What's at stake in the 68 Ventures Bowl between Arkansas State and Bowling Green?

A pair of 7-5 teams from the Sun Belt and MAC are set to square off at South Alabama’s Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama, on Dec. 26 as Arkansas State meets Bowling Green in the 2024 68 Ventures Bowl.

The game has existed since 1999 and gone by quite a few names, most recently the LendingTree Bowl, and this year’s iteration pits two teams that finished with winning records in conference play against each other.

Former Tennessee coach Butch Jones leads the Red Wolves in his fourth season, and they finished third in the Sun Belt West but suffered blowout losses to Louisiana and Texas State, which finished ahead of them.

The Falcons, led by sixth-year coach Scot Loeffler, finished tied for third in the MAC as they were predicted before the season. After a 2-4 start, Bowling Green strung five wins together in a row, a streak that ended in the final week of the regular season against Miami (Ohio).

A victory in the 68 Ventures Bowl would give Bowling Green its first bowl win since 2014 and the first under Loeffler. It would also mark his first eight-win season and the Falcons’ first since 2015. Jones is also looking for his first eight-win season at Arkansas State, a program that boasts four bowl wins since moving up to FBS in 1992 but none since 2019, before Jones took over.

We’ll see which coach can reach eight wins for the first time at their respective programs when Arkansas State and Bowling Green head to Mobile on Boxing Day.