Bowl Challenge Cup

Competition among college football conferences
Bowl Challenge Cup
Awarded forBest college football bowl record among Division I Football Bowl Subdivision conferences
CountryUnited States
Presented byESPN
History
First award2002–03
Most winsMountain West (5)
Most recentBig Ten (2023–24)

The Bowl Challenge Cup is a competition among NCAA college football conferences in the Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly called Division I-A, based on win–loss records in the bowl games that take place annually during December and January. The winner is the conference that has the highest winning percentage, among conferences with a minimum of three teams appearing in bowl games.

The Challenge was created in 2002 by ESPN,[1] who also occasionally refers to it as the "Bowl Cup Challenge" when promoting it.[2] Originally sponsored by Cooper Tire,[3] ESPN went several years without a sponsor; since the 2015–16 bowl season, Progressive has been the sponsor.

Participants

The ten Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) conferences that compete in the Bowl Challenge Cup are:

Power Five

  • Atlantic Coast Conference
  • Big Ten Conference
  • Big 12 Conference
  • Pac-12 Conference
  • Southeastern Conference

Group of Five

Former conferences that competed in the Bowl Challenge Cup were:

  • Big East Conference, which reorganized as the American Athletic Conference after the 2012 season
  • Western Athletic Conference, which has not sponsored football in FBS since the 2012 season

Results

Bowl Challenge Cup champions
Bowl season Conference W L Win % Ref.
2002–03 Big Ten 5 2 .714 [4]
2003–04 ACC 5 1 .833
2004–05 Mountain West 2 1 .667 [1]
2005–06 ACC 5 3 .625
Big 12 5 3 .625
2006–07 Big East 5 0 1.000
2007–08 Mountain West 4 1 .800 [5]
2008–09 Pacific-10 5 0 1.000 [6]
2009–10 Mountain West 4 1 .800 [7]
2010–11 Mountain West 4 1 .800 [8]
2011–12 Conference USA 4 1 .800
MAC 4 1 .800
2012–13 Conference USA 4 1 .800
2013–14 SEC 7 3 .700
2014–15 Conference USA 4 1 .800
2015–16 SEC 9 2 .818
2016–17 ACC 9 3 .750 [9]
2017–18 Big Ten 7 1 .875
2018–19 Conference USA 4 2 .667
2019–20 SEC 8 2 .800
2020–21 Big 12 5 0 1.000 [10]
2021–22 Mountain West 5 1 .833 [11]
2022–23 MAC 4 2 .667 [12]
2023–24 Big Ten 6 4 .600 [13][14]
Number of Bowl Challenge Cup championships
Conference Times Championships
Mountain West 5 2004–05, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2021–22
Conference USA (C-USA) 3+1⁄2 2011–12, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2018–19
Big Ten 3 2002–03, 2017–18, 2023–24
Southeastern (SEC) 3 2013–14, 2015–16, 2019–20
Atlantic Coast (ACC) 2+1⁄2 2003–04, 2005–06, 2016–17
Big 12 1+1⁄2 2005–06, 2020–21
Mid-American (MAC) 1+1⁄2 2011–12, 2022–23
American (Big East to 2013) 1 2006–07
Pac-12 (Pacific-10 to 2010) 1 2008–09
Sun Belt 0  
Italics designate a shared title (tie).

References

  1. ^ a b "Mountain West Posts Top Bowl Win Percentage Among FBS Subdivision Conferences". KSL.com. Mountain West Conference. January 10, 2008. Retrieved January 4, 2022. The Mountain West earned its first Bowl Challenge Cup after registering a 2-1 record in bowl competition during the 2004 season
  2. ^ Katz, Sharon (December 13, 2016). "Which conference will win bowl season?". ESPN.com.
  3. ^ "Cooper Tire's Ultimate Bowl Tour Invites Football Fans to Go for the Big Score" (Press release). PR Newswire. August 1, 2004. Retrieved December 30, 2013.
  4. ^ "Bowl Challenge Cup standings". ESPN.com. January 5, 2003. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "2007 Bowl Challenge Cup standings". ESPN.com. January 8, 2008. Archived from the original on January 21, 2008 – via Wayback Machine.
  6. ^ "Bowl Challenge Cup". ESPN.com. January 2009. Archived from the original on January 6, 2011 – via Wayback Machine.
  7. ^ Adelson, Andrea (January 7, 2010). "Mountain West wins Bowl Challenge Cup". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on February 27, 2011 – via Wayback Machine.
  8. ^ Found, Gregg (January 7, 2011). "Mountain West crowned top conference". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  9. ^ Overend, Riley (January 29, 2017). "In College Sports, It's The ACC And Everyone Else". bcheights.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  10. ^ "Conference Bowl Challenge Standings - FINAL". collegefootballpoll.com. January 3, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  11. ^ Newton, Matt (January 2022). "College Football Bowl Challenge Cup Standings". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  12. ^ "Track which conferences are winning the 2022-23 bowl season". NCAA.com. January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  13. ^ Newton, Matt (January 2, 2024). "College Football Bowl Challenge Cup Standings 2023-2024". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  14. ^ "Track which conferences are winning the 2023-24 college football bowl season". NCAA.org. January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 2, 2024.

External links