2013 Conference USA Football Championship Game

2013 Conference USA Football Championship Game
Conference Championship
1234 Total
Marshall 010014 24
Rice 147137 41
DateDecember 7, 2013
Season2013
StadiumRice Stadium
LocationHouston, Texas
MVPLuke Turner (RB, Rice)
FavoriteMarshall by 6.5
RefereeBrad Rogers
Attendance20,247
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN2
AnnouncersJoe Tessitore, Matt Millen, and Maria Taylor
Conference USA Football Championship Game
 < 2012  2014
2013 Conference USA football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
Marshall x   7 1     10 4  
East Carolina   6 2     10 3  
Middle Tennessee   6 2     8 5  
Florida Atlantic   4 4     6 6  
UAB   1 7     2 10  
Southern Miss   1 7     1 11  
FIU   1 7     1 11  
West Division
Rice x$   7 1     10 4  
UTSA   6 2     7 5  
North Texas   6 2     9 4  
Tulane   5 3     7 6  
Louisiana Tech   3 5     4 8  
Tulsa   2 6     3 9  
UTEP   1 7     2 10  
Championship: Rice 41, Marshall 24
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2013 Conference USA Football Championship Game, which determined the 2013 football champion of Conference USA (C-USA), was played at noon Eastern Standard Time (11 am local time and 1700 UTC) on December 7 at Rice Stadium in Houston. The game featured the winners of the conference's East division, the Marshall Thundering Herd,[1] and the winners of the West division, the Rice Owls.[2]

Under C-USA rules, the championship game would be played at the home stadium of the team with the best record in conference play. Since Marshall and Rice both finished with 7–1 records in conference play, and did not play one another in the regular season, the site was chosen based on the BCS rankings on December 1. Although only 25 teams are explicitly ranked, the ranking formula can be used to determine the relative rankings of any two teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Accordingly, Rice received home-field advantage.[3]

Rice represented C-USA in the 2013 Liberty Bowl on December 31 in Memphis, Tennessee after defeating Marshall by 17 points.

  1. ^ "Marshall glides past East Carolina 59–28". ESPN.com. Associated Press. November 29, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
  2. ^ "Rice trips Tulane 17–13 to reach C-USA title game". ESPN.com. Associated Press. November 30, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  3. ^ "Rice to Host Marshall in 2013 Football Championship Game" (Press release). Conference USA. December 1, 2013. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.