Ole Miss is returning after 13 years and Georgia Tech is coming for the first time to the 16th annual Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl.
The game on Dec. 30 (TV: ESPN, 3:15 p.m.) will be played at LP Field.
Ole Miss (7-5), which will represent the SEC, played in the third annual game in 2000 when redshirt freshman Eli Manning came off the bench to lead a rally that came up short in a 49-38 loss to West Virginia.
All eyes will be on the Rebels quarterback in this game as well with junior Bo Wallace from Giles County leading the powerful attack.
“I know that Bo has a good following there in Middle Tennessee,”second-year Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze said. “We saw that when we started the season in Nashville (39-35 win over Vanderbilt) and he had a good experience there. Bo is really anxious to get back onto the field and have an opportunity to play the last game of this season, and I know that going back to a place that is close to his home will only add to that feeling.” Wallace completed 31 of 47 passes for 283 yards against Vanderbilt. He also rushed for 48 yards on 18 carries and ran for two touchdowns.
The Rebels are fifth in the SEC and 21st nationally in total offense (473.0).
Wallace is third in the SEC and 24th nationally in passing yards (257.5). He completed 261 of 405 passes for 3,090 yards with 17 TDs and nine interceptions.
Georgia Tech (7-5), which will represent the ACC, also features a potent offense that finished the regular season first inits league and sixth nationally in rushing (311.7 yards).
The Yellow Jackets, which rely on the triple option, also led the ACC in rushing TDs (45).
“Certainly there is some explosiveness offensively in a lot of games and then some close losses,” Music City Bowl president and CEO Scott Ramsey said of the teams.
Ramsey also likes that both school’s campuses are within 250 miles of Nashville and are easy drives for the fan bases.
“These are two very regional teams and with the Atlanta market being included I really expect a lot of fans to roll in here over the long weekend,” he said.
Ole Miss athletics director Ross Bjork said he’s looking forward to a large turnout of Rebels fans.
“Nashville is a hotbed for the Rebel nation in many, many ways,” Bjork said. “We have 126,000 alumni who live within a day’s drive of Nashville.”