BOCA RATON, Fla. (December 6, 2015) – Temple University and the University of Toledo will face off in the 2015 Marmot Boca Raton Bowl, as announced by the conferences and the bowl today.

The Marmot Boca Raton Bowl will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 7 p.m. ET, at FAU Stadium. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. Toledo from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) will serve as the home team, while Temple from the American Athletic Conference (AAC) will be away.

“This is a truly compelling matchup, one that will surely make for an outstanding game,” said Marmot Boca Raton Bowl Executive Director Doug Mosley. “I’m eager for the teams’ advance contingents to make their site visits this week so that we may reveal to them our plans to make their bowl experience truly one-of-a-kind. I’m really excited about what is shaping up to be an incredible bowl week.”

This year’s matchup will be a battle of the defenses as both team’s lead their conference in scoring defense with Temple only allowing an average 19.2 points per game and Toledo coming in at 21.1. The Owls claim defensive powerhouse Tyler Matakevich, who has 126 tackles this year, making him just the seventh college football player to ever register 100+ tackles in four different seasons. Chase Murdock leads the defensive effort for the Rockets as the senior linebacker has 78 tackles this season. Both offenses have also seen a lot of success with Toledo averaging 35.3 points and 463.3 yards per game and Temple putting up an average of 30.8 points and 369.2 yards.

Temple (10-3, 7-1 AAC) enters the game coming off a 24-13 loss to Houston in the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championship. Temple won the AAC East Division and went into the championship ranked No. 22 by the College Football Playoff and is now No. 24. The Owls are led by junior quarterback P.J. Walker, who has surpassed 2,000 yards for the third consecutive season and junior running back Jahad Thomas, who earned his first 1,000-yard season on the ground. Protecting Walker is a strong offensive line that has created the nation’s best time of possession improvement since 2014. The team also boasts Lott Impact Trophy Finalist Matakevich. The senior linebacker is the only FBS player to lead his team in tackles every game of the 2015 season. The Owls are under the direction of Head Coach Matt Rhule.

Toledo (9-2, 6-2 MAC) finished the season with a share of the MAC West Division crown after a 35-30 loss to Western Michigan in the final game of the regular season. The Rockets led the MAC in scoring defense, only allowing an average of 21.1 points per game, and second in rushing defense (115.5). The team was extremely tough on the road, claiming victory in every road game (5-0) for the first time since they went 12-0 in 1971.The offense is led by senior quarterback Phillip Ely and junior running back Kareem Hunt who leads the MAC in rushing with an average of 111.8 yards per game. This game will be Jason Candle’s debut as head coach after he previously served as UT’s associate head coach/offensive coordinator since 2009.

The Marmot Boca Raton Bowl is one of 13 bowls owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN.

Media members wishing to participate in the 2015 Marmot Boca Raton Bowl Coaches Teleconference with Temple beginning at 4:30 p.m. this evening should dial toll-free (877) 358-3976. Once connected, provide the operator with the Conference ID 79878016. It is suggested that media members call in at 4:20 p.m. EST.

Media members wishing to participate in the 2015 Marmot Boca Raton Bowl Coaches Teleconference with Toledo beginning at 5 p.m. this evening should dial toll-free (877) 358-3976. Once connected, provide the operator with the Conference ID 79876597. It is suggested that media members call in at 4:50 p.m. EST.

Credential applications for the Marmot Boca Raton Bowl will be accepted until Friday, Dec. 11. Media can access the application by logging on to http://espnevents.com/boca-raton-bowl/media/.

For additional information about the Marmot Boca Raton Bowl, please visit www.MarmotBocaRatonBowl.com or e-mail [email protected].

ESPN Events
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a large portfolio of collegiate sporting events worldwide. The roster includes three Labor Day weekend college football games; 13 college bowl games, 10 college basketball events and two college award shows, which accounts for approximately 250-plus hours of programming, reaches almost 64 million viewers and attracts over 700,000 attendees each year. With satellite offices in Boca Raton, Boise, Birmingham, Dallas-Fort Worth, Albuquerque, St. Petersburg and Las Vegas, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.

ESPN Events also manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program.

Collegiate Football
AdvoCare Texas Kickoff (Houston); AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl (Houston); Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl (Atlanta); Birmingham Bowl (Alabama); Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise); Gildan New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque); Hawai’i Bowl (Honolulu); Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth); Marmot Boca Raton Bowl (Florida); MEAC/SWAC Challenge presented by Disney (Orlando, Fla.); Orlando Kickoff (Florida); Popeyes Bahamas Bowl (Nassau); Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.); Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl (Nevada); St. Petersburg Bowl (Florida); The Home Depot College Football Awards (Atlanta) and Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth)

Collegiate Basketball

AdvoCare Invitational (Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla.); Armed Forces Classic (Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan); DIRECTV Wooden Legacy (Orange County, Calif.); College Basketball Awards Presented by Wendy’s (Los Angeles); Gildan Charleston Classic (South Carolina); Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu); Jimmy V Men’s  Classic Presented by Corona (New York City); Jimmy V Women’s Classic Presented by Corona (Storrs, Conn.); NIT Season Tip-Off (Brooklyn, N.Y.); Puerto Rico Tip-Off (San Juan) and State Farm Champions Classic (Chicago)

For more information, visit the official website, Facebook, Twitter or YouTube pages.

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Marmot Boca Raton Bowl Media Contact: Rachel Rodriguez at 954-254-5139 or [email protected]

ESPN Media Contact: Rachel Margolis Siegal at 860-766-2798 or [email protected]