Big Ten (2015, 2017, 2019) American (2014, 2018) MWC (2015, 2019) Navy (2016) Army (2017) |
| Payout: | 1.35 million (2019 season)[1] |
| Sponsors: | PlainsCapital Bank (2003–2004) Bell Helicopter (2006–2013) Lockheed Martin (2014–present) |
| Former Names: | PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl (2003–2004) Fort Worth Bowl (2005) Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (2006–2013) |
| Prev Matchup Year: | 2022 |
| Prev Matchup Season: | 2022 |
| Prev Matchup Teams: | Air Force vs. Baylor |
| Prev Matchup Score: | Air Force 30–15 |
| Next Matchup Year: | 2023 |
| Next Matchup Season: | 2023 |
| Next Matchup Teams: | Air Force vs. James Madison |
| Next Matchup Date: | Air Force 31–21 |
The Armed Forces Bowl, formerly the Fort Worth Bowl from 2003 to 2005, is an annual postseason college football bowl game. First played in 2003, the game is normally held at the 45,000-seat Amon G. Carter Stadium on the campus of Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. The 2010 and 2011 editions were instead played at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in University Park, Texas, when Amon G. Carter Stadium underwent a reconstruction project. The game features teams from various collegiate football conferences, the independent United States Military Academy (Army) is also eligible to participate. Since 2014, the game has been sponsored by Lockheed Martin and is officially known as the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl. Previous sponsors include Bell Helicopter (2006–2013) and PlainsCapital Bank (2003–2004).
The contest is one of 14 bowls produced by ESPN Events (previously ESPN Regional Television) and has been televised annually on ESPN since its inception. Armed Forces Insurance is the official Insurance Partner of the Armed Forces Bowl and has sponsored the Great American Patriot Award, presented at halftime at the bowl, since 2006.[2]
The bowl was first played in December 2003, featuring two ranked teams, No. 18 Boise State and No. 19 TCU. It was the only edition to include a ranked team (per the AP Poll) until No. 22 Army played in December 2018.
In 2010 and 2011 when Amon G. Carter Stadium underwent a reconstruction project, the bowl was moved to Gerald J. Ford Stadium in nearby University Park, Texas.
Through the December 2018 playing, one of the three FBS-playing service academies (Army, Navy, and Air Force) has appeared in the game ten times. Contractual tie-ins with the American Athletic Conference (home of Navy), the Mountain West Conference (home of Air Force) and the independent Army assures that one of those schools could appear in the game every year, if bowl-eligible and not already committed to another bowl.
The 2018 game, between Army and Houston, was the first sellout in the bowl's 16-year history.[3]
The bowl game was inaugurated in 2003 as the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl, reflecting the sponsorship of PlainsCapital Bank. The bank's sponsorship ended after the 2004 edition,[4] and the 2005 game was staged without corporate sponsorship.
In 2006, Fort Worth based Bell Helicopter Textron took over sponsorship, and thus the game became officially known as the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl.[5] The Bell sponsorship ended after the 2013 edition.[6] During this time, the 2010 and 2011 Armed Forces Bowl were held at Gerald J. Ford Stadium on the campus of Southern Methodist University in the Dallas enclave of University Park, while Amon G. Carter Stadium was undergoing a major renovation. The game returned to Amon Carter Stadium in Fort Worth in 2012, after construction on that stadium was completed.
Alltel was to assume the title sponsorship and naming rights to the game beginning in 2014, which would have been titled the Alltel Wireless Bowl to promote its mobile division, but the deal fell through. Instead, Lockheed Martin became the game's sponsor.[6] The company has a major presence in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex: the company's Lockheed Martin Aeronautics division is based in Fort Worth while its Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control division is based in nearby Grand Prairie. In December 2018, Lockheed Martin extended its sponsorship though 2025.[7]
The bowl's partnership with the Big 12 Conference ended with the 2005 season. From 2006 to 2009, the Mountain West Conference was signed to provide a team to face either a team from the Pac-10 or Conference USA (C-USA), depending on the year; Pac-10 teams would play in odd number years while C-USA teams would play in even numbered years). As such, the 2006 and 2008 games featured C-USA teams Tulsa and Houston, respectively, whereas California represented the Pac-10 in 2007. The Pac-10 was unable to send a representative to the game in 2009, so C-USA sent Houston to the game for a second consecutive year. In 2010, since the Mountain West did not have enough eligible teams and Army was bowl eligible, Army played SMU in the bowl.
Following the 2013 football season, the Armed Forces Bowl signed multi-year agreements with the American Athletic Conference (The American), Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Mountain West Conference, Army and Navy to set bowl match-ups for the next six seasons (Navy later joined The American, and Army committed to do so beginning with the 2024 football season).[8]
In December 2020, it was announced that the 2020 game would be played between teams from the Pac-12 and SEC, following cancellation of the ESPN Events-owned Las Vegas Bowl (which would have been featuring those tie-ins for the first time) due to complications relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9] However, due to a lack of available teams from the Pac-12, Tulsa of the American Athletic Conference was ultimately selected to face Mississippi State of the SEC.
| Season | Planned | Actual | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014* | The American | Big 12 | The American | ACC | |
| 2015 | Mountain West | Big Ten | Mountain West | Pac-12 | |
| 2016 | Navy | Big 12 | Navy | C-USA | |
| 2017 | Army | Big Ten | Army | Mountain West | |
| 2018 | The American | Big 12 | The American | Army | |
| 2019* | Mountain West | Big Ten | The American | C-USA | |
| 2020 | Pac-12 | SEC | The American | SEC | |
Rankings are based on the AP Poll prior to the game being played.
| Date played | Bowl name | Winning team | Losing team | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 23, 2003 | 18 Boise State | 34 | 31 | 38,028 | ||
| December 23, 2004 | Cincinnati | 32 | 14 | 27,902 | ||
| December 23, 2005 | Kansas | 42 | 13 | 33,505 | ||
| December 23, 2006 | Utah | 25 | 13 | 32,412 | ||
| December 31, 2007 | California | 42 | Air Force | 36 | 40,905 | |
| December 31, 2008 | Houston | 34 | 28 | 41,127 | ||
| December 31, 2009 | Air Force | 47 | 20 | 41,414 | ||
| December 30, 2010 | Army | 16 | 14 | 36,742 | ||
| December 30, 2011 | BYU | 24 | 21 | 30,258 | ||
| December 29, 2012 | Rice | 33 | 14 | 40,754 | ||
| December 30, 2013 | Navy | 24 | 6 | 39,246 | ||
| January 2, 2015 | Houston | 35 | 34 | 37,888 | ||
| December 29, 2015 | California | 55 | 36 | 38,915 | ||
| December 23, 2016 | Louisiana Tech | 48 | 45 | 40,542 | ||
| December 23, 2017 | Army | 42 | 35 | 35,986 | ||
| December 22, 2018 | 22 Army | 70 | 14 | 44,738 | ||
| January 4, 2020 | Tulane | 30 | 13 | 38,513 | ||
| December 31, 2020 | Mississippi State | 28 | 26 | 9,000 | ||
| December 22, 2021 | Army | 24 | 22 | 34,888 | ||
| December 22, 2022 | Air Force | 30 | 15 | 43,875 | ||
| December 23, 2023 | Air Force | 31 | 21 | 30,828 | ||
From inception through the 2022 edition, an MVP was named for each team. The 2023 game summary published on the bowl's official website only mentions a single MVP.[11]
| Date | Winning team MVP | Losing team MVP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Position | Player | Team | Position | |
| December 23, 2003 | Boise State | QB | Brandon Hassell | TCU | QB | |
| December 23, 2004 | Cincinnati | QB | Marshall | WR | ||
| December 23, 2005 | Jason Swanson | Kansas | QB | Houston | QB | |
| December 23, 2006 | Utah | P/K | Tulsa | QB | ||
| December 31, 2007 | California | QB | Shaun Carney | Air Force | QB | |
| December 31, 2008 | Bryce Beall | Houston | RB | Jared Tew | Air Force | FB |
| December 31, 2009 | Air Force | RB | Houston | WR | ||
| December 30, 2010 | Stephen Anderson | Army | LB | SMU | WR | |
| December 30, 2011 | BYU | WR | Tulsa | DB | ||
| December 29, 2012 | Rice | WR | Austin Niklaas | Air Force | LB | |
| December 30, 2013 | Keenan Reynolds | QB | T. T. Barber | Middle Tennessee | LB | |
| January 2, 2015 | Houston | RB | Pittsburgh | QB | ||
| December 29, 2015 | California | QB | Karson Roberts | Air Force | QB | |
| December 23, 2016 | Louisiana Tech | WR | Navy | QB | ||
| December 23, 2017 | Army | QB | San Diego State | RB | ||
| December 22, 2018 | Kelvin Hopkins Jr. | Army | QB | Romello Brooker | Houston | TE |
| January 4, 2020 | Justin McMillan | Tulane | QB | Southern Miss | WR | |
| December 31, 2020 | Lideatrick Griffin | Mississippi State | WR/KR | Christian Williams | Tulsa | DB |
| December 22, 2021 | Arik Smith | Army | LB | Brady Cook | Missouri | QB |
| December 22, 2022 | Haaziq Daniels | Air Force | QB | Dillon Doyle | Baylor | LB |
| December 23, 2023 | Emmanuel Michel | Air Force | RB |
Updated through the December 2023 edition (21 games, 42 total appearances).
| Rank | Team | Appearances | Record | Win pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | 3–4 | ||
| 2 | 5 | 2–3 | ||
| 3 | 4 | 4–0 | ||
| 4 | 3 | 0–3 | ||
| 5 | 2 | 2–0 | ||
| 2 | 1–1 |
Updated through the December 2023 edition (21 games, 42 total appearances).
| Conference | Record | Appearances by season | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | W | L | Win pct. | Won | Lost |
| 12 | 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016 | 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2019* | |||
| 9 | 2006, 2009, 2022, 2023 | 2007, 2008, 2012, 2015, 2017 | |||
| 6 | 2010, 2011, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2021 | ||||
| 5 | 2014*, 2019* | 2016, 2018, 2020 | |||
| 2 | 2007, 2015 | ||||
| 2 | 2005 | 2022 | |||
| 2 | 2020 | 2021 | |||
| bgcolor=lightgrey | WAC | 1 | 2003 | ||
| 1 | 2014* | ||||
| 1 | 2004 | ||||
| 1 | 2023 |
| Team | Record, Team vs. Opponent | Year | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most points scored (one team) | 70, Army vs. Houston | 2018 | |
| Most points scored (losing team) | 45, Navy vs. Louisiana Tech | 2016 | |
| Most points scored (both teams) | 93, Louisiana Tech (48) vs. Navy (45) | 2016 | |
| Fewest points allowed | 6, Navy vs. Middle Tennessee | 2013 | |
| Largest margin of victory | 56, Army (70) vs. Houston (14) | 2018 | |
| Total yards | 592, Army vs. Houston | 2018 | |
| Rushing yards | 507, Army vs. Houston | 2018 | |
| Passing yards | 467, California vs. Air Force | Dec. 2015 | |
| First downs | 31, shared by: Louisiana Tech vs. Navy Army vs. San Diego State | 2016 2017 | |
| Fewest yards allowed | 134, Cincinnati vs. Marshall | 2004 | |
| Fewest rushing yards allowed | –3, Cincinnati vs. Marshall | 2004 | |
| Fewest passing yards allowed | 6, San Diego State vs. Army | 2017 | |
| Individual | Record, Player, Team | Year | |
| Total yards | |||
| Touchdowns (all-purpose) | 5, Kelvin Hopkins Jr. (Army) | 2018 | |
| Rushing yards | 221, Rashaad Penny (San Diego State) | 2017 | |
| Rushing touchdowns | 5, Kelvin Hopkins Jr. (Army) | 2018 | |
| Passing yards | 467, Jared Goff (California) | Dec. 2015 | |
| Passing touchdowns | 6, Jared Goff (California) | Dec. 2015 | |
| Receiving yards | 233, Trent Taylor (Louisiana Tech) | 2016 | |
| Receptions | 12, Trent Taylor (Louisiana Tech) | 2016 | |
| Receiving touchdowns | 3, most recently: Kenny Lawler (California) | Dec. 2015 | |
| Tackles | 23, Marcus McGraw (Houston) | 2009 | |
| Sacks | 3.5, James Nachtigal (Army) | 2018 | |
| Interceptions | 3, Anthony Wright (Air Force) | 2009 | |
| Long Plays | Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent | Year | |
| Touchdown run | 81 yds., Rashaad Penny (San Diego State) | 2018 | |
| Touchdown pass | 64 yds., Zach Abey to Darryl Bonner (Navy) | 2016 | |
| Kickoff return | 100 yds., Jonathan Warzeka (Air Force) | 2009 | |
| Punt return | 85 yds., Brian Murph (Kansas) | 2005 | |
| Interception return | 90 yds., Emmanuel Forbes[14] (Mississippi State) | Dec. 2020 | |
| Fumble return | 55 yds., Josh McNary (Army) | 2010 | |
| Punt | 60 yds., most recently: Logan Piper (Houston) | Jan. 2015 | |
| Field goal | 52 yds., Chris Blewitt (Pittsburgh) | Jan. 2015 |
The bowl has been televised on ESPN since its inception. Radio coverage was initially on ESPN Radio, and is currently carried nationally via Bowl Season Radio.