Vanderbilt didn't make the cut for the College Football Playoff despite a 10-win season, its best in 77 years. Instead, the Commodores will drop anchor in Tampa for New Year's Eve. Heisman Trophy front-runner Diego Pavia is expected to be there, too.
No. 14-ranked Vandy, of the Southeastern Conference, will make its first showing in the ReliaQuest Bowl – and only the school's 11th bowl appearance ever.
The opponent will be 23rd-ranked Iowa of the Big Ten Conference, with kickoff at noon Dec. 31 at Raymond James Stadium.
Tampa’s other postseason game, the Gasparilla Bowl, will match North Carolina State against Memphis at 2:30 p.m. Dec. 19, also at Raymond James Stadium.
ALSO READ: Alabama, Miami in, Notre Dame out and Indiana No. 1 in CFP
Five SEC teams reached the CFP, with Vandy and Texas, both at 10-2 (6-2), on the outside.
Vanderbilt defeated four ranked SEC opponents – No. 11 South Carolina, No. 10 LSU, No. 15 Missouri and No. 19 Tennessee – en route to a 10-2 (6-2) mark. The two losses came on the road to ranked opponents at Alabama, which is in the CFP, and Texas.
Vandy coach Clark Lea felt strongly the Commodores deserved a bid.
To that end, he lobbied all week and offered to add a 13th game to the schedule, “in the parking lot” if they had to, for one more shot at impressing the CFP committee. He said his school's chancellor and athletic director had been working behind the scenes to make it happen.
“There were too many hurdles to clear," Lea said. "I think it would have been one of the great stories in the history of our sport to be able to do something like that.”
No official word on Pavia's status
Lea said he felt like a politician the past week, campaigning and making the case for Vanderbilt to have a chance to play for a national championship. And Pavia even went on X to "ask" President Donald Trump to “MAKE THE EXECUTIVE ORDER PLEASE!!" to expand the CFP field.
"As it is, the 13th opportunity will come in on New Year’s Eve in Tampa, and we’re going to celebrate that,” Lea said.
Lea said he anticipates Pavia will not opt out of the ReliaQuest, although there has been no official announcement. The dual-threat Pavia, in his graduate year, is one of the more dynamic players in the nation. He has thrown for 3,192 yards and 27 touchdowns while running for 826 yards and nine more scores – all program records.
It will be the Commodores' first meeting against the Hawkeyes.
Iowa, 8-4 (6-3 in the Big Ten), ranked 24th by the CFP committee, ended the season with a 40-16 rout of rival Nebraska. Under Coach Kirk Ferentz, the Hawkeyes have played in the Tampa game six times between 2003 and 2019, when it was known as the Outback Bowl. The most recent visit was after the 2018 season, when they beat Mississippi State, 27-22.
"This allows our players one last chance to play together in a city and bowl that is a Hawkeye favorite for its hospitality and game day experience," Ferentz said in a statement. "We look forward to heading south."
Although it's Vanderbilt's first bowl trip to Tampa, the Commodores did meet the University of Tampa at Tampa Stadium in 1970 and 1972.
Click here for information or to purchase tickets for the ReliaQuest Bowl.
Gasparilla matchup: Wolfpack vs. Tigers
Under Coach Dave Doeren, N.C. State was 7-5 (4-4 in the Atlantic Coast Conference), including wins over Virginia and Georgia Tech. Quarterback C.J. Bailey, out of Broward County's Chaminade Madonna Prep, leads the team in passing with over 2,500 yards and 19 touchdowns.
"Our staff and team are very excited about playing in a great bowl in the beautiful city of Tampa," said Doeren, in his 13th year with the Wolfpack. "We appreciate the opportunity and are looking forward to a great game."
After a comeback 34-31 victory over South Florida on Oct. 25, Memphis looked to be the Group of 6 team to beat, reaching the AP poll at No. 23 and being projected as the No. 12 seed in the CFP. But the Tigers (8-2, 4-4) closed with three straight losses against American Conference foes, including Tulane (which earned a CFP bid) and Navy.
Coach Ryan Silverfield, who went 50-25 at Memphis, is moving on to Arkansas, and the Tigers are being led by interim coach Reggie Howard. Southern Mississippi's Charles Huff was hired Saturday to replace Silverfield.
This year will be the first time the Tigers have played in the Gasparilla Bowl since a 41-14 loss to USF for the inaugural game in 2008, when it was called the St. Petersburg Bowl and played at Tropicana Field. N.C. State defeated Central Florida 34-27 in the 2014 St. Petersburg Bowl.
Click here for information or to purchase tickets for the Gasparilla Bowl.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
Bowl games with Florida ties
Dec. 17: Cure Bowl (Orlando), USF vs. Old Dominion, 5 p.m. Tickets
Dec. 19: Gasparilla Bowl (Tampa), Memphis vs. North Carolina State, 2:30 p.m. Tickets
Dec. 20: CFP first round (College Station, Texas): Miami vs. Texas A&M, noon. Tickets
Dec. 23: Boca Raton Bowl (Boca Raton), Louisville vs. Toledo, 2 p.m. Tickets
Dec. 26: First Responder Bowl (Dallas), Florida International vs. Texas-San Antonio, 8 p.m. Tickets
Dec. 27: Pop-Tarts Bowl (Orlando), BYU vs. Georgia Tech, 3:30 p.m. Tickets
Dec. 27: Gator Bowl (Jacksonville), Missouri vs. Virginia, 7:30 p.m. Tickets
Dec. 31: ReliaQuest Bowl (Tampa), Vanderbilt vs. Iowa, noon. Tickets
Dec. 31: Citrus Bowl (Orlando), Texas vs. Michigan, 3 p.m. Tickets
Jan. 1: Orange Bowl / CFP quarterfinals (Miami), Texas Tech vs. James Madison or Oregon, noon. Tickets
Jan. 19: CFP national championship (Miami), 7:30 p.m. Tickets
ALSO READ: Complete bowl schedule
