2023 Camellia Bowl

The 2023 Camellia Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 23, 2023, at the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama. The 10th annual Camellia Bowl featured the Arkansas State Red Wolves from the Sun Belt Conference and the Northern Illinois Huskies from the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The game began at approximately 11:00 a.m. CST and was aired on ESPN.^[4][5] The Camellia Bowl was one of the 2023–24 bowl games concluding the 2023 FBS football season.

2023 Camellia Bowl
10th Camellia Bowl
Arkansas State Red Wolves Northern Illinois Huskies (6–6) (6–6) Sun Belt MAC 19 21 Head coach:  Butch Jones Head coach:  Thomas Hammock
1 2 3 4 Total Arkansas State 7 6 0 6 19 Northern Illinois 13 8 0 0 21
Date	December 23, 2023
Season	2023
Stadium	Cramton Bowl
Location	Montgomery, Alabama
MVP	Rocky Lombardi (QB, Northern Illinois)[1]
Favorite	Arkansas State by 1.5[2]
Referee	Kevin Randall (AAC)[3]
Attendance	11,310
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN ESPN Radio
Announcers	Courtney Lyle (play-by-play), Hutson Mason (analyst), and Ashley Stroehlein (sideline) (ESPN) Mike Couzens (play-by-play) and Aaron Murray (analyst) (ESPN Radio)
International TV coverage
Network	ESPN Deportes and ESPN Brazil
Announcers	ESPN Brazil: Conrado Giulietti (play-by-play) and Weinny Eirado (analyst)
Camellia Bowl  < 2022  2024 >

Teams

Consistent with conference tie-ins, the bowl featured teams from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and the Sun Belt Conference.

This was the ninth meeting between Arkansas State and Northern Illinois; entering the game, the Huskies led the all-time series 7–1, with the Red Wolves' lone victory coming in 1995. This was the second time that Arkansas State and Northern Illinois played each other in a bowl game, following the 2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl which saw the Huskies defeat the Red Wolves by a score of 38–20.^[6]

Arkansas State Red Wolves

Main article: 2023 Arkansas State Red Wolves football team

Arkansas State entered the game with a 6–6 record (4–4 in the Sun Belt), tied for second in the Sun Belt's West Division.

The Red Wolves started their season with losses to Oklahoma and Memphis, losing by an aggregate score of 110–3.^[7] They won their next three gams, and went on to become bowl eligible with a 77–31 rout against Texas State in their final home game of the season. This was the 11th bowl appearance in Arkansas State program history, and their third Camellia Bowl—they previously lost the 2017 edition and won the 2019 edition.

Northern Illinois Huskies

Main article: 2023 Northern Illinois Huskies football team

The Huskies entered the game with a 6–6 record (5–3 in the MAC), finishing second in their conference's West Division. After losing four of their first five games, the team recovered to win five of their final seven games.

This was Northern Illinois' first appearance in the Camellia Bowl.

Game summary

2023 Camellia Bowl

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Arkansas State	7	6	0	6	19
Northern Illinois	13	8	0	0	21

at Cramton Bowl • Montgomery, Alabama

• Date: Saturday, December 23, 2023
• Game time: 11:00 a.m. CST
• Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 61 °F (16 °C) • Wind: 3 mph (4.8 km/h) SW
• Game attendance: 11,310
• Referee: Kevin Randall
• TV announcers (ESPN): Courtney Lyle (play-by-play), Hutson Mason (analyst), and Ashley Stroehlein (sideline)
• Box score

Game information

First Quarter (9:09) NIU – Grayson Barnes 18 yard pass from Rocky Lombardi, two-point run conversion failed (Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 5:51; Northern Illinois 6–0) (5:59) ARKST – Corey Rucker 42 yard pass from Jaylen Raynor, Dominic Zvada kick (Drive: 1 play, 42 yards, 0:08; Arkansas State 7–6) (1:24) NIU – Rocky Lombardi 6 yard run, Kanon Woodill kick (Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards, 4:35; Northern Illinois 13–7) Second Quarter (9:42) NIU – Kanon Woodill 32 yard pass from Tom Foley, Trayvon Rudolph two-point pass conversion from Rocky Lombardi (Drive: 8 plays, 87 yards, 4:03; Northern Illinois 21–7) (6:30) ARKST – Dominic Zvada 28 yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 65 yards, 3:12; Northern Illinois 21–10) (0:01) ARKST – Dominic Zvada 45 yard field goal (Drive: 5 plays, 31 yards, 0:25; Northern Illinois 21–13) Third Quarter No scoring Fourth Quarter (1:14) ARKST – Corey Rucker 13 yard pass from Jaylen Raynor, two-point pass conversion failed (Drive: 8 plays, 86 yards, 2:38; Northern Illinois 21–19)

Statistics

Statistics	ASU	NIU
First downs	18	26
Plays–yards	57–351	72–421
Rushes–yards	27–101	42–189
Passing yards	250	232
Passing: comp–att–int	16–30–1	19–30–2
Time of possession	19:39	40:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arkansas State	Passing	Jaylen Raynor	16/30, 250 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Jaylen Raynor	13 carries, 49 yards
	Receiving	Corey Rucker	5 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD
Northern Illinois	Passing	Rocky Lombardi	18/29, 200 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Antario Brown	25 carries, 132 yards
	Receiving	Grayson Barnes	5 receptions, 105 yards, TD