Boardwalk Bowl

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Boardwalk Bowl (defunct)
NCAA College Division regional final (1968–1972)
NCAA Division II quarterfinal (1973)
StadiumAtlantic City Convention Center
LocationAtlantic City, New Jersey
Operated1961–1973

The Boardwalk Bowl was a post-season college football game held at the former Atlantic City Convention Center (now Boardwalk Hall) in Atlantic City, New Jersey, from 1961 to 1973.[1][2]

History[]

Inaugurated in 1961, the game featured an annual matchup between Pennsylvania Military College (now Widener University) and the United States Merchant Marine Academy, known as the "Little Army–Navy Game" until 1967.[3] The playing surface in the earlier years consisted of natural grass sod that was grown outside and then moved indoors for the game.

In 1968, it succeeded the Tangerine Bowl as one of the four regional finals in the College Division (which became Division II and Division III in 1973).[4] The other three regionals were the Pecan (later Pioneer), Grantland Rice, and Camellia bowls. In 1973, under a new playoff system, the Boardwalk Bowl became a Division II national quarterfinal, while the other three quarterfinals were nameless and played at campus sites. The semifinals were the Pioneer and Grantland Rice bowls, and the Camellia was the championship game. After 1973, the Boardwalk Bowl was discontinued as the NCAA eventually moved the Division II semifinals to unnamed games at campus venues, similar to earlier rounds.

The Boardwalk Bowl, along with the Liberty Bowl (played in the Convention Center in December 1964), showed the feasibility of playing football indoors and led the promoters of football games to look seriously at developing indoor facilities primarily for this purpose.

Game results[]

Date Winner Loser Game
December 2, 1961 Pennsylvania Military 35 Merchant Marine 14 Little Army–Navy Game
December 1, 1962 Merchant Marine 9 Pennsylvania Military 0
November 30, 1963 Merchant Marine 27 Pennsylvania Military 13
November 28, 1964 Merchant Marine 20 Pennsylvania Military 16
November 27, 1965 Merchant Marine 22 Pennsylvania Military 12
November 26, 1966 Merchant Marine 46 Pennsylvania Military 7
November 25, 1967 Merchant Marine 39 Pennsylvania Military 6
December 14, 1968 Delaware 31 IUP 24 NCAA College Division
Regional Final
December 13, 1969 Delaware 31 North Carolina Central 13
December 12, 1970 Delaware 38 Morgan State 23
December 11, 1971 Delaware 72 C.W. Post 22
December 9, 1972 UMass 35 UC Davis 14
December 1, 1973 Grambling 17 Delaware 8 NCAA Division II Quarterfinal

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Mazda, Jason (December 31, 2014). "50 years ago, indoor college football debuted in Atlantic City". The Press of Atlantic City. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  2. ^ Depp, Carson (September 15, 2020). "Top five football seasons in UMass history". The Massachusetts Daily Collegian. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  3. ^ Horner, Louis (2016). Who Will Water the Flowers?. Dog Ear Publishing p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4575-4505-4.
  4. ^ Fulton, Bob (December 14, 2018). "IUP nearly pulled off major upset in '68 Boardwalk Bowl". Indiana Gazette. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
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