Burley Bowl

The Burley Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game played from 1945 through 1956.[1] It was held each year on Thanksgiving Day in Johnson City, Tennessee, at the city's Memorial Stadium, which was demolished in July 2010.[2] The game was part of an annual two-day tobacco festival,[3] with the name of the bowl coming from Burley tobacco. Like some other postseason match-ups of the era, such as the Grape Bowl, Glass Bowl, and Optimist Bowl, results are listed in NCAA records, but the games were not considered NCAA-sanctioned bowls.[1]

The inaugural game was held on November 29, 1945.[4] That day was the last (and fifth) Thursday of November, which was observed as Thanksgiving in Tennessee that year, despite President Truman proclaiming the holiday to be the fourth Thursday of the month.[5]

  1. ^ a b "BOWL/ALL STAR GAME RECORDS" (PDF). NCAA. 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  2. ^ "Lost Landmark-Memorial Stadium, Johnson City (TN)". Historic Highway Guides. December 31, 2010. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
  3. ^ "Johnson City Plans Burley Bowl Game". Kingsport Times. Kingsport, Tennessee. November 4, 1945. Retrieved March 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Buffaloes, High Point Struggle To 7-7 Tie In Burley Bowl Tilt". Kingsport Times. Kingsport, Tennessee. November 30, 1945. Retrieved March 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Truman Sets Nov. 22 As Thanksgiving". Kingsport Times. Kingsport, Tennessee. AP. November 13, 1945. Retrieved March 27, 2017 – via newspapers.com.