DeKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University Huskies will make their 12th bowl appearance in the last 16 seasons when they travel to Montgomery, Alabama to meet Arkansas State in the Camellia Bowl on Saturday, December 23, 2023. The game will kick off at 11 a.m. (CT) on ESPN.
 
"We are excited to continue NIU Football's bowl tradition with this appearance in the Camellia Bowl," said NIU Vice President/Director of Athletics Sean T. Frazier. "Our team is looking forward to another chance to be on the field together and to take advantage of the bowl experience in Montgomery."
 
The Huskies will play in a bowl game for the 20th time in school history and for the 15th time as a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team with 14 of those 15 appearances since 2004.
 
NIU won five of its last seven games to finish the regular season with a 6-6 record, 5-3 in the Mid-American Conference. Five of the Huskies' six losses in 2023 came by a combined 22 points. NIU's defense is ranked 21st in the country overall and sixth nationally in passing yards allowed, while the Huskie offense is led by 1,000-yard rusher Antario Brown, a first team All-MAC selection behind a line led by fellow first-teamer Nolan Potter.
 
"We are certainly excited about the opportunity to play in the Camellia Bowl against a quality Sun Belt opponent in Arkansas State," said NIU head coach Thomas Hammock, who will complete his fifth season at NIU in the Camellia Bowl. "We're looking forward to a very competitive football game and extended time with this team. Every bowl experience is unique and different; it's a great reward for the way you played throughout the season and an excellent way to send your seniors out the right way. We have the opportunity to finish the season with a championship."
 
Arkansas State is 6-6 on the season and finished 4-4 in the Sun Belt Conference to tie for second place in the West Division. The Red Wolves, who are making their first bowl appearance since 2019 and 18th all-time, feature a true freshman quarterback in Sun Belt Freshman of the Year Jaylen Raynor. ASU previously played in the Camellia Bowl in 2017 and in 2019.
 
The last meeting between NIU and Arkansas State also took place in Alabama when the 2011 Huskies defeated the Red Wolves, 38-20, in the 2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl on January 8, 2012, in Mobile. NIU leads the all-time series between the teams 7-1, including three games played as members of the Big West Conference from 1993-95.
 
The Camellia Bowl, one of 17 college football bowl games owned and operated by ESPN Events, celebrates its 10th anniversary in Alabama's capital city in 2023. MAC teams have played in seven of the previous nine games, including a 23-21 win by Buffalo last year.  The historic Cramton Bowl seats 25,000 and originally opened in 1922 as a baseball stadium.
 
Tickets for the Camellia Bowl are priced at $30 or $40 each with all ticket sales online. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets now using this specific link provided for Huskie fans. By using the link, NIU will be credited with the ticket sale and fans can select seats located in the Huskie fan sections of the Cramton Bowl.
 
Priority seating for Huskie Athletic Fund members at the Camellia Bowl will be allocated based first on 2023 Huskie Athletic Fund annual giving level and then on the priority points rank within each level. The priority ranking deadline is Friday, December 8 at 5 p.m. To make a donation and increase your priority rank, visit HuskieAthleticFund.com and click "Give Now" in the upper righthand corner. The priority deadline to purchase Camellia Bowl tickets is Wednesday, December 13 at 5 p.m.
 
Contact the Huskie Athletic Fund with questions about your annual giving level or priority points rank at 815-753-1923 or HuskieAthleticFund@niu.edu.
 
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