2021 Gator Bowl (January)
| 2021 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| 76th Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | January 2, 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Season | Network ESPN | | |||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst) and Lericia Harris (sideline) | ||||||||||||||||||
The 2021 Gator Bowl was a
Teams
The bowl matchup was announced on December 20, featuring the NC State Wolfpack of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Kentucky Wildcats of the Southeastern Conference (SEC),[5] consistent with the bowl's conference tie-ins.[6] The teams had met twice previously—a win by NC State in 1909 and a win by Kentucky in 1970.[7][8]
NC State Wolfpack
NC State entered the bowl with an 8–3 record (7–3 in ACC play), ranked 24th in the AP Poll and 23rd in CFP rankings. They also faced five ranked opponents during the season, defeating Pittsburgh and Liberty while falling to Virginia Tech, North Carolina, and Miami (FL). NC State had a 1–3 record in four prior Gator Bowls.
Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky entered the bowl with a 4–6 record, all in SEC contests. They were one of a limited number of teams to enter a
Game summary
1st quarter
Kentucky scored the first points of the bowl game with a twenty-five yard field goal at the 6:00 mark by Kicker Matt Ruffolo after a 9-minute, 68 yard drive. Kentucky had a 3-0 lead at quarter's end.
2nd quarter
Kentucky's lead increased to 10-0 at the 6:23 mark via a four-yard touchdown run by Running Back Chris Rodriguez, Jr. Kentucky would again increase the lead to 13-0 at the end of the half with another field goal by Ruffolo for twenty-six yards.
3rd quarter
At the 2:56 mark, North Carolina State finally scored its first points to make it 13-7 with a nine-yard touchdown pass to Receiver C.J. Riley from Quarterback Bailey Hockman.
4th quarter
Kentucky increased its lead with Ruffolo's third field goal of the game for twenty-yards to make it 16-7 at the 5:45 mark. However, at the 4:46 mark NC State responded with a thirteen-yard touchdown run by Running Back Zonovan Knight to make it 16-14. Kentucky increased its lead again with Running Back Rodriguez, Jr.s' second rushing touchdown of the game for twenty-six yards, making the score 23-14 at the 2:55 mark. At the 1:10 mark, NC State responded again with a two-yard touchdown run by Running Back Jordan Houston to make the score 23-21. Since NC State had used its final timeout at the 1:01 mark, Kentucky was able to run out the clock to seal the victory, winning 23-21. Kentucky Running Back Asim Rose, Jr. was named the Gator Bowl MVP after rushing for 148 yards on only twelve carries, accounting for well more than half of Kentucky's 288 total rushing yards.
Scoring summary
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 23 NC State | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
| Kentucky | 3 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 23 |
at
- Date: Saturday, January 2, 2021
- Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 74 °F (23 °C) • Wind: SSW 13 mph
- Game attendance: 10,422
- Referee: Reggie Smith
- TV announcers (ESPN): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst) and Lericia Harris (sideline)
- ESPN game summary
| Game information |
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Statistics
| Statistics | NCST | UK |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 19 | 19 |
| Plays–yards | 66–318 | 68–380 |
| Rushes–yards | 26–50 | 48–281 |
| Passing yards | 268 | 99 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 27–40–3 | 12–20–0 |
| Time of possession | 25:53 | 34:07 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| NC State | Passing | Bailey Hockman | 27/40, 268 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT |
| Rushing | Zonovan Knight | 12 carries, 52 yards, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Thayer Thomas | 3 receptions, 46 yards | |
| Kentucky | Passing | Terry Wilson | 12/20, 99 yards |
| Rushing | Asim Rose Jr. | 12 carries, 148 yards | |
| Receiving | Keaton Upshaw | 2 receptions, 25 yards |
References
- ^ @JoshMooreHL (January 2, 2021). "A.J. Rose was named Kentucky's MVP of the Gator Bowl (Zonovan Knight named for N.C. State)" (Tweet). Retrieved January 2, 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ "College football bowl betting lines released". 247Sports. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
- ^ Austro, Ben (December 23, 2020). "2020-21 bowl officiating assignments". footballzebras.com. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
- ^ "College Football Bowl Schedule | 2020". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
- ^ "NC State to Play Kentucky in the 76th Taxslayer Gator Bowl". taxslayergatorbowl.com (Press release). December 20, 2020. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
- ^ "2020 Bowl Schedule". collegefootballpoll.com. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- ^ "Kentucky Wildcats vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack football series history games list". winsipedia.com. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
- ^ Fornelli, Tom (January 1, 2021). "Kentucky vs. NC State prediction, pick, odds, line, spread, live stream, TV channel, Gator Bowl kickoff time". CBS Sports. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
External links
- Official website
- Game statistics at statbroadcast.com