Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
COLUMN: Love for the Undercard
12/5/2021 5:02:00 PM | Football
With Middle Tennessee opening up the bowl season, an ode to opening acts everywhere
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — I've long been fond of opening acts in all walks of life.
I'm the type of movie-goer that has to be in his seat before the posted start time of the movie, despite knowing that's not the time the movie actually starts, because I need to see all the trailers beforehand. When I go to a concert, I often look for the best two-for-one deals I can find (the cancelled Charlotte top on the Aerosmith tour when ZZ Top was their opener was particularly tough on me).
On the sports field, I'm the guy that enjoys the Band of Blue's pregame show, the pageantry of the National Anthem that week, and everything else that gets us ready for the game each Saturday.
So of course, now that the bowl schedules for this year's bowl season are finalized, I'm pretty excited Middle Tennessee gets to be the opening act for ALL of college football this holiday season.
When the Blue Raiders kickoff their game against Toledo in Nassau on December 17 at 11 a.m. Central, the Bahamas Bowl will be the first bowl game in a span of 42 that will stretch from that Friday all the way until New Year's Day, only skipping NFL Sundays in between. It's a position that's sure to bring extra eyeballs to Rick Stockstill's program, and the university as a whole, with no other FBS college football games conflicting in the timeslot.
A lot gets made of the bowl experience's meaning within a program: the player experience on site, the potential to recruit off of the appearance, the fact a bowl itself can be a goal to strive for each and every season, etc. But from a big picture perspective, bowl games are a chance for athletic departments to serve perhaps their best function: as the front porch of the university.
When Middle Tennessee played in the 2015 Bahamas Bowl, 2.1 million people tuned in to watch the Blue Raiders against Western Michigan. That's a lot of people potentially watching MT. It'll be just the third nationally televised game the Blue Raiders have played this year, and the first over the air on the ESPN family of networks.
Who might those people? Future students, of course, are the biggest potential watchers. But also, in a day where the Nashville metro market doesn't seem to ever stop growing, future members of our community. Or, as it was the case with me during the 2015 Bahamas Bowl when I was home from my freshman year of college: future employees of the school.
And oh yeah, it's on the main network too, which is sure to make sure it draws even more attention, despite the fact that kickoff is the middle of a weekday.
The matchup is an exciting one too. Toledo has had a roller coaster year in the stacked MAC West, where every single team in the division earned bowl eligibility. The Rockets even took current No. 5 Notre Dame to the brink on the road earlier this season. For MT's game prep, Toledo possesses one of the fastest offenses in the country, a challenge Scott Shafer's defense will be ready for after leading the country in takeaways heading into bowl season.
Overall, though, I'm perhaps most excited the Bahamas Bowl can open the bowl season for C-USA, which features eight teams bowling this year. There are some great matchups on tap, from Western Kentucky facing Appalachian State in the Boca Raton Bowl on December 18, to C-USA Champ UTSA facing San Diego State in the Frisco Bowl on the winter solstice.
So this holiday season, a hearty shoutout to the undercard everywhere, in honor of the undercard for the bowl season. Can't wait for kickoff in just 12 days!
I'm the type of movie-goer that has to be in his seat before the posted start time of the movie, despite knowing that's not the time the movie actually starts, because I need to see all the trailers beforehand. When I go to a concert, I often look for the best two-for-one deals I can find (the cancelled Charlotte top on the Aerosmith tour when ZZ Top was their opener was particularly tough on me).
On the sports field, I'm the guy that enjoys the Band of Blue's pregame show, the pageantry of the National Anthem that week, and everything else that gets us ready for the game each Saturday.
So of course, now that the bowl schedules for this year's bowl season are finalized, I'm pretty excited Middle Tennessee gets to be the opening act for ALL of college football this holiday season.
When the Blue Raiders kickoff their game against Toledo in Nassau on December 17 at 11 a.m. Central, the Bahamas Bowl will be the first bowl game in a span of 42 that will stretch from that Friday all the way until New Year's Day, only skipping NFL Sundays in between. It's a position that's sure to bring extra eyeballs to Rick Stockstill's program, and the university as a whole, with no other FBS college football games conflicting in the timeslot.
A lot gets made of the bowl experience's meaning within a program: the player experience on site, the potential to recruit off of the appearance, the fact a bowl itself can be a goal to strive for each and every season, etc. But from a big picture perspective, bowl games are a chance for athletic departments to serve perhaps their best function: as the front porch of the university.
When Middle Tennessee played in the 2015 Bahamas Bowl, 2.1 million people tuned in to watch the Blue Raiders against Western Michigan. That's a lot of people potentially watching MT. It'll be just the third nationally televised game the Blue Raiders have played this year, and the first over the air on the ESPN family of networks.
Who might those people? Future students, of course, are the biggest potential watchers. But also, in a day where the Nashville metro market doesn't seem to ever stop growing, future members of our community. Or, as it was the case with me during the 2015 Bahamas Bowl when I was home from my freshman year of college: future employees of the school.
And oh yeah, it's on the main network too, which is sure to make sure it draws even more attention, despite the fact that kickoff is the middle of a weekday.
The matchup is an exciting one too. Toledo has had a roller coaster year in the stacked MAC West, where every single team in the division earned bowl eligibility. The Rockets even took current No. 5 Notre Dame to the brink on the road earlier this season. For MT's game prep, Toledo possesses one of the fastest offenses in the country, a challenge Scott Shafer's defense will be ready for after leading the country in takeaways heading into bowl season.
Overall, though, I'm perhaps most excited the Bahamas Bowl can open the bowl season for C-USA, which features eight teams bowling this year. There are some great matchups on tap, from Western Kentucky facing Appalachian State in the Boca Raton Bowl on December 18, to C-USA Champ UTSA facing San Diego State in the Frisco Bowl on the winter solstice.
So this holiday season, a hearty shoutout to the undercard everywhere, in honor of the undercard for the bowl season. Can't wait for kickoff in just 12 days!
Raider Report Week 3 - MTSU vs. University of Nevada
Friday, September 12
Derek Mason LIVE: Presented by The Boulevard Bar & Grille Week 3 (Video)
Monday, September 08
MTSU Football Weekly Press Conference 9/8/25
Monday, September 08
MTSU Football Postgame Press Conference @ Wisconsin on 09-06-25
Saturday, September 06
