BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Football has accepted an invitation to play in the 2024 Boca Raton Bowl, WKU announced Saturday.
The Hilltoppers will face James Madison in the game, which is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 18, at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Florida. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. CT and the game will be televised on ESPN.
"On behalf of the entire Western Kentucky University Football program, we are thrilled to be returning to Boca Raton and playing in this year's Boca Raton Bowl," WKU Director of Athletics Todd Stewart said. "It'll be our third time in the bowl game, and the last time we came, we had a wonderful experience the entire week, capped off by a win, which made it even better. We're thrilled to be coming back. Doug M and his staff are phenomenal to work with. They make it a truly great bowl experience for everybody involved. We have a lot of players from the state of Florida, so I know their families will be excited to be able to get to the game. We're just really, really excited to have this opportunity and we're looking very forward to the week ahead."
The 2024 Boca Raton Bowl marks WKU's 11th bowl game in the past 13 seasons. Starting with the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl in 2012, the Tops have only missed the postseason in 2013 and 2018. This marks the sixth consecutive bowl game appearance for WKU in six seasons under Head Coach Tyson Helton. WKU is one of 12 programs to have played in a bowl game each season since 2019 that is also bowl eligible in 2024. The Hilltoppers are one of just seven teams nationally that have won a bowl game in each of the last three seasons. WKU's seven bowl wins in the last 10 years are behind only Georgia (9), Alabama (8) and Wisconsin (8) during that timeframe.
The program is familiar with its upcoming bowl destination, having played in and won the Boca Raton Bowl in both 2016 and 2021. WKU beat Memphis in the 2016 game, 51-31, and Appalachian State, 59-38, in its last Boca Raton Bowl appearance.
Last season, WKU beat Old Dominion in overtime of the Famous Toastery Bowl, 38-35, after overcoming a 28-0 first-half deficit – the fourth-largest comeback ever in a bowl game.
WKU enters bowl season with an 8-5 overall record. The Hilltoppers went 6-2 in Conference USA play this fall and earned a berth in the CUSA Championship Game for the fourth time in program history – tied for most in league history – where they fell to Jax State on Friday.
JMU went 8-4 overall this season and 4-4 in Sun Belt play, finishing third in the league's East Division standings. The Boca Raton Bowl will mark the first meeting between the two programs.
Tickets to the 2024 Boca Raton Bowl can be purchased HERE. Fans can also call the WKU Ticket Office at 270-745-5222 on Monday-Friday during normal business hours.
For all the latest on WKU Football, follow @WKUFootball on Twitter and Instagram and like the WKU Football Facebook page.
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