All-American Bowl

The All-American Bowl was an annual postseason college football bowl game played at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama from 1977 to 1990. The game was known as the Hall of Fame Classic from 1977 to 1985.[1]

For the high school football all-star game, see All-American Bowl (high school football).
All-American Bowl (defunct)
StadiumLegion Field
LocationBirmingham, Alabama
Operated1977–1990
Former names
Hall of Fame Classic (1977–1985)

In 1986, the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame decided to relocate the Hall of Fame bowl game to Tampa, Florida, where it eventually became known as the Outback Bowl (now the ReliaQuest Bowl). The game in Birmingham continued as the All-American Bowl, which was played for five years under a different organizing body.

When the Southeastern Conference expanded to twelve schools and began contesting a SEC Championship Game in 1992, Birmingham officials chose to host the conference title game and abandon the All-American Bowl. The SEC championship was moved to Atlanta's Georgia Dome two years later, leaving Legion Field without any Division I-A postseason college football until 2006, when ESPN and the city agreed to establish a new post-season game, the Birmingham Bowl.

The game

The All-American Bowl played host to a number of successful teams from the premier college football conferences of the time (the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Eight (now Big 12 Conference), Big Ten Conference, Southeastern Conference and Southwest Conference). All of them placed teams in the All-American Bowl in various years. At least one of the power conferences fielded teams in the All-American Bowl in every year of its existence; often, two of those premier conferences met in the game. The Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference each placed five teams into the All-American Bowl. The Big Ten Conference proved to be the least successful conference, having never won a game despite placing teams in four different years.

Game results
Date Bowl Name Winning Team Losing Team Attendance[2] Source
December 22, 1977Hall of Fame ClassicMaryland17Minnesota747,000[3]
December 20, 1978Hall of Fame ClassicTexas A&M28#19 Iowa State1241,150[4]
December 29, 1979Hall of Fame ClassicMissouri24#16 South Carolina1462,785[5]
December 27, 1980Hall of Fame ClassicArkansas34Tulane1530,000[6]
December 31, 1981Hall of Fame ClassicMississippi State10Kansas041,672[7]
December 31, 1982Hall of Fame ClassicAir Force36Vanderbilt2875,000[8]
December 22, 1983Hall of Fame Classic#18 West Virginia20Kentucky1642,000[9]
December 29, 1984Hall of Fame ClassicKentucky20#20 Wisconsin1947,300[10]
December 31, 1985Hall of Fame ClassicGeorgia Tech17Michigan State1445,000[11]
December 31, 1986All-American BowlFlorida State27Indiana1330,000[12]
December 22, 1987All-American BowlVirginia22Brigham Young1637,000[13]
December 29, 1988All-American BowlFlorida14Illinois1048,218[14]
December 28, 1989All-American Bowl#24 Texas Tech49#20 Duke2147,750[15]
December 28, 1990All-American BowlNorth Carolina State31#23 Southern Miss2744,000[16]

Most valuable players
Year played MVP[17] Team Position
1977Chuck WhiteMarylandSE
1977Charles JohnsonMarylandDT
1978Curtis DickeyTexas A&MRB
1979Phil BradleyMissouriQB
1980Gary AndersonArkansasRB
1980Billy Ray SmithArkansasLB
1981John BondMississippi StateQB
1981Johnie CooksMississippi StateLB
1982Whit TaylorVanderbiltQB
1982Carl DieudonneAir ForceDE
1983Jeff HostetlerWest VirginiaQB
1984Mark LoganKentuckyRB
1984Todd GregoireWisconsinPK
1985Mark Ingram Sr.Michigan StateWR
1986Sammie SmithFlorida StateRB
1987Scott SeculesVirginiaQB
1988Emmitt SmithFloridaRB
1989James GrayTexas TechRB
1990Brett FavreSouthern MissQB

Conference records

Ranked teams

On several occasions, the All-American Bowl winners finished the season ranked in the AP Top Twenty poll:

  • Texas A&M finished #19 in the final 1978 AP poll after defeating #19 Iowa State.[18]
  • West Virginia finished #16 in the final 1983 AP poll after defeating Kentucky.[19]
  • Kentucky finished #19 in the final 1984 AP poll and the final UPI poll after defeating #20 Wisconsin.[20]
  • Georgia Tech finished #19 in the final 1985 AP poll after defeating Michigan State.[21]
  • Texas Tech finished #19 in the final 1989 AP poll after defeating #20 Duke.[22]

References
  1. Foldesy, Jody. "Bowls burgeon as big business", The Washington Times. December 21, 1997. Page A1.
  2. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). "Bowl/All-Star Game Records" (PDF). 2011 NCAA Division I Football Records. NCAA.org. p. 37. Retrieved October 1, 2011.
  3. "Maryland clips Gophers 17–7". Star Tribune. December 23, 1977. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "ISU bowl jinx continues, 28–12". The Des Moines Register. December 21, 1978. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Missouri pounces on Gamecocks 24–14". The Charlotte Observer. December 30, 1979. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Arkansas tops Tulane in Hall of Fame Game". The Commercial Appeal. December 28, 1980. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "KU's nightmare comes true". The Wichita Eagle. January 1, 1982. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Vandy falls to Air Force". The Montgomery Advertiser. January 1, 1983. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Woodside, Hostetler chill UK in bowl". The Courier-Journal. December 23, 1983. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Badgers drop FG battle". The Reporter. December 30, 1984. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Curfew? Tech slips in, 17–14". The Atlanta Constitution. January 1, 1986. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Freshman running back leads Florida State to victory over IU". The Star Press. January 1, 1987. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. "Cavaliers pass big test". Birmingham Post-Herald. December 23, 1987. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. "Florida edges Illini on late TD". Chicago Tribune. December 30, 1988. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. "Texas Tech ruins Spurrier's finale". The Charlotte Observer. December 29, 1989. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. "USM's final drive falls short". The Clarion-Ledger. December 29, 1990. Retrieved January 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). "Bowl/All-Star Game Records: Most Valuable Players in Former Major Bowls" (PDF). 2011 NCAA Division I Football Records. NCAA.org. p. 100. Retrieved October 1, 2011.
  18. "Final 1978 AP poll at AP Poll Archive.com". Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-06-01.
  19. "Final 1983 AP poll at AP Poll Archive.com". Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-06-01.
  20. "Final 1984 AP poll at AP Poll Archive.com". Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-06-01.
  21. "Final 1985 AP poll at AP Poll Archive.com". Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-06-01.
  22. "Final 1989 AP poll at AP Poll Archive.com". Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-06-01.

See also
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