2021 Guaranteed Rate Bowl
The 2021 Guaranteed Rate Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 28, 2021, with kickoff at 10:15 p.m. EST and televised on ESPN. It was the 32nd edition of the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, although the first played under that name and was one of the 2021–22 [NCAA football bowl games|2021–22 bowl games] concluding the 2021 [NCAA Division I FBS football season|2021 FBS football season]. Residential mortgage company Guaranteed Rate was the game's title sponsor.
Teams
Consistent with conference tie-ins, the game was played between teams from the Big 12 Conference and the Big Ten Conference.This was first time that Minnesota and West Virginia ever played each other.
West Virginia Mountaineers
West Virginia finished their regular season with an overall 6–6 record, 4–5 in Big 12 games. After starting their season with four losses in their first six games, the Mountaineers won four of their final six games to become bowl eligible. West Virginia played four ranked opponents, losing to 2021 [Oklahoma Sooners football team|Oklahoma] and 2021 [Oklahoma State Cowboys football team|Oklahoma State] while defeating 2021 [Virginia Tech Hokies football team|Virginia Tech] and 2021 [Iowa State Cyclones football team|Iowa State].Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota finished their regular season with an overall 8–4 record, 6–3 in Big Ten games. The Golden Gophers were ranked 20th after winning six of their first eight games, but then lost two of their final four games. Minnesota played three ranked teams, losing to 2021 [Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State] and 2021 [Iowa Hawkeyes football team|Iowa] while defeating 2021 [Wisconsin Badgers football team|Wisconsin].Externals links
- at statbroadcast.com