2013 Gator Bowl

The 2013 TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game held on January 1, 2013, at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida in the United States. The 68th edition of the Gator Bowl began at noon EST and aired on ESPN2. It featured the Mississippi State Bulldogs from the Southeastern Conference (SEC) against the Northwestern Wildcats from the Big Ten Conference and was the final game of the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season for both teams. The Bulldogs accepted their bowl bid after an 8–4 regular season, while the Wildcats accepted theirs after a 9–3 finish. It was the first time that the two teams had met. Northwestern won the game by a score of 34 – 20.

2013 TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl
68th Gator Bowl
Mississippi State Bulldogs Northwestern Wildcats
(8–4) (9–3)
SEC Big Ten
20 34
Head coach: 
Dan Mullen		 Head coach: 
Pat Fitzgerald
APCoachesBCS
211720
1234 Total
Mississippi State 01037 20
Northwestern 103147 34
DateJanuary 1, 2013
Season2012
StadiumEverBank Field
LocationJacksonville, Florida
MVPJared Carpenter (S, Northwestern) & Nickoe Whitley (DB, Mississippi State)[1]
FavoriteMiss. St. by 2[2]
RefereeGreg Burks (Big 12)
Attendance48,612
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN2
AnnouncersBob Wischusen (Play-by-Play)
Danny Kanell (Analyst)
Allison Williams
Nielsen ratings1.6[3]

Teams

Mississippi State
See also: 2012 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

With a 3–0 start in conference play (and a 7–0 start overall), the season had a bright outlook for the Bulldogs. However, the schedule's increasing difficulty put the Bulldogs in decline, only finishing at 4–4 and fourth place in the SEC Western Division.

This was the Bulldogs' second Gator Bowl; they had previously played in the 2011 game, soundly defeating the Michigan Wolverines by a score of 52–14.[4]

Northwestern
See also: 2012 Northwestern Wildcats football team

The Wildcats were undefeated out of conference and posted a 5–3 Big Ten record, good for third place in the Legends Division. Only a one-point loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers and an overtime loss to the Michigan Wolverines kept the Wildcats from the division title and a trip to the conference championship game.

This game was the Wildcats' first Gator Bowl; it was also their unprecedented fifth consecutive bowl game. The Wildcats got their first bowl victory since the 1948 team won the 1949 Rose Bowl over the California Golden Bears by a score of 20–14.[5]

Game summary

Scoring summary
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP Mississippi State Northwestern
4 14:13 - - - NORTH Interception returned 29 yards for touchdown by Quentin Williams, Jeff Budzien kick good 0 7
1 4:49 15 69 6:00 NORTH 34-yard field goal by Jeff Budzien 0 10
2 14:48 10 43 3:26 NORTH 37-yard field goal by Jeff Budzien 0 13
2 4:48 6 53 3:18 MSU 27-yard field goal by Devon Bell 3 13
2 1:06 6 62 1:25 MSU Arceto Clark 18-yard touchdown reception from Tyler Russell, Devon Bell kick good 10 13
3 10:37 8 24 3:02 MSU 47-yard field goal by Devon Bell 13 13
3 9:25 6 76 1:12 NORTH Tyris Jones 3-yard touchdown run, Jeff Budzien kick good 13 20
3 0:26 8 74 3:59 NORTH Trevor Siemian 4-yard touchdown run, Jeff Budzien kick good 13 27
4 11:42 8 75 3:44 MSU Malcolm Johnson 14-yard touchdown reception from Tyler Russell, Devon Bell kick good 20 27
4 8:10 3 5 1:44 NORTH Venric Mark 3-yard touchdown run, Jeff Budzien kick good 20 34
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 20 34

Game notes

Mississippi State opened as a 2-point favorite, but by kickoff Northwestern was the favorite -2.5

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-12-31. Retrieved 2017-12-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Bowl Schedule, Los Angeles Times, December 8, 2012
  3. Michael Humes, Combined Overnight Ratings for Rose Bowl and Orange Bowl BCS Games Rises over 2012, ESPN, January 2, 2013
  4. "Mississippi State To Face Northwestern In TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl". Mississippi State Bulldogs. December 2, 2012. Archived from the original on December 6, 2012. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
  5. "Northwestern Accepts Bid to 2013 TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl". December 2, 2012. Archived from the original on December 9, 2012. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
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