2021 Sun Bowl

2021 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl
88th Sun Bowl
1234 Total
Washington State 00147 21
Central Michigan 13803 24
DateDecember 31, 2021
Season2021
StadiumSun Bowl
LocationEl Paso, Texas
MVPLew Nichols III (RB, Central Michigan)[1]
RefereeLarry Smith (Big Ten)
Attendance34,540
United States TV coverage
NetworkCBS
AnnouncersBrad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (Analyst), and Jamie Erdahl (Sideline)
Sun Bowl
 < 2019 2022

The 2021 Sun Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 31, 2021, with kickoff at 12:00 p.m. EST (10:00 a.m. local MST) and televised on CBS.[2] It was the 88th edition[3] of the Sun Bowl (87th playing, as the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic), and was one of the 2021–22 bowl games concluding the 2021 FBS football season. Sponsored by Kellogg's Frosted Flakes breakfast cereal, the game was officially known as the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, after its mascot, Tony the Tiger.

On December 26, the Miami Hurricanes announced that they would not be able to play in the game, due to COVID-19 issues; organizers stated that they would try to secure a replacement team to face the Washington State Cougars.[4]

On December 27, the Central Michigan Chippewas were named as the Sun Bowl replacement team.[5] The Chippewas had originally been scheduled to face the Boise State Broncos in the Arizona Bowl, until Boise State withdrew from that bowl due to COVID-19 issues.[6]

  1. ^ @ItsTravisGreen (December 31, 2021). "Central Michigan's Lew Nichols III named mvp of the Sun Bowl" (Tweet). Retrieved December 31, 2021 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ "2021 College Football Bowl Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  3. ^ "CMU Chippewas Step in and Defeat Washington State 24-21 in the 88th Annual Tony The Tiger Sun Bowl". sunbowl.org. December 31, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  4. ^ Adelson, Andrea (December 26, 2021). "Miami out of Sun Bowl against Washington State due to COVID-19 issues in football program". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  5. ^ Sallee, Barrett (December 27, 2021). "Central Michigan to play Washington State in Sun Bowl after Miami pulls out due to COVID-19 issues". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  6. ^ Glasspiegel, Ryan (December 27, 2021). "Dave Portnoy announces Boise State out of Barstool Bowl due to COVID-19". New York Post. Retrieved December 27, 2021.