If you’ve ever found yourself in Shreveport, Louisiana, in late December, you know the vibe. It’s usually cold, often damp, and there’s a specific kind of electricity humming around Independence Stadium. But the question of who plays in the independence bowl is actually way more complicated than just checking a scoreboard. It is a puzzle of conference tie-ins, "legacy" contracts, and sometimes, total chaos.
Honestly, it’s one of the most unpredictable games in the college football postseason.
The 2025 Matchup: A Regional Grudge Match
For the 49th edition of the game, which just wrapped up on December 30, 2025, we saw a matchup that perfectly illustrates how these selections work. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs faced off against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
Now, you might ask why a team from the Sun Belt (Coastal Carolina) was there when the primary tie-in was supposed to be the Big 12. This is where it gets interesting. While the Big 12 had a primary slot for 2025, the bowl cycle works on a "fill" basis. Because the Big 12 sent several teams to the expanded College Football Playoff—including Texas Tech and others—there weren't enough eligible teams to fill every lower-tier slot.
Louisiana Tech, playing basically in their backyard, took the Conference USA spot. They aren't just a local favorite; they’ve actually appeared in this bowl seven times, the most of any program.
What happened on the field?
Louisiana Tech pulled off a 23-14 win. It wasn't a high-flying shootout. It was a gritty, defensive battle where Bulldogs QB Trey Kukuk earned MVP honors by doing just enough with his legs and arm to keep the chains moving. Coastal Carolina, led by interim coach Jeremiah Johnson, struggled to find a rhythm after a late-season collapse that saw them lose their final three regular-season games.
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How the Teams Are Actually Picked
The selection process isn't a simple "best vs. best" scenario. It’s more like a legal contract with a bunch of "if/then" statements.
For the current cycle (which runs through the 2025-2026 season), the Independence Bowl has specific primary partners. Generally, it looks like this:
- Conference USA: Usually provides one team.
- The Big 12: Slotted for primary spots in odd years (like 2023 and 2025).
- Army West Point: They had a deal to play here in even years (2020, 2022, 2024).
- The Pac-12 (Legacy): This is the weird one. Even though the Pac-12 effectively dissolved, the "Legacy" schools (like Oregon State and Washington State) or the former members now in other conferences still have tie-ins to these bowls through 2025.
If one of these conferences doesn't have enough bowl-eligible teams (teams with at least 6 wins), the bowl committee goes to their backup agreements. They often look at the Sun Belt or the American Athletic Conference (AAC) to fill the gaps.
The Army Factor and the 2024 Chaos
You can't talk about who plays in the independence bowl without mentioning the 2024 season. That was peak college football weirdness.
Army was scheduled to play. They showed up and dominated, beating Louisiana Tech 27-6. But wait—Louisiana Tech wasn't even supposed to be there. Originally, the Marshall Thundering Herd was slated to face Army.
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In a move that shocked the bowl world, Marshall backed out. Why? Because so many of their players entered the transfer portal after their coach left that they basically didn't have a roster to field. Marshall ended up getting fined $100,000 by the Sun Belt for that move. Louisiana Tech stepped in on short notice, which is why we’ve seen the Bulldogs in Shreveport two years in a row.
Why the Location Matters
Shreveport isn't Atlanta or New Orleans. It’s a blue-collar bowl city. Because of that, the committee loves "regional draws." They want teams whose fans can drive to the game. That’s why you see Louisiana Tech, Southern Miss, and ULM (University of Louisiana-Monroe) pop up so often.
If the committee has a choice between a 6-6 team from 1,000 miles away and a 6-6 team from 70 miles away, they are picking the local team every single time. It's about selling tickets and hotel rooms.
Notable Historical Matchups
If you think the Independence Bowl is just for "small" schools, you're dead wrong. Some of the greatest players in NFL history started here.
- The Snow Bowl (2000): Mississippi State vs. Texas A&M. A literal blizzard hit Louisiana. Mississippi State won 43-41 in what many call the most memorable game in the bowl's history.
- Alabama vs. Oklahoma State (2006): Before Nick Saban turned Alabama into a juggernaut, they were losing to Oklahoma State in Shreveport.
- LSU vs. Michigan State (1995): A young Nick Saban was actually coaching Michigan State back then. He got thrashed by LSU, 45-26.
Looking Ahead to 2026
The 2026 game will be a bit of a reset. Most of the current conference contracts expire after the 2025-26 postseason. We are likely to see a new rotation that reflects the massive conference realignment we’ve seen over the last two years.
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Expect more involvement from the "new" Big 12 and potentially a more permanent spot for the AAC or Sun Belt. The days of the Pac-12 tie-in are officially sunsetting.
Summary of Key Selection Rules:
- Eligibility: A team must have 6 wins (with some exceptions for 5-7 teams if there aren't enough 6-win teams).
- The "One-Time" Clause: Army and BYU both had "opt-out" clauses in their contracts allowing them to accept a different bowl invite once per cycle, which happened in 2025 when Army went to the Fenway Bowl instead.
- TV Rights: ESPN basically owns and operates many of these matchups, so they often shuffle teams to ensure the best TV ratings.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you are trying to predict who plays in the independence bowl for future seasons, don't just look at the standings.
First, check if Louisiana Tech is bowl-eligible. If they are, they are a lock for a spot or a high-priority backup. Second, look at the Big 12's middle-of-the-pack teams. If the Big 12 has 9 or 10 bowl-eligible teams, one of them is almost certainly heading to Shreveport.
Finally, keep an eye on the transfer portal. As we saw with Marshall in 2024, a team can be "confirmed" for a bowl on Monday and out of the game by Wednesday if their roster evaporates. Always wait until the official "contract signed" announcement before booking your hotel in Bossier City.
To stay ahead of the curve, monitor the "Bowl Projections" released by experts like Brett McMurphy or Stewart Mandel starting in November. They usually have the inside track on which conferences are likely to fail to meet their win quotas, which triggers the backup agreements that define the Independence Bowl's identity.