PARTICIPATING CONFERENCES
When the seventh Bahamas Bowl takes place in Nassau in December 2021, the game will feature teams from Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference.
CONFERENCE USA
In 2019, Conference USA produced eight teams that were bowl eligible, and all eight played in bowl contests. Charlotte was chosen for the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl, while conference champion Florida Atlantic (Cheribundi Boca Raton) and West Division champion UAB (R+L Carriers New Orleans) were joined by FIU (Camellia), Louisiana Tech (Walk On’s Independence), Marshall (Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla), Southern Miss (Lockheed Martin Armed Forces) and WKU (SERVPRO First Responder) in playing in the postseason.
East Division champion Florida Atlantic won its second C-USA title in three years with a 49-6 victory over West Division champion UAB in the 2019 Ryan Conference USA Championship Game. The Owls finished 11-3 overall, 7-1 in C-USA contests.
Judy MacLeod serves as Commissioner of Conference USA.
MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
The Mid-American Conference had eight teams that were bowl eligible and a conference-record-tying seven played in postseason bowls in 2019. Buffalo was chosen for the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl, while conference champion Miami played in the LendingTree Bowl and West Division champion Central Michigan participated in the New Mexico Bowl. Other MAC bowl participants were Eastern Michigan (Quick Lane), Kent State (Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco), Ohio (Famous Idaho Potato) and Western Michigan (SERVPRO First Responder).
Miami won the 2019 Marathon MAC Football Championship Game with a thrilling 26-21 victory over Central Michigan at Detroit’s Ford Field.
The victory marked Miami’s first championship since 2010 and the 16th MAC championship in program history, including three MAC title game victories. The RedHawks finished 8-6 overall and 6-2 in MAC contests.
Dr. Jon Steinbrecher serves as the Commissioner of the MAC.
SELECTION PROCESS
The highest-ranked conference champion by the College Football Playoff Selection Committee from the American Athletic, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West or Sun Belt will play annually in one of the College Football Playoff bowls (Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl or PlayStation Fiesta Bowl for the 2020 season) if it is not selected for the Playoff Semifinals.
Conference USA has six primary bowl affiliations for the 2019 season with Makers Wanted Bahamas, Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla, Dreamhouse New Mexico, R+L Carriers New Orleans, SERVPRO First Responder and either the SoFi Hawai’i or Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowls. C-USA has secondary 2019 bowl agreements with the Cheribundi Boca Raton and Walk-On’s Independence (should the ACC or SEC not be able to provide a bowl-eligible team).
The MAC has five primary bowl affiliations for the 2019 season with Makers Wanted Bahamas, Mobile Alabama, Cheribundi Boca Raton, Camellia and Famous Idaho Potato Bowls. The MAC has secondary 2019 bowl agreements with the Quick Lane Bowl (should the ACC or Big Ten not be able to provide a bowl-eligible team) and other ESPN owned-and-operated bowl games.
The 2020 Bahamas Bowl participants – selected from among bowl-eligible teams in Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference – will be announced by the bowl, ESPN Events and conference partners once finalized.
